Chapter 296: The Age of Electricity

Chapter 296: The Age of Electricity

Once seated, Cadreus wasted no time in inquiring about the cost of lighting renovations and expressed his interest in securing a loan from Mr. Borwann.

"Ah, you mean these electric lights? I do have some knowledge about them," Mr. Borwann responded.

Cadreus was aware that the banker Borwann had early connections with the military-industrial complex. It was said that back when Joseph was still running the Naval Research Institute on the other side of Toulon, dealing with various smuggling vessels, they already had business dealings, even though Mr. Borwann's business was somewhat limited at that time. Still, he made a fair amount of money through his transactions with Joseph. Later, when the military-industrial complex was established, Mr. Borwann was one of the earliest businessmen to join, and it was said that he had significant involvement in the procurement of supplies and financial transactions behind the scenes when General Bonaparte - well, we're talking about the older Iron Wall Bonaparte - was tasked with the defense of Valmy during dire times.

General Bonaparte later withdrew from the military and devoted himself entirely to becoming a scientist. So much so that now, unless you subscribed to specialized journals like "Nature," you would rarely come across his name. However, it was hinted by some high-status individuals that both President Bonaparte and Minister Bonaparte had a deep respect for their older brother.

Now, these electric lights, without a doubt, must be the product of President Bonaparte's laboratory, probably manufactured by Bonaparte General Electric. Mr. Borwann was said to hold shares in Bonaparte General Electric, so how could he not be aware of this?

"These electric lights, in terms of pricing, actually have various grades. Well, Mr. Cadreus, you may not be involved in the business of everyday products, but you should know that any product comes in many different grades. For example, wine has fine wineries and factory wines; and within fine wineries, there are distinctions between classified growth wineries, star wineries, and regional villages. Classified growth wineries further divide into grand cru, premier cru, and deuxième cru. Mr. Cadreus, which category do you think has the highest profit margin among these wines? And which one has the highest total profit?"

"The highest profit margin should be the grand cru wineries, right? But when it comes to total profit, it should be the factory wines," Cadreus replied.

"Exactly, Mr. Cadreus. Any product, the luxury grades will be very expensive with astonishing profit margins, while the mass-market grades will be quite affordable. Just like a bottle of Lafite Rothschild wine, it's worth more than a factory wine like a hansom cab. But in terms of consumption, they're both consumable. Even someone like me, a nouveau riche, can't tell the difference between them," Mr. Borwann chuckled.

"Electric lights are the same. You see, places like the 'Moulin Rouge,' they use lights similar to their wine. While they can't guarantee that every bottle is from a grand cru winery, even the lowest-grade wine they use is from a star winery. Of course, their prices are exorbitant. They can sell star winery wine at grand cru prices. Well, electric lights are no different. They use luxury-grade electric lights, so the prices are naturally staggering."

"For example, the large crystal chandelier above us, with a six-meter diameter, uses tens of thousands of crystals alone. The price is... Oh, Mr. Cadreus, I believe you wouldn't be interested in this chandelier. The smaller crystal chandelier beside it, with an 80-centimeter diameter, might be more to your liking. It's roughly two to three thousand francs. Of course, if you're willing to lower your standards and switch to glass instead of crystal, and change the design, well, it might cost tens of francs, or even just a dozen francs."

"How big is the difference between this one and the larger chandelier?" Cadreus asked hastily.

"Is the difference between Lafite Rothschild wine and factory wine significant?" Mr. Borwann countered.

Cadreus was at a loss for words, and Mr. Borwann continued, "Actually, for a typical nightclub, the light fixture itself might not be the most significant expense. The biggest recurring expense might be electricity. Because electricity costs money."

"In that case, how is the electricity cost calculated?" Cadreus asked quickly.

"Alas, I used to wholeheartedly earn money for myself. In the future, it seems I'll be working hard to earn money for the bank and the power plant," after finalizing their intentions, Cadreus couldn't help but mutter these words to himself.

The lively and bustling night passed. Early the next morning, as soon as the citizens stepped outside, they were greeted by newspaper boys running and shouting on the streets.

And nearly all of their shouts were related to electric lights.

Andrei had just left his house, preparing to head to school when he saw a newspaper boy running by, shouting, "The Electric Age is here, and the 'Moulin Rouge' spectacle revealed! Get the 'Scientific Truth Gazette' to uncover the scientific truth for yourself!"

"Revolutionary lighting technology is born, and darkness is no more! The door to wealth is swinging open! Get the 'Paris Businessman' to discover the short-term and long-term economic impact of this technology."

"Beauty shines under the light. Hurry and get 'The Sun Gazette' for an explanation of the 'Moulin Rouge's' new model..."

The newspaper boy had only shouted a couple of times before a crowd of people surrounded him. Andrei quickly turned to his assistant, Vaska, and said, "Vaska, go quickly and grab a few newspapers!"

"Sir, which newspapers would you like?" Vaska asked.

"It doesn't matter; get all of them!" Andrei replied. "Hurry!"

Vaska dashed over, and with his massive size and strength, he pushed a few people aside, then returned a while later, carrying a bunch of newspapers.

"Sir, look, I bought one of each," Vaska handed the newspapers to Andrei.

Andrei had originally intended to say, "Get me 'Scientific Truth Gazette' first." But then he remembered that Vaska couldn't read French, so he took all the dozen or so newspapers and began to sort through them one by one.

"Hmm, 'The Sun Gazette'? Let's not read this for now..." Andrei was about to set 'The Sun Gazette' aside when he heard a voice saying, "Andrei, you've made progress; you're even reading 'The Sun Gazette' now. That's really great!"