The Shadow of Great Britain

Indeed, Mr. Thiers enjoyed discussing the issue of distributing new books in Britain with the "British," but he also mentioned that his position in the Cabinet was a more treasured asset. Did he find his position too secure? Why engage in negotiations that could possibly anger the King?

Upon hearing this, a sudden realization flashed in Louis's mind, followed by a chill creeping over him, and a layer of sweat appeared on his forehead. It wasn't the mist of rain, but cold sweat emerging from the truth's revelation.

"Are you saying that Thiers is so confident because King Louis Philippe doesn't care about how he deals with the Royalists? His true concern is with the Republican threat…"

"Perhaps it's not just the Republicans." Arthur picked up his pipe again: "Is he entirely unworried about the Bonapartist? I heard that you petitioned to return to France in the past few days to serve in the French Army. But you were tactfully refused, wasn't that the case?"

Louis recalled his experiences in recent days, and suddenly, he felt he had a new understanding of Louis Philippe's maneuvers.

"Not only that, a while ago, he even called for a special meeting at the Tuileries Palace, where he affectionately told me: 'Even though you have become a British national, this doesn't mean you have lost your French nationality. You are destined to be a proud Frenchman, just like your father and uncle.'

When the King summoned Louis, he thought such words were meant to console his frustration over not being able to serve in the military.

But now Louis revisited this in his mind, realizing that not allowing him to serve in the army, while repeatedly affirming his inherent Frenchness, was a strategy to prevent Bonapartist influence from growing in the army. Even if the Bonapartist regained strength, the July Monarchy Government could use Louis Bonaparte's French citizenship as a reason to prosecute him under the laws enacted by the current government.

Moreover, even with Louis being abroad, they could use his French nationality as a pretext to request his extradition as a potential political criminal from other countries.

Seeing Louis gradually sobering up from his recent joy over returning to Paris, Arthur continued.

"In fact, if I were Louis Philippe, I would do exactly the same. Think about who the supporters of the Royalists are – they are mostly the farmers from remote areas. While quite a few in number, most of them are just barely getting by, so apart from a few extremists, the majority have little will to resist.

Additionally, there are some dispossessed clerics, but their reputation is notorious in most regions of France. As for the aristocratic leaders of the Royalists, their notoriety is even worse.

Charles X's reign just ended a few years ago, and almost everyone knows how unpopular they were. The situation is glaringly evident with the Duchess of Berry. During the assassination anniversary of the Duke of Berry two years ago, she held a mass for her husband at the church of Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois. The ornate catafalque displayed her son, the Earl of Chambord, in royal robes, looking like the reincarnation of Henry V.

However, passing Parisians showed no respect and an angry crowd gathered. Not only did the church get looted, but they continued to ravage the residence of the Paris Archbishop, and went on to attack other churches, tearing down royal emblems, and even the crucifix of Jesus didn't escape their wrath.

Last year, the persistent Duchess went to the West of France trying to emulate the Vendee revolt of the 1790s. But few responded, and leading Royalists in Paris urged her against impulsiveness. Mr. Chateaubriand even traveled to Marseille to plead with her to wait for the right moment.

Yet the Duchess ignored all advice, resulting in the plans becoming a farce, and the imagined grand uprising turned into mere minor disturbances. She herself got arrested in November, and then the July Monarchy Government scandalously revealed her extramarital pregnancy, completely ruining her reputation and extinguishing the Royalists' last spark.

I see from the Royalists' newspapers in Paris that their anger at this de facto leader and non-Catholic moralist actually surpasses their anger at the current government. Information indicates that Louis Philippe is not worried about further assassination attempts from the Royalists; rather, he's concerned the Duchess of Berry might fall into their hands.

To ensure her safety, he plans to quietly send her abroad after she gives birth, to avoid being suspected of orchestrating the murder of this young woman. Louis Philippe doesn't even consider releasing the Duchess of Berry as setting a tiger free to roam; he finds no reason to make a fuss over a few minor assassins."

Stepping out of the thick of it, even Louis's thoughts became clearer: "Considering it from his perspective, indeed, the Royalists are a much lesser threat compared to the Republicans. Currently, there are 6000 Polish exiles around Paris, 4000 from Germany, in addition to Italians, Portuguese, and Spaniards. All without exception are Republicans and frequently participate in events organized by the Republicans. If these people unite with the Republicans in Paris, the threat would be far greater than that of the Royalists."

"That's right." Arthur mimicked a pistol with his fingers, blowing away imaginary smoke in the style of Great Dumas: "And there are quite a few fanatics among the Republicans, certainly more than among the Royalists. These people are far more zealous than the Crusaders of old, and many are under thirty. Don't we both know one?"

Louis suddenly understood: "So that's why Louis Philippe expelled Mazzini's Young Italy? Everyone suspected he couldn't stand the pressure from the Austrian court, but now it seems expelling Young Italy was at most a nod to the Austrians; fundamentally, it was to weaken the Republicans' power."

At this point, Louis couldn't help but pity Mazzini, a fellow Charcoal Party comrade who once fought alongside him: "Poor Giuseppe, he still thinks the French Government would send aid when he launches the uprising. Now it seems he was likely fooled by Louis Philippe!"

"Not necessarily fooled." Arthur suggested Louis think more positively: "If they succeed in the uprising, I think Louis Philippe might generously send reinforcements. But if they fail, everyone would just treat previous promises as empty talk."

Hearing this, Louis could only feel a wave of sadness welling up within. That night, they had planned to meet with Garibaldi and others. Knowing in advance their efforts would inevitably fail yet having to feign excitement was extremely difficult for a young man.

However, this sadness was not unique to the Italians.

At any given time, Paris had tens of thousands of hooligans ready to overthrow the current government, shouting slogans: Long live the Republic, Long live the Empire, Long live the Monarch, and so on.

During the intervals when they rested, anarchy would prevail. After some time, another political agenda would come to the fore, and Paris would use such occasions to satisfy the ambitions, hatreds, and greed of a few.

He suddenly recalled Victor's famous saying.

—I've said it before, and I'll say it again until I'm sick of it: all revolutions stem from the political delusions of great figures and their fear of being overthrown. The mistakes of rulers are the prelude to a revolution, the leadership position of the middle class provides the momentum, while the real power, the machinery that spirals out of control and rips apart a good or bad government, comes from those crammed in the gutters, barely surviving.

At this thought, Louis suddenly remembered the night of the explosion at the Kaidao Sai Mansion when Arthur found him.

Louis stopped in his tracks, placing his hand on Arthur's shoulder to stop him.

Arthur turned to look: "What's the matter? We have to hurry back; even if Mr. Thiers enjoys his steak slowly, lingering too long would arouse the suspicion of those spies monitoring you. Surely you know, Louis Philippe is not only uneasy about the Republicans, but also very uneasy about you, as a prominent figure of the Bonaparte Party."

Gazing at Arthur's earnest face, Louis suddenly asked: "That day when you mentioned the farmers of Brittany, can I have the privilege to meet them?"