Chapter 167 A fateful encounter

A dilapidated coal carriage stopped in front of an old hotel on the eastern outskirts of Thule City.

Erich reined in the horse, turned around, knocked on the carriage, and whispered through the small window: "We're here. Check out the 'tools.'"

After getting off the carriage, Erich spent 2 sous to find out Marla's room number from the store clerk, then turned around and ordered his two men:

"Room 32 on the first floor. Dim will attract their attention at the door later. Ahhendorf and I will go in through the window. Try not to make a big noise. I don't need to say more, right?"

The two strong men nodded silently, and one of them turned and left.

In Room 32, Mara was sorting out clues related to Necker when he heard someone knocking on the door: "Sir, the beer you asked for is here."

"You're mistaken, we didn't buy any wine."

The knocking on the door still kept coming: "But the money has been paid..."

Assistant Evans stood up in confusion and went to open the door, but Mara suddenly stopped him and looked at the window with a frown.

The next moment, with the sound of glass shattering, a hand reached through the hole in the window to fiddle with the latch.

Mara's pupils shrank, but his mind was extremely calm - after so many years of anti-royal news work, he had seen some big scenes - he immediately blew out the candle and grabbed the duffel bag next to him. There was a A loaded pistol.

Evans stepped back in panic. He suddenly remembered that there was a "store clerk" standing outside the house, and wanted to ask the latter for help - Evans was just a newbie who had only been working for a few years, and he had no idea how many dirty tricks the brutal killer would have. So, he turned around and opened the door with a scream: "Someone is going to break in..."

Mara secretly shouted "No", but before he could stop him, Evans fell to the ground on his back with a sharp blade stuck in his chest.

At the moment of lightning, Mara used the faint light in the corridor to lift the duffel bag, pointed at the figure at the door, and pulled the trigger hard.

"Bang!" There was a loud noise, and the figure fell backwards. Mala hurriedly dropped her duffel bag and rushed out of the house.

At the same time, the window behind him was pushed open. The first person who jumped in saw Mara's back and immediately threw a dagger over without hesitation.

Just as Mara turned her head to see the exit at the end of the corridor, she felt a numbness in her left buttock. She reached out to touch it and found that a dagger had been stuck there.

He had studied medicine and knew that he must not draw the knife at this time. He immediately held the sides of the knife blade tightly and limped towards the exit.

It was getting late at this time, and the only shop owner in the hotel lobby who smelled of alcohol was lying on the counter and dozing off. Seeing two figures chasing after him, Mara had no choice but to turn around and run away from the store.

In a small town like Thule, there is no one on the streets at night. Mara endured the pain and ran toward the city center, but the faster he moved, the more blood came out of his buttocks.

But the footsteps behind him made him dare not slow down or call for help - shouting had no other effect except pointing out his location to the murderer.

Soon, he felt flustered and stuffy, and the things in front of him became a little brighter.

Just when he was feeling desperate, he suddenly saw a figure in front of the window of the cabin in front of him, who seemed to be looking at him.

He waved vigorously in that direction, and suddenly his left leg went weak and he fell to the ground.

The person in the hut hurriedly ran out. She was a woman in her early twenties. She helped Mara up, but before she asked, she heard the latter say weakly: "Quick! Hide me, someone wants to kill me..."

The woman was a little panicked, but after hearing Marat say that she was a policeman from Paris, she plucked up the courage and dragged him behind the fence outside the hut.

As soon as she closed the gate, two men with pistols ran over.

The taller man looked around and was about to continue chasing along the road, but was stopped by the shorter man.

The latter squatted down and rubbed the ground, and soon came into contact with something sticky.

He raised his hand and sniffed it under his nose. He immediately looked around with vigilance and said in a deep voice, "It's blood. He's nearby."

The tall and strong man nodded, searched the trees on the roadside one by one, and soon landed on the hut.

Mara heard the sound of leather boots getting closer, her heart beat wildly, and she was so scared that she didn't even dare to breathe.

Suddenly, the footsteps stopped outside the fence. Mara was secretly rejoicing when two hands suddenly appeared on the fence on the other side, and then a figure jumped to the top of the fence and looked coldly at the prey huddled in the corner.

