The club Charles was talking about, of course, was the club he had purchased and run for his own ministry, and since buying it, he has turned it into a secret meeting place open only to his own people, so that all parties with his interests can have a comfortable and private place to meet and trade privately. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 ｉｎｆｏ

Today is the usual day of the club, and Charles has deliberately invited some people over for dinner, so a group of people have already arrived, chatting with each other in twos and threes, and sipping on the carefully collected wine in the basement of the club.

However, when the carriage specially equipped for Charles arrived at the club, the atmosphere immediately changed, and the atmosphere changed from idle to a little serious.

Charles and Fran stepped out of the carriage and into the unassuming building, where she didn't let go of her hand even after arriving here.

"Your Excellency, Chancellor." Whether it was the staff of the Ministry of Transportation, or the people invited by Charles, or the staff in this club, they all stopped to say hello immediately after seeing Charles, and Charles nodded his head quite modestly, his gait and demeanor were beyond reproach, as if the lord was patrolling his castle.

The lady next to Charles attracted some people's slightly surprised gazes.

To be sure, this lady and His Excellency the Chancellor are of similar manners and are very well matched, but everybody knows that the Chancellor's wife has been recuperating at home because she is pregnant again, and it is absolutely impossible for her to come here - and her body is not at all right.

So some people speculated that this beautiful woman was the new favorite of His Excellency the Minister, and it was not until they asked others that they found out that this was the sister of His Excellency the Minister, and they were relieved.

"You're finally here!" When they reached the depths of the hall, Mary, who was already waiting, immediately greeted them. "I'm waiting for a long time, and I've finally gathered people, what if the protagonist doesn't appear?"

Recently, in order to show her professionalism and reduce the doubts of others, she deliberately wore a men's dress, even her long blonde hair was pinched up by hairpins, a black jacket with a black vest and a white shirt, and a serious attitude, she looked like a handsome little student with long hair.

As she spoke, she smiled and looked at Fran.

"Ah, you're so beautiful today, you feel like your face is glowing!" She said, half teasingly and half complimentingly, "I can't even open my eyes with so much happiness!" ”

As soon as she said this, the originally radiant Fran's face suddenly became a little unbearable, but she still continued to grasp her brother's hand, "You are also very good dressed up." ”

"Hey, don't laugh at me, these clothes are so monotonous, it's really uncomfortable to wear." Mary pointed to her coat and waistcoat, "I wouldn't have bothered to wear it if it weren't for the fact that people would have seen anything other than my face." ”

"That's really hard for you." Fran was a little apologetic, "Don't worry, it won't be long before no one can question you, you can show yourself how you like......"

"With you here, I'm sure that day will come soon." Mary was also very impressed, "As long as the two of us stand together, no one can get any favors." ”

After taking over from Lola and entering this place where wealth was accumulated, she was very happy at first, and wanted to make a name for herself here, so that everyone would look up to her, but after participating for a while, she realized that some things could not be achieved by hard work, and although everyone was polite to her in the face of His Excellency the Minister, she could clearly feel that everyone was not convinced by her, and did not completely take her words as orders that must be followed. Even if Charles spoke to her several times, the situation still did not change much.

She was a wise man, and of course understood the reason—everyone suspected to varying degrees that she would not always be trusted and relied upon by His Excellency, and feared that she would only be the mistress of His Excellency at any time, so they refused to associate with her too deeply, lest the time come to annoy themselves.

Even if she knew why, Mary was at a loss, because she herself could not guarantee that Charles would always be there for her - although he had made many promises, even a written promise didn't mean much to an Imperial vizier, let alone a verbal promise.

Therefore, she can only restrain her original arrogance first, try her best to treat others with a sincere attitude, and prove with her actions that she is not a vase that is occasionally picked up by His Excellency the Minister, and at the same time she is expecting more powerful support in her heart.

