Although Louis XVI's birthday had passed, the Palace of Versailles Square remained in a temporary state of relaxed dress code, hence there were still many Parisians coming here to sing, dance, play, or watch free theater performances.
Small vendors also gathered here, hoping to make the most of the last opportunity to sell a few more items.
People chatted about their experiences over the past few days, and the lively laughter and chatter maintained the warmth of the celebration.
Aristocrats and politicians from various countries were finally free from the cumbersome ceremonial activities of the previous days and now had the leisure to truly enjoy themselves in Paris. Places like the Eden Amusement Park once again saw a surge of visitors.
At 8:40 p.m., Madame Garlan arrived at her music salon with a face full of relaxed joy, ready to start today's music salon.
Leveraging the influence of the King's birthday, she had become a sought-after music virtuoso within the Palace of Versailles. Her salon was now a musical "holy site" coveted by aristocrats and celebrities; without some measure of skill, one simply couldn't enter the doors of this music room.
Though Godoy was of low status, he had the advantage of being an early participant in the salon and possessed a solid foundation in music. Additionally, with the hundreds of livres Louisa spent to make arrangements for him, he managed to secure his spot in the salon.
A few servants responsible for arranging the musical instruments exchanged discreet nods after seeing the Spanish Crown Princess enter the hall with her guard, then turned to double-check the balcony's position and slightly adjusted the height of the guitarist's chair.
Godoy, following behind Louisa, respectfully bowed to Madame Garlan, exchanged a few pleasantries, and was then led by a footman to his seat, the position for performers. Louisa, on the other hand, was escorted to the VIP seats opposite and above.
Since there were too many aristocrats attending the music salon, Madame Garlan often borrowed servants from elsewhere to help, so she didn't pay much attention to a few unfamiliar faces.
At 9 p.m., the salon officially began.
Madame Garlan, as the hostess, broke from convention by delivering a lengthy lecture on music theory right after welcoming the guests, winning waves of admiration from the audience.
Following that, a few music masters from the Palace of Versailles shared some thoughts on music theory before moving into the routine performance segment.
The soothing sound of music began, it was Francois Couperin's "Les Bergeries," but after Madame Garlan's rearrangement, the style appeared lighter and more lively.
The performers blended themselves into their instruments while the audience, enraptured, closed their eyes and savored the moment.
Just as the music was reaching its climax, a cello placed on a chair, unattended, seemed to lose its balance and suddenly toppled to the side.
And Godoy happened to be right beneath the peg of the cello.
The cello, a colossus among instruments, standing over a person tall and weighing nearly 180 pounds. Startled by the fall, Godoy hastily moved backward to avoid being struck. Unbeknownst to him, his chair's leg seemed to have caught on something, and instead of moving back, it tilted over under his push.
Godoy immediately fell backward.
His position was already at the edge of the balcony, and as his body heavily hit the railing, a "crack" sound was heard; the wooden balustrade, thick as the arm of a grown man, shattered into several pieces as if made of paper under his impact.
Louisa was watching her lover play with a captivated look when she caught sight of the cello collapsing, only to then see Godoy breaking the balcony railing and falling down.
From below, a muffled "crash" could be faintly heard.
The sudden accident left everyone frozen on the spot until Louisa let out a shrill scream, "Godoy—"𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞
The musicians nearest rushed to their feet, cautiously peering over the broken balcony edge, only to see in the dim light of the night the guitarist lying motionless on the ground, next to a footman retreating in shock.
Louisa, too, hurried to the balcony, unable to see the situation clearly, then, with a face pale as death, turned in the support of her maid and rushed downstairs. The aristocrats participating in the salon immediately followed to check on what had happened.
Just then, a pair of guards, who happened to be passing by downstairs, saw someone had fallen and quickly knelt next to Godoy, urgently calling out, "Sir! Sir, how are you?"
Seeing that Godoy had apparently passed out, one of them looked up at the people on the second-floor balcony, barely distinguishable in the dark night. He instantly took out a small knife and quickly slashed it across Godoy's face.
The other, having noticed the golden crucifix pendant Godoy was wearing, pulled it out, carelessly smeared some blood on it, and placed it neatly on his chest.
