"Huh? They claim to be members of the Bonaparte family? She was so surprised that Fran's eyes widened slightly.

Then, looking around blankly, "This...... I don't know what's going on......"

No wonder Mary behaved so strangely, after all, she was responsible for surveillance, and when she heard that a member of the Bonaparte family would come to her, she would inevitably think that Fran was secretly engaged in some kind of conspiracy.

However, this is too wrong, I obviously haven't done anything yet! She couldn't help but smile bitterly in her heart.

"Isn't that really what you did?" Still a little unconvinced, Mary kept staring at Fran.

"Really, absolutely." Fran hurriedly shook her head, "I won't do such a stupid thing until now, let alone in front of you!" ”

Perhaps because this reason was more convincing, Mary finally believed it.

"Alright then, I trust you." Mary nodded, then moved slightly inside the door, "It would be great if Mr. happened to be here, I'm going to report the matter to him and let him decide." Sorry......"

"Okay, I understand, it's okay I won't blame you." Fran didn't stop her, but beckoned, "You should believe it now, right?" ”

Mary breathed a sigh of relief and walked inside the room.

At this time, Charles had just finished writing his letter to Charlotte in one go, and in order to make Charlotte happy, he deliberately wrote a lot of affectionate words, and he felt a little crying and laughing after reading it.

Just then, he heard footsteps behind him. Then he turned his head and saw that it was Mary.

"Good morning, Mary. Can I help you? ”

"Sir, there is something I would like to report to you," said him, though he smiled, but Mary did not dare to make a mistake, and bowed respectfully.

"Please." Charles made a gesture of please.

"I was asked to see Fran just now." After suppressing the nervousness in her heart, Mary whispered, "I came here suddenly. I didn't know anything about it beforehand, so I asked her and she said she didn't. ”

"Huh? What the? Charles's smile vanished. What the hell is going on? Who is asking to see her? ”

"Yes...... It's an old woman and a young man. It looks like it's the grandparents and grandchildren......" Seeing Charles' angry appearance, Mary's heart panicked even more, and she barely managed to keep her voice from trembling. "They...... They claimed to be members of the Bonaparte family. ”

"What?" To Mary's surprise, after hearing this answer. The anger on Charles' face vanished suddenly. It's just that I'm a little skeptical, "Is that really the case?" ”

He quickly realized who it was who had come to visit Fran.

When he first visited the Duke of Wellington, the lady had said that she would come to see Fran, but he did not expect that he would come so quickly, and come directly to visit his sister herself.

"I think I know who they are......"

"That's true, so you know." Mary was a lot more relaxed. "They were stopped by me just now. Now waiting in the lobby of the hotel...... I'm sorry. ”

"No apologies, you did a very good job. That's how it should be. Charles understood why she was doing this, so he patted her ear encouragingly, "They're not particularly important guests, you can call them up later, I'll receive them with Fran." ”

"Do you want to receive it too?" Mary didn't quite understand why Charles had to receive them in person while saying they weren't important guests.

"Yes, you don't need to receive them, I can send them all away in a few words." At this moment, Fran also walked in, and then took over directly, "We're going to go out later, if you receive it, God knows how many polite words you'll have to say!" ”

"Members of the Bonaparte family, I always have to be perfunctory." Charles sighed. "If you're alone, it's not good to say the wrong thing."

"Really a member of the Bonaparte family?!" Not only Fran, but even Mary lost her voice in surprise.

"Wait, something isn't right!" Mary thought it very strange, so she couldn't help asking, "Haven't you heard of any people from the Bonaparte family coming to London?" And as if I hadn't seen them...... Is it a branch somewhere else? ”

She was a little secretly annoyed now, just now she thought that the other party claimed to be a member of the Bonaparte family just to scare herself, but she didn't expect it to be true, and now she doesn't know if her negligence has caused a bad impression in the other party's heart.

However, her concerns were quickly dispelled by Charles.

"Yes, they are indeed a branch of the Bonapartes, but ...... It should now be considered an unrecognized and undesirable branch. ”

As the two girls watched in bewilderment, Charles slowly explained the ins and outs of the family to them.

