I Became A Genius Of The French Royal Family [EN]: Chapter 11

The Same Dream (1)

The young Lavoisier promised that if things went well, he would continue to cooperate fully.

It was so obvious what he was hoping for that there was no need to even speculate.

He wants a background that can support him in the future, and I want his intelligence.

It was an ideal give-and-take relationship.

With Guillotin and Edward Jenner joining us, all preparations were complete.

This was the most important project that would determine my future, but I felt no anxiety.

Now, I just need to look ahead and run.

“Um, Master.”

As I was about to review my plans, Melissa, who was sitting next to me, carefully spoke.

“What is it? We still have some time before we arrive, don’t we?”

“Well… I was wondering when I would be quitting my job. I haven’t received any notice yet.”

“Thinking of quitting? Why?”

“Yes? Why, you ask? Well, of course…”

Melissa couldn’t bring herself to meet my eyes.

She must have heard from someone that I knew everything and had settled things with Lavoisier.

“You must be uncomfortable seeing my face, Master, so I will hand over my duties to someone new.”

“I don’t really care. Just keep doing it. You’ll need a place to work even if you leave here, so there’s no need to quit.”

Melissa’s eyes widened as if she hadn’t expected that answer at all.

Originally, Western butlers and maids were different from Eastern servants in concept.

Butlers and maids were only slightly lower in status than those they served, and the difference wasn’t that significant.

They weren’t just doing chores but were closer to assistants or attendants.

For example, a maid serving royalty would have to be the child of a count’s family.

However, the situation changed slightly with the rise of the bourgeoisie [the middle class] in modern times.

Those newly incorporated into the nobility wanted to live a life of employing servants like the great nobles, but of course, they couldn’t employ nobles of high status.

As a result, they often brought in ordinary commoners to do the work.

At first, I didn’t know my place and was mistaken, but Melissa was actually one of these types of people.

“Can I really keep working?”

A hint of anticipation appeared in her eyes as she asked.

I understood how she felt, as she would have to find a new job if she was fired here.

“You just did what your employer told you to do anyway. It would be ridiculous for me to say anything about that. And you hesitated to some extent back then, didn’t you? It was all over your face.”

“But I still followed the Elder’s orders.”

“That Elder probably told you to treat me like the sky from now on, right? So it doesn’t matter.”

Even if Melissa quit, the new servant would be Lavoisier’s person, not mine.

There was no guarantee that that person would be more favorable to me than she was now.

It would be much better to just keep Melissa around than to roll the dice haphazardly.

At least she has some affection for me and is feeling a considerable amount of guilt.

And more than anything, I needed someone to check things for me since my memory wasn’t perfect.

From that point of view, I should be preventing her from quitting.

Of course, Melissa, who had no idea of such circumstances, was moved to tears and kept bowing her head.

“Thank you. Thank you so much. I will only work for you from now on, Master.”

She was more touched than I expected and continued to pour out gratitude, close to a pledge of allegiance, for a long time.

It was so deafening that I was just letting it go when the carriage arrived in front of Lavoisier’s mansion.

“There’s a carriage I haven’t seen before. Lavoisier couldn’t have gotten a new one so soon, so is it a guest?”

It was a luxurious carriage that clearly had a lot of money thrown into it.

“It seems a distinguished person has come. I’ve never seen that carriage before.”

“Really? A noble from the court…?”

If the head of the High Court had come in person, it might be related to me.

If that were the case, even a minor mistake would not be tolerated.

“Melissa, have I ever met nobles from the court directly?”

“Yes? Other than Lavoisier, haven’t you never met them before?”

“Ah, right. I was just wondering if there was a noble from the court among the people I met without paying much attention.”

If I had met them once in the past and acted like it was the first time, the other person might think I was ignoring them.

Since my memory of this body wasn’t complete, it was safer to get confirmation from a third party in these areas.

“Weren’t the only court people Master was acquainted with the investigators, other than the Elder Lavoisier? I don’t think there would be any nobles.”

Right. That’s the kind of information I didn’t fire her to get.

Since she had been watching me since I came to Paris, there was no reason to doubt the credibility of her words.

I nodded appropriately, got out of the carriage, and entered the mansion.

“Master, Master! You’ve finally arrived. Please come to the drawing room right away!”

The manager, who had run over in a hurry, had a stiff face from tension.

“I saw the carriage outside. It seems we have a guest? But who is it that’s making such a fuss? Anyone would think the judge had come.”

“It’s not just a judge. Mr. Blancmesnil, a Grand Justice of the High Court, has come and is waiting for you.”

“What?”

The appearance of such a big shot that I hadn’t even imagined naturally quickened my pace.

Grand Justice Blancmesnil must be Guillaume de Lamoignon de Blancmesnil.

The head of the judiciary and one of the most powerful figures at the top of the High Court had come to see me in person?

I immediately understood why the people in the mansion were in such a frenzy.

