Kano thought for a moment and said, "This matter is very important, we can't just talk about it and decide ......."

At this point, Kano paused again, and then said, "I'll think about this seriously." If it's really feasible, I'll write to you. But...... It's also good to make all kinds of preparations in advance. ”

Joseph nodded and said, "I will." For this, though, I need you to guarantee priority procurement of the weapons we produce. In addition, you also know that the cost of the real thing will definitely be higher, and the price will naturally be higher. You have to make sure that our stuff won't be robbed of the market by those cheap rotten things. ”

"All I can say is that I'll do my best." Carnot Road.

"Okay." Joseph said, "If I can't help it, I'll figure it out myself." ”

"Don't mess around right now." Kano faintly heard something not quite right in Joseph's tone, and hurriedly said.

"No, it won't. Don't you know me yet? Joseph laughed.

……

Coming out of Carnot, Joseph took his guards, changed into a four-wheeled carriage, and left Paris.

The day before Joseph left Paris, the researchers who had signed a contract with him left Lavoisier (Lavoisier had some things to deal with with the University of Paris.) They had already left Paris and went to Toulon. At that time, Joseph also divided half of his cavalry guards to escort them. Because their bag was a relatively slow mail car, Joseph caught up with them on the third day after leaving Paris.

A few days later, everyone was in Toulon. By this time Napoleon had already been informed that they were waiting outside the "Naval Institute", which had just been expanded—no, it should have been called the Bonaparte Institute.

The expanded Bonaparte Institute was very similar in form to the old "Technical Institute of the Army", enclosed in a trench with a high-walled drawbridge. The basic layout is also basically modeled after the "Military Technology Research Institute", so these researchers are very quick to find a suitable place for themselves and put their own things in place.

By this time Napoleon had already prepared dinner for them. Everyone had a meal together, and then they went back to rest.

Joseph called Napoleon out, and the two of them walked on the beach by the sea, while Joseph told Napoleon about the situation in Paris.

"You're going to send us to Italy?" Napoleon said, "Why not go directly to Paris?" What are these guys doing? ”

"Napoleon, now is not the time to go to Paris." Joseph said, "Napoleon, you have had some victories before, but do you have a high enough place in the hearts of the French people because of this?" Has it reached the point of becoming a household name? Would the French people, when faced with a difficult situation, be the first to think of you and say, 'If only General Napoleon had been here'? If you can't do that, think about it, even if you go back to Paris and overthrow the government by force, will you be able to maintain a stable government? If you can't do it, won't it become a way for others? ”

When Napoleon heard this, he smiled embarrassedly and said, "Actually, I know it, but it's just a little anxious to see those fools jumping around there." It's like watching a fool play chess. ”

"You think people are fools, but other people don't think so. It's like when you watch a game of chess, you think that people are making losing moves, and those guys who are watching are still thinking that people are doing well because their level is too low. Now we have to do, first of all, to raise your prestige in the hearts of the French people, so that when they hear about the war, they think: 'If only General Napoleon were in command.' On the other hand, we took advantage of the fact that the government had given us less money and the quality of our materials and equipment was poor, so that we could draw the army over and turn the army of the republic into an army that truly belongs to us. ”

"You mean to send me to Italy and use the captured wealth to support the army? And then use my series of victories to counter the incompetence of those guys in Paris? Napoleon immediately understood what Joseph meant.

"Yes, but not now, but after the army feels the pain inflicted on them by an incompetent government." Joseph said, "Let them develop disgust and even hatred for this government, and only then can you buy them with the spoils of war and turn them into our real army." And until then, we all need to be patient. Also, during this time, I'm going to have some small toys for you......"

"What is it?" Napoleon hurriedly asked, the "little melon" that Joseph gave him last time was so good that his expectations were suddenly high.

"Confidentiality." Joseph said.

After that day, Joseph plunged headlong into the institute. And some of the things he told Napoleon began to become reality.

