Although Louis XVI’s birthday had passed, the Versailles Palace square was still under a temporary suspension of dress codes. As a result, many Parisians continued to gather there to sing, dance, and enjoy the festivities, or to watch the free theater performances. Street vendors also flocked to the area, hoping to make a few more sales before the opportunity slipped away. People chatted about their experiences from the past few days, and the lively laughter kept the celebratory atmosphere alive.

Meanwhile, royalty and dignitaries from various countries, finally freed from the burdensome ceremonial activities, found time to explore Paris and enjoy themselves. Places like the Eden Garden amusement park saw another surge of visitors.

At 8:40 PM, Madame de Garlande, her face beaming with contentment, arrived at her music hall, ready to begin that evening’s music salon. Thanks to the influence she gained during the King’s birthday celebration, she had become one of the most sought-after music masters in Versailles. Her salon had turned into a “sanctuary” for music, where nobles and elites eagerly flocked, but only those with true talent could even step through its doors.

Although Godoy’s status was low, he had joined this salon early on, had solid musical skills, and with the help of several hundred livres provided by Louisa, he managed to secure a place in the salon.

As they entered the hall, several servants responsible for setting up the instruments discreetly exchanged nods when they saw the Spanish Crown Princess and her attendant. They then glanced at the balcony, making a subtle adjustment to the height of the guitar stool.

Godoy followed behind Louisa and respectfully greeted Madame de Garlande, offering some flattering words before being led by a servant to his seat, which was in the performers’ section. Louisa, on the other hand, was escorted to the elevated VIP area on the opposite side.

Due to the large number of nobles attending the music salon, Madame de Garlande often borrowed servants from other places to help out, so she didn’t pay much attention to a few unfamiliar faces.

At 9:00 PM sharp, the salon officially began. Breaking from tradition, Madame de Garlande, as the hostess, delivered an extended lecture on musical theory after welcoming the guests, earning rounds of admiration from the audience.

Several other music masters from Versailles also shared some insights on musical theory before moving on to the scheduled performances.

Soothing music filled the hall, starting with François Couperin’s The Fluttering Ribbon, though it had been rearranged by Madame de Garlande to sound lighter and more cheerful.

The performers became one with their instruments, and the audience, entranced, closed their eyes to fully enjoy the experience.

Just as the music reached its crescendo, a double bass that had been left on a chair suddenly toppled over as if it had lost its balance.

Godoy, who was sitting directly beneath the massive instrument, was startled and tried to dodge it, fearing he would be struck. However, as he pushed back, his chair seemed to catch on something, failing to move backward. Instead, it tipped over under the force of his push.

Godoy fell backward. Positioned right at the edge of the balcony, his body slammed into the railing. There was a loud “crack” as the wooden railing, thicker than a grown man’s arm, shattered as if it were made of paper.

The Spanish Crown Princess, who had been watching her lover play with an enraptured expression, suddenly saw the double bass topple over and then watched in horror as Godoy broke through the railing and plunged over the balcony.

A vague crashing sound echoed from below.

The sudden turn of events left everyone in the salon frozen in shock until Louisa let out a piercing scream, “Godoy—”

The musicians closest to the scene immediately stood up and cautiously peered over the broken balcony railing, seeing only a vague figure lying motionless on the ground below, while a servant nearby backed away in fear.

Louisa hurried to the balcony, but unable to see clearly in the dim light, she turned pale and, supported by her maid, rushed downstairs. The nobles attending the salon quickly followed to see what had happened.

At that moment, two palace guards who happened to be passing by saw someone fall and quickly knelt beside Godoy, anxiously calling out, “Sir! Sir, are you all right?”

Seeing that Godoy was apparently unconscious, one of the guards glanced up at the figures on the second-floor balcony. In the darkness, he could only make out indistinct shapes. He quickly drew a small knife and ran it swiftly across Godoy’s face.

The other guard, noticing Godoy’s gold cross pendant, yanked it out, wiped some blood on it, and carefully placed it on his chest.

