"Agnes - you really are...tell me clearly!"
Agnes was immediately flustered by her father's scolding. She knew in her heart that she had caused trouble and didn't know how to make up for it.
She was not a good liar, nor did she have the quick wit to save the situation, so her face turned red for a moment and she wanted to speak but couldn't.
Seeing his daughter's embarrassment, the Duke controlled his anger for a while, and then sighed, "Agnes, do you still want to hide it from me? At this time, isn't your father qualified to know what you did? What? You can be proud and complacent. You are devoted to your sister, but what about us? Where did you put us? "
"Dad, don't embarrass me..." Agnes was so anxious that she almost cried. She was always proud and lowered her head to beg for mercy from her father. "I swear, I have never done anything harmful to you."
"Subjectively, you will definitely not do anything detrimental to me, but objectively? Look how much trouble you have caused me? The king asked me face to face what happened to the Count of Monte Cristo. I It took a lot of effort to hide you! Forget it, but God knows how many more surprises you will bring me..." When he mentioned this, the Duke became even more angry, "Agnes, please let me beg you. , let me understand the situation clearly, so that I can at least take precautions in advance, so as not to be caught off guard and led into the pit again! Do you think I will harm you and your sister? I am already old, and I don’t plan to be king. Why are you asking for improvement? I just want to protect our poor family so as not to face disaster again. Can't you be considerate of my father?"
Her father's lament made Agnes suddenly wake up.
Yes, the father will not tell the truth - if the father tells the truth, his two daughters will be involved, and he himself cannot explain clearly.
How could the king believe that a person whose two daughters were in cahoots with gangsters would be innocent?
So even if he learned the truth, his father would deliberately conceal it.
When she thought of this, Agnes immediately cheered up.
Although it was definitely impossible for her to tell her father everything, it was okay to at least reveal a little bit of the situation to him, and it could also ease her guilt.
"I went with my sister on her wedding trip. Neither of us knew the situation when we set off. I swear that at least at that time, I had no idea about the Bonaparte family... However, my brother-in-law had other plans at the time. , he took us to a small town in Switzerland, and then there, we met the Duke of Lechstadt -" After making up her mind, Agnes finally told her father about her previous experience, "My sister was very surprised at the time. , she didn’t want her husband’s family to be involved in this kind of political conspiracy, but she had no choice but to do so, because General Treville was already determined to make a career by joining the Bonaparte family, and her brother-in-law had to obey his father’s orders... In desperation, she had no choice but to be respectful to Duke Lechstadt, and we spent some time together in Switzerland."
Having said this, Agnes looked at her father again, "I just said that my sister has a good relationship with Duke Leichstadt. It was during this time that they had a lot of fun together and even went boating on the lake together. As for the traveling companion... I heard the Duke himself say that they are friends. I think that there are probably not many people who are qualified to receive such recognition from him. With this kind of relationship, my sister will definitely be able to speak in front of him... "
Agnes spoke softer and quieter, because she clearly remembered that Duke Leichstadt said the same thing to her - but what followed was unbridled and frivolous, and even threatened her.
The thought of this and having to praise the Duke against his will in front of her father made her so disgusted that she could barely bear it.
Fortunately, her father listened quietly and didn't notice anything unusual about her. He didn't even show any emotion or anger on his face, he just thought silently.
"So you have met him, so what do you think of Duke Leichstadt?" After a moment, he asked calmly.
"He is a very powerful young man. He is smart and skilled, and he has an impressive demeanor in every gesture. People around him respect him sincerely and are proud of his service." Agnes praised first. After a few words, he immediately changed the subject, "But he is also a hopeless narcissist, arrogant and defiant. He always seems to feel that the world revolves around him alone..."
"This is not a shortcoming. Our king is also like this." At this time, the Duke replied dryly, "All monarchs and people who want to be monarchs are like this."
Seeing that her father actually said nice things to him, Agnes felt even more uncomfortable as if she had swallowed a fly.
