I am the Crown Prince of France

Chapter 42: The Loan Crisis

"You won't regret your decision today," Manager Brent said with a confident smile, offering a slight bow. "Viscount Baudouin, congratulations on becoming part of Paris Angel!"

Count Albrow hadn't expected the young viscount to act so boldly, but he quickly followed suit, saying, "I've decided to invest in a franchise store as well."

"That's wonderful, Count! Your investment sense remains as sharp as ever."

The other nobles were stunned. Just a moment ago, they had been negotiating, and now the three Paris stores were already taken!

It was a well-known saying that "France has two provinces: Paris and everywhere else." As the political, economic, and cultural center of France, Paris had a much higher purchasing power than any other region.

If someone was willing to invest such a large amount, it clearly indicated the profitability of this business. Those who had hesitated now felt a pang of regret, kicking themselves for their lack of boldness.

But if they missed out once, they couldn't afford to miss out again!

Duke Lavalier quickly added, "I'll open a store in Reims—my family's estate is there."

"Ahem, I'll join as well. I have some businesses in Marseille, so I'll open two stores there."

"And I'll invest in one too..."

That evening, back at his home, Brent kissed the seven signed franchise contracts with all his might, jumping around and shouting like a madman.

Joining Paris Angel was undoubtedly the best decision he had ever made. Earlier that afternoon, he had achieved financial freedom—Joseph had promised him a 3,000-livre commission for every franchise signed.

This meant Brent was now a wealthy man with over 20,000 livres to his name!

He poured himself a glass of wine, savoring it along with the contracts, and happily began planning: first, he would buy a mansion in the Louvre district or the Saint-Germain area, then he would go to Viscount Marchais to propose to his son. That old miser could no longer mock his family for being poorer than his—ha!

...

Joseph signed each of the franchise contracts that Brent had brought, not particularly surprised by the outcome.

Paris Angel's profitability was clear to anyone with eyes. Although the French government was poor, the people were relatively wealthy, so it wasn't difficult to attract investors for such a promising venture.

Seven stores were just the beginning. Joseph estimated that once these franchises opened, their success would likely attract at least twice as many franchisees.

After Brent left, Joseph, in his capacity as France's Deputy Minister of Finance, headed to the Minister of Finance's office.

As soon as he stepped inside, all the officials gathered around, enthusiastically offering their congratulations. "Your Highness, congratulations!"

"You saved the Dutch!"

"The Prussians retreated with their tails between their legs, haha."

"The Prince of France, blessed by the gods!"

Minister of Finance Briand came forward, sincerely praising him. "Your Highness, I heard about what happened in Holland. I must say, your diplomatic skills are truly impressive!"

Joseph smiled modestly. "This was France's victory. I merely gave it a little push from behind."

After another round of praise, the crowd slowly dispersed.

Briand's expression became more serious. "Your Highness, I've received word that the High Court's verdict should be out in the next few days, and it's expected that they will once again refuse to register the bill."

Joseph wasn't surprised. The bill had been designed to provoke a rejection.

He replied calmly, "Archbishop Briand, there's no need to worry. This is just the beginning—I haven't even played my hand yet."

Briand, recalling the Prince's brilliant maneuvers in Holland, felt more reassured. He offered some words of encouragement before casually mentioning, "By the way, I noticed in yesterday's financial report that your loan hasn't been finalized yet?"

"That's right. Thanks for the reminder. I'll take care of it right away."

Back in his office, Joseph reviewed the recent important matters and asked his assistant, "Has tomorrow's loan negotiation with Laville Bank been postponed again?"

The assistant replied with a helpless look, "Yes, Your Highness. They said they're currently auditing their accounts and don't have the capacity for other transactions at the moment."

Joseph frowned. "What about Laborde Bank?"

"They haven't responded yet, but I've heard they've invested heavily in the British automated loom industry, so they might not be able to provide a loan of several million livres in the short term..."

"Hmm?" Joseph narrowed his eyes.

From what he knew, the French government had been working with these two banks for short-term loans for over a decade. In the past, the banks would have prepared the loan agreements months in advance, without even needing the Deputy Minister of Finance to step in.

But now, with only half a month left before the bonds matured, both banks were stalling. If this wasn't a problem, then it was downright suspicious!

In this era, the banking system was highly inefficient. It could take several days to process and disburse a loan of over 6 million livres after the agreement was signed. In other words, if they delayed for another eight or nine days, France's finances would be on the brink of default!

Joseph knew he needed to come up with another solution. He immediately turned to Émond, who was standing by the door. "Please prepare the carriage. I need to visit the Paris Discount Bank."

"Yes, Your Highness!"

By midday, Joseph had arrived at the headquarters of the Paris Discount Bank, France's largest bank.

The bank's manager welcomed the Prince with great ceremony, along with a group of senior executives, and even invited him to lunch.

However, when Joseph brought up the loan, the manager politely declined, saying, "Your Highness, we have a longstanding agreement with Laville and other banks. They handle large government short-term loans, so it's not appropriate for us to engage in this type of business."

Joseph tried to persuade them for a long time, but in the end, the Discount Bank was only willing to provide a medium- to long-term loan with collateral, and the fundraising process could take a while.

Disappointed, Joseph left and headed to the Paris Bank, only to receive the same response as before.

His last stop was the Royal Bank, but... they were truly out of money.

Despite being a major bank, the Royal Bank had never recovered from the fallout of John Law's Mississippi Company Ponzi scheme, which had caused hyperinflation and ruined the bank's reputation. Like the French government, the Royal Bank was now broke.

In the end, only two medium-sized banks were willing to lend 600,000 livres to the French government, but the interest rate was a staggering 25%. As for the smaller banks, many had capital of only a few hundred thousand livres, so they couldn't offer much in the way of loans.

Back in his carriage, Joseph's expression was grim. It seemed clear that these banks were acting in concert, and it wasn't just a matter of trying to raise the interest rate.

He turned to his finance assistant. "Can we use administrative measures to pressure these banks?"

The assistant immediately grimaced. "Your Highness, given the current state of the government's finances, it wouldn't be wise to create tension with the banking sector..."

Joseph took a deep breath and looked out the carriage window at Carnot Bank, saying in a low voice, "They think they can manipulate the country's finances just because they control the money?

"Fine, then I'll just start my own bank."

(End of Chapter)

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