Moulins Infantry Regiment
The next day...·.¸¸.·♩♪♫ ♫♪♩·.¸¸.·
Many Nobility at the Versailles Palace have been invited to a small ball tonight, hosted by Madame Villar.
No one refused because they had just danced all night the night before—attending balls every month was common for them, but a ball hosted by Madame Villar was quite unusual.
It is an open secret that the Duke of Villars is experiencing some financial difficulties.
At 9 p. m., the crowd gradually arrived at the small ballroom. After the emcee gave some warm-up remarks, the music began. The current Duke of Villars, Mary Emily, and a young man she didn't recognize were the first to come to the center of the Hall and perform an opening dance for everyone.
As everyone was whispering and asking who the young man was, Madame Villar smiled broadly and asked everyone to look at her. Then she announced loudly that her daughter, Duke of Villars, would be engaged to Louis - Andre de Davout in three days.
There was an uproar among the crowd, because no one recognized the man named Davout.
Before long, a Nobility finally learned Davout's origins from his male servant:
"He's supposedly an obscure minor Baron, Lieutenant in the Soissons Legion."
Why did the Duke of Villars marry him?!
"I've only heard that this Davout is highly regarded by the Crown Prince, but he doesn't seem to have any other outstanding qualities."
"This kid really got lucky..."
Madame Villar didn't offer much explanation, but simply warmly invited everyone to continue dancing.
In a room at the Versailles Palace, a young Nobility burst through the door, panting, and, disregarding all manners, shouted to Roger, "The Duke of Villars is engaged!"
Roger stood up in surprise and asked, "Engaged? She accepted my father's suggestion?"
"No, no! It was with a Lieutenant named Davout!"
Roger suddenly felt a wave of dizziness. He grabbed the man, asked him where the information came from, and then rushed out the door.
Duke Emily of Duke of Villars watched André Davout with a smile as she danced gracefully. Their steps were perfectly synchronized, like two colorful butterflies frolicking and intertwining in the grass.
She felt it was all like a dream, so unreal. She had been prepared to resign herself to fate and marry the man she had no feelings for, but just last night, her mother suddenly told her to get engaged to Davout.
She couldn't help but recall the conversation her mother had with her back then.
"Lieutenant Davout is highly regarded by His Crown Prince and has now been transferred to the Crown Prince Guards as an officer, making him His Highness's trusted personal guard."
"Furthermore, His Highness said that if Davout distinguishes himself on the battlefield, he will petition His Majesty the King to bestow upon him the title of Viscount or even Count!"
"But he doesn't have much money, and our family's financial situation..."
"No, His Crown Prince said he guarantees Davout has a large sum of money, at least Livre."
The mother lowered her voice. "Most importantly, His Highness said that Davout capable. If you marry him, His Highness will fully support him and help you reclaim everything that is rightfully yours from Noailles!"
The Noailles she mentioned was Emily's cousin. Although the Duke of Villars lost much of his family's wealth by his father's generation, he still owned dozens of acres of land—not the nominal land of the Nobility in the Versailles Palace, but real Fief with the privileges of tenant farmers and fiefs!
And her immense influence and appeal within the Moulins Infantry Regiment. Although she is currently the only female heir in the line of Duke of Villars and has little contact with the military, she can still command a large following within the regiment whenever summoned in the Duke's name.
Her cousin became Major General by using the name of Duke of Villars.
No wonder her mother ultimately chose to marry her off to Andre. Rather than living a humiliating life under her uncle's charity, her mother wanted to restore the glory of the Duke of Villars!
Meanwhile, Andre, sitting opposite Emily, was also lost in thought. Last night, His Crown Prince had summoned him and told him that an agreement had been reached with the Duke of Villars's family, and that he would be allowed to marry Emily.
The Crown Prince also generously lent him Livre for his wedding and future living expenses, interest-free, with flexible repayment terms.
However, His Highness also left him with a task: to help his future wife reclaim all the resources that Duke of Villars should possess, and then, using the foundation of the Moulins Infantry Regiment, to train an elite army.
Holding Emily's soft little hand, he was enveloped in happiness. He didn't know how to thank the Crown Prince enough. Perhaps turning the Moulins Legion into an invincible army would be the best way to repay His Highness!
Roger burst in suddenly, throwing a hysterical tantrum like a clown, but was gently persuaded to leave by Madame Villar —today is a happy day, and everyone should handle things calmly, even those with annoying rudeness.
Andre saw Roger turn around and glare at him fiercely, but he ignored him and simply pointed silently to his boots.
In the Crown Prince's Study, Fouche respectfully presented a list to Joseph.
"Your Highness, these are the members recently recruited by the Police Intelligence Division, a total of 176 people."
Fouche's eyes were bloodshot; he had been sleeping only about four hours a day lately in preparation for setting up the Police Intelligence Division, but the thrill of wielding power had him incredibly excited.
"Most of them were former Royal Police, and some were retired soldiers. As you instructed, my subordinates conducted a rigorous screening to ensure they had no serious criminal records and no bad habits."
Joseph opened the register, which contained names and brief information such as background and special skills.
He couldn't possibly remember all these people, but it was a necessary process to demonstrate that he was the true mastermind behind the Intelligence Agency.
Joseph didn't know how Fouche had managed to recruit so many people and form a basic organization in just over a week, but it was clear that putting him in charge of the Police Intelligence Division was the right decision.
He looked at Fouche and praised him, "Your work is indeed very effective; you are an excellent manager."
"Then could you tell me when the Police Intelligence Division will be able to start operating?"
Without hesitation, Fouche replied, "Now, Your Highness, we can begin the mission immediately."
Joseph nodded in satisfaction. "Your efficiency has indeed surprised me. Now, there are two things that require your attention and investigation."
Fouche immediately took out paper and pen, and solemnly said, "Please give your instructions, Your Highness."
Joseph said, "Are you aware of the former Paris Police Commissioner Guizot's collusion with gangsters to create chaos in the Saint-Antoine District and his attempted attack on the Police Station?"
Fouche nodded. "Yes, I've heard about it."
"I feel there are other people involved, but Guizot has consistently taken all the blame upon himself. The first thing you should investigate is whether there are other people behind Guizot, and what their motives are."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Many thanks to the generous donations from "Ericin Cahill", "Shadow of Zhannan Louke", and "This Account is Frozen" for this book. Your support is my motivation to write, and I am deeply grateful!
(End of this chapter)