Murdock stared intently at the dark machine rumbling in front of him.Not until Sandler’s voice overpowered the roar of the machine could one hear, "Pressure normal! Throttle valve normal!"Murdock immediately showed ecstatic joy, shouted "Release the steam," and then embraced each assistant one by one to celebrate.A factory supervisor jogged into the test shed and called out to Murdock, "Mr. Murdock, the Crown Prince has arrived!""Ah? Why didn’t you tell me earlier?""You said that during the test, unless God Himself came, nothing should disturb you...""From now on, exclude both the Crown Prince and God!""Oh, alright..."Once Murdock and others had performed their formalities, Joseph asked with a smile, "Just now, I seemed to have heard your cheers.""Yes, Your Highness!" Murdock pointed to the huge black lump in the test shed, excitedly saying, "We’ve succeeded! It was completely manufactured by our own technicians, and its power output, coal consumption are entirely in line wit

After everyone's persuasion with phrases such as "displaying the Royal Family's clemency and benevolence," "showing His Majesty's concern for his ministers," "prioritizing the recovery of embezzled funds," and "giving the former minister a chance to turn over a new leaf," Queen Mary felt that it seemed quite reasonable and thus hazily agreed to it.Early the next morning, Queen Mary publicly announced in front of a large assembly of nobles and journalists that Necker would be dealt with leniently, and displayed the document signed by the King.At the same time, several pamphlets began to circulate wildly in Paris.The bulk of the pamphlets' content were the usual noble erotic stories, but inserted among them was a piece of news: someone was offering 150,000 livres for the head of Jacques Necker. Even just for providing information, one could get 100,000.Subsequently, the criminal underworld of Paris received an even more astonishing offer: 180,000 for the death of Necker, 120,000 for

The Duke of Orleans suddenly remembered something and hurriedly grabbed the steward, "Has Ravier been found?"The steward was somewhat confused and quickly bowed, "I will send someone to inquire immediately."The Duke of Orleans closed the door to the hall with the back of his hand and paced back and forth, cursing under his breath, "That fool Ravier, why didn't he prepare more!"He suddenly stopped, realizing that no matter how Necker had eluded the poisoning, he most likely would no longer believe the lie of being "saved to go to England."That is to say, the dealings between Necker and the banks were very likely to become known to the Royal Family.He pulled over a chair and sat down tiredly, feeling agitated and at a loss—what to do next?He had already lost control of public opinion and the High Court, and his infiltration into the army was abandoned due to a baffling assassination attempt. If he lost control over finances now, then the Orleans family's century-long challenge for

"What do you think the nobles will do?"Isaac sneered coldly, "They will surely keep the King and Queen awake at night!""Exactly!"Belanger looked at everyone's excitement, his voice trembling, "Then, what should I do..."The Duke of Orleans stepped forward, patted his shoulder to reassure him, "Don't worry, once this is over, I will find a way to get you out of prison, and give you some money, perhaps then you can go back to your old business."...The next morning, while Fouche's men and the Secret Police were still auditing Belanger Bank, Viscount Belanger brought the bank's executives before countless reporters, admitting to all the bank's illegal dealings with Necker, and voluntarily handed over a portion of the illicit profits—thus leaving not a single cent on the bank's books.Afterward, Belanger Bank declared bankruptcy, and the baffled police, after sealing the bank, arrested Belanger and the bank's executives.The sudden news, spread by those with ulterior motives, quickly

Joseph laughed and waved his hand, "Then it’s not up to them."Two hours later, the carriage stopped in the Marble Courtyard.As soon as Joseph got out of the carriage, he heard someone outside the Palace of Versailles shouting loudly, "For the financial stability of France, the interrogation of Necker must be stopped!""Please, Your Majesty, grant us your mercy and leniency!""If banks keep going bankrupt, I’ll never dare to buy government bonds again...""Right, and government loans too! We’ve got to hold tight to our own purses!"Joseph looked at those excited nobles, couldn’t help but chuckle, and signaled to Brian beside him, "Archbishop Brian, the door is about to be blocked by them, let us go to the Petit Trianon Palace first.""Alright, Your Highness."No sooner had they walked a short distance when they saw a plump figure, with wavy hair bouncing, trotting towards them."Count Mono?" Brian halted.The Minister of the Interior bowed to Joseph and Brian in turn, then hesitated