By the time Louisa ran downstairs, frenzied, with the help of a torch carried by a servant, she saw Godoy lying on the ground, surrounded by numerous shards of glass, as if a wineglass had been smashed.
The two guards were trying to revive him with anxious faces while another servant stood trembling nearby.
Louisa carefully approached and saw more clearly this time that there were two wounds on Godoy's face, likely caused by shattered glass, one of which extended from the corner of his eye to his mouth, revealing pale yellow fat, a sight that was horrifying to behold.
His crucifix pendant lay on his chest, and against the white of his shirt, one could clearly see that the figure of Jesus on the pendant was drenched in blood, as if foretelling something.
A nobleman who had rushed over from the salon, upon seeing this, hastily made the sign of the cross while murmuring:
"God bless! God bless!"
The voice reached Louisa's ears, but struck her like lightning; a thought suddenly burst from her heart: This is punishment, God's punishment for my unfaithfulness!
She hastily made the sign of the cross and trembled as she said:
"Lord, please forgive my sins, I was wrong, forgive me..."
"He is still alive!" A nobleman stepped forward to check Godoy's pulse, then turned back and called out loudly.
More than ten minutes later, the Court Physician arrived, instructed the servants to carefully lift Godoy onto a stretcher, and moved him back inside to administer aid.
Approaching midnight, the Palace of Versailles majordomo arrived at the Spanish Crown Prince's residence, knocked and entered, only to find the Crown Prince was not there, so he could only bow to Louisa and say:
"Your Highness, the physician says your guard should no longer be in danger of losing his life, but he has broken his right arm, and there are some additional lacerations."
But Louisa did not look at him, only muttering something under her breath with a tense expression.
The majordomo continued:
"It's very regrettable that this accident occurred. I have already had a thorough investigation conducted. The balustrade of the music hall's balcony had been hollowed out by termites. Due to the hidden position of the holes, they went unnoticed... You know, the Palace of Versailles is very old, and those little insects are always destroying the wood.
"Mr. Godoy collided with the termite-damaged wooden railing and unfortunately fell. At that time, there happened to be a male servant below who was carrying wine to the fountain, and Mr. Godoy landed on his tray, so..."
"That is, would you like to see him?"
Seeing no reaction from Louisa, he could only sigh, bow, and leave the room: "Please do not worry too much, Your Highness."
...
The Spanish Crown Prince did not find out about Godoy's fall from the balcony until the next morning, as he had drunk too much the night before.
He had been lying listlessly on the couch with a vacant stare, but upon hearing the last word from the Court Official, he suddenly sprang to life as if retrieving his soul, grabbed the official by the shoulders, and said excitedly:
"Are you speaking of the Duchess Consort's guard Godoy? He broke his arm? His face is scratched?!"
"Yes, yes, Your Highness, please don't be too saddened."
"Saddened?" Antonio felt as if the discomfort of his hangover vanished in an instant, and he felt as light as if he could soar, "Thank you for the reminder, I will definitely not be sad! Ha ha!"
The Court Official looked at him worriedly, hesitating whether to call a physician, when Joseph showed up in time, signaling him to leave first.
Antonio grabbed hold of Joseph, beaming like a delighted child weighing a hundred and fifty pounds:
"My dear Joseph, did you know, the Palace of Versailles must be a place blessed by God! My wish actually came true!
"I love this place so much, I love France so much!"
Joseph made the sign of the cross at his chest:
"May God bless you, my friend."
Antonio picked up a half glass of wine lying nearby, poured it into his mouth, and pulled Joseph towards the door:
"Let's go see that damned bastard! Oh, right, where is he now?"
Joseph turned to Eman and said: "Please take His Highness to Mr. Godoy's place."
"Yes, Your Highness."
As Antonio walked along the corridor, he shouted ecstatically:
"I love the Palace of Versailles! I love this place! I'm going to stay here for a while!"
Once he had calmed down a little, Joseph approached and whispered:
"My dear Crown Prince, you should return to Madrid as soon as possible."
"Ah? Why?" Antonio asked with a wide smile.
