Chapter 59

New book uploaded, seeking recommendations and support.

London, Omarque Club.

Zhu Jishi's carriage once again stopped at the grand and solemn entrance of this place of British high society—the club, located near Threadneedle Street, the financial center of London in this era, had tall pillars and a granite facade, just like the surrounding banks.

When Zhu Jishi and Countess Isabel stepped out of the carriage, it was already dark outside, but the Omarque Club was brightly lit, with the faint sound of waltz music drifting over.

As the most famous scientist in London and a capitalist whose wealth had rapidly increased, Zhu Jishi naturally became a regular at the Omarque Club. He also shamelessly went to bed with three of the nine most famous hostesses of the club—of course, it was just one-night stands. Those three women were either duchesses or marchionesses, and one was a Russian princess named Olga Nikolaevna, who was traveling in England and preparing to get married. She was quite beautiful and a good friend of Queen Victoria. Before Queen Victoria decided to marry Prince Albert, she had been in a passionate relationship with Olga's brother, the Russian Crown Prince, who later became Alexander II, but they did not end up together due to political reasons.

Of course, having one-night stands with these European noblewomen was a very unprincipled thing, but this was the fashion in the European upper class of this era! If he wanted to play the part of a pure and innocent man, Zhu Jishi didn't have the qualifications... If he were a prince of a European royal family, pretending to be pure and innocent might make people think he had high moral standards, and he might even become a prince consort like Prince Albert. But as a nouveau riche scientist with a strong smell of money and a Chinese, offending those women would have consequences not much better than offending Queen Victoria.

Fortunately, the noblewomen whom Isabel had warned him not to refuse were all quite attractive—this was also a kind of unspoken rule. If an old and ugly noblewoman still had a youthful heart, she would generally look for a penniless pretty boy, not a nouveau riche scientist like Zhu Jishi at the Omarque Club.

"Jason, I'm a bit hungry. Let's eat something first."

Walking into the grand hall of the Omarque Club, the ball had not yet started, and a cocktail party was being held in the hall. Zhu Jishi scanned the room and found mostly unfamiliar faces. The Russian princess Olga Nikolaevna, who was still in London, was not there. She was Zhu Jishi's first princess, and the thought of having put a green hat on the Crown Prince of Württemberg gave him an indescribable thrill—he didn't know that the men who had put green hats on this prince could form an entire infantry battalion! But the prince didn't care at all, as he had never slept with his wife because he was gay!

"Who is the hostess of today's ball?" Zhu Jishi took two glasses of red wine from a tray held by a waiter, handed one to Isabel, and took a sip. "Good wine! This wine is..."

"1825 Duhart-Milon," Isabel smiled and introduced.

"Isabel, you know this without even tasting it?" Zhu Jishi asked curiously.

Isabel smiled gently and led Zhu Jishi to the buffet table. "Because today's hostess is the Duchess of Segur. Jason, have you heard of the Segur family?"

"The Segur family?" Zhu Jishi shook his head in confusion. The name sounded French, and while he was now familiar with British nobility, he was not very clear about French nobility.

"The Segur family is the largest wine producer in Europe, owning dozens of vineyards in France. Duhart-Milon is one of their best vineyards. Whenever the Segur family holds a high-end cocktail party or banquet, they serve 1825 Duhart-Milon to their guests."

Zhu Jishi had never heard of Duhart-Milon, but if it were Château Lafite, he would have recognized it immediately. In fact, Château Lafite belonged to the Segur family before the French Revolution, but it was confiscated and sold after the revolution and has not yet been reclaimed.

The two of them took some food and found a quiet seat to sit down, eating and talking.

"Jason, we will soon be traveling to France. How much do you know about France?"

"We? Isabel, are you going to accompany me to France?" Zhu Jishi was taken aback. His relationship with Isabel was not as close as others imagined; they were just good friends... good friends who had slept together! Well, this was not a big deal in European noble circles, and it was different from having a lover. The latter still required a bit of "loyalty," especially when there was a significant difference in wealth and status.

For example, Madame Durand had become Zhu Jishi's "concubine," but Isabel's situation was different. Playing around was fine, but if he wanted to keep her, he would have to be prepared to wear a green hat! So Zhu Jishi never had such thoughts; his mind was still Eastern.

"Jason, the current political situation in France is divided into the Orleanist, Legitimist, Republican, and Bonapartist factions," Isabel de Naveau explained, ignoring Zhu Jishi's question.

"The Orleanists, although in power, are the weakest faction. The current king, Louis-Philippe, was originally the Duke of Orléans, a branch of the Bourbon dynasty, and had no right to inherit the French throne—this might not be a big deal in China, but in Europe, it is a significant issue. Because of the Duke of Orléans' accession, the French royalists split into two factions: most supported the legitimate Bourbon dynasty, while only a small part supported the Duke of Orléans. As a result, Louis-Philippe did not have enough power to maintain his throne and had to rely on the support of the bourgeoisie and the Bonapartists. The former are mainly financial capitalists, and the current French government relies on their financial support to function. The latter are the officers left by Emperor Napoleon, and the military power of the Orleanist dynasty is actually controlled by generals who lean towards the Bonapartist faction!"

"What? The military power of France is in the hands of the Bonapartists? Then why is Charles Bonaparte still in prison?" Zhu Jishi asked curiously. Charles Louis Bonaparte, later known as Napoleon III, was someone Zhu Jishi knew would become the Emperor of France. He had intended to cultivate a relationship with him, but the man was imprisoned for rebellion and was currently in the Ham fortress in France.

Isabel de Naveau smiled faintly. "Because he wants to be in prison."

"Want to be in prison?" Zhu Jishi thought, Napoleon III's thinking was truly strange.

"Being in prison is also a form of political capital!" Isabel said seriously. "Charles Bonaparte is not the King of Rome; he is not the natural successor to Napoleon's cause, and there is no ready-made throne waiting for him. Therefore, he must portray himself as a hero who has sacrificed for Napoleon's cause to gain the recognition of the Bonaparte family and the Bonapartists."

The King of Rome that Isabel referred to was Napoleon's son, who died of tuberculosis in 1832 without leaving any heirs. Charles Bonaparte was Napoleon's nephew, but not the oldest among the nephews. Before him were the sons of Joseph Bonaparte and Lucien Bonaparte. Moreover, Napoleon had three living brothers, including Charles Bonaparte's father. Therefore, for Charles Bonaparte to become the Emperor of France, he first needed to become the head of the Bonaparte family and the leader of the Bonapartists, and the only way to achieve this was by being imprisoned—imprisonment was also a form of experience. While other members of the Bonaparte family lived in comfort, Napoleon III was in prison, which highlighted his uniqueness.

Zhu Jishi suddenly thought of something and looked at Isabel. "Isabel, why are you telling me all this? Is today's hostess also a Bonapartist like you?"