Shadow of great britain

The night in Liverpool is cloudless and the sky is filled with stars.

In the hotel next to the pier, Arthur opened the window and felt the salty sea breeze blowing from the Irish Sea.

The dock was crowded with merchant ships from all over the world. Although it was already night, these ships were still lit with kerosene lamps.

The sailors who were imprisoned on the ship, holding beer glasses in their hands, cursed the expensive but poor-quality food provided by the port authority, and complained that the British Parliament was indifferent.

Land was in sight, but they had to stay locked in a cabin that smelled of sweat and vomit for forty days.

Perhaps it was because the riots at the dock some time ago made the Liverpool authorities nervous, or perhaps because Arthur's series of titles made them panic, but there were obviously many more Liverpool military police on duty at the dock today than in the past.

Except for a small number of dock workers who are loading and unloading goods and customs officials responsible for customs clearance, the rest of the idlers staying at the port are under their special vigilance.

However, due to the outbreak of cholera, the Liverpool docks today are no longer as busy as they were two months ago.

Whether it is hawkers selling various goods or girls trying to attract customers, they all stay away from the pier. Everyone knows that not only is it impossible to do business at the pier now, but there is also a possibility of contracting the terrible 'blue death'.

For most people in Britain, the fear of cholera was not just that it would kill people, but that they would not have a decent death.

Compared with tuberculosis, a disease that is so decent that it makes people obsessed with it, cholera will not bring about beautiful pale skin and rose-scented cheeks, nor will it give people a gentle and melancholy temperament, nor will it turn you into a beauty. Or a handsome guy who lets you fall into their arms at any time.

Cholera will only make you vomit last night's meal and make you poop like rice soup. After the water in your body is drained, your skin will soon become loose and wrinkled, and your skin color will begin to change as the water is lost. Blue turns black. If you don't get good medical treatment within 24 hours, you will become a skinny blue-black mummy.

In this state, let alone a beautiful and handsome guy, even your family and friends will stay away from you.

In a country where poor people spend most of their wealth on funerals, such an undignified death is even more horrifying than the fact of death.

Due to the fear of cholera, in Britain, a small island with divided opinions, the always noisy political arena also rarely reached a consensus quickly.

Judging from the reports received by Arthur today, various committees under the Privy Council are meeting almost every day, and the "Cholera Prevention and Control Manual" of the Grand Paris Police Department that Arthur privately submitted to Mr. Chadwick has also been revised several times. Later, a "Cholera Prevention Act" was formally formed.

They will vote on this document immediately after the new parliament completes the re-election.

According to news from within the Chancery Chamber, everyone expressed optimism about the passage of this bill.

The Tories under the leadership of Lord Peel upheld the consistent position that government regulatory powers should be strengthened, so they had no intention of competing with the Whigs on cholera prevention and control.

Boom, boom, boom!

Suddenly there was a rapid knock on the door in Arthur's room.

"Arthur, damn it, open the door!"

As soon as Arthur opened the door, Alexandre Dumas rushed into the room yelling. Just when he was about to celebrate, he saw Arthur leaning on the wall next to the door, the revolver in his hand already. Just loaded it.

Alexandre Dumas widened his eyes and asked: "Damn it! Arthur, are you planning to kill me with one shot?"

Arthur stretched his head and took a look outside. There was no one in the dimly lit corridor, and then he put the revolver into the holster.

"Alexander, what time is it now? You came over so hurriedly at night, I thought someone had surrounded the hotel. This is Liverpool, not London. In other words, this is not my place. And we are on this trip. The work that comes here is not a popular one. Controlling ports will reduce job opportunities for the poor, and many people's livelihoods will be affected.

