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“Oh?” Joseph looked at Fouche and asked, “Do you know who is looking for Necker?”
“This, we can’t be sure yet. However, our informant at the Klassen Bank reported that the bank has recalled all of its commercial spies, probably for some other important task. And there is news from the Paris Bank that they are hiring a large number of private detectives,” Fouche replied.
“It is indeed the people from the banking industry,” Joseph nodded slightly. It seemed that Carolina was right; Necker must have involved in a lot of unsavory dealings with the major banks, and these people wanted to find him before the government did.
He tapped the armrest of his chair thoughtfully, finding it strange that Necker, as a spokesperson for major banks and a senior member of the Banking Guild, should have sought help from the industry immediately after the incident, yet he chose to hide at the first opportunity.
Thus, there was only one possibility—Necker did not trust the people of the Banking Guild.
This was not surprising, as Necker was Swiss and didn’t have deep roots in France. Now that an incident had occurred, he couldn’t be sure that the French bankers wouldn’t silence him to prevent the leak of information.
Thinking this, Joseph became even more convinced of the need to mobilize the Secret Police to search house by house, and he was willing to call in the army if necessary—he had to find Necker before the Banking Guild did!
Joseph further urged Fouche to step up the search, then he hurried off to the Palace of Versailles, planning to discuss with Brian and Robel of the Secret Police about launching a citywide manhunt in Paris.
In the carriage, Clementine, noticing the Crown Prince’s serious expression and furrowed brow, asked tentatively, “Cousin, are you troubled by something? Talk to me; things often seem less troubling when you talk about them.”
Joseph sighed and asked casually, “Clementine, how would you go about looking for someone who has gone missing?”
The young girl pondered for a moment and earnestly replied, “Well, I would first go and ask his friends or servants where he might have gone, and then…”
At this, Joseph suddenly stopped, realizing that he had overlooked something important—the people from the Banking Guild were far more familiar with Necker than he was!
Even Necker’s subordinates could be recommended by some major bank.
With these people close to Necker providing leads, no matter how many people he used, it would be hard to ensure an advantage…
What to do?
Clementine kept talking to herself, but noticed that her cousin’s brow was furrowing even more. She quickly reassured him, “Did one of your friends disappear? You don’t need to worry so much. Maybe he’s just got something to do and he’ll come back by himself after a while.”
Joseph managed a slight smile at her and said, “Thank you for your consolation, but that person will not appear on his own…”
Wait a minute!
He was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly felt like he had grasped something.
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If he couldn’t find Necker faster than the Banking Guild, why not make Necker show himself?
Just as ancient strategists would leave one side of an encirclement open, the enemy would surely flee in that unprotected direction.
If he could block all other ways out for Necker, then Necker would have no choice but to take the path he had left open for him!
Joseph refined this idea, and a strategy for leaving an open route began to take shape in his mind.
He sincerely thanked Clementine, “You’re absolutely an expert at finding people; I’m truly grateful for your help!”
The young girl, blushing with pride, popped a piece of vanilla mint candy into her mouth as a reward and then offered a piece to her cousin as well.
The carriage stopped in the marble square of the Palace of Versailles, and Joseph alighted and made a beeline for the Finance Minister’s office.
In this “leave one side open” plan, the key was the “open side,” and the difficulty lay in requiring Queen Mary’s cooperation.
Soon, Minister of the Interior Mono and Justice Minister Breti, among several other Cabinet Ministers, all gathered in Brian’s office, looking at Joseph in surprise.
“Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince, I don’t quite understand. Shouldn’t we be focusing all our efforts on arresting Necker?”
“But why have you ordered the recall of the arrest warrant and even asked Queen Mary to announce his pardon?”
As Joseph’s political allies in the Cabinet, they had naturally heard about the embezzlement charges that Carolina had exposed against Necker.
Joseph looked around at them and said, “When a person faces a situation of certain death, if he sees a chance to live, he will undoubtedly take that route. I want the Royal Family to become Necker’s only way out.”
Breti immediately said, “Your Highness, with such serious charges of embezzlement against Necker, he should be strictly tried. Pardoning him might not be appropriate.”
Joseph replied, “Necker himself is not important. What I want is the information he has!
“As for the pardon, heh, although the King has pardoned him, if someone else wants to punish him, we can’t do anything about it.”
Brian looked at Joseph, “Your Highness, what exactly does Necker know?”
“It could involve several billion livres of government debt!”
There was a moment of silence in the room.
In the afternoon, several Cabinet Ministers, leading a group of renowned nobles, went to Petit Trianon Palace, to persuade Queen Mary to announce the cancellation of Necker’s trial and promise that he would not be sentenced to death, nor would there be lengthy imprisonment.
Queen Mary had previously seen the report about Necker’s embezzlement submitted by Brian. Although she was puzzled by the actions of the ministers and nobles, she couldn’t resist their importuning due to her soft-heartedness.
“`