Chapter 345: The Royal Navy’s Beauty Insulter

Chapter 342 – The Royal Navy’s American Abuser

On the second floor of the Golden Lion Hotel, a larger bedroom was cleaned up and used as a temporary meeting room.

Back then, a gunshot from Lexington sounded the horn of independence for the North American colonies.

But today, half a century later, a gunshot in Liverpool sent hundreds of Scotland Yard’s right-hand men to the region.

Sitting by the window of the boardroom, all one needs to do is smoke a cigarette in silence to hear a burst of officers’ sheaths rubbing against white breeches from downstairs.

As far as the eye could see from the street, the not particularly wide street in front of the Golden Lion Hotel was littered with groups of Scotland Yard officers smoking cigarettes.

Passing Liverpool citizens were a bit curious to look at this group of Londoners who fell from the sky, leaving aside the fact that each of them had their own distinctive looks, at least their head-to-toe uniforms with no wrinkles in sight were definitely much more handsome than the local Liverpool security team.

The most senior officer in the group was Inspector Braden Jones, who was now the head of the Towers Hamlets police district.

And standing beside him was Arthur’s right-hand man, Sergeant Tony Eckhart, who was in charge of the Search Section of the Criminal Crime Investigation Department, and Sergeant Tom Flanders, who was in charge of the File Section of the Criminal Crime Investigation Department.

Although Jones’ rank was higher than Tom and Tony’s, he didn’t dare to act as a big head in front of these two.

Especially Tom, Jones still misses the honest and loyal police officer had in front of Arthur said a few good words for him, if not, this moment may be his body has long been floating down the Thames to the English Channel.

Jones fished out two small delicate porcelain vials from his pocket and threw them at them, “Try this, it’s much more comfortable than smoking a pipe.”

Tony took the bottles and glanced at them, “Snuff bottles? When did you get into this?”

Jones smiled back: “Where do I have the spare money to get this, are given by others. Anyway, it’s something for nothing, don’t want it for nothing.”

Tony uncovered the bottle cap and inhaled vigorously, suddenly feel refreshed: “You really don’t say, this flavor is quite on the head, is much stronger than a pipe. You do not go to Arthur also get a?”

Tom sniffed, holding up the snuff bottle Jones sent him to open his mouth: “You simply give this to him, I don’t smoke much, snuff bottle I can’t use.”

Jones heard this, just Tom’s hand pressed back: “Don’t worry, Hastings police superintendent’s share I have long been prepared. By the way, you guys arrived before me, you should have met him in advance, right? Is Superintendent Hastings he …… badly hurt?”

Tom heard this and just said helplessly, “Sir, you don’t need to be so careful. It’s not like you don’t know, the number of times Arthur loses his temper is only a handful of times, if you have any problems, just go up to him directly. That said, you left Tauer Hamlets behind and directly asked Director Rowan to volunteer to come to Liverpool to do security work, can you cope with the work over at the police district?”

Jones sniffed and shook his head, “Tom, I’m not like you guys, my …… are in his hands pinching. And I’m not as important as you guys think over at Tauer Hamlets, we’re short of first line patrolmen, not competent leaders. Director Rowan took a leave of absence every other day to find someone to replace him, and didn t Scotland Yard operate as usual? Besides, my assistant, Ledley, is still there, and when orders are given from above, he carries them out just the same.”

“Ledley?” Tony asked, putting down his snuff bottle, “Ledley King? The kid from Whitechapel?”

“Yeah, that’s him.” Jones laughed, “That kid may be a money-grubber and a womanizer, but he’s a good worker. Or let’s put it another way, if you want to do a good job in Tauerhamletts, you have to be a money-grubbing, womanizing kid like him.”

Tony sniffed and tsked, “A year to rise to the rank of sergeant, not even half a year to become an assistant police inspector, Ledley this kid climbed fast enough ah! It’s almost half as fast as Arthur’s.”

Tom asked, “Tony, how do you know him?”

Tony glanced at him, “You spend all day in the file room, of course you don’t know a few people. Those like me who lead people on field trips every day simply know all the progressive youths in the various police districts in London. And this kid, Ledley King, is one of the most progressive among them.

With a smile on his face, he hides a knife behind his back, using his uninitiated appearance to hide a long-designed trap. This kid, is a typical mouth set in the heart, he is one set and one set.

For the sake of his understanding, I pray to God on his behalf that he doesn’t get caught for the shit he’s done. And you, Jones, you won’t be able to get away with it if it comes out in the east in the future.”