For those big ship owners and trading companies, this means cutting off their financial resources. Although Britain is not as keen on political murder as France, we have also experienced attacks on parliament, gunpowder plots, assassinations of kings, and shooting of prime ministers. You and I are obviously not as important as the Prime Minister and the King, so I advise you not to sleep too hard at night, otherwise you will wake up with a halo above your head. Don’t blame me for not reminding you. "

Alexandre Dumas raised his lips in disdain when he heard this: "Die in your sleep? This is such a useless way to die. Don't worry, I, Alexandre Dumas, have seen big scenes. During the July Revolution, I But I led my men to capture the arsenal under a hail of bullets. Even though such a dense barrage of bullets didn't kill me, how could I be knocked down by a cold shot? Besides, don't you know my duel record in London? 5 wins 0 negative, do you know what this concept is?”

Arthur returned to the table and poured a cup of coffee: "As the saying goes, those who drown are those who know how to swim. If you follow your words, there will be no sailors in the Royal Navy who drown during training every year. You know General Codrington's youngest son? He was originally a young man with great promise, but he fell into the water and drowned when he was a trainee at a military academy at sea. He was only thirteen years old when he died.

Every time Mrs. Codrington mentioned this matter, she would scold General Codrington with tears. She said she didn't know what the Royal Navy was so good about. Her father had been floating on the sea all his life, and as a result, his three sons were still floating on the sea. If they died, what would happen even if they became admirals? Wouldn't it be nice to choose a member of parliament in peace and contentment on land, play cards and watch a show in your free time?

General Codrington was transferred back to the country because of the Battle of Navarino. She was probably the happiest person in Britain. "

When Alexandre Dumas heard this, he couldn't help but whistle. He laughed and said, "I can tell that the relationship between this lady and her husband should be quite harmonious. Although I understand her thoughts, I still have to say, Ladies look at things from a different perspective than gentlemen.

In my opinion, if you want to die a heroic death, you should die on the revolutionary journey. Of course, if you want a more romantic death, you have to contract tuberculosis. The gesture of coughing up blood every time you are emotionally excited is really gorgeous. And this kind of romance is only limited to before the age of 30. Once you are over thirty, you will no longer be able to behave like a sickly noble man. "

Arthur took a sip of coffee and said sarcastically: "Why don't you hurry up and hurry up? If I remember correctly, you are already twenty-nine today, right? In another year, the label of noble young master will be gone. I'm going to leave you. But then again, aren't you guys who are engaged in literary creation somewhat involved in that?

I remember that Lord Byron had publicly expressed his wish to die of tuberculosis, and he imagined that the ladies who came to his funeral would caress his cheeks and say: 'Look at poor Byron, how he looked as he lay dying. Interesting'. "

"Vulgar, Arthur, you are so vulgar!" Alexandre Dumas scolded with disdain: "In your head filled with all kinds of documents, isn't there any room for romance and poetry in your boring temperament? ?"

Arthur touched his chin: "Alexander, in my opinion, temperament and destiny are two names for the same concept. My destiny does not allow me to reserve too much romantic temperament for myself, and use my romantic temperament to be a policeman. In this job, you will die without a burial place. Believe me, a romantic person can write poems and paintings, and can go to the streets to give alms, but he cannot control power."

Alexandre Dumas questioned: "Then according to your statement, can a guy who is as boring as dry firewood be able to hold power?"

Arthur shrugged: "I didn't say that. But Alexander, you have to understand that humans are an extremely narrow-minded and short-sighted species. Everyone says that they make new progress every day, but their so-called progress is just copying their own. The trajectory of a successful success. Therefore, everyone's first successful experience will have a great impact on his life. He will feel that this is the only way to achieve success, regardless of the fact that his success may be just a lucky coincidence. Change In other words, if one has romantic power, then things get really interesting. I don't mean to criticize, but romantic people are often very unrealistic."

Hearing this, Alexandre Dumas raised his eyebrows and said: "Okay! Then our Mr. Hastings, please allow me to bring you good news. I am honored to inform you that I have just learned that our great " The major shareholder of "The British", the gossipy London fashion novel magnate, the Jewish boy who secretly wears corsets to shape his body, and the pragmatic rising star of British politics - Mr. Benjamin Disraeli has passed away in Kent today. Maidstone declared victory. He will become one of the 658 members of the House of Commons, represent the Tory Party in the House of Commons, and speak out for the British people in a compassionate spirit."

