I Am Louis XIV

  Chapter 105 The City Entry Ceremony of Dunkirk (6)

When they came to Dunkirk, the sky was bright again, but the people at this time were exhausted. The most casualties in the church fire were the nobles of Dunkirk. If the king is safe, they may still be Will suspect that this is a French conspiracy, but the king is dying, neither the French nor their doctors can diagnose what kind of poison is hidden on the knife that stabbed the king. Seeing that the king is getting weaker day by day, And Monsieur Bishop and Viscount Turenne, oddly enough, did not allow them to use their usual medical means—they began to panic again in their grief, because ten thousand soldiers of the French were still here, and since the assassination of the king, Dunker Ke entered a state of martial law under the orders of Cardinal Mazarin and Viscount Turenne.

  Today, a musketeer wearing a red shoulder strap left Dunkirk with the permission of the bishop, heading for the town that used to be the temporary palace of the king.

The messenger was Darametz, who, as soon as he was back in town, did not have time to say hello to anyone—that is to say, from D'Artagnan to his other colleagues and friends, to the room where the Prince of Condé was under house arrest. Before, after taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door.

"Please come in." Prince Condé said without looking up. When he was in Spain, he heard that the Duke of Gaston had been exiled to Blois, and it would be the same for him. The king would not kill him. , but will not continue to keep him in Paris or the fief, his political future is doomed to die-maybe many people will not believe it, but today, his mentality has calmed down, and even feels as if he has given up a lot of money. A heavy responsibility, a responsibility or ambition that had tortured him day and night, and after spending time at the Spanish court, he also realized that the honor that the French could not give him, he also could not get in other countries. , like a sturdy vine, even if its branches and leaves stretch out to the boundless sky, its roots remain in France.

   It is said that the king waited until after the entrance ceremony of Dunkirk to come to see him, and then pronounce his sentence, maybe today? He was a little surprised when he saw Darameez, because according to etiquette and tradition, Darameez's uncle, the current captain of the Musketeer Guard, might still be accused of being a messenger, but just a young Musketeer? It was undoubtedly a humiliation for Prince Condé. Prince Condé suppressed a slight uneasiness and anger in his heart, and looked up and down Dalamiz. Seeing this, he couldn't help but be startled, because Dalamiz's Dressing doesn't seem to be done in a relaxed state.

"His Royal Highness," Dalamiz bowed to Prince Condé, and then handed a sealed letter to the prince. The prince looked at his red eyes and hunched back, and the ominous feeling in his heart just increased. strong.

He grabbed the paper cutter on the desk and opened the wax seal of Mr. Bishop, and then opened the thin parchment. There was not much content on the parchment, but the Prince Condé read these few lines in succession. Several times, his complexion also changed constantly, from pale to blushing, and from blushing to pale, he didn't say anything, but immediately stretched out his hand and asked his servant to change him into the clothes he went out, and then followed. Dallamiz left his cell together.

The two of them drove all the way into Dunkirk. After the king fell, he was immediately moved to the nearest town hall. This town hall was also a fortress. Although it was old, it was strong enough to withstand the impact of the outside world. The Viscount Nass greeted them in the corridor, and they walked silently and swiftly to the room where the king was, Prince Condé listened to the sound of his boots hitting the wooden floor, his heart clenched a little - in the crowd who was not welcoming When he saw Cardinal Mazarin in the middle of the night, Prince Condé thought for the best. Maybe the bishop was waiting by the king's side, but as soon as he entered the room and saw the long couch beside the king's bed, he couldn't help but feel dizzy. .

  The worst thing happened, when the king was stabbed and badly wounded, Mr. Bishop also fell.

   "Is it an assassin?" asked Prince Condé.

"No," said Viscount Turena in a hoarse voice, "before he came to Dunkirk, Mr. Bishop had lung problems, and perhaps his liver. The doctors said he had fluid disorders, too little blood, and yellow gallbladder. Deficiency, too much mucus and black bile, so he's cold and dry..."

   "Give me the result." His Royal Highness interrupted the Viscount's answer roughly.

If it were someone else, he would definitely become irritable. After all, at this time, Prince Kongdai was just a prisoner, a traitor and a traitor, but Turenazi was his subordinate and his friend, so he didn’t take it personally.” So, Your Highness, you have seen the letter from Mr. Bishop. It has been written clearly. When he is in a coma and the king cannot wake up temporarily, he can only entrust Dunkirk and the king to you. ."

   "Does he trust me like that?" Prince Kongdai smiled sarcastically and impatiently.

   "We can't always choose Mr. Don Juan." Viscount Turenne said: "You know, if those people know that both Mr. Bishop and Mr. King have fallen..."

   "And Philip, Duke of Anjou."

   "France will still be plunged into the second great chaos, and there will be many people who are happy to see this scene, the population and territory we lost after 1648..."

"So," said Prince Condé, "it's lucky for me..." He squeezed the parchment together tightly, knowing that there were two or three of his own in Dunkirk. Thousands of soldiers, if, if he wanted, he could take the opportunity to escape from here, and even go a step further, or return to his territory to reinvigorate, but Mr. Bishop gave him another bolder choice- In the negotiation and transition that came down, although Viscount Turenne was the field marshal of the army, he was not qualified to confront the incoming Cromwell messenger. More correctly, he could be on the battlefield, but could not be formed politically. A repressive situation for the British. Because of his status, the second son and younger brother of a duke who had been deprived of his territory, in the palace, his words were not as powerful as the cannonballs he fired.

But Prince Condé is different. Even if he rebelled against the king and even became an enemy of France for a period of time, his territory and title were never deprived by the king, so he is still a respectable prince. , even in the face of Cromwell, the protector of the country still has to bow to Prince Kongdai, not to mention the messenger he sent, so the French naturally occupy a natural advantage, which is very important for Mr. Bishop. As agreed with the king, matters concerning Dunkirk are of considerable importance.

Prince Condé was not a fool, Viscount Turenne understood the meaning of the king as soon as he said it, but looking at the pale face of the king, holding his icy hand, Prince Condé felt heavy, because once the king and the bishop were dead, Then his behavior in Dunkirk may become his reminder. He never knew how the Queen Mother Anne hated him and the Duke of Gaston. Once the king died, Annie would succeed him. Duke Ru, it's hard to say whether they would think that the assassination of the king in Dunkirk would have been done by him and... Viscount Turenne, after all, Viscount Turenne was once loyal to him.

   What finally prompted Prince Condé to make a decision was a pardon, "Did the king wake up later?" he asked.

   "No, Your Highness," said Bontang, "he signed it a few days ago and put it in the study drawer."

   "...Bring my clothes." Prince Condé said after a moment of silence, "Viscount Turenne, let's go to meet the envoy of Cromwell, the protector of the country."

   (end of this chapter)