The Fox of France

Chapter 150: The Bane of Royalists (2)

The grand halls of the National Assembly stood in solemn silence, appearing devoid of any human presence from the outside.

"Hahaha" A royalist sympathizer burst into laughter. "I knew these rebels would flee early! Cowards! Hahaha"

He waved a massive white flag in his hand (well, the Bourbon dynasty's flag was white, after all) and shouted back to the others, "Brothers, follow me! Hoist this white flag atop the National Assembly building!"

The crowd rushed toward the National Assembly building, many of them firing haphazardly at the walls, their bullets sparking as they hit the stonework, shattering windows in a cacophonous symphony.

The crowd drew closer to the building, within a mere forty meters. Just then, explosions erupted from all directions.

Countless fireballs emerged from underground tunnels beneath the square in front of the National Assembly, along with a barrage of fireballs in mid-air.

"What is this?" Barras, hiding behind a window on the second floor of the building, peered outside with a trembling voice. Despite the winter chill, his brow was already damp with sweat.

Barras knew that if he had chosen to hide elsewhere at this moment, he would likely be safer. However, when it came to sharing the spoils later on, his share would be significantly smaller. So, after a sleepless night of contemplation, he decided to close his eyes and take the risk. After all, Fouch and Lucien were here. If they weren't certain, they wouldn't

But just a moment ago, when the mob swarmed toward them, Barras was genuinely frightened. He recalled the various imaginative and gruesome ways the nobility met their end during the September Massacres. His legs went weak, and he almost forgot that he had a small vial of poison prepared.

However, this series of massive explosions changed everything. After the explosions, the entire area surrounding the National Assembly, including several streets leading to it, had been swept by shockwaves and shrapnel. Most of the rioters had become lifeless, sprawled every which way, while the few survivors moaned in agony. There was no one left standing in the vacant square and streets.

"These are electrically detonated landmines," Lucien explained. "They are our enterprise's latest creation."

In the original history, in 1799, Volta developed the first practical battery, known as the Voltaic pile. In that same year, E.C. Howard created an essential explosive, fulminate of mercury. But in this alternate timeline, Lavasie had inadvertently discovered fulminate of mercury while producing nitrocellulose for military purposes. Recently, to develop various explosives, especially timed explosives, Joseph had successfully replicated a battery. He began with more advanced starting points than Volta, immediately producing consumer-friendly carbon-zinc batteries and rechargeable zinc-copper batteries with dilute sulfuric acid as the electrolyte.

Combined with Lavasie's invention of electric blasting caps, and with the addition of a timer, a widely-appreciated and highly efficient household, travel, and assassination essential, the timed bomb, was created. If these devices were given to the European revolutionary zealots, especially Napoleon and Russian enthusiasts for clandestine killings, they would wreak havoc on the European nobility.

Of course, these technologies had applications far beyond assassinations, playing critical roles in various fields. In this context, they merely slightly modified the technology used for safe mining explosions (as fuses were unreliable and comparatively dangerous). They had transformed it into a massive weapon.

The so-called "electrically detonated landmine" consisted, conscientiously, of a packet of nitrocellulose wrapped in oil paper and cloth, covered with glass shards and iron nails. Then, they attached an electric blasting cap with wires. Those less scrupulous affixed a long nail to the ground and placed the explosive parcel on top. They inserted an electric blasting cap with wires, securing a small melon on top, rigged to pull a cord attached to a nail below. Upon detonation, the melon would launch into the air, its fuse also pulled. As long as the explosive quantity was correct, the melon would explode in the air, leaving the target with no escape.

In a single night, the Red Army buried over three hundred of these mines on the square and main roads leading to the National Assembly, turning the entire area into a massive deathtrap.

"Counterattack! Crush them while we have the chance!" the current commanding officer of the Red Army and Carnot's chosen successor, Colonel Berti, yelled.

