Flowers, Swords and France

Charles ended his activities in the south and returned to Paris. Read the latest and most complete novels Although the sudden return of President Louis Bonaparte disrupted the original scheduled arrangements, Charles did not live up to his trust and completed the original inspection work on his behalf alone. With his eloquence and the temptation of interests, he attracted many supporters for the Bonapartists in the south and successfully completed the task.

Of course, even if he returned to Paris, it did not mean that he had time to spend his days leisurely. There were still a lot of official and private affairs, as well as conspiracies waiting for him to deal with, so he soon returned to the original busy rhythm.

When he finished all the official business and returned home, it was already the time when the lights were just coming on.

However, even so, he still had no time to rest.

Regardless of his fatigue, he soon found his sister's female companion, Marquis Marie de Léoran, in the reception room of the mansion.

"Sir, you are finally back!" Marie seemed relieved. "During your absence, many things were difficult for us to handle..."

"So I'm back now, aren't I?" Charles replied with a smile, and then asked the servant to bring two cups of coffee, and then he let the servant leave the room.

Then, he put sugar in the coffee and slowly shook it with a spoon.

"Then you can tell me now, I have plenty of time to listen."

"So which part do you want to start with?" Mary also smiled and answered as if jokingly.

"Let's start with the bond issue... The market has almost heard rumors about this? How is the response?" Charles saw that the time was almost right. Picking up the coffee, he took a small sip, "Oh. This tastes really good."

"Yes, sir." Although Charles looked relaxed and casual, Mary still took it seriously, "Now the market has indeed heard the news that the Ministry of Railways is about to publicly sell bonds. Because of the state guarantee, everyone's response is quite enthusiastic, and basically everyone is optimistic. In other words, if it is really sold, it should be expected that the market can absorb this batch of bonds at the face value or even higher prices."

"This is tens of millions. Can this be fully accepted?" Charles was a little surprised, "Is it so enthusiastic?"

"Really, please believe my judgment." Mary looked at Charles firmly, "This is the conclusion I came to from my observations in the market."

"Okay. In this case. I believe in your judgment. That's really good news..." Charles took another sip of coffee and fell into deep thought.

After a moment, he raised his head and looked at Mary again, "Then how much do you think the market can accept? If after the first batch of bonds, the second or even the third batch will soon appear."

"So many?" Mary was also surprised.

Charles did not answer.

"At the beginning, because the market has psychological expectations, maybe we can raise hundreds of millions of debts..." After understanding Charles's meaning, Mary calmed down again. "But if we raise a lot of money in a short period of time, I'm afraid it won't go smoothly all the time..."

"It's good to have so much." Charles still pondered.

"Sir, why are you so anxious? Excuse me for being blunt. Although your approach can raise a lot of funds in the short term, it will be harmful in the long run and will damage the credit of the Ministry of Railways." Seeing that Charles had made a decision, Mary looked at Charles with some confusion, her eyes full of doubts, "In my opinion, there is no need to act so quickly? Judging from the current market reaction, as long as bonds are issued steadily at a fixed frequency, the market will be able to absorb these bonds, and the price of bonds can also remain stable... Why do you have to do this?"

"You are right." Charles nodded simply, "If there is enough time, it is best to take it slow."

"You mean there is not enough time?" Mary was keenly aware of the problem, and her face was a little surprised, "Is there a problem... in politics?"

"No, no, no, don't be nervous." Charles smiled and waved his hand, "Thank God, Mr. President's position is still stable."

"Then you Why do you still want to do this? "

"Because, even if the President's position is stable, I can't guarantee that I or the Minister will stay there forever." Charles sighed softly, "Ms. de-Leoran, you are a smart person, and now you are my assistant, so I won't hide it from you-you can see how frequently the government cabinet changes now? God knows whether this ministry will still be a place where I can make decisions in a few years... If it really is not, whether the person who succeeds me will continue to use my plan is also a big problem. There are many examples of governments changing their orders overnight due to changes in political parties or the jealousy of successors. "

Then, Charles picked up the glass and took a sip, "So, after careful consideration, I think it is better to create a fait accompli if I want to complete my preliminary railway plan. "

"In other words, you plan to raise a lot of funds first, so that the railway lines you plan can be started first?" After thinking for a moment, Marie expressed her opinion.

"Right! I said you are very smart!" Charles clapped his hands, "That's what I thought. First raise the funds, and then start the construction directly. In this way, even if I have to leave due to an accident in the middle, because the construction has already started, the person who takes over my position can't stop even if he wants to cancel my plan."

"So that's it..." After listening to Charles' explanation, Mary sighed, "The government is really weird. It takes so much effort to do something!"

"I'm sorry, this is the system of our government. Everyone is proud to hinder others." Charles shrugged regretfully, "Don't worry, I have carefully calculated that the risk will not be great. At most, there will be some losses. Besides, even if something really happens. I can guarantee that I will not be the one who suffers in the end..." Then, he glanced at the other party lightly. "Now, I have told you the bottom line, you should understand what to do next?"

"Yes! I know," Mary nodded, "We will hold the bonds for a short period of time after they are issued, and sell them all before you issue new bonds, and then let them cry!"

"Yes. That's it," Charles replied with great satisfaction, "So. You are really a good assistant... Why are you looking at me like this?"

