The Shadow of Great Britain-Chapter 639 - 315: The Enmity is Formed

"This is..."

Louis flipped through the title page of the book over and over again.

It was not until that moment that he finally understood why Arthur had taken an interest in the history of Napoleon’s family.

"Was he friends with that Polish assassin?"

Arthur lit his pipe and blew a ring of smoke, looking at the pale-faced Louis as he comforted him, "Don’t worry, Louis, I’m not suspecting you. On the day of the attack, you were right by my side, nearly getting a bullet through your head. If you were really behind it, it would mean that you were willing to risk your own life to try and assassinate me. I think, as a friend, I haven’t failed that badly, have I?"

"Of course not," Louis vehemently denied, "but... I think Mr. Valevsky also had no reason to assassinate you."

"Mr.?" Arthur took a draw from his pipe, "It seems that the relationship between you cousins isn’t particularly close!"

Louis sipped his wine and said, "It’s not that we’re close, but it’s not that we’re distant either. Mainly, we haven’t spent much time together, since we were too young at that time, so naturally we couldn’t develop a very deep relationship. Moreover, not even my own siblings have always been with me."

"Hmm?" Arthur asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Louis’s eyes showed a reminiscent expression.

"In 1815, after my uncle was defeated at Waterloo, the Bourbon Dynasty was restored in France. Not long after they took power, they declared that all members of the Bonaparte family would be expelled from the country.

After receiving the expulsion order, my mother quickly packed some valuables and left France with my brother and me in a carriage, heading to Switzerland. But just as we settled down in Geneva, my father, who had already settled in Florence, took my brother away from my mother based on the custody laws...

From then on, I was separated from my own brother for seven or eight years. My brother grew up with my father in Italy while I, with my mother, moved back and forth between Germany and Switzerland. I first received my secondary education in Augsburg, Bavaria, and then entered the Arenberg School of Military Engineering in Switzerland to study artillery command.

Just after I graduated from the military academy, I received a letter from my brother in Italy. He invited me to Italy to work together on a big project. And you know what happened next..."

The Great Dumas read, "The Roman charcoal burners’ uprising was quelled by the armies sent by the Papal States and Austria, and your brother died during the escape?"

"Yes..."

The Great Dumas comforted him, "Louis, take it easy. Honestly, if you hadn’t had such an experience, I wouldn’t have accepted you so quickly. You have proven with your actions that you and your uncle are not the same kind of people. Your brother, who died during the uprising, is equally admirable."

"Sigh..." Louis laughed self-deprecatingly, "Alexander, thank you, I feel much better now. Of course, it would be better if my mother could think the same, but she doesn’t understand our actions and even once tried to forcefully take me from London back to Switzerland. She always fantasizes about me living with her in the Arenberg estate, drinking some wine in the evening and watching plays with her. She said, ’Unless I breathe my last, don’t even think about slipping away from me.’"

Arthur asked, "Given this, how did you convince her to let you join Scotland Yard?"

Louis replied, "It was all thanks to my uncle, who spoke with my mother for a long time at Regency Crescent. My uncle said, ’Ottens, I understand your grief for your lost son. Because the one who died in Italy was not only your eldest son but also my son-in-law and nephew. But it’s unavoidable, this is the destiny of a Bonaparte, you need to learn to understand and respect it.’"

Arthur, startled, said, "Son-in-law and nephew? It seems like another complicated relationship." freewebnøvel.com

Louis sighed, "It’s not that complicated. My brother married my cousin, who is also my uncle’s daughter, Charlotte Bonaparte."

"Alright."

To avoid finding himself in an embarrassing situation reminiscent of a high school biology genetics problem, Arthur changed the subject, "Let’s talk about your cousin Mr. Valevsky instead. I hope things aren’t too complicated with him. Louis, can you tell me why you think he wouldn’t orchestrate an attack from behind?"

"This starts with his background. After the Bourbon restoration expelled all Bonaparte family members, Mr. Valevsky’s mother, Lady Mary, realizing there was no hope for my uncle to return to Europe, ultimately accepted the longstanding proposal of Earl Teodorio."

Mr. Valevsky then followed his mother, Lady Mary, and his stepfather to live in Liege, Belgium. Unfortunately, Lady Mary died in childbirth the following year. But fortunately, his stepfather was kind to him and insisted on raising him.

But the good times didn’t last long, as the Russians always saw my half-Polish, half-Bonaparte cousin as a thorn in their side. As I mentioned earlier, Mr. Valevsky’s birth resulted from Polish nationalists wanting to achieve a political marriage with the Bonaparte family, thereby leveraging the power of the French Empire to liberate Poland from Russian influence.

So, during Mr. Valevsky’s upbringing, he was surrounded by those patriots who wanted to model Poland after France. Those Poles saw him as the destined King of Poland and were eager to have him lead Poland to establish a nation like the French Empire. Thus, the Russians were worried that once Mr. Valevsky returned to Poland, those Poles would crown him king."