"I, Neo Joseph-Diane, in my capacity as Austrian Ambassador Plenipotentiary to France, lodge a solemn protest against the treason of your Foreign Secretary, Caesar Gabriel!"

Prince Neo's voice wasn't loud, it just reached everyone's ears.

But the expressions of everyone who heard the voice were full of astonishment, as if Prince Neo was speaking not French, but an obscure foreign Chinese.

What's going on?

The Austrian ambassador went so far as to propose impeachment against the cousin of the Duke of Choiseul, Foreign Minister Caesar Gabriel? Wasn't he a good friend of the Duke of Choiseul?

You know, the alliance agreement between France and Austria, including the marriage between the crown prince and the crown princess, these are all diplomatic achievements created by the two together, and there are almost no disputes between the two in the process of cooperation and negotiation.

What's more, the Schwarcel family was originally from Germany, and the duke's father was once an advisor to the previous Emperor of the HRE and Maria Theresa's husband Franz I, including Lieutenant General Jacques Philippe, who also served as a close attendant in the Austrian court, and everyone believed that Prince Neo should be one of the most staunch allies of Duke Shuiseul.

This sudden betrayal was completely unexpected by everyone present, including Caesar Gabriel herself.

"What?!"

Gabriel did not comprehend for a moment what was happening, and remained where he was, not moving, letting the ministers in the room tilt their stunned and confused gazes on him.

Although he and Prince Neo did not have a close personal relationship, the friendship between the two had always been just right, which also gave Gabriel a dreamlike trance, completely unable to accept such a friend's betrayal without warning.

"Why the hell?! Was it a directive from the Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna? No, if that's the case, there's no way I didn't get the message..."

Gabriel struggled to use the part of his brain that wasn't yet down, racking his brain to figure out what motivates Prince Neo to stand in Apollo Hall at such a time.

He immediately denied that this was an instruction from the Austrian side.

After all, the Schwarseul family also had many friends and old ministers in the Austrian court, and such a major foreign policy could not be completely kept secret in advance, and some rumors would inevitably leak out, and he Gabriel did not receive any information at all.

"So it's Prince Neo's own decision, what the hell is he thinking... Is there a conspiracy with anyone, damn it, who the hell is!"

Gabriel gritted his teeth and stared at Prince Neo as the anger of Lawrence surged back into his heart, turning his entire face reddish.

In the center of the Apollo Room, Prince Neo stood calmly in the red velvet aisle, without much explanation, ignoring the incredulous whispers of the ministers on either side, just waiting quietly for the Duke of Orleans to speak.

The French ministers understood the doubts of the Prince of Neo, but he was also well aware that the Duke of Choiseul was a powerful ally under Louis XV, but when the new king ascended the throne, he would inevitably become a great threat.

In addition to the long-term purpose of helping Marie Antoinette take control of the French court, he agreed to cooperate with Lawrence against the Duke of Choiseul, and also to prevent Choiseul, a fanatical warmonger, from dragging Austria into another great war.

The Duke of Choiseul was known for his belligerence, and he was constantly reforming and expanding his armaments, and he did his best to preach war to Louis XV, hoping to bring the humiliation of defeat in the Seven Years' War on the battlefield as soon as possible before the English digested the recovery of their overseas colonies.

Louis XV was not the only one who was disgusted by the Duke of Choiseul's aggressive pursuit of war, but Maria Theresa of Austria and her son, Joseph II, the new emperor of the Empire, had no interest in a new continental war.

Both mother and son want to focus their energies at home, and Austria has already lost to Prue in the last two major battles

They did not want to be dragged into the quagmire of war by the French again after less than a ten-year truce to face Frederick the Great and his Prussian Iron Army.

Empress Theresa saw her future alliance with France as a mutual defense agreement, which she hoped would be an umbrella for Austria's development and respite, rather than a source of calamity for the relapse of war.

Although Prince Neo did not receive direct instructions from the mainland, he still knew the will of Empress Teresa very clearly.