It even reminded me of my past self, who had stammered when the Deputy Minister of the relevant department had come.

A completely different kind of tension from when I met Lavoisier or Rousseau ran up my spine.

Finally, I arrived in front of the drawing room, took a deep breath, and opened the door.

“Oh, you’ve arrived.”

In the drawing room, where the warm midday sun was shining, an old man with graying hair turned around.

It was the first time I had seen his face, but I knew who he was without asking.

I was about to bow politely.

But before that, the old man opened his mouth.

“Could you leave us alone to talk?”

Despite the audacity of telling the host to leave, Lavoisier couldn’t even make a peep and got up from his seat.

“Then I will step aside. Please call me when you are finished.”

The old man didn’t even glance at Lavoisier, who was bowing politely.

His gaze had been focused solely on me from the moment I entered the room.

“It’s the first time we’ve met like this. How do you do? Prince, or should I say grandson of the King, to be exact.”

The old man’s tone was polite, but it wasn’t the attitude of someone truly addressing a superior.

I see, so that’s what it is. Even though I’m just trash, they’ve decided to treat me well, so they’ll at least use polite language.

It was a familiar treatment.

I wanted to do the same to him out of spite, but I couldn’t act as recklessly as I did with Lavoisier.

That man was truly from a different class of the upper class.

I straightened my clothes and bowed my head slightly.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Louis-Christian.”

However, even in front of the Grand Justice, I didn’t show the groveling attitude I had shown to Lavoisier.

After all, we were in a situation where we were pointing guns at each other’s backs.

There was no reason for me to prostrate myself.

Blancmesnil’s eyes flashed with interest at my polite but not servile attitude.

“When I received the report recently, I wondered if something was wrong, but now that I see you in person, I understand. It seems Lavoisier is right. Very interesting.”

“Thank you for seeing me in a positive light. But I’m a little embarrassed. I never expected the Grand Justice to come in person.”

To be honest, I was quite embarrassed right now.

I had thought that someone from the nobles of the robe [nobles who gained their status through holding judicial or administrative posts] might come, but it didn’t make sense for the head to come from the start.

Wasn’t the cliché for the weakest to appear one by one?

Blancmesnil, who glanced at my face, which I was desperately trying to control, chuckled and brought the coffee cup to his lips.

“Unlike your words, you don’t seem very surprised.”

“I’m just good at hiding my emotions.”

“Ah, I see. The court investigators and Lavoisier didn’t notice the Prince’s true nature at all, so that makes sense.”

“So, may I ask why the Grand Justice has come all the way here?”

“Well, of course, it’s to build goodwill. Didn’t we have some problems before due to a minor misunderstanding? We need to cleanly seal that part so that there are no lingering resentments.”

Wow, hiring an assassin to kill someone is minor, so the way the higher-ups think is different.

To that man, it might be attempted murder, but I had a terrible experience of almost losing my life twice.

Just thinking about the terrible pain of regressing still gives me chills and cold sweats.

But I’m not stupid enough to reveal my true feelings, let alone say them out loud.

My ability to control my emotions, which I’ve honed for over 10 years by catering to the professor’s whims, is almost at the level of method acting.

“Was there still a knot of resentment between us? I thought it was all over a long time ago.”

Blancmesnil paused for a moment at my good-natured response, then burst into laughter.

“Hahaha! Of course, of course. We’re already on the same boat, so there’s no way there could be any resentment.”

While I was wondering what this old fox’s true intentions were, Blancmesnil, who had emptied his coffee cup, continued in a subtle tone.

“So, I hope the Prince will clear up my doubts.”

“Doubts?”

“I thought about it carefully after receiving Lavoisier’s report. How does the Prince know about the corruption committed by the court nobles? In the end, there can only be one conclusion. Someone in the court must have leaked the information. A high-ranking official who has access to classified information.”

As expected, there was no way such a big shot would come all the way here just to build friendship.

It seemed that this cunning old snake’s true intentions were finally visible.

That man must have come to the tentative conclusion that there was someone in the court who was colluding with me.

Logically, it would be hard to believe that I, who was about to enter the Collège [a prestigious higher education institution], had proactively gathered such information.

Of course, it was a huge misjudgment.

“Well… I don’t understand what the Grand Justice is talking about.”

“Haha, trust is the most important thing between colleagues who will walk together in the future. I believe you know the meaning of my words, as you are a bright person.”

“That’s right. As the Grand Justice said, trust is something that we must build together. So, I can’t tell you the secret to my survival, but I will give you one important piece of information.”

The wrinkles on Blancmesnil’s old face twitched.

He seemed to be contemplating whether to accept my compromise.

“The important information isn’t another case of corruption within the court, is it?”

“Of course not. I don’t like dragging things out, so I’ll tell you right away. How many more years do you think the current Prime Minister, the Chief Minister of State, the Duke of Choiseul, will remain in power?”

At my question, Blancmesnil rested his chin on his hand and pondered.

