Chapter 460: Sharing France

When the sun sets and the stars rise, the night gently embraces the pearl of France, Paris.

The streets are full of rolling wheels and gentlemen and ladies getting off the cars with the help of servants.

The lights in the Kaidaosai Mansion are brilliant, and a grand ball is in full swing, showing the elegance and prosperity of that era to the fullest.

The exterior wall of the mansion is outlined by the soft and warm orange-yellow gas lights, with guards in gorgeous uniforms standing on both sides of the gate. The butler and the manservant stand respectfully in front of the mansion to greet every invited guest, and their carriages slowly stop in the cobblestone courtyard.

When you step into the mansion, the first thing that comes into view is a hall decorated extremely luxuriously.

Under the high dome, the crystal chandeliers cast soft and brilliant light like bright stars, and each one is carefully wiped, reflecting dazzling spots of light.

The walls are hung with exquisite tapestries and paintings depicting classical myths or French scenery, adding a touch of art to the space.

In the middle of the dance floor, men and women in gorgeous dresses are dancing to the melodious violin and piano melodies.

The ladies are wearing long corseted skirts with wide hems like flowers, and the tulle and satin interweave dreamy colors. The feathers and jewelry on their heads sparkle under the lights. The men are wearing well-tailored tuxedos, white shirts with exquisite bow ties, and gloves in their hands, looking elegant. They danced the waltz, spun, and slid, and every move revealed well-trained elegance and tacit understanding.

On the side, a variety of delicacies were placed on the exquisite dining table: fresh oysters were stacked on silver plates, French stew and cream mushroom soup were served in gold-rimmed porcelain, and there were various desserts, such as macarons, mille-feuille, and carefully carved fruit platters, exuding an alluring aroma, tempting the guests' taste buds.

In the corner, a group of scholars sat around a round table covered with a velvet tablecloth, holding pipes or long cigarettes, discussing current affairs, literature or the latest art schools, and bursting into laughter from time to time.

On the other side, the beautiful ladies in their best clothes gathered in front of the spacious French windows, talking quietly, occasionally secretly admiring the night view outside through the gaps in the curtains, enjoying a moment of tranquility.

Arthur leaned against the window, holding a goblet filled with a light Château d'Yquem wine in his hand, looking at these representatives of Paris's upper class.

Just within his sight, he saw many famous literary figures: Victor Hugo, the leader of the French Romanticists, Honoré Balzac, the rising star of the Paris novel world, Alexandre Dumas, the former Republican terrorist and now pardoned fat cook, Alfred de Vigny, who was known as the three giants of the Parisian theater world together with Hugo and Dumas, and Alphonse de Lamartine, the leading lyric poet in France...

As for the celebrities in the music circle, Franz Liszt, the piano king who was disliked by Heine, was naturally present. In addition, there was Giacomo Meyerbeer, the Parisian opera master from Germany, and Hector Berlioz, who was hailed as the most outstanding composer in France at the moment. Of course, the Polish exiled pianist Frederic Chopin, who was raised as a "free canary" by the French government, could not be missed.

However, in this dinner party with a rather performative nature, these writers and musicians were not actually the protagonists. This was a stage exclusively for politicians.

Adolphe Thiers, President of the French Senate, François Guizot, Minister of Education, and a group of ministers whose names Arthur could not remember.

But the one Arthur was most interested in among all these people was neither Thiers nor Guizot, but Jean-de-Dieu Soult, Duke of Dalmatia, Minister of War, Field Marshal, nicknamed "Iron Hand".

This Parisian big shot, who came from a lawyer family, went through the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars completely and personally experienced most of the events.

He joined the army at the age of 16 with the rank of sergeant, and was promoted to lieutenant of grenadiers at the age of 22 because of his good military qualities. At the age of 24, he was promoted to captain and was promoted to the corps commander's staff by Marshal Jourdan who was chatting beside him.

