Felix leaned against the headboard, letting Isabella hold him tightly.
His fingers gently stroked her smooth back; his movements remained tender, but his eyes were clear.
Angry? Surprised? How could that be?
From the very first day Isabella stepped into the Starlight Theater, Timmy's intelligence network had dug up her background to the eighteenth generation.
They even knew exactly how much debt the Count of Paris owed in Vienna.
Watching her act there every day for the past two months was merely a form of entertainment in the midst of tedious business competition.
But he had to admit, Isabella's confession tonight truly moved him.
This woman, treated as a political bargaining chip by the House of Bourbon, should have been an extremely competent spy in this era.
Yet, she had been thoroughly conquered by his simple and brutal "American-style captivity."
She had actually abandoned her so-called family glory and leaned toward him, an upstart without a noble title.
Honestly, the gold content of Eileen Chang's words was rising.
This also proved that in the face of absolute power and security, those so-called family missions and royal dignities were, for some people, fragile and vulnerable.
Felix adjusted his emotions internally.
Then, he perfectly allowed his eyes to reveal a hint of shock, anger, and finally, relief.
He gripped Isabella's shoulders with both hands, gently pushed her away a little, and looked directly into her eyes.
"The House of Bourbon? An exiled princess?" Felix's tone was deliberately filled with a touch of disbelief.
"Do you know how much profit I could exchange for if I handed you over to the Thiers Government? You actually dared to deceive me for so long."
Isabella was trembling with fear; she bit her lip, and tears fell like beads from a broken string.
"I know, I know everything. Felix, you can do anything to me, but please, I beg you, don't hand me over."
Seeing her terrified appearance, Felix laughed inwardly, but his face showed deep helplessness and pity.
He sighed and reached out to pull her back into his arms.
"Am I that heartless in your heart?" Felix rested his chin on her forehead.
"Since you've confessed, I'll lay my cards on the table too. Isabella, I don't like being schemed against. But I dislike it even more when my people live in constant fear."
When Isabella heard the words "my people," her heart trembled violently, as if she had grabbed a lifeline.
"Felix..."
"You just said that your cousin wants to trade the entire market of France and a hereditary title with me?"
Isabella nodded quickly.
Since she had already confessed, she decided to fully stand in Felix's position to analyze the matter.
"Yes. Philippe said in the telegram that as long as you stop trading with Berlin and provide funds and weapons to help them restore the monarchy, he promises that once successful, all railway, telegraph networks, and heavy industry procurement across France will be the exclusive concession of the Argyle Family. It even includes partial mortgage rights to the Central Bank."
Isabella looked at Felix eagerly.
"Felix, although I don't want it to be this way, I've carefully calculated the numbers, and this matter is actually not a loss for your business."
She began to scheme for Felix using the tone of one of his own people.
"The Thiers Government is currently extremely unpopular, and the National Guard is causing a huge ruckus in Paris. The key is that they have no money. But the House of Bourbon still has influence in the military, especially among the generals in the southern provinces."
"As long as you provide some money and arm two legions with guns and cannons from Vanguard Military Industry, the House of Bourbon has a great chance of overthrowing the Republic."
Isabella held Felix's hand.
"If you help them, you will no longer be just a simple American businessman. You will be the mastermind behind the French Empire, and the entire European market will open up to you. Even if you don't want to be this hero, the profits from simply monopolizing the post-war reconstruction project of a major European power would be far greater than the little bit of gold Bismarck is giving you."
Felix listened quietly.
He appeared calm on the surface, even wearing a look of thoughtful consideration as if moved.
But inwardly, he was frantically mocking the situation.
"A great chance?" Felix laughed in his heart.
As a transmigrator with memories of the future, he had actually scrolled through the political trends of France on TikTok.
Isabella was not lying.
The House of Bourbon did indeed have an absolute advantage during this period.
Even in the later French National Assembly elections, the Royalists held an absolute majority.
The restoration of the House of Bourbon could be said to be a sure thing.
But... this winning hand was abruptly overturned by one person.
That was the leader of the Legitimists, the Count of Chambord, Henry V, who held the title of "Child of God."
