Flowers, Swords and France

"Him? Why did he come to me?"

This was the first reaction of Mr. Thiers, a member of the National Assembly and leader of the Party of Order, when he heard the servant's announcement that Louis Bonaparte had come to visit.

He was indeed very curious.

Not only was he curious about the unexpected visit, he was also curious about Louis Bonaparte as a person.

Although the two of them are members of the National Assembly, they have very little contact with each other due to their positions. Moreover, unlike Mr. Thiers, who was often eloquent in the Parliament, Louis Bonaparte was always calm, dull and taciturn even when he attended the Parliament. Naturally, he did not leave a deep impression on him.

However, since he is here, he must be treated politely.

Without any consideration, he immediately ordered his servants to welcome him into his reception room.

When Louis Bonaparte entered the drawing room, M. Thiers was already waiting there. He stood up and shook hands with his colleague cordially.

"Mr. Bonaparte, I really didn't expect you to come to me today," he smiled in a friendly manner, showing a limited expression of indifference and curiosity. "Excuse me, what's the matter?"

"It is something very important," Louis Bonaparte said with a smile on his face, appearing much more enthusiastic than Mr. Thiers. "And it is something that is very beneficial to everyone, yes, to me, This is true for the entire country..."

"Oh?" Mr. Thiers nodded slightly, but the enthusiasm on his face did not diminish by half.

but. At this time, he had roughly understood the other party's intention, and although he pretended to be very calm, his heart was already spinning.

Then. He pointed to the sofa next to him and said, "Please sit down."

As soon as he sat down, he took a cup of coffee from the coffee table next to him and took a slow sip, waiting for the other person to say something.

He did not wait long before Louis Bonaparte spoke directly.

"Yes, Mr. Thiers. I think and see it. I came here today just to ask and my colleagues to help me run for president."

What a straightforward man! I really can’t wait!

Look at that German accent!

Thiers sneered in his heart. Then he put down the cup slowly.

"Mr. Bonaparte, if this is what you are here for, you are looking for the wrong person. If you want to be elected president, it is the voters of the country who need help. Not me. Only they can decide the president. Of course, because of my respect for you, I may give my vote in the general election..."

This unhurried official tone and hidden sarcasm did not discourage Louis Bonaparte in any way. On the contrary, his expression became more eager.

"Nationals? Well, yes, of course everything is decided by them. But their decisions are vague and complicated. Of course, someone needs to be responsible. As a member of the National Assembly, shouldn't I be one of these representatives? What’s more, everyone knows that it will be a great help to me if they can choose to support me.”

"Oh!" Under the sincere gaze of the other party, Mr. Thiers remained unmoved, "Thank you for the praise. I'm afraid you think too highly of me. I'm just an ordinary member of the people."

"So, as an ordinary member of the people, would you be happy to see the people's rights taken away?" Louis Bonaparte suddenly asked.

Mr. Thiers suddenly felt something in his heart.

"What does this mean?" He remained calm, but his hand had been withdrawn from the cup.

"I don't think you haven't heard about it?" Louis Bonaparte looked at Thiers in surprise, as if he really didn't know that Thiers was one of the leaders of this matter. "There are people in the National Assembly. The bill is being brewed to restore property restrictions on the right to vote and deprive the vast majority of the people of our country of their right to vote... However, it is possible to prevent this from happening. "

What does he mean? Did he really not know that this was my idea? Thiers felt even more strange.

No, he definitely knew. He answered himself immediately.

"People's power should be limited. We can't rush to hand over the power to determine the country to them before they have no contribution to the country and society. This is ridiculous... So, I also think Voter qualifications plus tax limit are a good Idea." He didn't bother to talk in circles anymore, and directly showed his cards to the other party, "If you want me to stop all this, I'm sorry that I can't do it, but you can go to the parliament and speak out. If the majority of the people in the parliament agree, then This will naturally not happen.”

Yet Louis Bonaparte continued to smile.

"Sir, don't worry. I didn't come here today to discuss political opinions with you." He said unhurriedly, "But I think I can see it clearly. Under the current situation, if a popular election is launched, then I will definitely be elected, polls everywhere have shown this; even if property restrictions are imposed on voters, I will not have no chance at all..."