In the same year, Soult was promoted to the rank of brigadier general due to his excellent performance in the Battle of Fleurus. At this time, he was only 25 years old.

In the following years, Soult followed the commander of the Danube Corps, Massena, in the battles of the south and the north as a division commander, and because of his repeated achievements, he was promoted to the rank of general in just 9 years.

After Napoleon became emperor, he naturally became one of the first 18 marshals of the French Empire.

In the Battle of Austerlitz, which Napoleon was most proud of, Soult led the Fourth Army to attack the Blazen Heights guarded by Russian Marshal Kutuzov with a small force. It took only 2 hours to defeat the Russians and tear apart the central area of ​​the Russian-Austrian coalition. Even Napoleon praised him as "the best tactician in Europe".

In the Battle of Jena, the Battle of Pultusk and the Battle of Heilsberg launched against Prussia, it was Soult's calm command that played a decisive role in the final victory of the battle.

Of course, people can't be smooth sailing all their lives, and Soult's calm mind sometimes gets hot.

For example, in Spain on the Iberian Peninsula, perhaps Soult became complacent with the smooth sailing of the early Spanish wars. He even had the idea of ​​being crowned king in Portugal before the war was over, and thus developed a rift with several other marshals.

Just when Sirte was lost in the cheers of 'King Nicholas' from the soldiers, the Duke of Wellington had already taken over the command of the British army on the peninsula and led his troops in Mondego Bay, 100 miles north of Lisbon. Logged in.

As for Marshal Soult's record against the Duke of Wellington, it can be summarized in one sentence. In short, he did not win.

However, this cannot be called a great shame, because even Emperor Napoleon himself failed to win against Wellington.

Of course, this may be unfair. After all, Napoleon only fought against the Duke of Wellington once. Moreover, during the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon had frequent mishaps, so much so that Arthur saw that many historians speculated that the reason why Napoleon fell short in the Battle of Waterloo was probably because he had painful hemorrhoids.

Regarding this issue, Arthur has always wanted to find someone to ask clearly, but Louis was too young at the time, and there was a high probability that he would not know whether his uncle had hemorrhoids. As for Soult, he was a close minister of Napoleon and had fought with him for many years. He must know the best about Napoleon's physical condition.

The only problem now is that Arthur feels that he is asking Marshal Soult in front of so many guests, especially ladies: "Did Napoleon have hemorrhoids?"

This question is so disrespectful.

But this problem really bothered Arthur. Arthur did not intend to believe the historian's conclusion until he received the personal admission from Marshal Soult.

Because to a certain extent, the professional ethics of some historians and journalists are almost identical.

How dare they say with certainty that Napoleon had hemorrhoids?

It's like they took a look at it.

That’s not as credible as the fact that Napoleon’s ex-wife Josephine smelled like cheese.

After all, that was what Louis himself admitted.

"Humph." The spy chief's always rigorous style made our Sir Arthur Hastings couldn't help but exhale gently through his nose. He was still thinking about how to use a tactful way to ask the question, so as to make Su Marshal Walter was not offended.

Arthur murmured to himself and rehearsed the conversation: "Your Excellency, I heard from those phrenologists that noble people usually have unusual appearances. So do you think there is a possibility that the emperor will also be more beautiful than ordinary people? How long is the piece of meat?”

Agares poked an apple chunk with his little fingernail. He saw through the kid's thoughts at a glance: "Arthur, you little bastard, I advise you not to do this. Only a contract with a shameless devil like Baal can be made." Only a person would ask something like this while eating.”

Arthur just glanced at the red devil: "Agares, you always boast that you are very knowledgeable, but you don't even know whether Napoleon has hemorrhoids."

Agares was not angry at all. The Red Devil just retorted: "Aren't they planning to transport Napoleon's coffin back to Paris anyway? If you don't mind, you can open it and take a look at it then."

"I'm not that obscene. It's an insult to a corpse."

