After the staff officer examination, the staff officers of the major theaters returned to their respective stations one after another, and the general staff system was not truly implemented until this moment.

From now on, no one will be able to stop the General Staff, which will overcome the initial difficulties, will inevitably go on with no indomitable progress.

In the middle of August, the weather in Paris became hotter and hotter, and the earth under the high temperature "spitted" its own water vapor, and the white mist rose from the cracks in the ground, and disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye. The air was stuffy and hot, like a match that could be lit. The gravel-paved road was also unusually hot, and stepping on it barefoot was like a torture.

In such hot weather, even the Champs-Écoupés were rarely pedestrianized, and the bourgeois who lived in Paris left Paris to escape the heat in Lyon, Bordeaux and other places during this period.

Little Bourgeois removed the ice cubes that had been prepared in the cellar the year before and placed them in the room, using the ice mist scattered by the ice cubes to resist the scorching heat in the air. Or open all the doors and windows, shake a round fan in one hand, and sit in groups on rocking chairs with the summer drinks that the landlord has prepared in the other hand.

Forget to mention that most of the petty bourgeois who work in Paris do not have their own residences, and often live in private apartments.

After paying a certain amount of rent and moving in, the landlady is the highest servant and housekeeper in the mansion.

(Generally speaking, in a rented apartment with better conditions, the landlady will hire two or three servants and cooks who are actually used for cleaning and cooking, and can be used to satisfy everyone in the apartment.) The more you pay, the more you will be empowered. This is mentioned in 19th-century France. ）

The proletarians, who make up a relative majority of the population in Paris, live in a dark, damp underground plague full of plagues, suffering from pain and disease, repeating the same work day after day.

For them, Paris doesn't seem to have changed much.

Louis. Philip and Jérôme. Bonaparte! It's all the same!

The living environment and economic power of Paris as a whole took on the structure of a pyramid, and the changes in the upper echelons did not seem to have benefited the middle and lower classes.

Of course, it would be biased to say that there is no change at all.

Several new welfare hospitals have been built in the Saint-Germain district to help people with more difficult economic conditions.

The treatment is probably some minor diseases, and the real serious illness welfare hospitals are also powerless.

It is in this environment and temperature that an even more frustrating event is taking place at the Tuileries Palace.

Jérôme taking a lunch break in a bedroom with ice cubes. Bonaparte heard a knock at the door in a haze, opened his eyes in a daze, then rolled over on the bed, and looked up at the roof, until the knock came from the room again. Bonaparte then realized that there was a knock on the door.

Consciousness returns to Jérôme in the body. Bonaparte twisted his head to the side of the window, and the glare of the sun outside the window made Jérôme. Bonaparte's eyes narrowed. After a while, Jérôme reopened his eyes. Bonaparte put his hand under the pillow again, and after some fumbling for it, he finally found his pocket watch.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, from Jérôme. Bonaparte's lunch break had passed less than an hour.

"Ahh Jérôme. Bonaparte couldn't help but yawn, and he twisted his head to the side of the door.

Don't know who's outside the door? It doesn't seem like it matters!

Jérôme. Bonaparte once had the instruction that in case of emergency, regardless of Jérôme. Bonaparte was going to call him up for everything.

Jérôme. Bonaparte got up slowly, grabbed a handful of ice cubes into the bucket and put them in his hands. Stimulated by the ice, he finally woke up completely.

Jérôme who got back dressed. Bonaparte opened the door, and he saw Chancellor of the Exchequer Magne, and Minister of State Fuld outside the door.

The fact that Manie and Fuld were able to come together at the Tuileries was a bit of a surprise to him. Judging from their solemn expressions, there really was something fatal in France.

Jérôme. Bonaparte couldn't help but snort, he still pretended to be calm and looked at Manie and Fuld and greeted him with a smile: "Chancellor Mane, Chancellor Fuld, good afternoon!" ”

"Your Majesty, can I delay you for some time! We have something to say to you! Manie asked to go to the study to talk.

"Good!" Jérôme. Bonaparte nodded in reply.

Manie, Fuld, and Jérôme. The three of Bonaparte went to the study together, and on the way to the study, Jérôme. Bonaparte suddenly noticed that Mane was carrying a black suitcase in his hand. If I'm not mistaken, it should be Manie who reported the contents to him.

After the three men entered the study, Magne, Fuld, and Jerrome. Bonaparte sat in three directions on the sofa, and the black suitcase in Mane's hand was also placed on the table by Mane.

