Flowers, Swords and France

Charles's implicitly sarcastic answer made Jean-Calvert's face even more ugly. His face was extremely stiff, and he was obviously very angry at the hateful coercion of the minister and Charles. And his appearance couldn't help but make Charles feel even more happy. He continued to drink coffee unhurriedly, waiting for the other party's next words.

It has to be said that after so many years of crawling around in the government, going through two dynasties and one republic (and may go through an empire in the future), Mr. Jean-Calvert has at least developed his Qi-nurturing skills, and his livid face , and returned to normal in just a few seconds.

After receiving Ciel's promise to speed up the process, he felt relieved, so he poured himself a cup of coffee without haste.

"Mr. de Treville, I haven't apologized to you for what happened last time? I'm really sorry." After taking a sip, he looked at Charles.

"What happened last time?" Charles asked in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"Okay, Mr. Treville, when you asked me to do something last time, I admit that I did not stand up because of the pressure from above." Jean-Calvert still looked at Charles sincerely, "This is what I did. It’s not a good outcome, but it’s been so long, why don’t you still take it to heart?”

"You are right, so I don't take it to heart now." Charles replied with a smile, "I regard the past as history. For us, the present is the most important thing."

"It would be great if you could see it that way." Jean-Calvert breathed out. "I knew how a promising young politician like you could take such a trivial matter so seriously..."

He was now deliberately flattering. This made Charles a little confused. If this guy really wanted to have a good relationship with him, wouldn't he wait until now to start submissive and say nice things? So what exactly does he mean?

He chose to stand still and quietly wait for the other party's next step.

"Having said that, you are really an admirable young man!" Jean-Calvert sighed again, "When you came to me, I was surprised that you were able to start your own business at your age. . I didn’t expect that just a few months later, you gave me another surprise! It’s really unimaginable. How many people at your age can achieve this?

Even though he knew that he meant it as a compliment, Ciel still felt a little carried away by his words. but. He still maintained the most basic sobriety. Don't let yourself get carried away by the other party's erotic soup.

"I just had some good luck," he said cautiously.

"Luck can only help Mr. Bonaparte come back, but it cannot help him value you. Since you can be entrusted with such an important task by him, it is enough to show that he values ​​you." Jean-Calvert took another sip. Coffee, "Sir, there is no doubt that I am fooling you. I have been in this government for almost forty years. When I first came here, people still called Louis XVIII the King! But over the years, I I have never seen anyone like you who started to gain power at such a young age..."

"History is always meant to be broken." Charles replied unhurriedly and continued to drink coffee.

Jean-Calvert suddenly raised his head and looked at Charles, with an inexplicable meaning in his smile.

"You said it very well, history will always be broken... Therefore, there is no need for us to keep fighting against each other," he suddenly lowered his voice, "Similarly, in my opinion, there is no need for you to keep holding on. The historical phantom of Emperor Napoleon persists?”

Charles's heart suddenly tightened. The topic finally came. What was this person thinking?

He was not speaking, but raised his head and looked at this person.

Jean-Calvert looked at him without any restraint and continued unhurriedly, "You don't need me to tell you that for a politician, a person who is determined to go further in the political world. It is not necessary and he will not cling to a few trees, especially when he is in a superior position like you. This is not a bad thing, on the contrary, it is a kind of wisdom. I’ve seen it all before, and it’s not surprising at all…”

"You mean, I should bid farewell to Mr. President rationally?" Charles immediately asked.

He already understood what Jean Calvert meant - he wanted to persuade him to leave the broken ship of the Bonaparte family and change his family. As for where to change it, it is self-evident.

"Oh, no, no, no, no," Jean-Calvert quickly smiled and waved his hands to deny it, although he didn't seem to be denying it. "You are a politician and specialize in this line of work, and I am just a humble civil servant. That’s all, how am I qualified to make judgments and advice on your future? I just said a few words casually..."

"But I can't answer your question casually." Charles replied with a smile.

He didn't want to give any answer to Calvert, but just cut off the topic because he didn't deserve it.

Yes, he is not qualified to be responsible for persuading him to change his family. How can he, a civil servant, have such qualifications? Even if he is said to have some relationship with His Excellency Prime Minister Barrow, he still does not deserve it.

