He Became Napoleon’S Genius Son [EN]: Chapter 302

The news of Josephine’s pregnancy sent ripples through the political landscape, a development Eugene hadn’t anticipated would be so impactful.

“Good heavens, Eugene. What are we going to do?” Hippolyte exclaimed, his voice laced with concern.

Originally, Hortense was considered Josephine’s last child, but now, with Josephine pregnant again, everything was changing. Eugene already had a sister, Florence, who hadn’t existed in the original timeline. Born on May 23, 1796, she was now a vibrant five-year-old.

When Florence was born, Eugene had simply been overjoyed. Her birth was tangible proof that he was altering history. Back then, Josephine was 33, a perfectly acceptable age to bear children. Now, he hadn’t even considered the possibility of Josephine, at 38, conceiving again.

But why was Josephine’s child such a problem?

It wasn’t as if Josephine was having an affair, as she had in the original timeline. Yet, Eugene didn’t even look at Hippolyte as he replied with a heavy expression.

“It’s not a bad thing that I’m getting a sibling.”

“It’s different from when Florence was born! It would be a relief if it were a daughter like Florence. But now, the Consul [Napoleon] is a powerful figure!”

“He was a powerful figure in France both then and now. The difference lies only between nominal and substantial power.”

Instantly, Hippolyte looked around, ensuring no one was eavesdropping, and rebuked in a low voice.

“Hey, what happens to the succession if a son is born?”

The unspoken truth, the problem no one dared voice aloud at Malmaison, was this: the child in Josephine’s womb was Napoleon’s child.

Royalist pamphlets were now a secondary concern. The real issue was the potential impact of this new heir. If the child was a boy, Napoleon’s reaction was predictable.

Succession had always been Napoleon’s primary concern, even in the original timeline. Believing himself infertile, he had even orchestrated the marriage of Hortense and Louis. Later, when his mistress bore him a son, he realized he wasn’t infertile and even plunged Europe into turmoil to find a new wife after divorcing Josephine.

Eugene was somewhat surprised that Hippolyte had so quickly grasped this sensitive issue.

“You’re quick with these things.”

“Besides, you’re paving the way for a monarchy now. Can’t you just stop everything and continue with the Consulate system?”

“Do you think Father would stand for that? If a son is born, it will only accelerate his ambitions.”

Eugene recalled Napoleon’s obsession in the original timeline and smiled bitterly.

“In that case, it’s better to proceed with the restoration of the monarchy under my leadership.”

After all, Napoleon was driven by ambition. To stop him, one would have to strip him of his power.

But that was the second most difficult task, after preventing Napoleon’s downfall. So, from Eugene’s perspective, it was better to guide events, like the Egyptian expedition, if he couldn’t prevent them.

Furthermore, there was another problem.

“Besides, I’d rather it be a boy.”

“Why is that? Do you have a hobby of competing with brothers?”

“I’ve never had a younger brother before. Besides, if there is no male heir, when the monarchy is revived, there is a high possibility that Father will choose divorce.”

Originally, Napoleon eventually divorced Josephine in the original timeline, citing various excuses.

The reason was simple: the succession issue. Even with Florence’s birth, France was deeply entrenched in Salic law [a legal system barring females from dynastic succession]. Even though it was now a republic, women’s eligibility for election was not recognized.

Therefore, if he didn’t have a biological son, Napoleon would likely have an affair, father a bastard, and then decide to divorce again. Then, Eugene, no longer Napoleon’s wife’s son, would be at a disadvantage, even if he maintained his legal adoptive status, as he did in the original timeline.

“In that case, it might be better to compete with a younger brother. Well, this is something to worry about if a boy is born.”

At that moment, Rochejacquelein, another close aide who had accompanied him to Malmaison, spoke up.

“Patron, there is still a remaining problem regardless of the pregnancy.”

“You mean the matter of advocating the restoration of the Royalist party? Well, Fouché has caught the distributor. It’s going to come out soon.”