And he also very much agreed with the judgment of the young man Lawrence Bonaparte - the maintenance of the Franco-Austrian alliance did not depend on the Duke of Choiseul, but on the marriage of the crown prince and the crown princess, which meant that the disposal of the Duke of Schouisell would not damage the relationship between the two countries, so that Prince Neo could act boldly and confidently.

"You... You are going to file an impeachment petition against our foreign secretary?"

Although the Duke of Orleans was also a little dazed, he quickly came to his senses and calmly presided over the process that the Imperial Council should have:

"You also mentioned treason, what the hell is this...?"

Prince Neo nodded, and said in a shocking word:

"That's right, Your Excellency, I already have evidence of your foreign secretary's affair with the British!"

This sentence once again caused an uproar among the ministers, and the ministers looked at each other, and their shocked expressions had not dissipated at all since just now.

Illicit affair with the British, or as Foreign Secretary? If this charge is confirmed, it would be an out-and-out felony, even if Gabriel was a cousin of the Duke of Choiseul.

"This—" The Duke of Orleans couldn't help but wipe the beads of sweat from his forehead, he didn't expect this supposed ordinary routine meeting to rise so sharply.

Now he had to look at Gabriel in embarrassment, and asked according to the process:

"Gabriel, what are your charges against Prince Neo..."

"Nonsense!"

Before the Duke of Orleans could finish asking, Caesar Gabriel whispered impatiently:

"I had an affair with an Englishman? I have never heard a more ridiculous joke than this, Your Royal Highness, I have never had any grievances with you, and I ask you not to slander me so blatantly, otherwise I will lodge a solemn protest with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of your country and ask for a new ambassador to France."

"Hmph, whether it's slander or not, please ask your country to investigate it yourself."

Instead of looking at the annoyed Gabriel, Prince Neo took out a stack of papers and handed them to a squire beside him, who stepped forward to deliver the evidence to the Duke of Orleans, and explained:

"I have conducted an investigation through my own private network, and I am now convinced that your country's foreign secretary has accepted bribes from the United Kingdom, and thus made voluntary concessions to the British side in a number of diplomatic negotiations, several of which have seriously damaged our interests, and of course, your country should have suffered more losses."

The Duke of Orleans took the evidentiary documents presented by Prince Neo, many of which were personal letters.

The subject matter of the above content is also very concise and clear, nakedly recording the instructions given by the British Embassy to Caesar Gabriel, as well as the amount of each bribe, and each letter is vividly printed with Gabriel's personal seal, but the naked eye cannot distinguish whether the seal is real or fake.

"This..."

The Duke of Orleans frowned and read a few letters, and to be honest, his first instinct told him that they were forgeries.

After all, no matter how energetic an Austrian ambassador is, it is impossible to get the original letters of the French foreign secretary and the British, not to mention that the content of these letters is too explicit, it is almost like Gabriel himself calling "I am a *** traitor" on the stationery.

"Let me see!"

Gabriel jumped on the throne in a rage, took the letter from the Duke of Orleans, and as soon as he read one, he couldn't help but sneer and shout:

"Your Royal Highness, are you sure this is the so-called evidence? The handwriting on it is not half as good as mine

I can tell that it's forged without any identification, and that my personal seal is actually missing a corner, haven't you noticed?"

The ministers were even more puzzled, and they all looked at His Royal Highness the Prince, wondering what he wanted to do.

"I have submitted the evidence, and as for the authenticity, it will be up to your country to verify it."

Prince Neo said indifferently:

"In addition, in addition to these letters, I have here a piece of evidence, which comes from the Paris Stock Exchange, and I happen to find that you have a large number of securities assets of unknown origin in your name, and the amount of bribes in these letters is also fully consistent."

As he spoke, Prince Neo presented a document again, looked at Gabriel with a frown with a smile, and said with a smile:

"You said that those letters were forged, but this certificate of disclosure of assets is from an official agency in your country, what do you want to explain?"

"What?! What kind of security assets, I've never touched anything like that..."

Before the Duke of Orleans could check it, Gabriel took the lead in grabbing the property certificate, looking at the assets listed on it with a pale face, and his voice became lower and lower:

"How is this possible..."

The Duke of Orleans, who was on the side, sighed worriedly, and his instincts told him once again that this document might be genuine, but Caesar Gabriel would never have these so-called securities assets in his name.

After all, the Duke of Orleans also knew the Choiseul family very well, and knew that traditional nobles like them, especially the big nobles, basically had no interest in the financial industry, let alone purchased so many securities assets in their names.

What's more, even if Gabriel did accept these bribes, he would not be stupid enough to put all these securities in his own name.

Of course, only a very small number of people can be as keen as the Duke of Orleans, and most of the ministers still looked at the official certificate in Gabriel's hand in shock, secretly thinking to themselves that the cousin of the Duke of Choiseul was really an embezzler?!

"It's a false accusation, but why would Prince Neo do this... Isn't it?"

The Duke of Orleans pondered, and suddenly his pupils shook, and he whispered to himself:

"Isn't it only the Austrian ambassador who is plotting this... The Paris Stock Exchange, and the only minister they have recently come to is ...!"

And almost at the same time, the Duke of Orleans and Caesar Gabriel thought to go together.

After a very brief moment of stunnedness, the Foreign Secretary suddenly turned his head and stared at Lawrence, who seemed to be in the crowd as if he had nothing to do with him, and his voice was low and angry:

"Lawrence Bonaparte... I remember that you knew the chairman of the Paris Stock Exchange very well, and if I remember correctly, it was my brother who introduced you to the meeting, how did you have the audacity to frame me with such a little trick?!"

As soon as this remark came out, the audience was shocked again.

Could it be that His Excellency Bonaparte was also involved in this impeachment?! Shouldn't he also be a protégé of Duke Choiseul?!

And Lawrence just shook his head in a daze:

"What the hell are you talking about? This seems to be the internal affairs of your Ministry of Foreign Affairs, so how can it have anything to do with Zaixia?"

Although Lawrence's performance was seamless, with Gabriel's reminder, the ministers also woke up to the fact that since His Excellency Bonaparte was very familiar with the Paris Stock Exchange, he may not be involved in today's incident.

At the very least, it is very likely that the certificate of property submitted by Prince Neo has nothing to do with His Excellency Bonaparte, since it is almost impossible for an Austrian ambassador to obtain an official forged certificate.

"Is Your Excellency Bonaparte about to begin to show his fangs in the French political arena?"

This is also the first thought in the minds of many ministers:

"But there seems to be something wrong with Lord Bonaparte's choice of target, Caesar Gabriel, the Duke's cousin, what threat can such a little trick pose to him..."

And on the throne platform, Gabriel is

Angrily pointing at Lawrence, he shouted angrily:

"Don't pretend to be garlic for me, you..."

"Enough! Gabriel!" The Duke of Orleans interrupted his roar with a frown, and placed the Imperial Scepter in his hand across Gabriel's chest:

"This is the Imperial Council, and you must not be rude in front of Your Majesty!"

Gabriel glanced at the scepter, which symbolized the king's authority, gritted his teeth, threw down the documents in his hand, and returned to the ranks without saying a word.

Seeing this, Prince Neo also returned to his position, leaving all this to the Duke of Orleans, as regent, and at the same time silently said in his heart:

"Alright, Lord Bonaparte, my mission is complete, let me see how you fight against the cousin of the Duke of Choiseul."

There was a brief silence in the Apollo Chamber, and the Duke of Orleans stared at the few pieces of evidence in his hand, thinking about what to do next.

Although this evidence is absurd, it was an official impeachment by Prince Neo in the name of the Austrian ambassador, and the Duke of Orleans could not ignore the close relationship between the two countries, even if the prince's own status was not considered.

Of course, he could not have convicted Caesar Gabriel on the basis of these documents alone, and although he was regent, he did not yet have the power to remove a cabinet minister from office in the first word.

After thinking for a moment, the Duke of Orleans had no choice but to make a compromise and announced aloud:

"His Royal Highness has filed an impeachment petition and submitted the corresponding evidence, and Ministers, the Royal Vote is now held to decide whether or not to conduct an investigation into the crimes of Foreign Secretary Caesar Gabriel."

