Joseph glanced at Carolina’s expression, then added “fuel to the fire”:
“This time, the Justice Investigation Department and the Secret Police have combined forces, with over 60 people responsible for this case. They’re expected to conduct a thorough investigation of all individuals and matters related to the case.
Viscount Carolina, during this process, it’s hard to guarantee that they won’t dig up some matters that you’d prefer to keep secret.”
Carolina could no longer maintain his composure and pleaded:
“Your Highness, I swear to God, I have nothing to do with the death of that investigator!
“You see, could you possibly spare me the disturbance of those people in my already miserable exiled life…”
Joseph stared at him and said:
Viscount Carolina, I do want to help you, but the prerequisite is that we build mutual trust.
“As long as you are honest with me, I can assure you that, no matter what it is, I can keep you safe.”
Carolina, trembling, took out a handkerchief and wiped his forehead. He was convinced that the young Crown Prince in front of him must have been sent by Her Majesty the Queen, which meant he represented her will. And it was evident that the Queen had already gotten hold of many things about him.
However, he also knew that his problems were too significant, and he wasn’t sure if the Queen would indeed forgive him after everything was out.
Seeing his indecision, Joseph stood up, pretending to leave:
“If you choose not to trust me, then you will have to face the Secret Police and investigators by yourself. I’m returning to Paris.”
Carolina panicked, rushed forward in a few steps, and grabbed his arm tightly, then realizing his impudence, quickly withdrew his hand, head hanging down and breathing rapidly:
“I’m very sorry, Your Highness, truly sorry, I didn’t mean to offend…
“That is, uh, can you really help me? I mean, if I’ve done something wrong, can you plead for Her Majesty the Queen’s forgiveness?”
“That depends on your performance,” Joseph said as he settled back into his chair, adopting a more amicable expression, “As I’ve said, the Royal Family has great trust and regard for you.”
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As he spoke, he placed the pardon on the table:
“You see, Her Majesty the Queen had already decided to pardon you when I left the Palace of Versailles.”
Carolina, surprised, picked up the pardon and opened it, his eyes immediately reddening with emotion, realizing that Her Majesty the Queen still had him in her thoughts; she had pardoned him so soon after the tax legislation fiasco!
He then remembered what the Crown Prince had just said, perhaps Her Majesty the Queen already knew of his deeds and had sent His Highness to give him an opportunity?
Joseph timely added:
“Viscount Carolina, our common enemy now is Necker. As for you, you have always been a loyal subject of His Majesty the King.”
Carolina looked cautiously at the Crown Prince and murmured:
“Your Highness, if I tell you about Necker’s matters, what kind of punishment will I face afterward?”
Joseph smiled, “Why not start by talking about your own affairs first.”
Carolina’s complexion turned somewhat pale, but thinking that the Queen might already know, and even if she didn’t, the Secret Police would uncover issues upon investigating him, he finally clenched his teeth and said:
“Your Highness, the truth is, when I… was serving as the Finance Minister… I made some money for myself…”
Seeing Joseph nod calmly, he became even more convinced that his misdeeds had been exposed, and he began to speak more frankly:
“Four years ago, I conspired with the Duke of Poitou on the project to expand the Languedoc Royal Canal…”
He rambled on about the dirty deeds he had done, and Joseph, somewhat impatiently, interjected:
“Viscount Carolina, just give me a number.”
“Ah?”
“I mean, how much money have you made from all this?”
“Well… roughly…” Viscount Carolina hesitated for a moment, lowered his head, and whispered, “Around 5 million livres.”
Wow—
What a piece of work! At this moment, all Joseph wanted to do was exclaim, what a piece of work!
This guy served as Finance Minister for just over four years and made 5 million?!
No wonder he’s scared like this—with some small provinces having a fiscal income of about the same for a whole year. If this were taken to trial, even if he wasn’t executed, he would at least spend a lifetime in a labor camp.
Who would have thought that in trying to deal with Necker, he’d first snare such a big fish here.
If Necker were on the same level as Carolina, just the two of them could subsidize France’s finances by over 10 million.
This damn thing was even more profitable than organizing a fashion week! Joseph was irked to the point of itching teeth.
He struggled to suppress the anger in his heart, as he still needed Carolina to perform meritorious service after confessing his crimes. So, he took a deep breath and spoke in as calm a tone as he could:
“Since you’re being so honest, I, on behalf of the Royal Family, promise you that as long as you return the money you shouldn’t have taken, this incident will be as if it never happened.
“Moreover, if you help me deal with Necker, you might even receive some rewards.”
“Really?” Carolina had thought the Crown Prince would at least discipline him, but to his surprise, the Prince was letting it slide. He became so excited he almost knelt down to kiss Joseph’s boots. “Thank you, Your Highness, thank you Her Majesty the Queen! You are indeed too kind! May God be with you both!”
With his own affairs settled, he felt a sudden relief in his heart, and a sly smile flashed across his face—Necker, for all these years you have been against me, setting traps behind my back! Now I am going to send you to hell!
He turned around, moved the table, and pressed a piece of the floor in the corner, which made a slight “click” sound.
Then, he grabbed a chair and removed a stack of documents from a small hole that had appeared in the ceiling.
“Your Highness, these are the evidence of Necker’s corruption and crimes that I discovered while I was Finance Minister,” Carolina respectfully handed over the documents to Joseph. “He also knew some things about me at that time, so I dared not expose him. But now, I implore you to bring him to justice!”
Joseph flicked through the files he took, with the first documents being carbon copies of some receipts. The descriptions indicated that they were about Necker’s supplementary appropriations to the south for the construction of an irrigation system, where the money eventually ended up in the hands of several local nobles, and Necker received a kickback of 350,000 livres.
The following document showed that Necker had borrowed 3 million livres from a certain bank, a sum that never entered the treasury, yet France had to pay 20% interest annually. Only when Necker was removed from office five years later was this money accounted for in the treasury. And one-third of the annual interest went into Necker’s pockets.
The third document…
As Joseph looked through the pages, his face turned ashen. He slammed the documents on the table and looked at Carolina:
“How much did he embezzle in total in these documents?”
A gleam of pride flashed in Carolina’s eyes:
“Your Highness, a total of 7.22 million livres.”
Joseph took a silent, cold breath; this man was even greedier than Carolina!
Who knew, Carolina continued:
“Your Highness, these are just the crimes I have evidence for. From what I know, what he has embezzled is far beyond this amount, especially his dealings with the banking industry. They were done very secretly, and I could only guess some traces.”
Joseph took a deep breath: “How much more could there be?”
“It could likely exceed 10 million livres.”