Make France Great Again-Chapter 816 - 807: Princess Sophie

"Your Majesty, is there anything I can do for you!"

Prince Metternich’s response surprised Emperor Jerome Bonaparte. He hadn’t expected Metternich to agree to his terms so quickly.

Given Metternich’s wisdom, he should have been fully aware of the risks he was undertaking by agreeing to Jerome Bonaparte’s request.

However, since Metternich had already agreed to serve Emperor Jerome Bonaparte, Jerome Bonaparte naturally would not use the power of the French Empire to "kidnap" Prince Metternich.

"Mr. Metternich, what I’m asking you to do is very simple! I hope you can use your influence to secure a certain degree of freedom for Qianqian!" Emperor Jerome Bonaparte straightforwardly stated his request.

Indeed...

After hearing Jerome Bonaparte’s terms, Metternich couldn’t help but think to himself.

"Your Majesty, may I venture to ask you a question?" Prince Metternich opened his mouth to ask again.

"What question?" Jerome Bonaparte was stunned for a few seconds, then inquired of Prince Metternich.

"What exactly is the relationship between you and our Empress Elizabeth?" Prince Metternich gently asked Jerome Bonaparte.

"What else could it be?" Jerome Bonaparte openly said to Prince Metternich: "Of course, it’s a friendship!"

"Just a friendship?" Prince Metternich gazed skeptically at Jerome Bonaparte, suspecting that the relationship between Emperor Jerome Bonaparte and Empress Elizabeth was not as pure as it seemed.

However, this was quite typical.

Marriages among European nobility were mostly political or economic alliances; a romantic foundation was unnecessary for the parties involved, so both men and women were allowed to have affairs.

Extramarital affairs, even between emperors and empresses, were not unusual.

However, the precondition for noble affairs was ensuring the birth of heirs for the family.

Affairs within the royal family were only permitted when an male heir had been born.

As for whether the parties would engage in affairs depended on personal intentions.

Hence, Metternich was not surprised by Empress Elizabeth’s "affair" with Emperor Jerome Bonaparte; he was even pleased by the Empress’s affair.

But the Empress having an "affair" without having given birth to a male heir truly worried Prince Metternich about the Habsburg clan’s lineage.

"Metternich, can’t you use your decaying brain!" Jerome Bonaparte scolded angrily, "I couldn’t possibly be interested in someone as young as eighteen (Vilnius: meow, meow, meow), not to mention Qianqian still hasn’t fully developed!

The only reason I asked you to help her is out of sympathy!"

Now that Jerome Bonaparte vehemently denied any romantic involvement with Empress Elizabeth, Prince Metternich felt a slight tinge of disappointment. He nodded and apologized to Jerome Bonaparte, "Your Majesty, I was being presumptuous earlier! Please forgive me!"

"Mr. Metternich, I forgive you!" Jerome Bonaparte replied casually, waving his hand at Prince Metternich, "By the way, I’m leaving this matter to you! Make sure you accomplish it for me!"

"Rest assured! For the sake of the friendship between the French Empire and the Austrian Empire, I will give it my all!" Prince Metternich pledged to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Let’s leave it at that!" Jerome Bonaparte nodded in satisfaction, and then he suddenly thought of something and asked Prince Metternich again, "By the way, did you send Pauline von Metternich over there?"

Prince Metternich paused, nervously answering, "Your Majesty, I did not send Pauline von Metternich to visit you! That should be her acting on her own; I hope she hasn’t troubled you!"

"There was no trouble at all!" Jerome Bonaparte replied with interest, looking at Prince Metternich, "It’s just that, are you really planning to have Richard Metternich marry her niece?"

"That’s right, Your Majesty!" Metternich replied decisively.

"Does Richard Metternich know about this?" Jerome Bonaparte asked again.

"My son is not aware of this yet!" Prince Metternich said to Jerome Bonaparte again, "I plan to tell him about it next year!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk!" Jerome Bonaparte shook his head slightly, replying to Prince Metternich, "You are truly autocratic!"

"Your Majesty, this is not autocracy!" Prince Metternich retorted, "This is precisely how marriages among the nobility should be arranged!"

"Poor Richard!" Jerome Bonaparte murmured, "I hope he won’t be too surprised when he learns about this!"

Prince Metternich remained silent, waiting for Jerome Bonaparte to conclude the topic on his own.

"Alright! Let’s not talk about this anymore!" Jerome Bonaparte, not wanting to delve into the Metternich family affair, decisively ended the topic, "It’s getting late, let’s head back!"

