Flowers, Swords and France

Under the kind invitation of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, Fran, who originally lacked interest in this kind of social interaction, finally agreed to his request and danced with him.

Amidst the melodious sound of dance music, they, like others, strolled leisurely in the hall. The candlelight shone among the gold and silver vessels, and there were jewels everywhere. Being in it gave people a dreamlike feeling.

However, Crown Prince Alexander immediately discovered that the words spoken by the beautiful woman opposite him were not polite words - she did not have good dancing skills. Although her figure was very light, her dance steps were very jerky. Even though he was trying his best to cooperate, she still looked like she was not very good at dancing. A little incongruous.

"You...don't you usually participate in activities?" After a while, he couldn't help but ask.

"Yes, did I just say that? I like to be quiet and don't like to go to crowded places." Fran immediately replied, "So I usually have very few opportunities to dance with others. Please forgive me."

"Oh! This is really surprising. I thought that a beautiful and well-established woman like you would like to participate in various activities..." The crown prince was a little surprised.

"People are different after all." Fran smiled.

"You make me feel even more honored." Crown Prince Alexander also laughed, "I am actually lucky enough to be one of the people who can dance with you."

Underneath his smile, he also secretly made a judgment on this woman from the De-Treville family - she has a gentle and conservative personality, is not very keen on social interactions, likes art and travel, and is very humble towards others.

She is a completely different person from her sister-in-law. She is so beautiful and has such a good personality, so many people must be attracted to her. The Crown Prince thought.

And Fran also felt that His Royal Highness the Russian Crown Prince was worried and not as relaxed as he appeared.

However, she did not take the initiative to speak. She just wanted to use up the time as soon as possible and then bid farewell to His Highness politely and gracefully, so as not to cause any complications.

"Does being with me make you uncomfortable?" Perhaps feeling her mood, Crown Prince Alexander suddenly sighed, "I always feel that you are absent-minded."

"No... no... I didn't think so," Fran quickly defended herself, "I just... I'm just too unfamiliar, I'm really sorry."

"Hey, actually it's not your fault, because now the whole of Europe has a bad opinion of us." Crown Prince Alexander sighed, obviously helpless about this, "Now newspapers all over Europe are cursing us, as if we are from hell Just like the demons who came, I can’t blame you even if you have a bad opinion of us..."

Fran didn't expect that her plan would actually cause such a sigh, and she didn't know what to say.

"But I want to tell you, this is a complete misunderstanding. We are just ordinary people. We are not worse than anyone else - and of course we are not better." It was as if Fran was regarded as someone to confide in. , Crown Prince Alexander whispered in Fran's ear, "I admit that some of the attacks on us are justified, but some of them I think are ridiculous, either stemming from ignorance or malicious attacks on us. "

"What do you mean by this?" Fran was a little curious.

"I refer to many things, but in the final analysis there is only one sentence. Many people do not understand Russia, not only you Europeans, but also many people in our country. Maybe they love God very much and have the most impeccable reasons, but they just Naive and blind,” Crown Prince Alexander commented with a straight face, perhaps with a little emotion, “Have you met Count Bezukhov?”

"Huh?" This sudden question made Fran a little unable to keep up, but she nodded immediately.

"Then what do you think of Count Bezukhov?" Suddenly he raised his head and looked at Fran.

"He is a very knowledgeable person and loves his country very much." Fran replied after pondering for a moment. "And he has a great personality and is not condescending to us at all because of his age."

"You are absolutely right. He is a good man, a great man. There are few people in Russia with a kinder heart than him. He is simply a saint. Any upright person will like him." Crown Prince Alexander raised the corners of his mouth slightly and said a slightly sarcastic sneered, "Don't think too much, I am telling the truth, I respect him from the bottom of my heart, but if this continues, I still have to say... He is an overly idealistic person, and his ideas are blind and It’s too intense and can even be said to be a bit unrealistic!”

"What?" Fran was stunned for a moment. She even stopped in her steps, causing the people next to her to look at her strangely. For a moment, she thought Count Bezukhov was doing those things secretly. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince knew this, and in panic, she began to think about how to excuse herself.

