The Fox of France - Chapter 472 (Patreon)

Chapter 472: Influence

Four days later, the French fleet returned to its most important naval base in the Atlantic—Brest Harbor. Before the fleet entered the harbor, the French military had already learned the outcome of the battle through radio communication. However, to continue keeping the operation under wraps, French newspapers did not report this news. Nonetheless, some influential media still got hints of it. For example, "The Scientific Truth Gazette" and "Businessman Gazette" were tipped off in advance that the French Navy might have undertaken a decisive action.

Therefore, journalists from "The Scientific Truth Gazette" and "Businessman Gazette" were dispatched to Brest Harbor ahead of time. Before the main fleet arrived, the lead communications ship entered the port first, followed by the port's cannons firing salutes to announce the news of victory to everyone in the harbor area. Then, the main fleet made its entrance.

Ten minutes later, Pierre, a journalist from "The Scientific Truth Gazette," sweating profusely, rushed into the telegraph office and directly exchanged a ten-franc bill for the spot at the very front of the queue waiting to send telegrams. A few minutes later, the news of victory was transmitted to the newspaper's office in Paris via this telegraph line.

A few hours later, newsboys holding emergency printed extras appeared on the streets of Paris. They ran while shouting:

"Extra, extra! Read about the decisive battle between our navy fleet and the British navy fleet in the North Atlantic!"

"Extra, extra! Naval forces achieve an epic victory!"

...

Pedestrians on the streets stopped one after another to take a free copy of the extra from the newsboys. Yes, in France, such extras were always free.

"What? The 'Queen Elizabeth' of the British sank, and the expedition fleet was completely annihilated?" Everyone who saw the news couldn't help but widen their eyes.

This news spread across all of Europe as if it had wings, and even in Britain, people began to whisper it in private. The British government had long known about the French fleet intercepting the expedition fleet in the North Atlantic. However, they were not aware of the specific results of the battle. Of course, the lack of returning military ships over the following days already hinted at a grim outcome for the expedition fleet, but since it wasn't the final news, many still harbored a sliver of hope. Moreover, to maintain morale, the British government also forcefully censored the news.

However, censorship has always been aimed at the lower classes, and for the upper echelons, its greater purpose is to give them time to deal with emergencies and minimize their losses.

In fact, everyone knew that this news couldn't be kept secret for long because this defeat almost meant that Britain had lost control of the seas. French cruisers would continuously attack British trade routes, cutting off colonial supplies and preventing British goods from being exported. It was impossible to keep this situation a secret. While controlling public opinion is effective, it is also limited. It's like, even with "Pravda," the Soviet Union couldn't prevent Russians from knowing that it had dissolved. Without the Iron Curtain, many even believed that it was the Americans who liberated Auschwitz.

However, before the news could no longer be concealed, and before the market inevitably reacted, those who knew the news in advance still had time to take various measures to minimize their losses, or even take this opportunity to make a profit. Just like how, before a pandemic inevitably spiraled out of control, a country's senate could precisely sell off stocks before a market crash.

After the outbreak of the war, Britain issued quite a few war bonds. These bonds offered high interest rates, which, of course, meant high risk. Many people of status had significant investments in them. Once the news was confirmed, the value of these bonds would plummet in the market. One of the main purposes of censoring the news was to allow those of high nobility to find someone to take over their holdings before the news became public; then they could short sell and make another profit.

By the time the French spread the news across Europe, the British were still censoring it. By then, those of the highest nobility had already passed their hot potatoes to the scapegoats in exchange for gleaming gold coins. However, among those who took over, there were also some of the nobility who needed to quickly find someone else to take over, though they mostly no longer had the chance to short sell.

In summary, by utilizing the time gained through censoring the news, those of the highest nobility mostly did not suffer direct losses, and even made a profit. Those of the somewhat nobility also managed to reduce their losses successfully. And naturally, these losses ultimately fell on the heads of those in the big cities who full-heartedly thought of themselves as the "middle class," who almost overnight, turned from the "middle class" to the impoverished proletariat.

"Joseph, what do you think the British will do next?"

Napoleon asked Joseph.

"What to do? How should they face the situation after losing control of the seas?" Joseph sneered, "Isn't it simple? Those of the highest nobility in Britain have already understood that for their own interests, they can only compromise with us now. At the same time, they must have already started propagating that we must fight to the end, unite, endure the hardships together, and defeat the French invaders. And those who have just become proletarians from the 'middle class' in the market turmoil will certainly be excited by such propaganda, feeling that 'taking over for the country' is an utmost honor, while eagerly wanting to shed their blood for the call of the country. With their intelligence, they definitely won't realize that their efforts only serve one purpose, which is to increase the bargaining chips of the most noble Britons when negotiating with us."

"Do we need to compromise with them?" Napoleon asked again.

"Of course, but not now," Joseph replied, "If we truly don't compromise and strictly block for two months, Britain will erupt in revolution, and then, of course, those of the highest nobility will either be executed or flee to the Americas. And Britain would have a revolutionary government, likely a very leftist one, like the Montagnards, following Marat and Hébert. Then, this fire might cross the Channel and burn back into Europe.

In short, this situation is very complex and very difficult to grasp. On the contrary, as long as we put enough pressure on them, letting them choose between becoming the current Austrian royalty or the past French royalty, we can ensure our interests are maximized."

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