Chapter 223: Mendelssohn’s Help
Chapter 221 – Mendelssohn’s Help
The Coburg Theater was packed and overcrowded, with countless gentlemen and ladies in all colors of dresses taking their seats according to their pre-booked tickets.
Just as Arthur had anticipated beforehand, tonight’s concert had attracted a number of special guests due to the gathering of famous artists.
Even Arthur, who had a narrow social circle, was able to find a few familiar ones among these people.
Although the Coburg Theater would not release the names of the ticket subscribers to the public due to the need for customer privacy, but Arthur with the help of the Red Devil wouldn’t care about that.
His reddish eyes swept back and forth across the boxes on the second floor, and he couldn’t help but mutter under his breath.
“The pair of Mrs. Cowper and Viscount Palmerston are here, which is not unusual.
Mrs. Levine and the old man who visited the Russian Embassy the other day also came along, and there were two guards standing in front of their box. It seemed that the old man should be the Austrian Chancellor Metternich.
But …… who is this next to Mrs. Norton? Isn’t she in love with Viscount Melbourne? A new flavor so soon?”
The Red Devil lay on his side on the stage, nibbling on an apple while scolding, “Arthur, is there something wrong with your brain? Next to Lady Norton is naturally her husband, Mr. Norton, and you still need me to teach you such a simple question.”
Only then did Arthur wake up when he heard this, he patted his head and laughed helplessly, “I’ve really been confused by the chaotic relationships of this group of them lately, I thought that this group of people today were either surrounded by other people’s wives or other people’s husbands.
But …… the Nortons will actually come together to see the theater, their relationship this is a reconciliation?”
Red Devil heard this, stretched a lazy face with a bad smile and said, “If the wife at any time may bring you an annual income of more than a thousand pounds, but also comes with a whole lot of power of the position, this situation in exchange for you, you have to coax a little.”
Hearing this, the redness in Arthur’s eyes gradually dissipated as he spoke, “Now then, here’s the problem. I couldn’t even fathom what kind of relationship Viscount Melbourne and Mrs. Norton had until now, and whether or not there was any physical connection between the two of them other than an emotional link.”
When the red devil heard this, the malice on his face deepened another layer, “Wow! My dear Arthur, why do you care so much? Does it matter whether there is a physical connection or not? Don’t get the point wrong, the point is whether other people believe that there is no physical relationship between them.
If people don’t believe it, it’s still not there. If others believe it, it’s still not there. Do you need me to say that bit about you humans a little more clearly?”
Arthur glanced at the Red Devil, “Agares, I have to say, this is quite a dangerous thought of yours.”
The Red Devil was not in a hurry to state his position, he just laughed with his hands folded, “Arthur, don’t be in a hurry to jump to conclusions first. I’m not saying that you must do this either, but you always have to think of a path for yourself first, right?
If in the future Viscount Melbourne really puts George Norton in any position that makes you uncomfortable, this kind of obstacle still needs to be removed by some means.
Think about who he’s a supporter of. He’s a supporter of the former Lord Chancellor, the Earl of Eldon. Think of all the things Earl Eldon has done, who issued the six repressive special orders, and who has been stuck with the Royal Charter for the University of London, and why the Bloody Acts were so laborious to repeal.
Arthur, are you sure you want to leave yourself such a conundrum? Look where you’re standing, the Coburg Theater is famous for Shakespeare’s operas, have you forgotten that famous line from Hamlet?
People often disguise a devilish heart with the appearance of supreme sincerity and pious actions.
And accordingly, in order to achieve your supreme sincerity, sometimes it takes some devilish power of action.”
The Red Devil took great pains to speak, yet unfortunately, Arthur was on the verge of becoming immune to this rhetoric of his.
“The Nortons and Viscount Melbourne are messy enough as it is, so I’m not interested in meddling in their love triangle for the time being.”
Agares wasn’t angry when he heard Arthur reject his trade request, he just played with the soul colored bead he just got and spoke with a bad smile, “Arthur, I think I still need to remind you. The souls you got from the pirate ship last time don’t have much left, it’s not a good thing to drag on like this, you have to consider doing a big job earlier.”
The Red Devil kept on pressurizing him, but Arthur at the moment had no mind to be distracted by the matter of souls.
Because he had just swept the first and second floors in a circle, and there was no sign of Vidocq at all.
This always mysterious French sleuth was as if he did not come to the Coburg Theater today, but if someone told Arthur that Vidocq did not visit today, Arthur would definitely not believe it.
Even if Vidocq and Dumas were both brothers in a true relationship, just by virtue of the lineup of guests attending the concert tonight, it would be enough for Vidocq to sniff around and poke around a bit.
After all, the French Ambassador Talleyrand couldn’t really have brought Vidocq over for him to protect his own safety, could he?
Arthur, the head of the Greater London Police Department’s intelligence department, had been given a sting mission, so there was no reason why the Frenchman’s side would be at peace with themselves.
Arthur was pondering over this matter, when suddenly, the sound of scattered and disorganized steps rang in his ears.
He turned his head to see that the musicians of the Third Symphony Orchestra of the London Philharmonic Society were ready to take the stage.
