Chapter 981 Losing Money
With the continuous withdrawal of the Allied troops, the security of France also deteriorated sharply. The revolutionary government in Paris that just took over power obviously lacks experience in governance, and the countermeasures it takes are even more ironic.
For example: "Economic Recovery Law", "Employment Law", "Social Assistance Law"...
It seems that these measures are very good, but in fact ignore the feasibility. Whether it is to restore the economy, increase the employment rate, or social assistance, it is inseparable from money.
It just so happens that France is running out of money right now. The European Continental War not only impoverished the French government, but even the private consortium was severely damaged, unable to provide funds for the Paris government at all.
Printing money without money, I don't know which genius came up with the idea. The small currency of 1 franc and 2 francs has long since withdrawn from the stage of history, and the zero on the franc has been increasing since the success of the Paris Revolution.
In France, where everyone is a billionaire, it is not news to carry a bag of money to buy bread.
No matter how hard ordinary people try, they can't keep up with inflation. As The Times described it, the franc increases by a zero every month.
The economy has collapsed, and the revolutionary government of Paris is still in constant infighting. As a scapegoat, President Robert has long been ousted by the angry French people, and now the 17th President of the French Republic - Baptiste.
On average, the government changes twice a month, which truly reflects "the emperor takes turns and will come to my house next year". It can be said that any political faction with a bit of energy has been a president.
However, the final outcome is the same, no matter who comes to power, it will not last long, let alone control the situation.
Hanging a cigar and smoking, President Baptiste asked: "When will the aid of the Continental Union be delivered?"
France has no money and can only turn to the international community to get rid of its financial difficulties. There is no doubt that the European Union is the only one who can help them with the current situation.
Although the British are rich, John Bull's money is hot! The current hegemon of the European continent is the Holy Roman Empire. If he runs to get entangled with the British, he is courting death.
Foreign Minister Fernandez: "It is very regrettable, Your Excellency. The Continental Union has issued an ultimatum, ordering us to determine the choice of the king within a month and restore the monarchy.
If we fail to meet their demands, not only will there be no international aid, but we may be sanctioned by the coalition.
Just yesterday morning, Chekov, head of the Food Committee of the Holy Roman Empire, released the White Paper on Grain Exports, reducing the total amount of grain to be exported to my country in the second half of the year by one million tons. "
In theory, after abandoning the Italian region, France has no shortage of food. But this is only in theory, because of the war, French agricultural production has been devastated, and food has to rely on international imports.
It has not been a day or two for the Holy Roman Empire to monopolize the European grain trade. With the birth of the European Union, this monopoly has been pushed to the extreme.
As a strengthened version of the EU, the customs union is naturally indispensable. The agricultural products of the American countries want to be imported into France, and they also have to pay high tariffs.
If the tariffs are collected by the French government, these are naturally not problems. Regrettably, as part of the sinking fund, France's tariff rights had long since fallen into the hands of the anti-French alliance.
Tax evasion and evasion is impossible, and it involves self-interest. The Vienna government is very strict with the import of foreign agricultural products, industrial and commercial products. Even if someone wants to smuggle, they can only get the goods from their own home.
Against this background, the Holy Roman Empire lowered its grain exports to France, which was undoubtedly a fatal blow to the Paris government.
Once the food input is insufficient and a great famine breaks out, the revolutionary government of Paris can be swallowed up in an instant.
"We've worked so hard, don't we have any effect?"
After speaking, Baptiste closed his eyes. The facts are in front of us, but as long as there are several countries in the alliance to speak for them, it will not fall to this point.
As a member of the Republican faction, Baptiste had no way to compromise on the issue of restoration.
In fact, even if the revolutionary government of Paris was willing to compromise, it would not come to fruition for a while.
It seems that the republicans are in power, but in fact the majority of the government is the royalists. If it weren't for the strength of the three royalist parties being close to each other and restraining each other, otherwise there would be no republican faction at all.
Foreign Minister Fernandez waved his hand and said helplessly: "This is all the responsibility of the Bonaparte Dynasty, and all the countries in Europe have been offended by them, so that our current diplomatic work is difficult to carry out.
Changing this situation cannot be accomplished overnight. Unless the upsurge of the continental revolution comes again, or else..."
The Bonaparte Dynasty offended many countries, and the Paris Revolutionary Government also offended many countries. Just the word "revolutionary party" is enough to cause everyone's strong dissatisfaction.
Revolutions are also contagious, and the Continental Alliance is keen to promote the restoration of France, essentially to curb the spread of revolutionary ideas.
Baptiste interrupted: "Don't say it, now is not the time to export revolutionary ideas. Once we start exporting revolutionary ideas, it is estimated that the Russians outside Paris will immediately kill us and send us to the guillotine!