“How are you going to deal with it?”

There were countless ways to solve the problem. The easiest was to shift the blame onto someone else, as Hippolyte suggested. But Eugene pondered and then smiled.

“In times like this, you have to overturn the board.”

Now that things had come to this, he needed to change the entire game.

***

Meanwhile, Bonaparte, who had the French Revolution etched into his very being, lived his life according to its principles.

– Bang!

Lucien Bonaparte, or Luciano Buonaparte in Italian. The name had a certain Mafia-esque ring to it, but he had lived a life completely divorced from crime. Even when he dedicated himself to the revolutionary movement, he favored legal battles over terrorism.

But like a man who adopted Brutus as his alias, he deeply disliked the concentration of power, especially Napoleon and the Boarne faction’s grip on it.

“I knew it! The whore from the Boarne family is the culprit! Is the Bourbon royal family also involved? Marie Antoinette?” Lucien bellowed.

Fouché frowned slightly at the outburst that disrupted the Ministry of Interior. First of all, calling Josephine a whore was problematic, and invoking Marie Antoinette was a serious matter. If Antoinette was truly involved, rumors of a Bourbon conspiracy might spread, potentially leading to a situation like the assassination of the Duke of Enghien in the original timeline.

Although he didn’t know the future, Fouché, aware of the serious repercussions, cleared his throat.

“Minister of Interior, it’s not that simple.”

“Not simple? We can wipe out all the groups dreaming of restoring the king on this occasion!”

“If the Consul’s wife and daughter are involved, it becomes the Consul’s problem.”

Lucien scoffed.

“Why don’t you just divorce her on this occasion? I didn’t like the Boarne family from the beginning!” His words painted the Boarne family, Eugene and Josephine, as enemies.

Of course, that was why Fouché had come to report to Lucien. But if he was this hasty, Fouché began to doubt his choice of allegiance.

“Minister of Interior, that means Freischütz and the Consul are also breaking up.”

“So? Does Eugene really think he’s a Bonaparte just because people are talking about ‘Petit’ [Little] Bonaparte? Do you too?”

“Minister of Interior, I’ve known Freischütz since he was still a Boarne.”

Lucien frowned at Fouché’s praise of Eugene.

“Ha, Fouché. I didn’t know you would defend Freischütz.”

“Please listen carefully. The fact that I know Freischütz shows how long he has been active in French politics.”

“So? I also know that he’s a prodigy.”

Fouché stared at the young Minister of Interior, the superior of the Police Minister, who handled the internal affairs of the state.

“You don’t know exactly. Freischütz has independent power in the French political, business, and military circles, even before Bonaparte became Consul.”

Eugene was no longer just Napoleon’s adopted son. He was a commander who had successfully completed the Egyptian expedition, reorganized the Ottoman Empire, and contributed to the victory in the Second Anti-Revolutionary War. Furthermore, he was France’s top tycoon, dominating the Italian peninsula’s economy, centered on the Italian Bank in Genoa.

In addition, he had allies within the Bonaparte Club party as the Consul’s chief aide. Of course, it was a position built as Napoleon’s closest aide, but he definitely wielded independent power. In particular, the financial power represented by the Boarte Cartel was undeniably Eugene’s.

If the relationship between Eugene and Napoleon soured, Eugene would be ruined, but the damage to Napoleon would be enormous. Fouché was pointing out this problem.

“If the Consul breaks up with Freischütz, it will be a political blow to the Consul.”

“So what?”

“Excuse me? Minister of Interior, I must have misheard you?”

Lucien replied coldly.

“It doesn’t matter. What’s important is the Republic, not my brother. Police Minister.”

Of course, Lucien’s success was thanks to Napoleon’s rise. But as a politician, Lucien had lived his life in a different direction from Napoleon. It was the path of defending revolutionary France, defending the republic, and hating dictators.

