New Shun 1730

Dashun is not one of those big knights who have money but lack strength. Therefore, France cannot use the method of "if you can't solve the debt problem, then get rid of the creditor".

Therefore, since it is going to borrow money from Dashun, it is reasonable to come up with a financial reform plan. After all, from now on, France has big financial problems and cannot repay the borrowed money.

This is very different from the paper currency era. In the paper currency era, the most extreme way can be to learn from Germany after World War I, where paper currency depreciated greatly and reparations were paid as they pleased.

Now is the era of gold and silver precious metals, Japanese silver, South American silver, and as for Yunnan silver, it is the same whether it is in Paris or Songsu.

But this loan plan itself is just a make-up option that must be excluded.

If France can solve its financial problems through its own reforms, why does it need to borrow money from Dashun?

If France can only choose to borrow money from Dashun to solve its financial difficulties, how can it be enough to complete financial reform?

These people in the Dashun envoys are very familiar with the situation in France. Because many things in France are really similar to some situations in Dashun and Ming Dynasty.

For example, according to the statistics made by France according to the fiscal plan, the French treasury receives about 200 million livres in taxes every year; however, according to private statistics, the total tax revenue of France is actually about 750 million livres.

Even before the French Revolution, the King of France still did not understand: the amount of tax in France is actually lower than that in Britain, why do people feel that the tax is heavy?

In fact, the highest tax revenue entering the French treasury is only 6.5% of GNP. It is far lower than the 14% in Britain.

However, the tax revenue entering the treasury and the tax pressure borne by the people are completely different.

At least, in France and Dashun, it is definitely not the same.

Just like the treasury income of Dashun, in theory, it is at the level of 20% tax. But in fact, even some gentry really feel that the tax is too heavy and they can't breathe. As many gentry lamented, the national tax is the least and the levy is too much.

Can this problem be solved?

A booklet called "National Wealth" calculated that France's tax potential could reach 698 million livres per year, which is about 100 million taels of silver.

Many people strongly opposed it, believing that the person who published this booklet probably had not even learned the most basic mathematics.

People's questions are mainly "People bear less taxes, but the treasury has more income? Is this possible?"

Is it possible?

In fact, of course it is possible. For example, the comprehensive eleven-tax reform carried out by Dashun in Songsu really achieved the effect of people bearing less taxes but more income for the treasury.

However, it is easier said than done.

This kind of reform is really too difficult.

Ming Dynasty and Dashun have tried it. If you want to change, you must be prepared to break your bones.

Moreover, it is often the case that even if the Huang Zongxi law is changed, the old taxes are still there and the new taxes are increased, and the effect of replacing the old with the new cannot be achieved at all.

This is one point.

Another thing is that French society has been obviously torn apart.

The Paris High Court’s basis for opposing fiscal reform is the “freedom” theory of the French feudal era.

The middle class in Paris also talks about freedom, equality, and fraternity.

The words are the same.

But after reading them out, the two sides have completely different definitions of “freedom”.

The freedom of the Paris High Court means “Why is the government qualified to check the land? Why can it measure the land? This obviously violates the French tradition of freedom since ancient times?”

Obviously, the freedom that the Paris middle class talks about is really completely different.

The freedom and charter of the French feudal tradition that the Paris High Court talks about is the feudal aristocracy’s opposition to complete freedom and charter.

It is not the philosophical freedom of the Enlightenment school.

The gentry of the Dashun and Ming dynasties often used traditional things such as people-oriented and not competing with the people for profit to oppose the imperial power.

So, who are the people in the people-oriented and not competing with the people for profit?

The word "people" is still the same word "people". The word has not changed. Is the freedom mentioned by the Paris High Court the same as the freedom mentioned by the Enlightenment School?

When the understanding of a certain word or a certain term by a group of countries with the same culture and writing system is seriously divided, it can only prove that the class within it has been divided.

So, in fact, they are all similar things, with a new skin, and they are all tools of history that are unconscious, and finally they have achieved the historical mission of resisting the sacredness of imperial power and royal power.

The people on the Dashun side are really familiar with this set of things, and they will not be confused just because of the new skin.

Isn't it still the difference between nominal national taxes and real tax pressure? Isn't it just the old trick of using the traditional theory to maintain their own interests?

Because it is very familiar.

So it is very clear: reform? Change a fart!

If France can come up with a complete fiscal reform plan that is recognized by the High Court and the three-level conference, it will really be the sun rising from the west.

The Paris High Court opposed the land inventory and the unified taxation, and refused to sign the King of France's financial plan, which was equivalent to the cabinet not issuing it.

The Enlightenment School and the petition supporting land taxation supported the land tax, but the premise was that "the King of France gave up part of his absolute royal power, handed over the taxation power to the Estates General, and created a real, centralized, unified France where local forces were flattened."

The King of France himself did not want to give up the royal power.

So, it could not be changed.

