Chapter 101: Impact
“Education is the foundation of a great power, and industry is the cornerstone of a great power.
From the Age of Discovery to now, Spain has experienced prosperity and decline. It is time to unite and rediscover the light that belongs to Spain.
While European powers such as the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire are constantly popularizing education and developing industry, Queen Isabella is living a life of luxury and chaos in the Madrid Royal Palace.
We finally drove away Queen Isabella and welcomed the rule of His Majesty the King Carlo and Prime Minister Primó, only to face the problem of Spain’s illiteracy rate reaching as high as seventy percent.
We call on Spaniards to voluntarily join free literacy education, which, while improving cultural levels, can also substantially increase our own annual income.
According to the investigation results of this newspaper office, among more than seventy percent of the illiterate population in Spain, only 42% have an annual income exceeding 80 pesetas, and nearly 52% of the illiterate population has an annual income below the national average level.
Among that less than thirty percent of the non-illiterate population, up to 64% have an annual income exceeding 80 pesetas, and only less than 36% of the non-illiterate population has an income below 80 pesetas, including many elderly and children.
For Spain to become powerful again, to increase our income, for the future of our children, please actively participate in literacy education, make Spain’s future brighter, and make Spain great again!”
Similar reports began constantly appearing in newspapers in various cities starting from January 1, 1871, and became well-known to people through various propagation methods.
If it were just propagating the idea of education making a country strong, the influence on the public might not be too deep. But by directly pointing out the income differences between illiterates and non-illiterates, it can naturally attract the attention of the public.
No matter which country or era, the two issues that grassroots people care most about are only eating enough and having clothes to wear, and passing on the family line.
As for who the king on top is, it actually doesn’t matter that much to the public. As long as the grassroots people can survive, they mostly will not oppose the government.
“Pablo, have you heard today’s news? It seems that starting today, His Majesty the King will provide one dinner every day for people participating in literacy education.” In a factory on the Madrid Outskirts, two workers were chatting during their work break.
“Mabli, where did you get this news from?” The middle-aged man named Pablo was somewhat surprised. Literacy education is free, but providing a free dinner too? Is there really such a good thing?
“The Spanish Sun Newspaper has already published the news, buddy.” Mabli knew his friend would question this news, because he himself was skeptical when he first heard it.
If it weren’t for the newspaper-selling boss personally saying it and confidently pointing to the Spanish Sun Newspaper saying the news was right there, Mabli absolutely wouldn’t believe such news.
Because from his birth until now, having experienced so many Spanish governments, he had never heard of any free education policy that also provides free dinners.
Seeing his friend Pablo’s hesitant expression, Mabli began to persuade him: “Buddy, I know what you’re thinking. We may be illiterate, but these children still need to learn something, right?
His Majesty the King not only lets children participate in free education but also provides a free dinner. He’s already done a lot, right?
Even if not for us, we should consider Patrick’s future more, right?
Today I heard from the newsstand boss that most of us uneducated illiterates have annual incomes below 80 pesetas, while most educated people have incomes above 80 pesetas.
Old buddy, if you don’t want Patrick to follow in your footsteps, it’s best to let him learn something. Being literate is always better than being illiterate.”
To expand the influence of this report on the public, Carlo specifically instructed to hire some newspaper sellers to propagate the free literacy education and free dinner policy along the way.
The newspaper also has other various news, which doesn’t affect those who originally wanted to purchase the newspaper.
But for those who are reluctant to buy a newspaper, they can also get news from the newspaper and spread it to more people.
Carlo’s original intention is to influence as many people as possible. Who knows, among these Spaniards who escape illiteracy, perhaps a few with some talent for learning might emerge?
In this world’s Spain, which emphasizes education earlier, it shouldn’t be as lacking in high-end talent as historical Spain.
Carlo’s ambition isn’t big. If Spain can produce more than ten Nobel Prize-level talents in the next 30 years, it would already satisfy Carlo’s initial expectations for Spanish education.
Hearing his good friend Mabli’s persuasion, Pablo hesitated a bit, thought carefully, then gritted his teeth and said: “I’ll go ask when I have a day off. If they really provide free dinners, no matter what, I should let Patrick study for a while.”