Hearing the Regent's decision, Caesar Gabriel sneered proudly, since the vote was going to be held, then this playful impeachment would have no effect on himself, after all, many of the ministers standing here were members of the Shuwasel faction.

And Prince Neo didn't care about it, just nodded slightly.

He also understood the decision of the Duke of Orleans not to offend anyone, which was equivalent to telling himself:

"Your impeachment petition has been received and processed according to the standard process, but if our ministers vote not to investigate, it will be none of my business as regent."

The Duke of Orleans, after making a symbolic assurance, said aloud:

"Raise your hand, then, if you agree to an investigation into the Foreign Secretary."

As the words fell, the echo of the Duke of Orleans continued to vibrate and refract in the Apollo Room, gradually calming down.

However, the ministers below did not act at all as if they were indifferent and did not hear the order, and even the members of the Richelieu faction chose not to make any statement.

Several of the ministers in the middle tried to raise their right hands in resignation, but their arms were raised in the air for less than three seconds before they were glared at by Caesar Gabriel's furious gaze.

Caesar Gabriel turned his head even more triumphantly to glare at Lawrence, and proclaimed his victory with contemptuous gaze, as if to say:

"Boy, your methods are simply too immature to mention."

The Duke of Orleans was also relieved when he saw this, so that at least this imperial council could be declared over here.

And Prince Neo still didn't change his face, still smiling shallowly, but he looked at Lawrence with more interest in his eyes, and said secretly in his heart:

"What is your hand, Lord Bonaparte, this meeting is coming to an end."

"Ahem..."

The Duke of Orleans cleared his throat, still symbolically assigned the attendants in the throne hall to count the results of the vote, and then solemnly announced in public, word by word:

"Thus, by a public vote of the Ministers of State, I declare in the name of the Regent that we have decided not to respond to Prince Neo's request for impeachment, we have decided not to do so, Caesar Gabriel, the Minister of Foreign Affairs..."

Caesar Gabriel's smile widened, and Prince Neo's eyes narrowed into a line

Lens, on the other hand, looked at the Duke of Orleans with a blank face, only occasionally looking out of the corner of his eye at the door of the throne room.

And at this moment, a loud shout from the gate suddenly interrupted the announcement of the Duke of Orleans:

"Wait!"

The ministers were startled again, and quickly turned their heads to look, only to see a royal envoy appear at the gate at some point.

The envoy was followed by four royal guards with halberds and swords, but before everyone could react, the four guards rushed straight into the throne hall, directly pressing the dazed Gabriel to the ground, and tying him up in an instant.

"Damn bastard, do you know who I am!" Caesar Gabriel was stunned for a moment, and then shouted in disbelief, not daring to imagine that one of his cabinet ministers would be treated so harshly in the Palace of Versailles:

"I'm here for a meeting, what are you going to do?"

The royal envoy met the eyes of the ministers, slowly walked through the aisle, stood in front of the empty silver throne, held high the heavy parchment in his hand, and read aloud:

"By His Majesty's decree that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Caesar Gabriel, be immediately removed from all his duties, and that a joint commission of inquiry shall be formed by the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Paris Stock Exchange and the Paris High Court to conduct a thorough investigation into the charges of corruption and treason, and to imprison Caesar Gabriel in the Bastille with the highest possible standards during the investigation, and not to leave the country himself; The detention is under the responsibility of the Royal Guard, and all orders are to be carried out immediately."

After the edict was announced, not only the ministers in the throne hall, but even Gabriel himself and the Duke of Orleans were stunned and did not come back to their senses for a long time.

Even the unfathomable Prince Neo couldn't help but show a moment of surprise on his face, and his gaze at Lawrence became even hotter, and he silently said excitedly:

"I see, is the king of France already going to do something to Choiseul, no wonder, no wonder... Lawrence Bonaparte was a clever man who borrowed a knife to kill someone."

And for the other ministers, they also sorted out the situation on the scene after a brief shock:

Is His Majesty's eyes still on the Palace of Versailles?!