When Louisa, nearly frantic, arrived downstairs with the servants’ torches in hand, she saw Godoy lying on the ground amidst shards of broken glass, as if from a shattered goblet.

The two guards were urgently trying to rouse him, while a servant stood trembling nearby.

Louisa cautiously approached for a closer look and saw more clearly that Godoy had two wounds on his face, likely caused by the glass. One ran from his eye down to his mouth, exposing yellowish fat beneath the skin—a horrifying sight.

His cross pendant lay on his chest, its golden Jesus figure soaked in blood, starkly visible against his white shirt, as if foreshadowing something terrible.

A noble who had rushed down from the salon saw this and hurriedly made the sign of the cross, muttering, “God have mercy! God have mercy!”

The sound of the prayer echoed in Louisa’s ears, striking her like a bolt of lightning. A terrifying thought surged through her mind: this was punishment—God’s punishment for her infidelity!

Frightened, she quickly made the sign of the cross and murmured shakily, “Lord, please forgive my sins. I was wrong, forgive me…”

“He’s still alive!” a noble stepped forward to check Godoy’s pulse and shouted back to the others.

Ten minutes later, a palace doctor arrived and ordered the servants to carefully lift Godoy onto a stretcher and carry him inside for treatment.

It was nearing midnight when the Versailles Palace’s chief steward arrived at the Spanish Crown Prince’s residence. After knocking and entering, he found that the Prince was not there, so he bowed to Louisa instead and said, “Your Highness, the doctor says your attendant is not in any immediate danger, but he has broken his right hand and suffered some cuts.”

Louisa didn’t respond to him, only muttering nervously to herself.

The chief steward continued, “It is unfortunate that such an accident occurred. I’ve already sent someone to investigate thoroughly. It turns out that the balcony railing in that music hall had been hollowed out by termites. The damage was hidden in a very concealed spot, so it went unnoticed… You know, the Versailles Palace has been around for a long time, and those little bugs are always damaging the wood.

“Mr. Godoy must have crashed into the termite-riddled railing, which then gave way, causing his fall. At the time, a servant was passing by below, on his way to deliver wine to the fountain. Mr. Godoy fell onto his tray, which is why…”

“Um, Your Highness, would you like to see him?”

Seeing that Louisa remained unresponsive, the steward sighed softly, bowed, and left the room. “Please, Your Highness, try not to worry too much,” he advised as he exited.

The next morning, the Spanish Crown Prince, Antonio, finally learned about Godoy’s fall, having been too drunk the night before to be informed earlier.

Initially lying on the couch, his eyes vacant, Antonio suddenly snapped back to life when the palace official finished delivering the news. He sprang up, grabbing the man’s shoulders excitedly:

“Are you saying that it was Princess Louisa’s attendant, Godoy? He broke his arm? His face is disfigured?”

“Y-yes, Your Highness, but please don’t be too upset.”

“Upset?” Antonio suddenly felt all traces of his hangover vanish as he became light and jubilant, as if he could float away. “Thank you for the reminder—I won’t be upset at all! Ha!”

The palace official looked at him with concern, unsure whether to call a doctor, but Joseph appeared at that moment and signaled for the official to leave.

Antonio rushed over to Joseph, as joyful as a child weighing 150 pounds:

“My dear Joseph, do you know? Versailles must be blessed by the Lord! My prayers have been answered!

“I love it here—I love France!”

Joseph crossed himself in response:

“May the Lord bless you, my friend.”

Antonio downed the remaining half glass of wine, grabbed Joseph, and headed for the door:

“Let’s go see that wretched scoundrel! Oh, where is he now?”

Joseph turned to Émmanuel, instructing him, “Please take the Crown Prince to see Mr. Godoy.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

In the hallway, Antonio shouted joyfully, “I love Versailles! I love this place! I’m going to stay here for a while!”

Once Antonio had calmed down a bit, Joseph leaned in and whispered:

“My dear Crown Prince, you should return to Madrid as soon as possible.”

“What? Why?” Antonio asked, still grinning.

