"You are but a grudging courtier of your own charms," he answered, with a ceremonious bow. "Who could once see Madame Lerestelle and ever forget her?"
I placed the seal upon a Moorish stool by my side, and he nodded approvingly.
"Let us consider the matter from a diplomatic point of view, your Excellency."
"I have the most profound respect for diplomacy, madame, for I am ignorant even of its rudiments."
The idea that first came to me when Monsieur Roché recounted the incident had grown in my mind until it became fixed as the truth. I determined to force this bland heathen into submission, or at least acquiescence.
"Ling Wen."
"Madame."
I leaned impressively towards him and sank my voice to a whisper.
"Why did you remove Hun Sun?"
Only a slight in-drawing of the lips followed my question, a twitch for the fraction of a second passed over his expressionless features.