Eagle’s Glory

After completing the planned plan, Prosecutor Villefort said goodbye to the Count of Monte Cristo and left the Ile de la Cité prison.

He returned home in his own carriage.

As usual, as soon as he showed up at home, his lovely and well-behaved daughter Valentine greeted him - but this time, there was another member of his family with her daughter.

His father, the Marquis Noirtier, actually came today.

Although the two are father and son, they do not live together due to years of estrangement. The Marquis rarely visits his son's home - and almost every time he comes there is nothing good.

However, Villefort quickly suppressed his unhappiness and greeted his father respectfully, "Dad, long time no see."

The Marquis of Noirtier just nodded slightly, and then looked at his son with a scrutinizing gaze.

This kind of look made the prosecutor feel a little nervous, but he didn't dare to get angry and could only wait for his father to speak.

In the past, the Marquis was a veteran of the former dynasty who was idle at home, and the prosecutor was a powerful upper-class person. There was no need for him to give his father much face. But now, with the comeback of the Bonaparte family, the situation is completely different.

As one of the last surviving Bonapartists, he was favored by the King of Rome and given important responsibilities. Now he has been appointed by Prince Talleyrand as Chairman of the National Electoral Commission. On the surface, it is a neutral position, but in fact it is Spare no effort to build momentum for the King of Rome; after the election, the marquis who has made great contributions will definitely receive a heavy reward - in fact, Prosecutor Villefort has heard rumors that the King of Rome will let the marquis enter the House of Nobility (Senator) House of Representatives), led the parliament for him, and became one of the most popular dignitaries in the empire.

Originally, the Marquis had an aura of calmness and authority, but now that he has the power, he is even more majestic. Correspondingly, Prosecutor Villefort is naturally shorter in front of his father, and he does not dare to express his dignity.

but,

It is certainly a good thing for Villefort that his father is in power. It means that he has a solid backer. However, Villefort knows that his father is already in his dying years and may fall at any time, so he has to make preparations in advance and intend to go to Christ. Lord Earl of the Mountain moved closer in exchange for future protection.

While Prosecutor Villefort was still feeling uneasy, the Marquis of Noirtier suddenly spoke, "Have you been very close to the Count of Monte Cristo recently?"

"Yes, Dad." Although he was confused about his father's question, the prosecutor answered him honestly. "I met him recently, and he has helped me before."

The Marquis looked at his son, and his original stern look began to become complicated. There was pain, sadness and helplessness in it, but he was a good man after all, so he regained his composure before his son became suspicious.

"What do you think of him?" he asked again.

"I think he is a very powerful person, and he is favored by His Majesty. He is bound to prosper." Villefort told the truth to his father, "Considering that this year I have betrayed the Bourbon family and offended the Orleans family. , I have already made too many enemies, so if I can get such a backer in the future, I will be much safer."

"Yes, you have no way out...you can only serve us to the end." The Marquis sighed with a hint of sadness.

Following this sigh, an awkward silence fell between father and son.

Villefort certainly felt very uncomfortable in this strange atmosphere, but he did not dare to get angry with his father, so he could only wait awkwardly. Fortunately, the Marquis quickly cheered up and spoke again, "I know the Count of Monte Cristo very well. He is indeed smart, capable and brave. Please help him as much as you can. However, there is an important thing now. You have to finish it for me first.”

"What's the matter?" Prosecutor Villefort was a little confused.

"Don't you remember what you promised me?" The Marquis glared at his son impatiently, and then reminded him, "You need to start a family again as soon as possible!"

Only then did Villefort remember that his father had indeed said before that he would get married as soon as possible and give birth to an heir for the family. But Villefort himself is not that obsessed. For him, it is enough that he can become famous. Who cares about family inheritance? In addition, he was busy "framing" the poor Count Morcerf during this period, so he even put this matter aside.

So, my father, who is busy with everything, came here today just to tell me this? Villefort felt only a sense of silent absurdity.

He obviously already had Valentine, but his father still forced him to remarry as soon as possible and interfered in his life arbitrarily, completely ignoring that he was already forty years old and no longer a child!

Villefort had a bad relationship with his father originally, but now his heart was filled with disgust.

This old guy lived a heroic life, but ended up looking like a mediocre mortal at the end of his life. He had to have a grandson as his heir... Villefort couldn't help feeling a little emotional.

But if you think about it carefully, the Marquis of Noirtier is about to create a huge career, and it is only natural for him to want someone to succeed his title and family business. Wasn't it the same for His Majesty the Emperor back then?

But it’s just a pain to myself.

This was when Villefort suddenly realized that this was not a topic that could be discussed in front of Valentine, so he quickly looked at his daughter, "Valentina, you can go and play by yourself, grandpa and I have something to do. "

The young Valentine nodded obediently, then bowed to her father and grandfather and then left.

"I've been thinking about this." After his daughter left, he answered his father perfunctorily, "It's just that I've been busy recently, and it's hard to find a suitable partner, so I haven't found one yet..."

"I'm not here to listen to your excuses!" The Marquis gestured impatiently, interrupting his son's defense. "If you can't find one, then just do what I want. I've already found a suitable one for you. To my partner, please get married as soon as possible."

These words drove Prosecutor Villefort crazy.

At this age, you still have to be manipulated by your father like a child?

He has not had a good relationship with his father since he was a child. Part of the reason is that they have chosen different political stances, but part of the reason is that he is fed up with his father's paternalism. He hates being pointed out by his superior father.

Decades have passed, but my father's tyranny and cruelty have not changed at all.

The more Villefort thought about it, the more he became itchy with hatred. He glared at his father, "Who are you looking for?"