The more Tom listened, the more curious he became, “What the hell did that kid do?”

Jones took out a handkerchief and wiped the beads of sweat on his jaw, “It’s nothing really, just that he wants to get ahead too much. Putting aside some small matters of personal style, it’s just stuffing contraband on the turf of some badly convicted gangsters, or having a rougher style of law enforcement, or something like that.

All in all, if you dare to give Ledley a target, he will dare to give you two hundred percent over business. That’s why I moved him from Whitechapel, because if you send him out on a mission, there’s no telling what he might do to you.

Last time, the Office issued a directive, saying that the number of car accidents in London recently was a bit too high, and needed to rectify some of the congested traffic conditions in various police districts. I didn’t take this matter seriously, and casually handed it over to Ledley to do.

Only to find out later that the bastard had actually blocked off a small portion of the road in the police area, and when cars came by, he lied to them and said that there was construction work going on up ahead, so that they could take a detour. Now, it’s true that Tauer Hamlets is no longer congested, but the rate of car accidents in the surrounding area is steadily increasing compared to the past.

The department didn’t know the specifics and thought we were doing a pretty good job, so instead of criticizing us, they even commended us for our work. All I can say is, Ledley this kid is lucky to be under my hand, to be put elsewhere to go, how can also be for the trouble of one side.”

Speaking of this, the three of them couldn’t help but sigh.

Tony snickered, “Jones, you’re holding up people Ledley’s progress.”

Jones inhaled a mouthful of snuff: “If I don’t delay him, he’s going to start delaying me. They all have to improve, but there’s a sequence. That said, that matter of Superintendent Hastings seems to be coming to some head, you guys know about it, right?”

Tony asked, “You mean the London District Attorney’s Office thing? Wasn’t that finalized a long time ago?”

“It’s more than that.”

Jones lifted his white glove over his mouth and whispered, “I’ve heard that the London District Attorney’s Office is supposed to have a Regional Director of Public Prosecutions and four Deputy Regional Directors of Public Prosecutions. The attorney generals are nominated by the Judicial Committee of the House of Lords, dominated by Lord Brougham, Chancellor of the Crown, and His Majesty the King makes the appointments.

According to the grapevine, the most likely candidate for the position is Professor John Austin, QC, Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of London. He, like Superintendent Hastings, is a figure extremely highly regarded by Lord Brougham.

As for the four Deputy Directors of Public Prosecutions, one was nominated by the Lord Chancellor’s Department, one by the Home Office, one by the Law Society of Great Britain, and the last was reserved exclusively for the police, that is, Scotland Yard. Director Rowan is no fool, so this Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions for the police will be one hundred percent Superintendent Hastings’.”

Tom asked, “Isn’t that something everyone knows?”

Jones waved his hand and said, “The point is later. If Superintendent Hastings becomes the Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, then Scotland Yard’s side can be …… Superintendent’s rank is not low, but as Scotland Yard’s representative in the London District Attorney’s Office, how can it be that he should also carry the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police?”

Tom sniffed and took a deep breath, pinching his chin and pondered, “But …… didn’t the hall just promulgate that what ‘anti-Hastings regulation’ a few months ago? Now if you want to be promoted to Assistant Superintendent, you have to serve for at least eight years. It’s written there in black and white, so it’s impossible to fool them, right? Unless, of course, the department is planning to revise the regulations again?”

Jones took a sip of his cigarette, “It would have been really hard to do that, after all, how can you say that a new regulation that was just issued one foot and then changed the next is not justifiable. But isn’t Superintendent Hastings shot now? You’ve read the papers, haven’t you? The Home Office is planning to set up police organizations all over the country, and there may be a complete revision of the Greater London Police Act of 1829, and Scotland Yard’s jurisdiction and powers should be redrawn. If the Office was going to take the opportunity to upgrade the entire Criminal Investigation Department, it would be logical for Superintendent Hastings to be promoted to Assistant Superintendent. Not to mention, he’s just taken a bullet for the Home Office.”

Speaking of which, Jones also smiled and congratulated Tom and Tony, “Maybe in a few months, you’ll be carrying three Bass Stars on your shoulders, just like me. After all, once the Criminal Investigation Department gets promoted, it’s bound to be the whole thing, and you guys will have to go up with it.”

Tom and Tony couldn’t help but feel their heads spinning when they heard this.

“My God!”

“Obviously, we didn’t do anything, and this is another promotion?”

