I Am the Crown Prince in France

Chapter 368 Coal Treasure House

What Karl II didn't know was that Joseph had implemented a rotation mode in order to keep the Guard Corps strong and morale. Two regiments of troops were stationed in two important towns south of Brussels, and 1,000 people were left in the middle area for alert. Together with the hussars who were scattered for reconnaissance, only half of the troops were in combat readiness, and the other half were undergoing daily training in the north of Namun.

Every one and a half months, the two sides rotated.

In addition, he also recruited 5,000 locals in Wallonia to form the "Wallonia Guard" to assist in the war in Brussels. In the French-speaking area of ​​the Southern Netherlands, as long as they were given a little military pay, there were a lot of people willing to serve the French Crown Prince.

In other words, under the current stalemate, 7,000 Guard Corps soldiers, plus 5,000 temporarily recruited miscellaneous troops, can deal with the 40,000 people with low morale on the opposite side.

Karl II recalled the humiliation of being captured, and angrily ordered several officers in front of him to go back and organize the troops, and then launch an attack on the French army three days later.

After the Hanoverian generals left in silence, Karl II gradually calmed down. The French army south of Brussels was extremely powerful, and he himself had experienced it. At that time, the two sides did not even face off, and he was defeated.

And the battle situation in the past month has also proved that it is difficult to win this battle with only the little force in his hands, plus the "peasants" in the South Netherlands who can't even stand in a company.

He sighed, sat down behind the desk, and wrote a letter for help to his brother-in-law, King George III of the United Kingdom.

Originally, he sent troops to intervene in the situation in the South Netherlands at the request of George III, but now this has become his own war.

After putting the letter into the envelope, he felt that it was not safe enough, so he picked up the pen again and wrote a letter to British Prime Minister Pitt the Younger. The core content of the two letters was basically the same, both asking Britain to send troops to reinforce Brussels.

While Karl II was anxious about the war situation, Joseph was reviewing the results of the recruitment examination of the "Southern Netherlands Military Supplies Preparation Committee" that had just been submitted.

Yes, Joseph II agreed to France's request for logistical supplies in the southern part of the Southern Netherlands almost without hesitation, and ordered Austrian officials in the Southern Netherlands to fully cooperate.

At the same time, he also wrote back to highly affirm the decisive role played by the French army in quelling the rebellion in the Southern Netherlands and combating the invading forces such as Prussia and Hanover. At the end of the letter, the Holy Roman Emperor mentioned that Luxembourg would be used as a thank you for France's troops.

After that, Joseph ordered the establishment of this "Military Supplies Preparation Committee", which actually took over the taxation, finance and commercial trade of the Wallonia region. After monopolizing the financial power, the administrative management of the Wallonia region was basically decided by the Preparatory Committee-if any local official did not obey, you can forget about your salary next month.

The high-level officials of the committee were all transferred from France, while the middle and lower-level officials were all locals in Wallonia.

Joseph borrowed the experience of the previous "civil servant recruitment examination" in Tunisia and also held a recruitment examination in Wallonia. Naturally, he claimed to the outside world that it was to "select capable people to raise urgently needed materials for the front line as soon as possible", but in fact it was to win over the elite class in Wallonia.

As he expected, the nobles and capitalists in Wallonia flocked to this assessment, and the examination was completed in less than three weeks with extremely high efficiency.

Joseph looked at the names of the 103 selected candidates and the positions recommended for them by the chairman of the committee, former assistant to the municipal commissioner of Le Tal, France, and shook his head slightly.

Seeing this, Folie's heart tightened, and he hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, are there any inappropriate things about these positions?"

Joseph raised the documents in his hand: "Can 103 people ensure the supply of materials on the front line? Once the logistics supply is problematic, we may lose the war at any time!"

Foulie was stunned: "What do you mean?"

"At least 300 positions responsible for raising materials are needed to be safe."

Although President Folie was confused, he naturally had no objection since the Crown Prince was willing to pay the salary: "Ah, yes, Your Highness, I will start to adjust it immediately."

Joseph naturally did not have too much salary to pay, but the people recruited in this exam were basically the team he would manage the bureaucratic system of Wallonia in the future, and 300 people were far from enough.

He looked at Viscount Flott on the side, the "elite" who had personally delivered intelligence and oats to the Guards Corps before: "There are 30 more positions. Please discuss with several other 'coordinators' and recommend some talented people to me."

Viscount Flott is currently the coordinator of the committee in Mons, which is basically equivalent to the deputy mayor. As a representative of the noble power in Wallonia, the people he nominated must be influential in Wallonia.

This is equivalent to the formation of a community of interests between France and the local people of Wallonia. In the future, even if Austria does not want to let go of Wallonia, these people will be the first to oppose it.

"Thank you for your trust!" Viscount Flot hurriedly touched his chest and saluted, saying excitedly, "I will do my best to select the best talents for you!"

"Then I'll trouble you." Joseph smiled and nodded, and then continued, "Oh, regarding the establishment of the 'Wallonia Coal Industry Joint Company', please cooperate with President Fulie."

"Yes, Your Highness."

The so-called Wallonia Coal Industry Association is a company funded by the French Reserve Bank to acquire or control coal mines in Wallonia. Affected by the war, the price of coal mines has also experienced a cliff-like drop in recent months, which is the best time to invest.

However, unlike the small Luxembourg, the French Reserve Bank is unable to buy all the coal mines, so Joseph brought in investors from France and Wallonia to invest in this company together.

Of course, the decision-making power must be in the hands of the French Reserve Bank. As the largest investor, with the support of the Military Supplies Preparatory Committee, the French Reserve Bank was elected as the "only veto director" without much effort.

It won't be long before Wallonia's huge coal reserves, which are enough to match those of the Ruhr area in Germany, can become a strong support for the French Industrial Revolution.

And when the coal industry association gets orders from France continuously, the profitable Wallonia investors, sellers and workers will also have a stronger dependence on France.

…

The British Foreign Secretary, the Marquis of Wellesley, did not go directly to Paris as the Prime Minister requested to negotiate with France on India’s interests, but took a ship to go to Brussels via the port of Amsterdam, braving the war.

He knew very well that the bargaining chips in his hand were far from enough to trade India with the French, so he hoped to find some bargaining chips on the front line of the Southern Netherlands.

However, as soon as he got off the ship, he received news that Charles II had asked Britain for help.