Chapter 16: Chapter 16: The Girls’ New Fashion
Talking to a wise person is always relaxing, Joseph smiled and nodded, “Gizo should be charged with hiring assassins and sheltering criminals, I will explain clearly to Her Majesty the Queen.”
“Your Highness is truly a spokesperson for justice,” Mono immediately said, touching his chest in a salute, “Please believe, I am forever loyal to the King and Her Majesty the Queen, and also forever loyal to you!”
“Thank you for your loyalty, oh, and for your scimitar, I quite like it.”
Mono felt a great weight lift from his heart, exchanged pleasantries for a while longer, then hurriedly excused himself and left.
Suddenly Joseph remembered, the Minister of the Interior was in charge of managing municipal affairs nationwide and supervising the police, so it was Mono who would decide the next Director of Paris Police.
He would mainly focus his energies on finance in the future, so the police reforms would need a reliable person to help push them forward.
Additionally, he could use the shell of the Police Department to cover for the intelligence agency he was planning.
So he raised his hand to stop Mono, asking, “By the way, I wanted to ask you, who will take over as the Director of Paris Police?”
Mono immediately thought of the Crown Prince’s police reforms and said without hesitation, “Of course, we will also need to hear Your Highness’s opinion.”
Joseph nodded in satisfaction, “Very well, I will try to give you some suggestions. Also, I am convinced that Gizo’s actions are in no way related to you. Please, take your time leaving.”
“Thank you for your trust, Your Highness,” Mono said, bowing deeply, then took three steps backward before turning and leaving.
After walking out more than ten meters, he finally let out a long breath, no longer daring to treat the Crown Prince as a youth easy to sway. Just then, in the carriage, the Crown Prince had always maintained control of the conversation, appearing calm and more than equal to the task, evoking in him the feeling he had in the presence of Louis XV.
He instructed the coachman to return to the Palace of Versailles, murmuring to himself, “Indeed a child blessed by the divine, it seems I will have to keep some distance from the Duke of Orleans in the future.”
Joseph also resumed his journey, having traveled for another hour or so when suddenly the melodic sounds of trumpets, accompanied by the brisk rhythm of military drums, were heard in the distance.
Quietly, Eman reminded, “Your Highness, we have arrived.”
The carriage soon stopped, and two unfamiliar nobles approached; one opened the door of the carriage and stood aside, waiting for the Crown Prince to alight, while the other arranged a wooden step ladder in front of the door.
“Your Highness the Crown Prince, welcome back.”
Joseph alighted from the carriage, nodding to the two, then looked off into the distance and saw that a regiment of guards, arrayed in immaculate uniforms, was aligned on either side, their swords raised to the sky.
And in the Marble Courtyard in front of the main entrance to the Palace of Versailles, indeed, hundreds of nobles had gathered on the steps, eagerly looking his way.
Upon the appearance of the Crown Prince, cheers erupted from the crowd, drowning out the music of the band.
Joseph was somewhat surprised, “What is all this for?”
The two nobles hurriedly replied, “Your Highness, the King and Her Majesty the Queen are personally here to greet you.”
Joseph pressed his forehead, this reception was as if he had come back from a triumphant campaign against a foreign enemy…
It’s no wonder, after Louis XVI ascended the throne, immersed himself in lock play, and had done nothing to show his face to the public. Queen Mary was a woman of ordinary ability, barely able to cope with state affairs, and rumors of her excessive spending further tarnished the Royal Family’s reputation.
This time the Crown Prince had astounded everyone, having thrown the Director of Paris Police into jail and eradicated nearly all the criminals in the Saint Antoine District, he had become the focus of conversation throughout Paris.
With their son having accomplished so much, how could Louis XVI and Queen Mary not publicly celebrate in a grand manner?
Thus, an unprecedentedly large welcome ceremony was held. In fact, many nobles who had no right to stand in the Marble Courtyard were eagerly waiting inside the Palace of Versailles.
Joseph walked through the guard of honor and looked up to see a dignified and beautiful woman standing on the highest step, dressed in a purple silk gown with a wide skirt, a white mink shawl over her shoulders, and two long feathers stuck in her towering hairdo.
It was none other than Queen Mary.
At her side, half of his body hidden behind her, was the plump man in a blue swan velvet coat intricately embroidered with fine silver threads, wearing a black tricorn hat, and black calf leather high-heels, looking somewhat nervous—none other than the current King of France, the renowned locksmith, and sufferer of social anxieties—Louis XVI.
Joseph hurriedly quickened his pace towards them.
As he walked, nobles on both sides of him bowed their heads in respect, in front of the main entrance of the Palace of Versailles, large colorful waves seemed to gently roll towards the steps above.
Just as Queen Mary was about to smile warmly and open her arms to welcome her son, a noble young lady wearing an off-shoulder dress to Joseph’s right appeared to freeze, and her pale body swayed forward and collapsed.
Joseph reflexively reached out to support her, asking with concern, “Are you alright?”
The girl closed her eyes and curled her cold body into his embrace.
The surrounding young noblewomen instantly glared with jealousy, grinding their teeth secretly: Alisa, that wench! She dared to use such despicable tactics to get close to the Crown Prince!
The old Crown Prince was unremarkable, even somewhat useless; although his status was illustrious, his reputation among the noble ladies was quite low.
Now, the Crown Prince’s achievements such as “knowledge that shocked Lagrange,” “cleaning up the criminals of the Saint Antoine District in two days,” “solving a murder case in three minutes,” and the like had already become legendary among the young ladies of Versailles.
Talking about the Crown Prince, collecting news about him had become fashionable among the young girls of Versailles. Almost two and a half of every three sentences they spoke were about the Crown Prince.
The “Son of Heaven’s Blessing” had become the dream lover of all the girls, and even if they knew their status and social position were far too different to marry him, just being his lover would suffice.
A tall young lady to the left thought to herself: Hmph! I can do it too!
She immediately dropped her fan beside her feet and uttered softly, “My dress is so tight I can’t breathe,” and leaned towards the Crown Prince as she slumped.
Joseph quickly supported her with his left hand, and a vinegary smell filled the air. Soon, coquettish exclamations like “It’s so cold,” and “I suddenly feel so dizzy” resonated around, with more than a dozen soft and warm bodies collapsing towards him.
As Joseph was at a loss, the captain of the guard, Kesode, stepped forward, picked up the two young ladies in his arms, one in each hand, and then yelled at the guards behind him, “Quickly help the ladies up!”
“Yes!”
The “fainting” noble ladies squinted to see the burly guards rushing towards them, and miraculously stood up straight, regaining their poise and elegance against gravity’s pull.