When Arthur heard this, his hand holding the coffee cup stopped, and his eyebrows jumped three times.

Although he had guessed early on that Disraeli, who was close to the Tory party boss, had a high probability of winning the election, when his friend actually sat in this position, Arthur couldn't help but let out a sigh of admiration.

"Benjamin... really let him do it. Who would have thought? Just a year ago, this guy was a street rat that everyone in Britain shouted at. But a year later, he has transformed into a street rat. A glorious member of the House of Commons."

Alexandre Dumas couldn't help rolling his eyes and said: "Can he not become a member of Parliament? He has prepared more than fifteen hundred pounds in campaign funds alone. He has basically spent all the money he earned this year, and he also asked for We borrowed a lot from here and there. If you can't choose this, it can only be said that the British political system is still too clean."

Arthur walked happily around the room with his hands behind his back, a smile on his face: "No, no, no, Alexander, you are a Frenchman, so you don't know Britain. Benjamin only spent fifteen hundred pounds. Winning this seat just shows his ability. Of course, money is essential for election of members, but if you want to use only money to elect members, fifteen hundred pounds is definitely not enough. I was not born yet "Son, in 1807, the local parliamentary seat in York was sold for a high price of 100,000 pounds."

When Alexandre Dumas heard this, he almost spit out the tea in his mouth: "One hundred thousand pounds? Is that person crazy? When I served in the artillery force, I received the salary of a second lieutenant, which was only 120 francs per month. If it was Ordinary privates only get 40 francs a month. At the exchange rate of 20 francs to one pound, one hundred thousand pounds is enough to hire several thousand French soldiers to fight for him for a year."

"One hundred thousand pounds can not only hire thousands of French soldiers, but also hire a thousand Elders. It is more than enough for Elders to go to sea this time, even with the special subsidy for circumnavigation, they only get 85 pounds per year."

Arthur smiled and replied: "So, how much value for money did you spend on Benjamin's fifteen hundred pounds now?"

Alexandre Dumas shook his head when he heard this: "Come on, I feel that Benjamin may not last long in this seat. You don't know what nonsense he said in his victory speech today. Wasn't Charles brought over to help him in the election? He said in his letter to me that as soon as Benjamin stood on stage today, he was as red as if he had just drank two barrels of whiskey from head to toe, and his whole body was shaking with excitement."

Arthur nodded slightly and said: "It's my first time as a member of Parliament. It's human nature to be excited. It's not a big deal."

Alexandre Dumas opened his eyes wide and said: "Of course excitement is inevitable. But it's not okay for him to talk nonsense. Charles said that Benjamin hit a golden line as soon as he opened his mouth. He said in front of thousands of people: 'Great country It is a country that can give birth to great figures, just like Rome gave birth to Caesar, ancient Greece gave birth to Homer, and Britain gave birth to Shakespeare. And today, just today! Britain also gave birth to another outstanding figure, and you elected his Austrian Gustus! My dear constituents, God is blessing this country! This is one small step for me, but one giant leap for Britain!'"

When Arthur heard this, he slapped his forehead: "Then what? What was the reaction of the people attending the party?"

Alexandre Dumas said with a strange expression: "The mood of the people is quite stable. After all, the money has been put into their pockets. It is nothing to listen to a few words of young people's emotional expressions. You know, in addition to writing books, Benjamin also They are also very professional in hiring people.”

"That's true." Arthur breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this, raised his hand and lit the pipe: "I almost forgot about this."

Alexandre Dumas asked: "Are you so confident about Benjamin being elected? I'm really surprised. How did you see that he has political talent? Do you really have a keen eye?"

Arthur smiled and said: "What's the big deal? I also think Louis can be the emperor in the future."

Alexandre Dumas sneered at this: "Arthur, it's almost enough. The Bonaparte family is France's past. I don't think there is any need to invite them back. The most important thing is that France does not need an emperor. We do." It’s republicanism.”

Arthur just smiled and replied: "It's okay, this is not a conflict, republican emperor. And just because you don't need it doesn't mean that all French people don't need it. So I said before, this is the narrow-mindedness of human beings."

