Flowers, Swords and France

It was already dark when he left the villa in Du-Neye, and the banker generously lent his carriage to Charles. With the help of the wind lantern hanging on the carriage, the coachman drove the carriage through the avenue towards the city of Paris.

As expected of a wealthy man, the banker's carriage was very luxurious, with an exquisite and gorgeous appearance and quite comfortable interior furnishings. Charles, half lying on the velvet cushion, considered the day's activities carefully.

The matter regarding the Ministry of Railways was reached a consensus among the Bonapartists after many rounds of discussions, thanks to the strong insistence of Charles - of course mainly through the Marquis de Treville, who was well-known within the Bonapartists. And this seemingly very hot position is now coveted by many people. Everyone seems to have forgotten that the big thing has not been successful yet.

However, considering that the Marquis of Treville was the initiator and the prestige he had gained over the years, everyone generally agreed that Charles would be the secretary.

However, everyone just regarded the Ministry of Railways as a super fat vacancy - because it was destined to handle huge amounts of funds and could make many good friends. Few people, like Charles, see it as a great undertaking in its own right.

After passing through the city gate and entering the city, Charles immediately got out of the carriage-it was impossible for him to let the coachman know his address.

After watching the carriage leave, he took out his pocket watch and checked the time, then walked to the door of a small theater and rented another carriage. However, the destination was not his home, but to Valerio Street in the 10th District. of a club.

As he expected, his good friend Albert de Foa Grai was playing cards with someone here. Albert often went to places like this to gamble, and it was common for him to win or lose several thousand francs in a night. When he won, he would go wild and spend it all at once. If he lost, he would just shake his head and leave.

He seemed to have good luck today, with a pile of banknotes and gold coins in front of him. Under the light of the crystal chandelier and the glow of the gold coins on the table, his whole body shone with the glory of a conqueror. Next to him sat a girl in frivolous clothes. Albert was playing cards and still caressing the girl next to him.

At this time, the new round has reached a critical moment, and a lot of money has been put on the table. Albert's opponents had all given up, leaving only one person standing against him. The cards on his table are 8,8,4,6, and his opponent's cards are a,a,8,5.

It was the opponent's turn to bid, and he stared at Albert, who turned his face away and continued to caress the girl next to him.

"You don't have another 8, do you?" the opponent asked softly, as if he wanted to get some clues from his answer.

"Of course I do." Albert smiled easily, and then kissed the girl.

His opponent could not see any wavering or hesitation on his face. Finally he decided to take a gamble.

"Open the cards!"

He showed his hole card and found a 5, two pairs.

"I told you before... I still have an 8. Why don't you believe it?" Albert showed his cards, and there were three 8s.

The opponent wrinkled his face in pain, and other opponents and onlookers exclaimed.

"This guy is really lucky tonight." Everyone whispered.

"But so what? He will lose everything again in the future anyway. Don't you know that, Albert?"

"That's right."

Albert picked up a small dish of banknotes from the table, threw it to the waiter, and shouted loudly. "Dear friends, I am very happy tonight and I will treat you all to a drink!"

"Oh! Good man Albert!" everyone cheered.

Just when Albert was about to start gambling again, he was suddenly tapped on the shoulder. "My friend, you won a lot tonight, can you buy me a few more drinks?"

Albert reacted immediately and looked aside.

"Char?!" His tone was a little surprised, "You're actually here?"

"Why, can't I come?" Charles smiled broadly.

"Of course, of course." Albert stood up from his seat, "Come on, let's go have a few drinks."

The girl next to him seemed a little unhappy and tugged on his arm.

Albert took some banknotes, rolled them up, and stuffed them into her ditch.

"You have taken a lot of Napoleon from me tonight, should you be satisfied? You go back first, and I will come back to you later!" After that, he whistled, put the money he won into his pocket, and took it with him Ciel turned and left.

[Refers to a gold coin issued by France during the Napoleonic era, worth about one franc. 】

The two found a quieter corner to sit down, and then Albert asked the waiter to bring some wine.

"My friend, how much did you win tonight?"

"Who knows, I'm too lazy," Albert replied casually. "But if you think about it, I've probably lost several thousand francs in the past few days. I finally made some money back tonight."

Ciel sighed. "It's better to be more moderate."

"Yes, I know." Albert nodded casually, "Why, you came here just to repeat these words again?"

"That's not the case," Charles replied, "it's something else."

"Why, do you want me to help you with anything else?" Albert asked with a smile. "Poor Albert is busy again..."

