From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

The carnival on the Paris Stock Exchange did not subside until two days later.

Those investors with insufficient capital were forced to turn their attention to other companies in the stock market, because the shares of National Silver Company had risen to twice the issue price in these two days.

And those holders of major funds are still tirelessly devouring the remaining stocks of all national silver companies.

As for the stocks of other companies on the market, they have also generally risen, driven by the strength of the National Silver Company.

Especially those mining companies, many hedge funds poured large sums of money into these companies in order to avoid the small risks of the national silver companies, causing their stocks to rise by nearly 30%.

Regardless of whether they make more or less, almost every investor who steps into the stock exchange has gained a lot, and the entire financial market is booming.

Everyone walking on the Exchange Square is filled with confident and joyful smiles, and the wallets around their waists are much richer than in the past few days, even the investors with the lowest abilities.

Even in the shabby bistros and cafes in Paris, there are many working class people talking loudly about the changes in the financial market in the past few days.

Although they know nothing about the illusory and complex financial market, the news that someone has become rich overnight has been reported in the newspapers in recent days.

Many workers and ordinary citizens even got together to pool their modest wealth to jointly invest in the securities industry, hoping to make a fortune in this wave.

However, for Lawrence, the architect of this boom, he is no longer so concerned about the subsequent changes in financial markets.

After all, the cash flow of ten million livres has been obtained.

And Lawrence will not have the idea of ​​issuing new shares or selling shares in the short term.

That would only undermine the positive market sentiment and make Lawrence look like he was there to make money in the financial markets.

Although the financial carnival gradually subsided, Prince Louis was still excited about it.

"Hey, Lawrence, look, I'm mentioned in today's paper too."

In the Tuileries Palace, Crown Prince Louis walked into Lawrence's room early in the morning with today's morning newspaper, pointed to the report above excitedly and said:

"They say I am the savior of the financial market, and some people have proposed erecting a statue of me in Exchange Square. I think this is a good idea."

Lawrence casually took the newspaper and read it twice. Many newspapers attributed this financial boom to the press conference held by Prince Louis.

In particular, those financial newspapers directly called Prince Louis a savior and praised his support for the liberal economy in their reports. The flattery alone took up half of the page.

This is not surprising. Although these bourgeois-dominated newspapers often ridicule and satirize the royal family, this time they benefited a lot from Prince Louis's statement, and naturally they did not hesitate to praise it.

As long as they can make profits, it is commonplace for capitalists to flip through books and change their faces.

"Very reasonable, Your Highness, your outstanding work has conquered those reporters."

Lawrence handed the newspaper back to Prince Louis and affirmed with a smile.

"Hahaha, maybe a little bit, but these newspapers are really weird."

Crown Prince Louis laughed smugly twice and said:

"A few days ago they attacked me, saying that I came to Paris to destroy the entire financial world and to drag the French economy into the quagmire. But today I have become the savior, and some people even said that I did this press conference The results are more significant than the results of the Finance Minister’s ten years of work.”

"To a certain extent, what they said is right, Your Highness." Lawrence narrowed his eyes, clapped loudly a few times, and flattered in a non-flattering manner.

Prince Louis smiled proudly for a while, then remembered something and said quickly:

"Of course, Lawrence, you planned this press conference, and your contribution is greater than mine. I should notify these newspapers, and I can't let them miss your contribution."

"Oh! Your Highness."

After hearing this, Lawrence shook his head repeatedly and said sincerely:

"I just did a small job. If there is any credit, it should be credited to you. After all, I am your loyal and humble servant. I must not overwhelm you."

"My dear Lawrence, you are truly my best friend, my most loyal attendant, and my most capable right-hand man."

Prince Louis, who was new to the world, thought that Lawrence had deliberately given all the credit to himself. He immediately grabbed Lawrence's right hand excitedly and said from the bottom of his heart:

"I really don't know what I would do without you!"

Although Prince Louis was a little carried away by the compliments in the newspapers, he still knew very well who was behind the dramatic turnaround in his reputation.

Especially since Lawrence now attributes all the prosperity of the financial market to himself, Prince Louis was even more moved.

