Chapter 147 Preparing to declare war

Leaf springs are a very mature thing nowadays. Joseph just asked the craftsmen to change their usage, so the technical aspects were quickly finished with the craftsmen.

Joseph came out of the carriage workshop and told his newly appointed workshop manager: "Mr. Laspina, your most important task next is to recruit skilled craftsmen as soon as possible. You can also spend more money to dig them from other workshops. "

"Okay, Your Highness, I will definitely do it." The manager from Parma nodded hurriedly and cautiously.

Joseph continued: "After the trial production of the new leaf spring shock absorbers is completed, our workshop will only manufacture the chassis, and all the carriages will be customized from other carriage workshops, using the most luxurious materials and accessories."

Laspina said carefully: "Your Highness, the cost will be very high..."

"Don't worry about the cost, we will have a high enough profit."

Joseph smiled and then ordered: "Remember, the bodies of all carriages must be engraved with 'Royal Certification', and the tails of the carriages should be engraved with 'The same chassis as the royal carriage'. Write the word chassis smaller."

Obtaining a "royal certification" is very simple for Joseph, just say hello to his mother. As for the "Queen's Same Style", you need to give your father a carriage made by yourself and let him sit in it and go for a few laps. Of course, if the chassis can only be of the same model and the carriages are exactly the same, the palace officials will definitely give their opinions.

"The next step is to increase investment in advertising. I will say hello to the Paris Business Journal and give you the best page. Paris Fashion Week is coming soon. You must seize this opportunity to make our carriages a trend among the nobles. .”

Joseph is still very confident about the sales prospects of the carriage.

He copied the shock-absorbing structure of later generations of small trucks. In terms of comfort, it can be as good as the current spring shock-absorbing, but the cost is only one-tenth of the latter. Therefore, more money can be spent on increasing the luxury of the cabin. Even so, the cost of the entire vehicle is much lower than using spring shock absorbers, which means that the selling price will be reduced accordingly.

At present, carriages with spring shock absorbers can only be afforded by a small number of extremely wealthy people. They are definitely synonymous with ultra-luxury, basically equivalent to the level of Maybach and Porsche in later generations.

Joseph planned to set the price of the new carriage at about 60% of that of a spring-damped carriage, which would roughly bring it down to the price of later generations of Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Those aristocrats who cannot afford "ultra-luxury" will definitely be crazy about this "royal-certified" carriage that looks more upscale than the "ultra-luxury" carriage and has the same level of comfort.

The only thing that worries Joseph is the production capacity of the workshop.

If demand exceeds supply, consider opening the patent to other workshops for a fee. This time it is not like the wine-making technology, which only charges 3% of the patent licensing fee. At that time, it was to attract plantation owners to grow potatoes, but the horse-drawn carriage was a purely commercial operation, and the patent fee had to be at least 30%.

…

The next day, in the conference hall of the East Palace of Versailles, the cabinet meeting was proceeding step by step.

"Is that enough?" Queen Mary handed back the document appointing Talleyrand as senior diplomatic adviser to Brianne, and her name was already signed on it.

Brian nodded respectfully: "Yes, thank you, Your Majesty."

None of the ministers here cared much about a priest, and the diplomatic adviser was not an important position, so after Brian made the appointment proposal, it was immediately approved.

Archbishop Brian put away the appointment document and signaled his assistants to distribute copies of Catherine II's letter to everyone present.

Although this is a letter, the content is actually a diplomatic document and there is nothing that needs to be kept confidential.

Briandao: “The origin of this Russo-Turkish war was last year when the Ottoman Empire demanded that Russia return Crimea and attacked a Russian frigate.

"The current battle situation is that the Ottoman army has repeatedly attacked Kimboon Port, but was repelled by the Russian army. Especially at the end of last year, the main force of the Ottoman offensive was almost completely wiped out by the Suvorov Army, and the attack was temporarily suspended. And Russia On the other hand, legions and battleships are being assembled.”

Foreign Minister Verzhin, who had just returned from Russia, added: "According to the news I heard in St. Petersburg, the Russian Empress is very determined this time and is ready to capture Ochakov in one fell swoop."

Ochakov is a strategic location between Russia and Turkey. No matter who wants to attack the other party, they must go here first. At the same time, it is also an important military port overlooking the Black Sea.

Brian continued: "At present, Austria is likely to support Russia and send troops to attack the Ottomans. Sweden, on the other hand, is mobilizing troops and seems to be preparing to support the Ottomans from the north and attack Russia."

Queen Mary frowned slightly, as if saying to herself: "So?"

"Your Majesty, although Hamid I has carried out military reforms and made full preparations, judging from the previous wars, Russia still has the advantage." Brian was busy analyzing for her, "And St. Petersburg's attitude is very hopeful. We can join the fight against the Ottomans, and they should be willing to pay something for it."

Hamid I is the current Ottoman Sultan.

Brian and Joseph looked at each other and then said, "If we intervene in the Russian-Turkish war, now would be a good time."

The queen was a little confused: "But our army has to cross Austria and travel four thousand sea miles to reach Crimea."

Joseph interjected: "Your Majesty, we don't have to go to Crimea. Sweden can support its allies in the north of Russia, and we can also take action on the west side of the Ottomans."

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is right," Brian said. "As long as we show our strength in the direction of the Mediterranean, we can greatly restrict the Ottoman deployment."

When the Minister of the Navy heard that he was going to take action in the Mediterranean, he immediately became interested: "I agree with Archbishop Briand's point of view. If we only go to the Gulf of Sirte and get Russia's gratitude, this is a very cost-effective strategy." of."

Joseph sighed secretly, what are you always thinking about? Where is the military spending now for you to show off your power around the Ottomans? Wouldn't it be nice to make some money near the Barbary Sea?

The Gulf of Sirte is in the southeast of the Mediterranean Sea, close to the southern coast of the Ottoman Empire. Although it poses a great threat to the Ottoman Empire, it is also far away from France. At present, it is impossible for France to really attack the Ottoman mainland, otherwise it will be helping Russia to draw chestnuts from the fire.

The Barbary Sea is in the central and western part of the Mediterranean Sea, close to the southern coast of France, and North Africa to the south. This is where France's interests lie.

He hurriedly said: "Marquis of Castries, our operational target this time should be the Ottoman naval power in the western Mediterranean."

"The Ottoman navy is in the western Mediterranean..." The Navy Minister took a full two seconds to react, "Are you talking about the Barbary pirates?"

"Yes." Joseph nodded, "Including their naval base."