And Fran's arrival was such support - when Charles finally decided to let Fran come forward to represent her in the Railway Federation, Mary couldn't help but cheer, both for her friend and for the fact that she had finally got her wish.

As long as this friend is by her side as her signature, then she can be almost invincible, after all, one may suspect that His Excellency will abandon his mistress, but no one will doubt that he will abandon his own sister.

It is for this reason that Mary is bent on flattering the siblings, and is very active in controlling the scene for them first, waiting for them to come and add glory to herself.

Guided by Mary's laughter, the Tréville siblings arrived at the restaurant together, and by this time several important guests were already in place.

When they saw His Excellency the Chancellor and Lady Tréville, the others stood up and motioned to them, and Charles and Fran greeted them very politely, and then sat down together.

"Miss Treville, congratulations." As Fran sat down, Eugène Schneider greeted her with a smile, "You're so glamorous today." ”

"What a shame you say." Fran smiled at him and nodded, "My brother and I are so grateful for your continued help...... I also mentioned you to him today, and he said he would do everything he could to help you. ”

Although her voice was low, it sounded like a fairy to Eugène-Schneider - since accepting Charles's proposal and being closely associated with the Tréville family, he had received many benefits from His Excellency, which had brought his family business back to life, and instead had a chance to develop greatly, and it was precisely because His Excellency the Chancellor did what he said that he would change his previous precautionary attitude and be so cooperative with His Excellency's plan.

And he was specially called by Charles today, and he still wanted to use him to endorse himself, to play a role of waving the flag - and he was very aware of his duty.

"Don't worry, as long as you can use me, just tell me." Eugène-Schneider winked.

"It's great to have your help." Fran smiled even more cheerfully, and the corner of her eye was on Charles, who was sitting on the throne, while Charles was whispering to another man.

But unlike these two people, the expressions on their faces are not so happy.

"Your Excellency, it's really nice to see you again." Alphonse de Rothchild whispered hello to Charles, "Or rather, I'm really glad to have the opportunity to see you again." ”

Although he was smiling on the surface, his face was a little ugly, as if he was worried about something.

And there seems to be something in his words, questioning that Charles is deliberately avoiding him.

"I'm sorry, I followed His Majesty the Emperor to the Château de Fontainebleau, and I only recently had the opportunity to return to Paris, so I can meet my friends again today." Charles was also smiling, as if he hadn't heard the other party's implicit accusations.

Hearing Charles' evasion of the serious, Alphonse's face became even more ugly.

"I have to say that I was also greatly shocked, just like those people that day." After a moment's hesitation, Alphonse decided to take a position. "If you didn't mean to shock us, you could at least give us some news beforehand, even if it was to write us a letter in Fontainebleau."

This was a very unkind remark, and he was of course shocked by the fact that Charles had carried out a surprise attack on the other financiers in addition to a moratorium on their payments, and had completely opened his territory to Baron de Beauvan, without even giving them a notice.

However, although he wanted to see Charles several times and ask him about the situation, Charles had not appeared at the Palace of Fontainebleau at that time, so he had not had the opportunity to meet His Excellency the Minister until now.

And he also knew that it was too late to say anything now, but he was still angry in his heart, and the feeling of being fiddled with was too uncomfortable.

With the wealth and strength of the Rothchild family, of course, they were very eager to participate in the booming railway industry in France, so they also regarded the friendship of His Excellency Chancellor Tréville as the most important thing to achieve this goal, Alphonse always thought that he had accomplished this goal well, but when this surprise attack broke out, he was unprepared and caused chaos.

What embarrassed him even more was that he had always regarded himself as a "good friend of His Excellency Chancellor Tréville", and it was precisely by relying on this status that he was quite popular with the outside world and the favor within the family, but when this incident broke out, he didn't know anything in advance, and he didn't prepare for it at all, so of course he would be hit, and even some reproaches against him appeared within the family.

Because the blow was so big, it was difficult for him to maintain his original demeanor now, and he began to question Charles in full view of everyone - although his voice was small, his expression and attitude could not deceive people.