Of course, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will never know in his lifetime that the bad reputation he had when he first arrived in Paris was the result of Lawrence's single-handed promotion.

"You have said so, Your Highness."

Lawrence smiled and shook his head and said, he knew that after this incident, his position in the heart of Prince Louis was almost irreplaceable.

At this time, Prince Louis suddenly noticed that Lawrence was also wearing a grand tuxedo in the room, so he asked curiously:

"Huh? Are you ready to go out?"

"Yes, Your Highness, the Duke of Choiseul invited me to his mansion to discuss something."

Lawrence nodded, and after thinking for a while, he decided to tell Prince Louis about Count Falcone's attack on him:

"As you may know, I was attacked on my way to Versailles the other day."

"Oh yes, I have heard of it." Prince Louis' face became serious and he said with his jaw:

"Grandpa was particularly angry because of this incident. Have you found out who instigated it now?"

Lawrence spread his hands, made a very helpless expression, sighed and said:

"Unfortunately, the Royal Guards' investigation yielded almost nothing."

Prince Louis said very puzzledly:

"Still no results? My grandfather is so angry. Are the Royal Guards too incompetent?!"

"Oh, Your Highness, it's not that they can't find it out, they just can't find it out." Lawrence shook his head and whispered.

Crown Prince Louis was stunned for a moment and asked urgently:

"Can't check? What do you mean?"

Lawrence raised his head, stared directly into Prince Louis' eyes, and said in a deep voice:

"Although there is no evidence yet, this matter is inseparable from Duke Richelieu. And the person who directly ordered the attack is undoubtedly Count Falcone."

"What?!"

Crown Prince Louis stared. Although he was very slow about politics, he immediately reacted when he heard the name Count Falcone. It must be Count Falcone who had a grudge against Lawrence, so he did such an unkind thing. Reasonable decision to attack.

And Prince Louis will never forget that the reason why Lawrence became enemies with Count Falcone was to stand up for himself.

In other words, in order to stand up for himself, Lawrence not only engaged in a dangerous pistol duel, but also suffered a brutal and bloody attack.

When he thought of this, Crown Prince Louis suddenly felt a sense of guilt in his heart.

"That bastard! It's so lawless. How dare he do this!"

Prince Louis glanced at Lawrence guiltily, and then shouted angrily:

"I am going to write a letter to my grandfather now, and I must check it carefully!"

Lawrence quickly patted Prince Louis on the shoulder, shook his head and said:

"Don't worry, Your Highness, such a letter will only make me more disadvantaged."

After Louis XV received the letter from the Crown Prince, he would most likely think that Lawrence had instigated the Crown Prince to write this letter. This would only leave a bad impression on Louis XV that Lawrence was taking advantage of the Crown Prince.

Even if Louis XV ordered a thorough investigation of Duke Richelieu, Lawrence was very doubtful that the investigation would have a final result.

After all, after these days, Duke Richelieu must have eliminated all the evidence, leaving no trace that can be easily caught.

This is why Lawrence and the Duke of Choiseul have no hope of collecting evidence and can only try to fabricate evidence to frame the Duke of Richelieu.

And once the investigation reaches no result, it will be confirmed that Lawrence used the crown prince to slander the Duke of Richelieu.

"More disadvantageous? Okay, but is that bastard going to get away with it like this?"

Although Prince Louis didn't know why Lawrence said this, he still chose to believe it unconditionally, but he gritted his teeth reluctantly.

"No, Your Highness, the Duke of Choiseul and I will find evidence of his evil deeds."

Lawrence said softly:

"And then, you can personally push Count Falcone to the guillotine."

"I understand." Prince Louis nodded seriously twice and said seriously.

Lawrence was slightly relieved when he saw this. With the assistance of Crown Prince Louis, it would be much easier to deal the final blow to Count Falcone and Duke Richelieu.

After all, the investigation between himself and Duke Choiseul was not an official investigation. If he wanted the evidence to be convinced by Louis XV, he would need a suitable person to present the evidence to Louis XV.

In addition, Lawrence also had his own selfish motives for choosing to reveal the matter to Prince Louis in advance.