Although in theory civil servants should not be involved with politicians, it is not surprising that senior bureaucrats like Jean-Calvert are close to party bosses in this situation where the Order Party is the only party in parliament. But no matter what, he is just a civil servant in the ministry. Although he can make things difficult for Charles and the minister in departmental affairs, he is absolutely not qualified to interfere in the affairs of politicians.

Of course he will understand this, so why does he have to come here to find this trouble? Unless... Charles understands something.

"Of course I can understand your difficulties." Sure enough, after hearing Charles' ambiguous answer, Jean-Calvert's face showed a hint of cunning, "I'm telling you these words without any basis. Of course you can't answer them well. But... what if it's not me who asks you today? Can you make a wise decision based on your own interests?"

"What do you mean?" Charles asked pretending to be unaware.

Jean-Calvert took out his pocket watch from his pocket and checked the time. Then he looked at Charles again, "Mr. Treville, you should be free now?" He paused deliberately, and then continued, "There will be an important person coming to visit from the ministry later. The minister is not here today, how about we two receive him together later?"

Sure enough!

It seems that he is paving the way for me to change my job today. And the person behind is the highlight. Charles finally figured out their tricks.

So how should I deal with them? Should I refuse immediately and walk away to show my loyalty to the Bonaparte family, or should I deal with them slowly first. See what these people are thinking?

In a moment, Charles's mind was working fast, thinking about the countermeasures he should take.

It didn't take long for him to make a quick decision. Let's see first.

In the end. He himself was a little curious and wanted to know which big shot came to recruit him personally today.

"This is the courtesy we should do." After thinking it through, Charles answered in a low voice.

"Very good, that's the best." Jean-Calvert really looked very happy, and his smile was more sincere than before, "You really have a bright future!"

While he was still complimenting, his full-time secretary suddenly rushed in and whispered a few words in his ear.

"Ah. What a coincidence! We just talked about him, and he came!" After listening. He looked back at Charles and laughed.

Charles nodded gently.

"Then let's go to greet him together?"

At this time, although Charles already knew that today was an extremely important day, he didn't know how important this day was.

……………………

When Charles found the short figure in the hall, he realized how unusual today was.

Yes, this visitor was extremely short, and even if he wore leather shoes that could increase his height, he couldn't reach Charles' neck. However, he was still in high spirits when he looked around, and there was a sense of dignity hidden in his chest.

Mr. Louis-Adolphe-Thiers, the leader and spiritual leader of the Order Party, who is well-known in politics, business, and history, and even more notorious in the future world history, actually came to visit his department in person today, which really caught Charles off guard.

However, even though he was extremely shocked, Charles still maintained his calmness.

He and Jean-Calvert saluted Mr. Thiers at the same time, and the gentleman was in high spirits. Following his entourage and Charles, Jean-Calvert and others, he walked around the department casually, as if he was a leader who came to inspect.

Charles followed him patiently, while secretly guessing how he should deal with him.

He didn't have much time to think, and soon, Jean-Calvert took Mr. Thiers and him to the lounge where Charles had just stayed.

"It's worth the trip today," Mr. Thiers sighed casually after sitting down, seeming to be much taller than when he was standing, and then took a sip of coffee.

Then, he glanced at Charles and Jean-Calvert, "It can be seen that you really put in a lot of effort. In such a short time, a newly established department has a basic appearance and started running smoothly..."

"It's all because of the Prime Minister and your kind care and guidance that we can carry out our work so smoothly..." Jean-Calvert immediately began to compliment.

"To serve the country and the people, we should do our best, this is what we should do." Charles was not left behind, he replied with a smile.

"Yes, that's right. As politicians, isn't it our duty to serve the people? So far, it seems that you have served very well, better than expected..." After hearing Charles' answer, Mr. Thiers also smiled, as if he really thought so. "Mr. Treville, I must admit that when we first chose you for this position, we had some doubts, but now you have dispelled my doubts with your work performance. I think that although you are enviably young, you are indeed qualified for this position."

