From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

Palace of Versailles, Apollo Hall, also known as the Hall of the Sun.

Since Louis XIV regarded himself as the Sun King, the main halls in the Palace of Versailles were named after the planets orbiting the sun and their corresponding gods.

The Apollo Room is naturally the center of the entire Palace of Versailles. It is the throne room of King Louis.

Anyone who comes here can't help but marvel at the extremely luxurious and beautiful decoration.

There are gilded and carved bas-reliefs on the ceiling, and the walls are made of deep red filigree velvet; in the center is a nearly three-meter-high throne made of sterling silver, standing on a deep red Ottoman carpet.

On weekdays, King Louis would receive envoys from various countries and other important figures here.

But today's Apollo Hall is not such a serious diplomatic occasion.

At this moment, Louis XV and Crown Prince Louis were the only two grandsons in the huge hall. The rest of the people were excluded by Louis XV. He did not want his rare time with his grandson to be disturbed by others.

Louis XV did not sit on his tall sterling silver throne, but lay on the sofa next to Crown Prince Louis.

"Tell me again what you think, my dear August."

Louis XV looked at his grandson lovingly and said slowly.

"Yes, grandfather." Crown Prince Louis nodded seriously. This expression almost only appeared when he was making locks:

"I hope to go to Paris with Lawrence and personally participate in the management of that company. There are too many things I don't know about business and finance. If I become the king under such circumstances, I'm sorry, grandfather, I"

Halfway through the words, Crown Prince Louis suddenly realized that his wording was somewhat inappropriate. After all, Louis XV was still sitting firmly on the throne, but he was already planning what to do after he succeeded to the throne.

King Louis on the side did not care at all, but the doting look in his eyes became even stronger.

He knew very well that he could sit on this throne for at most ten years, and the one who would inherit the crown would undoubtedly be the young grandson in front of him.

Louis XV not only did not worry about the crown prince's ambitions, but was very happy to see this weak and cowardly eldest grandson get out of that damn lock-making workshop and spend his energy on governing the country.

This is very similar to the Eastern emperor who started with a bowl.

"You're right, August."

Louis XV reached out and smoothed a few stray strands of hair from the crown prince's head, and said with a smile:

"But these words should have been taught to you by Lawrence, right?"

The news that Lawrence went to the palace to meet the crown prince in the afternoon could not be hidden from Louis XV.

As soon as Lawrence left, Crown Prince Louis came to see him. Louis XV didn't need to think about it to know what the young man must have said to his grandson.

After hearing this, the unsociable Crown Prince Louis scratched his head in embarrassment, smiled awkwardly, then nodded and admitted:

"That's grandpa. But it was my decision to take Lawrence's advice."

Louis XV nodded with a slight smile, and at the same time his expression became a little more serious.

After closing his eyes and thinking for a while, Louis XV sat up slightly, patted the crown prince on the shoulder and said:

"I support your decision, August. Keep your sincere heart, and you will become a great king."

Although Louis XV himself was a complete mess in governing the country, this did not prevent him from placing his hopes on his eldest grandson.

As the saying goes, when people are about to die, they also speak well; even the cruel and tyrannical Louis XIV sent a message to Louis XV before he died, hoping that the future king would become a peace-loving ruler who treats the people well.

Although Louis XV is not yet ready to say that his end has come at this moment, his political life will not see any improvement, so he can only leave his hope to Crown Prince Louis, who has a promising future.

"Thank you Grandpa, I will!"

Prince Louis said excitedly that this meant that he could finally get out of the big birdcage of Versailles and spend some time in the bustling Paris.

"Go back and have a good rest. I heard that Lawrence is leaving early tomorrow morning."

Louis XV touched the crown prince's hair again and said with a smile.

After Prince Louis left the Apollo Hall excitedly, Louis XV was the only one left in the huge Apollo Hall.

However, he did not leave in a hurry, but stayed there alone to think for a while.

"Lawrence, he has done a great service. He can lead August to the right path. Putting him next to August is indeed the right choice."

Louis XV closed his eyes slightly and whispered to himself:

"However, I hope that following August during this period will make him understand which side he should be on."

