Chapitre 5: Chapter 6: Starting as a Small Official
Chapter 6: Starting as a Small Official
The next morning, as soon as Paris City Commissioner Levesque saw the President of the Chamber of Commerce, he waved his chubby face and greeted him warmly. After exchanging a few pleasantries, he asked,
"So, what do you think about the case the Prince solved yesterday?"
Fleisselles sighed in admiration,
"The Prince's intelligence is astonishing. I really look forward to the day he leads France."
"Who wouldn't?" Levesque chuckled, "After giving it some serious thought, I believe His Highness is fully capable of serving as a Police Commissioner."
After some persuasive talking, Fleisselles was finally convinced. After all, the Prince himself wanted to work in the police department, so why not do him this favor?
Meanwhile, as soon as Joseph entered the City Hall, the fat mayor approached him with a broad smile,
"Your Highness, the Police Commissioner of the Saint-Antoine district, Old Similion, took a long leave due to illness yesterday. Would you be interested in taking the position of Police Commissioner?"
"Saint-Antoine district?" The president of the Chamber of Commerce was taken aback. He leaned down to whisper to Levesque,
"Why didn't you mention it was there? That place is too chaotic. If anything happens to His Highness…"
Levesque interrupted him quietly,
"The Prince won't be patrolling the streets himself; nothing will happen."
Fleisselles wanted to say more, but the fat mayor blocked his path and assured Joseph,
"Your Highness, the people Similion left behind are all experienced. You have nothing to worry about."
Joseph was a bit surprised by their sudden change of heart, but he quickly accepted,
"Alright, I'll take the position."
He had learned yesterday that a Police Commissioner oversees all police affairs in a large district, with only the Chief of Police above them. It was unlikely that City Hall would let someone as young as him be the Chief of Police.
Levesque immediately launched into more flattery, escorting the Prince to the police station and personally overseeing the issuance of the appointment documents before leaving, satisfied.
Joseph wasted no time. Under the personal protection of Chief of Police Guizot, he set off directly for the Saint-Antoine district to assume his new role.
After traveling for over an hour, they entered the Saint-Antoine district, where the surroundings became noticeably more dilapidated.
The residents they passed looked numb, makeshift shacks teetered on the brink of collapse, and the stench of homeless people slumped in the corners filled the air. Half of the shops were closed, and there were only a few street vendors. The only signs of life were the streetwalkers in cheap clothes, lazily trying to attract customers.
It wasn't long before Joseph saw several instances of people collecting protection money and then two gangs fighting in the streets, with blood everywhere. Passersby hurriedly lowered their heads and fled, and no police ever showed up.
Guizot, however, seemed unfazed by the scene, cheerfully talking about an upcoming ball and even urging the Prince to attend a masquerade next month.
Joseph thought to himself,
"No wonder this was the first place in France to revolt during the Revolution. Anyone living in such an environment for a few years, with extreme poverty, would build up a lot of resentment. When it explodes, the destruction will be immense."
He sighed deeply. It seemed that coming to the Saint-Antoine district was indeed the right move.
Another half-hour later, the carriage stopped in front of a small yard enclosed by uneven wooden boards. Inside was a rundown building with no signage.
Guizot eagerly pointed outside the carriage,
"Your Highness, this is the Saint-Antoine police station."
A policeman outside saw the Chief of Police stepping out of the carriage and quickly ran inside to announce his arrival. Moments later, several officials from the station hurried out with their teams to greet them.
Guizot bowed first to Joseph, then cleared his throat and loudly announced to the gathered crowd,
"The esteemed Prince will now be serving as your Police Commissioner." His assistant immediately presented the appointment documents.
Everyone at the Saint-Antoine police station was stunned, unsure of how to react: Why has such an important figure come to our little place? And isn't the Prince only 13 years old? Dear God, he's going to be our Police Commissioner? The station is bound to be in chaos…
After a long pause, a tall, gaunt man with deep-set eyes stepped forward, bowing respectfully,
"Your Highness, it is an honor to have you here. Assistant Commissioner Bonneau, on behalf of everyone here, sincerely welcomes you."
He then introduced the others,
"Your Highness, this is Officer Magoni from the second patrol unit, and this is Officer…"
The officers quickly stepped forward to pay their respects, and Joseph smiled and returned their greetings. He had seen in the City Hall documents that the Assistant Commissioner was the second-in-command at the station, while patrol officers like these were responsible for directing police on duty, usually commanding teams of over ten men, making them mid-level leaders at the station.
Bonneau and the others escorted Joseph inside the station. Magoni hurried forward, his face full of admiration,
"Your Highness, I heard from César that you solved a murder case in just over ten minutes yesterday. We've been police officers for more than ten years, and we're ashamed by your brilliance!"
Joseph hadn't expected the news to reach the Saint-Antoine district so quickly, so he modestly downplayed his achievement.
Once inside the dilapidated station, Joseph frowned at the crowd of policemen trailing after him and ordered them to return to their duties. He even sent Guizot away.
Finally, the place was quiet. Led by Bonneau, Joseph arrived at the Commissioner's office, where he took a seat behind the large oak desk.
Bonneau, still smiling, asked,
"Your Highness, would you like some tea or hot cocoa? I'll prepare a dinner for you right away."
"Thank you, but there's no need for that." Joseph waved him off, "Please bring me the district reports, along with the case files and personnel records."
Bonneau was taken aback. He had assumed the Prince had come just to play around for a few days, not to take the job seriously!
The files were brought quickly, and after reading just a few pages, Joseph frowned deeply—just last month, the Saint-Antoine district had 28 murders, 63 robberies, and 220 thefts.
And the district's population was only 80,000!
These numbers only reflected reported crimes. Who knew how many went unreported? The situation was far worse than he had imagined.
Joseph then picked up the personnel records. The entire Saint-Antoine district had 181 police officers, of which 120 had purchased their positions, and only 61 had entered the force through inheritance or recruitment.
In addition, there were over 200 members of civilian patrols.
He had seen in documentaries that Paris police at this time were notorious for extortion! From vendors to criminals to victims, they would extort anyone they could. As for fighting crime? They would do that only if they had time, as they needed to recover the money they had spent buying their positions first.
As a result, maintaining order largely depended on these civilian patrols, but they were volunteers with no law enforcement power and only rudimentary weapons. They could only scare off criminals and couldn't even make arrests.
So, the only reliable police force he had was the 60 or so who had been recruited.
(End of Chapter)
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