"I see......" After listening to Charles's explanation, Fran and Mary looked at each other.

They had not been particularly concerned with such political and historical issues before, and therefore did not know much about the historical origins of the Bonaparte family, so it was only now dawned on them.

"She is really pitiful, she was forcibly separated by the emperor, so that she had to live alone for so many years!" Fran seemed sympathetic to the lady's plight, "Let's go meet her, then." ”

"Then let's not keep this unfortunate guest waiting any longer." Charles waved his hand and made a gesture for us to hurry away.

However, despite the sympathy on her face, Fran still seemed a little thoughtful.

As she reached the stairs, she suddenly turned her gaze to look at her brother.

"Sir, what are your reasons for establishing contact with them? Why promise to help them? I don't understand. It's one thing to sympathize with her, but to do something other than sympathy, you need to think about it, doesn't it? We don't owe anything to them, and we don't owe them anything. ”

"You're right. We don't owe them anything. Charles nodded, agreeing with his sister, "But sometimes. It's good for us to find some friends for ourselves. ”

"Do you want to be friends with them? This...... Why? Fran looked at Charles curiously, as if she didn't quite understand what she was thinking, "If Prince Jérôme had wanted to reconcile with them, he would have done so a long time ago." Since he didn't do it, why would you do it? Isn't this a job to offend people in vain? ”

"Of course I'm not going to offend anyone......" Charles' face showed a meaningful smile, "but I'll do it when I get paid." ”

"Reciprocate......" Fran frowned slightly, and after a little thought. She looked at her brother in surprise, "You...... Are you going to bring them back to France? ”

"To be precise, to welcome the little ones back to France. The old ones don't need to be used. Charles's smile remained unchanged, and he seemed to have made up his mind, "This little one is of some use to us - just in case, of course. ”

Fran finally understood. Her brother's mind was never short of energy. There's another plan.

That is, he wanted to find supporters among the Bonapartes?

Whatever I do, I don't want to be left out this time.

"Need ...... Is there anything I need to do? With this thought, she asked with some trepidation. I can do it for you, please trust me and leave it to me! You promised me! ”

This sudden request surprised Charles, and he instinctively wanted to refuse, but for a moment remembered what he had promised his sister.

Look at her eager eyes. Charles found himself feeling a little moved.

A smart and loyal assistant would have been hard to find, if she really asked for that. And why refuse?

"There's nothing you need to do right now, because I haven't even figured out what to do myself." Charles reached out and patted her cheek, "First of all, you can help me get this poor lady in the first place." ”

"Hmmm! Okay, thank you! Because of the affection she received from her brother, Fran was very eager, almost excited, "Don't worry, I will make them so generous and enthusiastic about the Trevill family that I can't complain." ”

"I'm afraid you're too enthusiastic." Charles laughed and teased.

By this time, they had already walked down the stairs and came to the lobby of the hotel.

When the siblings appeared in the hall after Mary, although they were both very well dressed, not many people paid much attention to them in the noisy hall, but the two people on the sofa in the distance stood up and waved their hands like them.

Fran looked closely, and saw that, as Mary had told him, it was an old woman and a young man.

The old woman was gray-haired, but she could see some of the charm of the old days, and she was very well dressed.

The young man looked to be twenty years old at most, tall and stocky, and there was something peculiar to young people who was full of longing for the future and was not afraid of heaven and earth. His eyes were gray-black, energetic, and his eyes were bright, with short gray hair, and he wore a black coat and bow tie.

The young man was supposed to be a military man. Fran came to a conclusion almost immediately.

At this time, the expressions of those two people were also very unusual.

The old woman seemed surprised to see Charles, as if she hadn't expected Charles, while the young man didn't pay attention to Charles, but kept looking at Fran, as if shocked.

Suppressing the displeasure in her heart, Fran smiled softly at him and nodded, and then the young man felt that his reaction was a little rude, and quickly looked away in a panic, acting a little embarrassed.

