January, 1771. From the early hours of the 16th, the howling winter wind from the west wind carried the goose feathers and snow to every street and alley of Paris.

With this blizzard coming, seasoned citizens also know that the coldest day of the year has arrived.

With the advent of the cold wave, the citizens at the bottom are also looking forward to the seven million livres donated by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince at the Paris Comédie Theater.

It can be said that since the end of the charity auction, every morning I can see groups of poor people pooling money to buy the latest morning newspaper, wanting to know as soon as possible when the subsidy that is related to their lives will be distributed.

Even the less-than-dependent, well-to-do townspeople, and even the more affluent middle class, are very interested in the subsidy, which comes from their future king.

If His Royal Highness the Crown Prince does deliver on this gift perfectly, then these subjects can finally be assured and bold that their future monarch is a man of undoubted benevolence.

However, by midnight on the fifteenth, after the first drops of rain had condensed into snowflakes, the citizens had not received the slightest news of the seven million livres.

It was not until the early morning of the 16th that the long-awaited poor finally received the latest news about the subsidy.

However, what they were waiting for was not good news, but a piece of bad news: "The Countess du Barry has once again appropriated the second winter subsidy." "No one knows where this news came from, whether it was the drunken ramblings of a drunken man, or it may have been spread by someone with ulterior motives, but in any case, the source of this news is completely unverifiable.

The news sprung up like mushrooms in Paris, and almost overnight, most of Paris already knew that the lady in the Tuileries Palace had once again moved the seven million livres into her pocket.

At first, there was little trust in the almost groundless rumor, and the paupers comforted each other that it must have been fabricated by some madman who wanted to attract attention.

However, the turning point came on the morning of the 17th: the royal official in charge of the winter subsidy, Director Jonah, was at the theater when he was recognized by several reporters from the Daily Observer who were also present.

As soon as the theatre ended, the reporters refused to pass up this excellent opportunity to interview, and they immediately surrounded Director Jonah and asked him if the recent rumours about Madame du Barry were true.

To the surprise of the reporters and all the onlookers, Director Jonah did not engage in the usual perfunctory and prevarication, but rather admitted the truth of the news very implicitly.

It was entirely to be expected that on the morning of the 18th, the suspected confirmation of Madame Dubarry's misappropriation of the subsidy money immediately appeared on the first three pages of the major newspapers, and the daily observer newspaper bluntly wrote on the front page: "Seven million relief money is missing—the thief is the woman in the palace." For a time, the whole Île-de-France was shocked by the news.

The magnates and gentlemen took this incident as a piece of gossip, and lamented Madame du Barry's greed, but they did not expect that she would have the courage to embezzle the second subsidy funds.

As for the poor at the bottom, they don't laugh at this news as lightly as the powerful.

The townspeople could not have imagined that the four million livres that Madame Dubarry had embezzled before could not satisfy the greedy mouth of this woman, so much so that they would stretch their minions into the seven million livres.

This money is about whether they can survive in this cannibalistic metropolis, and whether their wives and children can see the first wildflowers of spring.

His Excellency Bonaparte and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince gave them hope to live, but before that hope could take root in this frozen soil, it would be uprooted and killed by the damned woman.

Their blood and tears, in the end, were not as good as a touch of pearl on that woman's body. Shocked, surprised, angry.

Every small citizen has no more than this reaction after seeing this news. Repeatedly deprived of what they deserve, deprived of everything they depend on for their survival, even the most cowardly feel that blood begins to boil in the face of this cruel injustice.

On January 18, hundreds of citizens tried to return to the Champ de Mars to start a new revolt in the place where their first protest rally took place.

Hundreds of sparks immediately ignited the anger of the citizens, and in just half an hour, more than 300 people gathered on the Champ de Mars, half of whom were not even the poor at the bottom, but the burghers who opposed the extravagance and waste of the royal family.

They stood hand in hand, shouting their pleas, demanding that Madame du Barry herself come before and explain the guilt of all this.

However, the revolt did not last long, and the round-the-clock Paris police force effortlessly extinguished the spark.

The police and soldiers have long been aware of the rumors and boiling grievances that have arisen in recent days, and the number of soldiers sent to patrol the streets has doubled compared to previous days, and the sound of horses' hooves of mounted police has been resounding in the streets and alleys all the time.

Trained Mounted Police soldiers easily broke down the wall of protesters, and a large number of police soldiers followed closely behind the Mounted Police and began to arrest the protesters who had been stormed in the square.

