"Deepen the relationship? Your Majesty, our relationship has already reached this point, how could it deepen further!" Empress Augusta responded to Jerome Bonaparte with a mocking tone, "You wouldn't be thinking of making a move on two pregnant women, would you!"

Despite the dim light in the room, making it difficult for Jerome Bonaparte to see Empress Augusta's expression clearly, he could hear from her words that Augusta still resented him.

"Actually... actually I'm here to apologize!" Jerome Bonaparte rubbed his nose as he explained to Empress Augusta, "I really know... that you and... (Jerome Bonaparte paused, glancing at the Marchioness Aile curled up under the covers) were sleeping together... if I'd known..."

"If you'd known, what were you going to do?" Empress Augusta pressed on with her scolding of Jerome Bonaparte.

"Well... well... I'll leave now! Let's talk another time!" Seeing the situation turning awkward, Jerome Bonaparte quickly withdrew. As he reached the door, preparing to leave Augusta's room, he turned and said, "Augusta..."

"What is it? Your Majesty, are you planning to stay over? There's no extra bed here!" Augusta's voice, full of reproach, reached Jerome Bonaparte's ears.

"I'm sorry! I'm not a good husband!" Jerome Bonaparte apologized to Augusta and left the room without looking back.

Silence once again fell over the room. After a while, quiet sobs were heard, coming from Empress Augusta.

Hearing the short sobs from the Empress, the Marchioness Aile lying next to her felt like the worst woman in the world, making such a kind Empress... (In this sense, the moral image Jerome Bonaparte built for Empress Augusta was quite successful.)

"Your Highness, I'm truly sorry!" the Marchioness Aile softly apologized to Empress Augusta, "I will leave France early tomorrow morning and disappear forever from His Majesty's sight."

With that, the Marchioness Aile prepared to get up and leave the Tuileries Palace, then return to the place she called home.

"No! You can't leave!" Augusta grabbed the Marchioness Aile's arm, not letting her go.

"Your Highness, I am a sinful woman! My existence will only disturb the happy life between you and His Majesty!" the Marchioness responded to Empress Augusta, "Please let me leave here, leave France!"

"After you leave, will the Emperor become faithful?" Empress Augusta sighed and shook her head, "No! He won't! He will continue to seek attractive prey at various social venues!"

"His Majesty should not be such a person!" the Marchioness Aile tried to defend Jerome Bonaparte's reputation.

"I know he is not like that!" Empress Augusta wiped her tears away and calmly analyzed, "But if Paris needs him to become that kind of person, he will. He once told me that Paris is an open and inclusive city, and a monarch who rules this city must align with its attributes. So he must always stand at the forefront of the times and guide the trends, not be pushed forward by them."

The lover culture is an essential part of all of Paris; behind every accomplished person in Paris, there are always two or three lovers driving them forward.

The Parisians also enjoy seeing the scandals of many successful people as topics of conversation.

The hapless monarch Louis XVI was criticized by Parisians for his weakness because he only loved the cake Queen.

In contrast, Louis XV, who sowed the seeds of the Bourbon Dynasty's destruction with France's immense debt, is only remembered for his story with Madam Ponduba.

This is Paris, forever at the forefront of the times.

A Paris that can never be completely tamed by monarchy or religion.

"After you leave, the Emperor will undoubtedly allow others to enter the Tuileries Palace to fill the vacancy you left!" Empress Augusta responded in a melancholy tone, "This way, I'll have to get used to my 'new rival' all over again!"

"Your Highness!" the Marchioness Aile lowered her voice, feeling a bit sympathetic for the Empress at that moment.

"Actually, our Majesty is already much better than the monarchs of other countries! My father and several of my brothers were surrounded by many ladies!" Augusta could only wryly laugh to the Marchioness, "Since I chose to marry him, I should have expected such things to happen. But... but..."

Empress Augusta began to sob again, and the Marchioness Aile held her hand in silence.

...

Meanwhile, Jerome Bonaparte, who had hurried out of Augusta's room, looked at the seemingly endless corridor before him, momentarily unsure of where to go.

Forget it! I'll just find a random bedroom to get by for the night!

Just as Jerome Bonaparte was about to find a bedroom for the night, the door on his left side opened.

Jerome Bonaparte instinctively glanced over, and wrapped in Lev's Formal Suit, Vilnius peeked out before Jerome Bonaparte.

"Your Majesty!" Vilnius gracefully curtsied to Jerome Bonaparte, Lev's Formal Suit adding an unusual charm to her figure.

"Hmm? Why aren't you asleep yet?" Jerome Bonaparte inquired of Vilnius.

"Aren't you the same!" Vilnius responded to Jerome Bonaparte, then extended an invitation, "Would you like to come in and sit for a while?"