“Take advantage of Godoy’s injury and leave him behind in France. Once you’re back in Madrid, report everything that’s happened to King Charles III,” Joseph advised.

Joseph knew that while he had managed to remove one of the “disastrous duo”—Godoy—the other, Louisa, would be difficult for Antonio to handle alone. For now, it was up to Charles III, Spain’s most capable king in nearly a century, to deal with her. Joseph believed that the king would know how to manage the situation.

Antonio, in his current good mood and sharper state of mind, nodded quickly:

“You’re right. I’ll leave at once!”

He visited Godoy, who was lying in bed and groaning in pain, and finally left, satisfied.

Louisa, after seeing the ghastly wounds on Godoy’s face the night before, no longer wanted to look at him. After personally confirming that the entire incident had indeed been an accident— with the wooden railing around the balcony eaten away by termites—she decided she wanted nothing more than to leave Versailles as quickly as possible. So when Antonio suggested they return to Spain, she agreed without hesitation.

By noon that day, the Spanish Crown Prince’s carriage was ready to depart.

Before leaving, Antonio hugged Joseph tightly, saying sincerely:

“I wish we could continue discussing mechanics at the Royal Workshop, Joseph. You’ll always be my best friend!”

In his mind, if not for his relative, he might never have discovered his wife’s depravity and infidelity. He was deeply grateful to Joseph.

“Yes, we’re the best of friends!” Joseph nodded, giving him a firm pat on the back.

Antonio then leaned in and whispered:

“My dear Joseph, I’ve left someone behind in Paris. Could you kindly arrange for that scoundrel Godoy to be sent to Paris when it’s convenient?”

Although Antonio feared his wife and was obsessed with mechanics, he was still the Crown Prince of Spain. After cooling down, he wasn’t about to let his now-disgraced lover get away easily.

Joseph pretended to be taken aback. “You mean…? That might be…”

“Please, you must help me with this!”

Reluctantly, Joseph agreed, “Alright, I’ll do my best…”

After the Spanish Crown Prince left, Joseph immediately wrote a letter to King Charles III, detailing how Antonio had been publicly humiliated in his own quarters. He assured the king that he would keep the matter confidential.

He handed the letter to a messenger, instructing him to deliver it to the Spanish king a day after Antonio arrived in Madrid.

This way, what began as a personal disgrace would become a national scandal—Charles III was sure to be furious.

The excitement surrounding Louis XVI’s birthday celebration didn’t fully subside until almost September.

Dressed in a brand-new, custom-made white military uniform, Joseph took a carriage to the Paris Police Academy to attend the induction ceremony for the second cohort of cadets.

Today wasn’t just the second cohort’s induction; it was also the first cohort’s departure for field training.

Although the first cohort had only been in school for ten months, Joseph decided, based on their training, that they were ready to participate in the North African military campaign.

The cadets had trained diligently, achieving a high level of military competence. Joseph decided to integrate them into Bertier’s Prince’s Guard, where they could gain real combat experience against the North African forces.

Only those who had faced the smoke and blood of the battlefield could become a truly formidable force!

According to Joseph’s plan, the first cohort of cadets, including 1,000 from the “Combat Police” class and 400 from the “Elite” class, would join Bertier’s two regiments of 3,000 soldiers, forming a mixed force of about 4,400 men. The French Navy would then transport them to North Africa to fight.

This unit was entirely loyal to Joseph, and there would be no obstacles to its deployment.

If the situation in North Africa turned out to be more intense than expected, Joseph would consider mobilizing the Duke of Villars’ Moulins Brigade, trained by Andre. This brigade also consisted of three regiments.

Though not as combat-effective as the Prince’s Guard, this brigade was reliable in terms of loyalty and could be mobilized without much issue.

If the Moulins Brigade demonstrated satisfactory combat performance, Joseph would consider upgrading their weapons and equipment, and perhaps even developing them into his direct loyalists.

With a force of nearly 9,000 soldiers aligned with Joseph’s strategic objectives, the chances of failing to secure North Africa would be minimal.

(End of Chapter)

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep