SGB Chapter 350

## Chapter 350: A Grudge Formed

“This is…”

Louis flipped through the book’s title page again and again.

Only now did he finally understand why Arthur was interested in the history of the Bonaparte family.

“He’s friends with that Polish assassin?”

Arthur lit his pipe, exhaling a plume of smoke as he looked at Louis, whose face was pale. “Don’t worry, Louis, I’m not accusing you. You were by my side during the attack, and you almost got shot in the head. If you were truly behind this, it means you were willing to sacrifice your own life to assassinate me. I think, as a friend, I haven’t failed that badly, have I?”

“Of course not.” Louis vehemently denied. “But… I don’t think Mr. Walewski had any reason to assassinate you either.”

“Mr.?” Arthur took a drag of his pipe. “It seems your relationship with your cousin isn’t particularly close!”

Louis took a sip of wine. “It’s not close, but it’s not distant either. We didn’t spend much time together, and we were too young back then, so naturally, we couldn’t cultivate a deep bond. Besides, not even my own brother has been with me all the time, let alone my cousin like Mr. Walewski.”

“Hmm?” Arthur asked. “What do you mean?”

Louis’ eyes took on a retrospective look.

“In 1815, after my uncle’s defeat at Waterloo, the Bourbon dynasty restored in France. Shortly after they came to power, they announced that they would expel all members of the Bonaparte family.

Upon receiving the expulsion order, my mother quickly packed some valuables and, with my brother and me, left France by car in the dead of night, heading for Switzerland. But as soon as we settled in Geneva, my father, who had already settled in Florence, took my brother away from my mother according to the law of litigation…

From then on, my brother and I were separated for seven or eight years. My brother grew up with my father in Italy. I, on the other hand, traveled between Germany and Switzerland with my mother. I first received secondary education in Augsburg, Bavaria, and then entered the Arlenberg Military Engineering School in Switzerland to study artillery command.

I had just graduated from military school when I received a letter from my brother in Italy, inviting me to Italy, where the two brothers would work together to achieve great things. What happened after that… you should know…”

Alexandre Dumas recited, “The Roman Carbonari uprising was suppressed by the combined forces of the Papal States and Austria, and your brother died in the process of fleeing?”

“Yes…”

Alexandre Dumas comforted, “Louis, take it easy. Honestly, if you didn’t have this experience, I wouldn’t have accepted you so quickly. You have proven with your actions that you are not like your uncle. Your brother who died in the uprising was a good man too.”

“Whew…” Louis gave a self-deprecating laugh. “Alexandre, thank you, I feel much better. Of course, it would be even better if my mother could think the same way. She doesn’t understand our actions, and she even tried to forcibly take me back to Switzerland from London. She always wanted me to live with her in the Arlenberg manor, drink some wine every day and watch plays with her at night. She said, ‘Unless I die, you can’t sneak out of my side.'”

Arthur asked, “Since that’s the case, how did you convince her to let you join Scotland Yard?”

Louis replied, “It all thanks to my uncle. He talked to my mother at Regent’s Crescent for a long time. My uncle said, ‘Ottense, I understand your grief over the loss of your son. Because it wasn’t only your eldest son who died in Italy, but also my son-in-law and nephew. But there’s no way around it, this is the fate of a Bonaparte, you have to learn to understand and respect it.'”

Arthur was taken aback. “Son-in-law and nephew? It seems another complex relationship.”

Louis sighed. “Not that complicated. My brother married my cousin, Charlotte Bonaparte, my uncle’s daughter.”

“Alright.”

To avoid getting caught in a high school biology genetics question-like predicament, Arthur had to change the subject. “Let’s talk about your cousin, Mr. Walewski. Hopefully, things won’t be too complicated there. Louis, can you tell me why you think he wouldn’t be behind this attack?”

“This has to do with his experience. After the Bourbon Restoration expelled all members of the Bonaparte family, Walewski’s mother, Madame Marie, realizing that her husband had no hope of returning to Europe, finally accepted the marriage proposal of Count de Ornano, who had been pursuing her for years.

Walewski then went to Liège, Belgium, with his mother Marie and stepfather, but unfortunately, Marie died in childbirth the following year. Fortunately, his stepfather was kind to him and insisted on raising him.

