French Empire: But Napoleon IV

Chapter 16 Paris on the verge of turmoil, Eugène racing against time

Time waits for no one. On August 4th, Eugène Napoleon, dragging his "severely injured body," appeared on the streets of Paris.

On August 6th, the army commanded by his father was about to suffer a major defeat. After that, public opinion in Paris would gradually escalate, and he had to use his injury to gain as much sympathy as possible from the Parisian people in the next two days.

On the streets of the Rouil district in the 12th arrondissement of Paris, the site of Eugène Napoleon's assassination, the familiar bread-distribution table still stands, and police are still maintaining order.

However, compared to the previous grand scene of distributing bread, the atmosphere was much colder now. It wasn't just the absence of the guards; more importantly, many people wore anxious expressions.

The queue was quite long, but it was unusually quiet. Occasionally, hushed conversations could be heard from the front and back, mostly revolving around the same topic.

"Do you think His Highness will come again?"

A young worker in patched overalls asked his colleague in a low voice; this was one of the people who had questioned Eugene's showmanship six days earlier.

These past few days, he had been tormented by guilt day and night. Especially after seeing Eugène Napoleon's assassination, he felt utterly deserving of death for ever questioning such a prince.

An elderly woman with gray hair nearby couldn't help but sigh after hearing the young man's question, which was tinged with some expectation.

After being assassinated, who would want to come to such a chaotic place again? It's already quite good that His Highness didn't have the police conduct a thorough interrogation of them one by one.

"Silly child, His Highness was already severely injured while saving us. Why would he come to a place like ours? Anyone who has been assassinated would not want to return to this place."

This old woman actually had a identity; she was the woman who had previously wanted to kneel before Eugene. During these six days, she came every day to distribute bread, not because she wanted bread, but because she was waiting for news of Eugene's safety.

This situation is very common at this distribution point. Due to the star effect of Eugène Napoleon, whichever distribution point he appears at will be crowded.

When he was assassinated, at least a thousand, or even several thousand, people gathered on the street. A large portion of these people were moved, and some of them came to the distribution point every day to wait, which was also a considerable number.

Not far from the people queuing, a mother and child who were not in line stood there watching.

A skinny little boy, holding his mother's hand, looked up at the intersection with his small face, clutching a piece of bread that was not finished and was already a little moldy.

This moldy bread was given to her by His Highness the Crown Prince six days ago. The little boy couldn't bear to finish it, always feeling that as long as the bread was still there, His Highness would come back.

"Mother, His Highness will come. He said he would never let me go hungry again."

The little boy's voice was very childish, just as his mother, looking helpless, was about to try to persuade her son to give up.

A faint sound of horses' hooves came from the street intersection. In the relatively barren District 12, the appearance of a carriage was enough to attract everyone's attention, especially with the sound of hooves mixed with the sound of trotting footsteps.

Everyone instinctively looked over and saw a carriage bearing the Bonaparte family eagle emblem traveling from the intersection to the distribution point, with guards on both sides jogging alongside the carriage to the location.

After the guardsmen took their positions, the wooden door of the carriage opened, and a figure that the people had been longing for and that was extremely familiar to them, Pierre, who was about to take up his post as commander of the gendarmerie after the meeting, walked down very slowly with the help of him. The person who came was none other than Eugène Napoleon.

Everyone was feeling dejected, thinking that the Crown Prince, having been assassinated in the 12th arrondissement, would certainly not want to return to that place of sorrow. But then Eugène Napoleon returned.

Amidst the dramatic emotional rollercoaster, instead of deafening cheers, the scene fell into an eerie, deathly silence.

All eyes were fixed on Eugène Napoleon; the expressions on people's faces were complex—some shocked, some incredulous, some joyful...

Eugène Napoleon was dressed in light and breathable clothing, even though it was quite hot in Paris in August.

The silk-textured clothing was very thin, and many people could see through the open collar that Eugène Napoleon was wrapped in thick bandages. The edges of the bandages were faintly stained with a dark red, making it clear that the wounds had not yet "healed".

His face was also specially powdered with foundation, making it appear a bit paler. Every step Eugène took required Pierre's support, and he would occasionally furrow his brow unconsciously, thus stirring the hearts of the Parisian people who were watching him.

Even so, despite his "serious injuries," Eugène Napoleon still managed a "strong" smile as he looked at the worried people of Paris.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty?"

The older woman, who had seen more of the place, was the first to react. She broke away from the group and called out in a choked voice.

When she saw that Eugène was really looking at her, she instinctively wanted to step forward, but then she was afraid of disturbing him, so she stopped in her tracks and her eyes instantly turned red.

The shout shattered the silence, and a large crowd of Parisians began to surround Eugene, but they did not lose their composure. They carefully maintained their distance, afraid of touching the wound of their beloved Prince Eugene.

One by one, people wanted to reach out and help him up, but none dared to touch him. They were very conflicted. The people who wanted to express their love for Eugene had their eyes redden and kept repeating "Your Highness".

Among the crowd, a housewife holding a baby was so anxious that she was almost crying.

"Why isn't Your Highness recuperating in the palace? Your wound will get infected in this hot weather."

"Your Highness, what brings you here? Your injuries haven't healed yet."

"Your Highness should be recuperating in the palace. We are here to help, so you didn't need to come in person."

"We all thought Your Highness would never come again, we all thought you would hate this place..."

........

Amidst the dramatic ebb and flow of emotions, a large crowd of people, having found an outlet for their feelings, gathered around Eugene, continuously pouring out their emotions.

Knowing what to do in this situation, Eugène stopped, pushed away Pierre's hand that was supporting him, and tried to stand up straight.

Not forgetting the self-cultivation of an actor, Eugene maintained his stiff posture, but a gentle smile appeared on his face as he looked at the people in front of him.

After clearing his throat a few times and waiting for the noise to subside and for everyone to be watching him, Eugene finally spoke.