Chapter 100: Unexpected Gains

Chapter 100: Unexpected Gains

The man in black turned his head upon hearing the voice. When "he" saw the boy's face clearly, he couldn't help but blurt out, "The Crown Prince?"

Joseph was also a bit surprised. "You're a woman? Do you know me?"

"Oh, well, I've seen you before."

Aymon quickly pulled the rapier from the man's waist—it was practically useless inside the carriage, but for the Crown Prince's safety, it was better to take it away. He then pointed at her mask, gesturing to Joseph as if asking whether he should remove it.

Joseph slightly shook his head and asked the person in black, "Who are you? Why is the Duke of Orléans after you?"

"I... you can call me Tulip," the woman in black mumbled before continuing, "I just took something from the Palais Royal, and those guards started chasing me like mad."

Joseph frowned. "So, you're a thief?"

"Strictly speaking, yes," the woman in black said, suddenly gasping and clutching her shoulder tightly. Her voice trembled, "But everything I did was for equality and justice."

Joseph then noticed the blood seeping through her fingers. "You're injured?"

"A minor wound, it's nothing." The woman in black shook her head, "Now, you can hand me over to that guy Philippe. He should thank you."

The Philippe she mentioned was the Duke of Orléans.

Joseph shook his head, "First, tell me your real name. Second, what did you steal?"

"Why should I tell you?"

Joseph didn't waste time with her. He signaled to Aymon, "Aymon, search her and see what she took."

"Yes, Your Highness. Apologies, miss..."

"Don't touch me!" The woman in black quickly shrank back, gritting her teeth, "Fine, I'll tell you. I took some promissory notes and contracts from the archives of the Palais Royal."

"Promissory notes? Contracts?"

"Yes, they belong to Mr. Lenoir and a few of his partners," she said, taking another sharp breath. It was clear her wound was causing her pain, but she continued, "The harvests have been bad these past few years, and their winery is struggling. They borrowed money from Philippe... now they can't repay it, so Philippe wants to take their winery, house, and land!

"Mr. Lenoir's son is seriously ill, and if the Lenoir family loses everything now, he won't survive! And the workers at the winery—they'll lose their jobs and won't be able to afford bread."

Joseph touched his nose. Although he believed that debts should be repaid, the way she said it made it sound like Lenoir had suffered an enormous injustice.

But he had no objection to causing trouble for the Duke of Orléans.

"Alright, so you snuck into the Duke of Orléans' archives just to steal some promissory notes? Didn't you take any evidence of his dealings with foreign powers or his corrupt activities?" Joseph sighed regretfully. The nickname "Tulip" made her sound like a middle-schooler playing hero.

"No..."

"Tell me who you are, and I might consider letting you go."

The woman in black was stunned. "Really?"

"Really."

The woman in black recalled the scene outside the Angel's Shop in Paris where the Crown Prince had helped a pair of homeless siblings. She managed a smile, "Indeed, you have a kind heart... Alright, my name is Sorel. Anna Sorel."

Aymon quickly searched his memory and said to the Crown Prince, "Your Highness, she is the sister of Viscount Freyze."

Joseph found it amusing. A noblewoman from Versailles, dressed in all black, sneaking into the Palais Royal at night to "pursue justice"...

He heard the distant shouts of guards approaching and glanced at Aymon. The latter immediately stepped out of the carriage.

The carriage had barely moved a few steps when two squads of fully armed guards blocked its way from both front and back.

Aymon immediately approached them, raising his voice, "What are you doing? This is the Crown Prince's carriage!"

The captain of the guards from the Palais Royal recognized him and quickly bowed, "Count Aymon, we are pursuing a thief..."

"I haven't seen any thief. Now, step aside," Aymon waved his hand dismissively, "Don't delay the Crown Prince's journey."

The guards, seeing the Prince's personal guard led by Crexode approaching, dared not say more. They signaled their men to clear a path for the carriage.

The carriages then sped away and only came to a halt after turning into a small alley far away. Joseph signaled toward the carriage door and asked Sorel, "Are you sure your wound is alright?"

"Thank you for your concern. It's nothing serious."

Sorel was about to step out of the carriage when she suddenly remembered something and turned back, "Your Highness, as a token of gratitude for helping me, I can tell you something.

"Today, in the Palais Royal, I overheard a conversation between Philippe and the British Ambassador to France, and it seemed to involve you."

"Oh?" Joseph's eyes lit up. He hadn't expected to gain something unexpected.

"Philippe said he hoped the British would allow Necker to serve as a financial advisor and participate in the negotiations you proposed. He also mentioned it would be best to push Archbishop Brienne out and have Veillon and Necker take the lead. However, the British didn't seem to agree.

"Oh, and Philippe mentioned that his banks' investment of 15 million livres in Britain has already been finalized. Now, a few other banks are hoping to invest another 10 million livres in Britain's automatic looms."

After saying this, she turned to leave the carriage, covering her wound, and bowed to Joseph. "Thank you again, Your Highness. Also, please keep this a secret."

Aymon handed her the rapier. The young woman took it, attached it to her side, nodded in thanks, and then twisted her lithe waist, disappearing into the night like a black cat.

Joseph chuckled. He didn't expect there to be people in this era who fancied themselves as heroes of justice, fighting for a cause on their own, and it turned out to be a young girl.

As the carriage started moving again, he recalled Sorel's words, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes. These banks were taking French money and using it to help the British advance their Industrial Revolution!

A full 25 million livres, and most of it was likely earned from the interest on France's government debt. It seemed that the financial sector needed a thorough cleanup.

Soon, the convoy arrived at the office of the Industrial Planning Bureau in Paris.

Joseph quickly entered the building, finding it still somewhat chaotic since they had only started moving in yesterday.

He went to the Director's office at the back and immediately saw a neat stack of documents on the desk. These were the materials he had asked his assistant to gather on France's industrial situation, and they had arrived faster than expected.

He shook his head and smiled, realizing that as France's industrial head, he had spent the entire journey thinking about food supplies.

Joseph sat down and began reviewing the documents. Aymon quickly brought a candelabra with five candles for extra light and quietly ordered a maid to prepare some tea.

After reading just ten pages, Joseph's brow was already furrowed.

In the past year alone, over a million livres worth of textiles had piled up unsold in Lyon, France. Nearly a hundred textile workshops had gone bankrupt, resulting in the unemployment of over 3,000 workers...

(End of Chapter)

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