Flowers, Swords and France

It is already the beginning of winter. The weather inevitably becomes colder. There are very few people walking on the street. The cold wind sweeps everywhere. The grass and trees are withered and yellow. The air is always full of depressing atmosphere. The sky is gloomy. The weather in early winter is always so uncomfortable. .

However, there are some places that can make people feel slightly better, such as where Ciel is now. This is a newly built greenhouse. Because the planned plants have not been moved in yet, the window edges are still a bit crude. The glass windows isolate the air circulation inside and outside, as if the temperature is several degrees higher than outside.

This is a corner carved out in the garden of his home. Since acquiring this mansion at a low price, the Trevilles have been committed to making their lives more comfortable, and the greenhouse is naturally part of this renovation project. part of.

Charles walked around the greenhouse, inspecting the newly installed and painted railings, looking down at the densely packed flower pots on the ground, and even squatted down and picked up the exposed soil with his hands.

"Is growing flowers and grass so enjoyable?" Fran, who was standing by and watching him silently, finally couldn't help asking, "You seem to enjoy it?"

"I'm not very involved now, but I believe I will really enjoy it in the future." Charles was still staring at the soil under his feet, as if studying the soil quality, "I have to find some hobbies for myself, Miss Treville. Otherwise, I will appear too inhumane. Besides, I have to find a good excuse for pushing away those annoying entertainments in the future."

"Just to live in isolation, you worked tirelessly to become a gardener..." Fran couldn't help but laugh, "You are becoming more and more like a big shot. I heard that many big shots have this kind of hobby that is different from ordinary people. Woolen cloth."

"If I can't be a big shot, at least I can pretend to be one." Charles also laughed at himself,

"But in my eyes, you will always be the serious-faced, thoughtful child from more than ten years ago." Looking at his smile, Fran was silent for a moment, then boldly said, "You are not a big shot. , but stay by my side and take good care of my brother.”

"I would rather take care of you meticulously, but you don't want to be like this all the time..." Charles couldn't help but complain, but soon sighed, "Forget it, there is no point in pursuing these now, we Look forward."

"Okay, look forward..." Fran nodded in agreement, then she squatted down gently, and then suddenly hugged Charles from behind.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Charles was caught off guard and turned back subconsciously.

At this moment, Fran buried her head on his shoulder and pressed her face against his. "I'm just the same as I was then. Isn't this what you asked for?"

"Stop being ridiculous! You know I don't mean that." Charles scolded the other party quickly, "Be careful, there are people watching outside."

Having said that, the golden hair kept blowing on the right side of his face, making his face itchy slightly, and kept sending the fragrance to his nose, which did make him feel a strange feeling in his heart. .

"So what if I saw it? Can't I be more intimate with my brother?" Fran disagreed. "This is our business, and others have no right to dictate."

Seeing that there was no point in reasoning with the other party, Charles said no more. He staggered and tried to stand up. Because his sister kept pressing heavily on his shoulders, he finally managed to stand upright again with great difficulty. He was young and strong, so he was able to accomplish this great feat.

Then, he turned around and lifted Fran off his body, "Okay, stop fooling around... You are not young anymore, don't joke around."

"You also know that I'm quite old." Fran glanced at him as if resentfully, "Do you really want to watch my precious youth go away and gain nothing?"

Charles was speechless for a while, because he understood what the other party meant.

However, this is not an easy answer. As a result, this crude greenhouse suddenly fell into a strange silence.

Just when he was still worried about how to break this strange atmosphere, the person who freed him from the embarrassment finally arrived. Through the glass window of the greenhouse, he clearly saw Laura walking towards the greenhouse step by step under the leadership of the servant.

"Oh, Miss de Beauvin is finally here." Charles said with a smile and a thankful attitude.

"She could have come later." Fran's face darkened.

Of course Laura couldn't hear the conversation between the brother and sister. She followed the servant into the greenhouse expressionlessly, and then looked at the brother and sister with eyes without any emotion.

"Miss de Beauvin, long time no see." Charles stepped forward and stretched out his hand to her.

"Long time no see, Mr. Treville." Laura was not moved at all, just looked at Charles quietly.

Seeing the other party's cold look, Ciel had no choice but to retract his hand in embarrassment. "I'm glad you can come to my humble home today."

"You are a big shot that my father is trying to win over. Of course I have to answer your call." Laura replied coldly, without much respect.

Then, she glanced around the greenhouse and said, "This place is quite beautifully built. Mr. Treville, your place cannot be called crude."

Charles just smiled. He knew in his heart that Laura was mocking him by hinting at the origin of this mansion, but he would not be ashamed of it at all. In his opinion, it is natural for the winner to plunder the loser.

"Where is your wife?" Laura asked again. "Are you and your sister here to receive me today?"