The next morning.

The avenue leading from Versailles to Paris was noisier than usual, and even from eight hundred yards away the loud sounds of rolling wheels and horse hooves could be heard.

Nearly five hundred armored and flag-bearing cavalry marched in unison on the road. Their silver-white breastplates and pure black horses gathered together, sweeping across this avenue like a giant wave of silver and black.

When the farmers on both sides of the road saw this formation, they couldn't help but retreat into the distance. At the same time, they were curious about who was traveling with such a formation.

Besides King Louis, the only one who could be escorted by such a large number of cavalry was the current Crown Prince.

In the center of the cavalry array was a long convoy of horse-drawn carriages, estimated to number forty or fifty, fully loaded with servants and entourage of Crown Prince Louis and objects and furnishings to be taken to Paris.

"I can't believe my grandfather agreed to go to Paris so easily."

In the middle of the motorcade, in a four-horse carriage painted with fleur-de-lis patterns on a blue background, Prince Louis still excitedly said to Lawrence in front of him.

"Your Majesty must have been moved by your determination."

Lawrence was not surprised by this result, so he dealt with it casually, while looking at the dark cavalry outside the window.

Louis XV probably also took into account that Lawrence was attacked here just the day before yesterday, so he directly sent one-sixth of the royal cavalry in the Palace of Versailles as a guard.

"makes sense."

Crown Prince Louis nodded nervously and said that although part of the reason for going to Paris this time was for fun, the more important goal was to understand the business operations Lawrence mentioned.

For this completely unfamiliar field, Crown Prince Louis, who has always taken what he wants and has no concept of money, can't help but feel a little nervous.

"By the way, what is your identity in Paris this time?"

After Lawrence observed the cavalry outside for a while, he turned to look at Prince Louis and asked.

"Identity." Prince Louis rubbed his head and thought for a while, then said:

"I am the financial director of the royal family. It seems that there was no such position before. My grandfather specially granted it to me, but the authority is limited to handling the affairs of that company."

"This is normal. After all, you still need a suitable name to come to Paris."

Lawrence smiled and said:

"If you are just here for the National Silver Company, you are exalting me and belittling yourself."

"We are friends, Lawrence." Crown Prince Louis waved his hand and said with a smile:

"There is nothing to praise or belittle between friends."

"You have the final say, Your Highness." Lawrence smiled and nodded.

The mighty motorcade arrived in Paris at almost noon.

The citizens had not seen such a grand scene for many years, and they gathered on both sides of the street to watch the motorcade driving through the streets of Paris.

Although the decision to leave Versailles for Prince Louis was made only yesterday afternoon, the news has not yet reached Paris.

But the citizens roughly guessed from the carriage painted with iris flowers that the person coming must be a distinguished member of the royal family.

The motorcade drove slowly into the Tuileries Palace on the right bank of the Seine under the gaze of everyone.

Before Louis XIV moved to Versailles, the French Bourbon kings lived between the Tuileries Palace and the Louvre.

Since Louis XIV, the Tuileries Palace has been abandoned, and the theater inside was only occasionally used by the king.

The Louvre became a gathering place for scholars, the headquarters of several academic academies, including the Royal Academy of Sciences, and the residence of other artists honored by the royal family.

Although the Tuileries Palace has been idle for more than a hundred years, the royal family spends a huge sum of money to repair and maintain it every year, and the palace rooms and gardens are still clean and tidy.

After Prince Louis got off the carriage, he happily entered the Tuileries Palace with Lawrence, looked around curiously and said:

"I thought I would live in an old castle full of cobwebs and dust. I thought it would be more interesting that way."

Lawrence shrugged and said:

"If you really live in a place like that, those maids downstairs will be whipped. Total malfeasance in their duties."

"Oh, forget it then."

Prince Louis glanced at the female workers cleaning the fallen leaves in the garden with pity and sympathy, shook his head quickly and said.

Among the previous kings of the French Bourbon dynasty, Louis XVI was probably the most soft-hearted and kind.

Although the architectural styles of the Tuileries Palace and the Palace of Versailles are very different, in the eyes of Crown Prince Louis, they are just as magnificent, so they don't have much interest in them.

