Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Start as a Minor Official (Seeking Recommendations)
Early the next morning.
As soon as Paris Municipal Commissioner Levebelle caught sight of the head of the Chamber of Commerce, he waved at him with his chubby face and after exchanging a few pleasantries, he said,
“By the way, what are your thoughts on the case the Crown Prince solved yesterday?”
Freselle exclaimed with emotion, “The Crown Prince’s intelligence and wisdom left me absolutely stunned. I really look forward to the day he leads France.”
“Indeed,” Levebelle said with a smile, “after careful consideration, I think His Highness is entirely capable of serving as the Police Commissioner.”
After his persuasion, Freselle was eventually convinced. Since the Crown Prince himself also wanted a position within the Police Department, it was better to offer him a favor that would go with the flow.
Meanwhile, when Joseph had just entered the entrance of the City Hall, he was greeted by the portly mayor, who approached him with a beaming smile,
“Your Highness, yesterday the Police Commissioner from Saint Antoine District, old Similion, took an extended sick leave. I wonder if you would be interested in the position of Police Commissioner?”
“The Saint Antoine District?” The head of the Chamber of Commerce was taken aback, then whispered to Levebelle, “Why didn’t you mention it was that place? It’s too chaotic there; if the Crown Prince…”
The Municipal Commissioner interrupted him softly, “The Crown Prince won’t be patrolling; there won’t be any danger.”
Freselle wanted to say more but was blocked by the plump mayor, “Your Highness, the people left by Similion are all experienced. You can rest assured.”
Joseph was somewhat surprised at how quickly the two men changed their tune, but he immediately accepted the offer, “Alright, I accept the position.”
He had learned the day before that the Police Commissioner oversaw all police operations in a large district, with only the Director of Police Services above him. And it would be unlikely for the City Hall to allow him to become the Director of Police Services, considering his age.
Levebelle immediately laid on the praise thickly, accompanying the Crown Prince all the way to the Police Headquarters, and ensured that the appointment documents were signed before leaving contentedly.
Joseph wasted no time. Under the personal escort of Director of Police Services Gizo, he headed straight to Saint Antoine District to take up his new position.
After more than an hour in the carriage, they entered the perimeter of Saint Antoine District, and the surrounding scenery immediately became even more dilapidated.
The passersby had numb expressions, wobbly makeshift shacks were everywhere, homeless people emitting foul odors were sprawled in the corners, half of the shops were closed, and there were very few street vendors. Only prostitutes in cheap clothing intermittently solicited customers, bringing a slight semblance of vitality to the area.
Not long into their journey, Joseph saw several instances of protection racketeering, followed by gang members fighting on the streets, with blood everywhere. Passersby who spotted the fights from a distance quickly lowered their heads and fled, and throughout it all, no police appeared.
Gizo, however, seemed to be accustomed to the scene, cheerfully talking about the ball and even encouraging the Crown Prince to attend a masquerade next month.
Joseph thought to himself: No wonder this was the first place in France where the Revolutionary unrest started. Anyone living here for years amidst such extreme poverty would definitely accumulate a deep resentment, and once unleashed, the destructive power would be astonishing.
He sighed deeply. It seemed that he had, after all, come to the right place by coming to Saint Antoine District.
Another half-hour passed, and the carriage stopped in front of a small yard, surrounded by uneven wooden planks. Inside was a decrepit building with no sign in sight.
Gizo made a courteous gesture outside the carriage, “Your Highness, we’ve arrived at the Saint Antoine District Police Station.”
Seeing that the person getting off the carriage was the Director of Police Services, a police officer hastily ran inside to report. Moments later, several officials from the police station came out to greet them hurriedly.
First, Gizo bowed to Joseph, then, turning to the people in front of him, he cleared his throat and declared loudly, “The esteemed Crown Prince has graced us with his presence, and from now on, he will serve as the Police Commissioner here.” An assistant immediately displayed the appointment document.
All the members of the Saint Antoine District Police Station were so shocked that they stood rooted to the spot, not knowing what to think: How could such a high-profile figure come to our humble place? But isn’t the Crown Prince only 13 years old? Lord, he’s going to be a Police Commissioner? The police station will probably be thrown into complete chaos…
After a long pause, a tall, thin man with sunken eyes stepped forward and bowed respectfully, “Crown Prince, your arrival brings splendor to our modest place! Acting on behalf of everyone here, I, assistant commissioner Bono, sincerely welcome you.”
He then turned to introduce the others, “Your Highness, this is Magone, the second squad’s security supervisor, and this is the third squad’s security supervisor…”
The several security supervisors hurried forward to bow, and Joseph smiled as he returned their greetings one by one. He had seen in the documents at the town hall that the assistant to the Police Commissioner was the second in command at the police station, while the security supervisors were responsible for commanding police officers to respond to emergencies and patrol, usually with more than a dozen subordinates, and were part of the police station’s middle layer.
Bono and others escorted Joseph inside the police station, and Magone, rushing a few steps ahead to catch up, said with a look of admiration, “Your Highness, I heard from Cesar that just yesterday, you solved a murder case in merely over ten minutes, making us old police officers who have served for over a decade ashame.”
Joseph hadn’t expected the news to have reached the Saint Antoine District so quickly and hurriedly responded with a few modest words.
After entering the rundown building of the police station, Joseph, seeing the policemen following him step by step, frowned slightly and instructed them not to all follow and to go about their duties, including sending Gizo away.
Once the surroundings were finally quiet, Joseph, led by Bono, made his way to the Police Commissioner’s office. He looked around the room and sat down at the large oak desk.
With a smiling face, Bono offered, “Your Highness, would you like tea or hot chocolate? I will immediately prepare dinner for you.”
“Thank you, no trouble is needed,” Joseph waved his hand to decline, “Please bring me the files regarding the situation in our jurisdiction, as well as those related to cases and personnel.”
Bono was somewhat surprised; he had thought the Crown Prince was just coming to play for a few days but didn’t expect him to be serious!
The files were quickly brought over. Joseph only flipped through a few pages before his brow furrowed — just last month, the Saint Antoine District had seen 28 murders, 63 robberies, and 220 thefts…
And the district’s population was only 80,000!
Those numbers were just the reported cases; who knows how many went unreported? The situation was much worse than he had imagined.
Joseph then picked up the police officers’ information. There were a total of 181 policemen in the Saint Antoine District, 120 of whom had bought their positions, while only 61 had joined the force through inheritance, recruitment, and other methods.
Besides these, there were the civilian volunteer patrol squads, totaling over 200 people.
He had seen in documentaries that the most common activity for Paris Police officers nowadays was extortion! From vendors to criminals to victims, they shook down anyone they could. As for fighting crime? They’d get around to that in their free time, after all, they needed to earn back the money they had spent on buying their positions, right?
Therefore, maintaining public order largely depended on the civilian patrol squads, but they were volunteers without law enforcement authority, and their weapons were rudimentary; they could only intimidate criminals, not even capable of making arrests.
So, the truly useful police force amounted to roughly just those 60 or so who were recruited.