The Chief Minister of State of France was equivalent to a chancellor in other countries.

It was an unofficial title, so the degree of power was not fixed, but when the royal authority was stable, he was virtually the second-in-command of the country.

The current Chief Minister of State, the Duke of Choiseul, was unable to show any particular ability in domestic affairs, unlike when he was the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of the Army.

Even though the High Court openly ignored Choiseul’s orders several times, he took no action.

“The Duke of Choiseul is more of a soldier than a politician. We would like him to remain in that position, but… at the current rate, it seems difficult for him to last more than five years.”

“I expect the same. Then, naturally, who will sit in his place will be important… According to my investigation, Lord Maupeou has been meeting with royal figures more frequently these days.”

“Maupeou? Are you talking about Grand Justice René-Nicolas de Maupeou? He’s one of the few pro-royalists in the court…”

“He’s not just a candidate. The royal family is already planning to appoint Grand Justice Maupeou as his successor if the Duke of Choiseul steps down. As you know, Grand Justice Maupeou is someone who believes that the authority of the High Court should be limited. You should prepare in advance.”

Everything I said was true.

In exactly three years from now, Maupeou will become the Chief Minister of State and suppress the High Court by force.

Blancmesnil didn’t believe everything I said, but he didn’t dismiss it either.

“It will be necessary to investigate as soon as I return. If the information the Prince gave me is really true, it will be the most solid proof of trust.”

“If my words are confirmed to be true, it wouldn’t be a price to pay, but I would appreciate it if you would support me firmly in the future.”

“Of course, we should. Don’t worry.”

The Grand Justice of the High Court had the legal authority to control the press.

For the sake of the great public opinion war that would take place in the future, I had to bring them over to my side for now.

After that, I spent time with Blancmesnil, answering his trivial questions.

In the meantime, he asked questions that seemed to be testing my value several times, and I had to sweat to get through them appropriately.

It’s always been exhausting to play tug-of-war with cunning old foxes, both now and in the past.

For now, let’s focus on giving them the illusion that they can control me enough.

I’ll squeeze them until they’re rags and then throw them away like used dishcloths.

※※※

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Blancmesnil, who had left Lavoisier’s mansion, got into his carriage, which had been waiting for him.

His son, Malzerb, who was the head of the tax court in Paris and the director of publications, signaled the coachman to depart.

“Louis-Christian, what did you think?”

“…He was just as Lavoisier said. Should I say he’s truly a descendant of the Sun King [Louis XIV]?… He was different from the current King or the Crown Prince.”

“So he’s worth using.”

“Depending on how we do it, he could become an incredibly sharp sword. But if we wield it wrong, we might get cut. We need to be especially careful in handling him.”

In Blancmesnil’s view, who had experienced all sorts of hardships, Louis-Christian was definitely a talent who would grow into a great tree that would lead France in the future.

He was so coveted that he wanted to recruit him even without the background of royalty.

“But Father, if Louis-Christian is really that talented, shouldn’t we be careful?”

“It would have been if that child had been born ten years earlier. But he’s about to enter the Collège. No matter how talented he is, a child is just a child. If we put in the effort and brainwash him from now on, we can use him as our chess piece.”

Blancmesnil was surprised by Christian’s intelligence, but he didn’t take it that seriously.

Even his son, Malzerb, let alone himself, was more than thirty years older than Christian.

The age difference between himself and not his son was a whopping fifty years.

It was likely that not only Blancmesnil, who was about to retire, but even his son would not see Christian’s prime.

Even if Christian showed his talent, it would be more than 20 years in the future.

Until then, they just needed to steadily increase the power of the court and raise Christian as their henchman.

In chess terms, Christian was just a pawn with the potential to be promoted to a queen.

In the future, his talent may blossom and he may tear through the entire chessboard, but for now, he is just a pawn that can only move one square at a time.

Even though he was a member of the royal family, he was still too young and could not be a threat for the time being.

Even if he knew about the corruption of the court, Christian himself would die if he exposed it.

He must know that fact well, so he won’t act rashly.

Someday, when he retires and his son leaves the political world, Christian will be opening the era of the judiciary with his grandchildren.

‘It might be different if he suddenly gets recognized by the royal family and returns to the royal family.’

Blancmesnil, who briefly imagined something absurd, smiled bitterly and immediately denied the thought.

In the history of the Bourbon dynasty, there were hardly any cases of illegitimate children being incorporated into the royal family.

To make that possible, tremendous groundwork and meticulous planning would have to be accompanied.

I can guarantee that it is impossible in the short term, even if the sky splits in two.

It might be possible if he becomes a historically great figure, but great figures don’t come out that easily, so they are called great figures.

Instead of wasting energy on such useless things, it is more constructive to come up with a way to check Maupeou, who is attached to the royal family.

Blancmesnil shook off his 잡념 [japnyum – idle thoughts] and told his son what to do as soon as he returned.