flower and sword and france

Chapter 7: Old Friends

After coming out of the Perriette mansion, Charles took out his pocket watch and checked the time.

It's not yet noon.

Well, it should still be there. Charles pondered in his heart.

The carriage came to a small dilapidated attic. This kind of loft is generally used by the owner to rent out to those young people who have just arrived in Paris and who are short of money but intend to make a career, so the facilities are extremely incomplete, and of course the rent is extremely low.

Climbing the creaking stairs, enduring all kinds of strange smells, Ciel walked to the door of a room in the corner of the fifth floor.

He knocked softly on the door.

no respond.

"Albert, it's me!" Charles whispered.

The door opened suddenly.

"It was you, Charles, I thought which creditor was here again..." The delicate and slender face of Albert de Foa-Gray was full of surprises.

[Foa and Gray are both ancient French noble families. In 1398, the two families merged their surnames into one through marriage]

Even as a same-s*x, Charles had to admit that Albert was a handsome boy.

His facial features are well-rounded and gentle, his eyes are soft pale blue, his forehead is extremely white, his brown hair is naturally curly, his skin is white and crystal clear in the bright light, and his handsome face with a smile looks extremely happy and also extremely Infectious.

However, it is his personality that is extremely inconsistent with this handsome and gentle appearance. Shire has felt this since they started studying together at Henry IV Secondary School.

[In the 19th century, the French aristocracy and bourgeoisie usually sent their children to the Henry IV Secondary School, which produced countless elites. To this day, it is still the top aristocratic public school in France. 】

After graduating from school, Albert chose to live a slutty life. Now, at a young age, he is already a famous s**t. Even in the circle of their sluts, Albert is already well-known. .

Today's aristocrats have long since lost the enthusiasm of their ancestors. Under the pressure of the upstarts, they are at a loss, and they are simply helpless. They can only watch the glory disappear.

The glorious three days of July 1830 drove away the Bourbon dynasty and officially announced the arrival of a new era in France. The nobles first lost their political power, then lost their hereditary privileges, and finally even the House of Lords could not keep it.

[The three days of July 28, 29, and 30, 1830, in order to resist the rebellious actions of the Bourbon Dynasty, a revolution occurred in Paris, which finally destroyed the dynasty, which is called the glorious three days. 】

The seats of the French House of Peers are hereditary, and the surnames of each family are recorded on the golden book, and hereditary is irreplaceable. However, at the end of 1831, France abolished the hereditary system of seats in the House of Lords and replaced them with appointments by the king. At the same time, the primogeniture system of aristocratic property was officially abolished, and it was replaced by equal distribution among children.

These reforms of the July Dynasty destroyed the foundation of the French aristocracy-the hereditary political status was stripped away, making the aristocracy no longer naturally noble; the abolition of the primogeniture system made the wealth of the aristocracy decrease from generation to generation. Once the foil of power and wealth is lost, how much can aristocratic blood be worth?

Facing the irreversible tide of the times, no matter how unwilling they were, the nobles had no choice but to accept it. If those shrewd, strong and ambitious monarchs and famous ministers in France were alive in the sky, I am afraid they can only sigh: this great France is afraid that it will be finished...

Time has evolved to the present. Except for a very few smart people who can adapt to the times, the French nobles who were so arrogant and arrogant have gradually degenerated into two groups: one is reclusive and stingy, who regards accumulating wealth as the end of life. Fun; a kind of rambunctious, spendthrift, indebted, living in a mockery of everything, not thinking about tomorrow.

Albert is the latter.

These swingers are a combination of contradictions, cynical and irresponsible, who see pleasure-seeking as the ultimate meaning of life, and strong and daring enough to keep them helpless despite their debt-ridden status quo. Live carefree and at the same time do all kinds of appalling things.

However, these differences in character did not stop Charles and Albert from becoming good friends. Perhaps it is precisely because the two have very different personalities that they are attractive to each other?

"Oh, my friend, come in." Albert invited Charles into his apartment.

