Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

He hurriedly whispered reassurances to the ashen-faced Boka, "Don't worry, there are many grounds for an appeal in this case, after all, a huge amount of evidence is gone. I will submit an application to the appellate court tomorrow."

Judge Fosne took a deep breath. Just now, that high-ranking official from the Supreme Judicial Court had instructed him to quickly deliver judgments on all cases involving Tax Farmers as long as the facts were clear, without paying too much attention to detailed evidence.

At this rate, the thick stack of Tax Farmers' cases in his possession would probably be completed in less than half a month.

He had originally planned to spend half a year dealing with these cases.

At the courthouse gate, a bailiff, upon hearing the verdict, excitedly slipped out against the rules and loudly proclaimed to the waiting crowd outside, "Execution by beheading!"

The crowd immediately erupted into a wave of cheers:

"Great, that damned Boka is finally going to hell!"

"Long live Judge Fosne!"

"Thank Jesus, the wicked has finally been punished!"

It could be said that almost no one in Reims didn't hate the Tax Farmers. Even if they hadn't been ruined by them, it was common to be overcharged a few sous or to be struck by a Tax Collector during collection.

Now that they had heard the Tax Farmers had been sentenced to death, how could they not be jubilant?

Lawyer Corantin carefully left the Lance District Court at twilight—he was well aware of the dreadful reputation, the Tax Farmers held.

However, just as he stepped out of the main entrance, something was smeared across his face.

Instinctively reaching up to feel it, he found his hand coated in something sticky and foul-smelling, which immediately triggered intense vomiting.

More than a dozen people emerged around him, obviously waiting for him, cursing while throwing more "unidentified objects" at him.

It wasn't until Corantin's servant shielded him into a carriage that the crowd ceased their pursuit after two more blocks.

Meanwhile, Leon, Blanche, and the family of Nei Ri related to the case only received news the following day—they didn't have the leisure to wait at the district court for the verdict; they were too overwhelmed by the burdens of everyday life. But soon, the key culprit for all this was about to pay for his crimes.

...

Corantin was unexpectedly taken aback by the frightening efficiency of the French judicial system.

He had appealed for Boka, but within just a day, the appellate court had rejected it, citing clear evidence and reasonable judgment.

Helplessly, he appealed to the Reims Supreme Court, which took two days before the court announced that it would uphold the original sentence and issued a final judgment, cutting off any further thought of appealing to the Supreme Court.

Subsequently, the date for the execution was set—ten days later.

Naturally, he was unaware that all this was the result of the Crown Prince urging the Supreme Judicial Court to supervise the local courts. Even when several senior officials of the Supreme Judicial Court advised him to be cautious, Joseph unhesitatingly replaced the assistant of the chief justice of the Supreme Judicial Court—the second in command.

Joseph wasn't exactly aiming to interfere with the judiciary; although, in a royal society, interference was just that. It was just that the cases regarding the Tax Farmers were very clear, and since hanging was justified with hardly any miscarriage of justice, there was no need to waste time and judicial resources on them.

Moreover, these Tax Farmers were immensely wealthy, and the longer the litigation dragged on, the more ways they could conceive to exonerate themselves.

While Corantin was repeatedly revisiting the trial, beginning to doubt his professional capabilities, he heard news that restored his confidence—

Recently, all cases involving Tax Farmers were swiftly processed; his was even considered slow, with some cases receiving final judgments from the high court in the afternoon of the same day they were sentenced in the morning.
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Moreover, the death penalty rate in these cases was as high as 70%!

Those not sentenced to death mostly faced decades of imprisonment, with only a few individuals receiving exile or short-term imprisonment.

There wasn't a single case of acquittal!

The tax office was targeting specific individuals for arrest, and tax farmers who had not committed any wrongdoing were not brought to court.

In the morning, Corantin had breakfast and left a hostel in the Saint-Germain District of Paris to take a walk—he didn't dare stay in Reims anymore, fearing that the angry populace could kill him any day. Although he had earned 7000 francs, had he been given the choice, he would never have taken on Boka's case a few days earlier.

"Newspapers, get your news!" a newsboy's shout came from across the street, ""News and Pictures Daily," read about the joint trial of the violent attackers of the tax officers, just five sous for the verdict!"

Corantin beckoned the newsboy, paid, and bought a newspaper, and immediately saw the news—571 individuals involved in the attack on tax officers or violently obstructing the arrest of suspects, all sentenced to death! The majority were former tax collectors, that is, the henchmen bred by the tax farmers.

The news also mentioned that among these 571 people, there were a few nobles, and to facilitate a unanimous trial result, the Paris Supreme Court sentenced them all to beheading. And their appeals were rejected that very day.

These 500 plus people, like Boka, were to begin their death sentence ten days later.

...

On the southern outskirts of Paris.

In Ford's villa, a dozen tax farming magnates were all somber and silent.

They had already known for some time that a large number of tax farmers and their subordinates had been arrested and quickly sentenced to death.

This indicated that their route through the Countess of Artuwa and the Countess of Debeninac to the Queen had failed, and the government had started to take action against them.

After a long silence, a corpulent tax farmer spoke: "Who would have thought Brian would be so ruthless this time? Is he trying to drive us to death?"

Ford shot him a look and retorted, "This is not something Brian could achieve by himself. The entire justice system has been mobilized!"

Hope nodded, "It seems it's the Royal Family's intention."

Borelay gritted his teeth, "I told you earlier we should have paid to support the High Court in its fight against the Royal Family! But you stingy people disagreed."

"What use is there in saying these things now?" Baron Morrel said, "The tax office people watch me every day. Soon the fire will catch us too!"

Since these tax farming magnates usually operated from behind the scenes, leaving the actual business to agents and even having a noble negotiate the tax farming deals, and since they had also paid a large amount in hush money, the tax office had no strong evidence to arrest them as yet.

But tax farming involved billions of francs, and the flow of dues could not be completely hidden. Moreover, they occasionally convened subordinate tax farmers to issue orders, so as long as investigations continued, the tax office was sure to find them.

Hope signaled everyone to calm down, looking quite composed, "Everyone, don't panic. Our arrangements in the trading caravans and Port of Marseille are already in place, and we will send people to negotiate with the Royal Family soon.

"The Royal Family, having arrested so many people, has gained enough benefits. They should know when to stop. Otherwise, once trade and the Mediterranean ports encounter issues, large-scale riots will soon break out in France."

Morrel muttered under his breath skeptically, "I hope your plan works. But I've already decided to give up my funds in France and hide in England for a while."

Godemid and several other tax farmers promptly expressed similar sentiments.

...

In the northeastern province of France, Champagne.

Gerald Bonner handed a contract to the owner of the Marie estate, saying with a smile, "You won't regret today's decision.

In addition to giving you the best purchase price, we're also providing you with a property insurance—all if the purchase amount exceeds 5000 francs.

If there are accidents with the goods, for instance, if the wine becomes sour before being sold, the insurance company will compensate for it, and there is no need for refunds."

Bonner was the second in command of the newly established French Trade Alliance trading caravan in the Champagne region.

Previously just a small businessman, although his business wasn't large, decades of hard work had honed his business skills.

Seeing that the Trade Alliance was offering a 1500 franc annual salary for caravan management, he did not hesitate to apply. His small family business only earned him about 1000 francs a year and it came with risks.