Seeing this, Jones just sighed with envy and jealousy, “That’s how life is, especially working in a place like Scotland Yard, following the right people is more important than anything else. It’s a pity that the one I followed at first was Superintendent Clemens, if I had realized early on that there was still such a ‘blue-blooded aristocrat’ from York hiding in the nooks and crannies of the Greenwich Police Station, I might have been able to get promoted to Superintendent next year.

Alas, Inspector of Police, three Bass stars and the same badge on his shoulder as an Army Captain, which officially sells for a thousand pounds to start with. As for Superintendent, a St. Edward’s badge, the equivalent of an Army Major, which is two thousand pounds and upwards. The Assistant Superintendent of Police, on the other hand, has a Bass star on top of the St. Edward’s badge, Army Lieutenant Colonel, a position that can take more than money and more than luck in stumbling upon vacancies ……”

Jones was just sighing when suddenly there was a clutter of footsteps in his ears.

He turned his head to see that several officers were leading two well-dressed gentlemen toward the door of the hotel. The leading middle-aged gentleman had a pipe in his mouth and lifted his cane to gently touch his hat: ”Young man, very fond of shiny shoulder patches? I have to admit, you do have a good eye, I was just like you when I was young. But in my opinion, although the shoulder patches of the guys are equally shiny, the officer uniforms of the Royal Navy are still quite a bit more handsome than the Army’s. Of course, if we’re just judging from the point of view of police uniforms, the one you have at Scotland Yard isn’t bad either.”

Jones sniffed and frowned slightly as he rushed over to a couple of the junior officers and asked, “And this is?”

The secretary immediately behind the middle-aged gentleman sniffed and fished out a document from his pocket, pointing to the red seal stamp on it and spoke, “We are from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and there is an urgent matter that needs to be discussed with Mr. Hastings.”

“Ministry of Foreign Affairs?”

Jones’s head grew big at the name, and Tom and Tony collected their faces.

“We hadn’t heard that anyone from the Foreign Office was coming today. And I’m not authorized to open this particular correspondence, do you all have any other documents that prove your identity?”

The secretary, seeing Jones’ disbelief, didn’t say much, but simply fished out of her inside pocket a Foreign Office badge engraved with a unicorn, lion and crown design.

Jones had long since memorized the symbols of the various departments of Whitehall, and he only took it over and scanned it to know that it was the real thing.

But for security reasons, he still politely requested, “It seems that you two are indeed from the Foreign Office. However, the current situation in Liverpool is quite sensitive, in order to prevent accidents and ensure your safety, can you take off your coats for inspection? We have to make sure that you are not carrying guns and ammunition on your bodies.”

Hearing this, the middle-aged gentleman couldn’t help but frown and hum softly, “I’m just but asking Mr. Hastings to do a small thing, and it’s also a small thing that has special authorization from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is it so troublesome?”

Seeing the situation, Jones hurriedly explained, “I’m sorry, sir, but it’s the rules, and I have no right to violate the resolutions of higher management such as the Ministry of the Interior.”

“Heh …… move out the Ministry of Internal Affairs to scare me? Good!”

The middle-aged gentleman’s florid white eyebrows raised as he wrapped his arms directly around the back of Jones’ head and shoved his head into his overcoat.

The middle-aged gentleman took a sip of his cigarette and asked, “See what I mean? What’s that hanging under my coat, over my shoulder?”

Jones forced himself to be calm and reported aloud, “Report! It’s a gold-rimmed shoulder patch! It also has a St. Edward’s badge embedded in it, a crossed battle of command with saber, and two sun stars.”

The middle-aged gentleman asked, “What does the shoulder patch mean?”

“Report! This shoulder patch represents that you are an active Rear Admiral of the Royal Navy!”

The middle-aged gentleman laughed out loud as he let go of Jones’ head and spoke, “Young man, it seems that your level of knowledge still needs to be improved.”

Jones’ head was covered in sweat, “Please enlighten me!”

The middle-aged gentleman patted him on the shoulder, “You missed one point, I am not only a Rear Admiral of the Royal Navy, but also a Rear Admiral of the Royal Navy Red Flag, which also means that I am only one step away from being promoted to Lieutenant General. That means that if I’m lucky, when I get back from Portugal, amongst the Grand Fleet, I’ll be able to move away from the damn Rearguard Fleet and take command of the Forward Fleet instead.”

Jones compensated with a smile, “I disagree with you, it seems to me that you might still have a shot at Admiralty Adjutant General, or maybe Second, Third or Fourth Sea Lord or something.”