Alexandre Dumas asked: "Are you saying that I am narrow-minded?"

"No." Arthur replied: "You can also think that the narrow-minded ones are those who made him emperor. Alexander, you are my friend, and I absolutely support you in this regard."

"Arthur!" Alexandre Dumas seemed really angry: "Are you treating revolution as a child's play?"

Arthur replied: "Human beings are essentially child's play. Whether it is Scotland Yard or the British Cabinet, you can regard them as temporary teams to a certain extent. The so-called rules and systems are just to let us It seems very formal, but as long as it falls on the execution level, it is another matter..."

Having said this, Arthur suddenly heard dense footsteps coming from the corridor.

Not long after, the dusty Louis appeared in front of Arthur's room with a group of people.

"Arthur, Mr. Mill has arrived."

John Mill, neatly dressed in a tuxedo, hurriedly shook hands with Arthur.

"Arthur, after receiving your official letter, the company very enthusiastically decided to accept the invitation to assist in the investigation. However, since it is now during the East India Company's annual internal audit period, our internal audit department cannot be deployed. There are too many suitable candidates. I can only reluctantly find three auditors for you, including me.

However, considering the current situation in Liverpool, the company has specially contacted several of our long-term partners in London for you out of its original intention of safeguarding public interests. However, since Parliament has just passed the Personal Bankruptcy Bill this year, accounting firms in London are relatively busy with business, and senior accountants have also been invited by the London Bankruptcy Court to serve as bankruptcy liquidators.

Fortunately, there is always a way, and after asking around, the company finally found out that our partner ‘Bradley Barnard Accountants’ in Bristol is still taking on the business. So before I came to Liverpool, I made a special trip to Bristol, and arrived a little later than the appointment I made with you. In order to express my apology, the company has authorized me to advance the audit fees to the accounting firm on behalf of the government. I hope you won't take it too seriously. "

Everyone knew that the East India Company had long been dissatisfied with the Liverpool import and export company consortium, but the extent of its hatred was somewhat beyond Arthur's expectation.

From the information revealed in Mill's words, it can be seen that the East India Company simply wanted Liverpool to be occupied by the French.

Arthur smiled and said: "John, it doesn't matter. The fact that you can reach Liverpool despite the difficulties is enough to make me happy."

Mill was not a vague person. He turned around and began to introduce the accountants behind Arthur.

"Who is this……"

However, as soon as Arthur's eyes turned to the group of accountants, his heart couldn't help but tighten.

There is no other reason. These people look too young.

They can't even be called young. It's not an exaggeration to say that they are a bunch of children who haven't even grown hair yet.

The shortest among the accountants was not even as tall as Arthur's chest. Judging from his red nose and childish freckles, this kid was probably no older than Adam and Pinkerton.

Arthur couldn't help but ask: "John, these accountants...are they apprentices?"

Mill nodded nonchalantly and said: "It's an apprentice. Accountants are generally young, and this year's "Personal Bankruptcy Act" has a great impact on the industry. Accountants with some qualifications are invited by the court to do this It's time to liquidate the business. These apprentices of 'Bradley Barnard' have been patched together to find them for you. But Arthur, you don't have to worry about their business capabilities. I have already assessed them on the train to Liverpool. His mathematical ability has improved. Especially this one named Price, if he hadn’t been too young, I think he could have his own office.”

"Price?" Arthur looked along Mill's pointer, and he was talking about the youngest child.

Perhaps he was worried that the business would be ruined. When his name was called, the child with freckles stood up quickly, took off his hat and said hello to Arthur: "Samuel Price greets you, sir."

Although he knew that child labor was common these days, Arthur still felt a little strange when such a group of children stayed up late to check accounts.

Arthur pointed to the various volumes of books sent by the Customs Department on the table behind him and asked: "Boy, how long will it take you to get these things?"

Price looked up at the documents, and then at Mill next to him: "Sir, if Mr. Mill brings them, I can give you a result before tomorrow evening."