The Fox of France - Chapter 365: Distribution (2)

Although Napoleon worked hard, anything within Joseph’s purview, well, that guy was a tyrant. He never listened to reasonable opinions. So, despite Napoleon’s efforts to persuade his elder brother, he left Joseph’s office with a sullen expression, having failed to convince him.

However, as soon as he stepped out, Napoleon’s displeasure vanished. He got into a carriage, his face beaming with a smile, and headed back to his own Tuileries Palace, which had now transformed into the seat of government.

Back at the seat of government, Napoleon settled in his office, and his secretary, Nino, informed him, “Your Excellency, Mr. Laplace has been waiting for you for some time.”

“Ah, please, let him in,” Napoleon replied.

Nino turned and left, and soon after, Pierre-Simon Laplace, the head of the Paris High School and vice president of the French Academy of Sciences, followed Nino into the room.

“Ah, Mr. Laplace, please take a seat,” Napoleon said, rising as Laplace entered.

“Thank you, thank you,” Laplace said, sitting down on a nearby chair, looking at Napoleon, appearing hesitant to speak.

Napoleon naturally understood Laplace’s intent. So, he took a sip of water and said, “Mr. Laplace, I just came from my elder brother Joseph’s— that stubborn fellow’s place. Yes, regarding the Prometheus Award matter. That guy is really stubborn and protective, hmm, you’ve dealt with him quite a bit, I’m sure you know.”

Laplace listened intently but stayed silent. He knew Napoleon and his elder brother had a good relationship. Despite Napoleon’s critical remarks here, this was something only Napoleon could do; others were better off not meddling.

“I argued with him all day. He insisted that the first mathematics award must go to his assistant Gauss. Hmm, you know, he’s so stubborn and protective. So, I berated him for favoritism, and then he berated me… In the end, he agreed to make a certain concession. He promised to reserve a spot for the Paris High School in the coming years.”

“Reserve a spot for the Paris High School in both the coming years? Even next year?” Laplace was surprised.

Truthfully, when Laplace goaded Napoleon to contest for the spots with Joseph, he didn’t have high hopes. Sure, Joseph usually appeared as a moral exemplar, fitting the image of a scientist solely focused on science without much regard for fame or fortune. But Laplace knew that scientists and such might not always be moral paragons. Take, for instance, Monsieur Lavoisier, the prestigious head of the French Academy of Sciences and an esteemed professor at the University of Paris — when he served as Lavoisier’s assistant, he was often swindled out of his salary by Lavoisier using various pretexts.

When it came to honor, scientists were not always… For instance, Sir Isaac Newton, fighting fiercely with Hooke just to claim the discovery of universal gravitation, even destroying Hooke’s lab after his death and defacing his only portrait. And Joseph, appearing disinterested in fame or riches, was because he lacked neither. He was so wealthy that the one million francs award seemed insignificant. As for fame, from Laplace’s observation, Joseph no longer valued being known as a mathematician or scientist; what he cherished most now was the title of an “educator.” If you praised Joseph for his scientific achievements, he’d shrug it off, claiming it was all thanks to his exceptionally clever students. But commend him for his teaching abilities, and he’d beam from ear to ear. Even though he’d still modestly claim, “It’s mainly luck, meeting such remarkably bright students, hahaha…”

At times, Laplace pondered if indeed Joseph and Napoleon were true siblings — both liked to downplay their expertise, preferring somewhat divergent reputations. Napoleon wanted to be seen as a scientist while Joseph, now entirely focused on becoming an educator.

Because of this, Joseph’s favoritism was well-known. Initially, Laplace worried Joseph might monopolize all four awards for his students and assistants. Considering Monsieur Lavoisier’s status, his relation to Joseph, and Lavoisier’s obsession with the prize money, Joseph might leave one chemistry award for him. But the rest might turn into a chorus of “They’re all my students.” If it weren’t for Joseph’s certainty, Laplace would have almost asked, “Do you still need students, Director Bonaparte?”

So, when Napoleon told him that Joseph agreed to reserve spots for the Paris High School in the coming years, Laplace was nearly overjoyed.

“Yes, indeed, next year, both physics and chemistry awards will be granted. I reckon Monsieur Lavoisier won’t let go of the chemistry award. Unless someone is willing to bribe him with two million francs,” Napoleon joked casually. “But for the physics award, it’s between you and Monsieur Lagrange. Joseph feels Monsieur Lagrange is getting on in years and deserves this recognition for his contributions to celestial mechanics…”

“But I’ve contributed significantly to celestial mechanics too,” Laplace screamed inwardly. But he dared not voice it directly, fearing His Excellency might see him as not knowing his place.

“As for you, Joseph believes the mathematics award should go to you in the following year,” Napoleon continued. “Mr. Laplace, I understand receiving a million francs a year earlier would certainly yield considerable interest even if you put it in the bank. So, by delaying your award for a year, it does indeed require some sacrifice. But your sacrifice won’t be in vain; I’ll remember it. You won’t go unrewarded.”

Of course, Laplace wished to receive the award as soon as possible. It wasn’t just about the interest for a year, but more so about uncertainty. Delaying for two years, what if… what if one of Joseph’s students made a groundbreaking discovery? That would be tragic. But Laplace also knew that Napoleon was the person he could rely on most in this matter. And Napoleon had exceeded his initial expectations. So, he couldn’t appear too greedy. Laplace wasn’t a person of strong character, thus he replied:

“Director Bonaparte’s consideration is indeed reasonable.”

After saying this, a thought suddenly popped into Laplace’s mind: “Ah, if only I’d known earlier, perhaps this position should have been offered to Lagrange.”

“President Laplace, you’re indeed someone who considers the bigger picture,” Napoleon said happily.

After resolving the distribution of the major awards, Napoleon proceeded to attend to what was most important to him now — the matter of the Olympics.

Meanwhile, in Rome, beneath the noble Pope’s crown, a group of cardinals and archbishops were discussing dispatching investigators to Austria.

“Directly accusing His Majesty Franz of ** crime will greatly damage our relations with Austria, even if we later absolve him. While we can’t disregard the intentions of the French, after all, none of us wish to leave Rome…” The Pope sighed and continued, “But to completely fall out with Austria over this or suffer great losses isn’t ideal. Recently, one of our priests proposed a new idea. Conti, please share your thoughts with everyone.”

A young priest approached, bowed,

and then spoke: “Your Holiness, esteemed bishops, both His Majesty Franz and we know who’s driving this investigation, what they aim to achieve, and that we— whether the Vatican or Vienna—can’t resist them. However, the accusation doesn’t sound pleasant. So, why not be flexible?”

“How so?” asked one of the bishops.

“We can send an emissary to Vienna to investigate. Then, His Majesty Franz becomes very angry with our emissary, leading to a misunderstanding and conflict. As a result of his anger, he behaves somewhat excessively, humiliating our envoy. Then, we use this as a reason to announce revoking His Majesty Franz’s title as the ‘Emperor of the Romans’…”

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