"A lady from a well-born family. She has an impeccable family background. Although she does not have much property, she has a very good character." The Marquis of Noirtier replied casually, "Her husband used to serve in the palace, but unfortunately died before In the midst of the turmoil, now is just the right time to combine with you."

The first words were fine, but the last words made Villefort go crazy.

His face twitched with anger, and the good mood he had felt during the interrogation of Marshal Marmont had almost been wiped out. "In other words, you want to find me a widow?"

He really couldn't understand what his father was thinking. Although he was a widower and had a daughter, he was a well-known and powerful prosecutor with a family background and a backer. Even though he was older, he was in the upper class society. The marriage and love market in China is also "capital-rich", so such a person still needs to find a widow to make do with it? That's ridiculous! Doesn’t the father himself feel that it is a disgrace to the family? Could it be that I was so useless in his eyes?

For a moment, he thought his father was joking with him, but his father's expression didn't look like he was joking.

Little did he know that this was all done deliberately by his father - in his opinion, if he found a well-known young lady who was waiting for marriage, then after his son died suddenly, the young lady would immediately suffer the greatest pain in her life. A setback will change the trajectory of life from now on. He doesn't want to harm others to this situation; so he would rather find a noble lady for his son who has been widowed once. On the one hand, such a person has been hit once and will not be so sad again. On the one hand, people in the palace are indifferent, and ladies do not care so much about their husbands' life and death.

"What happened to the widow? Aren't you also a widower?" The Marquis interrupted his son impatiently, "The most important thing now is that you leave an heir. I may not live for many years, so while there is still some time, You still have time to take care of me, so hurry up and do what I say!"

"No! I won't do it!" Villefort's veins popped out, and he shouted loudly to his father, "Mr. Marquis, I am already an adult, I can decide my life, whether I want to get married, when I want to get married, I don't care. You can make your own decision, I don’t need you to give me pointers! Since you are old and have many things to do, I suggest you focus on your own affairs and don’t make trouble for me and let the outside world see the joke. !”

Originally, for Villefort, it was not that important whether he married a widow or not, but his father's arrogant attitude completely angered him, and the resistance against his father that he had always retained in his heart was completely aroused, so that Forgetting her fear of him, she retorted loudly.

However, his son's reaction was entirely within the Marquis's expectations.

He also knows how to deal with it.

"Do you really think that you can still make decisions freely now?" The Marquis sneered at his son, "Mr. de Villefort, I know that the so-called filial piety is a joke to you, and there is no such thing between us. That kind of thing exists. But don’t forget that the current situation has changed drastically. The reason why you are still respected by others is because you are my son and because you have been put into great use by His Majesty - and I can easily do all of these. Destroy, you are not qualified to resist me at all. You should understand the consequences of disobeying me. I can assure you now that if you dare not listen to me, you will lose everything you have now in a few days. You will definitely regret it."

His father's murderous words instantly drained all the courage that Villefort had mustered up, as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

He knew that his father could indeed do all this, and based on his understanding of his father, since he said so, he would definitely do it.

Why? Why are you so hard on each other? I am your son...you have ruined my political life, won't you suffer losses yourself?

Could it be that this old guy has really become senile and confused as he gets older? He really couldn't understand why his father was so eager now and why he was so merciless to him.

But now is not the time to think about this. The question his father threw to him only had two options-obey or die?

Anyone with normal intelligence knows how to choose.

Villefort composed himself and then made a final struggle, "Don't you think about Valentine? She is still so young, but you find her a stepmother. Isn't this very beneficial to her?"

poor child.

When he thought of Valentine, the Marquis's nose became sore and he almost cried.

As a grandfather, of course he likes his granddaughter. If he had a choice, why would he want to see his granddaughter suffer?

But now that he has reached this point, he can only make such a helpless choice. After all, isn't it all caused by his son?

When he thought of this, he straightened his face again, and then sighed heavily. "I am indeed sorry for her, but there is nothing I can do about it. Life has to go on. Who wants her mother to die early? Valentine, I have my own plans. Although she is still young now, she should grow up in a few years. , when she grows up, if I am still alive, I will find her the best marriage so that she can live without worries about food and clothing..."

At this point, his expression suddenly became strange.

Villefort was originally curious about why his father sounded like he was assuming that he would not be able to take care of his daughter in a few years. Seeing his father's strange expression, he hurriedly asked.

"What's wrong with you?"

"What kind of person do you think the Count of Monte Cristo is?" The Marquis of Noirtier seemed to have thought of something, and asked his son seriously.

"Didn't you ask just now? I said it all!" Villefort felt that his father was really old and confused, and it was simply unreasonable.

However, soon, he felt some subtle meaning from his father's expression, and then he began to shudder.

"You...don't you want to..."

The Marquis was silent, and at this time Villefort finally confirmed that his father was not only old and confused, but also really going crazy.

"He is indeed very powerful and has a great future, but he is already over thirty, more than twenty years older than Valentine!" He hurriedly argued with his father, "Are you really crazy?"

"Yes, but so what?" the Marquis of Noirtier asked, "When the Emperor married Princess Louisa, the age gap was even greater than this - is this kind of thing rare?"

Villefort was speechless. Indeed, marriages with such age gaps abound in the upper class, and people are not surprised.

But... our family is from a famous family, not that kind of thing!

"Don't forget what kind of people you and I are! We do need to make friends with him, but is it necessary to flatter him to this extent?!" He protested loudly to his father, "Father, think about it! Stop thinking about such embarrassing things!"

The Marquis did not respond to his son's protest, but looked at his son meaningfully again.

"If it's one for one..."