Adjacent to the eastern provinces of Paris, Reims.
Viscount Durant, the market supervisor, watched hundreds of imposing police officers march past him with neatly synchronized steps and couldn't help but feel solemn inside.
He vividly remembered that just a year ago, the police in Reims were hardly distinguishable from street thugs, not to mention having them march in unison, it was difficult just to get them to stand up straight.
Moreover, these police officers were well-paid, highly disciplined, and directly commanded by the Police Headquarters, not subject to the control of the City Hall.
He sighed internally, realizing that the police were no longer under the control of the nobility...
Joseph originally wanted to hold a police parade in Reims like the one in Paris, but the local police training was somewhat lacking, and the Police Headquarters said they needed a month's preparation to barely meet his requirements.
Thus, he had to change the inspection to a police procession around the city, but he did not expect that with a large number of citizens following and watching, it ultimately turned into a massive parade involving thousands of people, and the momentum was not much less than that in Paris.
"Hey, did you hear?" An official with prominent cheekbones, wearing a black long coat, suddenly moved close to Baron Durant and nudged him with his elbow, whispering mysteriously, "The reason why the Count of Norfolk and his people exposed other officials in court was due to coercion by the Intelligence Agency..."
Viscount Durant's face changed dramatically, and he rubbed his ears with exaggerated motions, raising his voice, "Baron Chevalier, the drumming is too loud, what did you say? I didn't quite catch it."
As Chevalier was about to repeat himself, Durant had already turned around to greet a middle-aged man, "Mr. Gerald, long time no see, you are here too."
Seeing no other option, Chevalier turned to another official to relay the "big news" he had heard, but the latter quickly dodged him with a strange look on his face.
Chevalier felt somewhat dispirited and managed to spot his cousin-in-law, Baron Alex, the fiscal assistant of Reims, in the crowd, so he weaved his way towards him, waving, "Henry, it's so good to see you.
"About the people involved in the recent corruption case, I heard that it was the Intelligence Agency..."
Before he could finish, his cousin-in-law interrupted him sharply, "Stop talking!"
Looking around cautiously with a serious expression, his cousin-in-law said in a low voice, "I've always reminded you, never listen to nonsense from others, let alone spread it around."
"No, this is not a rumor; it's from Viscount Charles Bernie..."
Viscount Bernie was one of the more than 40 high-ranking officials being prosecuted for corruption.
Baron Alex glanced nervously at the police officers carrying flintlock guns not far away and covered his mouth with his hand, "The Royal Family has already suppressed this matter, which is the best possible outcome. Are you trying to prompt the Official Investigation Bureau to examine us by talking about this?"
His voice became even lower, "The High Court has only tried 4 people so far, and already hundreds of officials have been implicated. Once those more than 40 people are all judged, it's very likely that we will also be on the list of those exposed!
"The important thing is, whether it's you or me, or the Municipal Commissioners, Trade Coordinators, none of us can withstand investigation... So we just need to cooperate with the Royal Family, and absolutely avoid causing further trouble!"
Seeing Chevalier nod, he finally released his mouth and added, "Prepare yourself when you go back; you'll be coming with me to Paris to register at the Royal School of Administrative Management in a few days..."
After the police patrol ended, Baron Alex pondered for a moment and ordered his coachman to head to the Police Headquarters.
Before long, he told an officer from the Police Headquarters, "I want to report Viscount Charles Bernie for spreading rumors and defaming the Intelligence Agency..."
Meanwhile, in an adjacent office, Viscount Durant was also making a report about the same matter.
After overseeing the police patrol in Bordeaux, Joseph returned to Paris.
He first made a detour to the Administration College, where he represented Louis XVI and gave a speech at the opening ceremony.
Indeed, with substantial donations from numerous officials and persistent urging, the college had completed its preparations in just a month and a half, ready to start classes.
The first batch of students had over 600 people, far surpassing the initially planned number.
Moreover, to attend the first classes, one would need to seek favors from the Church, as there were still thousands of officials eagerly waiting in line.
Coming out of the school, Joseph saw a "For Rent" sign on a house across the street, the rent being as high as 40 francs a month!
This was almost the monthly salary of an ordinary civil servant.
He slapped his forehead, ruing that he had not thought of such a lucrative real estate project earlier.
This was top-tier school district housing; selling a house for twenty or thirty thousand francs would pose no problem.
After all, it would be officials moving in, and they could definitely afford it. Even if one didn't live there, it could be easily rented out at a high price, and some shrewd businessmen would invest in buying property.
If a new neighborhood were built here, it could make at least tens of millions of francs!
With this in mind, Joseph hastily ordered Eman to send people to buy all the vacant land near the Administration College. It wasn't too late to mend; this was another contribution to the tax reform efforts.
In the Palace of Versailles, a regular Cabinet meeting was being held in the grand hall.
"Next is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's proposal." Brian glanced at the ministers, "His Highness suggests that officials managing roads, waterways, and other areas, due to the need for extensive professional knowledge, should attend university for education.
"If these officials fail the professional exams, it would prove that they are not suitable for the job, and others could be appointed in their stead."
Mirabeau immediately agreed, "I strongly support His Highness's proposal. It is hard to imagine that a director of roads, who can't even read construction plans, could build quality roads."
Brian continued, "So, let's send these officials to the Royal School of Administrative Management in batches for continuing education, where they must pass exams to continue their duties.
"And for future positions requiring a high level of professional knowledge, they should be trained first and hold a corresponding graduation certificate before taking up the job."
The ministers nodded their heads in agreement.
Positions related to waterways and roads were few in number and not very powerful, so no one was particularly concerned.
The ministers then turned their heads collectively to Queen Mary.
She was still admiring a beautiful bird outside the window—now that the Crown Prince could handle most matters for her, she was increasingly reluctant to bother—until Brian coughed lightly, and she suddenly turned back, smiling awkwardly.