From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

As for Madame Du Barry, she stood there with a pale face, as if she had lost her soul and didn't know what she was thinking.

Isn’t this charity auction a way for Laurence Bonaparte to gain fame?

No, Madame Du Barry suddenly realized at this moment that Lawrence had indeed gained the support and support of a large number of lower-class citizens from this auction, but he wisely transferred most of this credit to Prince Louis.

In this way, Lawrence not only achieved his personal goal, but even the royal family praised his behavior without any complaints.

"Damn it! How could this happen? Did he plan it long ago?!"

Madame Du Barry suppressed her trembling body and restrained herself from losing her composure on such an occasion.

But even so, Madame Du Barry still found it difficult to accept the contrast between before and after.

The Corsican boy had obviously knelt on the ground, and His Majesty the King had obviously prepared to punish him, but why did all his beautiful fantasies come to nothing at this moment?

Madame Du Barry suddenly felt dizzy and almost couldn't stand up. It was only by holding her hands tightly on the back of the chair that she managed not to faint.

However, before she could calm down her mood, a more terrifying thought suddenly popped into Madame Du Barry's head:

"Wait a minute. If yesterday's auction was successfully held, what happened to Duke Aiguillon? Didn't he stop the auction?!"

In the king's suite, Lawrence stood up with the support of Louis XV. He glanced at Madame Du Barry from the corner of his eye and said in a sincere tone:

"How can I accept your apology? It is my duty to serve you."

"This was a terrible misunderstanding. I almost made a mistake by wronging such an outstanding and loyal minister! I already knew that you would never do such a disloyal thing, dear Lawrence."

Louis XV laughed and patted Lawrence on the back. He had not been so happy for a long time.

Seeing Prince Louis receiving homage from the people gave him even greater joy than Louis XV himself receiving cheers from the people.

Moreover, after learning the truth of all this, Louis XV's suspicion and suspicion of Lawrence were also swept away. The sorrow that had troubled him all night was also solved by this surprising news.

Louis XV looked at Lawrence in a good mood and said with a smile:

"Tell me about that auction again. Are there any other interesting things in it?"

"I can't talk about interesting things, but His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's performance is simply amazing."

Lawrence smiled slightly, complimented Prince Louis as usual, and then said meaningfully:

"In addition, there were some unpleasant things that happened during the auction, but I won't mention those."

Upon hearing these words, Madame Du Barry's heart suddenly tightened, and she subconsciously turned her gaze to Lawrence.

"Unpleasant thing? Which bastard is so short-sighted?" Louis XV couldn't help but frown slightly. He would never allow any blind bastard to almost ruin Auguste's good deed.

Lawrence opened his mouth, seemed to hesitate, then smiled and sighed:

"I think it would be better for you, Your Majesty, to ask your secretary, so as not to appear that you are maliciously slandering someone."

"You!" Madame Du Barry couldn't help but screamed. Of course she could tell that Lawrence was thinking about himself.

However, Louis XV's attention was not on Madame Du Barry. The king looked at the press secretary solemnly and motioned for him to continue.

The press secretary seemed a little embarrassed, but after thinking for a while, he still reported the truth:

"His Excellency Bonaparte should be referring to the Duke of Aiguillon. He also participated in the charity auction of the Paris Comedy yesterday. However, the Duke of Aiguillon seemed to have a conflict with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince at the auction."

"Conflict?" Louis XV's tone was almost cold.

"Yes, Your Majesty. It is said that the Duke of Aiguillon tried to seize His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's box as soon as he entered the venue. During the auction, the Duke also repeatedly threatened His Royal Highness the Crown Prince not to continue to increase the price."

The press secretary watched Louis XV's expression gradually darken, and his tone involuntarily became cautious:

"At the end of the auction, the Duke of Aiguillon accused the auction of being just a show staged by His Excellency Bonaparte and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and even sent his own bodyguards to drive His Royal Highness the Crown Prince out of the box. Perhaps this is also because the Duke of Aiguillon did not know the identity of His Royal Highness at the beginning.”

Although the press secretary had already explained a little to the Duke of Aiguillon, Louis XV's expression, so cold as to drip water, still revealed the king's anger at this time:

"You mean Emmanuel Armand?! Why did he go to that auction to join in the fun! Who gave him the courage?!"