"Thank you for the compliment." Ciel replied cautiously. "I will use your words as an incentive to continue working hard in the next work and strive to create more contributions to the country and people."

"Well. That would be great, that's what we want to be determined to do!" Mr. Thiers sighed, and then he turned to look at Jean Calvert next to him, "So, you can work with such a person , It is indeed an honor for you. As long as you two work together, are you afraid that you won't be able to do anything great here? I think you can leave your mark in history, sir."

"Mr. de Treville does have unusual abilities. People in the ministry are full of praise when they mention him!" Jean-Calvert also echoed.

The two men sang and poured soup into Charles, but Charles did not fall into the fog as they expected, and they could not figure out who he was. On the contrary, he became more vigilant. but. Of course he pretended to be excited on the outside, as most people his age did.

Seeing Charles's very happy look, Mr. Thiers took another sip of coffee and continued.

"The British made William Pitt the prime minister when he was 24 years old. Even if we can't completely follow suit, what if we let a 24-year-old or even younger man serve as a minister? As long as we let him be a minister. A person has talent, as long as he can prove that he is worthy of being entrusted with important tasks. Then we should not only consider his age..." He stared at Ciel closely, "As long as he can prove that he is worthy. That's enough."

It would be foolish for Ciel not to understand that it was so explicit.

"So, how should he prove it?" He also took a sip of coffee and calmed down.

"He should show that he has enough sense and judgment and will not be involved in some boring mentality." Mr. Thiers looked at Charles and said slowly, "He should know what is best for himself. He should know who can best help him, and at the same time, he should abandon those outdated ideas and shake hands with the new era..."

Read the original text in Liu#9@书/吧!

Ciel was silent for a moment, deep in thought.

"Mr. de Treville, I said that you are a smart man." Seeing that Charles was already attracted to him, Mr. Thiers immediately persuaded him further, "Since you are a smart man, then you can naturally see Come out, who is benefiting from the current situation, and who can control the development of the situation? Our people have occupied the parliament and the government. Government, no one can stop us now - and what about Mr. Louis Bonaparte? It is undeniable that he is a good person, but he is still alone after all. So what if he has the presidential position? ? How many storms can he withstand? Haven't you thought about these questions? No, I don't believe you must have thought about it.

Charles remained silent,

Mr. Thiers continued, "Since you will consider these issues, you now have an excellent opportunity to change your family. As long as you can make a wise decision, then everything I just said to you will not matter." It’s just empty talk, I think you can certainly weigh which one is most beneficial to you?”

After sweeping away all opposition, the Party of Order and Louis Bonaparte, who had been vaguely political allies, were officially on the verge of parting ways. As a remnant of the previous dynasty, Louis Bonaparte, the nephew of Napoleon, had never been the preferred candidate in the minds of these dignitaries of the old dynasty. Although they also wanted to end this unexpected republic, the Party of Order did not think of bringing Louis down. - Bonaparte helped him come to power, and the royal family of Orleans was their favorite candidate.

However, even if they thought so, Louis Bonaparte would certainly not be willing to step down on his own, so the mutual criticism between the two factions seemed to be ready to go off.

Since they are preparing for a fight, the two factions will naturally want to increase their strength as much as possible. Because of his ability, Charles was also valued by Mr. Thiers. What's more, after a long period of observation, they have already confirmed that Ciel has a quick mind and great ambitions. He is not a simple-minded, foolish and loyal person. Therefore, it is very difficult to draw Ciel into their camp. It's normal.

Not only that, Mr. Thiers also considered that Charles has a very close relationship with the Bonaparte family. As long as he can defect, Louis Bonaparte will definitely have countless handles that can be held in his hands. Isn't it easy to overthrow this guy?

Just because you have this in mind. So seeing that Charles was hesitant, Mr. Thiers patiently continued to persuade, "Mr. de Treville. You are a member of the Treville family. Do you need Bonaparte to get such a distinguished surname?" To add glory? Is there anything he can give you that we can't? Think about it, as long as you make a wise decision, you can have a brilliant future and inherit the Marquis's legacy. title. in the king's You are favored and used in the court. With your intelligence, what will you not be able to get by then? So, what do you need to hesitate about now? On the contrary, if you persist in following Mr. Louis Bonaparte? If you do, you may not get any of these things. You may even lose what you have already gained! I am not advising you to think about others, but to think about yourself! Now, please stand with us! !”