Having originally no interest, Jerome Bonaparte inexplicably stepped into Vilnius' room.

...

The next day at noon, Jerome Bonaparte climbed out of bed and looked at the traces of his battle from the night before, rubbing his chin unconsciously, then glanced at the naked Vilnius beside him and shook his head.

This young girl was quite daring last night!

Jerome Bonaparte gently touched Vilnius's milk-like cheek, then picked up the clothes scattered on the floor, put them on, gently kissed Vilnius's forehead, and left the room to go downstairs.

In the hall, Jerome Bonaparte happened to encounter Mokar, and he quickly asked Mokar to prepare some food.

"Your Majesty, Empress Augusta and Marchioness Aile are dining in the dining room!" Mokar replied to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Then take me there!" Jerome Bonaparte showed a slightly awkward expression on his face.

Led by Mokar, Jerome Bonaparte entered the dining room and briefly greeted Empress Augusta and Marchioness Aile.

Upon seeing Jerome Bonaparte, Marchioness Aile immediately stood up to salute, and Augusta slowly rose to greet Jerome Bonaparte as well.

"Hmmm... Sit down! Sit down!" Jerome Bonaparte motioned for Augusta and Marchioness Aile to sit, then engaged in casual conversation with them.

"Your Majesty, how was your rest last night?" Empress Augusta asked Jerome Bonaparte.

"Not bad!" Jerome Bonaparte dared not admit to Augusta that he had spent the night in Vilnius's room.

"Oh!" Augusta seemed intentionally to let Jerome Bonaparte off the hook, not lingering on the topic.

Jerome Bonaparte internally let out a sigh of relief, unaware that Augusta was merely preparing for another round of confrontation.

After a while, Augusta spoke again, "Your Majesty, you rested in Vilnius's room, didn't you?"

"Ah..." Jerome Bonaparte paused for a few seconds, then firmly denied, "No! Absolutely not!"

"Then why hasn't Vilnius gotten up yet?" Augusta asked Jerome Bonaparte with a faint smile.

"Perhaps that girl is just a heavy sleeper!" Jerome Bonaparte forcibly explained to Augusta, then asked, "Do you want me to go check on her?"

"No need!" Augusta shook her head in response to Jerome Bonaparte.

During the subsequent dining session, neither Jerome Bonaparte nor Augusta spoke a word.

After finishing the meal, Jerome Bonaparte returned to his study to handle state affairs, while Vilnius and Marchioness Aile attended the literary salon hosted by Princess Mathilde.

In his study, while processing files submitted by the Navy Department, Jerome Bonaparte unexpectedly came across the name of Marquis Aile.

This document was sent by Marquis Aile from the Far East, about four months ago.

The document's content is as follows: With the joint efforts of the French Marine Corps and the Zuav Corps, the French Empire Navy occupied the Kingdom of Hawaii.

The Kingdom of Hawaii was forced to surrender to the French Empire, agreeing to become a vassal state, allowing stationing of troops, and compensating the French Empire for all losses in this campaign, amounting to approximately 30 million francs.

Of course, the French Empire's actions were met with opposition from the United States ambassador and the British ambassador to Hawaii.

Marquis Aile turned a deaf ear to this, even harboring ulterior motives against the United States warships resupplying at Shanghai.

To teach a lesson to the United States, Duke Aile dispatched his navy (4 steam battleships) to trail the United States warships to Japan.

Initially tense, the French and American forces reached a compromise in the Japanese sea area. The United States Navy ordered a bombardment of the Tokugawa Shogunate's Edo, destroying all outside ships and making even the coastal forts and residential areas targets, leaving Edo's citizens shivering under the might of the joint fleet.

The Tokugawa Shogunate had to send envoys to plead with the French-American fleet to stop bombarding Edo, agreeing to all their conditions.

Upon receiving the Shogunate's response, the joint fleet ceased the bombardment. Following lengthy negotiations, the fleet presented harsher conditions than those in the historical Black Ships incident.

The Tokugawa Shogunate not only had to adhere to the historical Japan-U.S. Treaty of Peace and Amity, which forced Japan to open the ports of Shimoda (in southeastern Shizuoka Prefecture, southwest of Tokyo) and Hakodate (present-day Hakodate, southwestern Hokkaido) for coal-loading and supplies but also was required to compensate for losses incurred by the joint fleet, each paying 100,000 British pounds to both the United States and France.

Facing the powerful western fleets, the Tokugawa Shogunate had to concede, agreeing to all demands of the joint fleet.

Afterward, satisfied with the resolution, the U.S. Navy left the Tokugawa Shogunate.

Marquis Aile, who bullied the Shogunate, ordered his troops to launch an attack on the Satsuma Domain, leading the French Fleet to eliminate all their naval forces.

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