Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

As she walked out of the canning factory, Queen Mary felt a bit dazed.

According to the manager, this factory can produce nearly 5 million cans of 4-kilogram canned fish annually, or 6.1 million cans of 2.7 kilograms.

Two years ago, Saint Malo was a small city with only seven or eight thousand people, relying on fishing and smuggling for survival.

But now, the second largest canning factory in France has been built here, a factory as large as a city. The canned goods produced here alone can meet one-tenth of Paris’s meat consumption.

This was a spectacle she could never have imagined in the Palace of Versailles!

She suddenly felt proud and puffed out her chest. Just now, her son mentioned to her that these machines for producing canned goods include several of her husband’s patents!

The “Old Louis” in her heart seemed to instantly transform back into his handsome, gentle, and wise self of the past.

On the other hand, Joseph was discussing expansion with Delate, “The Brittany railway line should start construction within five years, after all, there is still an important shipbuilding industry here.”

Delate immediately exclaimed excitedly, “Your Highness, if there were a railway connecting to Paris, I believe the annual output could soon exceed 10 million cans!”

The Speaker of Saint Malo City was slightly worried and said, “The number of workers might not be enough by then…”

“This is precisely one of the greatest advantages of the railway, Mr. Regis,” said Joseph, “A large number of young people from towns and villages along the railway will come to work in Saint Malo City.

“In a few years, the nearby towns and villages within ten kilometers will gradually become part of Saint Malo.”

As the group spoke, suddenly there were sounds of shouting and crying from the workshop ahead.

Delate frowned and quickly sent his assistant to see what was going on, regretful that he hadn’t informed the supervisors of the Crown Prince’s visit.

After a moment, his assistant returned, murmuring a few words quickly.

Delate’s expression softened, and he addressed Joseph with a slight bow, “Your Highness, it’s just a minor issue. A new worker didn’t properly secure the guide rail rod for the oil pressing machine, which caused it to bend.

“Fortunately, we have spare parts, and it should be fixed soon.”

“Oil pressing machine?” Joseph couldn’t help recalling a certain “foul-smelling” machine and asked subconsciously, “What kind of oil pressing machine is it?”

“The latest model from Paris, Your Highness, driven by a steam engine, capable of pressing rapeseed clean like wood.”

His assistant added quietly, “It was invented by a gentleman named Schramm.”

It was indeed him. Joseph remembered the name. He had initially asked the man to convert the “manure press” into an oil press, and it seemed he had succeeded.

What Joseph didn’t know was that he himself was also one of the inventors of this oil pressing machine—Schramm insisted on listing him as a co-inventor, but by his usual practice, he did not publicize it.

The revolutionary oil pressing machine sold over 40 units in just eight months after being put into production. This was the production limit, and orders were already lined up three years in advance.

Joseph’s account had increased by more than 50,000 francs because of it.

Joseph looked towards the workshop, which had quieted down: “Let’s go in and have a look.”

Delate hurriedly led the way, worried that the earlier commotion had displeased the Crown Prince, and tried to change the subject as much as possible: “Your Highness, to improve the taste of cod, our chefs suggested using oil to soak the fish.

“As you can see, our premium canned products now contain more than 30 grams of linseed oil.

“Before, we needed to buy large quantities of oil from Saint Brieux, and the shipping costs were very high.

“Later, the board decided to purchase this oil pressing machine, which now can squeeze out 360 kilograms of linseed oil a day, saving a substantial amount of money.”

Linseed oil has a fishy smell, so in the cooking oil market, it is not popular and is relatively inexpensive. However, when mixed into fish cans, the fishy smell is not an issue at all, and it even greatly improves the taste of the canned goods.

As Joseph walked into the oil pressing workshop, he saw a sixteen or seventeen-year-old young man standing with his head down in the corner, his frightened face still streaked with tears, clearly having just made a mistake.

Several technicians were changing out the damaged parts.

Queen Mary felt a little sympathetic and tugged on her son’s sleeve, using her eyes to gesture towards the young man.

Joseph nodded and asked Delate, “How much does the damaged rod cost?”

“Ah, this…”

The latter had no choice but to ask a technician for a while and then reported to Joseph, “32 francs, Your Highness.”

“Don’t blame that gentleman,” Joseph gestured toward the young man in the corner, “I’ll pay the factory for him.”

“How can that be? Rest assured, I won’t let him pay.”

According to the customs of this era, if a worker damaged something in the factory, he had to compensate for it at cost.

One of the attendants had already stuffed several franc bills into Delate’s hand.

Only then did Joseph continue to ask, “By the way, have you bought insurance for this kind of expensive oil pressing machine?”

“Ah? Forgive my ignorance, Your Highness, is there such insurance?”

“Equipment insurance, which has been available for almost two years,” Joseph nodded calmly, “In the future, purchase insurance for the main equipment. If it were 30 francs, allowing that young gentleman to cover it might ruin him.”

Yes, it was Joseph himself who ensured this was included in the compensation projects of the French Royal Insurance Company. Now all kinds of incident insurance, work injury insurance, safety liability insurance, etc., are available.

However, these factories seem not to have bought insurance.

Joseph thought to himself: It seems a compulsory insurance purchase requirement must be added to the “Factory Law.”

The young man who had caused the trouble learned that a gentleman had compensated for the oil press part for him and immediately burst into tears again. As Joseph said, he couldn’t come up with 32 francs, so he could only borrow high-interest loans. And that would eventually cost him everything.

A suddenly appearing gentleman had saved him.

He wanted to come over to express his thanks but then saw the guard next to Joseph and was too nervous to approach. Ultimately, he stood in the original corner, continuously bowing towards Joseph, muttering confused words of gratitude.

Joseph comforted him with a few words, and the overseer beside him had come over, gesturing him back to work at the oil press.

Soon, the rod of the oil press was repaired, and the technician attempted to close the gears, and the large iron disc began to slowly descend under the hydraulic pressure.

The workers busied themselves, loading the freshly pressed oil-water mixture into large ceramic jars, then moving them to the next room for cooling and settling.

Delate continued introducing to the Crown Prince: “Your Highness, the oil pressed from this machine is very clean, and when stored in wax-sealed bottles, it won’t go rancid even after three or four months.”