His Excellency the Count of Grandet

Although he had lost his patience in essence, on the surface, Victor was respectful and cautious towards Count Artois, and he couldn't fault him at all.After sending Count Artois into the reserved room, he also had a few conversations with Mr. Van Leburg, summarizing today's events.

At this time, we must briefly introduce Mr. Van Leburg.

The gentleman, whose full name was Ignace Joseph van Leburg, was about forty years old, and had appeared sideways in the previous chapters.He was the client who asked Victor to find a foreigner to help Mrs. Le Maire manage the Lafite estate; he himself was quite rich, and he was probably the most famous and prestigious arms dealer and grain merchant in France.Alphonse's family also deals in weapons, but they definitely can't afford enough gold to buy Lafite Manor; this is the difference in grade.

Next, we can say why Mr. Van Leburg wanted someone who had no interest in his country to manage the manor and asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement—it was precisely because he expected the fluctuation of the throne.

In the previous century, the Lafite Manor was owned by the Segur family, and [-]% of it was regarded as an aristocratic estate; it was auctioned in [-], and then the owner changed.If the Earl of Artois came to power, his estate would appear to be in jeopardy, because someone might want it back.

So Mr. Van Leburg came up with an idea, and at that time, he pretended that he sold the property to foreigners.In view of the fact that Napoleon was defeated just a few years ago, the Earl of Artois was only tyrannical, and he would not dare to offend foreigners, especially those from the victorious country.

Although it sounds like a curve to save the country, as long as his top-notch vineyards can be kept, everything he has done is worth it.

The Englishman Sir Samuel Scott found an agent under this idea.And Mr. Van Leburg was undoubtedly more thoughtful and cautious than anyone else in making preparations before the Earl of Artois came to power.

In this matter, Victor helped Van Leburg find Samuel, which shows how their relationship is.As for the Count Artois, of course he knew nothing about this secret transaction; otherwise, he would never have agreed to let Mr. Van Leburg be the middleman.

At this time, the cautious Mr. Van Leburg was saying: "...I have always thought that the Earl is difficult to deal with, but today he seems to be quite amiable."

Victor sat on the high-backed chair, knuckles his fingers, and tapped on the wooden armrest. "Do you think he was persuaded by us?" At this time, he was very normal. Charles might think he was normal when he saw it.

Van Leburg was a little hesitant, but finally said: "Although I think his attitude today looks hopeful for cooperation, my rationality still tells me: If you can't believe what he said, it's best not to believe it." If you are so gullible, you won't make secret preparations on the issue of Lafite Manor!

"That's right." Victor replied.He had a smile on his lips, but it looked more like a sneer. "We treat him as a way to slow down, and he means the same thing to us."

"You mean, he just didn't want to piss us off before he took the stage, so that's how he behaved?" Van Leburg immediately guessed what Victor meant.He wasn't too surprised, just frowned. "Indeed, it is entirely possible for him to turn his back on the stage..."

"It's not entirely possible. I can assure you, that's what he thinks." Victor snorted coldly, "Anyway, he will be the king at that time, so he can do whatever he wants. Even if we want to bring him down, it will take a lot of time." Much more strength now."

Van Leburg watched Victor's finger movements without speaking.Because he also agrees with Victor's statement - if they have a [-]-[-] win rate against the Earl of Artois now, it will become [-] or [-] when the Earl of Artois comes to power, and the probability of success will definitely drop.

Do you want to give up the current balance of advantages and summation?Nobody wants to.It's just that no matter who among them, they don't want to be the first to break the balance.Because, whoever strikes first will officially declare war on behalf of a certain faction; this is a great responsibility, and it is simply a big black pot.

Victor tapped on the armrest a couple more times, without hurrying. "Perhaps there is another possibility-the other party is waiting for an opportunity. He waits for us to relax our vigilance and strikes first, but it falls on us."

"Bite back?" Van Leberg was startled. "Wouldn't he want to do something to the people on their side? Besides, we did it? We can at most let our side not take the initiative to provoke trouble; if he wants to frame us, it will be very difficult to guard against!"

"So, no matter what he says, we can't believe it, because we can't bear the consequences of making a wrong judgment." Victor concluded. "Although it may be impossible to guard against, let other people be careful not to be killed by a borrowed knife."

Van Leburg nodded vigorously.He hides well, so informing others is usually his responsibility.There are republicans, aristocrats, and big businessmen in that small circle; factions are not a problem, the common point is that everyone has common interests.

Victor stood up from his chair, walked to the window, and glanced out casually. "One other thing," he said, "how is Thiers going?"

"You mean that young man?" Van Leburg recalled. "What he said was too noticeable. Now we are sending someone to protect him."

"He has good ideas, but it's best to keep a low profile these days," Victor said. "Don't hurt anyone before we make a move. Tell him that the time is not right now, and let him calm down. If you are really in a hurry, you can write two articles first."

Van Leburg nodded again. "I understand." Thiers was likely to be the killer behind them. Of course, the front had to be hidden better, so that the people from Count Artois' side could not notice.

"That's about it."

Victor's words sounded like closing remarks.Van Leburg thought for a while, and said, "Although Your Excellency the Earl may adopt a more covert approach and will not directly confront you; but you'd better be careful. We cannot afford to lose you."