Agares chewed the apple chunks: "What's the big deal? You're talking like you've never been a corpse."

As soon as Arthur finished speaking, he suddenly heard a low voice coming from the corner of the room.

"My friend, Your Majesty cannot promise to appoint you as a minister or minister at this time. If we are really 'public servants' of the people, neither I nor you can be content in our positions because of our political opinions. Parliamentary government is This has the advantage that it saves the trouble of having to remove ministers personally from the king. Our Parliament is like a hotel, and public opinion often sends us some unexpected visitors. But don't worry, His Majesty always does. He will know how to place a loyal minister like you."

"Mr. Thiers, I understand what you are saying. Servants of the people like us must endure loneliness. But, look, we are all banks that have contributed to the revolution and have professional knowledge." In the past three years, Lafitte has been Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Perrier has been Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, and even Zissequet, who is not as good as me, has now become the director of the Grand Paris Police Department. And what about me? I don’t even have a chance to serve the people.”

Thiers coughed: "Edmond, it's your own fault. Your stance in the revolution is really too shaky. His Majesty has doubts about your stance. He suspects that you may be a potential orthodox." "

The old banker wearing a top hat became anxious when he heard this: "Orthodox? My God! Mr. Thiers, I assure you, I have never been orthodox in my life. During the Great Revolution, I first Supported the Girondins, then the Jacobins, then the Directory, supported Napoleon during the Empire, provided generous loans to Louis XVIII during the Restoration, and now, after the July Revolution, I am a fake Changed Orleans."

Thiers frowned slightly when he heard this. Although this movement was very subtle, it all fell into Arthur's eyes.

It can be seen that Thiers, the political giant in Paris, is getting impatient.

He warned in a sinister tone: "Edmund, what you need most now is to wait. Besides, aren't you living a bad life now? Your wit, cleverness and sound judgment have enabled your whole family to be able to Thank you for your kindness. Everyone in your family is like a silkworm eating at the mulberry leaves of the towering tree of government.

Due to His Majesty's grace and the widening of the net after the revolution, your eldest son still serves as a lifelong urban judge after the revolution. Your second son was only a captain of cavalry during the Restoration, and what about now? Not only was he not dismissed, he was promoted to colonel.

Your third son is serving as a county magistrate in another province, and he is the most promising among them. I daresay that it won't be long before he is promoted to prefect of Paris, and perhaps also holds an office in the Assembly. His position is quite secure, more secure than mine, because his position is never affected by cabinet changes. And I still have to worry about the cabinet reshuffle every day.

Although you have not held an official position, His Majesty's unglamorous grace has fallen on your family like raindrops without anyone noticing. You didn’t become the Counselor and Dean, and you don’t have a seat in the parliament, but the salary and annual income your family members receive are higher than any other minister in the cabinet!

The most important thing is that with this kind of treatment, you don't have to worry about arousing people's jealousy. In the early days of the post-revolutionary constitutional government, few people could fathom these delicious and inconspicuous areas on the dinner plate, and only the smartest people could grab these things here. Be content, Edmond, do you think that my job in the cabinet and Zhisouquet's job in the Grand Paris Police are easy to do? "

When Edmund heard that Thiers was a little angry, he immediately put on a smile and comforted him: "Adolphe, don't be angry. I know your job is not easy, so don't I want to share some of it with you? Of course, if You want to shoulder it, and I believe you have the ability. But... you are right about one thing, my current life is indeed pretty good, and my sons also have a good future. It's just..."

Thiers raised his eyebrows and said, "Just what?"

The old banker sighed: "You should know that I have three daughters. The eldest daughter and the second daughter are both married. But the youngest daughter is the only one with high vision. The family has spoiled her rotten since she was a child, so that she is now She talks about not marrying anyone who is not a nobleman every day. I think if this continues, she will become an old girl sooner or later. So, if you see His Majesty and the Queen, can you help me ask if the Queen is short of maids. ?I want to send my dear little Alice to see the world."