I am the Crown Prince of France

"I hope that uprising didn't affect France too much."

Theodor walked alongside Talleyrand toward the reception hall, with the Bavarian State Minister, Foreign Minister, and other officials trailing behind.

"It wasn't just a simple uprising, Your Majesty," Talleyrand's voice was loud enough for all the Bavarian ministers to hear. "You surely know what those liberals stand for—they've always aimed to overthrow royal authority and seize the wealth of the nobility. They're nothing but dangerous madmen!"

"And they should all be cursed," Theodor casually agreed, although he was puzzled as to why the Frenchman had come all this way to discuss this matter. It had nothing to do with him. "Oh, I heard that those rebels from the Southern Netherlands were somehow involved?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," the French Foreign Minister immediately confirmed. "The liberals I'm referring to are exactly those from the Southern Netherlands. They tried to incite an uprising to assassinate our King!"

Theodor thought to himself that it wasn't surprising since France was at war with the Southern Netherlands rebels. Of course, they'd try to stir up trouble in France. But he played along, saying, "Fortunately, they didn't succeed. God has blessed the King."

As they entered the reception hall, Talleyrand suddenly took on a serious tone. "Your Majesty, don't you find this situation strange?"

"Strange? In what way?"

"Why would the Southern Netherlands rebels be so bold as to launch such a blatant conspiracy against the French royal family?" Talleyrand looked directly at Theodor. "And how were they able to quickly gather thousands of guns and millions of livres? Isn't that suspicious?"

Theodor paused as he slowly sat down in the chair at the head of the room.

"You're saying…?"

"This was all orchestrated by a major power!" Talleyrand declared indignantly, waving his hand forcefully. "They killed their own king and then secretly supported the Southern Netherlands rebels in an attempt to wrest that land from the Holy Roman Emperor's control.

"And after the Southern Netherlands fell into the hands of the rebels, they weren't satisfied and aimed to spread their revolution to France!"

Hearing this, Theodor and all the ministers in the room felt a wave of unease.

The Southern Netherlands' intent to harm the French King was one thing, but if they were trying to spread a revolution, that was an entirely different matter.

A liberal revolution was every monarch's nightmare—a plague that could bring down an empire.

Theodor and his ministers immediately realized that the "major power" Talleyrand referred to was none other than the country that had first been "infected" by this plague.

The Glorious Revolution had beheaded Charles I and exiled James II.

And, considering how the Hanoverians were currently supporting the Southern Netherlands rebels on the battlefield, it was clear that the country behind the liberal movement was Britain.

Talleyrand continued, "The British Parliament controls their king and the entire country. They want to make other nations like them. If a king stands in their way, they'll conspire to murder him.

"They will incite revolutions everywhere, and what happened in France is just the beginning!

"If the monarchs do not unite to stop this, similar events will happen in Austria, Spain, Sweden, Bavaria…"

In the "menu" Joseph had prepared for Britain, the situation in India was the main course, while accusing Britain of exporting revolution was the appetizer.

Joseph vividly remembered how, historically, the European monarchs' fear of France exporting revolution eventually led to the formation of the anti-French coalition.

Britain had exploited this fear, rallying the continental powers to eventually wear France down.

And now, the British seemed unaware that by encouraging the Southern Netherlands to stir up trouble in France, they were essentially exporting revolution themselves—the Southern Netherlands Parliament was controlled by liberals, as were the French liberals causing trouble in France, working in concert with the French liberal faction.

Since the British had handed them this card, Joseph had no qualms about letting them face the wrath of Europe's monarchs.

The Bavarian Foreign Minister hesitated before addressing Talleyrand.

"Archbishop Talleyrand, aren't you exaggerating a bit…?"

Talleyrand immediately signaled toward the hall's entrance.

"I've brought someone with me. You can ask him yourself."

Curious, Theodor gestured for the French soldiers to bring in the prisoner.

Talleyrand addressed the man, "Who are you?"

"Steven Albert Vesali," the man replied.

Immediately, a Bavarian official recognized the name.

"He's the secretary to the President of the Southern Netherlands Parliament—er, I mean the leader of the rebels!"

Indeed, this was Vandernot's secretary—the highest-ranking official of the "Free Allies Committee" captured by French intelligence.

Talleyrand continued his questioning.

"Tell everyone, why did Vandernot want to overthrow the French monarchy?"

Vesali, with a defeated look, lowered his head and said,

"It was at the direction of British Foreign Minister Wellesley. He told the President, 'We must start a revolution and overthrow that tyrant,' and suggested spreading rumors about the French land redemption plan to stir up discontent among French peasants and nobles, ultimately leading to Louis XVI's downfall and the establishment of a French Parliament…"

The reception hall erupted into chaos.

Vesali's words, while not entirely true—he had been promised money and a new life in America if he cooperated with the French—weren't lies either. He had merely rearranged some facts and attributed actions to the wrong people, but nothing he said was fabricated. Even if the Bavarians investigated, they would likely conclude that his claims were accurate.

Talleyrand gestured toward the outside of the Munich Palace.

"I've brought over twenty more Southern Netherlands rebels. If necessary, Your Majesty can have them interrogated as well."

With Vesali's confession as the foundation, whatever the others said would only reinforce the belief that the British were behind it.

A few hours later, Duke Karl Theodor of Bavaria looked Talleyrand in the eye, his expression resolute.

"We must unite and make sure the British abandon these dangerous ideas!"

The next day, Talleyrand left Munich and headed toward Württemberg.

His itinerary included Mainz, Upper Hesse, Austria, and Sweden, where he would deliver the same message he had shared with the Bavarians.

Afterward, he planned to visit Saxony, Lower Hesse, and even Prussia. Although these countries were currently aligned with Britain, they could turn against the British over such a serious issue as exporting revolution.

As for whether these nations believed him or not, Talleyrand wasn't too concerned. Even if they didn't, the British would waste considerable diplomatic resources trying to clear their name.

(End of Chapter)

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