Thirty-Three, Good Intentions

The little turmoil between the Edgars quickly disappeared. Although a huge turmoil was brewing at the moment, at least at this moment, it seemed to be calm.

And as time passed, in the blink of an eye, it was Christmas Eve in 1830.

Originally, this day was a day for family reunion and celebration, but as the first Christmas Eve in the Empire era, this festival has even more special significance.

During this turbulent year, France experienced thrilling turmoil and endured insurmountable trauma. The ancient royal family was once again overthrown, the empire rose from the ruins, and the fate of many people was rewritten. . Because of this, when the year is coming to an end, people are full of joy of "surviving the disaster" and looking forward to a stable life for both the country and themselves in the new year.

In this calm atmosphere, the imperial government and the palace are also willing to use grand celebrations to relieve people's long-standing tension and highlight the arrival of a new era.

Because of this, the imperial government spared no effort to decorate the facade and only wanted to make the scene grand and unprecedented. The Tuileries Palace, which had suffered trauma during the turmoil, was renovated and was decorated with lanterns, flags and With colorful ribbons, even the blocks adjacent to the palace were installed with new kerosene street lamps, illuminating the surrounding roads as bright as day.

The winter night always comes early. As it approaches 6 o'clock in the afternoon, Paris is already shrouded in darkness. However, the palace, surrounded by colored lights and street lights, is like a giant tower of light standing in the dark curtain. The unabashed publicity showed off the empire's current authority.

Under the illumination of the street lights, gorgeously decorated carriages shuttled through the streets like moths flying into the flames. After being confirmed by the guards, they quietly entered the palace.

Because there were so many visitors that night, the Tuileries Palace, which usually seemed empty, was now bustling with people. High-ranking officials, celebrities and ladies in gorgeous dresses filled the spacious halls of the palace, which was originally silent. The palace became like a noisy exchange, with piercing buzzes everywhere.

In such a grand occasion, it is not easy to maintain order, especially the celebrities and dignitaries who are invited. They have long been accustomed to bossing around and having their own way, and it is difficult for them to tolerate each other.

However, relying on the hard planning and arrangements of Mrs. Alice and others, the scene was able to maintain order, and no embarrassing chaos occurred.

Based on the "successful experience" of the previous coronation ceremony, she divided the attending guests into several levels according to their importance and titles, and then used the colors of the invitations to distinguish them, and divided them into their own seats and activity areas.

In order to avoid conflicts with each other, there are dedicated courtiers responsible for guiding and maintaining order.

She has always been careful in her work, and she also knows that her work is related to the face of the empire, so she does not dare to slack off at all. In terms of actual results, it is indeed very ideal.

As her master, Aigron was not involved in these complicated affairs. He was used to others doing things in an orderly manner for him, and took it for granted.

At this time, Agron and Teresa were both dressed up and attending the event together. They were destined to be the center of everyone's attention.

Since it was not yet time to officially appear, the couple stayed in their dedicated lounge for the time being, enjoying the last bit of tranquility tonight.

However, they were not alone here. Prince Talleyrand, who was wearing an embroidered dress, was also staying beside the young couple at this moment.

Although His Highness the Prince is equally bejeweled, his old, wrinkled and lifeless face does not make people feel much comfortable.

At this time, this old face was filled with an exaggerated smile, and then he held a cane in one hand and put it in his arms with the other, and gracefully saluted the couple.

"Your Majesty, I wish you a Merry Christmas."

"I also wish you happiness, Your Excellency Prime Minister." Aigron nodded to him. "I hope you enjoyed this extraordinary night."

"Of course!" Prince Talleyrand replied with a smile, "I am a person who is very good at entertaining myself. Whether it is tragedy or comedy, I can find fun in it."

"But you never accept yourself as an audience. No matter the tragedy or comedy, you have to play a role in it." Teresa said with a hint of joking.

"You are really right, the most beautiful lady!" Talleyrand was amused and laughed, "I can't live without the sight of others in my life. I don't care if others like me or hate me. I'm just afraid that they will forget me. I wish I could be the groom at every wedding and the deceased at every funeral.”

Teresa was amused by his slightly inappropriate joke. Although she had never liked Talleyrand, she had nothing to do with this old man who was good at joking and even laughing at himself, whether it was ridicule or praise. It might sway the prince even a little bit.

She could only wait for the ruthless time to take away this dying old man, but it wouldn't take long anyway.

"Although they can all have fun, I still prefer comedy, especially when I'm acting." Agron took over, "So, my dear Prime Minister, if there is any bad news today, try not to Just tell me to spoil my fun——"

"With me here, you have nothing to worry about!" Prince Talleyrand took care of everything nonchalantly. "Everything is ideal now. We have the best political system, the best emperor and empress, the best Prime Minister, the people are cheering for joy, it’s really awesome! If there is anything unpleasant, it’s just that the Russian ambassador and the Prussian ambassador have not yet left for their posts, so they cannot attend your banquet..."

"This can't be called bad news. On the contrary, the absence of an eyesore will only make my day more enjoyable." Aigron shrugged nonchalantly.

During the previous turmoil, envoys from various countries in Paris returned to their countries to seek refuge. Since Aiglon returned to Paris and stabilized order amidst a series of dramatic events, various countries have sent envoys back one after another. However, the Russian Empire and Prussia have There was no movement for a long time.

Obviously, these two countries had the deepest hatred and deepest hatred against the Empire in the past. At this time, the old grievances have not been resolved, so they simply chose not to send ambassadors to the Empire for the time being, in order to hint at the re-emergence of the Bonaparte family and maintain their hostility. Sense of distance - Therefore, as a reciprocal measure, Prince Talleyrand did not send ambassadors to these two countries, so they were actually in a state of severed diplomatic relations with each other.