"What do you mean?" Charles asked rhetorically.

"This ...... Don't you know? Alphonse frowned again, looking even more unhappy. Well, I would venture to warn you that you have given Baron de Beauvan an exclusive monopoly on the loans to these enterprises, and I am not at all aware of the necessity and superiority of this......"

"Of course it's necessary, didn't I make it very clear before? This is the will of His Majesty. Because the other party's words were not very angry, Charles also became serious, "Your Majesty's will, we have no way to question it, and we can't question it, we can only resolutely implement it." ”

"It is Your Majesty's will to suspend the project, and it is also Your Majesty's will to suspend the repayment of debts, is it also Your Majesty's will to treat Baron de Beauvang as the God of Wealth?" Alphons, of course, would not believe Charles's casual explanation, "Your Excellency, be honest, I think you made the wrong decision. ”

With Alphonse de Rothschild's face-to-face questioning, the atmosphere in the restaurant stiffened at first, and he put aside his usual etiquette and threatened to ask Charles to give an explanation.

Some people were also dissatisfied with Charles's approach, so although they didn't say anything, they secretly cheered for Alphonse in their hearts, while Charles's supporters were very dissatisfied with his attitude and wanted to reprimand him, but they didn't interject because Charles didn't say anything.

In the midst of such a strange atmosphere, Charles raised his hand and gestured, signaling for the others not to interject.

Then he looked at Alphonse kindly again, "Don't worry, my friend, we are together today to connect with each other, not to hurt each other's feelings, are we?" ”

Charles asked rhetorically, and Alphonse felt a little restless.

He himself knew that he was a little unscrupulous in his anxiety just now, and he also knew that it would not be good for him to really fall out with His Excellency the Minister, so he had to suppress his excitement and laugh reluctantly.

"Your Excellency, you are right, we cherish our feelings with you very much, so we have always supported you without hesitation, and it is precisely because of this that when something bad happens, we are so sad......"

"I greatly admire the tireless efforts of His Excellency the Minister to revive the railways of the Empire and to help us industrialists," Eugène-Schneider suddenly spoke, "There is no doubt that we are facing a difficult time because of the changing times, but Your Excellency has made it easy for us to get through this difficult period, so I am personally grateful for Your Excellency's enthusiastic help." ”

In this slightly stiff atmosphere, Eugène-Schneider knew that it was time for him to come forward and cheer for His Excellency.

His statement also made Alphonse even more uncomfortable, for he found that he could not draw enough allies in spite of his rage, and that he could not shake the Chancellor's decision without forming a strong wave of opposition.

This young man, who had been pretentious since birth, had a rare taste of being at a loss after a smooth journey, and that feeling was particularly uncomfortable.

"My dear friend, there are not so many things in the world to be sad about, believe me, everything is not so bad." Still smiling, "It's lunch, after all, so let's have lunch before we talk." ”

"Yes, Your Excellency." Alphonse could only nod in agreement.

In this way, under the care of the waiters, lunch finally began, and although there was constant talk and laughter, everyone always had reservations between talking and laughing, and it was obvious that they still had a grudge.

However, Charles did not care about the slightly awkward atmosphere, and he talked and laughed with the people around him while eating, showing the demeanor of the Imperial Minister, and in this way showing his unshakable determination. Alphonse, on the other hand, changed his usual attitude of greeting, just eating with his head bored and not participating in anyone's conversation.

After lunch, as is customary, the guests began to lounge in the club's private rooms or entertain themselves in the lounge, and Charles took Fran and Mary to one of the lounges.

The lounge is just as lavishly furnished as the outside, with a pool table in the centre of the room.

"That Alphonse is so arrogant that he dares to speak to you like this!"