"You are really amazing, sir." Mary kept staring at Charles, "Too amazing! You can handle it so easily at this age!"

"…………Not bad."

Then, Charles and Mary discussed several other issues. Until they all got Charles' instructions. Mary finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Sir, now all the problems that need to be solved by you have been solved, and I know how to do the rest."

"Very good, thank you for your hard work, Mary." Charles nodded, still smiling gently, "I will reward your hard work with enough compensation. I said, you are my collaborator."

This compliment came from the heart. Indeed. He was very satisfied with this assistant-a smart and low-key one. An assistant who never uses boring moral concepts to hinder his actions is indeed the kind of assistant that best suits his needs.

Because Charles rarely calls her "you" and "Mary", Mary can't help but open her eyes wide. After a moment, she came back to her senses, "Nothing, sir, it's my honor to serve such an outstanding person like you."

"Even if you praise me so much, I won't raise your salary." Charles smiled and drank the last sip of coffee, then stood up and planned to go back to rest.

However, he found that Mary was still sitting there, as if she was hesitant.

"What's wrong, Mary, is there anything else?" Out of curiosity, Charles sat back again.

"Well... It's not a big deal..." Mary seemed to be hesitant to speak, and couldn't say it all the time.

"What is it?" Charles was a little surprised, "Don't hesitate, tell me."

As if encouraged by Charles, the Marquis finally made up her mind.

"It's about Fran."

"Well? What?" Charles asked hurriedly.

"Just a few days ago, Fran told me that she was going to meet a friend, and asked me to take her out..." Mary looked at Charles a little uneasily, "I saw that she was determined, so I did it."

Charles looked at Mary quietly, without saying a word.

"As a result... as a result... after taking her out... after that..." Mary became more and more uneasy under the pressure of this gaze, and her voice trembled a little, "She took me to a young man's house... and then told me that the man was her friend... and then... and then they chatted for a long time... Sir, do you know when she had such a friend?"

Charles still didn't speak.

"Sir?" Mary asked with courage.

"A man?" Charles finally spoke.

The original text is in the six # 9 @book/bar!

"Yes, it's a man." Mary nodded, "That's why I feel something is wrong..."

"So, what you want to tell me is that you took my sister to a young man's house?" Charles asked in a low voice. At this time, he himself didn't know how stiff his tone was and how cold his expression was.

I'm going to die, I'm really going to die, I'm really going to die!

In great fear, Mary felt her heart was about to stop beating, and she found that the thing she was most worried about before had happened.

"I didn't know the situation at that time, but Fran told me that she was going to meet a friend, and I thought..." She quickly defended herself.

"Then why didn't you just take her away at that time?" Charles asked coldly. "Just let her meet?"

"At that time, I thought you knew who this friend was, maybe it was your friend." Mary replied in a low voice, "But don't worry, I stayed next to them at that time, and didn't find anything strange, just kept talking about Fran's art reviews..."

"Are you trying to cover up your incompetence with such words? Or stupidity?" Charles slowly stood up.

Charles' shadow covered Mary's head, and she only felt a sense of powerlessness like paralysis, like an antelope in front of a cheetah.

If she really doesn't do something, I'm afraid it will be over... This thought flashed through the girl's mind.

"Sir, you have to be reasonable!" She closed her eyes and shouted loudly, "Why do you put all the blame on me? She had to do this, can I be blamed for this?"

Her scream finally woke Charles up.

Charles sat back down again. Then, complicated thoughts suddenly flooded his mind.

What Marie had just said completely shattered his previous good mood, and a moment of anger almost made him lose his mind. He unconsciously glanced at Marie and found that she was still frightened, her face was red, and there were even tears in the corners of her eyes.

What have I done?

Charles suddenly sighed in his heart, because what he hated most in his life was to vent his anger on others-from Marie's description, it was indeed not her fault.

Is it a fault after all?

If it is the 21st century, it is not a problem for a girl to run to see a friend-even a male one?

No, even in the 19th century, such things were common in social circles, and it was not a big deal.

But...but why is she so angry? Charles was full of doubts.

Well, anyway, it is not a reassuring thing for my sister to suddenly have a friend whose background is unknown.

"What is the name of that man? Do you know?" After a moment, Charles, who had calmed down a little, asked reluctantly.

"Ezreal Walter..." Mary still looked at Charles timidly, and then told Charles everything she saw that day. "If you need, I will also tell you his address..."

"So this man is still working under me, what a coincidence." Charles nodded, and then seeing that the other party was so uneasy, he smiled and comforted the other party, "Okay, don't be so nervous, you know, I am a very gentle person."

Then, he stood up again, took out his handkerchief, and gently wiped the tears from the corners of the other party's eyes.

"I'm sorry, I just lost my temper." He sighed.

"...It's okay." Mary lowered her head. "You are just worried about Fran."

The slight touch on her face made her feel relieved, because she would not be responsible for what happened next.

Fran, I'm sorry, I violated your request, but I was also afraid... With an inexplicable guilt towards her friend, she silently said in her heart.

"Then, you continue to stay by her side, and tell me if there are any new problems." Charles' voice was a little tired, "I'll go to rest first."

"Yes." (To be continued...)