The empty café is filled with the strong smell of coffee and tobacco.

The quiet and laid-back café is thrown into chaos by a sudden duel, which comes and goes like a spring thunderstorm.

In the corner of the café, several gentlemen who had just shouted and shouted to kill sat calmly, each of them dressed in well-tailored black tuxedos, with a white silk scarf on the neckline against the slender neck, and a delicate silver-plated coffee cup in their hands, with an elegant and calm posture.

They sat around a round table covered with snow-white linen, on which were scattered several copies of the day's Le Figaro and Le Zeit, as if the mess in the café had nothing to do with them, but the coffee in their hands and the newspaper on the table were their world.

The amber liquid ripples slightly in the porcelain cup, giving off an alluring aroma, as if it were a sea of tranquility independent of the world.

They gently blow on the air, take a sip, and then close their eyes to taste, letting the bitterness and sweetness intertwine on the tip of their tongues, as if they are interpreting the philosophy of life with their taste buds. Occasionally, they stir sugar cubes with a slender silver spoon in a gentle and rhythmic motion.

As for the owner of the café, he was standing beside them with a smile on his face at this time, holding a pen in one hand and holding the menu in the other, diligently recording the orders of several gentlemen. For the sake of the snow-white, ink-scented cheque in his jacket pocket, which loomed with the Rothschild Bank logo looming in his head, he didn't particularly blame the rude guys for ruining his business and ruining his well-renovated little restaurant.

He only whispered to the gentlemen who had made a lot of money: "A few gentlemen can come as many as you can in the future." ”

Arthur held the coffee cup and carefully blew the hot air coming out: "So, the misunderstanding has been solved?" ”

Pooh began, "Uh...... Actually, I don't know much about it. However, all in all, Adele had been rejecting Sainte-Beuve for four or five years, but for some reason, Hugo and Adele's relationship between husband and wife had a rift at some point, so Sainte-Beuve was allowed to succeed. In order to maintain the appearance of a model family, for the growth of their children, Hugo and Adele have not revealed this matter before, they still maintain the façade of the family on the surface, but in private, Adele allowed Sainte-Beuve's courtship, and Hugo found Juliette Drouet. ”

Alexandre Dumas laughed: "Pooh and I have always been very good friends, and our friendship is irrefutable. It was all the villain of Balzac, who was the embodiment of vanity, jealous of my dramatic achievements. He was the son of a small burgher, but he was ashamed to deliberately add 'De' in front of his surname, thinking that this would trick the reader into believing that his ancestors were noble. ”

He took over the conversation and quietly introduced Arthur: "Ida Ferrier, Marie Doval, Juliette Drouet, the three most famous young actresses in Paris at present, Felier and Doval are already famous. Luckily, I was able to pursue Miss Drouet. ”

The bread in Alexandre Dumas' hand fell back to the plate in shock: "What else is this?" ”

Arthur thought that the circle in London was already quite chaotic in terms of relations between men and women, but on the other hand, on the other hand, in Paris, the French could always give him some new tricks.

Pooh took a sip of his coffee in silence, as if he was organizing language: "Alexander, I don't know how to mention this to you." You should know that Sainte-Beuve guy has been courting Hugo's wife Adele, right? ”

Alexandre Dumas eagerly asked, "What did he write there?" ”

Pooh recalled, cleared his throat and said, "Every amorous woman often has a second love if her first love is too early. Her first love, which took place at the age of eighteen, no matter how passionate and unfavorable the circumstances, did not last beyond the age of twenty-four, and after the age of twenty-four there was an interval during which her heart was dormant and her new feelings matured. ”

Pooh's remarks not only stunned Alexandre Dumas, but also Vidocq, a regular at the theater, and even Sir Hastings, who came from London, choked on coffee.

