The Fox of France

 Napoleon paused for a moment, then put away his smile and asked, "My brother, what do you have to say about this?"

"Napoleon," Joseph hesitated for a moment and continued, "I want to know, in your vision for the future, will France be a republic or an empire?"

"Joseph, you, too, doubt me?" Napoleon hadn't spoken yet, but Lucien, with an annoyed tone, interrupted.

"Shut up!" Joseph didn't even spare a glance for Lucien and continued to fix his gaze on Napoleon. Lucien, as a result, sat there with a sullen expression, not saying a word.

"What's wrong with an empire? What about a republic?" Napoleon had originally planned to say, "Of course, I want to be an emperor." But for some reason, a sentence with a scent of weakness that even he himself detested came out of his mouth.

"Hahaha," Joseph laughed, but there was no humor in his eyes. "My brother, have you become someone who always lets 'I dare not' follow 'I want'? However, disguising your goals is a sign of maturity. Moreover, Napoleon, you've raised a very valuable and not-so-stupid question. What do you think the differences are between an empire and a republic, and what are their respective advantages and disadvantages?"

It was a broad question, but for Napoleon, it was one he couldn't avoid answering. With his head full of adolescent fantasies, Napoleon certainly wanted to become an emperor. But he also knew that without Joseph's support, the throne of the emperor would not be easy to attain. Even if he couldn't win Joseph's support, he should at least prevent Joseph from opposing him.

Napoleon knew that his elder brother was a mathematical genius. By that, I don't mean Joseph's XX Theorem or anything like that; I mean that when it came to making judgments, this guy was like he was solving a math problem. Fancy words, passion, and such held zero value with him. He only recognized real power and interests. If you wanted to persuade him, you had to rely on those.

"Let's start with the benefits of an empire for the family," Napoleon began, knowing that this angle was the most likely to persuade Joseph.

"If France becomes an empire, and I become the emperor, our family will go from being a minor noble family to the most prestigious royal family in all of Europe. Some members of our family, like you and Lucien, could become kings of various European countries, and our family would prosper continuously. Joseph, do you think that's right?"

Joseph replied noncommittally, "What about the risks? Do you not believe that there is a balance between benefits and harms in any action?"

"Of course, there are risks," Napoleon said. "Short-term risks, like if we were to fail on the battlefield. Everything we have built is based on continued victories in battle. If we were to fail in battle, we might be brought back to square one. But, I don't think the short-term risk is that great. With your coordination of internal affairs and my command on the battlefield, I don't see the risk being significant."

"What about long-term risks?" Joseph asked.

"Long-term risks?" Napoleon smiled. "Joseph, in the long term, we're all going to die. That's the biggest long-term risk. Of course, besides that, in the long term, there's the risk of revolution. I know what you're worried about, Joseph. You're concerned that one day, the French people might become dissatisfied with us, even overthrow our family, just as they did with the Bourbons, or perhaps even put one of our descendants on the guillotine, just like they did with Louis XVI, that weak fool. But Joseph, even with that in mind, when you compare costs and benefits, have we really lost? Or has our family lost?"

"Go on," Joseph said.

"Alright, let's take the Bourbons as an example. If the Bourbon family hadn't become the French royalty, would their current situation be better than it is now?" Napoleon asked.

Without waiting for anyone else's answer, Napoleon shook his head and continued, "If the Bourbons were still just dukes, they wouldn't have escaped the French Revolution. Maybe the Duke of Bourbon, the Duchess of Bourbon, or even the whole Bourbon family would have ended up on the guillotine or hanging from a lamppost, just like many others did in the Year of '93. Even today, the Bourbons can still lay claim to the Spanish crown."

"So, Joseph, becoming the King of France, as opposed to remaining the Duke of Bourbon, is safer for the family. And if the Bourbon family didn't even remain dukes, but instead became common, impoverished farmers in France, they would have faced countless famines, plagues, wars, and the inability to marry due to lack of money. All of these hardships could have wiped out the entire family of common peasants from 1584 until now."

"Joseph, have you ever noticed that if you trace the ancestry of any commoner, it won't take long before you can find a link to nobility? Their ancestors may well have been fallen nobles, lowly knights, or even illegitimate offspring of the aristocracy.

Joseph, do you know why? Why is it so rare to find a family where, after several generations, they are all commoners? The reason is quite simple. Such families can't sustain their lineage for long. Within a few generations, they may die out due to the reasons I mentioned earlier. Inheritance is challenging for impoverished families, and their lowly status is the greatest danger to a family. Joseph, do you agree with what I'm saying?"

Clap, clap, clap, Joseph applauded. But the applause did not bring joy to Napoleon because Joseph's face remained devoid of any happiness.

"Napoleon, you've thought deeply, and what you've said has some merit," Joseph said. "However, have you considered the differences between our family and the Bourbons? The reason the Bourbon family could become royalty is that they already had royal blood. But our family, at least within the range we can trace, does not. Of course, if we trace back to ancient Rome or even to Troy, there might be a possibility. It's not difficult to invent a powerful ancestor even if we don't have one. However, even so, based on the fundamental rules of inheritance, the crown would not come to our family. Napoleon, don't be hasty with your rebuttal. Hear me out.

The feudal royalties will never accept us. Of course, the power our family now possesses is enough to break these so-called rules and establish a new one in this world. We can easily make ourselves into a royal family and oppress them, making them bow to us. This isn't difficult, especially with the 'Zeus Plan' already succeeding and the 'Hephaestus Plan' on its way to success.

But, Napoleon, if we do it this way, tell me, what kind of rules are we writing? Just as you said, almost anyone alive today can be reasonably sure they have noble ancestors, perhaps even tracing back to Greek heroes, Trojan princes, or even Egyptian pharaohs. If our family members can become emperors, then everyone can become emperors. Becoming an emperor is solely about power, with nothing else. So, we would write a new rule: 'Why have kings and nobles when everyone can be emperor?' Or, to put it more plainly, 'Is an emperor born a noble, or is he simply the one with the most powerful army?'

In this way, our family becomes everyone's target. On the commoner's side, anyone with talent and ability will ambitiously covet our crown and throne. On the nobles' side, every one of them would despise us. Napoleon, don't you think this situation is terrifying? In our generation, with me here, and you here, even though Lucien is a fool, he can be somewhat useful. With the three of us, things should be fine for now. But what about the future? Our rule cannot possibly be as stable as the Bourbons.

Furthermore, to ensure our rule's stability, we must gain more people's support. And the only reason these people would support us is that we bring them benefits. In other words, to secure our political power, we must appease these individuals. Napoleon, right now, you can demand sacrifices from the soldiers and the people for the sake of France because they believe that France is theirs. But if France becomes an empire, you'll no longer have the moral high ground to appeal to the soldiers and the people to sacrifice for France. That's because France would become yours, not theirs. Why should they sacrifice for you? At that point, the entire France, both the military and the people, would become mercenaries. The issue with mercenaries, you, who are familiar with Roman history, can't possibly be unaware of it.

Of course, even so, becoming the new royal family of Rome, for the family, is a good thing with benefits far outweighing the risks. However, the opportunity to write an entirely new set of rules, an opportunity that comes once every few thousand years, a chance to ascend Olympus and become new gods, has almost fallen into our hands. Are we going to use it recklessly?"