"Then why are you anxious? Just wait until you become president." Mr. Thiers mocked again.

"However, if it is the latter situation, I admit that I am no longer sure of victory." Louis Bonaparte remained unmoved in the face of his ridicule. He suddenly asked, "But, I really feel stuck. Will General Fenyak be better than me after he comes to power? Don’t you think I am a better collaborator than him?”

This sentence gave Mr. Thiers a greater shock than any previous words.

"Yes, I am the nephew of Emperor Napoleon, but I do not intend to imitate him. He is the master of the empire, and I just want to be a servant of the people. I do not want to restore the empire. It is just a dream. Everything has already It ended in 1815. Now the Bonaparte family only wants to serve France and not ask for anything. I have said these words many times," Louis Bonaparte continued to narrate in a sincere manner. As if it was true, "And what about General Cavaignac? Isn't he more like Napoleon than me? He is the head of state and a military leader. He is capable and determined. There is nothing else he can do. What about those who came out? He could lead people to crush the mob yesterday, but won’t he lead people to storm the National Assembly tomorrow? "

Following Louis Bonaparte's words, Mr. Thiers was obviously shaken. He wanted to get the cup, but the first time he missed it, he finally got it again.

"If this is the need of the people, then there is nothing I can do." He replied reluctantly.

"Then let the people prove what they need?" Louis Bonaparte continued to pursue, "The people can make their own choices, and we only need to comply with their choices..."

M. Thiers took another sip of coffee. This blocks the other person's line of sight. He never thought that the other party's words could be so sharp.

However, the situation is very obvious. If we hold universal suffrage now, the situation is very obvious. Louis Bonaparte will inevitably come to power; if there are restricted elections. General Cavaignac had a chance to be elected.

However, for me, the fundamental question is not the electoral system, but whether Louis Bonaparte comes to power? Or would it be more beneficial for Cavaignac to come to power?

From his standpoint, the more incompetent the person sitting on the stage is, the better. He has already seen Cavaignac's decisive killing, but he has not yet realized the methods of Louis Bonaparte. Therefore, the words of Louis Bonaparte were indeed very convincing to him.

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"So. If, I mean if. After being elected as president, what will the government do?" After thinking about it for a long time, he finally asked.

From the moment he asked this question, Louis Bonaparte knew that he had succeeded more than half of the time.

After asking for the other half, he answered immediately.

"If I am lucky enough to be in this position, I will wholeheartedly repay the people's trust in me and their help to me. I will appoint a well-known person, a stable and wise Party of Order, as my prime minister. , they are responsible for government affairs. Sir, I only want to serve France, and I don’t value power and fame.”

Under his sincere gaze, Mr. Thiers fell into deep thought.

"What do you think of Mr. Barrow?" he asked suddenly after a while.

Louis Bonaparte did not understand what he meant at first, but soon he realized that this man was an accomplice of Thiers.

"We all know that Mr. Barrow is well-known, and he has accumulated so many years in the political arena and is also very experienced. I think he is one of the best candidates for prime minister. Of course, I am not interested in General Cavaignac. I don’t know what to think.”

"Really..." After receiving this answer, Mr. Thiers fell into silence again.

"However, I have another idea..." Louis Bonaparte said suddenly.

"Please tell me."

"After all, the position of the president represents the country, and its salary should reflect the wealth and strength of France. We cannot allow a person to represent the country while deliberately making him suffer from poverty. I feel that without a salary of two to three million, a country can be like this It’s too humiliating to work too hard.”

Ha, want money! After hearing what he said, Thiers was not angry but happy. He knew that the Bonaparte family had suffered a huge loss in property due to years of displacement.

It doesn't matter if you ask for more money, you can also give him a few more women, he sneered slightly in his heart.

"Very good." There was no expression on his face. "I will think carefully about what you say."

Louis Bonaparte stood up and nodded to him, "I believe that the country can make the best decision."

………………

Long after Louis Bonaparte left, Mr. Thiers still stayed in his reception room, thinking about the exchange with him just now.

Which one is better, Louis Bonaparte? Or Cavaignac?

In his contempt for Louis Bonaparte, he made a decision that he would regret every moment for the next twenty years.

He decided to bring Louis Bonaparte to power as a puppet. (To be continued...)