The day after Christmas in the Western calendar, discussions about postwar matters began.
These matters are not discussed publicly in the hall, but negotiated one by one in private.
French Prince Charles and French Foreign Minister Talleyrand followed Lin Zexu and Niu Jian into Zhu Jingyuan's palace study.
Zhu Jingyuan was wearing casual clothes and sitting on a large couch.
There is a small table in the middle of the couch, with fruits, snacks, and tea on it.
Zhu Jingyuan directly asked Charles to sit opposite him, on the other side of the small table on the couch.
Let Lin Zexu, Niu Jian, and Talleyrand sit on the armchairs in front of the couch.
The five people chatted about the problems of post-war France and French Canada.
After saying hello, Zhu Jingyuan spoke first and asked a question that seemed a bit biased:
“Where do you plan to place the capital of the French Canadian colony in the future?”
Talleyrand frowned upon hearing this. This seemingly simple question was actually a very difficult one to deal with.
The original capital of French Canada was Quebec.
Quebec was given to the Ming Dynasty and then moved to Buffalo, and now Buffalo was given to Napoleon.
Meanwhile, what is now French Canada, received the northeastern portion of British America.
There are several important coastal or river cities here.
First New York, then Philadelphia, Baltimore, Boston.
It seems that there are several places suitable for the capital.
But the three cities of New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore were all under the eyes of the Dongyi Kingdom of the Ming Dynasty.
Only Boston pulled away slightly.
Boston was also roughly located geographically in the middle of what would become French Canada.
It seems that Boston can be chosen as the capital.
But the choice of this capital is related to the relationship with the Ming Dynasty.
France chose Boston as the capital of Canada, which is equivalent to making a gesture to be wary of the Ming Dynasty.
Talleyrand's mind considered various possibilities in an instant.
But Charles, who was sitting opposite Zhu Jingyuan, already expressed his choice without hesitation:
"Of course it's New York. New York is a rare natural harbor in Beiyinzhou, and it's also the largest city in Canada.
"The key is that the core area of the Dongyi Kingdom of the Ming Dynasty is on Long Island next to New York, which facilitates direct communication between us."
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Talleyrand's expression suddenly became very tangled.
If there was no Dongyi Kingdom in the Ming Dynasty, the ideal capital of French Canada would be New York.
Although Boston is roughly the geographical center, it is actually only approximately the halfway point in distance.
The geographical center of French Canada is actually New York.
The northern remnants of the Appalachian Mountains turn in the area behind New York, forming an arc that juts toward the sea.
There are relatively large plain areas in the northeast and southwest of this arc.
Behind New York lies the shortest distance between mountains and ocean.
It is like the location of Shanhaiguan in the Ming Dynasty.
The most important thing is that it is the largest city in the area and the best port in the area.
The question is where is the Dongyi Kingdom of the Ming Dynasty.
Talleyrand struggled for a moment, quickly found a reason, and suggested to Prince Charles:
"Your Highness, although New York is the largest city in eastern Yinzhou, the local population is mainly of British descent.
“Not many people here speak French and we have this as a colonial capital and it can be very difficult to manage.
“My suggestion is that the capital of French Canada should be located close to the original French-speaking area.
“For example, in Boston, the northernmost part of the original English-speaking area.
“A new port city could even be built as the capital in the southernmost part of the French Quarter.
“But the situation in Canada is more complicated.
"How to determine the final location of the capital city should be made after understanding the local conditions."
Talleyrand's intention was to shelve the matter and prevent Prince Charles from making a promise to the Ming Dynasty on the spot.
Charles himself didn't think about the deep logic, but he also felt that what Talleyrand said seemed to make sense.
Prince Charles did not continue to make decisions directly, but after hearing this, he asked Zhu Jingyuan for advice:
"My dear friend, what do you think is a better arrangement? Do you have any suggestions for me?"
Zhu Jingyuan took a sip of tea and watched the two people complete these interactions in front of him.
Now facing Charles's consultation, Zhu Jingyuan said indifferently:
"I'm just curious and want to know how you plan to choose this capital.
"Actually, whatever you choose will have no impact on Ming Dynasty.
“The key is to look at the future development plan of France and the development plan of the Yinzhou colony.
“If French Canada pursues independent development and avoids the influence of Ming Dynasty, then choose Boston as its capital.
"Boston deviated from the route to New York and Quebec, and had fewer opportunities to contact the Ming Dynasty.
"If France is prepared to fully cooperate with the Ming Dynasty in the development of the Yinzhou colony, then it will have its capital in New York.
“Manhattan Island is separated from Long Island by a river, and you can go directly between them after a bridge is built over the river.
