Joseph saw at the end of the report, "British Consul in Tunisia, Hollis, committed suicide due to personal reasons," and couldn't help but shake his head with a smile.
"This truly is an old tradition of England, utterly ruthless to their own."
Although France held a large number of Tunisian Guard prisoners that could testify, the British Government resolutely insisted that these were false accusations, and since Hollis, the only person involved, had died, there was no proof to dispute their claim.
Joseph was indifferent to this; after all, France wasn't likely to declare war on England at the moment, and he himself had made a fortune in Tunisia, so he let this minor interlude slide.
He continued to read through the documents, which covered topics ranging from the promotion of scientific composting methods to the construction progress of the industrial development zone in Saint-Etienne. From the mileage of newly laid wooden rail tracks to the development progress of the high-pressure steam engine.
From the Royal Armory's trials of percussion cap-fired cannons to the influx of cheap Russian flax and American cotton into France, making the textile industry in Lyon begin to turn a profit...
A myriad of matters kept him busy until the sun set in the west.
Overall, the industry, agriculture, science, technology, and military of France had all entered the right track and were progressing into a period of development. Despite feeling exhausted from a day's work, Joseph felt quite pleased.
He glanced at the last few documents, intending to finish them all before going to dinner.
Next up was an application submitted by the Paris Police Academy.𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶
Due to the good treatment of the students at the Police Academy and the enticing prospects after graduation, a large number of commoners' children came to enroll, some even traveling from distant places like Gascony, Lyon, and Brittany to Paris.
Even though Frient had set the admission standards extremely high, the academy still gradually admitted over 800 more students, and now the number of students from two terms combined was already close to 5,000.
This far exceeded the original design capacity of the academy, resulting in many students having to share a bed between two people.
Therefore, Frient submitted an application to select a new site for expansion or to open a branch school.
Joseph smiled slightly, wrote down an address at the bottom of the application, and requested that Frient continue enrolling students. He then set the document aside to be sent back to the academy by the staff the next day.
That was the address of a manor gifted to Joseph by Louis XVI and Queen Mary as a birthday present.
Joseph's birthday was at the end of October, and at that time, he was in Tunisia, so he hadn't really celebrated it, but his parents still sent him a gift.
The manor was of little use to him, located just in the suburbs of Paris, and was perfectly suited to be allocated to the Police Academy.
The buildings in the manor were already constructed, and the land had long been leveled. With a little preparation from the students, they could start classes there.
Once the current 5,000 students graduated and combined with the Guard Corps, Joseph would have at his disposal 8,000 elite soldiers. If the Mulan Regiment were also considered, the total would reach 12,000.
At present, the total number of military forces in All of France hovered between 110,000 to 120,000, and the quality of soldiers was far lower than Joseph's direct force. It could be said that by then, unless All of France's military forces rebelled at once, Joseph was confident he could ensure the absolute safety of the Royal Family.
Around 7 o'clock in the evening, Joseph yawned and picked up the last document on the desk.
Somewhat unexpectedly, it was submitted by Denico, the manager of the "Paris Commercial News."
He skimmed through it. The content consisted of complaints about the recent problems with the auditing standards of the Bureau of News and Publishing.
About a half month ago, news about the "Viscount Anboer arson case" from the newspaper had failed to pass the audit more than ten times, resulting in the case not being reported. After consulting with other newspapers, Denico discovered that their news about this matter had also been "killed."
Denico believed that the case did not implicate the Royal Family, had no adverse effects, and had been tried in the High Court already. Therefore, the Bureau of News and Publishing shouldn't have prohibited it, so he took advantage of "Paris News" and the Crown Prince's relationship and directly lodged a complaint to Joseph.
Joseph couldn't help frowning; Mono was currently in charge of the Bureau of News and Publishing, and it seemed that the man had likely taken bribes again, helping the accused silence the media.
"This habitual embezzler..." Joseph shook his head, wrote a letter of reprimand to Mono, and chastised him to be more restrained or face an investigation by the Justice Investigation Department sooner or later.
Rubbing his sore shoulders, he got up and headed to the dining room, but as soon he left the office, he heard Eman's voice from the stairwell, "Miss Frey, if you wish to see His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, please submit a reservation request first. If you are approved, someone will notify you..."
