Chapter 923: Beacon Fire

Brussels, Belgium.

This was once one of the most prosperous commercial cities in Europe and the fastest growing region in the world except Luxembourg.

However, with the beginning of the Luxembourg Restoration War, Belgium lost a large area of ​​land. The entire Flemish region was recovered by the Netherlands, Western Luxembourg returned to Luxembourg, and Namur and Liege became the Duchy of Liege.

Four-fifths of the territory was lost, and the remaining one-fifth became a French protectorate.

When King Louis Philippe of France was still in power, he had to save face, after all, King (Grand Duke) Leopold I of Belgium was his son-in-law.

Those French officials did not dare to mess around just for the sake of the eldest princess, but this time is different.

Belgium, which has lost its seaport, relies entirely on the French market, and the French obviously do not want the Belgians to earn this money.

What France needs is the market and cheap labor.

Coupled with the impact of the economic crisis, a large number of national enterprises in Belgium have closed down, a large number of workers have lost their jobs, and agriculture is even more bleak.

Belgium is one of the countries in Europe that is most seriously affected by potato late blight, and natural and man-made disasters have caused almost no harvest.

All industries are in decline and people are living in poverty. This is the most suitable word for Belgium at this time.

What makes matters worse is that after the fall of the Orleans Dynasty, the French Provisional Government chose to be completely inhuman.

In the past, there were only some unequal tariff agreements and trade barriers, but at this time, the tax officials of the French Provisional Government were ready to take over the tax bureau.

Even more excessive than this are the so-called French advisers. Leopold I never hired a French adviser, but they have actually entered the Brussels Parliament.

These people do not regard Leopold I and his staff as human beings at all. Not only do they want to completely ignore them, they even openly claim that they want to start a revolution in Brussels to let Belgium accept the advanced ideas of France.

The most important thing is that these people are not just talking, they are really recruiting people to carry out a coup.

In the Royal Palace of Brussels, Leopold I opened a corner of the curtain, and the sun shone on his pale face.

He had not left the palace for a long time, there was no special reason, he was simply under house arrest.

Even the Belgian Royal Guard was forced to disband, and Leopold I acquiesced to the French Provisional Government's special commissioner's approach.

There was no way, the situation was stronger than the people.

The prosperous and bustling streets outside the palace were gone, replaced by countless slogans of "Long Live France" and a mess.

The tall and burly French officials were serious. They all wore dark blue uniforms and wore tricolor emblems on their chests, giving people a sense of arrogance.

These people's style was even more arrogant and domineering. Although the locals were also French residents, these guys did not think that Belgians were their own people. They only regarded them as second-class citizens or monkeys who could speak French.

The French were ruthless when collecting taxes. Whether they could afford to pay taxes or not, they were all treated as prisoners.

They often broke into merchants' shops, factories, and even houses to search or arrest those they found suspicious.

The French were never soft on those who were dissatisfied or tried to resist. The huge open-air prison outside Brussels at this time was the best proof.

Those caught there were either executed directly and their bodies were exposed in the wilderness as a warning to others; or they refused to confess and were imprisoned in the open-air prison until they died; or they went down to the mine to atone their sins in order to survive until one day they were exhausted to death, or they were buried deep underground due to an accident.

(The book has mentioned it many times, and the general environment of the mine at this time will not be repeated here.)

Life was not easy, and this group of people levied heavy taxes. Merchants complained, and ordinary people were miserable.

They organized themselves and protested to the government, demanding the expulsion of these arrogant French.

However, the Belgian government at this time had basically lost its functions, and the original Belgian army was incorporated into the Foreign Legion by the French.

The Belgians are not without blood. They have tried everything from small kidnappings and assassinations to large-scale uprisings.

However, Belgium is too small for the giant France.

Leopold I looked at the mess outside the window and made a decision. After getting dressed, Leopold I walked straight out the door.

"Your Majesty, we cannot let you go without the order of the special commissioner. Please understand."

Leopold I looked at the soldier who had sworn allegiance to him, and he just walked straight out.

Leopold I was born a soldier and had been a king (grandduke) for so many years, so he naturally had the aura of a superior.

The soldier took two steps back unconsciously, and when he came to his senses, Leopold I had already walked a distance away.

The soldier once admired Leopold I, who liberated Belgium, but at this time he had defected to the French and became an officer of the French Foreign Legion.

Although he also speaks French, he can only join the Foreign Legion, after all, he is just a Belgian, but he is still very proud.

At this time, he raised the rifle in his hand and pointed it at his former idol.

The young man finally succumbed to the devil called reality. When facing the millions of German coalition troops, when the French were rampant in Belgium, when his wife left him, and when he faced his hungry children, his dream died.

"Stop! Otherwise I will shoot!"

Leopold I just turned back and looked at the young man he had promoted with pity, and then strode out.

The soldier who once swore allegiance to Leopold I, the captain of the French Foreign Legion, was staring with eyes wide open, watching in disbelief that his comrade-in-arms who had been with him day and night was stabbing his stomach with a knife.

As Leopold I appeared on the balcony of the palace, this scene was repeated throughout the palace.

Soon, salutes exploded over the palace, and this lifeless city seemed to come alive again.

The Belgians began to attack the arrogant French officials and their lackeys, using guns, knives, sticks, stones, their teeth and fists, and everything they could use.

Regardless of gender, age, time and place, the Belgians in the capital Brussels began to attack the French crazily.

Gunshots and explosions continued, and Leopold I just stood on the balcony of the palace and overlooked it all.

At first, the Belgians did catch the French off guard, but the reputation of the French Foreign Legion is not covered.

These professional soldiers quickly organized a counterattack, and the Belgians had to pay several times the price to kill a "Frenchman".

He knew that if he did not resist, then Belgium deserved to perish, and his people deserved to become slaves of the French.

"French? Don't you like revolution? Then I'll revolutionize it for you to see!"