What Arthur found most unexpected was that Thiers, who had just been promoted to Senate President, recently had a double celebration. He announced his engagement not long ago, but the bride was neither Talleyrand's niece nor the wife of the real estate developer, but rather the daughter of that real estate developer and his wife. In addition, the bride would bring a huge dowry of 300,000 francs and exempt previous housing loans.
When Arthur, puzzled, asked the drunken guest why Thiers only got engaged now if he had his eyes on the real estate developer's daughter early on, the guest, with a flush on his face, just nudged Arthur's chest with his elbow and smiled mysteriously.
