From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

Lawrence and Prince Louis chatted in the room for a while.

It has to be said that although Prince Louis is obsessed with hunting and lock making all day long, he is still very knowledgeable. He is not only proficient in Latin and English, but also has a good understanding of geography and history.

This is much higher than his wife, Crown Princess Mary.

The long and pleasant conversation between the two continued until the afternoon.

"Oh, it's already two o'clock in the afternoon."

Prince Louis took out his gold and diamond pocket watch, took a look at it, and said with a dry mouth:

"The happy time is really short. Alas, I have to receive those nobles who are following the trend again."

"Work is always boring, even for people like you. The following days will not be so tiring." Lawrence also smiled and explained.

It just so happened that a servant knocked on the door and entered the room. He respectfully announced in a loud voice:

"Your Highness, we have a visitor."

Prince Louis rolled his eyes slightly, stood up, stretched, and asked:

"Okay, who's coming this time?"

The servant replied:

"It is the Duke Etienne François de Choiseul and his brother, General Jacques Philippe."

"Choiseul? You are an acquaintance."

Hearing that it was the Duke of Choiseul and his younger brother who came to visit, Prince Louis' dissatisfaction dissipated a little.

Crown Prince Louis still has a good impression of this important minister.

In the crown prince's impression, Choiseul was like his uncle, who had been taking care of him since he was born.

This is why, in history, after Louis XVI succeeded to the throne, he specially recalled the fallen Duke of Choiseul from his fief to Paris. Although his power was not restored, he also gave him very favorable treatment.

After Lawrence heard that Duke Choiseul had come to visit, he also took the initiative to request:

"I will go with you, Your Highness."

Lawrence had not contacted the Duke of Choiseul since their last separation at the Ile de la Cité restaurant.

A lot of things have indeed happened in the past few days, and Lawrence took advantage of this occasion to make follow-up plans with Duke Choiseul.

"Oh, of course, you can change your clothes and come with me."

Crown Prince Louis readily accepted that it was much better to have Laurence by his side than to sit there bored all afternoon.

After a while, Lawrence put on a red dress exclusive to attendants, and met the Duke of Choiseul and his brother Jacques-Philippe in the main hall of the palace with Prince Louis.

The Duke of Choiseul has not changed much from usual. He is still majestic yet polite. Even in front of Prince Louis, he has the temperament of an elder.

It was the middle-aged man next to him who made Lawrence a little curious.

His face is thin and stern, and his eyes are piercing. Although his body is not strong, anyone who looks at him will feel that he is full of strength.

And his indigo general uniform also shows his identity - an experienced general who has experienced hundreds of battles.

Apparently he was General Jacques Philippe, brother of the Duke of Choiseul.

"Jacques Philippe would have been Lieutenant-General of France at this time, and would soon have been appointed Governor of Lorraine."

Lawrence smiled and saluted the two of them, while silently recalling the information about the younger brother of the Duke of Choiseul in his heart.

Choiseul has two younger brothers, one of whom was sent to the church since childhood and is now the Archbishop of Cambrai; the other is Jacques Philippe in front of him, who was sent to serve in the Austrian army in his youth.

This practice is also very common among the great nobles. In order to ensure the inheritance rights of the eldest son, the second sons are usually sent to the church or the army.

Historically, Jacques Philippe was also very capable and had been the Marshal of Austria and the attendant of Francis I, the Holy Roman Emperor.

Ten years ago, in 1760, he left Austria and came to France, where he served as Lieutenant General of France until now.

Afterwards, he served as Governor of Lorraine and Alsace and was promoted to Marshal of France. After the death of the Duke of Choiseul, he inherited the title and became the second Duke of Choiseul.

It can be said that with the support of Duke Choiseul in the political circles, Jacques Philippe also has a strong influence in the army.

Even after the fall of Choiseul, Jacques-Philippe remained active in the army for fifteen years.

While Lawrence was thinking, the Duke of Choiseul and Jacques Philippe had already finished greeting Prince Louis.

"Your Highness, I never expected that you would suddenly arrive in Paris."

Duke Choiseul said with a smile, and glanced at Lawrence a few times with a slightly profound look.

He really did not expect that Lawrence could bring Prince Louis to Paris.

"Paris is much more fun than Versailles."

Crown Prince Louis was obviously much more relaxed in front of Duke Choiseul, and said with a smile:

"But I'm not here to have fun. There are still many things to learn."