Naturally, Aigron and Prince Talleyrand didn't care about this. Since among the great powers, they had already appeased Britain and secretly wooed Austria, the so-called Holy Alliance had already collapsed. Russia and Prussia were now just playing tricks. It's just a temper, it can't do anything to you. Sooner or later, they will have to come over and maintain diplomatic relations with you.

And this is Prince Talleyrand's specialty. His inherent talent is to make everyone who hates him pinch their noses and deal with him in the end, and this time will naturally be no exception.

After all, France's strength is something they cannot ignore deliberately. Whether they are disgusted or wary, they cannot completely stop dealing with the empire, so the year-long ambassadorless state will never be maintained for a long time - Tallie Lang secretly promised Aiglon that they would complete private communication with him by the second half of next year at the latest, and then hold their noses and re-appoint ambassadors to each other.

Of course, Aiglon has deep trust in Prince Talleyrand's ability - this is why he has made great efforts to cooperate with him. Now he has also used his "work performance" to prove that the price paid by Aigron is worth the money. .

"Thank you for your hard work, Your Excellency." Aigron expressed his gratitude to the prince calmly. "We are able to rebuild relations with various countries so quickly because of your skill and efforts. I believe that under your leadership in the future, our country's diplomacy will become more and more powerful." smoothly."

Prince Talleyrand didn't care about Aiglon's praise. He had been used to hearing flattery for many years, so he naturally didn't take it to heart.

He just smiled lightly and immediately spoke again.

"Now that I have finished telling you the unpleasant news, I will now tell you the pleasant news, Your Majesty."

"Happy news?" The Agrons looked at each other, then looked at him with some confusion. "What do you mean?"

"According to your instructions, we secretly negotiated with the British, hoping to receive the remains of the late emperor as soon as possible to complete the new good-neighborly and friendly relations between the two countries. After secret negotiations, the British made a decision to Return the remains of the late emperor as soon as possible."

Aigron was naturally overjoyed when he heard the news.

"Did they impose any additional conditions?"

"No." Prince Talleyrand spread his hands. "It is said that someone within the British government hopes that you can make a public statement and show due apology for the past catastrophe, but the Duke of Wellington vetoed this proposal. He thought that taking a Trading the remains of an outstanding commander is really contrary to the moral principles that the British should have; moreover, the statement made under such forced conditions is actually worthless and will only arouse the resentment of you and the French people... Therefore, he decided to return the remains to you without any additional conditions to fulfill your filial piety."

Then, Prince Talleyrand added in a low voice, "The Duke of Wellington believed that he would soon step down as Prime Minister, so in order to avoid twists and turns on this issue, he made a decision arbitrarily. I hope you can understand his decision." It’s a good intention.”

"The Duke of Wellington is indeed awe-inspiring." After hearing this, Aigron couldn't help but sigh, "Although I was very unlucky because of him, I am grateful to him for helping me twice."

The two attacks that Eggron mentioned, except this time to "return the bones", the first time was in 1815, when Napoleon wanted to flee to America after his defeat, but unfortunately he was captured on the ship. Prussia insisted on shooting him, and the others Countries also had ambiguous attitudes, but Wellington firmly opposed the execution of such a great commander, believing that it was against morality, which ultimately prompted the British government to decide to exile him to St. Helena Island, where he spent the last peaceful period of his life.

And now, he decided to get this done while he was in power, avoiding many twists and turns.

Although Aigron could not say the word "favor" to the British, he was indeed full of respect for the Duke of Wellington himself.

The motivations of Duke Wellington are not difficult to understand. Although he climbed from the bottom of the aristocracy to his current high position step by step through his military exploits, Duke Wellington was by no means a "militant" in nature. In history, since the end of the long and bloody Napoleonic War, he never personally participated in the war for the remaining decades of his life, and rarely issued war threats to other countries (of course, this is also due to the general war weariness of various countries after the war) .

Perhaps it was because he had personally controlled the lives and deaths of so many people that he understood how heavy his baton was.

"Please tell him that I am very grateful for his kindness, Your Highness." After Aigron pondered for a moment, he said to Prince Talleyrand, "Although he did not set any preconditions, I am happy to express my gratitude to him in my personal capacity. He expressed his gratitude and expressed my respect."

"I will convey it to you, Your Majesty." Prince Talleyrand replied, "However, now that he is in power, if you give him a gift, he may be criticized by his domestic political enemies, so I think it is best for you to remain silent. "It won't be too late for you to give him a gift after he retires and is temporarily idle."

"Okay, let's wait a moment." Aigron nodded. "Anyway, I will never forget this favor."

Both Talleyrand and Aiglon knew in their hearts that the Duke of Wellington did not do this because he was "pro-French", let alone because he was greedy for any "reward". He only made the decision based on his personal principles. That's all; if there were another war between Britain and France, he would not hesitate to continue his military career and become enemies of the Bonaparte family again.

Therefore, Aigron had no intention of using bribery to impress or win over the other party, he just wanted to thank the other party.

"If we have the opportunity to invite him to visit Paris in the future, that would be the best. In the past, he came here as an enemy and conqueror. If he can come here as a guest and enjoy our courtesy, it will definitely be good for him. It's a very special experience for him, right? Then we'll entertain him well and no one will gossip." At this time, Teresa suddenly suggested.

And her proposal also made Egeron feel suddenly enlightened.

Indeed, if the visit was in a private capacity, he could legitimately reward the other party, and he would not have to care about external public opinion.

So, he looked at Talleyrand again. "Please pass on this invitation and tell him that I am willing to entertain him as the most distinguished guest at any time."

"Okay, Your Majesty." Prince Talleyrand accepted the order happily.