This stubborn eccentric, when the conditions for restoration had already been negotiated and even the carriage to enter Paris was ready, suddenly obsessed over one issue: the flag.
He would not accept the Tricolor flag from the Revolution. He insisted on restoring the traditional white fleur-de-lis flag of the Bourbon Dynasty. Otherwise, he would rather not be king.
Just because of a lousy flag. The entire Royalist alliance in France completely collapsed, the Republicans seized the opportunity to grow, and the Third Republic was thus solidified.
With this, the House of Bourbon completely exited the historical stage.
When Felix scrolled across this piece of history in short videos in his previous life, he completely failed to understand the thought process of this Henry V.
What royal dignity, what legitimacy. If you can't even become king, what the hell kind of dignity do you have?
Just hold your nose and agree to it first. Once you have the power in your hands, even if you change the national flag to the color of your wife's dress, no one would dare to say a damn thing.
But now that he was in this era, combined with his understanding of Isabella over the past half-month or so, Felix used a conspiracy theory perspective to roughly figure out the crux of the matter.
"There aren't that many fools who would give up a throne for a flag."
"The real core reason is probably because Henry V was childless and had no descendants."
Felix roughly sorted out this messy account of European royalty.
The Legitimists had no heir, so they had to compromise with the Orleanists. The agreement was for Henry V to be king and, after his death, pass the throne to the Orleanist Count of Paris, Louis-Philippe.
"That old fox Henry V knew it clearly. He knew that once he died, France would become the world of the Orleanists. Deep down, he simply didn't want to let the Orleanists take advantage of this."
"So, at the most critical moment, he deliberately used the fleur-de-lis flag, which no one could accept, as an excuse and directly overturned the table."
"If the Legitimists can't have it, you Orleanists shouldn't think about getting it either. Nobody gets to be king."
This was politics. This was the selfishness and darkness deep in the bones of those high-and-mighty nobles.
Looking at Isabella in his arms. This silly girl was still trying to paint a commercial blueprint of France for him based on her cousin's empty promises.
Yet she had no idea that even if he really threw money into it, the House of Bourbon would turn that money into pebbles skipped across water due to their internal power struggles.
But Felix would absolutely never reveal these historical truths. Because this was an excellent opportunity to completely conquer Isabella.
He pushed all those calculations regarding the European royal families back to the bottom of his heart.
Felix lowered his head and looked at Isabella with an extremely affectionate, even crazed, gaze.
In this era without movies or the Oscar statuette, Felix's acting skills were enough to make all the male actors on Broadway pale in comparison.
"France's concessions? A hereditary countship? Collateral from the central bank?"
Felix softly repeated these terms, which would tempt any businessman, a careless smirk playing on the corners of his lips.
He reached out and cupped Isabella's face.
"Isabella, do you think I lack that bit of business or those titles?"
Isabella was a bit at a loss, staring blankly at Felix.
Did he not lack them?
"In America, if I say a steel mill must go bankrupt, it goes bankrupt. If I want to build a railroad somewhere, the congressmen in Washington have to sign off on it for me. The cash in my hands is enough to buy up the streets of Paris and then sell them off again."
Felix's thumb gently rubbed her soft lips.
"So baby, I don't lack the market in France. And I don't care about that throne of your cousin's that doesn't even have a shadow of a chance."
Felix's gaze became affectionate, as if he were about to melt Isabella completely.
"But, I cannot watch you live in fear in this villa every day."
"Didn't you say you wanted to stay? Are you afraid of those people in Vienna forcing you?"
Felix suddenly leaned close to her, their breaths mingling.
"Fine, I'll help you."
"If they want money, that is certainly no problem. I can give it. Even if they want guns and artillery, my arsenal can work overtime to produce them for them."
Felix made the promise in the overbearing tone of a decadent monarch.
"For you, I am willing to help the House of Bourbon. After all, I adore you so much."
Listening to Felix's affectionate words, Isabella's mind buzzed.
"Felix... you... do you know what you are saying? That will cost millions of dollars. I actually... I'm really not worth you paying so much." She babbled incoherently, tears streaming down uncontrollably.
