Chapter 348： Imperial Fiscal Crisis

After the end of the staff examination, the staffs of each war zone returned to their respective stations one after another, and the general staff system did not really come into effect until this moment.

From now on, no one can stop the General Staff, and the General Staff that has survived the initial difficulties will inevitably go forward.

In mid-August, the weather in Paris was getting hotter and hotter. The ground scorched by the high temperature "spit" out the water vapor it contained, and the white mist rose from the gaps in the ground, and disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye. . The air was stuffy and hot, like a match could be lit. The road paved with stones on the ground also became extremely hot, and stepping on it with bare feet was like a torture.

In such hot weather, there were few pedestrians even on the Champs-Elysees, and the bourgeois living in Paris even left Paris during this period to go to Lyon, Bordeaux and other places to escape the heat.

Little Bourgeois removed the ice cubes prepared in the cellar the previous year and placed them in the room, and used the ice mist from the ice cubes to resist the heat in the air. Or open all the doors and windows, swing a round fan in one hand, and sit in groups of three or five on the rocking chair with the other hand holding the summer drinks prepared by the landlord.

Forgot to mention, most of the young bourgeois working in Paris do not have their own residence, they often live in private apartments.

After paying a certain rent to move in, the landlady is the highest servant and housekeeper of the mansion.

(Generally speaking, in a better rental apartment, the landlady will hire two or three servants and cooks who are really used for cleaning and cooking, so as to satisfy the countless people in the apartment. The more, the better the endowment. This is mentioned in the French novels of the 19th century.)

And the proletarians, who make up the relative majority of the population in Paris, live underground in a dark, damp place full of various plagues, suffering and afflicted by disease and still repeating the same work day after day.

For them, nothing seems to have changed in Paris.

Louis Philippe or Jerome Bonaparte! All are the same!

The living environment and economic strength of the whole Paris presents a pyramid structure, and the changes in the upper layer do not seem to have benefited the middle and lower layers.

Of course, it would be biased to say that there is no change.

Several new welfare hospitals have been built in the Saint-Germain district to help people with more difficult economic conditions.

The treatment is mostly for some minor diseases, and the real welfare hospitals for serious diseases are also powerless.

That is, under such an environment and temperature, an even more embarrassing thing is happening at the Tuileries Palace.

Jerome Bonaparte, who was taking a lunch break in the bedroom with ice cubes, heard a knock on the door in the dimness. He opened his eyes in a daze, and then rolled over on the bed. Looking up at the roof, Jerome Bonaparte realized that someone was knocking on the door until a knock came from the room again.

Jerome Bonaparte, whose consciousness returned to his body, turned his head to the side of the window. The dazzling sun outside the window made Jerome Bonaparte narrow his eyes. After a while, Jerome Bonaparte, who opened his eyes again, put his hand under the pillow again, and after some fumbling, he finally found the pocket watch.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, less than an hour had passed since Jerome Bonaparte's lunch break.

"Ah yawn!" Jerome Bonaparte couldn't help yawning, he turned his head to the side of the door.

Don't know who is outside the door? It doesn't look like it should be a big deal!

Jerome Bonaparte once instructed that if there was an emergency, no matter what Jerome Bonaparte was doing, he would be called up.

Jerome Bonaparte got up slowly, grabbed a handful of ice cubes from the bucket and put it in his hand. Under the stimulation of ice cubes, he finally woke up completely.

Jerome Bonaparte, who had changed his clothes, opened the door, and he saw the Chancellor of the Exchequer Magnet and the Minister of State Fuld outside the door.

It was indeed a bit beyond his expectations that Manet and Fould could come to the Tuileries Palace together. Judging from their solemn expressions, is there really any fatal problem in France.

Jerome Bonaparte couldn't help but shuddered. He still pretended to look at Manet and Fuld with a smile and greeted him with a smile: "Minister Manet, Minister Fuld, good afternoon!"

"Your Majesty, can I take some time for you! We have something to tell you!" Manie asked to go to the study to talk.

"Okay!" Jerome Bonaparte nodded and replied.

Manet, Fuld, and Jerome Bonaparte went to the study together. On the way to the study, Jerome Bonaparte suddenly noticed that Manet was carrying a black suitcase in his hand. If he guessed correctly, the suitcase should have been reported to him by Mane.

After the three entered the study, Manet, Foulder, and Jerome Bonaparte sat in three directions on the sofa respectively. The black suitcase in Manet's hand was also placed on the table by Manet.

