The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 93

Chapter 93: Dig the Pit, Dig It Bigger!

Ronan appeared rather reserved as he bowed to Vezinier and introduced himself. Then, he handed a letter to the Grand Chancellor.

Vezinier checked that the wax seal on the envelope was intact before leisurely opening it, casually asking about the situation on the Valéane side.

The police department had already gathered all the relevant information, so Ronan was able to answer effortlessly.

Only then did Vezinier take out his glasses and begin reading the letter.

In the letter, Valéane first reminisced about some past events between the two men before mentioning that Ronan, who was carrying the letter, was his most loyal servant and could be fully trusted.

It had been three or four years since Vezinier had last seen Valéane, and he vaguely remembered that his friend had a servant named Ronan.

He continued reading.

Valéane stated in the letter that one of his cousins, the Viscount of Montray, had gotten involved in a lawsuit. He had only recently learned from the newspapers that the presiding judge in the case was an old friend of his, so he wished to ask for a favor. However, Valéane had been feeling unwell recently, so he had sent his servant to Paris to handle the case, and he himself would visit his old friend as soon as the weather improved.

He further requested that Vezinier try to give Lunaché a light sentence. As for the expenses involved, the Montray family had already prepared the money and would not let their old friend be burdened.

Yes, in Vezinier’s eyes, Valéane's relative had now become the Viscount of Montray.

Vezinier put away the letter and looked at Ronan, saying, “Of course, I’ll help Viktor. But that young man went too far, and there are witnesses. At the very least, he’ll receive a whipping and over thirty years of imprisonment.”

Ronan nodded but anxiously wrung his hands. “Your Excellency, actually, my master hopes that the verdict will be not guilty...”

Vezinier was about to shake his head when Ronan’s next words made him blink. “The Viscount of Montray is willing to offer thirty-five thousand livres.”

After a brief silence, Vezinier sighed. “The witness situation will be difficult to handle…”

“We will find a way,” Ronan assured.

Vezinier suddenly turned around and waved his hand. “You may leave for now. I will give you an answer in a few days.”

That afternoon, Vezinier returned home and immediately wrote a letter, sealing it with wax. He then summoned his trusted servant, Bruno, and instructed him to deliver it to Caen as quickly as possible and hand it to Viscount Valéane.

Before Bruno even got into the carriage, the “glazier” at Vezinier’s house relayed the message to the police department personnel who were stationed outside the villa.

Vezinier’s trusted servant traveled tirelessly for two days and finally arrived in Caen.

This small city had only one major road leading to Paris. At this moment, the vendors on the sides of the road were huddled together, listlessly calling out to potential customers.

Bruno checked the map, then got off the carriage and walked toward the nearest vendor to ask for directions to the home of Viscount Valéane.

As Valéane was the “deputy mayor” of Caen, everyone knew him. After Bruno paid the vendor five deniers, the vendor eagerly pointed him in the right direction.

Bruno continued his journey, and as he neared the city center, he got off the carriage again and asked a young man for directions.

Just as the young man was about to reply, Bruno saw a scuffle break out nearby, and the fight quickly approached them. Startled, the young man immediately turned and walked away.

Bruno looked around, grabbed a middle-aged man passing by, and asked again for the location of Viscount Valéane’s house. He received the same directions as from the vendor.

By the time Bruno arrived at Valéane’s villa, it was already dusk.

A male servant warmly welcomed him inside, and Bruno noticed the Valéane family crest on the walls and on the stair railing, silently nodding in approval.

He then saw the sickly Viscount Valéane, wrapped in blankets, nodding at him from the second floor.

Bruno quickly handed the letter to the servant, who took it upstairs to deliver it to the Viscount.

About half an hour later, Bruno received Valéane’s reply and immediately made the return journey to Paris.

However, he did not notice that the gardener, housemaids, and other staff at the villa, as well as the vendors on the main road into Caen, all looked identical.

The maid who served him tea was one of the fighters he had seen earlier in the city center, though she had changed into women’s clothing—due to the severe shortage of female spies in the police department, she was pressed into service.

As for the person who greeted him as “Valéane,” in the dim light from a distance, with a little makeup, anyone could have been mistaken for Valéane. Even if Valéane’s own mother had been there, it would have been highly likely that she wouldn’t have recognized him.

In fact, the real location of Valéane’s house was several kilometers away…

When Bruno returned to Paris, he handed the reply to Vezinier and reported that he had seen Viscount Valéane and had even shared tea at his house.

This was not due to any fault on his part. In an era with such limited communication, it was extremely difficult to quickly determine the authenticity of a person’s identity in a distant city. Even if he had gone straight to the town hall, the police department had already placed personnel there to ensure he saw someone who appeared to be “Viscount Valéane.”

At this point, Vezinier had no more doubts. He immediately had Ronan summoned and informed him that they could find a way to exonerate Lunaché, but because the case was so large, the cost would be 40,000 livres.

Ronan immediately agreed but requested that the trial be expedited, as Viscount Valéane’s nephew, Lunaché, had been raised in luxury and could not bear the hardships of prison life.

Vezinier naturally agreed to this request.

Ronan returned to the Viscount of Montray’s home, relayed the message, then sought out a doctor. Using the excuse that the witness to Lunaché’s case was a frequent drunkard and wife-beater, he paid the doctor to issue a certificate claiming the witness had mental health issues.

The Montray family mortgaged their villa and art shop, and scraped together some funds, but ultimately only managed to come up with just over 30,000 livres. With no other option, Ronan “dipped into his own pocket” and added an extra 6,500 livres.

With everything ready, Ronan repeatedly warned the “cousins” that, as relatives of the defendant, they should avoid excessive contact with the judge. He then led them to the villa outside of Vezinier’s residence.

The Viscount of Montray handed the bank notes to Vezinier’s servant, and then saw the Grand Chancellor nod at him from the window. A huge weight finally lifted from his heart.

That night, Ronan visited Vezinier again, representing his master to thank him and request that he write a reply letter, confirming that the task had been completed successfully.

Vezinier, having just earned 40,000 livres, was in a good mood. He cheerfully wrote three pages, mainly to tell his old friend how much effort he had put into this matter, implying that he should be remembered for this favor, and he even complimented Ronan a few times.

Ronan immediately took the letter and left.

A few days later, another messenger from Valéane brought a letter of thanks to Vezinier.

The Grand Chancellor opened the letter, read it, then immediately burned it and instructed the messenger to return to Valéane, telling him to destroy all recent correspondence.

He had handled too many miscarriages of justice and wrongful cases to not understand the importance of destroying evidence.

Another five days later, Lunaché’s case was reopened.

First, it was revealed that the witness had mental health issues, making their testimony invalid.

Then, it was discovered that the so-called personal belongings found at Lunaché’s house did not belong to the deceased—this was, of course, the work of Vezinier in the evidence room.

Table of content - Next Chapter >>>