“To facilitate direct communication between us on colonial matters.
“If France wants to cooperate with Ming Dynasty, then the problem of the French-speaking population in New York is not a problem.
“We will not throw all the local population into the area where the northwest part of French Canada is merged into the Ming Dynasty to Napoleon.
“I can give you part of this population and move them to settle on the land transferred to you by the British.
“The British should have been migrating people south from these areas in the later stages of the war.
“The population of the New York area now is probably less than one-third of what it was before the war.
"New York has the most complete infrastructure around it. It is not a difficult problem to make more than half of the French-speaking population."
Charles nodded repeatedly after hearing this:
"Yes, people can migrate here, but Ming Dynasty did not want a large number of French-speaking people to stay in the interior.
"France should indeed cooperate with Ming Dynasty, and its decision to refuse to cooperate with Ming Dynasty is completely wrong.
"So the capital of the French Canadian colony should be New York!"
Talleyrand shouted subconsciously:
"Your Highness Charles! We shouldn't make such a rash decision before carefully understanding the situation in Canada!"
Talleyrand's tone and intention were as close as saying directly: Don't make a hasty decision yet, let's go back and discuss it privately.
Charles vaguely understood Talleyrand's intention, but he still waved his hand and said:
"No, I have actually understood it these days, and there is nothing to hesitate about.
"I will be the king of France in the future, and I will make decisions at critical moments to avoid unnecessary wrangling.
"So Sir Talleyrand should stop saying that cooperation with Ming Dynasty is the future direction of France."
After making a decision, Charles turned to Zhu Jingyuan:
"My dear friend, the capital of French Canada has been confirmed, so how should we cooperate on colonial affairs?"
Zhu Jingyuan thought for a while and made some simple assumptions:
“To cooperate, we must first connect the transportation network and plan several suitable high-standard arterial roads.
“Cities such as New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Boston were connected to the Ming colonies in the north and inland.
“I plan to have Ming Dynasty pay for these projects, and French Canada will provide workers. It can be regarded as a work-for-relief program.
“Through these road construction processes, the French-speaking population in the Ming Dynasty’s receiving area was transported.
“Accept the farmland and cities left by the original British and help restore production in French Canada.
"The epicenter of these railroads and highways on the Eastern seaboard is certainly New York, and that's bound to promote growth in the New York region."
Charles nodded slightly as he listened:
"My friend's plan should be good, but if the road network is connected to New York, will it affect the navigation value of the St. Lawrence River?"
Zhu Jingyuan responded:
“Yes, inland products are sent to New York through the road network to the sea, which will inevitably slightly affect shipping on the St. Lawrence River.
“But it’s not without its benefits. When Quebec freezes in winter, the products of the inland colonies can still be transported out through the road network.
“And the transportation volume of roads and railways cannot be compared with water transportation.
"Bulk supplies still have to go out to sea via the St. Lawrence River."
Charles thought about the logic and considered whether Ming would suffer if they cooperated like this.
Talleyrand, who was next to Charles, interrupted at this moment:
"May I ask Your Highness the Prince, how will the road ownership and toll collection rights invested by Daming be distributed?"
Before Zhu Jingyuan spoke this time, Lin Zexu asked directly:
“Daming is willing to invest in the construction of roads and waterways, so you can’t allow Daming to operate these industries, right?
"Isn't that equivalent to Ming giving you free money? We, Ming, don't owe you anything?"
Talleyrand was speechless.
Prince Charles here said matter-of-factly:
"Yes, what this gentleman said makes sense, so the operating rights of these roads invested and built by Ming Dynasty should belong to Ming Dynasty."
Talleyrand could not help shouting:
"Your Highness Charles!"
Talleyrand no longer wanted to veto, but wanted to remind Charles not to agree so readily.
As a result, Charles said:
“If France still has enough money, even if it can borrow enough money, of course it is better to build its own roads.
“But the problem is that France has reached its limit on the mainland, and it is impossible to spend any more money to integrate French Canada.
“If Ming Dynasty does not help, this colony may be in turmoil again.
"If we continue to stop it now, we will inevitably suffer chaos in the future."
Talleyrand was completely speechless after hearing this.
Not only was he confused and helpless, but he was also a little surprised.
Talleyrand knew exactly what kind of person his monarch, Louis XVI, was.
He basically does not have much decision-making ability. It is the thirty years of continuous work as a monarch that has allowed him to accumulate a small amount of corresponding abilities.
The Crown Prince Charles in front of him seems to have taken on several responsibilities now, and he may no longer be weak after studying Louis XVI for half his life.
But what is more critical is thinking and character. The crown prince seems to be more suitable to become a monarch than his father.