"As you know, my wife is pregnant, and it's already her due date, so it's inconvenient to leave the room now." Charles shrugged, "It's a pity that I couldn't let her come to receive you."

"I see, there's nothing regrettable about this." Laura suddenly sneered and glanced at Fran. "Maybe some people cheered about it."

When she saw him like this, Fran felt a little uncomfortable with the boss, and she gave him a dissatisfied look.

"Mr. Treville, to make a long story short, what exactly did you call me here to do?" Laura frowned slightly, "How about we change places, the air here is uncomfortable, too stuffy. "

Although this greenhouse is well built, it is still very crude after all. It is gray inside. Laura, who likes to show off her pomp, is definitely not a person who is willing to accommodate herself. She always feels that the earthy smell spreading in the air is very unbearable.

"I think the air here is good," Charles did not agree with the guest's opinion. "We are usually too detached from the world, which is not good. We need to recall the fragrance of the earth from time to time."

"I don't know what the fragrance of soil is." Laura shook her head. “I wouldn’t want to see dirt anywhere else but in a flower bed.”

"If you can't stand mud, how can you stand the strong smell of engine oil, iron filings and steam?" Charles asked with a smile, "In the future, you will have to deal with them all the time... "

These meaningful words made Laura's heart move slightly. She raised her eyes again and looked at Fran.

Read the original text in Liu#9@书/吧!

"Ms. de Beauvant, when I just returned to Paris from Vienna, I heard my sister's report..." Charles continued, and walked to a low stool and sat down simply, "She Say you want to establish a railway company and then use our power to create a monopoly? "

"Yes, I did propose this to her." Laura nodded immediately.

She suddenly felt a little happy, because if this didn't come true, the young man wouldn't have had to call her to his home. "What do you think, Mr. Treville?"

"To be honest, I don't really support your approach." Charles gave an answer that disappointed Laura.

"You... don't support it? Why?" She was confused.

"The interests of the railway are too great to be monopolized by just one person or a group of people, not even me." Charles was right, calmly, "Think about it, who would be happy for a small group of people to monopolize it?" How about taking such a huge benefit into your arms? Anyone who wants to do this will definitely become the target of public criticism. After all, even the Bonaparte family themselves will be involved. There is no need for us to become enemies of the royal family. Sometimes we not only have to consider the economy. interests, but also political interests.”

"So...then why did you call me here?" Although she knew that what Charles said was very reasonable, Laura was still very disappointed. "If you want to reject me, just write a letter. No need. Waste of everyone’s time.”

"You seem to be too eager, Miss." Charles shook his head, "I haven't finished speaking yet - although it is impossible for us to monopolize this huge benefit alone, a certain degree of monopoly is in line with the law. It’s reasonable and necessary.”

He called Laura and his sister over, of course not just to entertain them.

Laura’s implicit words made Laura feel a little confused. "You...can you please stop talking to me in such a roundabout way? Just say it straight."

"Sorry, I contracted the occupational disease of diplomats." Charles smiled, "First of all, I want to tell you some news. I have received the royal approval from the future emperor, and I will soon become the number one in the empire. The minister of the current cabinet is in charge of the country’s railway, water transportation and other transportation projects.”

"...Congratulations." After a moment of silence, Laura congratulated with a complicated expression.

Given the other party's status, there was no need for him to tell such a lie to his face. Since the other party said it so firmly, it meant that it was probably true. At such a young age, he will become a cabinet minister... No matter how evil and despicable he is, he is indeed a very outstanding person, a person who surpasses most mortals.

She has always had her eyes higher than her head. Deep down in her heart, apart from hating her, she also had to admit this.

"Since I will be in charge of the railway industry from now on, I have the obligation to promote its further development so that both the people and the country can benefit from it." Charles was not able to see what the other party was thinking, so he just kept talking, " And this relies on the specialization of capital and technology.”

"Specialization?" Laura didn't quite understand the term.

"Yes, specialization." Charles said, taking out a low stool from the side and gesturing. "Essentially, railways and trains are one of the most developed mechanical creations of mankind. Only by relying on the standardization and progress of technology can we make better and better and gradually improve performance. And technological progress depends on the orderly investment of capital and standardized corporate competition... So, after I become the minister, I plan to set up a special civil organization, um... Let's call it the Railway Federation, with the participation of commercial institutions and enterprises, everyone standardizes the standards of technology and the circulation of capital, and then takes a common position to develop the country's railway industry."

"You mean, use this method to secretly monopolize?" Laura still didn't quite understand what the other party said, but she still keenly grasped a key point.

"If you insist on understanding it this way, it's fine." Charles sighed with disappointment, "I think it's much better to use rules to monopolize than to blatantly exclude everyone." (~^~)