None of this had escaped Louis XV's eyes, and His Majesty, having learned of Prince Neo's impeachment, had dismissed a cabinet minister and imprisoned him as a complete surprise.

Was His Majesty's move to maintain friendly relations with Austria and to appease Prince Neo, or was there something else to the edict...

As soon as they thought of this, the ministers also instantly felt a burst of creepy, and they couldn't help but feel a chill in their backs.

They vaguely expected that the political situation in France, which had been quiet for several months, was finally going to change, and those undercurrent forces were probably about to surface.

Caesar Gabriel, who had fallen to the ground, obviously did not have time to think about this, and at the moment he still did not accept this cruel reality, but stared at Lawrence Bonaparte who was looking down at him in disbelief.

Lawrence calmly looked down at Gabriel, then looked away from his former ally without any mood swings.

The political arena is so cruel, and although Gabriel helped Lawrence a lot in the establishment of the Corsican embassy and in Paris, Lawrence also had to let him end from this ruthless stage.

Gabriel, who was limp and weak, was dragged out of the throne room by four guards, his face turned pale, and he still did not realize how Laurence Bonaparte, a Corsican, could bring down his foreign secretary.

And by the time the foreign secretary came to his senses, he had already been taken to the Bastille in a prison van:

Lawrence Bonaparte was really incapable of dealing with himself, and all he did was hand a knife to His Majesty.

No matter how shoddy the evidence and documents were, no matter how ridiculous Prince Neo's impeachment seemed,

None of this mattered, all His Majesty needed was a valid reason to kill people with a knife, a reasonable excuse to eradicate the members of the Chowasselle faction in the cabinet.

It was not the damned Corsican who really pronounced his political death sentence, but His Majesty the King, who lived in the dormitory and was sick in bed, but kept an eye on the court and the government.

Gabriel, who was in the prison car, looked up to the sky and sighed:

"Has the king already started to do it, Lawrence Bonaparte, the king is using this Corsican... Or is it this Corsican who is using the king?"

These thoughts were irrelevant, and Gabriel had to pin all his hopes on his brother, the Duke of Choiseul, who was in power.

Regardless of the final outcome of the duke-king struggle, his former foreign minister had to be temporarily removed from the French political scene.

......

In the Apollo Room, Lawrence watched closely as Gabriel was led out of the throne room by the four guards, and watched their figures disappear into the corridors of the Venus Hall, and Lawrence breathed a sigh of relief.

It seems that His Majesty the King on the sickbed also tacitly understood his intentions, and directly took advantage of the situation to get rid of the most important chess piece that Chowasel had planted in the Foreign Office.

Through this tacit cooperation, Lawrence believed that he had shown his consciousness to His Majesty that he was confronting the Duke of Choiseul.

And then, it's up to Lawrence to collect his own pay.

"Your Excellency!"

Lawrence took the initiative to stand in line and proposed to the Duke of Orleans on the stage under the gaze of everyone:

"The role of the Foreign Office is of paramount importance, and a department of this magnitude cannot be left without its owner overnight, and now that Caesar Gabriel has been relieved of his duties, we urgently need a new Foreign Secretary."

The Duke of Orleans didn't seem to have reacted from the sudden edict, and he was stunned for a moment before nodding again and again, looking at Lawrence with a complicated expression:

"That's true, but there are very few people who can take on this important role, so you have the right person?"

At this point, the Duke of Orleans also figured out the true intention of Lawrence and Louis XV - to take back the Foreign Office from Choiseul.

Lawrence did not make a fool of himself, and directly said the only candidate in public, and the only candidate in His Majesty's heart:

"Count Vergeg, Charles Gravier."

Hearing this name, there was a discussion among the ministers:

"Gravier? Choiseul's nemesis in the diplomatic world?"

"Shhhh Is that so?"

"His qualifications do match, no, he should be the only one who meets the requirements in this situation."

The Duke of Orleans also understood the name in an instant, after all, he was entitled to see the shadow cabinet list.

The Duke nodded heavily, did not vote again, looked directly at the royal envoy and said:

"I beg you to present your Majesty, with regard to the vacant post of Foreign Secretary, and our courtiers have elected the Earl of Vergegor to fill it."