Frey? Joseph conjured up the image of that chuunibyou girl in his mind. Wasn't that her surname? What was she doing here?
Curious, he peered down the staircase and called out, "Eman, please send her up."
"Oh, alright, Your Highness."
Soleil, still in that navy blue floor-length gown, quickly climbed the stairs with long strides and curtsied to Joseph with slight anxiety, "Greetings to you, Your Highness, and thank you for agreeing to see me."
Joseph bowed slightly in return and ushered her into his office, "It seems you have an urgent matter to discuss?"
"Yes, Your Highness." Soleil looked somewhat uncomfortable, given she hadn't yet compensated for the incident that caused the Crown Prince to "lose 5,000 livres" last time, and yet she had come to ask for his help again.
But she quickly bucked up internally: This was for fairness and justice; the Crown Prince would surely understand!
So she took a deep breath and looked at Joseph, "Your Highness, please save those two heroes. I know it's abrupt of me to ask, but I really don't know who else to turn to."
"Heroes? Who are you talking about?" Joseph was completely puzzled.
"The Maletude brothers."
Joseph: "?"
Soleil's large eyes flickered, "Haven't you heard about the arson case at Viscount Anboer's house? Oh right, the newspapers suppressed that news. Those despicable bureaucrats..."
She suddenly realized that "those despicable bureaucrats" were appointed by the Royal Family and quickly changed the subject, "The thing is, Your Highness, there was a poor girl named Celine who had been harassed by the shameless Viscount Anboer for a long time.
"Her father was just a coppersmith and didn't dare to fight back. So, I helped her in secret a few times.
"Who knew, last month that despicable noble actually kidnapped her to his villa! I was planning to sneak into that mansion at night to find her but then, out of nowhere, the Maletude brothers appeared.
"They bravely set fire to various parts of Viscount Anboer's house, and while everyone inside was busy trying to put out the fires, they rescued Celine. Sure enough, she was reunited with her family the next day."
Joseph was surprised, "Set fire to rescue someone?"
"Yes, Your Highness. They were only two people, and if they wanted to rescue someone, it was a good method."
Soleil nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world, then added urgently, "But they were arrested two days later, and the High Court quickly sentenced them to beheading.
"Your Highness, they are brave men who helped the poor and should not die like this. I beseech you to help them!"
Joseph immediately remembered the news blockade about the arson case at Viscount Anboer's house, and his eyes narrowed slightly. He thought, could it be that Mono was doing a good deed this time, keeping the Maletude brothers from becoming a media focus by not letting the news be reported?
Perhaps the letter scolding him need not be sent.
He asked the young girl, "How many people were killed or injured in the arson case?"
"Viscount Anboer and his three lackeys died, and more than ten people were injured. But they got what they deserved!"
Soleil stepped forward and knelt on one knee, "Your Highness, the Maletude brothers are locked up in the Bastille, and I've heard they are to be executed next week. Please find a way to pardon them!"
Joseph pulled her up to her feet, frowning, "This is last month's case, how can the execution be so soon?"
According to the current legal process, even if the evidence were conclusive, it generally takes at least three to five months from sentencing to execution. And the case had happened only half a month ago.
Soleil said urgently, "I'm not sure about that. I tried to rescue them twice, but failed both times..."
Joseph's eye twitched, "Rescue? You mean, you tried to break into the Bastille?"
"Yes, Your Highness." Soleil seemed to think nothing amiss, "I saw them twice, but, the locks on the cells simply can't be picked."
Joseph nodded, "That's not surprising, because those locks were personally crafted by my father."
Ever since the "Diamond Necklace Affair" took place the year before last, where the main culprit Jeanne escaped from the Bastille, the enthusiastic Louis XVI had crafted a batch of new locks for the Bastille using his own invention of the double row pin technology, which was exceptionally resistant to picking.
He signaled to Soleil, "Please go back for now, I will look into this matter."
"Thank you so much! Your Highness."
After sending the young girl away, Joseph ate a simple dinner and immediately sent someone to the Palace of Versailles overnight to inquire about the arson case with the Justice Minister.
The next day, Baron Breti personally came to Joseph's office to report on the case.
