His Excellency the Count of Grandet

An hour later, when Charles returned home, he happened to bump into Guillaume, who had confessed to the florist, near the hall.Thinking of what happened just now, he was not in a hurry to go upstairs, and went to the small living room to have a snack.

Before he could finish eating, Guillaume had already solved the last few problems and stepped in. "How is the matter?" He asked Charles, and sat down at the edge of the long table by the way, his eyes full of kindness. "How is it? Does Buisson's new style appeal to you?"

Charles almost choked.He knew that Yuanzhen was very interested in dressing up, but he really didn't have it!But of course he couldn't answer that way, he could only swallow his coffee and replied, "It's really pretty."

Guillaume was delighted to hear this.As a father, he felt that he was obliged to meet his son's various demands; when Charles said something beautiful, he felt that the trace of exhaustion just now disappeared immediately. "Very well, everyone has only one coming-of-age ceremony, and it must not be skipped. Is there anything else you want?" In fact, he recalled his wife at this time, thinking that it would be great if the whole family was together; The serious illness made him dare not bring it up casually, for fear of irritating his son again.

Ciel shook his head as he drank, indicating that he thought enough was enough.After Guillaume finished speaking, he said: "Today I met Mr. Lafitte in Mr. Boisson's shop."

"What?" Guillaume's sadness immediately flew out of the sky, and he became nervous. "Is there anything wrong, Charles?"

Charles put down his bone china coffee cup and shook his head again. "It's not a big problem, but I have to ask you to pay attention to Mr. Lafitte's invitation again."

The meaning of these words is obvious - Victor is coming too - Guillaume's eyes widened. "Why?" Why are all the nobles who couldn't beg for it before all so flattering?If something goes wrong, there must be a demon, right?

Charlton paused, and said what happened before, but omitted his own weird feelings. "Not only did he know that His Excellency the Duke intends to hand over the special supplier to us, but he also guessed when His Excellency the Duke planned to do this, and even accurately predicted the time."

Guillaume stood up abruptly, and took two steps beside the high-back chair. "With Mr. Lafitte's strength, as long as he is willing, he can indeed know." The bank tycoon and the celebrity in front of the king are not just for good looks! "But the problem is..." He pondered, glancing at Charles.

The meaning is obvious.Although Lafitte can know if he wants to, but first he must be interested!What is there worth paying attention to in their Grandet family that can make such a person think about it?

"What kind of person is Mr. Lafitte?" Charles asked evasively.He had been thinking about this issue all the way, and felt that the direction of the matter was a bit weird; but the topic was sensitive and it was just his speculation, and he didn't want to break it with Guillaume just yet.

"You know, he's not in our circle at all," said Guillaume, standing still, with one hand resting on the wavy gold edge of the back of the chair. "So if you really want to say that you understand, there are not many, most of them are heard."

François Laffitte, Victor's father, was just a carpenter back then, his ancestors were tenants in the vineyard, as poor and white as Guillaume back then.Similarly, Francois also left the pastures and fields where his ancestors had lived for generations, and went to Paris alone.

But what happened next was different.Guillaume joined the National Guard, while François chose to become a bookkeeper in a bank.He has a good brain, can write and calculate, and gradually climbed from the bottom to the top. During the Napoleon government, he successively became the shareholder and big boss of the Pergo Bank.Pergo Bank can become one of the best big banks in Europe today, which is inseparable from his efforts.

There are not many people who can make money and manage business like him, so Francois is very popular with both the republicans and the royalists.After all, profit is the eternal friend, and Francois's investment vision is so accurate that people can only sacrifice their knees.

As the son of François, Victor inherited all the advantages of his father, and he was outstanding—after François retired, he managed the Pergo Silver Bank to a higher level.Whether it was promissory notes or government bonds, anyone could make a lot of money if he would mention it, let alone himself.

At the same time, he was also responsible for managing the royal family's assets, including King Louis XVIII.There are even rumors that the Bonaparte family, which has been exiled overseas, still entrusts him with the management of assets, in order to make a comeback one day with the money he earned.

Whether it was true or not, the people in Paris agreed that more gold flowed from Victor than from the King.As for how many there are, they can only use their poor imagination to make up their minds——Does the Pergo Bank, the Central Bank, and even the Lafitte Mansion all have unimaginably large secret rooms underground? Is it full of dazzling gold and silver jewels?

Therefore, when Charles knew that Victor's seat in the House of Representatives was acquiesced by two factions of the upper echelon, and the same was true for the position of Governor of the Central Bank of France, he was not too surprised.