"Don't be so surprised..." Crown Prince Alexander couldn't help laughing again, "Count Bezukhov is a famous celebrity in our country. This is not only because he is rich, but also because he generously spends his money. He used it to sponsor the country's construction and public opinion undertakings in large sums. His construction has helped many people, and his character and political views have always been very respected. In terms of personal morality, he is blameless, but... I have to say, he still has his limitations after all.”

"I don't understand what you mean?" Fran had forgotten other things at this time. She didn't even pay attention to the pointing fingers of the people next to her, and asked the Russian Crown Prince with great interest.

After all, she was still young and liked new and interesting things. What could be more fun than an ignorant crown prince commenting on a political opponent who wanted to put him to death?

"The count has the moral sense that a well-behaved intellectual should have, but he has inevitably contracted one of their common problems, a naive view - they think that we in Russia only need to be in line with the West. , establish a political system and government like theirs, and the world The world will be very different, and the Russian people will be able to embark on the glorious road of happiness... However, this is a naive view," Crown Prince Alexander said with some dissatisfaction, "However, among our aristocrats, they think so. There were so many people, so many, which was very disappointing.”

"You...why do you say that?" Fran was even more confused. "Isn't...is it as bad as Britain or France?"

"Of course, it's great... But can copying your country's system make my country the same as yours?" His Royal Highness the Crown Prince asked with a smile, "Think about it, our country is in a civil war China, unlike France and the UK, which have many seaports, we have no way to participate in international trade on a large scale, let alone get rich through sea trade - that is to say, from the beginning, we will have a lot more trouble than you. In addition, we The weather is also a huge trouble for you They are warm and humid, but we are unable to conduct normal business transactions for several months every year. Besides, although our vast territory gives us endless resources, it also makes our transportation costs extremely high... So In general, I think that regardless of whether they adopt the same system and culture as the West, there is no way for the Russians to be richer than the British or the French, so any idea that we can just copy Western Europe and everything will be fine is absurd. !”

Fran lowered her head and chewed the other party's words carefully. Although she was a little confused, she felt that what the other party said made sense.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have told you these things." Crown Prince Alexander smiled again, "Come on, let's continue dancing!"

"No, you should continue talking to me about these things. I think it's more interesting than dancing!" Then Fran shook her head, "We can finish talking while dancing."

"Do you like hearing this kind of thing?" Crown Prince Alexander was a little surprised.

"It's more interesting than boring social interactions, isn't it?" Fran asked with a smile.

"Okay..." The crown prince nodded, and then thought more highly of her in his heart - not every young lady likes to hear this kind of thing.

"I have just said that on the current basis, no matter how hard we try, it will be difficult for Russia to live the same standard of living as Western Europeans - unless we become the Attila of the new era, invade the entire Europe, and forcefully It's a pity that we can bring you down to the same level of living as us? We can't, we can't." He shrugged with regret, "So although Count Bezukhov and some of his friends are extremely noble in morality and have impeccable love for their country, in my case, It seems that they are a little naive - at least they have provided our country with a less than wonderful prescription."

"But...but I think Russia also needs some reforms..." Fran plucked up the courage to say, "I heard that there are still serfs in your country."

"Of course I think our country needs reform. In fact, I think this reform should come as soon as possible to prevent the country from falling into regrettable turmoil. After all, freedom, who wouldn't like such a nice word?" Crown Prince Alexander He smiled again, "However, this kind of reform is by no means a It can be accomplished overnight, because this will affect the entire political and economic system of our country. I don’t want to see turmoil, so I would rather promote the implementation of this reform bit by bit... However, whether I reform or not, I They all think I can’t make my people as rich as the countries in Western Europe.”

"Is that so..." Fran still seemed to understand.

"Yes, that's it." Crown Prince Alexander said very firmly, and then he suddenly asked Fran with great interest, "So, do you think that we Russians should be born to enjoy this status and see ourselves living What about the days when you were poorer than you Western Europeans?”