It's not that I'm afraid, the main reason is that the power of the monarchy and feudal system is too powerful. We don't have the ability to collide with them in a short period of time, so there is no need to make fearless sacrifices. "
Prime Minister Michael Michael warned: "His Excellency the President is right, it is really not time to deal with the enemy head-on.
Right now we are the most important
It is to solve the problem of refugees and unemployment. The refugee issue, in particular, has become a cancer that endangers national security.
Many local governments can't hold it anymore. If we can't take measures as soon as possible, they will bring refugees to Paris.
In fact, some places are already doing it. I went around Paris and it turned out to be ten times worse than we expected.
The relief food distributed by the government cannot be fully covered at all. A lot of places are already messed up, and I witnessed three robberies in one morning.
This is still Paris, and the law and order in other parts of the country will only get worse. If we can't find a way to restore order as soon as possible, I'm afraid..."
The problem is in front of us, and everyone can see it. Unfortunately, how to solve it, everyone is confused. If it can be done easily, France will not change the government frequently.
...
In the distance, a group of ragged people appeared on the horizon. There are men, women and children of all ages, and it can be seen that this crowd, which looks like an army of "beggars", escaped.
A middle-aged man in the lead said panting: "Paris is ahead, and we will have bread when we get there!"
"Really? We won't let us eat grass roots and bark again!"
The young boy's immature face released a suspicious look, which made the middle-aged man very embarrassed.
"Of course it's true, this is Paris, our capital. The richest place in all of France, where you can definitely find something to eat!"
In fact, the middle-aged man has no idea in his heart. Along the way, they've been hit so hard that they're almost numb.
Residents along the way regard them as beasts of the flood, and the so-called local government relief is just a piece of brown bread or a potato every day. One meal is not enough, let alone a day.
To survive, they must not eat wild vegetables. It is a pity that the number of refugees is too large, and the wild vegetables are quickly eaten up. In the end, only bark and grass roots can be used to satisfy hunger.
The middle-aged man, who didn't want to sit still, resolutely took the whole family to Paris, which had become their last hope.
The middle-aged man's family is not the first to go to Paris, nor will it be the last to arrive in Paris. Since the main force of the anti-French alliance withdrew, refugees from all over the world have been pouring into Paris.
The Russian army headquarters outside Paris, who was looking into the distance, suddenly let out a sigh.
"There are more and more refugees in Paris, and I don't know if the French government can hold on."
Concerned about the French government, it is not that he is pro-French. In fact, Admiral Yevgeny was also a staunch anti-French.
If you want to ask the reason, it is that his father and brother met God during the battle of Crimea. The mixture of national hatred and family hatred is the reason why Yevgeny took the initiative to join the garrison.
Rather than caring about the French government, it is more concerned about the reparations that the French government has to pay. Don't look at the fact that in the first year Russia can only get a few million Aegis, but for the tsarist government, this is also an important income.
The fundamental purpose of the Russian troops stationed in France is to ensure the normal performance of the reparations. Once France was in chaos, Admiral Yevgeny's mission would not be complete.
"Your Majesty, you're thinking too much. If the French government can't stand it, it's better to change. No matter who wins or loses in the end, as long as they continue to pay their debts.
With this spare time, it is better to find a way to return to China with some specialties and earn some pocket money.
I think the French's machinery and equipment are pretty good. If you look for the opportunity to seize a few factories and get their equipment back, you will definitely be able to make a lot of money.
By the time……"
Before the middle-aged officer could finish speaking, Admiral Yevgeny interrupted: "Lieutenant General Andrei, if you're too brainy, go for it! Don't take me for this kind of money-losing business. .
You can figure it out by flipping mechanical equipment. Do you know that the domestic industrial standard is the Austrian standard, and who do you sell the French machinery back to? "
Industry standards are a flaw. Whether or not domestic engineers can manipulate French machines aside, the key is that the industrial chain cannot be connected.
Raw material specifications, replacement of spare parts, and whether the product meets market standards, these issues need to be taken into account.
If you really want to move the French machinery and equipment home, you need to move the entire industrial chain together. Obviously, this is not possible.
Relocation, installation and production not only take time, but also require a lot of capital investment. The capital needed to change the industrial chain of the whole country was enough to bankrupt the tsarist government a hundred times.
It is impossible to relocate the industrial chain, just some industrial equipment, it is similar to scrap iron. Dismantling machinery from Paris and returning to China to sell scrap iron, there will be a problem without compensation.
Of course, some low-tech industries with low demand for the industrial chain can still do this, but these industries are usually saturated.
Capitalists cannot replace machinery and equipment in their own factories because the equipment they stole is cheaper, which is not in their interests.