French Empire: But Napoleon IV

Chapter 24 Republicans in Action

Olivier enjoyed high prestige among the liberal capitalist class, and the government he formed was undoubtedly a signal from the Bonaparte family that they were friendly to capital.

Therefore, there are quite a few capitalists who are actually quite willing to maintain a neutral stance, or even get close to the Bonaparte family. The Bonaparte family is far from being universally hated.

But if Eugénie had removed Olivier from power, or forced him to step down, the situation would have been very different. Compared to the more compromising Napoleon III, Eugénie was more assertive, but her assertiveness was simply ineffective in the complex political climate of France.

A hardline approach would only alienate his supporters. Senucci saw that once Olivier stepped down, Eugénie, given her preferences, would definitely choose someone who advocated war and leaned towards absolute monarchy to take the throne.

By then, the strength of their Republican Party will have increased dramatically, which is far more shrewd than blindly challenging Bonaparte's rule now.

With the banker's endorsement, Lafayette, a moderate member of Gambia's inner circle, quickly joined the group.

"Mr. Senucci is right, Mr. Blanqui. A radical uprising will only isolate us. We are still weak and lack sufficient armed forces. If we act rashly, we will only repeat the mistakes of the past, and all our efforts will be in vain."

Unable to retaliate against Senucci, Blanqui found a new target.

The radical leader turned and glared at Lafayette, mocking her with extreme disdain.

"Lafayette, you and Gambida are both cowards. What do you mean by shallow foundation? The anger of the people is our greatest strength. As long as we dare to stand up and reveal the truth of this battle report to the public, there is nothing we cannot accomplish."

I have no interest in the mess within the Republican Party; in fact, I hope it becomes even more chaotic so that I can overthrow the Bonaparte family and then push for my own rise to power.

Therefore, Orléans, as the leader of the Orléans faction, nodded, merely stating his position without responding to Blanqui's remarks or attacking Blanqui's inappropriateness.

Even the royalist faction desperately wanted to acquire the power of bankers, since no one would complain about having too much money.

"Mr. Cernucci makes a good point. We have an irreconcilable hatred for the Bonaparte family, and overthrowing their rule is our common goal. However, at present, overthrowing the Olivier government is the first step."

"Once Olivier steps down and the government descends into chaos, we can seize the opportunity to install a proxy or take over power directly. As for whether it's a republic or a constitutional monarchy, we can discuss that later. The most important thing right now is to remove Olivier, this stumbling block."

Orléans had already said everything he wanted to say, and Dieudonné, the leader of the Bourbon movement, did not step forward to speak.

After confirming that everyone present had expressed their stance and turning their attention to Blanqui, and assuring that this radical leader would not do anything as outrageous as before, Gambida pondered for a moment and made his own arrangements.

"I understand everyone's opinions. In that case, let the Republican Party take the lead, unite with those who support the Republic, and use newspapers and media to publicize the Olivier government's incompetence and poor war preparedness, and shift all the responsibility for our country's army's crushing defeat onto the government and the Bonaparte family."

The Republican Party's allies on this matter are not limited to those present here. In addition to these people, even the pro-war imperialists within Bonaparte's faction will be their allies.

Those members of the monarchists had long been fed up with the enlightened monarchy, and they wouldn't let this opportunity to overthrow Olivier slip by.

After Gambida made the arrangements, LeBron couldn't help but ask his own question to the young, radical party members who supported Blanche.

"Mr. Gambit, how can we ensure that the newspaper propaganda spreads quickly? Those pro-government newspapers will definitely obstruct us, and this battle report is confidential. If it's discovered that Mr. Troch leaked it, won't that cause us trouble?"

Although Gan Bi Da was far from being as virtuous and righteous as he appeared, his abilities were beyond doubt.

Despite lacking a particularly strong background, Gamda managed to navigate the complexities of the political landscape and steadily climb the ranks to become the leader of the Republican Party.

Even if the power of this person in charge is somewhat hollow, the position is still there, and Gan Bida will not be stumped by such a simple question.

"Don't worry, I've already contacted most of the pro-republican newspapers in Paris. Drekhruz and Mr. Léderly-Lorrain will personally write articles. We'll only publish the truth from the battle reports."

At the same time, we can arrange for Republican members to distribute newspapers and report on the battle situation on the streets, ensuring that every citizen sees the truth. As for pro-government newspapers, we have sufficient funds to hire propagandists to expand our influence and suppress their voices.

As a close friend of Gambida, Senucci once again stood up to support him.

Bankers are unwilling to invest money in things like distributing bread to the public, as these don't show immediate results.

However, bankers are equally willing to spend their francs on this kind of behavior—spending money to cause trouble for the imperial government, which is sure to affect their immediate short-term interests.

"You don't need to worry about funding. We will fully support you. We will cover all the expenses for printing newspapers, hiring publicists, and preparing related activities. As long as we can bring down the Olivier government, it will all be worth it."

At this point in the meeting, the relevant actions had essentially been finalized.

Blanqui, who had previously lost some of his francs in funding to the bank for acting without authorization, was dissatisfied, but he knew that this time he was not given the opportunity to act recklessly and thus enhance his image and toughness.

So he just gave a reluctant snort, making his stance clear to his Republican supporters and stabilizing the radical faction.

"I hope your methods work. If we miss this opportunity, I will not let it go. I will personally mobilize the people and do everything in my power to overthrow this corrupt empire."

It was still the evening of August 6th, and the major newspaper offices in Paris were brightly lit and bustling with activity.

The Republican Party has always been remarkably efficient in its actions against the empire. Before or even after Congress has convened, they have already contacted several pro-republican newspapers, such as The National and Reform.

The editors of these newspapers are now working through the night to write articles, preparing to publish them in tomorrow morning's front-page spread for external publicity.

They cannot let time erode the anger of the Parisians; they must seize the moment when adding fuel to the fire will be most effective.

Each of the editors held in their hands excerpts of classified war reports passed down from the Republicans.

If you looked down, you would see that what they were writing was a scathing critique of the Olivier government's incompetence and an attempt to incite public sentiment.