It was the soldiers who spoke the most pleasantly. Napoleon III's irritable mood finally improved, but Olivier, the unenlightened prime minister, still had no end.
"No, I firmly oppose it! Suppression can only intensify people's emotions and make more civilians join this wave of resistance...Only reform can completely solve the problem!" Olivier also wanted to persuade the emperor.
"Increase the power of parliament, absorb more civilian members, and give citizens the right to participate in politics...increase investment in education and medical care, and slightly reduce military expenditures. If Paris can have ten more charities, the number of citizens who oppose you will be It will be reduced by at least half..."
"The work intensity of ordinary workers is too intense. We should use laws to set basic wages, reduce working hours, and organize some labor organizations so that they can make representations to the government..."
"If Your Majesty can accept my method, I believe that in half a year I can make all the workers in France love you again!"
"Oh God! Half a year?" Montauban stood up from his chair and said with an exaggerated expression, "Don't be too idealistic, my dear Prime Minister, how can you waste half a year now?"
"Do you know what the monthly cannon output of the Prussian Soldier Factory is? How many rounds of various types of artillery shells can be produced per month? How many rounds of bullets?"
"Right now, the busiest places in the cities and villages of Prussia are the recruiting stations! Retired veterans and young recruits have formed reserves and have begun training in the military camps!"
"If a war actually breaks out in the future, how many troops do you think Prussia will mobilize? Five hundred thousand? Or one million?"
"At such a critical moment, you actually proposed to reduce military spending? My God, this is a joke..."
Olivier gave Montauban a run for his money, and in the end he couldn't sit still. "General! There is still half a year. Don't forget that the emperor of the Qing Dynasty is about to visit Europe. This important diplomatic event that has not happened in a thousand years will definitely have an impact." The political situation in Europe…”
"Even the most arrogant war maniac will calm down and see what changes will happen after this diplomatic feast. No one will blindly take action before the changes happen... Bismarck is not a madman, he is a calm and iron-blooded prime minister. !”
"In addition, I also firmly believe in the strength of the French army. Has the glorious tradition left by Napoleon been completely lost now? France has defeated Prussia several times, and its defeated generals are not worth mentioning at all!"
"It is better to reform first, and quelling public dissatisfaction is the first priority!"
The two immediately started quarreling, and Napoleon III felt his head hurt. "That's enough! Stop talking..."
In the end, the emperor chose his cronies. After all, Olivier was just a pawn thrown by himself to quell public anger. The real cronies were the generals in these armies.
"We should wait until the crisis subsides to discuss reform. The first task now is to solve the trouble caused by this group of Chinese people..."
"Montauban, I allow you to cooperate with the work of the police department. Those traitors must be dealt with seriously... That's enough, Olivier, I understand what you mean, but the time is not right and we cannot carry out reforms now..."
"I promise you, as long as the crisis subsides, I will still push forward the reform... Constitutional monarchy is not... impossible!"
"Finally...notify the other side of the Suez Canal...let our people make a move. It would be best if this Chinese visit is disrupted..."
The French Emperor made his own decision, and then the entire empire's administrative system began to move, and all departments were activated.
The telegraph office began to send orders to military bases across the country, including overseas, and the French fleet stationed on Corsica began to set sail toward the Suez Canal.
At this moment, the right to operate the Suez Canal is controlled by France, and the British do not hold many shares. France has two brigades of troops stationed on both sides of the canal, while the British only have two regiments.
It can be expected that when the Chinese combined fleet is preparing to pass through the canal, the French side will certainly cause all kinds of troubles, and may even cause a misfire.
Not only overseas forces have begun to take action, but France is also in a bloody situation.
In the prison of the secret police, the interrogators were given strict orders to start elevating the level of torture. Members of underground workers' organizations and left-wing organizations were subjected to cruel and inhuman treatment.
The order issued by the National Police Agency was to give a confession regardless of life or death. The interrogators began to use large amounts of drugs as hallucinogens, and then cooperated with torture to extract confessions.
The secret prison suddenly became a hell on earth, and the screams even spread beyond the high walls!
Thousands of confessions were sent out every day. The military and police, who had been prepared for a long time, rushed to secret printing strongholds and destroyed the secret clubs of left-wing underground organizations.
Perhaps Montauban wanted to show the emperor a hands-on attitude to please him, so one night he personally led a team to attack a bar in a slum area.
The screaming barmaid, the frightened boss, and the dirty workers fleeing, surrounded by beating torches and soldiers with live ammunition.
Montauban covered his mouth with a handkerchief and looked at everything in front of him excitedly, "Come in! Anyone who dares to resist will be killed without mercy..."
The wolf-like soldiers rushed into the backyard of the bar. In a secret tunnel leading to the sewer, they seized a large number of printing equipment and more than 30 workers.
Unwilling to surrender, the workers chose to retreat while fighting. The two sides immediately exchanged fire. Montauban listened to the gunshots underground with a sullen face. "Damn it, you are actually secretly accumulating arms and weapons? Are you going to riot? It must be provided by Prussia." Arms, definitely..."
He turned his eyes and said coldly, "Who is the policeman in charge of this slum? Come here, I have something to ask you..."
Montauban covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief stained with perfume, and said impatiently, "You lead a group of soldiers and search the surrounding houses... I don't believe that this stronghold can escape your eyes without the cover of the people around it!"
"All the women and children around here are suspects. Arrest them...and shout to the ground! If they don't surrender, I will kill these accomplices!"
"Act now, immediately!"
On the banks of the Seine River, in the slums, everything was in chaos. All the homes within a radius of 200 meters from the bar were smashed open.
The police who were familiar with the people's situation in the police area and the soldiers began to screen the "accomplices". Scholars, intellectuals and small businessmen were all spared. All workers' families automatically became left-wing families, and the whole family was arrested without any identification.
Especially families where the man is not at home but only corrupt officials have become the focus of attention. Soon the bar was filled with more than a hundred suspects.
"Listen, underground criminals... stop resisting immediately and come out... otherwise the women and children near the bar will become accomplices and thrown into jail!"
"I'll give you three minutes to think about it...their lives are in your hands!"
Bang bang bang... More intensive gunshots came from the ground, followed by angry roars and curses.
Montauban's eyes were twitching and he suddenly shouted, "Shoot ten of them and throw the bodies down... Let them know the price of rebellion!"
There was a burst of wailing in the bar. Women and children hugged each other and crowded together. Everyone was afraid that they would become one of the ten.
"No... for God's sake, we have not committed a crime, we are innocent!"
