The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Clues

A few members of the Black Sheep Gang were chatting when they suddenly heard a commotion nearby, as if someone was robbing in broad daylight.

The Royal Guards immediately rushed over, shouting loudly, "Get down at once, or we are authorized to shoot you!"

Two ruffians from the Hoss Gang, however, completely ignored the warning. They slashed a victim with their knives and fled towards a nearby alley without looking back.

Unlike the poorly equipped local police, these Royal Guards were armed with muskets and wore breastplates.

They swiftly formed a line, raised their muskets, and the leader issued another warning: "This is your final warning—get down now!"

One of the robbers made an obscene gesture behind him and laughed wildly as he ran faster. Based on their experience, as long as they were bold and quick, neither the police nor anyone else could catch them.

However, this time, they were up against the most elite guards in France.

"Fire!" With the leader's order, five muskets discharged simultaneously. The two gangsters collapsed forward, large, bloody holes appearing on their backs.

The deadly precision and swift ruthlessness of the Royal Guards terrified the Black Sheep Gang members, who shrank back in fear.

Exchanging glances, they decided not even to check on their fallen comrades and hurried back to report to their leader.

The Crown Prince’s Guards, like an unstoppable juggernaut, swept through the entire Saint-Antoine District. By just after 10 a.m., six gang members had already fallen to their bullets. The previously rampant Hoss and Black Sheep gangs, who had been causing chaos everywhere, suddenly lost their momentum...

This was all part of the orders Joseph had given to the guards: if they couldn’t capture criminals, they were to shoot them on the spot! Severe illness required drastic measures. Without blood to intimidate these gang members, countless citizens would continue to die. In an era ruled by royal authority, there was no room for debates about the human rights of criminals. To Joseph, there was no place for sentimentality here!

The leader of the Hoss Gang cowered in their hideout, peeking through a gap in the curtains as the imposing Royal Guards marched down the street. The sight made his eyelid twitch involuntarily.

From time to time, the door was knocked on, bringing news from subordinates about gang members being captured or shot.

By the end of the day, he had lost 17 men, and his heart ached. "I’m just a small-time thug. Do they really need to mobilize the military to suppress us?"

The Black Sheep Gang, reacting more quickly, managed to call back their members by noon, losing only about a dozen people.

For the next two days, no major crimes occurred in the Saint-Antoine District. Although Similion’s rewards were high, the Royal Guards were ruthless. What was the point of making money if you lost your life?

The news of the gangs laying low reached the police station, and everyone there was ecstatic. They praised the Crown Prince’s decisiveness and the Royal Guards’ unparalleled prowess.

Joseph, however, paid no attention to the flattery. He knew the guards had only temporarily subdued the gangs with their forceful measures. Before long, the gangs would find loopholes and strike again. After all, the guards were unfamiliar with the district and had no experience with criminal investigations.

Furthermore, most of the guards were knights with titles. Assigning them to patrol the streets for an extended period would eventually lead to low morale and negligence.

As the saying goes, you can’t guard against thieves every day. Unless the mastermind behind the chaos was uncovered, major incidents would undoubtedly occur again.

...

Arden, the Chief Inspector, knocked and entered Joseph’s office, saluting. "Your Highness, we’ve interrogated everyone captured. They’re all small fry, but many mentioned that their leaders were paid 1,000 livres per job, and they also received a considerable cut."

Joseph frowned to himself. These criminals were indeed being paid to cause trouble. A thousand livres per job? The mastermind behind this was certainly extravagant!

He instructed Arden to conduct a more thorough interrogation. At that moment, a Royal Guards officer entered briskly, bowing respectfully.

"Your Highness, my men just apprehended someone named Valéan, and he seems to hold a significant position."

"Valéan?" Arden immediately perked up. "He’s the second-in-command of the Black Sheep Gang! How did you catch him?"

The officer replied, "He got into a fight at a casino. When we arrived, he tried to flee. My men shot three of his subordinates, and if he hadn’t revealed his identity, he would’ve been killed too."

Arden swallowed nervously, feeling some sympathy for the gangsters, then looked at Joseph and said, "Your Highness, Valéan might know something. I’ll go interrogate him right away!"

Less than an hour later, Magoni hurried back, still covered in blood. He handed Joseph a statement, exclaiming, "Your Highness, we’ve struck gold!"

Joseph read the confession from the Black Sheep Gang leader, which stated that someone named Raymond had been paying them to create chaos—1,000 livres per job. A month later, whichever gang caused more disruption would receive an additional 20,000 livres.

Joseph frowned slightly and asked, "What does this Raymond do?"

Arden shook his head, but a police clerk nearby exclaimed, "He’s Mr. Similion’s cousin!"

"Similion?" Joseph found the name familiar.

The clerk explained, "He was this district’s former police commissioner."

Joseph immediately understood. No wonder nearly a hundred officers at the station had taken simultaneous leave. The mastermind was their former superior, and everything now made sense.

Arden, who had been promoted from the civilian patrol, didn’t fully grasp the implications and looked at Joseph with a questioning expression. "Your Highness, should we arrest Similion?"

Joseph was about to nod but then paused, asking the clerk, "How much was Similion’s salary?"

"About 30 livres per month, Your Highness."

"Was he from a prominent family?"

"No, Your Highness. His father was a minor civil servant, and the family’s circumstances were ordinary."

Joseph narrowed his eyes. "With his salary, it would take over 50 years to save up 20,000 livres. Where did he get such a large sum?"

Arden was taken aback. "Your Highness, you mean...?"

Joseph replied slowly, "Someone else must be behind him."

Arden thought for a moment and said, "Your Highness, Valéan mentioned that Raymond showed them a deposit slip for 20,000 livres at Havret Bank to prove he could pay. It might be worth investigating."

"This could be a crucial lead," Joseph nodded. He opened a map and located Havret Bank, discovering it was a small bank with only two branches in Paris.

"Eymond, you and Arden..." He paused, then shook his head. "No, I’ll go myself."

...

At the Havret Bank near the City Hall, the bank manager initially refused to allow an account inspection. It wasn’t until Joseph revealed his identity and threatened to involve the secret police that the manager relented.

Similion’s transactions were straightforward—he had cashed a 30,000-livre draft and deposited the money into several accounts, one of which contained 20,000 livres.

Joseph sighed inwardly at how little people of this era understood financial traceability. However, he obtained the critical piece of information he needed: the draft had been issued by none other than Viscount Guizot, the Police Chief of Paris!

Table of content - Next Chapter >>>