His Excellency the Count of Grandet

The US mission to France is headed by Secretary of State Adams!

"It's been a busy July;" even the most well-informed Parisians say, "the English are gone, the Americans are coming again! Those venerable gentlemen up there can really be busy." Do you have to come over?"

But to be honest, such an official itinerary certainly has signs.

When the Earl of Liverpool took his people from London to Paris, the news had already passed from England to the United States.Now that the Anglo-American War is less than ten years away, the two sides are still competing openly and secretly-on the colonial issue in the Western Hemisphere and the economic and trade between the two countries-of course they are very concerned about each other's dynamics.

Well, the arrogant gentlemen who have always claimed to be an empire on which the sun never sets are so vigorous?From the prime minister to the sheriff, the entourage also includes the most famous financiers and entrepreneurs in the UK. Could it be that they all went to Paris and the countryside in France for vacation?

In layman's terms, it's not too early to be profitable.Americans feel that the British must be so active for the benefits promised by some French, or at least ensure that both parties can benefit from it!

And the strengthening of cooperation between Britain and France is definitely not good news for the United States-no one wants to sit back and watch their competitors become stronger and stronger!That is to say, in the past few years, Britain and France had frictions on certain regional issues in the Far East, and this year it has become a version of honey and oil?

Regardless of who has benefited more from this cooperation, Britain or France, the United States cannot sit idly by.

If France is also moving closer to the United Kingdom in terms of political stance, wouldn't their development prospects in North America be very worrying?

Even if we take a step back, the United States also needs to develop domestically.The British can see that the French's practical industrial technology has begun to leap to the forefront of the world, and of course the Americans can also see it.And what Americans need are all kinds of industries that can promote the domestic economy!Whether it is cotton or steel, whether it is light industry or heavy industry, they cannot ignore it!

At this time, even if the French don't go to the Americans, the Americans will find a reason to come to them, for the sake of a delicate balance, whether it is the political situation or the economy.

Therefore, after obtaining the president's acquiescence, Adams organized the members of the mission himself and sent the proposed list to Paris.The speed was so great that most of the French cabinet and British mission were still in Eperna in the east when the letter arrived.

For this development, France is happy to see its success.Because although the journey of the delegation headed by Victor in the United States was not smooth at the beginning, the result was barely worthy of expectations.

To give the largest and most typical example, a large quantity of cotton ordered by Shire from plantations in the southern United States smoothly crossed the Atlantic Ocean and arrived at the textile factory in Eperna.And precisely because it docked from the western port, it happened to bring goods and profits to the transportation industry along the way.It is even faster and more convenient for Shire's new factory to be set up in Northwest China.

But no matter how you say it, the cost of the cotton obtained in this way is much higher than the local cost, and the profit can be reduced.At the same time, everyone saw that even so, Shire's factory still maintained its usual high wages and high performance, and there was no shortage of cash flow at all!

"Have you heard? Our young Lord Grandet, the newly appointed Minister of Finance, is about to march to the west!" People whispered, "From the Seine Valley to the Loire Valley to the Garonne Valley, all He has left his footprints; one day the Rhone Valley will be covered in his glory!"

If businessmen used to save profits on labor costs and transportation, now they know that the biggest and most critical parts are not in these two areas at all——

It is true that if you save money, you will save more; but it is useless to save money, because there is a limit, that is, it does not exceed the money you earn; to break this situation, you must create more Big profits come in!

There is a word called increasing revenue and reducing expenditure, which just fits this situation; the profit space that open source can bring is definitely much more than reducing expenditure!

In layman's terms, money is earned, not saved!

Charles, who has always been unstingy, understands the essence of it, but he is not the only one who understands this universal truth.Such as Hampton, such as Webster, such as Adams and Monroe.

This group of Americans is so smart that the national economy represented behind them is also developing steadily.With the current strength of the United States and the United Kingdom, in a few years, this emerging country will definitely ask to join the ranks of the old empires and gain the status of dividing up the interests of the world——

Judging from the almost non-stop rush of American missions to Paris, doesn't this imply that kind of ironclad future?

This incident undoubtedly became the one that must be burned most among the three fires that Shire's new official took office.Because the Chancellor of the Exchequer is just a common name for the position he holds. Its full name is actually the Minister of Economy, Industry and Employment, and its position in the cabinet is second only to the Chairman of the Council of Ministers!