As soon as he arrived, Charles's confidant, the young Duke of Gaston de Choiseul Plasland, could not help but scold, "These Jews are really uninteresting! Who do they think they are? ”

The young man had been working with Charles for a long time, and after following him into his plans, the young man admired Charles even more, considering him an indispensable and important figure in the Empire, and it was for this reason that he was naturally indignant when he saw the Rothchild family speak so to His Excellency.

"Yes, sir, he's so arrogant that people can't see him." Fran was also very dissatisfied, "He is not qualified to treat you like this!" ”

"If we are at the mercy of this once, and we don't make people angry, then aren't we too domineering?" Charles didn't think much of himself, he walked over to the pool table, picked up a club, and then handed the other one to Gaston next to him, "Come, Gaston, play billiards with me." ”

"Huh?" The young duke was obviously a little surprised, "playing billiards...... Is it? ”

"Poor Gaston!" Charles couldn't help but laugh, "We just had lunch, shouldn't we exercise and digest the delicious food?" Besides, you've been so busy lately, it's time to take a break and have fun, isn't it? ”

"But aren't you going to meet that Rothchild later?" Gaston didn't seem to understand a little, but he subconsciously reached out and took the club that Charles handed over.

"Who said I was going to see him?" Charles picked up the cue stick, walked to the front of the table, and used the cue stick to compare the white cue ball in front of him. "It's not me who wants to see him, it's my sister."

"Miss Treville......?" Gaston was really surprised, and looked at Fran in surprise, "Are you going to let her deal with that Jew?" This...... Is that okay? ”

Even Fran was surprised. "You...... You want me to see him? ”

"What's not to do?" Charles asked rhetorically. "Since you are going to be involved in such a cause, it would be ideal to start with Rothschild, who are in a sense the most reasonable people - because they never have anything in their minds but money, and it is always convenient to talk to reasonable people. Besides, as long as you can summon them, then you don't have to fear anyone in the future."

"This ...... Is that so? Fran almost understood what her brother meant, but she still thought it was very strange.

"Don't be afraid, although you have no experience, but this is a small matter, with Mary and Gaston to help you, you will know everything you should know." Charles whispered, "and, if you come forward, you will represent me and allow him to speak freely—besides, he will not yell at a lady anyway, and your atmosphere will not be so bad." ”

Then, his tone became more serious, "This is an important lesson for you, you have to learn to subdue an ambitious, pretentious and wealthy person, because in the future you will definitely deal with many such people, these people have a high self-esteem, they want to swallow up the whole earth, they never want to bow down to others, they are also very hard-hearted, they will never change their opinions for anything, such people are very difficult to deal with, but you have to face them- And only when you learn how to parry them can you really do your job well, understand? ”

"Okay, I see." After hearing her brother's explanation, Fran was overjoyed.

As soon as she came out, she understood what that meant.

She nodded immediately.

"But what are you going me to talk to him about?"

"I'm going to suppress his arrogance in front of everyone, but I don't want to do it in private, because in any case, the Rothschild family is a very influential and wealthy family, and it is not good for us to get into too much trouble with them. You have to take a stand, but you also have to reassure him that everything is not completely messed up. ”

"Okay, I'll be kind to these Jews." Fran asked. "But how exactly are you going to appease them?"

"We're going to have to make the Jews feel like they still have a chance, and make them feel like they're a competitor with the Baron." Charles lowered his head and leaned into Fran's ear, "Otherwise, they will make trouble, if they cause us trouble, although I am not afraid, but it will not be easy to handle, I don't like to make trouble." ”

Fran listened attentively as Charles explained, and when he spoke, she turned her head to look at him. From her brother's smile, she understood his intentions and drew enough courage and strength.

"Okay, leave it to me! I won't let you down! ”

"I believe so, too." Charles shrugged, then turned his head to look at the pool table, then picked up the cue stick and slammed it into the cue ball.

The ivory balls of the white balls rolled on the velvet blanket, and then with a bang, a dozen balls scurried around.

"Gaston, let's continue to play billiards and relax!" (To be continued.) )