Just as Talleyrand revealed to the Spaniards, the Austrians were indeed trying to negotiate with the French, and the conditions of the Austrians were indeed similar to Talleyrand's words, that is, Austria exchanged the Rhine with France for Lombardy.

In fact, the Directory was quite impressed by the Austrian proposal. If the Rhine region is obtained, it means that the French border is advanced to the Rhine. France has a relatively safe natural border to the north. As for Lombardy, there is also an Alpine mountain separated from mainland France, which is naturally inconvenient to manage.

Even Joseph felt that the Rhine region was much more valuable than the Lombardy region. This is not only because of the natural boundaries, but also because of the problem of mineral deposits.

In this era, the Industrial Revolution has not yet fully begun, and the significance of those vital minerals to the country has not yet been shown. But Joseph, as a traverser, knew very well that Italy was a country with very poor mineral resources. For the coal mines and iron mines, which were the most important in the first round of industrialization, Italy did not have any.

If you want to say that the country with the best mineral conditions in Europe is really the United Kingdom, which has both coal and iron mines. France has a relatively large iron mine in Lorraine, but the coal resources are not particularly ideal, there is a coal mine in Lorraine that is the remnant of the Saar coal mine, but this is already the largest coal mine in the whole of France.

If such an agreement was reached with Austria, it would mean that the Saarland mine, which was rich in coal mines, would be completely in French hands, and the resources needed for the first round of the industrial revolution would be basically complete.

At this time, however, both Joseph and Napoleon were opposed to this plan. The reason is simple, even if the Rhine region is now obtained, it is French, not Bonaparte. And what about the Lombardy region? It certainly won't be part of France, but it was under the control of the Bonapartes.

Joseph, of course, could not object to the above grounds, but anything, if you want, can have a high-sounding excuse. So Lucien gave this speech to the Parliament:

"For a long time, the Italian people, like the French people, lived a miserable life under the oppression of the Church and the feudal aristocracy. Now we have defeated the clergy and the nobility who rode on their heads, and brought freedom and liberation to the peasants and commoners.

The people of all Italy, all of Europe, are looking forward to us, just as the farmlands are longing for clouds and thunder after a long drought.

It is for this reason that when our army marched towards Belgium, the Belgian people rose up in response to us; As our army pursued the fleeing Austrian army in Italy, the Italians greeted us with bread and wine. They feed us, act as guides – why do they do that? Because they see us as their liberators! Why do we keep winning brilliant victories? This is not only because the people of France as a whole stand behind us, but also because our army is supported by the people wherever it goes!

If, at this time, we abandon the Lombard peoples, who have just been freed and liberated with our help, and push them back into the fire pit of feudal autocracy, then I would like to ask, in the future, how will the peoples of Europe perceive us? In the future, when those feudal autocratic countries unite again and attack us, can we still expect the people of Europe to be on our side?

Besides, how reliable is this so-called 'peace'? Do our enemies really want peace?

No! By no means so! I think anyone with a modicum of brains can see that our enemies have no sincerity for peace at all, because their hatred of the French Revolution has not changed in any way. They still shelter the traitors and exiles of France, they still support the clown who proclaimed himself king of France, and in their propaganda they still call us traitors - anyone with eyes, as long as they see this, it is not difficult to see that they do not need peace at all, they really need a truce so that they can lick their wounds and recover their strength. And as soon as they feel that they have healed their wounds, they will show their teeth to us again!

Gentlemen, I love France as much as you do; I share the love of peace among all of you. Because we French are all peace-loving. But we French are not fools either! Is it acceptable to us French that we should betray our allegiance to our friends for the sake of a peace that is destined to be torn apart, a peace that is not in accordance with either moral or military principles?

No! Never! To accept such a peace would be not only a betrayal of our allies, but also a betrayal of the ideals of France, a betrayal of France itself! ”

Lucien's speech was certainly quite good, but what really made Lucien's speech particularly powerful was that his speech actually represented a powerful attitude. The attitude of this force is:

"The Rhine region is ours, and Lombardy is ours. We don't give up anywhere! If they want peace, they must accept such a peace, otherwise, let the war continue! ”

Of course, since this force opposes such a peace and demands a peace that "mine is mine, and yours is mine," then this peace must be fought out by themselves.

As for how to fight out, some people have suggested that priority should now be given to equipping the troops of the Northern Army with new weapons, so as to improve their combat effectiveness and strive for greater victories.

The person who put forward this idea was a councillor named Alfred, and his view was also supported by a lot. Obviously, these people did not want to see Napoleon alone too prominent, so they hoped that Rubert and Moreau in the north would build up merit to balance Napoleon.

Neither Josephus nor Lucien understood this meaning, but neither of them had reason to object to this suggestion. First, the north is where the real main battlefield is, and if it weren't for the fierce fighting on the Italian side, military equipment should have been given priority to the north. The second is also because Kano is also supportive of this issue. Thirdly, this is also business, it is money!

It's just that the production capacity of Joseph's military-industrial complex is actually far less bluffing than the name of his institution. Because its production methods are actually quite backward. The steam engine and the industrial revolution have not yet developed into the military factories. And in Joseph's last life, the steam engine, at least the cylinder steam engine, has basically been eliminated. Joseph only knew a general principle of this thing, and basically didn't know anything else.

As a result, the weapons produced by the "military-industrial complex" are very advanced, but the way they produce them is still very backward - at least in the eyes of Joseph. So relying on its production capacity alone is really a bit insufficient.

At Joseph's behest, Lucien proposed that other arsenals could produce new rifles under license.

In fact, the technique of the Mini bullet is quite simple. And when this rifle began to enter the army on a large scale, even after Napoleon's army, it was impossible to strictly keep this secret. Not to mention the domestic manufacturers, that is, the Austrians, Prussians and the British, it will not take long for them to know this technical secret. It's just that it will take time for them to redress the army.

At this time, there was no patent system in France, which meant that it would not be long before Joseph's competitors could produce the same rifles that met the requirements of the army. Even if Joseph relied on his influence in the army, he could ensure that he earned the most money. Those people can also find a way to win over generals who are not Bonaparte's system, so as to gain a market for themselves.

In this case, Joseph, who came from later generations, naturally came up with a set of countermeasures, that is, to use the advantages of technology to establish a cartel alliance.

In general, there is a prerequisite for the existence of technology-based cartel unions, which is that there must be a patent system. For a time-traveler like Joseph, patents are extremely important. Prior to this, Lucien had already made a proposal in parliament to establish a patent system. However, the proposal did not pass, and the number of votes for it was about a dozen or so fewer than the votes against.

This was a setback for Joseph. But for the sake of such a setback, a military coup d'état seems to be too much. Therefore, Joseph came up with such a plan, first using the method of technology alliance, to first attract some arms dealers who have the strength to influence the parliamentary vote. Once these arms dealers enter the alliance, the establishment of patent law will also be very beneficial to them.

Once the patent law is passed, the alliance will be tied even tighter, and the Bonaparte family, who have mastered the source of the technology, will undoubtedly become the leader of this cartel. Coupled with Napoleon's influence in the army, Joseph even felt that he could turn this technological cartel into a syndicate unified by technology patents and sales channels. At that time, because there is no independent source of technology and sales channels, even if the enterprises in the alliance are still legally independent, all their economic activities can only comply with the will of the headquarters. By that time, the "military-industrial complex" may be able to truly live up to its name.