Listening to the king's roar, Madame Du Barry's vision went dark and she almost fainted.

Just listening to the press secretary's story, Madame Du Barry could already imagine what kind of disaster the Duke of Aiguillon had caused.

Although objectively speaking this is indeed a misunderstanding, this rhetoric will not diminish Louis XV's anger at all.

"Perhaps it is because of Monsignor Bonaparte, Your Majesty, there is some disagreement between the Duke of Aiguillon and Monsignor Bonaparte." The press secretary lowered his head and explained cautiously.

"No deal with it? Humph." Louis XV snorted coldly, looked at Lawrence aside and asked:

"Dear Lawrence, what do you think should be done with this bastard?"

Seeing the king turning the topic to himself, Lawrence did not speak rashly, but pondered it for a while. After all, Lawrence believed that Louis XV must have an answer in his heart, and the reason why he asked himself was just a formal process.

Moreover, although this is a good opportunity to pursue the Duke of Aiguillon, it is not a fatal handle. Lawrence also has a very clear idea of ​​Louis XV's thoughts. What the king hates most is Party strife among ministers.

Whether it was the fight between the Duke of Choiseul and the Duke of Richelieu in the government, or the discord between Crown Princess Marie and Madame Du Barry in the inner palace, Louis XV tried his best to reconcile the contradictions between the two sides, rather than favoring either side.

Therefore, adding insult to injury at this time may not achieve any good results. Even if the punishment proposed by Lawrence is very different from what Louis XV himself thought, it will actually embarrass the king himself.

After considering this, Lawrence nodded slightly, smiled generously and said:

"I also regret that I did not establish a good friendship with the Duke of Aiguillon, but since the Duke doesn't like me very much, I think it would be better for me and him not to meet each other."

After hearing this, Louis XV immediately cast an admiring look at Lawrence, secretly sighing that this minister was indeed smart enough and did not propose a punishment plan that would make him unable to step down.

After all, the Duke of Aiguillon was the talker of the Richelieu family, and it would not be that easy for Louis XV to take action against him politically.

"Okay, Lawrence, I don't think we can let him harass you anymore."

With a wave of his hand, Louis XV directly summoned an envoy and said:

"Go tell the Duke of Aiguillon now and tell him to go back to Versailles. I don't want to see him again during this time in Paris! Tell him my exact words!"

After hearing the king's order, Madame Du Barry breathed a sigh of relief. She was fortunate that the king did not impose an excessive punishment, and the Corsican boy did not take this opportunity to bring trouble to her.

However, Lawrence nodded with great satisfaction after hearing the king's order, and then gave Madame Du Barry a meaningful look.

He knew that as long as the Duke of Aiguillon was expelled from Paris and left Madame Du Barry's side.

This woman was like a vulture whose wings had been clipped and fell into the mud. She could only watch helplessly as she drowned in the endless muddy water.

Although there was an unpleasant episode involving the Duke of Aiguillon, this did not affect Louis XV's good mood on the whole.

The king warmly invited Lawrence to stay in the Tuileries Palace for a luncheon. Even Prince Louis and Princess Mary, who were visiting art exhibitions, were summoned back by Louis XV to accompany Lawrence to the banquet.

And when Madame Du Barry saw the sparkling diamond necklace around Princess Marie's neck, she almost fainted on the spot.

She couldn't accept that her favorite treasure should appear in the woman she hated the most.

Crown Princess Marie was also aware of Madame Du Barry's jealous and crazy eyes. From time to time she would deliberately lift the necklace on her chest and show off the gifts given by Mr. Bonaparte with a smile.

Under these multiple blows, Madame Du Barry only took two sips of broth before leaving the table early on the grounds of feeling unwell, and then locked herself in the palace room.

Louis XV, who was in high spirits, did not pay too much attention to his mistress at this time. After all, the king also felt that Madame Du Barry's behavior these days was a bit excessive, and he almost wronged Laurence Bonaparte. A rare loyal minister.

The lively royal banquet lasted for more than two hours before it ended. Even the sixty-one-year-old Louis XV was drunk today and was excited about the support his grandson Auguste received.

At the end of the banquet, Lawrence also made a request to Louis XV, hoping to meet with his palace treasurer, Director Jonah.