Poohne added: "You should know that Sainte-Beuve doesn't make much money a month writing literary criticism, but he still rented a room at the Hôtel Saint-Paul, not far from Hugo's house, so that Adele could walk to see him without difficulty." ”

Alexandre Dumas put his arm on Pooh's shoulder affectionately and said, "Of course I am a merryman, and the ladies have always recognized me. But you must know that I am in love with my little angel, Miss Ida-Ferrier, and I have no room for any other woman than her. ”

Pooh saw that they had not spoken, and thought that they did not believe his words, so he spoke again: "I didn't believe that Sainte-Beuve would do anything to seduce Adele, but I later saw his article "On the Romantic Life of the Heart" and realized that this kid had been coveting Adele for a long time. ”

When Pooh heard this, he smiled politely: "Mr. Vidocq, Miss Drouet, you are already a step too late, she has completely sunk into the arms of Victor. ”

Alexandre Dumas suddenly realized: "No wonder he always writes reviews touting Hugo's new works, calling him the new leader of the romantic school in the entire French literary world!" This is to make Hugo paralyzed by currying favor with Hugo, so as to shorten the distance between him and Adele! ”

Alexandre Dumas smirked, "Of course, I can't wait any longer. She had begged me to write her a new play more than two years ago, and now that I had returned to Paris, it was time for me to fulfill the promise she had made that time. Did Manager Arel show you my new book? Katrin Howard. The heroine of this scene will be played by Miss Felier, and Manager Arel knows that I have created the role for her. ”

Pooh put down his coffee cup and nodded, "I heard from the manager of the Porte Saint-Martin theater that you seem to have gone to find her as soon as you returned to Paris. ”

Pooh also knew that Alexandre Dumas and Balzac had a grudge, but it was not good to expose the shortcomings of others in front of the two guests, and he coughed and said, "Alexander, I misunderstood you before." Everyone knows about your fame, so when I found out that you had asked Doval to go to London to assist, I couldn't help but feel ......"

"Victor?" Alexandre Dumas rolled his eyes and his face was full of disbelief: "You mean Hugo?" Pooh, you're not kidding, are you? He is recognized as a model husband and father! Pooh, if you listen to my rumors, you can do that, but how can you doubt Hugo? ”

When Arthur heard this, he glanced at Vidocq beside him, and of course the old French detective knew what he meant.

"Hiss......"

Alexandre Dumas pursed his lips and pounded the table angrily, as if he had forgotten that he had only recently become involved with Pooh's lover Doval: "How can Sainte-Beuve dig into the corner of Hugo?" Hugo, who lost money, was so supportive of him before. ”

Poohny did not speak when he heard Alexandre Dumas's comments, because neither Sainte-Beuve nor Hugo had a good relationship with him, so he was not very willing to wade into this troubled water.

However, when he saw the dumbfounded looks of the other two guests, he couldn't help but feel his cheeks burn, and he made a solemn request: "Gentlemen, I only told you about this matter, and you must not spread it out." ”

Arthur and Vidocq glanced at each other, and the two old policemen smiled and nodded, "Of course, Mr. Pooh, you probably don't know what the two of us do?" We've always been very tight-mouthed. ”

Pooh patted his head and said, "I forgot, you two, one is the director of Scotland Yard, and the other is the detective of the security department. If that's the case...... I ......"

At this, Pooh suddenly clenched his knees with his hands in a state of confusion, as if he wanted to say something and had concerns.

Arthur asked, "Is there anything you need help with?" ”

Vidocq also took the opportunity to advertise his detective agency: "Sir, you know my reputation in France. As for Sir Arthur Hastings, he was the first policeman in the history of Britain to be knighted. If you have any difficult cases to be handled by us, as long as the price is in place, we will be able to help you solve it quickly. ”

Alexandre Dumas chimed in: "Pooh, they're not bragging. The deeds of Monsieur Vidocque have long been widely circulated in our literary circles in Paris. As for Arthur, I dare to pat my chest and assure you that he is the most reliable strip in the whole of the British Isles. I almost had a pirate kidnap and sell me to the Americas, but he saved me. ”

Pooh hesitated for a long time under the persuasion of Alexandre Dumas before making up his mind: "This ...... Alas! Well, since there are no outsiders here, I'll tell you the truth. Mr. Vidocq, Sir Hastings, I do have a business to entrust to you. ”

Arthur smiled and lifted the teapot to fill Pooh's coffee cup: "Don't worry, there is still a long time today, you can talk slowly." ”

Pooh picked up the coffee cup, and there was a look of memory in his eyes: "I can't hide it, two gentlemen, I always have the feeling of being watched all the time lately. ”

As soon as Pooh finished speaking, Alexandre Dumas spoke: "Pooh, are you too careful?" I hate to say that about you, but your mind is sometimes so delicate that you are often suspicious. It's normal for a successful poet or playwright like you to be noticed by the general public. ”

Arthur quipped, "Alexander, you can't say that, at least it seems to me that Mr. Pooh's instincts are quite accurate." For example...... Dova ......"

