Descending On France 1780
Chapter 323: Everyone is really looking forward to embracing the Steam Age.

Chapter 323: Everyone is really looking forward to embracing the Steam Age.

As Anning was suddenly overwhelmed by emotion, Talleyrand said, "Concerning the wedding, have you decided on the Bishop to officiate it?"

Anning narrowed his eyes: Smart move, Talleyrand, aiming for this all along!

In Europe of this era, you’ve got to have a Priest to preside over a wedding.

In fact, from the moment Europeans are born in this era, they’re entangled with priests.

Just out of the womb and they need a priestly baptism, coming of age they seek priestly blessings, a wedding requires a priest officiant, childbirth means getting priests to baptize the kids... and finally, at life’s end, it’s priests who conduct the funerals.

Thus, priests possess immense power; their previous oath of loyalty led to a split among them, resulting in a divided France.

Don’t be fooled by how Talleyrand once sold off church property willingly and proposed its confiscation to save the Parliament. He is, indeed, a Bishop recognized by the Pope in Rome.

Anning: "What, you plan to be the officiant?"

Talleyrand laughed: "Nothing can be hidden from you."

— Damn it, you call this hiding? How did I not see you hide anything? You’ve practically written "I want to officiate" all over your face, and then you say "Nothing can be hidden from you." These flatteries are just too blunt.

Suppressing his urge to ridicule Talleyrand’s straightforward flattery, Anning went straight to business: "About whether to invite a Bishop to officiate the wedding, Christina and I are actually still considering it."

Talleyrand exclaimed in shock: "No officiant? That would be disastrous, putting you at odds with the whole Church Court! Not only that, the religious masses would also disapprove, calling you the child of Satan or something."

Indeed, that was a possibility.

Incidentally, Christina also leaned towards having a priest officiate the wedding – Anning is an atheist, a hardcore military man, but his wife is not.

His words were meant to gauge Talleyrand’s reaction.

Anning: "Relax, we just thought about it and didn’t really decide. Bishop Talleyrand, are you sure you still have the... erm, authority to officiate weddings?"

Talleyrand shrugged: "Even though I’ve sworn allegiance to France, not the Pope in Rome, the old man hasn’t revoked my bishopric. I am still, undeniably, a Bishop certified by the Vatican."

Saying that, Talleyrand pulled out a little bishop’s hat and placed it on his head.

To be honest, Anning always found these priestly hats rather funny—even before he crossed over into this time.

Anning: "Alright, since you are qualified, I’d like to ask you to act as the officiant for our wedding."

Talleyrand smiled faintly: "I will fulfill the mission. By the way, have you decided on the church for the wedding? If not, please allow me to recommend..."

"We’re planning on using Notre Dame in Paris," Anning interrupted Talleyrand, "I agree because I’m especially fond of the architecture."

Mostly because much later there would be a great writer who named a book after this building, which Anning happened to particularly like—along with the movie that was based on the book.

Talleyrand: "Oh, Notre Dame, exquisite taste, indeed, General!"

Anning: "Can you stop with the endless flattery? Haven’t you heard that I’m not very fond of it?"

Talleyrand: "My apologies, it’s a habit of mine in socializing; I forgot that you are..."

"Enough," Anning interjected, "I agreed to the wedding officiation. If there’s nothing else, you may go, Bishop."

But Talleyrand didn’t take his leave. His eyes flicked, and he said, "I have another matter. I wonder if you are currently... accepting investments?"

"You want a share of the dividends too?" Anning replied, "You understand the UK, so you should be aware it’s the threshold of the Steam Age now, right?"

Talleyrand: "Of course I know, the British have erected many smokestacks that belch out smoke every day, all powered by steam boilers. But I also know there have been several movements to destroy machinery in Britain!

"Like the large-scale one in 1778, and smaller ones that have repeatedly occurred since. Several have happened just in the half-year I was in England.

"The Steam Age you advocate for probably won’t be as smooth as you imagine."

Anning thought, no kidding, do you think I don’t know that?

But outwardly he smiled and said: "There might be some side effects, but nothing in this world comes without side effects.

"The British are using steam engines to greatly improve their production. Their national power is getting stronger, and while it might not seem obvious now, one day, they will become the global superpower.

"As Frenchmen, we can’t let that happen. So we must develop our own steam industry and surpass the British.

"Talleyrand, you understand Britain, you know my words aren’t just noble excuses or covers for gathering wealth. I truly intend to develop the steam industry and genuinely plan to offer generous returns to every investor!

"The return isn’t what many people imagine; it’s real economic profit!"

Talleyrand was stunned by Anning’s impassioned speech. When Anning finished, it took a moment for Talleyrand to remember to respond: "A truly magnificent idea. Please let me contribute to this magnificent endeavor and, incidentally, make a profit."

Anning: "You’re going to put up five hundred ounces of gold?"

Talleyrand: "I... don’t have that much. I can only offer a little over a hundred ounces."

That’s still a lot!

So when you put forward the motion to confiscate church property to subsidize the Parliament, you didn’t do too badly for yourself, eh!

How can you build a better France while mingling with such greed?

But Talleyrand, among all the opportunists and ambitious men, did push for progress in France – just like Fouché, whose achievement was establishing the modern police system.

Anning: "Alright, deposit the gold bars into the bank I opened. The bank is running a promotion right now: by depositing gold, you get an equivalent amount of Paper Francs, one of my strategies to solidify the value of paper money.

"After receiving the paper money, you can purchase any merchandise from my commercial guild."

Talleyrand: "Only paper money?"

"Of course, there’s also the investment certificate; all the necessary paperwork is ready. As for the dividend rules, we’ve stipulated one gold bar equals ten thousand shares, with dividends paid at the end of each year based on the total shares." Anning rattled this off with the smoothness of an insurance salesman.

Talleyrand: "You speak so fluently; have you already mentioned this to many investors?"

Anning feigned ignorance: "Yes, especially since the news of my wedding went out, for some reason more people are investing! Everyone seems eager to embrace the upcoming Steam Age!"