That is why Dashun did not spend money when he spoke, and he said "money is not a problem" when he opened his mouth, but in fact he did not want to borrow money at all.

Duke Choiseul was not dissatisfied with this, on the contrary, he was very happy.

When a feudal monarchy country is in internal and external troubles, will it choose internal reform or hope to borrow foreign troops for help?

There is no difference between the two sides in this regard. Dashun has a deep understanding of the events in the late Ming Dynasty. Even the Tang Dynasty borrowed troops and robbed the capital at will, which is normal.

Borrowing troops always comes before internal reform.

In other words, if internal reform can be completed, these two countries with tax revenue potential of 100 million taels a year and industry and commerce can afford controlled economy and absolute mercantilism, do they need to borrow troops?

So in terms of finance alone, Dashun and France are really brothers in distress, and crows should not laugh at pigs for being black.

To the Duke of Choiseul, Dashun proposed three plans, the first one was useless, and the second one was pure nonsense, so it was obvious that Dashun meant that Dashun actually preferred the third plan.

Borrowing troops was also the most useful and least stressful plan for France.

The question was: what was the price?

The Duke of Choiseul wanted to know the price, so he first rejected the obviously nonsense second plan: fiscal reform? Then you might as well let France change to a republic, which might be easier to achieve.

"Gentlemen, as my king's minister of state, I can tell you responsibly: France cannot come up with a fiscal reform plan that can be passed for the time being."

"If the Celestial Empire is really willing to lend a helping hand to France, I hope we can seriously discuss the third plan. That is, the Celestial Empire will directly send troops to give France enough help."

This answer was expected by everyone in the Dashun envoys, so the envoys made a small account for Choiseul.

"My Lord Duke, you should know that the military expenditure required for sending troops will be a huge amount."

"Many years ago, the British expedition to South America had a non-combat attrition rate of up to two-thirds, and more than one-sixth of the people lost their combat effectiveness due to scurvy before they went to sea."

"If we want to mobilize the fleet from the military port of the Celestial Empire to achieve the force investment that can influence the war situation in Europe, we need at least 30 battleships, as well as a large number of cruisers and supply ships."

"...We have listed more than ten problems above one by one."

"In addition, we must also consider the supply consumption, food security, vegetable and lemon replenishment, and essential rations for sailors such as alcohol, tobacco, and sugar during the period when our fleet is stationed in the port of France."

"We must also consider that the price of goods in France is two or three times that of the Celestial Empire. The same amount of silver can only buy one-third to one-half of the goods purchased in France."

There is basically no problem with this account. In any case, this large-scale operation across the ocean is the first time.

Previously, Britain had fleets sailing around the world, the Netherlands and Spain had naval battles around Luzon, and even Britain's George Anson fleet had attacked Spanish warships in Luzon.

However, there was an order of magnitude difference.

Five or six warships.

Fifty or sixty warships.

Although France used a messy system of weights and measures and arithmetic, the decimal system was still the mainstream system for international trade between the East and the West at that time, so it was really an order of magnitude higher than the previous transoceanic warfare.

How much money would Dashun have to spend here?

Obviously, France could not afford this money.

If France could afford this money, it could naturally consider a similar "subsidy" approach. Just like the previous treaty between Britain and Russia, the British paid money and the Russians provided soldiers.

But France could not afford the money, and Dashun was still talking about money. Duke Choiseul thought: What will they ask for? What can France give them?

He quickly turned his mind around and considered the interests that France could cede.

However, after thinking for a long time, he didn't know what France could give to Dashun to repay this favor or debt.

Historically, France, including enlightenment scholars like Voltaire, also believed that North America was just a few acres of snow and worthless. They would rather exchange the whole of North America for Guadeloupe.

And Guadeloupe is very valuable to France, as it is an important sugar producing area in France.

But does Dashun lack tropical islands that produce sugar?

As we all know, the fuse for Dashun's voyage to Southeast Asia was the sugar overproduction crisis on Java Island.

Moreover, based on the French understanding of Dashun, Dashun would not like an island where Catholics dominated the mainstream culture, because even if they wanted it, they could not manage it at all.

Just like the system of reforming the natives and returning to the officialdom that France implemented in North America, Dashun has always had this attitude of reforming the natives and returning to the officialdom towards the controlled areas.

France's richest Caribbean islands are valuable to Britain, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Prussia... Very valuable.

Only to Dashun, it was worthless.

In fact, based on the French understanding of mercantilism, Spain actually had the biggest bargaining chip for cooperation with Dashun at this time, that is, the exclusive trading rights of South American colonies.

However, France did not have a vast market like Spain's South America to exchange with Dashun.

As for France's own domestic market... How much is France's own domestic market worth? In fact, Duke Choiseul didn't know.

But judging from the trade volume of the East India Company over the years, even if there is the influence of the mercantilism policy under the influence of Colbertism, it seems that the trade volume may not be that high if this influence is removed?