Flowers, Swords and France

Under Charles's gaze, Count Litvinsky spoke with an enthusiasm that diplomats did not often see. He tried to prove to Charles that the current Russian Empire had no ill intentions towards the French Empire, but rather because of it. Satisfied with the destruction of a republic, he wanted to be friends with the French Empire and the Bonaparte family.

Becoming friends is a common thing in the European continent, but it is also unreliable. In history, there are many examples of European countries fighting against each other soon after becoming friends.

Of course, the Russian Empire does not expect France to become its permanent friend. The reason why they are so courteous to France now is to temporarily bring France closer to Russia so that Russia can overcome the current difficulties of isolation.

As long as the major European countries can be divided now and prevent them from forming a united front, then Russia can take advantage of this period to achieve freedom of action, which means that it can do whatever it wants in the Near East and other places. After that, does France, a friend, want to It doesn't matter anymore.

However, even if it was an expedient, Count Litvinsky now used rhetoric to please Charles de Treville. He was a more pragmatic diplomat and did not have any objections to Bonaparte like the Tsar. Despite the contempt of his family and his partisans, he felt that the friendship of France was very important to Russia and could give Russia freedom of action for a long time.

Therefore, he believes that as long as he can have better relations with France now, he can continue to maintain good relations in the future, and this requires him to achieve good personal relations with the highest-level people in France.

As long as you flatter a favorite like Charles de Treville and let him bridge the gap between the two countries, the relationship between the two countries can achieve long-term friendship.

Under his constant encouragement and praise, Ciel's expression kept changing, and it was obvious that he had begun to move.

"I really appreciate your regard for me. It's really well-deserved for me." After a moment, he raised his head with pride, "Actually, as far as I'm concerned, the people on the European continent are The turmoil, in the final analysis, is that in 1815, the The system prescribed by Vienna has expired, and the old system is no longer suitable for the present! Look at it now, Prussia is not strong enough, Austria is declining rapidly, and both of them are too busy to care about it due to civil strife. Then we can still What do you expect from them? They have no way to protect Europe! What about Britain? These gentlemen do have the strength and resources, but they are unwilling to do anything. They would rather see Europe in turmoil and everyone is in danger. Isn't that their pride? Here? So in the end, sir, the only countries in Europe that can move and maintain peace are the two of us. We should unite to stabilize the crumbling building and allow the people of Europe to enjoy peace and prosperity. "

Then, he sighed with regret, "However, it is a pity that this has not become a reality so far. France is still hated by others, and is restricted and bullied in various ways. This kind of treatment is so so successful that the French people had no interest in maintaining it What we should have maintained! And what about Russia? Now it is bound by some ridiculous old ideas, and the French must continue to be indignant. If so, how can Europe maintain stability? ? This is extremely regrettable!”

When Charles sighed, Count Litvinsky finally felt happy. He found that Charles de Treville had been moved by his compliments. As long as he could add a little more strength, , then he could persuade this court favorite to come forward to help him and Russia, bypassing the French Empire's Foreign Minister, so that he could get in touch with the emperor himself, and finally complete his diplomatic mission.

"Sir, it is true that there have been some unfortunate misunderstandings and disputes between our two countries in the past. But I can assure you that now, there is only a broad road between our two countries, at least on our side... We very much appreciate your opinions and are willing to work hard to realize your ideas We should unite our forces, and the current situation also requires us to do so." He raised his hands slightly exaggeratedly, "Today when other countries are weak or standing aside, I sincerely hope that the two great empires can. Let’s join hands to safeguard the monarchy blessed by God!”

"For the monarchy blessed by God!" Charles rapped the table with his knuckles with a smile on his face. He was obviously very satisfied with the ambassador's words. At least his vanity was satisfied. "I think His Majesty the Tsar this time I have chosen a very good ambassador. I can’t say enough! Sir, when are you free, let’s have a drink? Let me see how much Russians can drink!”

"As long as you call me, I will be free at any time, Your Excellency." Count Litvinsky responded to Charles' invitation with a little excitement, but soon became a little hesitant, "But now, after all, I have I have an important mission and I need to finish my official business... Sir, can you arrange a meeting as soon as possible so that I can speak freely with His Majesty the Emperor in private..."

This sudden request immediately cooled down Charles from his excitement.

"This... is not that easy... As you know, His Majesty's schedule is very full and cannot be changed." He quickly said in a business-like tone.

"Of course it is very difficult for others, but it is definitely not difficult for you. You will definitely be able to convince Your Majesty to change the schedule slightly... and for the sake of Europe, you are willing to do so." Count Litvinsky Of course, he would not stop because of Ciel's refusal. He continued to encourage Ciel, "Think about it, you are contributing to the two great countries, and you are also contributing to you...to yourself."