"Of course you are worth it!"
Felix laughed, not caring in the least.
"You are the most beautiful thing in the world. As long as I can keep you willingly by my side, never mind a few million—even if I bought the entirety of France to use as your playground, what would that amount to?"
These words made Isabella's body completely go limp.
European noble young masters would write sappy love poems and fight duels for her.
But never had any man used such crushing wealth and power just to win a single smile of peace from her.
Moreover, he had made this unreserved promise even after knowing full well that she was a liar with political motives.
At this moment, Isabella's defenses were destroyed, leaving not even a trace behind.
She finally understood why she had hopelessly fallen for this American upstart in these short two months.
Because he possessed the purest and most savage power in the world.
"Felix..."
Isabella choked up, unable to speak any more rational words.
"Love me..."
She threw herself at him, wrapped her arms tightly around Felix's neck, and took the initiative to kiss his lips wildly.
This kiss had no technique; it was only unreserved devotion and gratitude.
She used all her strength, trying to stuff her very soul into this man's body.
Felix did not move, letting her gnaw on his lips indiscriminately.
He knew that this canary had now completely accepted the cage as its only home and had swallowed the key herself.
After pulling apart, breathless, Isabella's cheeks were so red they looked as if they might bleed.
Her gaze had completely changed.
Gone was the noble reserve and pretense.
There remained only a shyness and fervor, a desperate desire to please the man before her.
She pushed aside the thin cashmere blanket covering her.
"Felix..."
Her voice was as thin as a thread, carrying a strongly contrasting allure.
She blushed, her eyes darting away, but her movements did not hesitate as she slowly moved her body.
"I... I once saw some Eastern picture books in a library in Paris."
Isabella's voice grew lower and lower, the sense of shame causing her whole body to flush pink.
"I... I want to try. I want to make you happy, anything is fine."
Felix raised an eyebrow, his instincts instantly ignited.
This dignified Princess of the House of Bourbon had actually taken the initiative to unlock a new map to repay his "kindness."
"Oh? Eastern picture books?"
Felix leaned against the headboard with his hands behind his head, adopting a posture of keen interest.
"Then you must prove to me just how strong your ability to learn is."
For the rest of the night.
In this enclosed bedroom.
Isabella abandoned all the dignity of her noble lineage.
She clumsily yet extremely diligently practiced her so-called "learning outcomes."
From awkwardness to cooperation, from shyness to complete abandon.
Every murmur and every movement of hers declared her unreserved submission to Felix.
This was absolutely the wildest and most enjoyable night Felix had spent since arriving in this era.
The next morning.
The winter sunlight was cold and bright.
Felix was fully dressed, standing by the bed.
On the bed, Isabella was wrapped in a thick quilt, sleeping very soundly.
Her face still bore a weary flush, and there were tear stains at the corners of her eyes, but the corners of her mouth were upturned, as if she were having an extremely sweet dream.
Felix glanced at this silly Princess of the House of Bourbon.
Help the House of Bourbon restore their rule?
It was not impossible.
But the premise was that a restoration was actually possible.
He would first have people give Philippe some funds and supplies.
But...
Unless they handled the Count of Chambord and could ensure that the House of Bourbon definitely could not successfully restore their rule.
Otherwise, Felix could not take the huge risk of heavily investing in them.
He turned and walked out of the bedroom.
"Boss, the carriage is ready."
Frost, who was waiting in the hall, came up to meet him and handed over the latest telegram.
"A direct line from O'Neill. The 'Fearless' he is riding on has already left Tianjin Port and is on its return journey. Accompanying it is three million dollars' worth of gold."
Frost paused, his tone somewhat strange.
"In addition, O'Neill specifically mentioned in the telegram that the'special private gift' previously mentioned by Prince Gong of the Great Qing Empire—some nobles wanting to express their respect for you—has been arranged in the top-tier cabin and is currently sailing toward New York."
Felix put on his coat, a meaningful smile curling the corners of his lips.
"A special gift?"
"I am looking forward to it..."