"He is still a dissolute and shameless playboy!" Finally, she couldn't hold it back, so she yelled angrily.
"Huh? Why do you say that?" the Duke asked.
"He was rude to me." - Agnes originally wanted to answer this, but she felt ashamed at the thought, so she swallowed the words on her lips.
"It can be seen from his words and deeds." In the end, she could only reply.
The Duke shook his head indifferently, "Even so, it's not a big deal - after all, who is not like this among the young masters? Our ancestors have been here for generations. It is a common problem for young people to like to get involved with women, let alone a man. Where is the pretender to the throne? Henry IV was like this at the beginning."
"Dad?" Agnes was greatly surprised by her father's attitude.
Comparing the founding king like Henry IV to the Duke of Lechstadt, not to mention Henry IV, the founder of the Bourbon dynasty, was really disrespectful to the dynasty. Once these words spread, my father would probably suffer.
"Let's just talk about this in private. There is nothing to avoid between father and daughter." The Duke shook his head indifferently. "To be honest, I don't have much hatred for the Bonaparte family. After all, we were It was the Jacobins who drove out of France. It has nothing to do with them. Of course we must be incompatible with them in our public stance, but there is no need to gnash our teeth when mentioning it in private. This is the way we should-"
Having said this, he glanced at his daughter again, "Besides, my daughter has become his friend. Can I still restore our family's innocence by yelling?"
Although her father was talking about her sister, Agnes couldn't help feeling guilty and hurriedly lowered her gaze. "In short, this is the situation. Dad, as I just said, it would be best if everything remains as it is, and we don't have to worry about anything. If there is a day when the Bonaparte family becomes powerful, then my sister will at least be able to protect it. Us, it’s good for us too, isn’t it?”
"So, when you went to Switzerland this time, you followed her to meet Duke Lechstadt again?" The father was noncommittal and asked again.
"Yes." Agnes nodded, "Don't ask any more questions... I don't want to cause any more trouble to my sister."
She was also afraid that her father would ask for the specific location of the village and then inform the Wang family, so she simply made her attitude clear.
Seeing that his daughter was so determined, the Duke stopped asking questions and began to think deeply again.
After a long time, he sighed, breaking the silence, "Hey... your sister looks smart, but she is as stubborn as a fool. I tried my best to persuade her not to get married, but she didn't listen! The result is for us How much trouble it has caused...I have dragged you into the water! I am still very angry when I think about it now, so I have not been in contact with her in the past two years. She must also be resentful of me. "
"How could it be? My sister has always felt guilty for disobeying your will. She will never forget your kindness in bringing her up no matter what." Agnes persuaded her quickly. "Actually, I also have some objections to this marriage, but what can I do? Since this is my sister's decision, I can only support and bless her. Judging from the current situation, she has a happy family and a lovely child. daughter--"
"Happiness? Where is she happy? Edgar is just a showman. He looks glamorous, but in fact he is just a libertine! That's all for libertinage. He has no ambition and just wants to have fun all day long!" When he mentioned his son-in-law, the Duke suddenly She got angry again, "Look, has the situation improved even after they got married? That guy still goes out to eat, drink and have fun from time to time. Maybe he is still disconnected from his former lovers?! God knows how long Alice will have to endure her anger. !”
Agnes was silent. She knew in her heart that what her father said was actually right. Even if she was partial to her sister, she did not want to defend Edgar.
"But so what? All this is a done deal, we can only accept the reality, right? If Edgar is really sorry for his sister in any way, I will teach him a lesson." So she mustered up the courage to comfort her father, "Edgar, why don't you mention it? At least their sister is taking care of their child, and it will definitely have a bright future - you should really go and see it, Xia Lu is so cute! As a grandfather, even if you are still dissatisfied with the past, But Xia Lu is always innocent. She is your granddaughter! No matter what, you should show your love..."
