Chapter 2, Journey to France

Early that day, after having breakfast, Carlo took his family to the residence of Mr. Fuwa to meet with him. People in that era went to bed early, so they generally rose early as well. Mr. Fuwa's household was also in a state of chaos, with a steward directing a group of servants to load various items onto the carriage

Mr. Fuwah will not return to France for more than a month, so Carlo took this opportunity to hire a young man named Valentin as a tutor for his two sons, hoping that they could grasp some French before heading to France

Ah, Joseph, your French pronunciation still has a bit of an Italian accent, but that's not too important; there are quite a few people with that accent over in Toulon. Ah, Napoleon is still quite shy. You should be a bit more generous, being generous is better. Hahahaha ... ... ...

Napoleon did not speak, but the unwilling expression on his face was evident even to a fool

"What is the purpose of learning French? The French..." Napoleon said half of it, looked into Carlo's eyes, and then fell silent

"It's nothing." Napoleon stood up lazily, "I was thinking, perhaps I should place a book in this hole. That way, when I come here in the future, I will have something to do. Well, Joseph, I think there shouldn't be any major issues, right? I should be able to go home now."

More than a month has passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it is time to leave Corsica

"Alright." Kano smiled, bringing his hands together. Everyone then joined in, bringing their hands together as well, and began the prayer before dinner: "Lord, we ask you to bless us, the food we are about to enjoy, and all your gifts. Through our Lord Christ. Amen."

"Alright, come back with me. Everyone is hungry, but Mother and Polina insist on waiting for you to return before we eat," Joseph said. "When we get back, Father will scold you a bit, you admit your mistake, and then we can all eat. Hurry up, I am already very hungry!"

"You had only been running for a few minutes when Paul woke up," Joseph said. "Of course, Carlo was still very angry. He told Giovanni that once he caught him, he would certainly whip him severely. However, after Giovanni left, Paulina said to him, 'You hit Paul because you saw him pulling my braid.' After Paulina said this, I noticed that although our father did not explicitly state it, he seemed to be less angry with you. He even said to me, 'Joseph, you are my eldest son. Why weren't you at the forefront when something happened? Alas, if only you could find a balance with Napoleon.'"

Valentin is a young man who is not yet twenty years old. It is said that he studied at the University of Paris, but he was unable to graduate successfully from there. Later, in order to make a living, he came to Corsica. He is a typical southerner, with white skin, black hair, and blue eyes. He always speaks with a smile and is generally a very likable young man

"Basically, yes," Joseph said, "but how are you so sure?"

"Basically, it's all fine now," Joseph said, "At most, I will be scolded a couple of times. If it weren't for Paulina this time, you would have been in for it. My foolish brother, your approach does have its effects, but there has always been one issue, which is that it is difficult to control the measure, and it is very easy to go overboard."

He is a relative of the Governor of Corsica, working in the legal department of Corsica, and is Carlo's superior. Like all those whose names contain the character "德", this individual essentially does nothing and simply collects a salary. His daily activities mostly consist of wandering around with a fishing rod. Carlo had previously served as an aide to Paul, the leader of the Corsican resistance, and such a person would typically find it difficult to gain the trust of the French authorities. However, due to his good relationship with Mr. Fua, not only was his identity as an "Italian noble" recognized, (of course, this recognition was merely on paper; once in France, especially in Paris, very few would take his title of count seriously.) but he also became a member of the French government in Corsica.

As Joseph spoke, he also imitated his father's mannerisms, which caused Napoleon to burst into laughter. He said, "So, does this mean I should have nothing to worry about?"

This era offers little in the way of entertainment. Currently, it is winter, and night falls quite early. Generally speaking, after dinner, Carlo would read a passage from the Bible or something else to everyone, and then as night descends, everyone can bid each other good night.

Mr. Fuwah is now about to leave Corsica, and Carlo has entrusted him with the task of introducing his two sons to a French noble school. Carlo knows that in Corsica, the Corsicans have little prospect, and France is the place that can truly provide opportunities.