“Just relax, buddy. His Majesty the King Carlo is different from previous kings; he’s a truly caring king for the commoners.
It’s worth celebrating that Prime Minister Primó chose His Majesty the King Carlo to become the King of Spain; otherwise, where would we have such good days?” Mabli said with a smile.
He and Pablo are both employees of a small factory under the royal industry. Although the income isn’t too high, the advantage is that there’s not much exploitation of workers.
Their daily working hours are only about 11 hours, and they get one day off per month, which is much better than workers in some private factories.
Especially for Christmas and New Year’s Day, the factory gives them a day off. This made Mabli and Pablo happy for a long time, because on such important holidays, they also want to spend more time with family.
Hearing his friend Mabli’s praise for Carlo, Pablo not only didn’t oppose at all, but his face also showed agreement: “You’re right, Mabli. His Majesty the King Carlo and Prime Minister Primó are providing free education and dinners; what’s there to hesitate about?
No more overthinking. Tomorrow I’ll take Patrick to the literacy site to ask. If they’re still accepting people, he’ll start learning tomorrow.
I’ll handle the family expenses. I don’t believe losing one person’s income will make us starve.”
Hearing his buddy Pablo agree to let his son Patrick go to the literacy site for education, Mabli nodded happily too.
The two have been friends since childhood, so their relationship is naturally very good. Mabli really didn’t want to see his friend prevent Patrick from learning just for that little bit of income. Now that he’s successfully persuaded him, he can breathe a sigh of relief.
Such scenes occur in factories, farms, and families in Madrid and various places in Spain.
Whenever talking about policies promulgated by the government, the public is always full of gratitude toward Carlo and Prime Minister Primó.
Especially upon learning that the free dinners are jointly provided by the royal family and the government, Spaniards finally began to feel goodwill toward this young king from Italy.
Actually, providing a free dinner isn’t much, since even literacy education is free. The issue is that compared to Carlo’s predecessor Queen Isabella, Spaniards are surprised to find that the current King Carlo is even more saintly than a sage king.
Thinking back to the oppression of farmers by the Spanish government during Queen Isabella’s rule, and now the government under Carlo’s rule continuously reducing agricultural taxes, the difference between the two is like heaven and earth.
No matter in which country, popular support is accumulated bit by bit like this.
The public cannot suddenly express strong admiration and support for someone; it’s under long-term subtle influence that they gradually change their attitude toward a person or a force.
Carlo doesn’t expect Spaniards to fervently adore him in the short term. The short-term goal is to make Spain accept him as this foreign-identity king, willing to accept and obey Carlo’s rule.
The long-term goal is to gradually win popular support through various policies and systems bit by bit, making Spaniards gradually change their attitude toward him under long-term influence.
Although this may progress slowly, when Spaniards truly accept him, neither the Bourbon Dynasty nor other opposition forces will be able to affect his ruling position in Spain.
The future House of Savoy Dynasty is also destined to leave a strong mark in Spain. Savoy and Spain will be bound together, becoming a legendary story accompanying Spain’s revival.
“Your Majesty, your propaganda is simply too effective.” A few days after Carlo launched his public opinion offensive, Prime Minister Primó came to Carlo with a smiling face to report the progress of the literacy movement these days.
“In the first ten days of this year, the number of people signing up for free literacy education in various places has exceeded 100,000, and currently at least 300,000 people are undergoing literacy education.
This data has improved far more than last year’s same period. If smooth, the number of people accepting literacy education this year may exceed 2 million.” Prime Minister Primó reported the number of participants in literacy education, his face unable to suppress the smile.
“2 million people?” Carlo nodded. Such a number is still bearable. According to the previous estimate of 1 million people, the expenses for providing free dinners would be at least 5 million pesetas.
If increased to 2 million people, the expenses for providing free dinners would exceed 10 million pesetas. But since it’s jointly funded by the royal family and the government, the royal family only needs to contribute half, actually still 5 million pesetas, which is a completely bearable expenditure for Carlo.
Three thousand words first update, seeking support!
Riwandi 7/7 days, updated 3000/10000, seeking support!