Because in this way, Crown Prince Louis can use his guilt to bind him more closely to himself.

Although this method of moral kidnapping is very disgraceful, politics itself is not a glorious thing, and Lawrence doesn't care.

After simply packing up his clothes, Lawrence left the Tuileries Palace and headed to the residence of the Duke of Choiseul.

Although Prince Louis also expressed his willingness to participate in the investigation, Lawrence politely but firmly rejected his request.

Putting aside the role that Crown Prince Louis can play in the investigation, if Louis XV knew about this incident, he would probably not have a good attitude towards Lawrence.

After all, Louis XV did not send the crown prince to Paris just so that Lawrence and Duke Choiseul could use him as a political tool against Duke Richelieu.

The residence of the Duke of Choiseul is located on the left bank of the Seine, adjacent to the Luxembourg Palace and its gardens. It is a small manor with a large area and surrounded by high red walls.

As soon as Lawrence stepped out of the carriage, a servant at the door of the mansion immediately came to greet him. It seemed that he had been waiting for a long time.

The servant led Lawrence into the mansion, but did not immediately invite Lawrence into the reception room. Instead, he took him straight to the underground storage room of a small warehouse.

The storage room seemed to have not been used for a long time. There was a thick layer of dust everywhere, and many messy footprints could even be seen on the ground.

Deep in the storage room, Lawrence also vaguely heard the voice of Duke Choiseul:

"Damn it, he doesn't know anything!"

Lawrence squinted his eyes, carefully walked around the debris piled along the way in the dim light, and walked towards the depths.

After turning a corner, Laurence saw the Duke of Choiseul, who was also here with his brother, General Jacques Philippe.

In front of them was a cell sealed with iron bars. The bars were rusty and seemed to have been there for many years.

In the cell was a disheveled, naked man who was shackled to the wall at the moment, his head lowered and silent, his lips still trembling slightly.

"Ah, you're here Lawrence."

Duke Choiseul turned to look at Lawrence with a serious face and said, Jacques Philippe also nodded to Lawrence.

"So, this is it?"

Lawrence asked, frowning as he glanced at the man on the wall.

Lawrence was not surprised that there was such a hidden dungeon in the Duke of Choiseul's mansion. Many dignitaries had such facilities in their residences. Disobedient servants were usually imprisoned as punishment, and occasionally some shady people were imprisoned. characters.

"King of beggars, you're lucky to have caught him alive."

Duke Choiseul glanced at the man in the cell and said with a gloomy face:

"But his predecessor was the one who ordered you to be killed, and the King of Beggars has been missing for several days. He must have been cleaned up by that old bastard Richelieu."

Lawrence nodded slightly. It seemed that Duke Choiseul's action was strong enough. In just three days, he had captured the tyrant of the Paris underground world directly into his prison cell.

"Did he confess anything?"

Lawrence asked after sizing up the man in the cell. There were several eye-catching blood marks on the man's body. It seemed that he had been tortured to extract a confession.

"No, nothing useful at all."

Duke Choiseul shook his head and said helplessly:

"I have used threats and inducements, but he doesn't know anything. He doesn't even know the name of the previous King of Beggars."

Lawrence was not particularly disappointed. He did not expect to get any information from this channel in the first place, so he said casually:

"Okay, but I'm really surprised that you caught the King of Beggars so quickly."

Duke Choiseul curled his lips disdainfully, pointed at his brother Jacques Philippe and said:

"They were just a bunch of rabble. Philippe transferred a battalion from the Paris city defense army. They rushed into the sewers and surrendered before firing a few shots. The rest were handed over to the police, and the leader was secretly sent to me."

While listening, Lawrence took two steps closer and took a closer look at the man in the cell. His breathing was very weak, and only the vague rise and fall of his chest proved that he was still alive.

He didn't respond at all to the conversation outside the fence, and seemed to have no energy to even speak.

"It's really depressing. I thought I could gain something."

Duke Choiseul waved his hands irritably and said:

"Let's go up and talk, this place is suffocating me. As for this damn guy, let him feed the rats here."

"No, Your Excellency the Duke."

Lawrence suddenly shook his head and said:

"I think we can spare his life."