But before Arthur could finish speaking, Dumas suddenly raised his arm and shouted, "Please make this gentleman from London a good pot of black tea, this damned Englishman is not used to drinking coffee from the Seine." ”

Vidocq saw that Alexandre Dumas was about to mess with his business, and he even deceived Pooh into drenching him: "Such fears are not unfounded, Monsieur de Pooh, as Monsieur Dumas said, the whole of Paris knows how successful you are in the theatre." You write a good play, and you play 50 plays, and the income from each play is 2,000 francs, which is a full 100,000 francs. As Mr. Dumas told me before, you writers usually get a 10 percent share, and you can earn 5 percent of the total box office for publishing scripts, which adds up to 15,000 francs. You can earn so much from a single script, so to the ruffians who hide in the streets of Paris, you are a hen that lays golden eggs! If they can't figure it out, they will target you, send someone to find out your travel route, and when the time comes, they plan to kidnap you for ransom! ”

Pooh turned pale with fright from Vidocq.

In fact, as Vidocq said, he himself considered this possibility.

What's worse is that if it's just that he feels that he's being targeted, then it can be explained by being too careful.

But just a while ago, when he and Mrs. Doval were studying the 'new play', Doval mentioned it for no reason: "My little sweetheart, have you ever felt like being watched recently?" ”

At first, Pooh thought that Doval had recently gotten along with someone else, hiding other men in the house, and she deliberately said this in order to hide her abnormal behavior, and once that person was discovered by Pooh, Doval could also use the excuse that he was being watched.

At that time, Pooh jumped out of bed at the thought of this possibility, and rushed to the door of the closet where he looked suspicious.

But he didn't find anything in the closet, but the sound of him jumping out of bed startled the sound of hurried footsteps outside the door.

Pooh was so angry that he casually put on his pants and chased after him, but when he rushed out the door, he saw a dark figure hurrying across the corner of the hallway.

At first, Pooh guessed that the dark shadow was mostly Alexandre Dumas, but judging by the attitude shown by Alexandre Dumas today, it didn't look like him.

On top of that, the shadow appeared two weeks ago, before Alexandre Dumas arrived in Paris.

The thought of this made Vinnie's heart feel more and more angry and frightened.

What is infuriating is that if the other party is a new rival, then he must kill that guy with his own hands.

What I am afraid of is that if the other party is really a gang of robbers who seek money and kill people, it would be too reckless for me to rush out of the house that day. Fortunately, I was embarrassed by my face at the time, and I didn't want to chase people in disheveled clothes, otherwise wouldn't I be caught up in the trap of the other party?

Pooh thought about it, but still felt that for this kind of thing, he had to find a group of people who were more murderous and professional than robbers to protect him and Doval.

He told the wonderful encounters and discernments of this time, and he heard Alexandre Dumas scream again and again.

Vidocq took out a pen and paper unhurriedly and recorded, and at the end, the Parisian detective did not forget to ask his London counterpart for professional advice with a little ridicule: "Superintendent Hastings, what do you think this case is?" A murder and kidnapping case in the middle of the step, or ...... The next bet on a rehearsal of a duel of romance and honor? ”

Arthur is not in a hurry to make a conclusion, although he, like Vidocq, has been denied by the government, and his career as a police officer has come to an end, but this does not mean that he is willing to disgrace his old club Scotland Yard.

Arthur copied a few key pieces of information from Vidocq's notebook and put a small note in his pocket: "Mr. Pooh, until we get to the bottom of it, I suggest that you hire the private security services of the Breok Detective Agency. Because, before we can find out the truth, we may need to scout around your itinerary for a few days. ”

(End of chapter)