"What the hell is going on?" Jérôme. Bonaparte asked Magne and Fuld with a serious face.

After Manie and Fuld glanced at each other, the Minister of State, Fulder, spoke: "Your Majesty, we want you to see how the government spent in the first half of the year!" ”

With that, Fuld opened the suitcase and respectfully handed the documents inside the suitcase to Jérôme. In Bonaparte's hand, he said: "Your Majesty, this is the total expenditure of our government in the first half of the year!" Please take a look! ”

Jérôme. Bonaparte took the bill of expenses from Fulder's hand and flipped through the pages of it.

Gradually, Jérôme. Bonaparte's expression became solemn, and when he saw half of the expenditure statistics, he shook his head and muttered, "Impossible!" How could the government ......"

Wait until Jérôme. After Bonaparte had read all the five budgets for the first half of the year, Jérôme. Bonaparte's expression became as melancholy as Mangie and Fulder, and he opened the drawer again and threw two of the three cigars left in the drawer to Manie and Fulder, and the remaining cigar was held in his mouth.

Fulder, who took the cigar, was intimate for Jérôme. Bonaparte lit the cigar, as well as Mane, who was beside him, and finally lit the cigar for himself.

Once again, the entire study of the Tuileries was enveloped in cigar smoke.

Stay until Jérôme. After Bonaparte smoked a cigar, his frown still did not stretch.

From the information that Magne gave him on the financial expenditures of France, Jérôme. Bonaparte saw the big French pills.

The fiscal revenue of France as a whole in the first half of the year, after deducting various capacities, had a surplus of 1 billion francs. (This refers to the central fiscal revenue, which is one more than the central government, but these fiscal revenues are used for infrastructure design and construction in various localities.) ）

However, France's fiscal expenditures amounted to around 1.2 billion francs.

This means that in the first half of the year alone, France incurred a fiscal deficit of almost 200 million francs.

These deficits were mainly concentrated in the expansion of Paris, the reform of agriculture, and the reform of the General Staff.

If we take into account the financial and debt problems in the railways, France's fiscal deficit is likely to be around 400 million francs.

With 400 million francs equivalent to a quarter of France's annual finances, it is clear that such a large deficit cannot be paid off overnight.

This is also the Jérôme. The reason why Bonaparte frowned.

Jérôme. Bonaparte, Mane, and Fuld were speechless, and none of the three seemed to dare to say the first word.

"Your Majesty, I think it's time for France to plan its expenses! If this continues, the government will have to go bankrupt! Seeing that the atmosphere was gradually sinking into tension and dreary, Chancellor of the Exchequer Mangie spoke first.

"Your Majesty, France really can't afford to spend so much!" Fuld was also on Mane's side.

To be honest, Fuld was also shocked to see the fiscal deficit in the first half of the year that Manie had submitted, and he even wondered at one point if the figures Manie had given him were forged by himself.

So, Fuld went to the finance department to find the chancellor of the exchequer, Mane, and asked Manie in person whether there was a problem with the statistics of the finance department.

Manie immediately responded to Fuld with a wry smile, there was no financial problem in the first half of the year, and France did owe a high fiscal deficit.

In France, September or November is the day when the Legislature asks about the financial situation.

Fuld knew that if he went to the Legislative Council with this financial report, he would definitely be questioned by the Legislative Council.

Although the legislature has lost its core legislative and veto powers, it still has not lost its right to question finances.

In fact, it is not the legislature that is deadly, but the people of Paris who are the most deadly.

If they were to know that the government's fiscal deficit had reached 200 million francs for half a year, the people of Paris would have to blow up.

The top priority was to prevent the deficit from widening, and after a total of calculations, Manie and Fuld decided to go to the Tuileries Palace to hand over the report of the Ministry of Finance to Jérôme. Bonaparte.

Jérôme. Bonaparte, as they had thought, looked worried.

After a while, Jérôme. Bonaparte emphasized: "Reform cannot be stopped, and if it is stopped, we risk being crushed!" ”

"But, Your Majesty! If we continue to reform, the fiscal deficit will widen further! At that point, the situation will become even more out of control! Manie reminded Jérôme. Bonaparte said.

"Then raise taxes!" Jérôme. Bonaparte said resolutely.

"Where should we increase taxes?" Manie asked Jérôme again. Bonaparte, he was somewhat afraid of Jérôme. Bonaparte would have proposed the income tax that everyone feared.

"Under the premise that the original tax remains unchanged, additional taxes of 10%-25% will be levied on tobacco, alcohol, coffee and wine respectively!"

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