Guided by Bulbaski, Jero Bonaparte walked along the corridors of Fontainebleau Palace towards the backyard, soon stopping in front of a bedroom on the third floor of the backyard of Fontainebleau.
"Your Majesty, the Prince is inside!" Bulbaski turned to Jero Bonaparte and said.
Jero Bonaparte nodded and then motioned to Bulbaski to knock on the door.
Bulbaski gently knocked on the door, and after a while, the door opened, and the figure of Prince Monfort appeared before Jero Bonaparte.
At this mont, Prince Monfort’s eyes were hazy, with a trace of weariness on his face, looking as though he had just woken up from sleep.
"Returned!"
Prince Monfort glanced at Jero Bonaparte behind Bulbaski and spoke in a faint tone.
"Yes!" Jero Bonaparte nodded in response.
Prince Monfort didn’t ask much about the details of the hunt; he turned sideways, making way into the room.
"Co in!"
Seeing this, Bulbaski also took his leave from Jero Bonaparte, who nodded slightly to allow Bulbaski to leave.
Then, Jero Bonaparte entered the room and sat directly on the long sofa by the window side, after a while, Prince Monfort, holding a decanter of wine and two glasses, sat opposite Jero Bonaparte.
Prince Monfort shook the wine, asking Jero Bonaparte, "Have a sip?"
"Sure!" Jero Bonaparte replied lightly.
Prince Monfort, sitting directly opposite, personally poured a glass of wine for Jero Bonaparte and then pushed the wine closer to his side.
Jero Bonaparte raised the wine glass and clinked glasses with Prince Monfort.
After a subtle swallow, Jero Bonaparte drank the full glass of wine.
Slightly tipsy, Jero Bonaparte imdiately began to discuss the main topic, first asking Prince Monfort about the details of Radetzky’s funeral.
Prince Monfort recounted to Jero Bonaparte the scene he saw at the train station, including Emperor Franz Joseph personally carrying the coffin for Radetzky.
Upon hearing from Prince Monfort that Franz Joseph personally carried the coffin for Radetzky, Jero Bonaparte, like Von Bismarck, furrowed his brow.
Seeing the usually composed Jero Bonaparte make such an expression, Prince Monfort felt sowhat puzzled.
Could it be that there are hidden secrets behind Emperor Franz Joseph carrying Radetzky’s coffin?
Curious, Prince Monfort asked Jero Bonaparte, "Is there a secret about Franz Joseph carrying Radetzky’s coffin?"
Jero Bonaparte, coming back to his senses upon hearing Prince Monfort’s words, shook his head in response.
"No! I was rely curious who suggested to Franz Joseph to carry the coffin; it couldn’t possibly be Franz Joseph’s own idea!
Turning a simple funeral into a grand political showcase, such a maneuver is certainly not sothing a monarch like Franz Joseph, raised in seclusion, could think of!"
Prince Monfort similarly believed that the idea probably wasn’t Franz Joseph’s own thought (though both guessed incorrectly); given Franz Joseph’s dull personality, he wouldn’t think to leverage a funeral for political gain.
Or perhaps, the ancient Habsburg itself doesn’t need, like the Second Empire, to conduct grand political events to root the empire’s image in the minds of the French people, thus winning their hearts.
The Habsburg dynasty, with its thousand-year history, has long been closely linked with various nationalities under its domain, leading to the Habsburg monarch having no motivation to occasionally demonstrate presence like the Second Empire.
Based on such premises, Prince Monfort proposed his hypothesis.
"I think... it should be Clens tternich’s handiwork!"
"I agree with you!" Jero Bonaparte nodded in response to Prince Monfort.
Subsequently, Jero Bonaparte turned the topic towards Prince tternich.
"By the way, during your stay in Vienna, did Prince Clens tternich et with you?" Jero Bonaparte asked Prince Monfort again.
"Yes!" Prince Monfort replied to Jero Bonaparte, "On the day after I attended the funeral, Clens tternich t with !
However, our eting place was not at the French Embassy!
But at the Vienna Royal Opera House, when I was watching a performance in the opera house’s private box, the service staff outside the room inford of Clens tternich’s visit!
I guess he ca specifically!"
"What did you talk about?" Jero Bonaparte asked.