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"No... no... of course I can't." Fran replied quickly, "I sincerely hope that everyone can live well."

"But it is difficult for everyone in the world to live well. Fortunately, I only need to be responsible for the Russians and not for other people." Crown Prince Alexander slowly faded his smile, "Okay, I believe you can see the contradiction. Come on - since we have the right to live the same life as Western Europeans, but this right cannot be realized under the current conditions, do you think we have the right to fight for it? "

Fran thought for a while and finally didn't know how to answer. "I...I'm not sure."

"You are so uninterested in politics. I shouldn't have said this to you." Crown Prince Alexander nodded slightly to show regret, "But since we have come to this point, we might as well finish it. As a Russian Crown Prince, I think I have an obligation to work for the welfare of the people and to fight to make them richer - just like the kings of Britain and France. Therefore, I think I must fight for the Russians and reform. It’s part of it, but definitely not all of it.”

"Then what do you mean?" Fran asked again.

"Of course it is expanding - of course, not towards Europe like Attila, but in the Near and Far East..." Crown Prince Alexander answered very straightforwardly, "We respect the freedom of Europeans very much, and we do not want to destroy it. They, but in the Near and Far East, the people are just slaves of the Sultan or the Tatar emperor. They have no freedom in the first place, let alone pagans... I think even if we expand there, it will not violate the will of God. Right?"

Fran finally understood what he meant. Like the Tsar, he just wanted to continue to expand the Russian Empire. As for what he said "cannot bear to destroy the freedom of Europeans", that is naturally not true. It is just that Europeans can resist but other places cannot resist the Russians.

"Is this okay?" she couldn't help but ask.

"What's wrong with this? Under the current conditions, no matter what we do, we can't make the Russians as rich as the British and French. That being the case, why can't we Russians try to change the conditions? We can also do it in the Near East By finding a warm zone and a warm outlet with the Far East, we can also control more resources and deeply participate in international trade... Then of course we will have the opportunity to be as rich as you. Don't the Russians have such rights? Are you rich?"

"But this means brutal expansion and war, doesn't it?" Fran calmed down and finally asked.

"Cruelty? What kind of cruelty is there? Are we more cruel than the British in America and India? Or are we more cruel than France in North Africa? I think everyone is the same, and we cannot be accused of being cruel." Crown Prince Alexander was obviously a little bit a little bit. Not happy, "As for the Russians, I must say that the Tsarist regime was a fatherly regime... You see Look, when my father came to the throne, a group of Decembrists rebelled and incited the army to rebel! If it were in France, countless people would have been guillotined, right? However...my father was compassionate. Huai, we only killed five people in the end, just five people, and you all said we were cruel! This kind of cruelty really makes me feel ashamed..."

"If those people were not nobles, then the result would definitely be different, right?" Fran couldn't help but refute the other party, "At least judging from the way your country treats civilians, I don't see much mercy."

As soon as these words came out, Crown Prince Alexander's face became a little ugly. He stared at Fran with a little arrogance, as if she had said something stupid.

"It's just that you haven't seen it yet. We in Russia have our own national conditions here. Since you are here, you can patiently take a look."

At this time, Fran also felt that she had made a mistake, so she stopped talking.

After the silence lasted for a moment, Crown Prince Alexander regained control of his anger and returned to his gentle and humble appearance.

"Since you have done me such a favor and are ready to tell your brother about my goodwill towards France, then our Romanov family should also show our due attitude." Crown Prince Alexander looked at her with a smile, "Next I will try my best to make it as convenient as possible for you. If you want to visit any famous places, you will definitely receive very attentive hospitality. In addition, I have a request that I don’t know if you can agree to. Since you are good at painting, can you do it for me? How about a portrait?"

"Of course, sir." Fran agreed immediately.

"That would be great. Peace in Europe depends on the efforts of each of us. I firmly believe that as long as we face the country and citizens with the most sincere attitude, our country can usher in a better tomorrow... "The crown prince said meaningfully, "Remember, please tell your brother everything I said, this will be the dawn of peace in Europe." (~^~)