Chapter 5 The Counterattack of the Duke of Orleans

Guizot was the first to get excited, summoned his men sitting at the far end of the banquet table, and ordered:

"Cesar, take someone to check if any dentist had contact with Lenault a month ago!"

Joseph thought for a moment and added: "If the dentist has been to Lenno's house, his servant should know."

"But the servant's confession didn't mention..." Guizot was stunned, "No! Cesar, you should also interrogate the servant!"

"Yes, sir!"

Outside City Hall, Leno's fiancée stopped crying. I don't know whether the police drove her away or someone told her that the case would need to be re-investigated.

In the afternoon, the fat mayor came with a group of city officials to invite Joseph to dinner. A policeman named Cesar suddenly rushed over and whispered to Guizot for a while.

The latter's eyes lit up, he turned around and saluted Joseph, caressed his chest and said loudly:

"Your Highness, as you expected, Leno's servant confessed soon after he was arrested, saying that a dentist did go to Leno's house at the time of the incident. The servant received a sum of money from the man and also did perjury."

The president of the Chamber of Commerce asked urgently: "Where is the murderer?"

"Cesar searched the dentist's house and found that he was an Englishman. His brother had fought in the United States and was shot by Leno. He came to take revenge." Guizot lowered his head and coughed dryly, "It's just that, Cesar Thrall accidentally stabbed him to death while chasing him."

Hearing this, a dozen city officials around him couldn't help but look at Joseph, their eyes full of surprise and admiration. At the noon banquet, the prince judged the murderer's situation based only on some clues he heard.

And now the actual investigation results of the police are almost exactly the same as what he said!

The fat mayor immediately praised loudly: "Fortunately, the prince is wise and wise, and the murderer cannot go unpunished."

He smiled again, turned to the official behind him and whispered: "That woman will finally stop coming to the city hall to cause trouble..."

In the evening, Joseph stayed at his private villa at the repeated invitation of Chamber of Commerce President Fleiselle. The town hall was too far from Versailles and he didn't want to go back and forth.

Joseph leaned on the soft big bed and stared at the opposite wall, feeling a little bored.

Today, the fat mayor and the president of the Chamber of Commerce have been doing Tai Chi with him, but they still don't agree with him interfering in the police station. He turned over and thought that if he could not persuade them tomorrow, he would write to the Queen and ask her to place him in the police station.

Outside the house, Aman knocked on the door lightly: "Your Highness, are you asleep?"

"Not yet, come in."

Aiman opened the door and respectfully handed a letter to Joseph: "Your Highness, this is from the police station. It seems to have been left by Mr. Lenot's fiancée."

"She? A letter to me?"

Aman said in a serious tone: "Okay, she committed suicide tonight..."

Joseph's heart became a little heavy. He didn't expect there to be such an infatuated woman in the world.

He opened the letter and saw that the first few lines were to thank Cesar and other police officers, and then she said that she wanted to thank the crown prince who personally found the real murderer, but because of the disparity in status, he could not see her, and she could only do this. I'm here to say thank you. I wrote a full page thank you note. At the end of the letter, she said that without Le Nôtre there was no hope for her. The police avenged Le Nôtre, who was about to follow her lover. After her death, all property will be donated to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the Police Department respectively.

Joseph was a little surprised by this gift, and Aiman said softly: "Your Highness, it is said that Miss Easterly left a property of four thousand livres..."

On the banks of the Seine.

The royal palace here was once the palace of Louis XIV and now belongs to the Duke of Orleans.

The Orleans family served as regents under Louis XV. They are very powerful. After more than a hundred years of accumulation, they have a huge wealth comparable to that of the royal family.

The current Duke of Orleans has relied on this to continuously develop his power since his father's generation. Although he has no actual official position, he can participate in cabinet meetings and has considerable power. In addition, he has good acting skills and is not stingy with money. He was a guest in all political circles and had great prestige among the nobility.

A luxurious carriage drove into the palace and stopped in front of the flower gallery. The Duke of Orleans got off the carriage along the steps set by the servants.

The sound of voices came from the garden not far away. He turned his head and glanced over there, with a smile on his lips. He knew that this was a gathering of an organization that was dissatisfied with the royal family.

Yes, the palace is now a secret base for the anti-royal family. From now on, the backbones of the Feuillants, Girondins, and Jacobins would often gather here. In addition, a variety of prohibited items, including controlled weapons, can be sold here.

The Duke of Orleans used his power to protect them. He has been working hard for decades and will fully support anything that is conducive to subverting the royal family.

The Duke of Orleans threw his coat to the servant and strode into the hall. As soon as the guard opened the hall door, he saw his son beating and scolding the maid.

He coughed lightly and stepped forward: "Phillip, what's wrong with you?"

The young man turned around and saw that it was the young man with serious eyes who had taken the math test with Joseph in the morning. He pointed at the maid and cursed angrily: "This idiot! He took advantage of my bad mood to bring me black tea! It's still so hot!"

"What makes you feel so bad?"

"That Joseph!" Philip clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. "He must have cheated! There's no way he hasn't taken college courses!"

The Duke of Orleans couldn't help but frowned when he asked what happened. He did not expect that the Dauphin could be moved by a great scholar like Lagrange. The king's bloodline easily eliminated Louis XVI, so why was his son so outstanding?

The prince must be suppressed before he can gain power, otherwise it will become more difficult to overthrow the king.

He comforted his son for a few words, then saw the housekeeper walking over quickly, bowing and saying: "Sir, Mr. Froy wants to see you."

"Is he a confidant of Lewebel? Let him wait for me in the study."

In the study, the Duke of Orleans read the letter sent by Floy, with a sneer in his eyes, and handed the letter to the butler beside him:

"The prince may be smarter, but he is still a child after all. If he hangs out in the city hall, I really can't do anything to him, but he actually actively participates in the management of the police. "

The housekeeper read the letter and clicked his tongue: "Paris has always been a mixed bag, especially in the slums. Robberies and murders have never stopped. Those veterans with decades of municipal experience are at a loss. Your Highness the Prince is looking for trouble."

The Duke of Orleans smiled and nodded: "Since Joseph is so confident, let's help him become famous."

He turned to Floy and said: "Go back and tell Lewebel to let the crown prince serve as the police chief of the Saint-Antoine district."

The Chief of Police is the most powerful position after the Chief of Police and is responsible for all police services in the Paris region. Paris has only six police chiefs.

"Yes, Your Majesty the Duke."

After Lewebert's confidants left, the Duke of Orleans ordered the steward: "Let the Paris News and the Citizen pay more attention to the crime and police management in the Saint-Antoine district and report in detail the chief of police there. Our Royal Highness the Dauphin." "

"Yes." The butler bowed and left.

The Duke of Orleans walked to the window and looked at the palace garden in the night. The corner of his mouth curled up:

"When the Saint-Antoine district is in chaos, how can this Austrian cousin defend his son, the prince? Well, soon, you will become the same idiot as your father in people's minds!"

The "Austrian cousin" he was referring to was Queen Marie, who was born in Austria.