"You...are you saying that you want me to help you complete this matter for personal gain?" Charles immediately interrupted the other party, and then shook his head suddenly, "No, I can't do that, it will cause trouble. Your Majesty's disgust."

Although Charles refused without hesitation, Count Litvinsky was not intimidated by his words. On the contrary, he laughed secretly in his heart. This was obviously Charles de Treville pretending to be reserved, perhaps. A way to raise the price - if he really refuses, why should he give himself another chance to speak?

"Sir, I'm afraid you are mistaken about this. You are serving Europe and the two great empires. This is a great cause and worthy of anyone's efforts." After pondering for a moment, he immediately organized He said, "Your idea needs to be promoted and we need our cooperation, so why don't you work hard for it? As long as you facilitate this, your idea will be more than half completed, and everyone will admire you, Praise you - giving After so much effort, it’s only natural that you get some reward for this, right? After all, even the great Talleyrand would not refuse to get some due rewards for himself while completing a career. ...Besides, we don’t want you to do anything, we just want to maintain and deepen the friendship between His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the Treville family. What’s wrong with this? You shouldn’t feel uneasy about this? You deserve it!”

As a diplomat, Talleyrand went through several dynasties and was always a high-ranking official. He held countless secrets and performed countless tasks, and his greedy character was also well known-no matter what he performed, He would try his best to seek personal gain from any diplomatic mission, even accepting bribes. Finally, by the time of his death, he had accumulated a huge fortune of nearly 200 million francs.

In this era, people's moral concepts were not that strong, so even if he did something well-known, it did not ruin his reputation.

Of course, if Charles does this, he must be cautious. After all, he does not have Talleyrand's confidence that he can become a high official no matter how the dynasty changes.

"Talleyrand is a traitor to the emperor, and I can't learn from that kind of person." Charles laughed again, "However, I am indeed happy to maintain friendship with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of your country. I heard it said by my sister, What he said is very reasonable. I think he must be a very sensible and shrewd person. Russia is very lucky to have a perfect tsar in the future.”

"I firmly believe so." Count Litvinsky nodded, and then continued to stare at Charles, as if waiting for his last words.

"Okay... Now that you've mentioned it, if I try to push it back, it might be a bit unreasonable..." Charles smiled sheepishly, then frowned slightly as if Thinking about something.

Finally, he seemed to have finally made up his mind and looked at the count again, "Well, in about a week, our Emperor will come to Fontainebleau Palace to enjoy the natural scenery of spring and hold a horse racing meeting there. , let us ministers accompany him to relax... I can probably arrange one at that time During your meeting with him, you can take that opportunity to let His Majesty personally feel the sincerity from Russia. I believe that with your ability, you will be able to impress His Majesty... At that time, our two great empires will We can attract each other through sincerity, and I will always work hard as a friend of the Russians.”

"This is great!" The earl was obviously overjoyed to receive a straightforward reply so quickly. "Then I leave everything to you, Your Excellency, Minister! I would like to thank you first for Russia and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince! Please continue to serve us both in the future. We will do our best to repay you for your help!”

Sure enough, as long as you find the right way, there is nothing impossible in this world. While being excited, Count Litvinsky thought to himself with a little pride.

Read the original text in Liu#9@书/吧!

After he came to France, he was obviously treated relatively coldly. Although he met the French Emperor when he just took office and submitted his credentials, he did not have the opportunity to say a few words, and then he was obviously alienated from him during this period. , I never had a chance to see him.

And now, the opportunity has finally come.

"You don't have to be happy so early. After all, His Majesty has his own personal opinions. My opinions cannot replace his. Maybe he will have reservations, and this requires you to use your own efforts and sincerity to change it." Charles He smiled and waved his hand gently, "Please prepare as soon as possible during this time, I will inform you."

"Thank you, Mr. Treville." The Earl was sophisticated and of course understood Charles's hint. He immediately stood up, then held Charles's hand tightly, and whispered in his ear, "Please rest assured that we Russians will be considerate to our friends."

After that, he immediately said goodbye to Charles, who kept watching his back until he disappeared from the room, and the attentive smile on his face slowly disappeared.

Then, he picked up a pen and paper and began to write down the key points of today's meeting with his ambassador on paper, preparing to write it as a memo to send to His Majesty the Emperor.

"You can greet your enemies with a smile, but until the last moment comes, you should hide your sword behind your back." He recalled a sentence his grandfather once said to him with a slightly joking mood. (~^~)