Make France Great Again-Chapter 735 - 726 Inspecting the Industrial Park

"Forging small banknotes to disrupt the market, old man, that’s quite a bold idea you have!"

Jerome Bonaparte spoke to the elderly man opposite him with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. He could be certain that the elderly man across from him was not an ordinary person, and his attitude towards the Empire was equally not friendly.

Bourbon? Orleans? Or the Republican Faction?

Jerome Bonaparte silently recalled the prominent figures within these three factions, yet he couldn’t match any of them.

However, he could roughly rule out that the elderly man across from him was from the Republican Faction.

Because the Republican Faction’s conspiracies usually involved straightforward coups and demonstrations.

It was rare for them to fatally strike in the financial sector, whereas those from the Orléans Faction preferred such methods.

No matter whether it was during the final years of the legitimate Bourbon or the early days of the Republic, the shadow of the Orléans Faction was always present.

"What good is a bold idea! I’m just an old man waiting for death!" The elder, sensing the dangerous aura radiating from Jerome Bonaparte, decisively showed weakness in front of him.

He, being over seventy, had no wish to be targeted by a wolf cub of the House of Bonaparte; otherwise, he would be terrified even if he didn’t die.

"I think you’re still quite young, sir!" Jerome Bonaparte responded to the elder with a smile still on his face: "At 76, Prince Talleyrand was still actively volunteering to serve as the ambassador to England. (Within the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the position of French ambassador to England is only second to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. In the case of someone like Prince Talleyrand, the status of ambassador to England is not inferior to that of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.)"

Upon hearing "Prince Talleyrand," a momentary sadness flashed across the elder’s face, but it did not escape Jerome Bonaparte’s sharp eyes.

He knew Talleyrand? Jerome Bonaparte pondered silently.

"How can I compare to a great figure like Prince Talleyrand!" The elder said with a self-mocking smile on his lips.

"Oh, you should have met Prince Talleyrand, right?" Jerome Bonaparte probed once again.

The elder couldn’t help but show a hint of nostalgia, but he quickly covered it with a smile and said, "How could that be possible? Monsieur Talleyrand was a renowned figure back then! I was just a nobody!"

"I see!" Jerome Bonaparte then asked the elder why he had traveled such a long distance to Paris.

The elder evasively told Jerome Bonaparte that he was heading to Paris at the invitation of an old friend.

"By the way, what are you heading to Paris for?" The elder also developed some interest in the couple in front of him.

"Of course, I’m going to Paris to see if there’s a way to become an official! I come from a noble family, so it would be a pity if I didn’t go!" Jerome Bonaparte replied to the elder with justified pride.

Jerome Bonaparte’s words caught the elder by surprise. He initially thought Jerome Bonaparte would make up a pretext like a vacation.

To his surprise, Jerome Bonaparte straightforwardly said he was going to seek an official position, which indeed was beyond his expectations.

"Becoming an official is great! Becoming an official is great!" The elder had to dryly respond.

"Old man, are you interested in joining me! If I become a minister, you can be my assistant!" Jerome Bonaparte attempted to recruit the elder.

The elder shook his head and replied to Jerome Bonaparte, "I’ve grown old! I’ve already become indifferent to worldly fame and fortune!"

"Old man, that’s not what you just said!" Jerome Bonaparte responded to the elder.

"What’s different about it?" The elder asked in confusion.

"You were just lamenting that the knowledge you learned had no place to be used, and now you’ve suddenly become indifferent to fame and fortune!" Jerome Bonaparte responded to the elder.

The elder just laughed heartily without rebutting.

Then, after conversing for a while more with the elder, Jerome Bonaparte unknowingly succumbed to drowsiness.

Drowsily, he fell asleep in his seat, and when Jerome Bonaparte woke up again, the train was still running, but the elderly man sitting opposite him had already disappeared.

"What happened?" Jerome Bonaparte asked Valerovsky with a furrowed brow.

"Sir... your excellency, he discreetly disembarked at the previous station!" Valerovsky whispered to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Then why..." Jerome Bonaparte was about to reprimand Valerovsky for not detaining him when he suddenly realized he seemingly had no reason to detain the elder, so he could only mutter softly, "Really a sly old fox!"

"Uh... Your Majesty!" Valerovsky hesitated for a moment, then leaned in to whisper in Jerome Bonaparte’s ear, "As you know, I once served the July Monarchy!"

"And then?" Jerome Bonaparte asked Valerovsky.

"The elder who was chatting with you earlier, I have the feeling I’ve seen him somewhere before!" Valerovsky whispered to Jerome Bonaparte.

