From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

"Count Falcone.?"

King Louis' expression showed surprise for a moment, and then was immediately overwhelmed by boundless anger:

"What a wonderful grandson of the Duke of Richelieu, isn't he?"

Gabriel nodded solemnly and said nothing, letting King Louis' anger continue to burn.

Madame Du Barry, who was sitting beside her, was completely pale at this time. Her face was paler than the powder she had applied on her face. She was restlessly listening to the conversation between the two.

Although Madame Du Barry is not interested in politics, she is also aware of the importance of Duke Richelieu to herself. The power of the aristocratic circle headed by herself is maintained by Duke Richelieu.

Although Louis XV is now extremely fond of Madame Du Barry, everyone knows that this sixty-five-year-old old king will not sit on that throne forever.

If something happens to Duke Richelieu, Madame Du Barry will have no way out. She will be liquidated immediately once the new king comes to power.

This is also true in history. After Louis XVI came to the throne, the first thing Queen Marie, who already hated Madame Du Barry, did was to exile Madame Du Barry to a monastery.

"Who gave him the courage?"

Louis XV punched the crystal coffee table in front of him, causing a circle of spiderweb-like cracks, and roared:

“Is he in the Paris police force?!”

"No, Your Majesty, he has no position," Gabriel replied.

After hearing this, Louis XV's anger suddenly became more intense, and he gritted his teeth and said:

"No? Then how does he command the police force?"

"this."

Gabriel looked embarrassed and sighed:

"Maybe the Duke Richelieu has friends with people in the police force. You know, the Duke Richelieu has friends with many people."

"Richelieu"

Hearing the name of his old friend, Louis XV's anger calmed down a little, and he said fiercely:

"He shouldn't be so obsessed with politics. How should I deal with him?"

Seeing that King Louis was starting to calm down and think about what to do with Duke Richelieu, Gabriel immediately said insinuatingly:

"Ahem, Your Majesty, rather than dealing with Duke Richelieu, I think it is better for you to pay attention to our diplomatic situation. Those envoys from small countries are already making a fuss over this matter, and the British Ambassador Baron Bertula They immediately expressed their condemnation of us and slandered us as a barbaric and stupid country; even the Austrian ambassador also expressed their concerns about our country’s foreign policy.”

"What? The damn British guy actually"

After hearing that he was humiliated by the British, Louis XV became angry again, clenched his fists and shouted:

"Count Falcone has humiliated our entire country. Come here! Let the royal guards catch him immediately! In addition, invite the Duke of Richelieu to Versailles. I want to see him."

By the next day, July 4, two days after Paris police forces invaded the Corsican embassy.

This appalling diplomatic incident was gradually calmed down under the edict of Louis XV.

Count Falcone, who is regarded as the mastermind, was controlled by heavily armed Royal Guard soldiers in his residence yesterday evening, and was directly put into a prison car and escorted to Versailles to await trial.

According to the servants at the Duke of Richelieu's residence, they saw with their own eyes that the count resisted capture like a crazy ape, always shouting the name of Laurence Bonaparte.

The soldiers of the Royal Guard were forced to use force after their decent persuasion failed, using blunt instruments to subdue Count Falcone, and finally threw the Count, who was covered in bruises and only wearing half a pair of trousers, into a prison car.

As for the Duke of Richelieu, Louis XV still respected this old friend and minister, and ordered the royal guard to politely invite him to Versailles.

Yesterday evening, the Duke of Richelieu, wearing a simple white robe and with an indifferent expression, got into the carriage specially designed for the royal family, surrounded by soldiers of the Royal Guard, and went to the Palace of Versailles with his imprisoned grandson.

As for what the king and the Duke of Richelieu discussed after their meeting in the evening, it is a secret that only a few people know.

Although not many people know what will happen to Duke Richelieu and his faction, the citizens of Paris have always loved discussing such political issues.

In cafes in Paris today, people can be seen everywhere discussing Duke Richelieu. It is impossible for any Parisian who pays attention to the political situation not to know such heavy news.

"Hey, man, did you hear that? This is pretty exciting."