"While Godoy is still injured, set out immediately and leave him in France," Joseph said, "and after you return to Madrid, report the recent events to His Majesty the King."
Joseph knew that even though he had helped Spain to remove one member of the "disastrous duo," the other, Louisa, would be difficult to subdue with Antonio alone.
For now, he could only rely on Charles III to be still in charge and find a way to suppress Louisa. He believed that this most capable King of Spain in nearly a century would find a way to deal with this woman.
Antonio, whose mood had greatly improved and who had become astute, nodded immediately upon hearing this:
"You're absolutely right; I'll return at once!"
He glanced at Godoy, who was groaning in bed, and finally left with great satisfaction.
After seeing Godoy's frightening wound on his face last night, Louisa had no desire to look at him one more time. She had also personally verified that the whole incident was indeed accidental—the broken railing, as well as the area around where Godoy fell, all had been hollowed out by termites, ready to break at the slightest touch, and last night certainly no one had touched him before he fell.
All she wanted now was to leave the Palace of Versailles as quickly as possible, so she agreed without a second thought when Antonio suggested returning to their country.
By noon that day, the Spanish Crown Prince's carriage was already prepared to leave.
Before departing, Antonio embraced Joseph tightly, saying sincerely:
"I really wish I could continue to discuss mechanics with you in the Royal Workshop, Joseph; you will always be my best friend!"
Indeed, in his heart, if it weren't for his kin Joseph, he might not have discovered his wife's lasciviousness and vulgarity. He was filled with gratitude towards Joseph at this moment.
"Yes, we are the best of friends!" Joseph nodded and gave him a firm pat.
Antonio then whispered in his ear:
"Dear Joseph, I've left someone in Paris. Please send that fellow Godoy there when it's convenient for you."
Though he feared his wife and was engrossed in mechanics, he was still a crown prince with significant power. Once he calmed down, how could he let go of a "mistress" who had fallen out of favor?
Joseph pretended to be somewhat shocked, "Are you sure? This might be..."
"Please do me this favor!"
Only then did Joseph reluctantly respond, "Well, I'll try my best..."
After the Spanish Crown Prince departed, Joseph immediately wrote a letter to Charles III, detailing how Antonio was cuckolded in his own bedroom and also assured he would keep the secret.
He handed the letter to a messenger, instructing him to deliver it to the King of Spain one day after Antonio's arrival in Madrid.
This way, a family scandal turned into a national disgrace, and Charles III was sure to be incensed.
...
The celebration for Louis XVI's birthday lasted until September before the fervor completely subsided.
Joseph, in a brand-new white tailored military uniform, rode a carriage to the Paris Police Academy to attend the entrance ceremony for the second-term students.
Today was not only the entrance ceremony for the second-term students but also the commencement of internships for the first-term students.
Yes, although the first-term students of the Police Academy had been enrolled for a total of only ten months, Joseph decided, based on their training, to engage them in a military operation in North Africa.
These students trained extremely hard and their military qualities were not weak; mixing them with the 3,000 men from Bertier's Crown Prince's Guard, they should be able to match the North African troops.
Only through the smoke and blood of the battlefield can one become a truly strong army!
According to Joseph's plan, the first-term students of the Police Academy, 1,000 from the "Combat Police" class, plus 400 from the "Elite Class" and the 3,000 from Bertier's two regiments, were mixed together, making a force of nearly 4,400 men in about three regiments, to be transported to North Africa by the French Navy for combat.
This force was absolutely obedient to him, and they could be mobilized without any hindrance.
If the situation in North Africa was intense, he would then consider deploying the Mulan Regiment of Duke Vilar—the troops trained by Andre—a total of three regiments.
Although the combat effectiveness of this force could not match the Crown Prince's Guard composed of the Franche Garde, its loyalty was guaranteed and mobilization should not pose too much of a problem.𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶
If the Mulan Regiment's performance in combat proved satisfactory, Joseph would consider equipping them with better weapons and even evolving them into his own direct troops.
As for the possibility of a 9,000-man-strong force, coordinated with Joseph's strategic planning, not managing to prevail in North Africa, it should be minuscule.