And Mr. Cipriani Potter, who was in charge of the lead today, stood at the bottom of the stage rubbing his fingers repeatedly through his white gloves, trying to make his knuckles a little more flexible when he took the stage. Just as Arthur was about to continue staring at the front stage for a while, a kind, familiar and youthful voice rang out behind him.
“Ah! Mr. Hastings, so there you are.”
Arthur looked back and was called by none other than Mendelssohn, who was a year older than him.
Mendelssohn smiled and greeted him, and then came up to him and kindly taught him, “You will be a bit nervous the first time you go on stage, but as soon as your fingertips touch the keys, everything around you will become quiet. When that happens, you can play your piece without thinking about anything else. When the performance is over, you will be surrounded by applause and flowers, and all you have to do is bow slightly to thank the audience for their love.”
Hearing this, Arthur just joked, “The audience’s love? It seems that being a pianist is indeed a good profession. It’s been a long time since I felt such things from the gazes of those around me since I joined Scotland Yard.”
“Is that so?” To Arthur’s joke, Mendelssohn responded with the same joke: “If you consider conducting piano training at Scotland Yard, I guarantee that it won’t take long to improve the bad reputation of Scotland Yard officers.”
With that said, Mendelssohn asked, “Say, won’t you go backstage and meet Mr. Clementi? If you could get a few pointers from him, it would certainly be beneficial to your future development on the musical path. Everyone agrees that piano technique cannot be refined behind closed doors, and that the only way to really grow is to keep interacting with the great pianists. And that’s precisely why I traveled all over Europe. If Moscheles hadn’t called me back, I’d probably still be in Lombardy at this point.”
“Is that so?” Arthur spoke, “Lombardy is a good place, I heard Admiral Codrington of the Royal Navy say that the grapes there are quite sweet.”
Mendelssohn laughed at his words, “Arthur, you’re a funny guy, it’s not like I’m going there for a couple more bites of grapes. I’m there to exchange skills with the piano masters of the Apennines.”
When Arthur heard this, he was suddenly struck by an idea, and he suddenly thought of something.
He deliberately pulled the conversation and guided Mendelssohn: “You’ve gone to so many places to visit the masters, so have you been to Paris? In Europe, besides Vienna, it is Paris that has the most musical atmosphere.”
“Paris? I was just having this thought.” Mendelssohn nodded with a smile, “If it goes well, I might go there next year.”
Arthur nodded slightly as he spoke, “Felix, you may not know that Paris is actually not only a music mecca, but for us police officers, it’s a marvelous place as well.”
“Ah!” When Mendelssohn heard this, he immediately clapped his hands and said, “You’re talking about Mr. François Vidocq, right?”
Arthur was surprised, “You know him?”
“Of course!” Mendelssohn nodded, “That memoir he published has been a hot book in London these past two years, and I bought a copy to go back and read. I have to say, his life experience is much more exciting than a musical score.”
Arthur smiled and pondered for a while, then opened his mouth to weave the embellished story, “Since you know Mr. Vidocq, Felix, then I won’t hide anything from you. In fact, I didn’t come here today just to play a piece of music for the audience, nor was it just to bid farewell to Mr. Clementi.
That great man, François Vidocq, has recently followed a French diplomatic mission to London. And he and I had just made a pact in which he said he had the power to take an object out from under my nose, while I did not believe he could be so marvelous. I have staked almost the entire honor of Scotland Yard to prevent him from having his way.
But there is nothing I fear more now than that Mr. Vidocq will take advantage of my appearance on the stage to strike suddenly, so may I make you a presumptuous request?”
Mendelssohn’s eyes lit up at the words.
Even this future globally renowned classical music master could not escape the curious nature of human beings, let alone the fact that at this time he was still a young man in his twenties.
Mendelssohn opened his mouth and asked, “Of course I’m willing to help, but I don’t know anything besides playing the piano, I wonder what I can do to help you?”
Arthur sniffed and just smiled as he waved at Mendelssohn and whispered a few words in the other man’s ear.
Mendelssohn listened with a frown on his face, “This ……”
Arthur laughed, “Felix, if you can’t do this, I really won’t be able to find anyone else. Oh no, maybe there is one such person in Paris, but it’s too late for me to go and hire him now.”
Mendelssohn glanced at Arthur’s sincere smiling face, clenched his teeth and thought for half a day, but finally nodded slowly.
“Then it’s settled! Arthur, you gambled the glory of Scotland Yard in order to face off with Mr. Vidocq, since that’s the case, I’ll also accompany you to gamble the pride of being a pianist. But, Arthur, you promise me that you will win.”
Arthur couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief when he heard this, and he smiled, “I’ll do my best.”
With Mendelssohn’s assurance, his heart immediately gained some confidence, and he opened his mouth to ask, “By the way, I forgot to ask you, what are you planning to play today?”
Mendelssohn smiled mysteriously as he returned, “You know that I am a devoted follower of Mr. Bach, and on such an important occasion as Mr. Clementi’s retirement, I certainly have to present him with the grandest of all, the Matthew Passion.”
Who knows that when Arthur heard this, he just muttered, “The Matthew Passion? That’s not very auspicious. ……”
(End of chapter)