However, he has his own work, and the matter of teaching the Bonaparte brothers French can only take place after work hours. In order to enable the brothers to grasp some French as much as possible, the usually frugal Carlo surprisingly allowed them to light an oil lamp in the evening for their studies

Just as Joseph had thought, he successfully found Napoleon in that cave. When he found Napoleon, this troublemaker was sitting on a rock, gazing absentmindedly at the sea shrouded in rain and mist

Everyone continued to sit in their chairs and listen

Good morning, Mr. Fuwah," Joseph quickly replied in French. However, Napoleon remained silent

That night, no one knew what Joseph had said to Napoleon, but after dawn, Napoleon displayed a completely different interest in going to France to learn French

As for Mr. Fuwah, he stood alone to one side, his face showing neither nostalgia for the place he had lived in for several years nor any hint of joy at the prospect of returning to his hometown. It was as if this matter had nothing to do with him at all. Only when he saw the Carlo family did he break into a smile and stride over to greet them, saying: "Hi, Carlo, and Joseph and Napoleon, good morning to you all"

"My foolish brother, what are you daydreaming about over there?" Joseph shouted

As the man of the house, one must take the initiative to protect women. However, it is also important to exercise discretion. After Napoleon finished speaking, Carlo expressed his satisfaction, saying, "But you must act quickly; Joseph, you are not as good as Napoleon in this regard. I know you have been influenced by Bishop Minier in many ways. Bishop Minier is a good man, a holy man, but both your mother and I do not wish to see you become a clergyman."

"Joseph, in a moment, you should have a word with Napoleon and advise him not to stir up trouble when he arrives in France" Carlo added

Remember, the future of the family depends on you. " Carlo said finally, " Napoleon, when you arrive in France, do not speak recklessly

Clearly, Fuwah took Napoleon's hostility towards the French as his shyness. He did not realize that the reason this little man was willing to go to France to study was to understand France, so that one day he could defeat France and win independence for Corsica. At least at this time, Napoleon was still a staunch Corsican separatist

Joseph, Napoleon, you both are no longer young and should learn something. I have a friend, Mr. Armand de Foua, who visited our home last time. He is returning to France now, and he can take you both with him to France to study and learn French. Then, based on your performance in middle school, we will decide what you should do next

Upon returning home, just as Joseph had said, Carlo merely scolded Napoleon a couple of times with a stern face, without resorting to the whip. Meanwhile, Napoleon, who had already reconciled with Joseph, humbly reflected on his mistakes to his father and assured him that in the future, should such a situation arise again, he would certainly manage his emotions better and would not act with such severity.

Italian and French are actually very similar, and the Corsican dialect is a language that lies between the two. Of course, the Corsican dialect is still closer to Italian. Therefore, for Joseph and Napoleon, who had mastered the Corsican dialect, it was not particularly difficult to grasp basic French in just over a month.

Mr. Armand de Foua, upon hearing this name, Joseph's mind conjured up an image: a tall man with a face full of freckles and a red complexion, roughly the same height as himself, but nearly twice as wide. Especially that beer belly, Joseph suspected that when he bent down, he would most likely be unable to see his own toes

"Rather than being timid and ending up getting beaten, it is better to go all out," Napoleon said nonchalantly

However, this time, Carlo did not take out the Bible, but instead said to everyone: "Everyone, please sit here for a moment, I have something to discuss with you."

If things are not yet finished, I cannot go back. You should have brought food instead of coming here empty-handed," Napoleon replied, then he asked, "Joseph, how did that matter end?

"Alright, Carlo," Letizia said, slightly furrowing her brow. "Your speech should come to an end; the children are hungry."

I wish to go into the heart of the enemy, to observe them at the closest distance, to understand them. This will help Corsica gain its freedom. " Napoleon said this privately to his sister Pauline.

After finishing the meal, Carlo led everyone in the post-meal prayer. This is a common practice in almost every household of this era. However, Joseph often thought to himself, "If I were God, being inundated with messages from so many people every day would surely drive me insane."

Napoleon's last words were not in the form of a question, but rather in a declarative tone