"What happened?" Jerome Bonaparte asked Magnet and Fould with a serious look.

After Mane and Fuld looked at each other, Minister of State Fuld said, "Your Majesty, we want you to take a look at the government's spending in the first half of the year!"

After speaking, Fuld opened the suitcase and respectfully handed the documents in the suitcase to Jerome Bonaparte, and said: "Your Majesty, this is the total expenditure of our government in the first half of the year! Please! Check it out!"

Jerome Bonaparte took the expense bill from Fuld's hand and read the contents of the bill page by page.

Gradually, Jerome Bonaparte's expression became solemn. When he saw half of the fiscal expenditure statistics, he shook his head and muttered in a low voice: "Impossible! How could the government..."

After Jerome Bonaparte had read all the five budgets of financial expenditures for the first half of the year, Jerome Bonaparte's expression became as melancholy as Manet and Fuld, he opened the drawer again and put the Two of the three remaining cigars were thrown to Mane and Fuld, and the remaining cigar was held in his mouth.

Fuld, who took the cigar, kindly lit a cigar for Jerome Bonaparte, and also lit a cigar for Magnet beside him, and finally lit a cigar for himself.

The entire Tuileries study was once again enveloped in cigar smoke.

After Jerome Bonaparte smoked a cigar, his frowning brows still didn't mean to stretch.

Jerome Bonaparte saw the big French pills from the information that Magnet handed him about the financial expenditures of France.

After deducting all kinds of transportation capacity, the fiscal revenue of the whole France in the first half of the year has a balance of 1 billion francs. (Here refers to the central fiscal revenue. The fiscal revenue of each region is more than that of the central government, but these fiscal revenue is used for the basic design and construction of various regions.)

However, the financial expenditure of France is about 1.2 billion francs.

This also means that in the first half of the year, France had a fiscal deficit of nearly 200 million francs.

These deficits are mainly concentrated in the expansion of Paris, the reform of agriculture, and the reform of the General Staff.

If you count the financial and debt problems of the railways, France's fiscal deficit is likely to reach around 400 million francs.

400 million francs is equivalent to a quarter of France's annual fiscal budget. Obviously, such a huge fiscal deficit cannot be repaid overnight.

This is why Jerome Bonaparte frowned.

Jerome Bonaparte, Manet and Fuld were speechless, none of the three of them seemed to dare to say the first word.

"Your Majesty, I think it's necessary for France to plan its expenditures! At this rate, the government must go bankrupt!" The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Magnet, who saw that the atmosphere was gradually becoming tense and dull, said first.

"Your Majesty, France really can't bear the huge expenses!" Fuld also stood on Mane's side.

To be honest, Fuld was also taken aback when he saw the fiscal deficit in the first half of the year submitted by Mane.

As a result, Fuld went to the financial department to find the Minister of Finance Manie to ask Manie whether there was a problem with the statistics of the financial department.

Magnet immediately responded to Fuld with a wry smile. There was no financial problem in the first half of the year, and France did owe a high fiscal deficit.

Every September or November in France is the day when the legislature asks about the financial situation.

Fuld knew that if he went to the Legislative Council with this financial report, he would definitely be questioned by the Legislative Council.

Although the Legislative Council has lost its core legislative and veto powers, their right to financial inquiries has not been lost.

In fact, it is not the Legislative Council that kills, but the people of Paris who are the most deadly group.

If you let them know that the government's fiscal deficit for half a year has reached 200 million francs the people of Paris will have to blow up the pot.

The most urgent task at the moment is how to keep the fiscal deficit from expanding further. After some summing up, Magnet and Fould decided to go to the Tuileries Palace to hand over the report of the Ministry of Finance to Jerome Bonaparte.

Jerome Bonaparte, as they thought, showed a scowling expression.

After a while, Jérôme Bonaparte emphasized: "The reform cannot be stopped, and if it stops, we will face the risk of being shattered!"

"But, Your Majesty! If the reform continues, the fiscal deficit will further expand! At that time, the situation will become even more out of control!" Manet reminded Jerome Bonaparte.

"Then increase the tax!" said Jerome Bonaparte decisively.

"Which tax should we increase?" Manet asked Jerome Bonaparte again, he was a little afraid that Jerome Bonaparte would propose the income tax that everyone feared.

"On the premise that the original tax remains unchanged, an additional tax of 10% - 25% will be levied on tobacco, alcohol, coffee and wine respectively!"