But good times didn’t last long. The Russians always regarded my half-Polish, half-Bonaparte cousin as a thorn in their side. As I said earlier, Walewski’s birth stemmed from Polish nationalists’ desire to form a political alliance with the Bonaparte family, hoping to use the power of the French Empire to free Poland from Russian influence.

So, during Walewski’s growth, he was surrounded by patriots who wanted to revive Poland using France as a model. Those Poles saw him as the destined King of Poland, and they were eager to have him lead Poland to establish a country like the French Empire. Therefore, the Russians were very worried that if Walewski returned to Poland, those Poles would crown him king.

At that time, Belgium was still under Dutch rule. So, the Russians sent diplomatic documents to the Dutch government, demanding that Walewski be recruited to serve in the Russian army on the grounds that he was Polish. The Dutch government didn’t want to offend the Russians, but they also didn’t want to offend the supporters of the Bonaparte family. Therefore, they informed Walewski in advance, asking him to pack his bags and leave Belgium as soon as possible.

So, under the arrangement of his stepfather, Walewski fled to London and lived there for several years. After the July Revolution last year, he was allowed to return to Paris by the July Monarchy…”

Arthur raised an eyebrow. “You said the July Monarchy allowed him to return to Paris?”

Louis nodded. “That’s right. But Arthur, don’t get the wrong idea. Louis-Philippe tolerates Walewski, but it doesn’t mean he tolerates all Bonapartes. While Walewski is Napoleon’s biological son, he is ultimately an illegitimate child, so he naturally has no right to inherit the Bonaparte family’s title and claims.

At the same time, his identity is very interesting. The reason why the July Monarchy values him is because of his Polish element. I heard from my uncle that last year, shortly after the Polish uprising, Louis-Philippe secretly sent him to Warsaw.

The Polish uprising government quickly entrusted him with important responsibilities. They appointed Walewski as a diplomatic envoy, sending him to Paris and London to seek military allies from the Tuileries Palace and Buckingham Palace to fight against Russia together.”

Arthur, hearing this, suddenly remembered his conversation with Talleyrand while playing golf.

He slightly pursed his lips. “It seems Mr. Talleyrand has been hiding a lot from me! If that’s the case, I can understand why Viscount Palmerston was so rude to him. It’s not just that Viscount Palmerston won 20,000 pounds at the casino with the help of Madame de Lieven, but also because the French government intended to fool the Foreign Office.

Pretending to support freedom and progress, they invited Britain and France to help Poland gain independence. But in the end, they discovered that the newly independent Polish government was a pro-French regime. If this really happened, the liberals at home would surely sing praises.

But unfortunately, the Foreign Office is the one that decides on foreign policy. And worse yet, the current leader of the Foreign Office is the cunning Viscount Palmerston. While he also likes a good reputation, he wouldn’t do this kind of business with highly unstable returns.

Speaking of which, I’ve found that the relationship between Poland and France is indeed quite close. I often hear retired Scotland Yard police officers from the army say that the most formidable of all the French client states’ armies during the Napoleonic Wars were the Poles. Those Polish legions gave them a hard time in all kinds of battles, big and small.”

Louis joked, “Don’t be envious of France having Polish assistance. Britain’s Royal German Legion is pretty formidable too, isn’t it? And the Poles aren’t the most ruthless against the British. They prefer to deal with the Russians. When my uncle invaded Russia, nearly 100,000 Polish soldiers volunteered to join the fight. But you’re right about one thing, these Polish soldiers are indeed very brave. I even think that Marshal Davout’s remarkable military achievements are definitely inseparable from his long-term role as commander of the Polish Legion.”

Arthur also smiled. “Maybe next time we should let the British Royal German Legion and the French Polish Legion fight a separate battle. I think it would take a maximum of four weeks for the Germans to speedrun Poland.”

Louis scoffed. “I don’t think so, you underestimate the Poles.”

Alexandre Dumas, hearing this, also marveled. “But what surprises me most is that there are so many Bonapartists in Poland. But then again, I can’t blame them. Compared to the Tsar, choosing a Bonaparte as king seems pretty good too. At least this Bonaparte has half-Polish blood in him.”

Arthur said, “Let’s get back to Mr. Walewski. Do you know where he is now?”

Louis replied, “I really don’t know… The last time I heard from him, he was still fighting in Warsaw. But after Warsaw fell, I haven’t received any information about him for a long time… Oh, right, this book. That Polish assassin, Mr. Kolvachik, might have befriended my cousin during the Warsaw uprising.”