"Good evening, Mr. Nosy! Where can you escape now?"

"Run!" Mara shouted desperately, pushed the woman who was helping him away, and then closed her eyes and waited for death.

Immediately, a "bang" gunshot sounded.

Mara twitched with shock, but felt no pain.

"The murderer missed the target?"

He shivered and opened his eyes a little, only to see the black shadow on the fence moving straight down.

Then, seven or eight figures rushed in from the entrance of the fence with a roar. Someone saw Marat by the light of the torch and immediately shouted: "Here, it's Mr. Marat!"

Prosper from the Police Intelligence Department hurriedly ran over, knelt down and said: "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince expected that you would be in danger, so he asked us to follow you. As soon as we arrived near the hotel, we heard gunshots. Fortunately... …Are you injured? Go find a doctor!"

…

Paris.

Office on the second floor of the Industrial Planning Bureau.

Fouche placed a report in front of Joseph and said in a deep voice: "Your Highness, Mr. Marat was assassinated the night he arrived in Tulle. His assistant Mr. Evans was killed on the spot. Mr. Marat was lucky enough to get a With the help of a lady named Charlotte Corday, he escaped with only some injuries to his legs.”

Joseph frowned and flipped through the pages: "He went to see Kalona and asked about Necker, and then someone wanted to kill him. Has the murderer been caught?"

"Two of the murderers died, and one escaped under the cover of night." Fouche said. "According to Prosper's investigation, the two were local gang members in Thule."

He hesitated and said: "Your Highness, could it be that Carlona wanted to prevent Mr. Marat from investigating Necker and sent someone to assassinate him?"

Joseph shook his head and promoted Janmara's report: "Mr. Mara is very sure that Kalona and Necker have a feud and would not do such a thing to protect him.

"And Carlona is a very smart person. Even if he wanted to assassinate them, he would not do it on the night he just met them."

Carlona can become the finance minister and the chief minister at the same time. He is by no means an ordinary person. In fact, France's tax reform bill was created by him, and Brian later only copied his tax reform plan. It's just that Carlona was eventually defeated by the big aristocratic group, the tax reform failed, and he was exiled.

Fouche immediately said: "Then, maybe it was Necker's people who did it?"

Joseph nodded slightly: "There is a possibility. If so, it further proves that Mr. Marra's investigation is in the right direction."

He looked at the report again: "But, if they had a problem, why didn't Kalona tell Mr. Marat the evidence he had about Necker's crime?"

Marra clearly wrote in the report that he had received reliable information that Kalona was likely to have black information on Necker.

Fouche said: "Your Highness, maybe Carlona simply doesn't trust Mr. Marat..."

Joseph tapped the table with his fingers and shook his head slightly: "The logic of this matter is somewhat wrong.

"Even if there is no Mr. Marat, if Carlona and Necker have a feud, and he has evidence of Necker's crime, why not expose him directly? For example, report to His Majesty the King."

Fouche lowered his head and thought: "If the two of them did not collude with each other, then Viscount Carlona was threatened. Just like what happened to Mr. Marat."

Joseph did not agree with his statement. Kalona had once been the chief minister. Even if he was exiled, he was still a very powerful nobleman. Hiring dozens of bodyguards was not a problem at all.

Moreover, he is a firm loyalist to the royal family and has the trust of Queen Mary. Even with his political influence, Necker did not dare to attack him casually.

Joseph thought for a while and said slowly: "In addition to being threatened, Kalona has several other possibilities.

"For example, he is waiting for a price. He thinks that the information about Necker in his hand is very valuable, and he is waiting for the person who needs it to ask for a high price before he is willing to reveal it.

"Also, even Necker has something in his hands. Once he exposes Necker, he will be bitten back."

Joseph looked out the window a little irritably. At present, it seemed that Kalona should have very crucial evidence in his hands, but how could he get him to speak?

He suddenly remembered the exhaustive method that was commonly used to do proof questions in the past.

If the reasons that restricted Kalona from coming up with Necker's black material do not go beyond the scope of the speculation just now, then he only needs to solve these problems, and he will definitely give in!

First of all, it is basically ruled out that Kalona's life is threatened. If there is, then this is the best solution. Give him a hundred palace guards to guard him at all times. What else does he have to fear?