The reason is also very simple and legitimate. Lawrence plans to distribute the seven million livres from the royal family's accounts to the citizens in the form of winter subsidies. This process naturally requires the assistance of Director Jonah.

Louis XV's trust in Lawrence had already reached a new level, and of course he agreed to this reasonable request with confidence.

Around 2 p.m., in a circular office in the west wing of the Tuileries Palace.

"Your Excellency Bonaparte! Please come in quickly. Please come in."

Director Jonah, who was still wearing a blue robe, saw Lawrence outside the door. His face immediately flashed with joy. He took Lawrence's arm and led him into the room. He solemnly and respectfully invited Lawrence to sit in the sofa chair next to the fireplace. Down.

Director Jonah probably got the news about the auction faster than anyone else in the Tuileries Palace. After all, he can be said to be the senior royal family member who is most concerned about whether the winter subsidies can be distributed.

When he learned that the charity auction had raised a total of seven million livres for winter subsidies, the treasurer almost doubted whether his ears and eyes were hallucinating.

And when he confirmed with great excitement that this was a beautiful reality, Supervisor Jonah instantly felt infinite gratitude to His Excellency Bonaparte, and sighed repeatedly that this Excellency is really a good person.

In Director Jonah's original expectation, Lawrence could only raise him two to three million livres at most, which could be used to barely alleviate the urgent needs of the poor in Paris.

He had no idea that a huge sum of seven million livres would be handed over to him in the end, which was almost enough to barely pay for two years of winter subsidies.

In the office, Lawrence was not humble and sat directly on the sofa chair and asked with a smile:

"You seem to have received the message?"

"Of course, of course, I really don't know how you did it." Director Jonah nodded with a smile, quickly brought Lawrence a cup of hot coffee, and said:

"In this way, I can finally spend this winter safely. Thank you so much, Your Excellency; to be honest, when I didn't get any news from you a few days ago, I was on tenterhooks all day long. After all, you know, The cold wave in mid-January is coming soon.”

Lawrence took a sip of coffee and said slowly:

"However, you must have not forgotten our agreement, right?"

"ah"

Director Jonah's face instantly became serious. He subconsciously glanced at the closed doors and windows to ensure that the conversation between the two of them would not be heard by a third party.

Then, Director Jonah nodded solemnly, walked to his desk, and opened the bottom drawer. There was a small mezzanine hidden in that drawer, and there was a small and exquisite brass key hidden in the mezzanine. .

Director Jonah took out the key, walked to a row of bookcases on the left side of the office, accurately opened one of the dusty windows, and took out an inconspicuous paper package from the depths of the bookcase.

"Your Majesty Bonaparte, all the records and certificates you requested concerning Madame Du Barry's misappropriation of royal property are contained therein."

Director Jonah did not dare to be careless at all, and solemnly handed the paper package to Lawrence:

"In this case, our deal is completed, right?"

Lawrence took the paper bag and opened it cautiously and took a look. Inside was a large stack of account books and accounting vouchers, all related to Madame Du Barry and stamped with the royal seal.

"Very good, Mr. Director." Lawrence nodded with satisfaction and said:

"You will soon receive the check and deposit slip for the seven million livres."

After hearing this, Director Jonah finally breathed a sigh of relief, and a smile returned to his face:

"Great, I will immediately start distributing this money into the hands of the poor who need help. It's already this time this year and there can be no further delay."

However, Lawrence was seen tightly stuffing the paper bag full of incriminating evidence into the inner pocket of his coat, then shook his head and said in a deep voice:

"No, Mr. Supervisor, I would rather you not release the funds immediately."

Director Jonah was stunned for a moment and asked in confusion:

"Ah? Why? Your Excellency Bonaparte, the eyes of all Paris citizens are now focused on this money. If it is not distributed in time, some rumors will inevitably arise."

Lawrence smiled and asked:

"Then what if the target of these rumors is a person that you and I hate extremely?"

"You mean? Countess du Barry?!"

Director Jonah asked in a daze. He vaguely realized that he seemed to be involved in a larger conspiracy.

"I told you before, Mr. Director, that I may ask you to assist me with some additional tasks."

Lawrence lowered his voice, and there was no pressure in his tone, but it did not allow Director Yona the slightest room to refuse:

"Now is the time I need you to delay the payment of winter subsidies and put all the blame on Madame Du Barry. This is your task."