Hearing this, the middle-aged gentleman was even happier, “I’ll take your advice then, but according to the Admiralty’s historical hiring habits, capable generals like Thomas Cochran and I have never been able to be as secure as an office marshal like Gambier, who can pull strings with the king. So, young man, I’ll take your auspicious words as a joke.”

The secretary who was following closely beside the middle-aged gentleman pursed his lips slightly as he sniffed, and he simply urged, “Since Mr. Napier is unwilling to be examined, please go and ask Superintendent Hastings if he can be a little more accommodating. We do have a secret order from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on our backs, and we can’t afford to delay this matter.”

When Jones heard this, he didn’t dare to get sloppy with the other party, and he hurriedly saluted, “Okay, I will truthfully convey your words to Superintendent Hastings.”

Unexpectedly, as soon as his words fell, the sound of riding boots descending the stairs resounded behind him, followed closely by Arthur’s slightly dry and hoarse voice.

Arthur’s white gloves held the railing with one hand and pressed the king’s sword with the other, “General Charles Napier? I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Napier also revealed a smile at his words as he lifted his hat in greeting, “Mr. Hastings, young talent, I’ve also heard Codrington and Cochran mention you. Quite a few people in the Royal Navy have a good impression of you, and I hope you can keep that impression going ……”

At this point, Napier’s words suddenly paused, having seen the pinprick in the corner of Arthur’s eye.

However, unlike most people who reported a sympathetic attitude, Napier saw this wound and only felt quite kind, he pulled down the pleated edge of his collar to point to a finger-thin hideous scar on his neck and said.

“I have one of these medals. Young man, don’t let the injury give you pathos, there are quite a few ladies and young ladies who find it quite charming. It shows that we really have been born and died for Britain, and is a proof of honor.”

Arthur walked down the stairs, “You are right, but it would be best if this honor of yours was not displayed here, for I fear it might cause a diplomatic incident.”

Napier hmmm’d, his eyes twinkling slightly he whirled around and asked with a smile, “Could there be a North American traitor here?”

“You guessed it.” Arthur nodded slightly, “The Secretary of the American Legation, Mr. Washington Irving.”

Napier couldn’t help but laugh as soon as he heard that, “I don’t know about Irving, but Washington is familiar to me. I’ve been there before, and have you ever seen Washington at four in the morning? The shells look like shooting stars under the bright night sky, and the Capitol and Federal Buildings are ablaze with beautiful fireworks.”

Arthur just sighed when he heard this, “I knew I was right to stop you here. As much as Mr. Owen dislikes America, he’s not quite ready to set everything on fire like you are.”

Napier spoke up, “Don’t you say that, I still have something to offer the Americans. You know that American military song, ‘The Stars and Stripes Will Never Fall’? That song was actually composed on my ship.”

“Huh?”

Napier blurted out the cold knowledge that made Arthur freeze, “And you compose music?”

Napier shook his head with his cane, “No, no, no. I don’t know as much about music as a pianist like you. That piece was composed by an American lawyer who happened to run onto my ship. I was under orders to besiege Baltimore at the time, and that American lawyer was sent to negotiate for the release of an American prisoner on my ship.

We were attacking hard, so the lawyer thought that tomorrow Baltimore would fall. But when the next day dawned, he found the Yankee Stars and Stripes still flying over the city of Baltimore, so he knelt on the deck and with tears in his eyes wrote this piece.

To tell the truth, although I didn’t think much of those rednecks, I was equally moved by this simple sentiment. So I took the initiative to ask him to be able to write the lyrics for the song, or failing that, I could accept it if I could help embellish it.”

When Tom, Tony and the others heard this, their faces turned odd.

Arthur, on the other hand, recalled the lyrics of that song and asked a follow-up question, “May I ask which part of the lyrics you are embellishing?”

Napier grinned broadly and hummed the tune of “The Star Spangled Banner Never Falls”, “It was that part – the rockets flash, the shells boom, they’re all witnesses, the flag is safe and sound. Those rockets and shells were all made by me. How could this song rhyme like that without me?”

The crowd in the room laughed at Napier’s words.

Perhaps the laughter was so loud that it drew out Louis and Dumas, who were organizing documents on the second floor.

They looked puzzled and said, “What are you laughing at?”

Arthur twisted his head to look at them, deliberated for a long time, and finally spoke, “You guys hurry up and arrange for someone to take Mr. Owen for a stroll around the city of Liverpool.”

(End of chapter)