"Ha... let's talk about it later. Now I don't dare to provoke their family and make others suspicious." The Duke shook his head and rejected his daughter's proposal, "In my opinion, since Edgar can't bear the responsibility of a husband, , then there is no need for Alice to devote herself wholeheartedly to him. If she and Duke Leichstadt become close friends or even go further, it would be a kind of compensation..."
When her father said such words, she felt like she was struck by lightning.
Because she completely understood the implications.
"...You, what are you talking about?" She looked at her father in disbelief, not expecting that such words would come out of his mouth.
"Isn't that what you just said? The two of them talked very happily, and Duke Lechstadt said that they were friends. As a libertine, isn't it obvious what this means? Alice does It's very beautiful, and that's quite normal, right?" The Duke replied calmly.
"You...how can you think that?!" Agnes was so angry that her eyes darkened and she almost fainted.
She didn't expect that her untrue words would cause her father to have such a terrible misunderstanding.
What makes her even more angry is that her father is happy to see things come to fruition... How can he treat his daughter like this? !
She glared at her father angrily, "You are insulting your sister. How can her chastity and her reputation be slandered like this? Alice has always maintained proper restraint towards the Duke. My conscience can testify to this!" "
"Slander? In my opinion, being Edgar's wife is much more embarrassing than being Duke Lechstadt's lover. At least the latter can let the world know her value." His father had no intention of restraining himself. Instead, he shrugged and replied coldly, "She was loyal to such a husband, sacrificed her former reputation, was closed by the social world, and her former friends also abandoned her... What did she get in the end? I don't see how Edgar respected her sacrifice."
Agnes's face turned red and her breathing became more and more rapid - if anyone else had said such words, she might have taken action directly.
But that was what her father said, and she had no way to use her fists to teach the other person what not to say.
"Dad, I didn't hear anything you said." In the end, she could only say to her father word by word, "I beg you, don't humiliate your sister anymore. Her life is already so difficult, and we can't do it anymore." Using such malice to inflict mental pain on her..."
After she finished speaking, she almost cried.
After all, she has seen and felt all the pain and disasters her sister faced. Now that even her father is showing his malice so unabashedly, it is even more unbearable for her.
Seeing his daughter's rebellious attitude, the Duke said nothing more and just sighed softly.
"Well, since you don't want to hear it, I won't mention it. In this era, disasters are coming one after another and everyone has too much time to take care of themselves. Why do I need to add trouble to my daughter who is already married? Alice's Life is her own business, I have no control over it——"
"Disaster?" Agnes keenly noticed the abnormality from her father's words, "What disaster?"
The Duke hesitated for a moment longer, then waved gently to his daughter.
"We're in trouble, kid."
Agnes was startled and hurriedly came to her father's side. "what happened?"
"You may not know that if you don't care about current affairs, the market has been unstable recently. All kinds of rumors are flying all over the sky. Some people say that Tanglar Bank is failing and is facing a major business crisis..." The Duke explained to his daughter in a low voice, "After I heard the news, , secretly wrote a letter asking Tanglar to return all our deposits to us, and that Tanglar guy replied to me today. He said that he encountered a temporary financial shortage, but everything was fine. The amount on my side It was so huge that it was difficult for him to collect it in a hurry, so he asked me for a period of grace, and he promised that he would pay us all the money in full..."
"What?!" Agnes was startled when she heard this, "Do we have business dealings with Tanglar Bank?"
"Yes, and quite a few." Father nodded regretfully, "Actually, we should be one of his biggest depositors——"
"Why? Why do you want to invest a large amount of money in him? Are there people in Paris with more outstanding reputations than him?" Agnes asked.
"He is a smart guy and has always been very bold in his business operations. However, he has been very good at walking on the tightrope over the years, and his wealth has expanded rapidly -" the Duke darkened his face, then shook his head, "I am interested in his business ability. So I lent him money to invest, and he has given me a lot of returns in the past few years. I thought this guy should be able to go smoothly for a while, but I didn't expect... ugh... it seems like he might not be able to survive this time. It’s over.”
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