Charr didn't pay attention to their interactions, but walked quickly to the pair with his sister in front of the grandchildren.

"Ma'am, you're faster than I thought." Charles bowed gently to Ms. Patterson, "I hope I didn't inconvenience you today." ”

"Sometimes we have to move fast because time waits for no one." Ms. Patterson smiled and nodded at him, pleased with his politeness. "Besides, you didn't bother us, in fact it was more convenient - we were going to visit you before. But the palace is not so easy to visit, and this time my grandson can pay a visit to you and your sister. ”

Then, she turned her gaze to look at Fran.

Fran also saluted her respectfully.

"Oh! What a wonderful child! I already knew how the daughter of the Tréville family could not be outstanding! The lady first looked at her carefully, and then shouted out half-exaggerated and half-sincerely, "A famous family is a famous family...... How could there be such a wonderful child in the New World? ”

Fran just smiled and nodded, as if she felt shy after receiving her compliment.

She noticed. The young man who looked away from her had been secretly looking at her, but because of etiquette constraints, he had to pretend not to find out.

At this time. The lady also felt that something was wrong.

Because her grandson hadn't been greeting her all the time, she turned her gaze a little strangely, "Jérôme?" ”

No response.

"Jérôme?" The lady raised her voice.

At this time, the young man finally came to his senses. "Okay. Grandmother. ”

"Young people just love to wander." The lady smiled apologetically at Charles. Then he pointed to his grandson, "Mr. Treville, this is my grandson, Jérôme Napoleon Bonaparte." ”

"Well, a very good person, too." Charles held out his hand to him in a friendly manner, "I think you can be a good general. ”

"Thank you for the compliment, Mr. Treville, I don't doubt that either. I'm sure I'll be a general. The young man straightened up and took Charles' hand. Moreover, I will be a general in the service of France, defending the interests of France with you. ”

Although he was only a few years younger than Charles, he could not help but shrink in front of Mr. Treville, who had succeeded in becoming one of the most powerful men in the country by his own efforts.

This sentence was obviously taught to him beforehand, not by himself, so although he spoke fluently, he did not infect people's passion, and in the eyes of a professional agitator like Charles, it was obviously not professional enough.

However, in Charles's view, this is a good thing—a young man who is not very sensible is better to deal with than a deceitful conspirator.

"That's what a soldier should say!" Charles seemed very happy to shake his hand with him, and it took a moment to part.

Then, he pointed to Fran, "Because of my grandfather's relationship, my sister admires the military the most...... So I think she's curious about you. ”

"Did you really serve as a soldier? Where did you serve, Monsieur Bonaparte? Fran understood, looked up, and looked at the young man with just the right amount of curiosity.

"I ...... I was a soldier in the United States, graduated from West Point at the age of 18, and served in Texas, fighting Mexicans. The young man replied immediately. I retired from there this year. ”

"Texas?" Fran raised an eyebrow, she honestly didn't know where it was, "There...... Is it dangerous there? ”

"It's dangerous, it's a harsh environment, and there's hateful Mexicans." The young man immediately replied, "Not ...... It's also very beautiful, with vast wilderness that you will never see in Europe, and really, the sky is very blue there. ”

"Then how did you retire from there?" Fran asked curiously.

"Because...... I want to be like your grandfather, Marshal Tréville, to charge in the defense of France, to defend France, to defend ...... Defend your ...... and flowers as cute as you are. ”

"Ah...... Thank you. Fran blushed a little. I am sure that you will be able to get what you want, and the French army needs brave warriors like you. ”

Under Miss Treville's innocent and curious gaze, the heat rushed to his face, and he felt his face heat up, and he felt his heart pounding, almost as if it were about to burst out of his chest, and he even stammered when he spoke.

Grandma is right, such a beautiful, pure and well-bred girl cannot be met in the United States.

These polite words were originally taught to him by others, in order to improve the relationship with the Tréville family, but as he spoke, he seemed to feel that it was what he wanted to say the most, so that every word carried an irrepressible passion.