"...Anyway, with you sitting next to me, I think our side is very confident."

Before the formal meeting between the two parties, the Duke of Richelieu said this to Charles.He also served as the chairman of the Council of Ministers before, and the finance minister in the cabinet at that time was Baron Louis; although Baron Louis and Shire had similar attitudes in terms of economic freedom, Shire undoubtedly had an incomparable advantage over the former——

He relied on his own hands to reach his current high position step by step. He undoubtedly has rich experience in industrial management, which is obviously far better than some financiers who only talk on paper!

"Your high praise really terrifies me." Charles replied with a just right smile on his face.In fact, even he only expected that the Americans would not be willing to be left behind; but the other party came so quickly... In other words, they once again had a relative advantage before the negotiations started!

The Duke of Richelieu apparently thought so too. "Based on the width of the Atlantic Ocean, I have to give them a quick compliment—I've never seen such efficiency!" He turned his head to look at Charles, "This must still be directed at you, if I didn't expect it wrong words; you hold in your hand something that most nations would covet!"

It is already great to make one country salivate, but to make many countries... There is no doubt that it can only be advanced productive forces!As long as time is still moving and history is still moving forward, this is the biggest trend!

Charles continued to smile.Of course he understands this, and he also understands when he should hoard and when he should flow some benefits from his fingertips. "Thank you for your reminder," he replied equally tactfully, "I can swear to you that you can absolutely trust me when it comes to the national interest!"

Duke Richelieu nodded in satisfaction.If it is said that he did not have a deep understanding of Shire's abilities before, getting along with him in recent days has been enough to refresh his inherent understanding of merchants——

If the domestic merchants are like Shire, no, as long as they have one-tenth of Shire, then their cabinet affairs will be at least half easier!Whether it is the Minister of War or the Secretary of the Home or whatever, things at hand will be much easier to do!Even the king, when the treasury is full, can get a lot of extra praise for his kindness and generosity!

In this way, the Duke of Richelieu led his own personnel into the conference hall, full of confidence; more importantly, he knew very clearly where his confidence came from, and he also knew that the Americans would never have such an advantage as him!

Naturally, it was impossible for the Americans across the long table to ignore this kind of momentum.After the leaders of the two sides shook hands and talked about the scene, Secretary of State Adams' eyes naturally slipped to Charles beside Duke Richelieu.

"I haven't seen you for a year, my dear count," he said with a smile, and it was hard to tell that there was a real smile in his eyes. "You really impress everyone, no matter what it is!"

Although the Americans reacted quickly enough, for them, the news they heard as soon as they landed almost immediately stunned their mission from top to bottom——

The main negotiating object of their trip was not Baron Louis or Victor, nor Duke Richelieu or Louis XVIII, but Charles?

Come to think of it, the last time the French were in Washington, Charles was just an ordinary businessman, mingling in the inconspicuous circle of businessmen behind the embassy, ​​right?Even when entering the actual negotiation later, Shire was quite low-key. At best, he could only see from the highest transaction amount that he had a lot of money and a lot of money...

But just over a year later, Charles transformed from an ordinary Frenchman into a powerful nobleman, and even managed to get the most important position in the cabinet!

How did this happen?You know, being rich and having power are not the same thing at all!This kind of development is beyond everyone's imagination!

This kind of surprise, Charles could guess without looking. "Hello, Your Excellency Secretary of State." He said unhurriedly, with a polite but polite smile in his eyes and face, exactly the same as Adams' performance, "Thank you for your generosity." Your compliment. But for me, it is a great honor to finally sit across from you this time.”

Look at this neither humble nor overbearing attitude!

Alarm bells rang in Adams' mind.They traveled thousands of miles to come here, of course, to obtain some benefits, as much as possible; but Charles has just taken office as the Minister of Finance, and he has skillfully displayed the most appropriate manners...

He had a premonition, not the worst, but vigilant enough.That is, they may be able to achieve their goals, but the process is very difficult; what is more likely to happen is that they may have to see-saw the entire process in this seemingly stress-free but oppressive posture.

Adams suddenly wondered how the British talked to such a Frenchman.Why, according to his opinion, in this situation—no one can offer a more attractive bargaining chip than Charles—the biggest winner will always be the French?