Chapter 623: Chapter 532: His Majesty the King’s Patent
Joseph continued to review the documents regarding the Paris High Court’s verdict on Lavoisier and finally breathed a sigh of relief—15 years of imprisonment, without the immediate death sentence typically favored by the Jacobins.
Indeed, Lavoisier’s crimes did not meet the standards for beheading. During the Reign of Terror in France, he was unlucky enough to lose his life simply because there were only verdicts of “innocence” or “death.”
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Joseph weighed his options with difficulty. Lavoisier could not afford to be imprisoned now, as both the Soda Ash factory and Coal Tar refinery were still relying on him to oversee the operations. If he were to be jailed, these projects would have to halt.
It seemed that special bail was the only option. Joseph then looked at the amount of the fine imposed by the Court, a staggering 1.6 million francs.
He immediately frowned, realizing that after the fine was paid, Lavoisier likely wouldn’t have enough left for the bail. In such a case, he would have no choice but to ask his father for a royal pardon.
is area and together we invented this guillotine.
...
“Oh, Louvre Square has been carrying out a significant number of executions these days, and could really make use of this new device. It could increase execution efficiency by several times.
“Please let me demonstrate how it works for you.”
Joseph looked at the model of the guillotine on the table, with its “door”-shaped frame and a sharp blade hanging in the middle. He reflected on the stubborn inertia of history—this inevitable moment had arrived.
However, he remembered that historically, Guillotin presented this invention to Louis XVI, and he was surprised that in this life, it had come to him instead.
This was understandable, though, as after all Baron Breti was someone he had supported into position, and the entire judicial system was under his administration. It only made sense for a revolutionary invention within the judiciary to be presented to him first.
Indeed, in an era where executions relied on an executioner and a simple blade, an entirely automatic guillotine would be the equivalent to the invention of high-precision CNC machines in the future—an epoch-making advancement in technology. It was necessary to present this achievement to the “big boss.”
Guillotin had already skillfully lifted the blade on the model and placed a cucumber in the stock, simulating a human head.
Then he pulled the lever on the model, and the blade came crashing down with a “thunk” onto the cucumber.
Unfortunately, the blade stuck two-thirds of the way into the cucumber and failed to slice through it.
Guillotin wiped sweat from his brow and hurriedly lifted the blade, smiling apologetically at Joseph, “Your Highness, just a little accident, please give me another chance…”
Joseph glanced at the flat blade and wasn’t surprised to see it get stuck—it clearly was an unimproved version.
He was about to suggest the classic angled blade improvement, to complete the “Reign of Terror style guillotine,” but suddenly he paused.
It was better to leave the opportunity to his father. After all, it was his patent, and it also gave his father a sense of involvement in the governance of the country—an opportunity he seldom had, and Joseph decided not to compete for it.
So he said to Guillotin, “His Majesty the King has a profound study of mechanical equipment; perhaps he can offer some valuable advice for your machine.”
Over an hour later,
Louis XVI, pondering over the guillotine model and stroking his chin thoughtfully, suddenly grabbed paper and pen and began to write and sketch.
After several amendments, a blueprint for an angled guillotine blade emerged before Guillotin.
The latter was immediately overcome with a look of shock and proceeded to praise and flatter the King.
It wasn’t mere flattery, though; he genuinely admired the King’s ingenuity.
It was as if a leading expert in modern high-precision CNC machines, seeing one for the first time, directly revised it into a new generation model.
He thought to himself that it might not have as significant an impact as it did in history.
The same could be said of the guillotine. Its introduction significantly increased the efficiency of capital punishment, leading to more people losing their lives.
As an executioner, Charles could originally execute at most twelve to thirteen people in a day, but after the guillotine’s appearance, the number of executions soared to the hundreds.