First of all, the military pay was lowered. Although the number of people who get it seems to have risen a little on the surface, all the people get are coupons, and the value of this kind of thing is declining almost every day. It's no longer Jacobin times, and there are no commissioners with guillotines to oversee the need for merchants to use coupons. As a result, the practice of refusing to accept index bonds began to resurgence generally, and this further caused the index bonds to continue to fall. Although the Directory was restrained in printing the bills in order to curry favor with the decent people, the depreciation of the bills was like their rituals, and the devaluation of the bills plummeted by 3,000 feet.

As a result, the soldiers' standard of living plummeted, and the quantity and quality of bread they could eat each day plummeted. Napoleon thus thoughtfully reduced the number and intensity of training, he stayed in the barracks every day, ate the same food as the soldiers, kept chatting with the soldiers, telling them that the difficulties were only temporary, and singing with them: "It will be fine, it will be fine...... only the latter sentence becomes "There will be bread with butter." ”

Although the soldiers complained about the decline in their lives, they were more fond of Napoleon.

If it had only been a decline in the standard of living, the image of the Directory in the minds of the people would not have collapsed so quickly, but before long, the Directory had replenished them with all kinds of weapons and ammunition, and the dissatisfaction and contempt for this government had risen rapidly.

The first thing that made the soldiers complain was naturally the "little melon" that they used to like very much. Because this batch of "little melons" is not surnamed Bonaparte.

As a result, naturally, on the Northern Front, what arose in the armies of the warring sides was once again repeated.

The first accident occurred during a live-fire training exercise, and the "little melon" thrown by a soldier did not sound for most of the day. So the stupid soldier wanted to go up and see what was going on, but just after walking a little past, the "little melon" exploded.

Fortunately, this little melon that cut corners even omitted prefabricated fragments, and the shell was only blown in half, and the soldier was so rushed by the air wave that he fell into a fight, but miraculously did not suffer any injuries.

In the same live-fire training, there were still a few "little melons" that did not sound, and with the lesson just now, everyone naturally did not dare to go up again, and Napoleon even asked people to circle that piece with a rope to prohibit others from approaching. As a result, those "little melons" were left there for a whole day, but they really didn't ring.

Except for the little melon, everything else is the same mess. The brown powder used in the cannon was visibly damp, and the sulfur was not even broken in it, but was mixed in with small stones that might have been used to weigh the scales; It is impossible to find a few sabers of all kinds that can be used, and in the words of some soldiers, they are worried that they will be notched or curled when cutting bread; (Of course, this is partly because the quality of the knife is too poor, and on the other hand, it is also because there are too many additives added to the bread.) And the military uniforms, the thickness of the cloth has dropped significantly, and the buttons are not sewn strongly, and with a slight pull, you can pull it off the clothes.

In this way, the complaints of the soldiers are really a little uncontrollable. Some of the junior officers exchanged letters with their comrades on the northern front, and they told the black jokes of the northern front in a vivid way, so that everyone knew the story of the hapless general Rubert.

Napoleon still seemed to be washing the Directory as much as he could, placing the blame on the profiteers. His words can basically be summed up as follows: "Today's holy and holy and brightest are only deceived by a few traitors." "Ah, no, misremember, it should be: "Those people in the government today are not actually bad people, but they are too young and naïve to be deceived by those profiteers." ”

But this is a bit unconvincing. The soldiers are not stupid, they will not believe that a group of guys who are too young and naïve can climb to that position.

"If you can be fooled like this by a few profiteers, unless you are a fool." One soldier said so.

"It's either stupid or bad!" Approval was expressed.

"Sitting in that position, can you still be a fool? Their position is not hereditary. If there is no dirty business in this, I will not be surnamed Mitterrand! Another soldier scolded.

"Perhaps, some merchant sent them beautiful women." Another soldier began to crook the building.

"How do you know you're sending a beautiful woman? Maybe they washed their sons and sent them over. You know, it's said that some of the guys up there like it...... and the building is even more crooked.

"Alas, it's not them who die on the battlefield anyway. They're not stupid, they're bad! "Someone came to a conclusion.