"Study? I think the Palace of Versailles has the best court teachers in Europe." Duke Choiseul asked in confusion.

"Of course, but Lawrence told me that many things can only be learned through practice."

Prince Louis glanced at Lawrence, nodded and said:

"He said that only practice is the only criterion for testing truth."

Duke Choiseul nodded with a smile and looked at Lawrence.

Of course he didn't care how Lawrence brought Prince Louis to Paris. After all, this result was quite beneficial to his side.

Crown Prince Louis turned to look at Jacques Philippe again, and said equally cordially:

"And General Philip, I haven't seen you for a long time. Where are you serving?"

"The Garrison of Ile-de-France," said Jacques Philippe sonorously.

Ile-de-France is the collective name for a large area centered on Paris, including Versailles, Fontainebleau and other cities. It is also commonly known as the Greater Paris Area.

For Jacques Philippe to serve in such an important army, it seems that the king has placed deep trust in him.

"but."

Jacques Philippe then shook his head and added:

"I have received an order from the king to go to Lorraine to serve as governor at the end of the year."

The Lorraine region is located on the border between France and Germany, so it has been changing hands back and forth between the two countries.

From the Holy Roman Empire to Prussia and then to the German Empire, the French had been competing with them for the sovereignty of the Lorraine region. It was not until after World War II that the French completely incorporated Lorraine into its territory.

In this era, France had once again wrested the Lorraine region from the Holy Roman Empire six years earlier in 1764.

This turbulent border area naturally requires a governor who is proficient in the cultural traditions of both Germany and France to govern it.

Therefore, Jacques Philippe, who had served in the Holy Roman Empire for decades, became an excellent candidate.

"Ah, it's such a pity that I won't be able to see you for a long time."

Prince Louis said with some regret that he still liked this resolute general.

At least compared to those weak men like women who bear the title of general in the Palace of Versailles, Prince Louis still admires men like Jacques Philippe more.

After another round of pleasantries, Duke Choiseul winked at Lawrence, and then said to Prince Louis:

"Your Highness, if you don't mind, I would like to have a few words with Governor Bonaparte."

Although such a request was somewhat rude, several people present were very familiar with each other. Crown Prince Louis waved his hand indifferently and agreed to Duke Choiseul's request.

Lawrence and the Duke of Choiseul left the main hall and came to the Tuileries Garden.

The garden is laid out in an orderly manner, in the style of Italian Renaissance architecture. Lemons and tangerines from Italy are even planted today, exuding a refreshing fragrance.

This style also comes from the identity of the first owner of this garden-Marie de Medici.

She came from the Medici family, a famous Italian family, and was also the queen of Henry IV, the first king of the French Bourbon dynasty.

This is why the overall architectural style of the Tuileries Palace is full of Italian style.

The two sat down in a small pavilion in the garden.

"You surprise me, Lawrence."

As soon as the Duke of Choiseul sat down, he said with a smile:

"I didn't expect you to abduct His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to come to Paris."

Lawrence couldn't help curling his lips and said:

"I am not a human trafficker, Your Excellency the Duke. This is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's own wish. I just provided a small idea."

"Oh, it's all the same anyway. Young people must think that Paris is much more fun than Versailles." Duke Choiseul said indifferently, thinking that Crown Prince Louis was here for fun and fun.

"It's hard to say. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince seems to be determined to work hard." Lawrence chuckled and shook his head.

"Okay, okay, I hope he's not three minutes hot."

Duke Choiseul shrugged and said that although he had a good relationship with Crown Prince Louis, he obviously did not think that the crown prince could become an excellent king.

To be honest, Lawrence is currently not sure whether Crown Prince Louis will always maintain such enthusiasm for governing the country.

After all, in history, Louis XVI also had a period of great effort and enthusiasm for reform in the early days of his succession.

However, when he found that reforms were hitting obstacles everywhere and political constraints were everywhere, Louis XVI gradually became passive.

"Anyway, it's really good news to have His Royal Highness the Crown Prince on our side."

Duke Choiseul said proudly:

"I really want to see that old guy Richelieu's expression when he heard the news. It must be wonderful."

Lawrence was not so excited, but frowned and reminded:

"But the king definitely doesn't want to see the crown prince personally involved in this political whirlpool, so the crown prince's role for us is not as great as imagined."