In an ordinary club, a small official held a large glass of beer and said to a businessman.

The businessman nodded impatiently and said:

"I know, I know, it's that Duke Richelieu again, right? I knew about it on the way here today. It was all discussed on the way."

"Oh, haha, that's it." The young official put the beer on the bar, rubbed his hands and said with a smile:

"I never thought that a person like the Duke of Richelieu would see this day."

The businessman said casually:

"Yes, his grandson is even more pitiful. I heard that he howled the whole way in the prison car yesterday, and his voice became hoarse in the end."

The junior official said enthusiastically:

"No. But let me tell you, this matter is not that simple. Everyone in our department believes that the Governor of Corsica has something to do with this matter. Think about it, Count Falcone was once beaten into eunuchs , was imprisoned directly by the king, and there was the shadow of Bonaparte behind him. "

"It's true."

After thinking about it for a while, the businessman couldn't help but take a breath, shook his head and said:

"It seems that Duke Richelieu is doing well. At least he was invited to Versailles by the king."

"Oh, brother, that's not the case." The little official waved his hand as if to show off:

"His Majesty the King will definitely not treat Duke Richelieu badly in terms of treatment, but it is hard to say in terms of political status. If His Majesty the King gets angry, maybe Duke Richelieu's entire political group will collapse."

"Yeah.?"

The businessman nodded doubtfully and said with some uncertainty:

"The Duke of Richelieu is quite powerful. He won't collapse because of this incident, right?"

"Brother, I dare to bet you, just ten livres!" the little official said with a smile.

When he heard that it was profitable, the businessman nodded and accepted the gamble.

"Hey friends, add me to your bet. I'll bet on the fall of Duke Richelieu!"

"I'll come too, I bet you won't fall, twenty livres!"

When other people in the club heard that a gambling game was being set up here, they all came over, laughing and wanting to join in the gambling game.

However, judging from the number of people's bets, there was almost a 50-50 split between those who approved and denied the fall of Duke Richelieu.

It seems that the small citizens of Paris also have different opinions on the fate of Duke Richelieu.

At the same time, an inconspicuous black carriage drove into the Champs Elysées and slowly stopped on the roadside thirty yards away from Lawrence's mansion.

I saw Duke Choiseul, who was wearing a black robe, stepping out of the carriage, turning his head seriously to give the coachman a few instructions, and then walked straight into Lawrence's mansion.

"Your Excellency, you are here."

Lawrence looked at Duke Choiseul, who was led in by the old butler, and greeted him with some surprise.

Lawrence was naturally one of the first people to learn that the Duke Richelieu and the Count Falconet had been brought to the Palace of Versailles.

He also knew that the meeting between King Louis and the Duke of Richelieu last night would be crucial, both for the Duke Richelieu and the Duke of Choiseul.

It's just that Lawrence didn't have any informants in the Palace of Versailles, so he didn't know the content of the meeting. He still had to get the information from the Duke of Choiseul.

What surprised Lawrence was that the Duke of Choiseul came to report the news in person, and judging from his serious expression, the outcome of this meeting might not be that simple.

Duke Choiseul nodded to Lawrence as a greeting, and then raised his chin to the old butler beside him to signal him to leave first.

When only Lawrence and Duke Choiseul were left in the living room, he said in a deep voice:

"Governor Bonaparte, two pieces of news, one good news, two bad news, but overall good news."

Lawrence glanced at Duke Choiseul's expression, nodded and said:

"Okay, what's the good news?"

"Count Falcone will be imprisoned for life and will be executed in the ancient prison of the Palace of Justice."

Duke Choiseul said fluently:

"In addition, the Duke of Richelieu will be placed under house arrest in Versailles."

"House arrest? This is equivalent to a political death sentence."

Lawrence raised his eyebrows in surprise and said:

"This is a fatal blow to the Duke of Richelieu, right? Without him as the leader, the aristocratic circle of him and Madame Du Barry will soon fall apart."