Arthur stared at the cover of the book for a while, then stood up. “I happen to be going back to London to report on Liverpool’s situation to the Central Health Commission and the High Court of Justice in a few days. I should probably take this opportunity to chat with Mr. Talleyrand. I believe that old man must know Mr. Walewski’s whereabouts. If even he doesn’t know, then your brother is probably in the hands of the Russians.”

Louis also stood up. “Should I go with you?”

Arthur shook his head. “No, Louis, your identity is too sensitive. If I bring a member of the Bonaparte family to the French Embassy, the Foreign Office will probably think that Scotland Yard’s police officers have defected to the French government. I don’t want to cause such a misunderstanding.”

“This…” Louis frowned. “Do you mean the Foreign Office has its own spies?”

“Ooh-hoo-hoo…”

Arthur smiled and raised an eyebrow. “Louis, what kind of illusion makes you think that the British Foreign Office operates in a transparent manner? Not only does the Foreign Office have spies, but the Treasury has spies, and the Home Office also has its own independent network of informants. Although they all engage in domestic intelligence, their division of labor and focus are different. Of course, the Royal Navy and the army also have their own separate systems, but the military system mostly deals with foreign affairs, so I don’t have much contact with them.”

“Even the Home Office has its own independent system?” Louis slapped his forehead. “Don’t they already have Scotland Yard?”

Arthur nodded. “Yes, but Scotland Yard is a new department after all. The Home Office has a longer history than Scotland Yard. Before Scotland Yard was established, they had to rely on themselves to gather intelligence.”

Louis asked, “Do you still think Walewski did it?”

Arthur shook his head. “I don’t think he did it. If he’s passionate about defending Poland, he wouldn’t send someone to shoot me. And he’s an illegitimate son, killing you wouldn’t give him the right to inherit the Bonaparte family. But, just because he has no motive doesn’t mean others won’t use his name to give orders to the Poles.

The Polish assassin, Mr. Kolvachik, participated in the Warsaw uprising, and he’s a friend of Mr. Walewski. If we assume he’s a Polish Bonapartist, then maybe the Russians threatened him with Mr. Walewski’s life to make a big news story in Liverpool.

As you can see from the newspapers these past few days, due to this assassination, those British liberals who are inclined to support Poland are no longer so resolute. And currently, the Russians are facing setbacks in the Belgian independence issue and have to deal with the aftermath of the Polish situation. If they can stir up some trouble in Britain at this time, distracting the government and Parliament from the Polish issue, they would be very happy.”

Alexandre Dumas pondered this. “What you’re saying does make sense. The Russians indeed have ample motivation to do this. But how can we get evidence of their crime?”

Arthur merely shook his head. “Alexandre, this is no longer a simple治安案件 (magistrate court case), but a diplomatic and political issue. If the evidence ultimately points to the Russians, it’s still a question whether the investigation results can be made public. And I don’t know what the Cabinet’s attitude towards this is. Before I understand what the ministers are thinking, I need to explore other possibilities.”

Louis immediately understood Arthur’s meaning.

“You mean, even if the Russians did it, you still have to prepare a few scapegoats?”

Arthur corrected him. “Not scapegoats, but investigation results that meet the expectations of all parties.”

Alexandre Dumas asked, “Then, do you have anyone in mind?”

Arthur flipped through the thick stack of case files in front of him and casually mentioned a few names. “There are a few good choices. There are those the Parliament might like, those Viscount Melbourne might like, and of course, those Viscount Palmerston might like, etc…”

“Who are you referring to?”

Arthur pointed at the names on the files and casually recited, “There are too many, the Liverpool Association, the East India Company, George Norton, Bernie Harrison, etc…”

Alexandre Dumas frowned. “Are you planning to forcibly pin the blame on them?”

Arthur shook his finger slowly. “Alexandre, don’t get it wrong. I will investigate all directions, and all possibilities will be presented fairly to the ministers. As for which one they choose to publicize, that’s not my decision.”

Alexandre Dumas asked, “So, does that mean you’re going to let this matter where you opened people’s eyes just pass?”

“No, of course not.” Arthur held the files, pushed open the door, and stared at Alexandre Dumas. “Because, no matter who did it… I’ve already formed a grudge in my heart.”

(End of Chapter)