Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

Leao was visibly excited when the French mentioned the most glorious achievement of his life, immediately raising his head: “Fighting alongside His Royal Highness the Crown Prince against the Prussian Army is a memory I will never forget.

“I swear, as long as I’m alive, no one will hand Legnica over to the Prussians!”

Talleyrand, however, looked disappointed: “You can’t just fixate on Legnica.”

“What… do you mean?”

Talleyrand leaned in closer: “Breslau, Gwozdziec, and indeed the entire Silesia.”

Leao’s pupils instantly contracted, and his raised head lowered slightly: “No, no, this will trigger a large-scale war.”

Talleyrand patiently analyzed for him: “At present, the Prussians have less than 20,000 mobile troops left, almost all of which are needed to defend Glogau. And the Breslau Fortress, without a supply line, could fall at any moment.

“On Archduke Karl’s side, they continue to win consecutive victories, and morale is at an all-time high. I dare bet the soldiers of the Royal Moravia Corps are even thinking of marching directly to Berlin.

“Therefore, as long as we show enough toughness here, that young King who has just ascended in Prussia will surely choose to yield.

“The Empire will easily acquire all the Silesian territories south of Glogau.”

Leao still appeared unenthusiastic: “You are absolutely correct that we do have a military advantage, but the Prussians will surely seek aid from England…”

Talleyrand laughed disdainfully: “The British Army’s main force is bogged down on the Iberian Peninsula, so they can’t really attend to the situation in Silesia.

“Moreover, even if the Prussians can seek external assistance, Austria can do the same.”

Leao instantly looked up at him.

Talleyrand smiled and nodded: “Yes, France will fully support you in reclaiming Silesia. This has always been the standpoint of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.”

Leao’s demeanor clearly showed some interest.

Prussia is extremely weakened now, and if France and Austria join forces, William III definitely won’t have the courage to continue fighting.

Even if it can’t secure all regions south of Glogau at that time, gaining Silesian lands west of the Oder River should be quite hopeful—far more than just the province of Legnica alone.

Talleyrand glanced at him and continued: “Once Potsdam accepts the ceasefire terms, as the chief contributor to implementing this strategy, I think becoming an appointed Prince is inevitable.”

Leao’s heart raced a few beats faster, yet he remained somewhat cautious: “Well, I want to know, what kind of support is Your Highness deciding to provide us with?”

Talleyrand smiled like an old fox: “Hmm, low-interest loans. And weapons, at least 20,000 Flintlock Guns, and a public acknowledgment that the entirety of Silesia belongs to Austria.”

Leao also began to smile.

The aid from France could enable Austria to increase a sizeable legion and, most importantly, provide diplomatic backing. This would be enough to crush the Prussians.

He immediately proclaimed loudly: “You are completely right. Now is indeed the best time to reclaim Silesia!

“I will advise His Majesty the King that there should be no acceptance of a truce until Silesia is completely recovered!”

He then looked at Talleyrand: “So, how will the Empire repay His Highness’s generous aid?”

This is common political sense; how could there be any free support between nations?

Talleyrand promptly replied: “His Royal Highness the Crown Prince hopes that His Imperial Majesty will recognize Spain’s legitimate rule over the whole Iberian Peninsula.”

Leao nodded silently, understanding this aimed to maximize Britain’s isolation in the Mediterranean area, aligning perfectly with France’s core strategy.

“I will definitely propose this to His Majesty.”

Talleyrand raised his hand: “Oh, and there’s a small request as well.”

“Please, go ahead.”

“His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is quite fond of the ‘Wind Gun,’ so if the manufacturing technology for it could be acquired, it would make him very pleased.”

What he referred to as the “Wind Gun” was the Girandoni air rifle—an advanced weapon designed by the Italian-born Austrian Gun Master Bartolomeo Girandoni, resembling a Flintlock Gun in appearance, using compressed air stored within the gunstock to propel bullets.

After more than a decade of secret research and improvement, Austria has begun forming the “Wind Gun Corps” in recent years, equipping them with 500 air rifles.

Although this new rifle has slightly less firepower compared to the Flintlock Gun, its advantages are particularly pronounced.

Firstly, its firing speed. The magazine holds 20 rounds, capable of emptying them all within half a minute.

Secondly, it isn’t affected by weather conditions, continuing to shoot normally even in downpours.

Lastly, its discharge doesn’t produce smoke, flash, or much noise, making it convenient for sneak attacks and ambushes by the military.

Consequently, this gun is considered a highly-valued next-generation weapon by the Austrian Royal Military Commission.

Naturally, Joseph wasn’t interested in its advanced technology with the intent of equipping the French Army.

On the contrary, he is well aware that this seemingly sharp gun is actually an expensive waste.

The processing precision of this era simply cannot meet the requirements for air rifles, with delicate valves and air reservoirs prone to damage.

According to later records, nearly half of the “Wind Guns” would leak air during combat.

Additionally, after firing 30 times, the rifle requires 1,500 compressions using a pump to refill the air reservoir, a process that takes about 20 minutes.

Hmm, even if the enemy on the other side were all sloths, that much time would be enough to wipe out the entire Wind Gun Corps.

Of course, the clever Mr. Girandoni came up with a solution, which was to prepare a large number of pre-charged air reservoirs in advance, for soldiers to immediately pick up and replace after firing.

In less than two minutes, they could swap out, allowing them to return instantly to the half-minute 20-round “superman” state.

However, while ideals are plentiful, reality is less so.

The heavy air reservoirs—about 5 pounds each—were not something soldiers were willing to carry with them. Thus, an air reservoir transport vehicle was provided.

Then, during actual combat, it was discovered that soldiers picking up air reservoirs caused confusion in formations, with enemies often launching attacks at such opportune moments, leading to a more than 70% chance of the Wind Gun Corps being overwhelmed.

In history, after significant investment in research funding, Austria finally abandoned this “sophisticated equipment” entirely within a few years.

At this moment, Joseph simply wants to inspire confidence among the higher-ups at the Royal Military Commission—even the advanced-equipped French people are paying attention to the “Wind Gun,” indicating clearly that it is surely the trend of future development.

Especially since Britain has already reverse-engineered the Caplock Gun, other countries like Prussia and Austria will undoubtedly invest in new firearm development next.

This is when providing them with an alternative technology path would disrupt their weapon upgrading process to the greatest extent.

Sure enough, Leao appeared somewhat hesitant, muttering: “Your information is really thorough, you even know about the ‘Wind Gun.’ However, I can only promise to inquire for you; the stubborn old men of the Military Commission are extraordinarily protective of this thing.”

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