Then, if Carlona is waiting for a price, then he has to offer a price that is enough to impress him.

He had been the finance minister, so he shouldn't be too short of money, and he really couldn't bear to use the wasted livre as a bargaining chip.

For people like Carlona, ​​money means power.

Joseph thought of this, and suddenly his eyes lit up. Carlona was exiled to Lorraine, and his political future was completely ended. If he could get him back to Paris, it would be giving him a second life - a political life.

I believe he will not be able to refuse such a price.

The problem is that Brian only took the position of chief minister after Kalona left. If Kalona is brought back, he will definitely have objections.

How to convince him...

After Fouche reported what happened to Thule, he said goodbye and left.

Joseph set off for the Palace of Versailles, planning to talk to Brianne first.

On the carriage, he continued to think about the situation where Necker also had dirty information about Kalona.

This is also the most difficult to handle.

Only by putting Kalona in a situation where he must fight to the death can he possibly reveal Necker.

However, one thing Joseph is sure of is that historically, Kalona is very loyal to the royal family.

After Louis XVI was kidnapped, he stood up and led the royalists in the great cause of restoring royal power, even almost losing everything for it.

In the current situation where the authority of the royal family needs to be consolidated, it is still necessary to help such people.

Joseph subconsciously flipped through the documents sent by Marat in his hand, and suddenly smiled. Perhaps, Marat's assassination could be used for it.

An hour and a half later, the carriage speeding along the wooden track stopped at the east side of the Palace of Versailles. With only the last few hundred meters left, the wooden track will directly connect Versailles to Paris.

It was already 5 o'clock in the afternoon, and Joseph went straight to Brian's residence.

The Archbishop hurriedly came out, smiled and saluted, and said, "If your Highness needs anything, just ask me to be summoned to your place."

Joseph chatted with him for a while, and soon got to the point: "Archbishop Brian, I have something very important and I need your help."

"I am always at your service to Your Highness."

Joseph nodded: "What do you think if I need Viscount Carlonne to return to Paris?"

Brian was startled for a moment and laughed dryly: "Your Highness, did I make a mistake somewhere?"

"Oh, no, please don't get me wrong, your work has always been excellent. Your Majesty and I also absolutely trust you." Joseph said hurriedly, "Bringing Kalona back is purely for 'business'. I promise, he will not do anything to you." Any threat to your position."

"What do you mean by 'business'?"

Joseph deliberately lowered his voice: "For example, it can help you obtain hundreds or even tens of millions in financial income."

Brian's eyes widened immediately: "Carona is willing to make so many political donations?!"

"Ah, no... letting him come back is just part of the method." Joseph said, "You will know the specific situation later."

Brian hesitated for a moment, then sighed softly and said: "Your Highness, if Viscount Carlona does not enter the cabinet, I can accept it."

He is probably the person in France who is most aware of how terrifying the young crown prince is.

His position as Chancellor of Finance was secured by the Crown Prince's amazing means, otherwise he would have been fishing in Corsica, even worse than what happened to Carlona.

If the crown prince insists on getting Kalona back, he won't be able to stop him. If the crown prince can come to discuss with him and promise that it will not affect his status, it is an attitude of closeness.

This is the time to show your loyalty and trust. He still has some political wisdom.

And it can also solve your most troublesome financial problems. Why not?

Joseph did not expect Brian to agree so readily. He thanked him sincerely and then took him to see the queen - the assassination incident broke out in Kalona, ​​and everyone involved would be alarmed. , so we must hurry up, otherwise changes will happen later, and we can no longer wait for the cabinet meeting to discuss it slowly.

In the Little Trianon Palace, Queen Mary looked at Brian in surprise: "You mean, pardon Viscount Carlona?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." Brian said with a sincere expression, "Viscount Carlona was dismissed and exiled because he failed to promote the tax bill."

He leaned forward: “You know, this is actually a gesture to the meeting of dignitaries.

"Now that the tax bill has been implemented for several months and the High Court has been reorganized, you don't need to look at the faces of those in the Dignity Council anymore."

After all, Brian is a veteran in politics. In his words, he directly described pardoning Carlona as helping the queen regain the face she had lost in the past.