"Speaking of which, I haven't thanked you for what happened last time. Thanks to your help, I was able to solve the incident so quickly." Charles held the other person's hand.

"Oh, how can we thank each other, and I didn't really put in much effort." Albert shook his head and said it didn't matter.

Ciel was silent for a moment.

Albert did not rush him. He was familiar with his temper and understood that Charles must have something important to do now.

"My friend, now I have a business and I am short of manpower to do it..." Ciel finally spoke.

Charles had entrusted him with help before, of course because he wanted to achieve his goal, but it also tested Albert's ability and mind. As a result, Albert completed it easily, which satisfied Charles quite well, so he decided to recruit his friends to join the team. It is getting thicker and thicker.

"Oh? No wonder..." Albert raised his eyebrows, "What kind of deal is that? What do you need my help with?"

"My friend, what I am doing now is a business, which is very profitable but also risky, so I thought... can I get your help?" Charles' tone suddenly became very solemn.

"What kind of deal?" Albert's tone towards Charles was a little strange.

"Big deal." Charles read out the words one by one.

Albert was a little confused by Charles at first, but after only a few seconds, he subconsciously asked.

"Is that that kind of thing?"

"Yeah, it's that kind of thing." Ciel nodded calmly and confirmed.

Read the original text in Liu#9@书/吧!

Albert's cold expression changed. "My friend, are you really getting started?!"

"Yes, it has been a long time coming, and I also hope you can come and help me." Ciel admitted simply. "My friend, I know that you are very talented and courageous, and you are not lacking in strategies. However, France will never lack young people who are not recognized for their talents. What they lack is just opportunities..." Charles emphasized his tone, "Now, We have a chance to show off our talents, you won’t waste the opportunity, right?”

"Charles..." Albert's reaction was beyond Charles' expectations, "Don't do anything stupid!"

Ciel wasn't happy with his reaction. "Of course I know what I'm doing."

Albert looked at Charles blankly and relaxed. "Char... you know me, but I know you. With your talents, character, and good family background, no matter what dreams you have, you will always achieve your goals as long as you work hard. Why do you need to take such a big risk?" risk?"

Ciel smiled bitterly.

"Albert, yes, people like us at least have some capital, but without taking some risks, what can we do to realize our ideals? Either go to the diplomatic community or join other ministries, and gain qualifications bit by bit. Waiting to climb up honestly, be careful If you flatter the king and flatter the powerful, what will happen in the end? Even if you get lucky and become prime minister, how old will you be at that time? My friend, France can't wait for that. I can’t wait that long!”

[The Palace of Luxembourg was the seat of the House of Nobility of the French Parliament at that time]

"Can't wait that long?"

"Only a successful revolution that I personally participated in can allow me to reach that position at this age." Charles answered word for word.

"Where?" Albert asked curiously.

"If we succeed in the near future, you will know." Charles lowered his eyes.

"Have you never thought about the risks? Charles? You are taking a big risk!" Albert's tone seemed a little more anxious.

"Of course I know I'm taking risks, but I'm not afraid. If you want to get something, you have to pay a certain price. That's how things are in the world. But you, I really didn't expect you to advise me not to take risks..."

"We are different!" Albert refuted sharply, "I am alone now, and my father doesn't love me very much. I love adventure, excitement and enjoyment. It doesn't matter what happens, but you are different!"

"What's different?"

"Charle, listen to me, calm down." Albert lowered his voice, then stretched out his right hand to squeeze Charles' shoulder, "Don't keep thinking about what will happen if you succeed, think about what will happen if you fail. ? Not only will you be hit, but your family will also be affected... Although she will not be implicated, can you imagine how heartbroken she will be if you are in trouble? My beloved sister? How can you bear to let her take such a big risk?"

A strange look suddenly flashed across Ciel's face.

"That's why I choose to do this."

"What do you mean?" Albert was a little confused.

"Yes, I love my sister," Charles replied calmly, "I also love France. Because of this, I can never bear Fran or France to accept the fate of dust, and I will do it at any cost!"

As a friend who has been with him for many years, Albert understood what Charles's expression and words meant at this moment, although he really didn't understand what Charles meant.

However, it doesn't matter if he doesn't understand, because the other person is Ciel, his friend since childhood.

"Have you made a decision that cannot be changed?" He asked solemnly, removing the last hint of frivolity from his expression.

"It was decided a long time ago." Charles replied solemnly.

Albert gave a long sigh.

"Okay, okay, okay! Let's do it!"

Charles took Albert's hand. "Thank you!"

Albert also squeezed Charles's hand, but his expression was not as happy as Charles's. "Maybe I can save you someday."

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