Chapter 161: Trial! Death Sentence

"What are you doing? Let go of me. Dad, save me!" Virtue panicked as he saw the fierce-looking French soldiers rushing towards him. He shouted and screamed, trying to get his father to save him.

"Ah, why did you have to provoke him! You picked a fight with His Highness Roland himself, and now you're paying the price," Barrett sighed, looking at the arrested members of the Audovou family.

"Take them away!" With Barrett's command, all members of the Audovou family were ruthlessly taken away.

This incident naturally didn't escape the notice of those who were paying attention. The Audovou family's influence was not insignificant. The sudden arrest of such a prominent family naturally caused a great stir.

Countless people wanted to find out why Napoleon was so furious as to order the arrest of the entire Audovou family. As investigations deepened, one name began to appear in everyone's discussions—Roland! Napoleon's nephew and the future heir to Napoleon's power.

No one had expected Roland to be so favored. The Audovou family suffered utter disaster simply for angering him.

Upon receiving the news, major families immediately issued orders to their members: do not provoke Roland under any circumstances, or face expulsion from the family.

In the midst of this storm, Roland's reputation spread throughout the entire French upper society. Napoleon's anger was like a raging storm, leaving no room for resistance. Everyone felt threatened, and in such circumstances, no one had the time or inclination to plead for the Audovou family.

Meanwhile, in the prison, the Audovou family members awaited their final trial.

Monsieur Audovou, at this moment, felt utterly broken, sitting paralyzed in the prison. Just moments ago, he had exhausted his last bit of influence to finally learn the reason for his own imprisonment.

As he had suspected, his foolish son, Virtue, hadn't offended just anyone. It was none other than Roland himself, whom Monsieur Audovou had long wanted to befriend.

"Mayor Dusaux-Oudot!"

Outside the prison bars, a voice rang out—it was Commissioner Fouché of the French police. He stared at Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot with an expressionless face.

"Commissioner Fouché! Long time no see. Are you here to save me?" Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot quickly stood up and inquired. At this moment, he was like a drowning man desperately clutching at every possible straw that could save him.

"Hmph! Save you? No! I'm here today to judge your crimes," Fouché said coldly.

"Judge my crimes? What crimes do I have? Is it just because my son injured Roland? Napoleon is abusing his power. If I'm being judged just for this, he will lose the support of the entire French people," Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot shouted in excitement.

This was Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot's last card, the only belief that had sustained him until now. Though Napoleon was an entity he couldn't afford to offend, it was unfair and unjustifiable to imprison him just because his son injured Napoleon's nephew.

"Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot, it seems you still haven't recognized the extent of your crimes. Let me tell you, your crimes are not just about injuring His Highness Roland," Fouché smiled disdainfully at Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot's agitation. Since becoming police commissioner, he had seen many like him.

Fouché then reached behind him, and a police officer handed him a piece of paper. After taking it, he brought it in front of Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot and said slowly:

"Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot, this is your indictment. It clearly lists all your crimes. Would you like to take a look? No? Very well, then I'll read it to you."

"In June 1798, during Napoleon's campaign in Egypt, your brother Pierre-Oudot illegally sold a large amount of military supplies during the war, with your facilitation.

"On October 8, 1799, you received nearly 50,000 francs from a Marseille merchant as bribes.

"On November 19, 1799, your son, Virtue, raped a woman. After the incident, you used your power to cover it up.

"In July 1800, during Napoleon's campaign in Italy against the Austrian army, you and your brother jointly sold a batch of military weapons illegally, profiting 160,000 francs."

"Time has come to now and your actions have become increasingly outrageous. You have now set your sights on Napoleon's government arsenal. Using your connections within the government, you learned of an 80 million franc military order at the arsenal, and dared to fabricate charges, resulting in the arrest of the former factory owner, Jobst. Your crimes are heinous," Commissioner Fouché stood before Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot, slowly reading out his indictment. With each charge, Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot's face grew more grim, until finally, it was drained of all color.

"Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot, I'm afraid you still don't understand the gravity of your crimes. That arsenal was established under Napoleon's rule, and you dared to try and take from the Emperor's own holdings. You're truly audacious. Napoleon has ordered you to be sent to court for trial," Fouché said coldly.

"It's over, it's all over," Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot slumped to the ground upon hearing Fouché's words. The charges Fouché listed were known only too well to him—they were all true, crimes he had committed. Now, on top of everything, he was being accused of embezzling from the arsenal, a crime that would seal his fate. 

"Pierre-Oudot, you fool, it's all because of you, you greedy man, that the Oudot family is in this disaster," Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot said, lashing out at his brother. If it hadn't been for Pierre's ideas, he wouldn't have ended up in this position.

Fouché looked on in dismay, shaking his head faintly. The once prominent Oudot family was now nothing but smoke and mirrors. There was nothing he could do but watch.

After recounting the crimes of both Monsieur Dusaux-Oudot and his brother Pierre-Oudot, Fouché promptly handed them over to the court for trial. Given the severity of their crimes, both were sentenced to death.

And so, the whole affair came to a close.

As for Jobst, under Fouché's escort, he slowly walked out of the police station. Looking at the familiar sunlight outside the police station, Jobst felt like he was in a different world altogether.

Everything happened so quickly that he couldn't react in time. He hadn't done anything wrong, yet he was suddenly arrested by the police, and just as unexpectedly, he was released without any action taken against him.

But Jobs didn't think much about it. Being released was good enough. He had spent enough time in the police station these days.

Outside the police station, his sister Anya had been waiting for a long time.

"Brother, brother, you're finally out, that's great, really great. Do you know how worried I've been all this time?" Seeing Jobs being released, Anya burst into tears of joy, then ran straight up and hugged him.

"Jobs, it's really great that you're okay. Do you know that Mom and I have been really worried about you since you were taken away?" Jobs' parents also spoke up. Jobs had been suddenly taken away, and the whole family had been worried sick during this time.

"I'm sorry for making you worry during this time. Don't worry, I'm fine." Seeing his family's worried faces, Jobs scratched his head, embarrassed.

"Brother, brother, praise me quickly, praise me quickly. It was my idea that brought the rescuers to get you out." Anya, who was hugging Jobs, immediately let go of him after hearing these words and jumped up and down in front of their family, eagerly seeking praise and rewards.