Soon, the soldiers arrested more than 50 people at the Champ de Mars, and the rest of the protesters had to flee in all directions, burrowing into the deep and winding alleys of Paris.

After such a fierce clashes, most of the police and soldiers felt that the mob would be in peace for a while.

However, what these policemen did not expect at all was that a revolt that would spread throughout Paris was still brewing.

The fall of a group of predecessors will not only not extinguish the flames of rebellion in the hearts of the citizens, but will stimulate the anger and blood in their bones.

In such a tense and anxious atmosphere, the time came to the next day. ... On January 19, early in the morning, it was sunny after the snow.

Paris, Tuileries Palace, inside the King's Suite.

"You mean, my dear Jeanne took the seven million into her own pocket?" Louis XV, who was listening to the latest news about the recent city of Paris.

"I'm not sure, Your Majesty, it's just that the people are spreading like this." The press secretary said sternly: "Perhaps you can ask Mrs. Dubarry and Director Jonah in person." At this time, the palace steward stood up and reminded: "Your Majesty, Madame du Barry and Director Jonah are not in the palace at this time, and they will not return to the palace until evening. ”

"Oh? Where did both of them go? I said why I didn't see Jeanne when I woke up today. Louis XV asked with a little displeasure.

"Director Jonah is out there preparing for the subsidy to be distributed." The palace steward recalled, "As for Madame du Barry... She had left the palace early this morning, and she had left in a hurry, as if she was going to see a friend..."

"Friends? Forget it, let's wait for Jeanne to get back. Louis XV shook his head in distraught, and then the king's face darkened, and he said to himself: "I hope my dear Jeanne will not do such stupid things, she probably won't." ”... At the same time, the top floor of the station of the Paris police force.

"I'll leave it to you, Brother Giovanni." An exhausted police colonel returned to the garrison with a yawn and smiled and patted Colonel Giovanni on the shoulder.

The colonel had just finished his rotation, and it was Colonel Giovanni's turn to take over the command and take charge of the police officers of all Paris.

Colonel Giovanni looked preoccupied, staring out the window blankly, until the colonel patted him on the shoulder, he woke up suddenly, and nodded with a forced smile: "It's really hard work to be on duty at night, go rest man." The police colonel did not take Giovanni's distraction seriously, after all, he had also heard that this hapless colleague had offended His Excellency Bonaparte for the second time recently, and thought that Colonel Giovanni was still worried about His Excellency Bonaparte's revenge.

"That's right." Before leaving, the policeman colonel reminded, "You have to keep an eye on the area around the Champ de Mars, where dozens of mobs were arrested yesterday, and those guys have been restless lately. Alas, it's all those gossip about the ghosts, damn it. ”

"I understand, rest assured." Colonel Giovanni smiled wryly, watching as the colonel simply packed up his belongings and yawned and left the station.

Soon, Colonel Giovanni was left alone on the top floor of the empty station. Colonel Giovanni, who took over the command, couldn't help but take a deep breath and looked out the window with a blank expression.

His whole body tensed, even trembling slightly, and his facial expression was tense like that of a death row inmate about to be guillotined.

And there was only one thing that could make this imposing police colonel so nervous: what His Excellency Bonaparte asked him to do was today, in the six hours that he was in command.

Six hours later, Colonel Giovanni was about to say goodbye to the land where he had lived for decades, and immediately took his wife and children to Corsica and become a Corsican for the rest of his life.

Looking out the window at the white expanse of snow, Colonel Giovanni could not help but feel a sense of sadness in his heart, and he stared blankly at the snowy scene of Paris, not thinking about anything.

But time did not allow the colonel to be sad for too long: "Sir! Sir! Suddenly, in the midst of a hurried shout, an adjutant violently pushed open the door, he had long been ignoring the etiquette of knocking on the door, and immediately shouted at Colonel Giovanni: "There is a situation, it is on the Île de la Cité!" It's still the mob! Colonel Giovanni still looked out the window as if he hadn't heard, and after a while, he turned around and nodded expressionlessly, without a hint of surprise at the news: "What's wrong with the Île de la Cité, let's be careful." ”

"Yes, yes, sir...", the adjutant calmed down a little, swallowed his saliva, and said, "The mob has begun to gather again, this time in front of the gates of the Palace of Justice on the Île de la Cité!" According to the patrol over there, the number of mobs involved in the rally was far greater than expected, I am afraid that there were thousands of people, and people kept rushing over there! Even the Pont Saint-Louis on both sides of the Île de la Cité is clogged with crowds! ”