The royal envoy bowed his head slightly, and then left the Apollo Room and walked quickly to the king's suite.

......

Half an hour later, in an ordinary reception room in the side hall of the Palace of Versailles.

"Whew... Whew, relax, Charles..."

Despite the constant words to relax, the Count of Vergegor remained nervously in this cramped little room, taking out his pocket watch every few tens of seconds to look at the time, and muttering a few words worriedly:

"The Imperial Council should have ended long ago, what the hell is going on in Apollo Hall."

Early this morning, the Count of Vergegue arrived at Versailles with the Ministers of State attending the meeting.

However, his former ambassador, who had long since been dismissed, was not qualified to attend the meeting.

Even since he was twenty years old, he stayed abroad all the year round

The servants and courtiers of the palace did not recognize the diplomat's name, and it was for the sake of his countdom that they reluctantly placed him in this cramped and dusty waiting room.

Of course, as a "foreigner" in the mouth of the nobles, the Count of Vergegon has long been accustomed to these cold eyes and discrimination.

His only concern now was whether the promise made to him three days earlier would be fulfilled.

The position of Foreign Secretary, which undoubtedly wielded power even in the Cabinet, had more than once wondered whether he, a former ambassador who had been almost exhausted, really had the opportunity to touch that supreme scepter.

You know, even His Excellency Bonaparte's own status, I'm afraid that he is about the same as the foreign secretary, can he really make himself a step to the sky?

And as the minutes passed, the Count of Vergegaux's suspicions deepened, and his hopes were gradually dashed.

After a while, he put away his pocket watch and smiled bitterly to himself:

"That's it, the meeting is probably over a long time ago, and I should go back..."

Bang bang bang!

Just as the Count of Vergegor was savoring the disappointment with a bitter look on his face, there was a sudden knock on the door of the reception room.

Before he could say the word "please come in", the man outside impatiently pushed the door open.

The visitor was a court official, and judging by his attire, the Earl of Vergegue was certain that he was a high-ranking courtier of the rank of director.

The court director was followed by several servants, all of whom had just been in charge of receiving the Count of Vergerg.

These servants had given Count Vergegon a lot of cold glances and faces just now, but at this moment, their expressions were very subtle, mixed with a bit of obvious horror.

"Oh my God! I've finally found you..."

The court master was out of breath, and it looked like he had made a long run in search of the Earl of Vergerg.

He frowned and glanced at the reception room where Count Vergeg was, and immediately said angrily to the servants:

"You dog-brains have put Master Gravier in a place like this utility room! I can't wait for it...!"

As he spoke, the supervisor clenched his fists and beckoned to the head of the servant at the head.

The Count of Vergegon stepped forward in a panic and stopped the other party, and dissuaded him repeatedly:

"You don't have to be like this, Your Excellency, I'm fine here, and I'm not an adult, just call me Mr. Gravier."

The palace director hurriedly bowed respectfully, and said quickly and respectfully:

"No, I have to call you an adult, it's etiquette... Oh there's no time for nonsense, please come with me at once, His Majesty the King can't wait."

Count Vergek was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously asked, "Your Majesty?"

"The former Foreign Secretary, Caesar Gabriel, has been dismissed, and upon the recommendation of the Minister and appointed by His Majesty, you are now the new Foreign Minister of the Kingdom of France."

The court superintendent ignored the jaw that Count Vergegon could not close for a long time, and said solemnly:

"Please come with me immediately to meet Your Majesty for a debriefing... Unless you intend to decline the appointment."

"The new one... Foreign Secretary?"

A feeling of dizziness made Count Vergego almost unable to think for a moment, and it was like pouring five glasses of whiskey in one go, and he felt a dreamlike trance.

Lord Bonaparte, did he really do it?!

"Also... That is to say, I—" The Count of Vergeg's voice shuddered uncontrollably, and incoherently confirmed to the court director that this was not a dream of empty joy:

"I'm going to take charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs now?"

The court superintendent looked solemn and made a final confirmation to him in the most serious tone:

"Yes, Chancellor."