Jerome Bonaparte and Prince Metternich turned and returned to the Hofburg Palace.

Opening the door to the ballroom, Count Gneer still stood diligently at the entrance.

"Your Majesty, Prince!!" Count Gneer immediately kneeled before Jerome Bonaparte and Prince Metternich.

"Mr. Earl, I wonder if you’ve let anyone know my whereabouts!" Jerome Bonaparte promptly questioned Count Gneer.

"Your Majesty, I haven’t revealed anything to anyone!" Count Gneer quickly responded.

"You’ve done well!" Jerome Bonaparte nodded in satisfaction, "I hope one day, you can visit Paris! I will give you a warm welcome at the Tuileries Palace!"

"Your Majesty, I surely will!" Count Gneer responded excitedly.

Jerome Bonaparte and Prince Metternich continued walking inside, then parted ways at a crossroad.

Prince Metternich returned to the hall he was in before and continued his conversation with Marshal Radetzky, while Jerome Bonaparte returned to where Empress Augusta was.

Upon Jerome Bonaparte’s return, he was surprised to find that Empress Augusta’s spot was now occupied by an unknown lady.

Jerome Bonaparte approached the lady slowly and gently asked, "Beautiful lady!"

The lady, upon seeing Jerome Bonaparte, thought he was there to invite her to dance. She immediately showed an expression of delight, "Your Majesty, do you have any requests!"

"May I ask where my wife Augusta is now?" Jerome Bonaparte asked the lady.

"Your Majesty, I don’t know where the esteemed Empress has gone!" The lady replied with a slight hint of disappointment on her face, "When I sat here, Her Majesty the Empress had already disappeared."

"Thank you for your answer!" To express his gratitude, Jerome Bonaparte held the lady’s hand and gave a gentle hand-kiss, then left.

The lady was left with a starry-eyed expression, gazing after Jerome Bonaparte as he departed.

...

After leaving the lady, Jerome Bonaparte searched the dance floor again but never found a trace of Augusta.

Not only Augusta but Elizabeth’s figure was also missing.

Only Franz Joseph remained dancing in the center of the dance floor.

Thus, Jerome Bonaparte sought out Count Gneer again to ask if he knew where the Empress went.

"Your Majesty, I also saw the Empress! However, for that question, I think you should ask Countess Raphaelt!" Count Gneer answered Jerome Bonaparte.

"Countess Raphaelt, what does she do?" Jerome Bonaparte frowned and asked Count Gneer.

"Madam Raffalat is the lady of Your Majesty the Empress Elizabeth’s court etiquette, as well as the manager of this ballroom!" Count Gneer hurriedly explained to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Then where is she now?" Jerome Bonaparte said to Count Gneer.

"Your Majesty, please follow me!"

Guided by Count Gneer, Jerome Bonaparte finally met Countess Raphaelt.

"Your Majesty, you come to ask me about Her Majesty the Empress, right!" Before Jerome Bonaparte could speak, Countess Raphaelt took the initiative to ask.

"Indeed, do you know where Augusta is right now?" Jerome Bonaparte curiously asked Countess Raphaelt.

"Her Majesty Empress Augusta is currently with Her Majesty Empress Elizabeth, and they should be in Princess Sophie’s bedroom!" Countess Raphaelt replied to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Princess Sophie?" Jerome Bonaparte pondered for a moment, then asked again, "You mean Elizabeth’s daughter Sophie?"

"Correct!" Countess Raphaelt responded to Jerome Bonaparte, "Your Majesty, shall I take you there!"

"That would be helpful!" Jerome Bonaparte replied to Countess Raphaelt, as he also intended to see what Princess Sophie looked like.

Jerome Bonaparte and Countess Raphaelt proceeded forward, passing several "checkpoints," and finally reached a large door.

"Your Majesty, Her Majesty Empress Augusta and Her Majesty Empress Elizabeth are just behind this door, in the fifth room from the left!" Countess Raphaelt said to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Won’t you go with me?" Jerome Bonaparte curiously asked.

"Your Majesty, Empress Dowager Sophie has issued orders! No one is allowed to enter Princess Sophie’s room without permission!" Countess Raphaelt explained to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Alright then!" Jerome Bonaparte nodded, and then entered alone.

The lady behind the door, upon seeing Jerome Bonaparte’s attire, stared at him with a stern expression and asked, "This is not where you should be!"