Lucien, a man who still loved the revolution, preached to Fouché, a former revolutionary.

“We jumped into the revolution to overthrow the king.”

“I did.”

“Do you think I’m any different? Even though it was the far south ‘Corsica’, I participated in the revolution there at the risk of my life!”

Lucien, whose revolutionary career was not even close to Fouché’s, but whose passion was overflowing, shouted.

“To protect the Republic, ‘Bonaparte’ can be sacrificed! Furthermore, if it threatens the Republic, anyone must be punished. I was sincere even on that day of Brumaire [the coup that brought Napoleon to power]!”

Fouché smiled strangely.

Of course, things wouldn’t go as Lucien wanted. But it was true that Eugene was an obstacle in Fouché’s path. Anyone in power desired a higher position. But there were many who couldn’t look beyond Eugene, even with Napoleon’s influence. Most people gave up after seeing Napoleon and Eugene’s dazzling achievements, but some didn’t. Fouché was one of them.

“I understand. Then, we’ll announce it tomorrow.”

Just then…

– Tatat!

A man suddenly burst into the Minister of Interior’s office. René Savary, currently the commander of the Paris Gendarmerie [a military police force].

Savary, finding the Minister of Interior and the Police Minister in the room, saluted.

“You were here, Minister Fouché.”

“What’s going on, General Savary? It doesn’t seem like we need the help of the Gendarmerie.”

“Now is not the time to joke.”

Savary, a friend of Desaix who had been tracking the pamphlet issue, said urgently.

“Chief Aide Eugene Freischütz has declared that he has revealed the mastermind behind the pamphlet incident.”

Lucien and Fouché exchanged glances. Could it be that Eugene was trying to accuse his mother?

***

Of course, the supreme ruler, oblivious to all of this, was sitting leisurely in the Tuileries Palace.

“Hmm, to find out the mastermind behind the pamphlet publication so quickly. As expected, my son is capable.”

The cabinet ministers sitting before him also exchanged glances and chatted idly.

“Who could it be, really?”

“Well, isn’t it the Bourbon royal family? Mademoiselle Marie will be in danger, so Freischütz must have worked hard.”

“Ah, it reminds me of the old trial. I was very impressed at that time.”

Cambacérès, Lebrun, Carnot. All three were politicians who had been active since the early days of the revolution. Of course, they had all attended Eugene’s famous [Knight of the Princess] trial [likely a reference to a legal case or event where Eugene defended a noblewoman].

On the other hand, Minister of Interior Lucien and Police Minister Fouché wore uneasy expressions.

Just then…

“The Chief Aide has arrived, Consul.”

With the report of Second Aide Brien, Eugene entered the cabinet meeting room.

“Yes, Eugene. Did you find out who the culprit is?”

“Yes, Father.”

“Oh, this is an official cabinet meeting. Anyway, who is it, the culprit?”

As Napoleon asked with a smile, Eugene answered with a firm face.

“It’s me, Father.”

At this moment, the cabinet fell silent. Napoleon only blinked, not understanding what he was saying.

But Eugene stared at Napoleon with a calm demeanor, indicating it was no joke.

“No, what nonsense is that?”

“There is one more fact you should know. Mother is pregnant.”

“What?”

Just as Napoleon was about to speak, reeling from the successive shocking revelations, Eugene looked around the cabinet.

“I committed this act thinking about the future of that child. Everyone.”

The truth was not important here. What mattered was the shockwave itself. A shockwave was needed to overturn the [Revolutionary Republic] that had been taken for granted.

With a calm, composed, and determined attitude, Eugene declared.

“France needs a monarchy. However, not the Bourbon family, but another monarchy.”

“What?”

“Roman Empire!”

The hero of the revolutionary government, Eugene Freischütz Bonaparte, shouted.

“An emperor is absolutely necessary for this country!”

It was the moment when the empire was first declared, coinciding with the news of Napoleon’s heir being conceived.