Prince Monfort shrugged and replied to Jero Bonaparte, "That old fox, Clens tternich, likes to speak in riddles and won’t reveal his true intentions until the very last mont.
He started reminiscing about his glorious days in Paris, reflecting on how ti changes, and then he introduced to the actors at the Vienna Royal Opera House."
"And then?" Jero Bonaparte pursued further.
"Then Clens tternich left the private box!" Prince Monfort said, "I told you, that old fox won’t expose his true intentions until the absolute last mont!
In the following days, he seed to have figured out my routines and would accurately find after I left the embassy, inviting to sit in the sa box with him, which I couldn’t really refuse.
My dear son, you know I never like to be disturbed while enjoying a ballet.
After several tis, I couldn’t stand Clens tternich’s harassnt anymore and decided to confront the old thing!
Before a ballet show started, I took the initiative to find him and led him to the private box.
Clens tternich seed to anticipate what I was going to say and inquired politely about my purpose!
I first closed the door to the box and then quietly rebuked tternich for disturbing .
Clens tternich first looked surprised, then expressed his apologies for the trouble he caused !"
Prince Monfort went on and on about his "encounter" at the Vienna Opera House, and from his words, Jero Bonaparte could clearly sense his father’s resentnt towards Prince tternich.
Evidently, Prince tternich had quite interrupted Prince Monfort’s enjoynt.
"I know that old fox surely wasn’t sincerely apologizing; expecting a heartfelt apology from him is practically impossible!
Moreover, my intention wasn’t to hear apologies from that guy!
At the ti, I only wanted him to stay away from !
So, I straightforwardly asked tternich what he wanted from !
Initially, tternich didn’t admit his intentions, until I told him ’If there’s nothing, please do not disturb again.’
It was then that tternich inford he wanted to inquire whether the Empire’s foreign strategy had changed!"
Jero Bonaparte imdiately understood that the contact between Valerovsky and Von Bismarck had stirred Clens tternich’s unease, fearing the French Empire might join with the Kingdom of Prussia to jointly suppress the Austrian Empire.
Between countries, there are never eternal friends.
One mont they could be inseparable allies, and the next, they might be at each other’s throats.
"How did you respond?"
"I told tternich that the Empire’s diplomacy is always handled by the Emperor and Minister of Foreign Affairs; I’m rely an irrelevant marshal and have no sway over the Empire’s diplomatic strategies!
However, I can assure you that the French Empire’s diplomatic strategy always prioritizes maintaining the stability of Europe’s order!
There’s absolutely no favoritism or actions targeting any particular country!" Prince Monfort detailed his remarks to Jero Bonaparte, then cautiously asked, "What I just said shouldn’t cause you any trouble, should it?"
"Father, your words alone would be enough to make you Foreign Minister!" Jero Bonaparte flattered Prince Monfort in reply.
Prince Monfort waved his hand with a smile, fully aware that it was rely Jero Bonaparte’s flattery, knowing he was far from any comparison with a Foreign Minister.
"So... how did tternich reply to you!" Jero Bonaparte further inquired of Prince Monfort.
"tternich simply said ’I understand’ and then left the box!
In the subsequent days, tternich never bothered again!" Prince Monfort answered, and then as if sothing crossed his mind, he added, "However, it’s quite the opposite with Von Bismarck, the Prussian envoy in Paris, constantly communicating with Valerovsky!
I assu this is part of your arrangent, right?"
"Yes!" Jero Bonaparte candidly admitted, "I instructed Valerovsky to engage early with the future Pri Minister of Prussia to benefit his work in the Berlin Region!"
"You have a high opinion of that Von Bismarck envoy!" Prince Monfort responded with a surprised look, "Based on the information I got in the Austrian Empire, this Von Bismarck is considered by the Kingdom of Prussia to be a nuisance to the Austrian Empire, ant to disgust them!"
"The information you got in the Austrian Empire is just baseless slander from so who are dissatisfied with Von Bismarck!" Jero Bonaparte replied with disdain on his face, speaking confidently, "I dare bet there’s no one in the Kingdom of Prussia more suited for Pri Minister than him!
Just wait and see! After the Third Estate eting, Von Bismarck will definitely beco the Pri Minister of the Kingdom of Prussia!"
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