Chapter 31: Undercurrents Surging

Having received the full support of Carlos, Primo was full of confidence and stayed up late that very night to revise his reform plan.

Since capitalists and the Church were destined to be enemies of the Spanish government, there was no need to consider their opinions when carrying out reforms.

On January 3, 1870, the Spanish government applied to the parliament for additional military funding, which was subsequently approved by both the parliament and Carlos.

At this time, Primo still controlled the majority of seats in parliament, so this process was truly just a formality.

After obtaining this extra military budget, Primo immediately dispatched a diplomatic team abroad to purchase weapons, equipment, and cannons.

In Primo's plan, the Krupp cannon, which had been tested in both the Austro-Prussian War and the Franco-Prussian War, was the first choice for the Spanish army.

However, considering that Prussia was currently at war with France, Primo also had a backup plan: the Austro-Hungarian Empire or Italy.

Although the combat effectiveness of the Italian army was not great, Italy still possessed a certain level of research and development capability in terms of weapons and equipment.

If it was impossible to purchase the most advanced cannons from Krupp, purchasing a batch of substitutes from Italy would barely suffice.

On January 11, 1870, the Spanish *Sun* reported news about a certain factory that had been exploiting workers for a long time and withholding their wages.

Such reports were very common in today's Spanish society, and at first, they did not attract the attention of the Spanish people.

But immediately after, a large number of newspapers in Madrid also published similar news, and most of the reports originated from that initial factory.

Soon, the continuous stream of reports caught the attention of the citizens of Madrid.

Workers who had been deeply harmed also began to stand up and speak out, demanding that the government ensure that the wages of all workers in Spain could be paid on time.

After successfully attracting the attention of the Spanish people, on January 15, a member of the Liberal Party in the House of Representatives submitted a document titled "Draft of the Spanish Labor Law" to the parliament, demanding that the parliament enact relevant legislation to ensure that workers could receive their due wages and treatment.

This document was like a stone creating a thousand ripples, immediately sparking intense discussion in the parliament.

Of course, because Primo controlled the majority of seats in parliament, this "Draft of the Spanish Labor Law" ultimately received a majority of affirmative votes.

On January 16, 1870, the Spanish government issued a document regarding the "Spanish Enterprise Management Regulations," announcing that it would implement preliminary control over all enterprises and factories in Spain in accordance with the labor law.

This decree was cheered by all the workers and laborers around Madrid, which also meant that the government valued their opinions.

But for the factory owners and capitalists in Madrid and even all of Spain, it was not so pleasant. According to the decree issued by the government, they had to pay the wages of workers and laborers weekly, and those who defaulted on wages would be punished by the Spanish government.

This was something that had never happened before in Spain. Although paying wages in full would not cause these enterprises and factories to lose money, for capitalists, being able to earn a little more was definitely better than earning a little less.

Wasn't this government decree just taking money out of their pockets? And giving the money to those useless workers, at that.

The capitalists, whose path to wealth had been blocked, were unwilling to accept this and intended to incite workers to launch protests, demanding that the government cancel the newly promulgated decree.

But the workers were not stupid. The decree issued by the government was clearly for their benefit, so how could they stand up and oppose the government that supported them?

Seeing that they could not incite the workers to launch protests, the capitalists finally panicked. They gathered together one after another, trying to find other ways to salvage the situation.

January 18, inside a factory in Madrid.

"Daniel, what should we do? If we really follow what the government says and pay wages every week, wouldn't my factory go bankrupt?" The factory owner, Jilun, was sitting in his office with a pained expression, next to his good friend, who was also a factory owner, Daniel.

"Don't worry, buddy. You and I aren't the only ones who have to pay wages." Daniel wore a smile, looking as if he were not flustered at all.

"Damn it, do you have any good ideas? Daniel. I don't want to pay those damn workers every week; that's my money, my money!" Jilun looked at his friend, who usually had plenty of clever ideas.

"I told you not to worry, buddy." The smile on Daniel's face did not fade in the slightest, and he looked confident: "Think about it, are we the only ones who need to pay wages? No, it's every factory owner in all of Spain; how many people is that?

You don't want to pay wages, and I don't want to pay wages; do you think they are willing to pay wages for those workers?

Just watch closely; if our Majesty Carlos forgets who let him ascend to the throne, we wouldn't mind letting Spain change its master."

"Oh, damn, is your solution to rebel?" Jilun froze for a moment and looked at Daniel in disbelief.

"Why not, my friend? We could make Isabella step down from the throne, so we can just as easily make Carlos step down from the throne. Spain should be ruled by capital; we are the masters of this country, aren't we?" Daniel nodded with a smile, not caring at all about his friend's surprised look.

"Damn it, that's right." Thinking about having to pay wages to those workers every week, Jilun's previously rational mind became completely frantic. He nodded in agreement with Daniel and then said angrily: "Whoever wants to take my money from my wallet, they will be my enemy, and God is no exception."

"That's the spirit, buddy." Daniel's laughter grew louder: "Just watch, both Primo and Carlos will regret this, because they have offended the true masters of this country."

The winds of change were blowing not only in Madrid, but also in Catalonia and the Basque region.

The Carlists, who had plagued Spain for decades, were hiding in the Catalonia region, ready at any moment to march into Madrid and ascend to the Spanish throne.

The current leader of the Carlists, who claimed to be the King of Spain, "Carlos VII," was smiling at this moment, his expression showing a hint of impatience: "Thank God, I have finally waited for this opportunity. That damn Primo gave up supporting the Bourbons; both he and that fake king Carlos should be sent to the guillotine!"

"Your Majesty, the army in Catalonia is ready to march to Madrid for you at any time. There is only one King of Spain, and that is the great King Carlos VII of the Bourbon family!" The subordinate beside him also took the opportunity to flatter him, speaking to "Carlos VII" with a fawning expression.

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(End of this chapter)