"Even if they want to do it, it's not that easy." Victor replied with a disapproving sneer in his voice. "Just like you, I know how to protect my property; in fact, I have already started to do it."

"Money is not the most important thing." Van Leburg still thinks it is better to be careful, "Your personal safety is." If you keep the green hills, you are not afraid of running out of firewood!

"You mean this?" Victor said lightly.In just a few seconds, he took out a small pistol out of nowhere, and was turning it around in his hand, his movements were very fluent.

Van Leburg had nothing to say this time.In this day and age, there are honor duels, so most men are good at marksmanship and swordsmanship.Victor carried a gun with him, and together with the guards in the dark, it was already the highest level of security. "I didn't expect that. It's a good thing you're ready." He said good-bye, and went to his room.

Victor turned around twice before putting the gun away.If Van Leburg knew that the person who pointed a gun at him last time was Charles, and not anyone who really wanted to harm him, I'm afraid I don't know how frightened he would be?But having said that, although he complained about Charles carrying a gun with him, it was indeed the wisest choice at this moment.

Having said that, it's impossible for Charles to still be carrying a gun when he was in the hot spring, right?

Back to Charles.He successfully prevented Alphonse from drawing the hatred towards the Earl of Artois—the latter was frightened into a cold sweat after knowing who the person with Victor was, and honestly rolled back to his room without saying a word—then he himself He pondered.

There is nothing to go to the Temple of Three Treasures, let alone two people who are absolutely wrong in nature appear at the same time?Victor must be on to something, and so is the Comte d'Artois.Given that the current situation is unclear, are both sides trying to figure it out?

It's a pity that I couldn't find out who the other two were.Maybe he should remember his appearance and go back and ask his father?After all, his father has worked in the upper echelons of Paris for so many years, so he must know more people than a fledgling like him!

Although Charles knew that Victor's acquaintance with him was not a hidden thing, he was not worried that Count Artois would find out afterwards.After all, this place is quite special today. Smart people know to keep their distance and not disturb others, no matter how familiar they are.So now he is more concerned about what Victor, or the faction represented by Victor, is doing recently-this concerns the future of thousands of middle-class people, including himself!

While Ciel really wanted to know, that didn't mean he'd take the initiative to find Victor.Especially Baden Hot Springs is too sensitive, he doesn't want to be mistaken for any ulterior secret between him and Victor.

Speaking of which, let's wait until we get back to Paris... If we're lucky, we might meet Victor again at the stock exchange... It would be even better if his father knew any of the three today. I can inquire...

When Charles was thinking this way, he was sitting in the small hot spring provided by the room with his eyes closed.Surrounded by water vapor, he was a little drowsy.Suddenly, hands stretched out from behind him, grabbed his shoulders, and began to massage carefully.

Is this another good thing Alphonse did?Charles froze for a moment, then recalled that Alphonse had once praised to him the great skills of the masseurs in Baden Spa and expressed his strong recommendation, so he immediately relaxed.

Really, it scares him every time!But having said that, although the masseur walked without sound at all (he thought it might be because he was trained in special services, but in fact it was not the case at all), his massage skills were indeed good.

Charles squinted his eyes slightly, under the hypnosis of the warm water mist and appropriate force, he wanted to sleep even more.What prevented him from really falling asleep was the last trace of clarity that he couldn't sleep in the water, and a certain feeling that he was gradually raising his head because of excessive comfort...

Ciao, it's all because of Alphonse's entanglement with him today whether it's okay or not!Charles cursed inwardly.He has never wronged his desire, but he doesn't want to cause any trouble, so he plans to solve it by himself. "Okay," he said, with an undisguised laziness in his voice, "Go out, you won't miss the tip."

But the people behind him did not leave.Instead, the man appears to kneel as the hands reach deeper into the water.

Charles gasped slightly in shock.He realized now that it was wrong, no masseuse would be so bold! "You—" He raised his head, just in time to see half of the side face protruding over his shoulder, and immediately gritted his teeth: "—Victor!" How did this guy get in here!

"There are small doors connecting the hot springs, you probably haven't noticed it yet." Victor replied indifferently.Of course, he was happy to take advantage of it, so why would he care about anything else? "By the way, you finally called me by my name." Today was worth the fare!

"That's not the point!" Charles continued to grit his teeth, but at the same time felt that a long-lost feeling captured him. "The point is, what are you doing?" He tried hard to keep his voice steady, but it was really difficult under the current circumstances.

"Shh, don't talk at this time." Victor ignored Charles.His head was further forward, and the side face was pressed against Charles' cheek; through a layer of damp water vapor, the heat rose and radiated. "Aren't you feeling well, eh?"

This almost hit Shire's weakness.He had to admit, don't listen to Viktor's words, he is very awkward, his hand skills are really not weak.He simply shut his mouth and leaned back, right on Victor's shoulder.

It was like showing weakness, and Victor was overjoyed.He knew that it was impossible for Charles to refuse him at this time!Hearing the faint panting, he moved faster.Be patient and wait a little longer, maybe he can...

But this is entirely his own idea.Because after a suppressed groan, Charles' next reaction was completely unexpected to Victor——

It turned out to be a long-planned and powerful elbow strike!