The two of them only wandered around for a short time before returning to the banquet hall, where they were waiting for lunch.

Lawrence also accepted the invitation of Crown Prince Louis and decided to stay in the Tuileries Palace temporarily for the past few days.

While Lawrence and Prince Louis were enjoying their cozy lunch, the political world in Paris had already exploded.

There was only one reason, and that was the mighty motorcade that arrived in Paris at noon.

Due to the sudden situation, no Parisian citizen knew the inside story, but the carriage decorated with fleur-de-lis already represented that the visitor must be a member of the royal family.

Combined with the fact that the motorcade finally entered the Tuileries Palace, this former royal palace, anyone with a little bit of political savvy has already guessed the identity of the owner of the carriage.

The people who are most sensitive to this news are undoubtedly those at the top of the political spectrum.

At this moment, the residence of the Duke of Richelieu.

The Duke of Richelieu was sitting motionless on a bench in the middle of the garden of his mansion.

Facing the summer scenery in the garden, his face was ashen.

His expression was a little better than when he learned that Count Falcone had attacked and killed Lawrence a few days ago.

At this time, a man in black robes was seen storming into the garden angrily, walked straight to the Duke of Richelieu and sat down, but remained silent without saying a word.

Duke Richelieu glanced at the man lightly, closed his eyes and said:

"You came in person, Marquis de Maupe, which is rare."

The man pulled off his hood, revealing his face. There was no doubt that he was Justice Mopu.

But his face was even uglier than that of Duke Richelieu, even mixed with a bit of anger.

In order to avoid being criticized as colluding with each other, Justice Maupp rarely visited the Duke of Richelieu in person, and usually communicated through letters.

But today, the news of Crown Prince Louis' arrival in Paris made Justice Maupe really unable to sit still, so he put on a black robe and went directly to the Duke of Richelieu in a carriage.

"You have heard, right? The Crown Prince came at the wrong time."

The Duke of Richelieu tried his best to remain calm and said:

"You were tricked by Bonaparte in Versailles, and now the situation is a little less optimistic."

"Huh, am I being plotted? Let's not talk about the crown prince."

Justice Mopu snorted coldly. It was obvious that he was full of resentment and said completely unconvinced:

"I would like to know why you sent people to attack Bonaparte?! That's why the king sympathized with that Bonaparte, so I was at a disadvantage!"

Justice Maupp had the prisoner's confession and other evidence provided by the Royal Guard to the Palace of Justice, so he knew the identity of the beggars who attacked Lawrence, and also knew that those beggars were inextricably linked to the Duke of Richelieu, so It was thought that Duke Richelieu personally ordered the attack.

The Duke of Richelieu glanced at Justice Maupe calmly and said nothing, taking the blame for his grandson.

"I really don't know what you think, Your Excellency the Duke. The king is already furious about this matter. He even privately asked me to guillotine all the masterminds of this attack in a judicial decision."

Justice Mopp was so angry that he waved his hands and spoke incoherently.

Duke Richelieu sighed softly, shook his head and said:

"I have written to the Royal Guards to suggest that they should not pursue the case to the end. You can also give me some cover at the Palace of Justice. If I find a few scapegoats for this matter, it will eventually go away."

"Let's just let it go? That's so easy to say."

Justice Mopu shook his head repeatedly and said angrily:

"Will Choiseul just let it go? He will definitely seize on this flaw and attack hard, and maybe I will be implicated in it! What you are doing has exceeded the bottom line of politics!"

"What do you mean?" Duke Richelieu did not argue with him, but closed his eyes completely and leaned back on the chair.

"In connection with the attack, the Palace of Justice will not give you any assistance that might put me in danger."

Justice Mopu said coldly, with no room for maneuver in his tone.

"I see."

The Duke of Richelieu nodded calmly and accepted Justice Maupe's conditions, although he knew that Maupe meant to stay out of the matter completely.

For this chancellor, the Duke of Richelieu still needed him as his political ally.

However, no one but himself can tell how much Justice Maupe himself is willing to maintain his alliance with the Duke of Richelieu.