After saying this, he looked at Charles with a smile, as if he was not worried about what choice he would make.

Charles listened quietly to the other party's temptation, but his heart was no longer as calm as before.

He was not moved by the other party's conditions, but had other feelings.

I really don't need to hesitate, because I know what I should do now, but. If I don't know now, will I hesitate or even waver? Maybe. He thought secretly.

Charles must admit that the current situation is indeed more hesitant for the Order Party such as Thiers, so that the Bonaparte family itself is also thinking about leaving some way out. In this case, people who are so bewitched will definitely waver? Unless they really know that Louis-Bonaparte can really break some of the shackles imposed on him and completely overturn the roadblocks in front of him!

When he read history before, he had laughed at some historical figures because they made some seemingly unreasonable decisions. Today, when he can also become a historical figure, he found out how difficult it is for a person to make wise judgments and far-sighted decisions when he is burdened with so many and so important things!

What a lucky thing it is to be able to penetrate the fog and thick clouds in front of him!

Fortunately, I am a person who knows how to make decisions, at least for now. He suddenly breathed a sigh of relief.

At this moment, Mr. Thiers, who was sitting opposite him, was like a player in a gambling game. There was a good hand on the table. He kept raising the bet, and kept raising the bet, shouting that he was bound to win, wanting Charles to retreat and make a rational decision.

However, I have already read the bottom cards of the two parties, and I already know who will win, Charles told himself in his heart.

At this moment, he raised his head and looked at Mr. Thiers with expectation, and his mind was clear.

I am very sorry, you are indeed a figure, but I am a gambler. Of course he would not say this.

Seeing Charles hesitate for so long, Mr. Thiers was not anxious at all. He believed that an ambitious person would not be loyal to someone like Louis Bonaparte.

To some extent, he was not wrong. When Charles considered the decision, he did not consider it from the perspective of loyalty or not, not even for a second.

However, he still could not get the answer he wanted.

"Sir, I am really touched by your appreciation of me," Charles replied calmly, "but I came to this department to do something for the country and the people. I don't want to be involved in political struggles."

show-hand.

After hearing Charles' answer, Thiers' expectation turned into confusion, and he looked at Charles stiffly.

However, as if this answer was not firm enough, Charles added, "But if the situation forces me to make a choice, I will, like my grandfather, advance and retreat with the Bonaparte family, even if I lose my current position. This is my answer."

Puzzle turned into anger, but soon turned into calm again.

"Is that what you think? That's a pity..." Mr. Thiers sighed, "I was really looking forward to working with you!"

"Even now, we can still work together, right?" Charles replied with a smile, and then stood up, "I still have a lot of things to do here..."

"Oh, please do as you please." Thiers also smiled.

Charles turned around immediately and left the lounge without looking back.

He fully understood what the declaration he had just made meant, so he also knew that he might face more troubles and even storms in the future.

But he was not afraid at all, because... Hahahaha, at least now, I am a gambler!

With this inexplicable pleasure in his heart, he quickened his pace.

He was going to go back to his office and write down everything Thiers said to him today to Louis Bonaparte. If he said nothing, Louis Bonaparte would know it sooner or later, and the consequences would be serious at that time.

Then, of course, his focus was to highlight how "loyal and unyielding" he was, and how he righteously rejected Thiers' coercion and inducement.

From an outsider's point of view, isn't that what he did?

……………………

"What an ungrateful bastard!" After Charles closed the door, Jean-Calvert could no longer hold back and shouted angrily, "He really got carried away when he got his way. Who does he think he is? Is it great to be named Treville? Bah! We will make him pay sooner or later!"

However, Mr. Thiers just sat quietly without any expression of anger. After Jean-Calvert vented his anger, he took another sip of coffee slowly.

"Sir, we cannot interfere with other people's free will. He has the right to make any decision for his future."

Then, he smiled and put down the cup again.

"After all, the future is still long, and we have plenty of time, don't we?" (To be continued..)