Suddenly, hundreds of soldiers, donned in their red uniforms and armed with bayoneted rifles, surged from windows and doors, charging from the entrances, jumping out of windows, and sprinting toward the bewildered rioters who hadn't yet grasped the gravity of the situation.

The rioters had been utterly paralyzed by the recent explosions. Their scattered, directionless escape wasn't due to their courage but rather their shock. Now, seeing a squad of soldiers brandishing gleaming bayonets charging toward them, they snapped out of their stupor, turned tail, and fled while shouting, "We're defeated! Run, quick, run! Damn it, don't block my way!"

The mob descended into chaos, their panicked escape slowed by the fact that there was no place to run. The Red Army quickly closed in, first with a volley, followed by the melon bombs, and then... well, there was nothing left after that.

The rioters hadn't even considered fighting back; they were merely desperate to flee. The smarter ones abandoned their weapons, deserted the main streets, and scurried into alleys. Since the Red Army had no intention of pursuing them here, they converged where the mob was densest.

"Mr. Barras, you can now issue orders to the National Guard in the name of the city's defense commander. I'm confident they'll obediently follow your commands now," Lucien looked outside for a moment, then turned to Barras.

In truth, Barras didn't need to issue orders. After news of the failed royalist siege of the National Assembly, the National Guards from previously "neutral" districts had voluntarily joined in the counter-revolutionary efforts. Even those who had initially leaned toward the royalists and were a bit late to the scene promptly declared, "We're here to suppress the rebellion and defend the Republic!"

Indeed, the "redrawing" had already begun, and the most significant matter was rewarding those who had earned it. Failure to recognize the valiant would be unacceptable, and the Red Army wouldn't stand for it.

In the past, no matter how chaotic Paris became, the military had never truly intervened in the city's political struggles. But this time, the military made an abrupt entrance, demonstrating to all that, "Don't misunderstand our intentions. We're not targeting any of you. We're here to tell you that if you're planning to flip the table, you're all amateurs!"

The Red Army of five hundred soldiers effortlessly defeated over forty thousand rioters with minimal casualties. The only soldier who gained an honorable injury during the fight had sprained his ankle while pursuing the rioters. As for the number of rioters who perished, that was anyone's guess. It was said that wagons hauling the corpses had been busy all day.

Since the uprising had been quelled, the most crucial matter was rewarding the deserving. Barras, with newfound enthusiasm, addressed the government assembly to discuss the country's new leadership and policies.

First, those who had accomplished significant feats in this event needed to be acknowledged; otherwise, it wouldn't sit right. And... the Red Army wouldn't accept it.

In the past, Barras had been a broker between the factions, but now, he shifted his allegiance swiftly. He represented the interests of the military on the political stage.

"Over the past period, our arms procurement management has been a complete mess, delivering far too much junk to our military! I'm telling you, our soldiers are dissatisfied! They suspect there may be royalist plots in these terrible arms we've been feeding them. They're suspicious that someone among us is selling them out for money, betraying France. They believe this situation cannot continue!"

"So, we must pass a resolution to restore the military representative system and reintroduce quality control and accountability measures for arms procurement. Anyone attempting to deliver these shoddy products to our military is committing high treason and should face severe punishment!"

"Arms procurement for the military, with the exception of classified projects, should be conducted transparently. The military should establish open technical standards, and only products meeting these standards from qualified companies should be accepted into our military..."

"Barras has turned to the military side quite quickly," a member of the assembly commented quietly as Barras delivered his speech.

"Indeed, he has, Mr. Rn," another member whispered back. "But what concerns me more is the standards for military procurement. It's likely that certain scientists have already developed something and are dictating the standard to the military, tailored to their product."

"Ah, Barras, this fellow, is quite the visionary. He was the one who managed to sell the navy and the Institute of Technology to that family at a low price. And I've heard Barras just sold his two gunpowder factories, which are now said to be part of the 'Military-Industrial Consortium.' He's a shareholder now."

"That's quite enviable... he's getting rich like this, and he didn't even tell us beforehand..."

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