Chapter 479: Marat's Combat Prowess
Western suburbs of Paris.
In an office at the Notary Investigation Bureau headquarters, Joseph looked at Desmoulins before him, then scanned the work report he had just delivered, saying casually:
"Mr. Marat isn't here?"
"Yes... yes, Your Highness," Desmoulins, the bureau's second-in-command, replied. "He... he left for Poitou the day before yesterday."
Joseph recalled that Norfolk, the Governor of Poitou, was one of the two governors who had opposed abolishing the Tax Farmer system. He gave a slight nod.
"Is he investigating Count Norfolk's affairs?"
"No... no," Desmoulins replied, shaking his head. "It's... it's the waterworks department, embezzling... embezzling maintenance funds."
Joseph frowned. He then began flipping through the bureau's work report in his hands, asking:
"Has Mr. Marat recently arranged a large number of new investigation tasks?"
Desmoulins helped him turn to the last few pages, where indeed numerous investigation plans were listed.
But as Joseph's gaze swept across them, his brows furrowed even deeper. Most of these investigations only assigned a single investigator, with a deadline of five to eight days. 'What could such few people uncover in so little time?' he wondered.
'Damn it!' Joseph suddenly realized. 'Marat, that old fox, is just going through the motions. He's not serious about these investigations at all.'
Joseph felt a surge of irritation. If the Intelligence Bureau weren't so much less efficient than the Notary Investigation Bureau at uncovering corruption, and if using intelligence agents to investigate officials wouldn't provoke a backlash from the bureaucracy, he would have gladly handed the entire affair over to Fouché.
He was about to reprimand Desmoulins when he suddenly recalled that doing so might backfire with the Jacobins. He sighed, then rose and departed.
'It seems I'll have to light a fire under Mr. Marat,' he mused.
Joseph entered his carriage. After a moment's thought, he instructed Eman, "To the Intelligence Bureau."
"Yes, Your Highness."
...
Bourges, in south-central France.
Cécilien, a second-class investigator from the Notary Investigation Bureau, listlessly flipped through the municipal income and expenditure accounts, stifling a yawn.
Just as Mr. Marat had predicted, Baron Bastian, the Municipal Commissioner, and Mr. Camus, the city's financial officer, appeared to be above reproach. This investigation, Cécilien concluded, was nothing more than a pathetic political manipulation.
The accounts were spotless. Cécilien had also reviewed both men's bank statements over the past few days and interviewed several officials familiar with them. Nothing seemed amiss.
"That's it, then," he declared, closing the ledger and rising to his feet. "I can return to Paris in two more days. This has been practically a vacation."
He exited the city hall and was about to hail a carriage when a burly man, his hat brim pulled low, suddenly darted out from a left-hand corner and collided with him.
"Hey, what a careful walker you are!" Cécilien shouted in protest.
Cécilien protested loudly, but the man seemed not to hear, merely lowering his head and disappearing into the stream of pedestrians.
Back at his inn, as Cécilien reached for his room key, his fingertips brushed against a piece of paper in his pocket.
He was certain he hadn't placed anything like it there. He quickly pulled it out and read the two ominous lines: 'Go back to Paris. There's nothing for you to investigate here. Leave now while you still can, or you'll surely meet with misfortune!'
Cécilien's face instantly flushed crimson. He was an investigator personally chosen by Marat, with a character and principles that perfectly aligned with the Jacobins. He gritted his teeth, snarling quietly:
"Shameless wretches! Do you think this will scare me?! For the sake of the people, I will expose your despicable deeds to the public!"
He tore the note to shreds, then entered his room and composed a letter to the Investigation Bureau. Its primary message was his strong belief that serious issues plagued Bourges, and he requested an extension of his investigation, subject to his superior's approval.
He then stepped out again. After a moment's consideration, he recalled Mr. Marat's teachings and headed directly for the residence of Bourges' most reputable journalist.
Meanwhile, the man who had bumped into him outside the city hall smiled faintly when he saw Cécilien emerge. That very night, he penned a report to his Intelligence Bureau superior, stating that the 'Ignition' plan was proceeding smoothly.
Simultaneously, investigators across France, tasked with examining the conduct of over forty officials, encountered a variety of perplexing situations.
Some were threatened by knife-wielding thugs, ordered to cease their inquiries. Others experienced burglaries, all their collected investigation materials stolen. Still others watched helplessly as the very documents they sought to examine were reduced to ash.
Soon, these investigators, every bit as obstinate as Marat himself, were utterly enraged!
They had initially believed these officials were innocent, mere casualties of political infighting. Now, however, it seemed likely that not a single one was clean. They hadn't even delved deeply into the investigations, yet the officials were already betraying their guilt.
'If we don't get to the bottom of this,' they fumed, 'how can we possibly deliver justice to the French people?'
Naturally, these threats and incidents were all orchestrated by Fouché's agents, acting on the Crown Prince's direct orders. While they weren't adept at uncovering corruption, they were intimately familiar with manipulating such situations.
Meanwhile, Marat, still busy with his own investigation in Poitou, received a deluge of investigation requests within days. When he read about the ordeals his subordinates had endured, he too was consumed by fury.
He immediately wrote to Desmoulins, instructing him to dispatch additional personnel to aid the threatened investigators, even if it meant temporarily suspending less crucial tasks. They absolutely had to expose the corrupt officials involved!
The entire Notary Investigation Bureau immediately plunged into a state of 'frenzied' activity.
...
Over two weeks later.
Versailles.
Marat stood before the Crown Prince, his expression filled with remorse, utterly self-reproachful as he spoke:
"Your Highness, I was wrong to misjudge you before. Please accept my sincerest apologies. As you suspected, those officials were indeed problematic."
"I never blamed you. And as it turns out, your work is as exceptional as ever." Joseph smiled, opening the report Marat had delivered. In less than twenty days, this "piranha-like" warrior had unearthed irrefutable criminal evidence against sixteen officials!
The charges primarily involved embezzlement, but also included abuse of power for personal gain, collusion between officials and merchants, smuggling, and even a murder case!
For a moment, Joseph wondered if Marat should perhaps manage the Intelligence Bureau. His efficiency in uncovering leads would undoubtedly put Fouché's agents to shame.
However, he immediately dismissed the notion. The Intelligence Bureau required a great deal of 'dirty work,' and with Marat's uncompromising nature, there was no hope of him following such orders. Only a man like Fouché would execute any command without hesitation.
Joseph held up the sixteen reports, his voice grave as he addressed Marat:
"As for these parasites, these vampires, I trust you will deal with them impartially."
The Notary Investigation Bureau possessed direct arrest powers, and its period of detention without formal charges was even longer than the police's. Once evidence was corroborated, they simply needed to submit an application to Joseph, and upon approval, could directly initiate public prosecution.
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Joseph nodded with satisfaction, then his gaze shifted to the investigation reports concerning the remaining thirty-plus officials against whom conclusive evidence had yet to be gathered. He couldn't help but frown slightly.
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