To use a word that doesn't exist at this time, Victor is a financial oligarch, the kind that is almost invincible.It is for this reason that the Lafitte family has just been established for 40 to [-] years, but it has already been able to sit on an equal footing with many established nobles, and even be admired more.

Although Parisians are generally very concerned about their background, if they can reach Victor's height, the background and so on are just a cloud.At this time, let’s talk about personality——

What else is there to say about character?Regardless of whether Victor is only indifferent to everyone, especially impatient and low-status people, everyone just thinks it is a personality and a manifestation of status.Not only no one chews their tongues, but there are also people competing to imitate.

In fact, Victor's vision is indeed a bit high, but he is more tired of the flattering faces of some people (people with lower status have a higher probability of being shot).On this point, Guillaume had to say that his judgment was correct.If he deliberately flattered Victor like everyone else, Victor wouldn't even give him half an eye, and it would be even more impossible for the latter thing to happen.

"Speaking of which, Mr. Lafitte probably did it on a whim." Charles finally came to a conclusion. "I heard that he has a good personal relationship with His Excellency the Duke, so it's probably just for fun?"

Guillaume nodded. "I guess so. You are right, you need to pay more attention to the invitation. How about the same format as the one for His Excellency the Duke?"

Charles smiled. "I'm still relatively new to these things, father, as long as you think it's appropriate."

The two talked a few more words before Charles got up and went upstairs.His homework is still going on, and there is no reason to give up halfway.

Watching his son's figure disappear behind the pillar at the corner of the stairs, Guillaume stood there for a moment.He thought about it three times from beginning to end, and felt that there was something weird in it. In the end, he could only hope that he was thinking too much.

Because of the careful care, the invitations were all ready during the weekend.Choose hard moiré paper from Bohemia, cut out unique patterns, bronzing and incense, and then transcribe in neat and gorgeous Gothic italics. The envelope is sealed with wax varnish, which is quite high-grade.The guest list has already been made, and it is divided into several levels according to rank.Some only need to be delivered by servants, while others must be visited by themselves.

And at the top of the list are Victor and the Duke of Orleans.

The father and son discussed it and decided to send it according to the distance.They live in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, while Mr. Banker and His Excellency the Duke live in the first arrondissement, which happens to be adjacent.

Charles was subtly resistant to the possibility of meeting Victor.

Logically speaking, this should not be.Because according to his philosophy of life, those who can be friends should never be enemies; especially those who are likely to become powerful enemies, they should bother to build good relationships.But Victor's attitude made him feel like he was sitting on pins and needles, a bad premonition that he would be targeted and eaten.

It's not like he hasn't dealt with people much higher than him, why is Victor an exception?

But it was probably because of Shire's luck that Victor was not at the mansion today, so they could only leave the invitation to the concierge.

To have solved a problem so easily, Charles secretly heaved a sigh of relief.Then he glanced sideways and found that Guillaume's expression was almost the same as his hidden thoughts.

... Did his father notice something too?

But none of them said it.When he was almost outside the residence of the Duke of Orleans, Guillaume told Charles: "Be careful, I will wait for you in the car." The Duke had already specified that Charles should handle this matter, so of course he could not intervene.

"Don't worry." Charles could hear his father's worry, so he could only assure him.

This time it wasn't as easy as it was with Victor.The porter went in to make an announcement, and when he came back, he told Charles that His Excellency the Duke had just come back and was changing clothes, and asked him to wait in the living room.

Charles could only obey obediently.A maid served him a cup of scented tea, and then retreated.

The waiting time was a bit long. He recalled the last time he met the Duke of Orleans, and he felt that at least this time the other party would not show a face that could scare everyone away.As for the others, the soldiers came to cover the water and soil.But having said that, His Excellency the Duke is indeed not of the same class as them. Even the stone pillars are covered with gold leaf and carved with exquisite patterns, which is simply a model of luxury...

When Ferdinand climbed down the handrail of the stairs, he saw a slightly delicate stranger staring blankly at their family's lily-embossed shield, and he couldn't help but pause.

He didn't mean to procrastinate, it's just that he sweated a lot from riding a horse in the morning, so it took him too long to take a shower.Looking at the situation now, he deliberately lowered the sound of his footsteps, so as to take a closer look before he regained his senses.

The result came out in less than three seconds.He was good-looking and well-dressed, but for the time being he didn't find the sparkle that his father saw in Shire.

But Charles wasn't really in a trance.With a slight movement of his eyes, he sensed that someone was coming. "Your Excellency the Duke..." He hurriedly stood up, his eyes stopped uncontrollably when they touched Ferdinand——

What about cheating?Your Excellency the Duke is right, but why did no one tell him that he is dealing with this young Lord Duke Chartres?