"So he’s with the Orléans Faction?" Jerome Bonaparte responded to Valerovsky with a furrowed brow.

"Possibly!" Valerovsky replied to Jerome Bonaparte with uncertainty in his tone.

"Think again about where you’ve seen him! Then, tell me!" Jerome Bonaparte reminded once more, then closed his eyes again.

Without the old man, the whole journey became somewhat dull.

Time passed quickly, and by 9 a.m. the next day.

After a long 26 hours of intermittent travel, the train finally crossed nearly 900 kilometers to reach the Paris Railway Station.

Jerome Bonaparte, who got off the train, looked up at the bright sunlight in the distance and couldn’t help but yawn.

"Your Maj... Sir!" Valerovsky quickly corrected himself and asked Jerome Bonaparte, "Should we rent a carriage to go back?"

"Go back? Why such a hurry!" Jerome Bonaparte stretched his somewhat sore body and said to Valerovsky, "Let’s first do a surprise inspection of the factory with me!"

"Yes!" Valerovsky left the train station, called a carriage, and headed to the outskirts of Paris with Jerome Bonaparte and Vilnius.

Shortly after Jerome Bonaparte and Valerovsky left, several soldiers in blue and white military uniforms completely sealed off the train station.

The crowd yet to leave the train station saw the soldiers and immediately began to stir slightly.

General Vayan, responsible for sealing the site, immediately issued an order to the people at the train station allowing entry only and no exiting. After a while, Empress Augusta in a white ceremonial dress and Princess Mathilde in a bright red dress appeared.

"General Vayan, where is His Majesty?" Empress Augusta asked General Vayan immediately after getting off the carriage.

"Your Majesty, we have not found the Emperor’s whereabouts here!" General Vayan shook his head in response to Empress Augusta.

"Oh, Jerome!" Mathilde grumbled softly, "Doesn’t he know what his status is? How old is he, still doing this kind of thing!"

General Vayan lowered his head, not daring to say a word.

"General Vayan, dismiss the troops! I think Jerome has already left first!" Empress Augusta calmly ordered Vayan.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" General Vayan ordered his soldiers to leave with Empress Augusta’s carriage.

At that moment, Jerome Bonaparte and Valerovsky had already arrived at the gate of the Northern Industrial Group complex.

The last one to get off the carriage, Valerovsky, took out a silver coin with Napoleon’s portrait and said to the coachman, "No need to give change!"

"Thank you very much! Generous sir! May God be with you!" The coachman said happily to Valerovsky.

Jerome Bonaparte, Vilnius, and Valerovsky arrived at the gate of the complex.

The guard responsible for watching the complex immediately stopped Jerome Bonaparte and asked him if he had the documents needed to enter the complex. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"No!" Jerome Bonaparte shook his head, then removed his wig and glasses, smiling as he said, "I wonder if this face of mine could request an entry!"

"Your Majesty!" The two guards were immediately taken aback and kneeled half-down to Jerome Bonaparte to show their respect.

"Rise!" Jerome Bonaparte said to them with a slight raise of his hand.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The guards rose to their feet and responded to Jerome Bonaparte.

Subsequently, the guards opened the gates of the complex, allowing Jerome Bonaparte to enter.

"Your Majesty, should I call General Manager Bashirio for you!" The guard eagerly offered his service to Jerome Bonaparte.

"There’s no need for that!" Jerome Bonaparte shook his head, "I’m very familiar with every place here!"

The guard complied, and Jerome Bonaparte and Valerovsky proceeded deeply into the complex, eventually reaching the first place he planned to inspect.

Upon entering the "Protective Umbrella" research base, Jerome Bonaparte and Valerovsky were immediately noticed by the staff at the research base.

"Your Majesty!" The staff, surprised at first upon seeing Jerome Bonaparte, quickly bowed to him.

Jerome Bonaparte nodded slightly and was led to the lounge by the staff.

After a while, a person wearing a white lab coat and a cotton mask appeared in front of Jerome Bonaparte.

"Professor Pasteur!" Jerome Bonaparte smiled and greeted Louis Pasteur.

"Your Majesty, when did you return?" Louis Pasteur asked Jerome Bonaparte, while taking off his mask to bow.

"Just recently!" Jerome Bonaparte responded to Louis Pasteur, "As soon as I got off the train, I rushed here!"

Then Jerome Bonaparte inquired Louis Pasteur about the malaria matter.

Louis Pasteur informed him that although they had determined the transmission medium for malaria, there had been no significant breakthrough in its treatment.