Duke Choiseul sighed slightly, nodded, then shook his head and said:

"That's the theory, but as you know, the Duke of Richelieu has a good relationship with the king. The king still chose to be lenient to him, allowing him to receive visitors in his residence and communicate with the outside world."

"That's it." Lawrence said understandingly:

"In this way, although Duke Richelieu's power and influence have been greatly restricted, at least it has not been completely lost. However, under the king's nose, it is unrealistic for him to control others as before."

For Paris police commanders like Colonel Giovanni, it is almost impossible for Duke Richelieu to instruct them to do things. This is equivalent to putting a yoke on Duke Richelieu's whole body.

Having said that, Lawrence couldn't help but feel a lot more relaxed. Although it wasn't the best, it was indeed great news.

The Duke of Richelieu still had a breath left in the political world, but he no longer posed any threat to himself and the Duke of Choiseul.

"Where's the bad news?" Lawrence then asked.

"The first bad news"

Duke Choiseul lowered his voice and said:

"Our plan to use that attack to attack the Duke of Richelieu has to be suspended."

Lawrence nodded calmly and made no objection.

After all, King Louis did not want a winner in the fight between Duke Richelieu and Duke Choiseul. What he wanted more than to do was to maintain this balanced situation.

The reason why Duke Richelieu was placed under house arrest and given him the right to communicate with the outside world was probably due to this consideration.

Now that Duke Richelieu is under house arrest, even if Lawrence launches Du Barry to accuse Duke Richelieu, it is estimated that there will be no good results.

And if Duke Richelieu was ruthless enough, after being accused of the attack, he could push all the blame onto the original attacker, Count Falcone, who had been sentenced to life imprisonment anyway.

Although it was not something the Duke of Richelieu could do to blame his grandson, if Lawrence was forced into a desperate situation, he would not hesitate to use such a method.

"What a pity, I just tamed that Du Barry." Lawrence said casually, with no regrets on his expression.

"It doesn't matter. You can keep this handle for now. It's very suitable for giving that old guy Richelieu a final blow."

Duke Choiseul said indifferently.

So it seems that the bad news that makes Duke Choiseul so serious is the second one.

"As for the second bad news." Duke Choiseul looked into Lawrence's eyes and said slowly:

"We need to get away from Paris for a while."

"Leave Paris?"

Lawrence couldn't help but frown and asked:

"We all need it?"

Duke Choiseul nodded, sighed and said:

"This is the king's order. I need to go to the Dijon area for inspection as soon as possible. You have to go back to Corsica for a while until the king officially holds the coronation ceremony and then come back."

"Is this Duke Richelieu's plan? To drive us all away from Paris." Lawrence said thoughtfully.

Duke Choiseul said with approval:

"That's right, and the king is also very supportive of this idea. The king wants to balance me and Duke Richelieu, and he doesn't want me to use the time Duke Richelieu is under house arrest to pursue him. The same is true for you."

"That's it." Lawrence nodded slightly and said:

"It's time for me to go back to Corsica. There's still a lot of work to be done there."

Since it was Louis XV's order, Lawrence naturally couldn't refuse. In addition, he had been away from Corsica for more than three months. Although the government there could barely function without him, Lawrence did not want the governor's chair to remain empty. , that will only affect your own authority.

Moreover, there are still a lot of messes waiting to be sorted out in Corsica. The land and financial issues alone will keep Lawrence busy for a while. Lawrence also wants to take advantage of the momentum he gained in the early days of coming to power to directly solve these two problems, too. It cannot be delayed for long.

"Yes, before the Kingdom of Corsica is officially established, you must reorganize the Constituent Assembly and the Cabinet as soon as possible."

Duke Choiseul ordered:

"In addition, there are still a few days before the king officially issues the order. You'd better use these few days to complete the treaty with Justice Maupe. King Louis doesn't want to delay it any longer."

"I understand." Lawrence replied casually.

"in addition."

Duke Choiseul suddenly remembered something, and said with an even more solemn expression than before:

"Governor Bonaparte, I have to remind you that the recent situation in the Western Mediterranean, especially around Corsica, is a bit delicate. You'd better be fully prepared when you go back, especially military."