"Your Highness, those brothers come from a minor noble family; they did not have a reputation for acting heroically on an ordinary day." the Justice Minister said, "After their arrest this time, they quickly confessed to the arson without any reservation.
"I guess, perhaps the High Court thought their actions were abhorrent, and Viscount Anboer was quite influential, so they decided to execute them ahead of schedule,"
Joseph frowned and shook his head, feeling that there was something wrong here.
Remembering he still had to visit the Paris Police Academy today, he took the Justice Minister with him in the carriage and took a detour to the High Court first.
In the office of the President of the High Court, Dibor nervously bowed his head and cautiously said, "This really doesn't follow procedure, Your Highness. However, the evidence against those two arsonists is irrefutable, and they would have ended up on the guillotine sooner or later. I will review this case thoroughly and then submit a formal report to you."
Joseph looked at him askance and smiled, "I need to know the inside story of this case, Your Excellency."
Dibor gave a dry laugh, "What... what inside story could there be?"
"Fine, then I'll hand this case over to Danton to deal with. Or perhaps even the Royal Supreme Court could intervene."
Dibor broke out in a cold sweat, urgently gesturing to an official at the door, "Have Judge Croix come here."
Judge Croix was directly responsible for the arson case. When he saw that the Crown Prince had come in person and heard that the case might be brought before the Supreme Judicial Court, he immediately spilled everything about the inside story.
A moment later, Joseph frowned at Croix, "Are you saying that it was Mono who had you rush the judgment and execute those two brothers immediately?"
"I swear, Your Highness, I received 30,000 livres from Count Mono, but he is a Cabinet Minister, it was he who forced me to do this, I really don't dare to offend him!"
Joseph was increasingly astonished; Mono was using his news review authority to block the news of the arson case, while also bribing judges to execute the culprits quickly.
What exactly was this man up to?
He left Dibor with an order, "Take Judge Croix into custody for an investigation immediately, and let none of this get out." Then he left the High Court.
Afterward, Joseph summoned Fouche and asked him to quickly investigate the arson case, focusing on Mono.
The efficiency of the Police Affairs Department was extremely high, and just three days later, Fouche placed the investigation results on the Crown Prince's desk.
"Your suspicions are spot on, Your Highness," the intelligence chief reported, "that woman named Celine and her family said they were going to Tunisia to open up land seven days ago, but in fact, as soon as they left Paris, they were killed. Some farmers nearby reported the incident."
"Was it Mono's doing?"
"Although there is no direct evidence, it should be someone he sent," Fouche nodded, "In fact, we found out that Count Mono's illegitimate son, that kid named Antony who got the inheritance rights half a year ago, has been competing with Viscount Anboer for that woman, oh, that Celine."
"This matter is easy to find out, many people in the nobility circle know about it, both of them had their eyes on that woman. They say Antony even raped her several times before."
Joseph's expression turned cold, "Just give me the conclusion."
"Alright, Your Highness. The Maletude Brothers were very close to Count Mono's son. It seems that Viscount Anboer and Antony fought over the woman unsuccessfully, leading to her kidnapping.
"Antony, unable to contain his anger, sent his men to 'punish' Viscount Anboer, and those two fools, for some reason, chose to set fire. Oh, maybe they couldn't find any other way to deal with Anboer."
"So, after the Maletude Brothers were arrested, Mono feared that journalists would uncover the truth, so he locked down the news related to it. Afterwards, he bribed the judges to threaten the two brothers not to implicate his son, and to execute them as quickly as possible. After that, it would turn into a case with no witnesses."
"The scoundrel!" Joseph slammed his hand on the table and said sternly, "Have someone keep an eye on the Monroe Family to prevent that scoundrel from fleeing, but don't take any other action for now."
"Yes, Your Highness," Fouche bowed and withdrew.
Joseph looked at the investigation report before him and couldn't help frowning in thought. Mono's case must be dealt with severely, but the man was after all the Minister of the Interior, the third-highest official in the Cabinet; dealing with him directly would have too great an impact, so how should he proceed without causing a serious political earthquake?
However, the development of the situation was beyond his expectations.
The next day, nearly all the major newspapers' front-page headlines were the news, "The son of the Minister of the Interior is suspected of being involved in the arson case of Viscount Anboer's house, has been summoned."
All of Paris was shaken.