The room was unbelievably crude: there was no furniture, just a bed, and a few suitcases for luggage, the floor and walls of the room were stained, and there was no sign that the owner had ever cleaned it up.

Because of his son's misdeeds and unrepentant, Albert's father had already cut off his financial aid (his father happened to be the first type of person mentioned above), so the direct descendant of one of the oldest French families Now I can only live in such a ghost place.

"Sit down, please," said Albert, in the air of a king receiving courtiers, pointing to a box.

Xia Er was very kind, and sat down on a dusty box. A sour smell crept into Ciel's nose from the bottom of the bed, it seems that the other party drank a lot of alcohol last night.

"My friend, did you play crazy again last night? You have to wait until noon every day to get up."

Speaking of this, Albert became a little bit more energetic, "That girl was so energetic last night, I didn't come back until two o'clock!"

"Then how much debt did you owe recently?" Ciel poured cold water.

"It's only tens of thousands of francs... I can't remember the exact number." Albert also sat on a box next to him, frowning as if he was calculating the number, and after a while his brows stretched again. It's."

"Albert, don't live like this, you will destroy yourself." Ciel still couldn't hold back, and softly advised his friend.

"Happy time is the only life I want." Albert still looked unconcerned, and directly rejected his friend's suggestion, "Okay, Charles, what are you blowing today, and you came directly to the door?"

"It's nothing, I just want to see you and ask you a favor by the way."

"Want to see me? Now you can see clearly..." Albert stretched, "Poor Albert is still the same..."

Ciel shook his head and smiled bitterly, giving up his persuasion again.

"As for asking me for help... Of course you can. Come on, what do you need Albert to do?"

Charles pondered for a moment.

"My cousin Charlotte, granddaughter of the Duke of Treville, will marry the son of the Marquis Leoran."

Albert didn't seem very interested, just raised his slender eyebrows. "Oh, and then what?"

"My friend, you know how much it costs for a duke to marry a daughter. But no matter how much I ask and find out, no one can tell the details of the marriage. Both families are tight-lipped about it. I can't ask any questions—generally speaking, if it's an ordinary marriage, wouldn't both parties hype up how much each family paid, for fear that others won't know? It's like..."

"As if there was something tricky in it?" Albert answered.

Charles nodded. "Also, I heard that the young lady of the Leoran family was recently sent to the monastery. These two things, when combined... do not feel right?"

"Since you're here today, why don't we go for a walk in the Bois de Boulogne?" Albert didn't know if he could, but he stretched again and stood up. "It happened to be a hitchhiker, and I had an appointment there in the afternoon."

"Okay." Ciel agreed, and he felt a little uncomfortable staying here anyway.

Soon, the two of them sat side by side in Charles' light carriage, heading straight for the Bois de Boulogne.

The carriage was galloping along the road, and for a time only the sound of hoofs could be heard, until after a while, Albert asked suddenly.

"It looks like you're very interested in this marriage? Why, why is your cousin messing with you?"

"He didn't mess with me...but he messed with someone he shouldn't mess with, so I had to run errands." Ciel also replied jokingly.

"Then what do you want me to do?"

Ciel's expression became serious, and he lowered his voice.

"My friend, I know that you have a wide range of friends and are well-informed. And you see, I have this kind of relationship with the Duke of Treville, and I'm afraid people will be vigilant if I go to find out... So, I want to ask you to help I asked to find out what was going on in this marriage."

"Okay, no problem." Albert nodded without hesitation. "I'll find a way to find out."

"Thank you!" Charles stretched out his hand and clenched the other's slender right hand, "I knew it was right to ask you!"

"However, I'm still a little curious, why are you being so active? Is there any benefit you can get from it? Or, who are you entrusted to save poor Miss Leoran?" Albert was very interested Staring at Ciel, "Charle, I know you too well. You are not a hero who is willing to be kind to others, and you don't like doing chivalrous things at all."

"Of course it's for..." Ciel didn't intend to hide the other party.

"Your sister, right?" Albert answered quickly himself before Ciel answered, "I knew it."