When the young lady heard this, she was shocked at first. Then he smiled and thanked him, and he really wanted to tell her in any way that this was not at all the usual polite words of the upper class of the Old World. It is the heartfelt words of a young man in the New World.

"It looks like the Warriors are recognized." After they were done politely, Charles smiled and nodded, "Sir, since you have her approval, then my grandfather will definitely approve of you, and I wish you a bright future in the French army." ”

Madame Patterson understood his hint that Charles de Treville would do her part. Sending her grandson back to serve in the French army was something he thought was a sure thing.

Sure enough, there is nothing in this world that cannot be done. Just find the right person.

"Thank you, Mr. Treville, and we will never forget the help we have received from the Treville family. Unlike some people, we can do what we say. She thanked Charles very well. Promise that you will keep your promise. "My grandson will obey the marshal's orders and serve France."

"By the way, are you going to go out later?" Ms. Patterson looked at the two siblings' attire again, "I hope you didn't delay your trip because of us." ”

"Yes, my sister and I are going to visit the British Museum later." Charles replied very honestly, "But don't worry, you didn't delay us, we still have time anyway." ”

"The British Museum?" The lady was a little surprised at first. Then immediately thought of something and turned his head to look at his grandson. "Jérôme, didn't you want to visit the British Museum too?"

"Huh?" The young man didn't react at first, but quickly understood what she meant from his grandmother's look. "Yes, I've always wanted to go and see, but I've been delayed by other things."

Thank you, Grandma! He couldn't help but be grateful—though his grandmother had meant to make him and Mr. Tréville more bonded.

"In that case......," said Mrs. Patterson, turning her gaze back at Charles, "Mr. Treville, I solemnly beg you, that he go with you, that you may be more impressed and understood by each other. ”

Charles hesitated slightly.

It stands to reason that when I go on a tour with my sister, it's nothing to take one more person with me halfway, especially since this person is still a chess piece that I want to win over now. However, Fran had been waiting for so long, and it was not easy for him to make his own decision.

So he looked at Fran, ready to let her make her own decision.

"That's great, let's go over together!" Fran said suddenly, looking like a child cheering, "So be it, sir." ”

The nuanced understanding brought about by years of coexistence, she clearly got a message from her brother's eyes and expressions - "this person needs to be perfunctory", and in that case, she didn't mind doing him a favor.

"Alright, let's go over together, ma'am." Seeing that Fran said this, Charles didn't say anything more, and nodded directly to the lady to show permission. "Just so we can learn something from you."

"I'll forget it...... I'm a lot older, and if I follow you, I'll ruin your interest. The lady smiled wryly and shook her head, "And I've been tired from going around for the last few days, so just take a break." ”

Then she exchanged a few more polite words with the Tréville siblings, then told her grandson a few more words, and left the hotel.

The young man watched his grandmother leave, and then looked at Fran again, not knowing what to say for a while.

"Monsieur Bonaparte, I hope to join us on a tour so that you don't get bored." Seeing that the other party was a little nervous, Fran spoke to him very kindly, "Mary and I both studied painting, so we prefer art, and a soldier like you shouldn't be very interested." ”

"No...... No! I'm very ...... Very interested! The young man hurriedly waved his hand to deny it, but he didn't realize that he had spoken a little out of tune. And, I think, being able to ...... If you can visit with you, no matter what ...... No matter where it is...... It's going to be fun. ”

It's really a hillbilly from the United States, and I haven't seen the world at all! Was he really a member of the prodigal Bonaparte family?

Looking at the young man's red-eared and shy face, Mary couldn't help but have a question in her heart.

Just then, she noticed that Fran happened to be watching her, too.

The two friends looked at each other, and then the corners of their mouths turned up at the same time, and they met a vague and tacit smile. Apparently Fran had some sort of thought of Mary as well.

"Oh, of course, thank you, Monsieur Bonaparte." Fran's smile immediately faded, and then she glanced at the young man with the same slight shyness, "I'm grateful for your help. ”

The shrewd ladies of the European aristocracy were always at ease with the passionate and unrestrained young men of the New World. (To be continued......)