"Well, that's true, but even without the help of the Crown Prince's power, that old guy Richelieu gave us a huge clue."

Duke Choiseul narrowed his eyes and said happily:

"I really don't know what he was thinking. He actually sent so many unscrupulous people to attack and kill you."

The Duke of Choiseul, like Justice Maupp, obtained a prisoner's confession from the royal guard in Versailles, and thus also saw the connection between the beggars and the Duke of Richelieu.

However, it is completely impossible to accuse Duke Richelieu based on this subtle connection.

After all, there are several layers of relationship between the King of Beggars and the Duke of Richelieu.

Even in the worst case scenario, the Duke of Richelieu could abandon his car to save the commander-in-chief and put all the blame on Jean Du Barry. In any case, he was the direct patron of the King of Beggars.

Even if it had been done properly, the Duke of Richelieu would have calmed things down simply by handing over the King of Beggars.

Therefore, Lawrence and the Duke of Choiseul could not waste this precious opportunity rashly.

"If I guess correctly, it was not the Duke of Richelieu who gave the order. He is not so confused."

Lawrence said seriously:

"The mastermind should be Count Falcone. He probably hates me very much."

"Count Falcone? Hmm. That makes sense."

Duke Choiseul nodded in understanding and said, but it doesn't matter who the mastermind is. Anyway, he and Lawrence must try their best to get at Duke Richelieu.

"So is there any progress with the Royal Guard?" Lawrence asked.

Duke Choiseul then became serious, nodded and said:

"This is why I came to you today. The Duke of Richelieu responded quickly and began to put pressure on the Royal Guards almost the day after you were attacked. The guards produced a confession after interrogation After that, they were forced to execute all the prisoners secretly, and announced that they died of excessive injuries.”

The surviving horse bandits were already dying when Lawrence brought them to Versailles, so the Royal Guard's argument was perfect.

After saying that, Duke Choiseul touched his chin and added:

"Even that confession did not point the finger at Jean Du Barry, or even the so-called King of Beggars, but instead pointed out a petty leader who was not important at all."

"What about the follow-up investigation?" Lawrence asked immediately.

"Basically nothing was found. Duke Richelieu had many dogs in Versailles, and they were all secretly obstructing the investigation."

Duke Choiseul shrugged and said:

"In addition, Richelieu himself has cleared all the evidence, so the Royal Guards have made little progress. When the king's mood stabilizes, they might just hand over the King of Beggars to close the case."

Lawrence nodded slightly, this situation was also expected by him.

It is impossible for the official investigation results to point to any high-level figure in the political world. This has become a common practice in the political world, unless there is special instruction from the king.

Therefore, Lawrence still had to collect evidence himself, or in other words, create evidence.

"Do you have any ideas?" Duke Choiseul asked in a deep voice.

Lawrence thought for a moment, knocked on the table and said:

"We still have to conduct the investigation ourselves. Let's start with Jean Du Barry, and then work our way up to Richelieu. It doesn't matter if we can't find any evidence, as long as we create credible evidence."

"It really has to be this way."

Duke Choiseul nodded in approval and said:

"But what about the King of Beggars? Let him go first?"

"He has no use value, but I want him dead."

Lawrence said coldly without hesitation.

In that night's attack, although Lawrence and his party suffered no casualties, there were still many precision shooters who spilled their blood in order to protect themselves.

These shooters were the most loyal soldiers carefully selected from Ajaccio, and Lawrence would naturally not let their blood be shed in vain.

"Governor Bonaparte, I will be happy to do you this favor."

Duke Choiseul said with a smile:

"I'll send you the rat's head, if you think it's too barbaric."

"Thank you very much for your generous help, Your Excellency."

Lawrence smiled and nodded.

With the power of Duke Choiseul's hands and eyes, it was really easy to take off the beggar king's head.

After all, he currently serves as the Minister of War, and Jacques Philippe also serves in the garrison of the Ile-de-France. The Duke of Choiseul can even mobilize an army to directly crush these rats in the gutter.

However, Lawrence also knew very well that Duke Choiseul was so generous and proactive in helping him, and he probably still valued his relationship with Prince Louis.

Lawrence's ability to bring Prince Louis from Versailles to Paris this time has fully proved his worth.

This undoubtedly made Duke Choiseul value his relationship with Lawrence even more.