"Sure enough," Colonel Giovanni bowed his head, sighed softly, and muttered in a soft voice. The adjutant glanced at Colonel Giovanni with some bewilderment, and continued anxiously: "Sir, I suspect that this is a premeditated rally! The soldiers on the island and the nearby forces alone are far from enough to suppress them, and we must send reinforcements! Colonel Giovanni nodded, pondered for a long time, and then ordered in a deep voice: "I will immediately lead my troops to the Île de la Cité, and you shall immediately go and convey my order, and the police soldiers on and near the island must not clash with the mob." ”... Almost at the same time, the Île de la Cité, the pearl of the heart of the Seine, home to the Palais de Justice, Notre-Dame Cathedral and Sainte-Chapelle.

"Unite! Don't back down! In the midst of the rolling crowd, Oga Kumas waved the flagpole in his hand, stood in front of the gate of the Palace of Justice and shouted: "Compatriots, we can no longer endure that woman's greed!" And fellow judges in the door! If you still claim the fairness and justice of the law, you should accede to our request and summon that woman to the Palace of Justice! Let her be tried in the High Court! Behind Oga Kumas was a sea of people as far as the eye could see, a vast sea of citizens who were angry at the injustice.

No one knows how these men came to the Île de la Cité, as if in a matter of moments, hundreds of demonstrators were present in front of the Palais de Justice.

And this demonstration also ignited the anger in the hearts of citizens for the second time in an instant. In a very short period of time, more and more ordinary people have heard the news and joined the protests, and within an hour, the number of demonstrators on the island of the Cité has exceeded 2,000, and the number is growing rapidly.

The people shouted in the wake of Oga and shook the city like thunder, the flames of rebellion fluttered in the sky, and the burning enthusiasm and the cries of resistance against oppression mingled in the air, inspiring everyone.

The whole island of Cité was filled with citizens who had heard the news, and the crowd of people raged like a raging fire on every inch of Île Cité.

Even the Pont Saint-Louis on both sides of the island, which links Paris to the city, was filled with demonstrators from all directions from the west, all looking indignantly at the towering palace of justice in the center of the island, and mixing their voices into the crowd's cry: "Judgment must be made!" For justice! ”

"Madame du Barry on trial! There's no room for manoeuvre! ”

"That woman must pay for her crimes!" Oga Kumas also waved the flagpole in his hand in the midst of this roar, and the light blue flag was painted on the front to symbolize the scales of fairness, and on the reverse side was painted the sword symbolizing judgment.

His cry stirred everyone's hearts and ignited endless enthusiasm and anger in the hearts of the people.

No one knew who the young man who was waving the flag and shouting in the middle of the crowd was, just as all the demonstrators did not know each other, but this did not prevent Oga Kumas's appeal from quickly reaching the ears of all those present and becoming their common demand.

Thousands of Parisians gathered in this small place, surrounding the entire Palais de Justice, waiting for the response of the Paris High Court in the Palais de Justice.

Oga Kumas planted the flagpole on the ground, and excitedly glanced back at the boundless crowd that rushed to the scene, and suddenly felt that the blood vessels in his body began to heat and boil.

Although this was the task of His Excellency Bonaparte, the sewer man never imagined that he would one day be able to stand in the same sunlight with thousands of people, waving the flag for fairness and justice.

At this moment, one of the demonstrators in the crowd quietly touched Oga Kumas's side and whispered in his ear: "Chief, there are people from the police force, do you want our people to retreat first?" Oga Kumas frowned slightly, and glanced across the river from the higher ground, and sure enough, a large group of heavily armed police soldiers were approaching the Île de la Citti.

The demonstrator glanced at the banner held aloft in Oga Kumas's hand and reminded in an urgent tone: "Either way, you should leave first, Chief!" Those police officers will definitely treat you as the prime offender. ”

"No, I'm not going to evacuate." After less than a second of hesitation, Oga Coomas shook his head resolutely and said, "Let the others decide for themselves whether to stay on the Île de la Cité, but I will definitely stay here and never leave." With that, Oga Coomas glanced at the approaching reinforcements of the police force, tightened his grip on the flagpole in his hand, and thought to himself: "Now is the time for me to trust you, Your Excellency Bonaparte." ”