I Am Louis XIV

   Chapter 278 The King's Parent-Child Time (4)

"I used to hate Mrs. Montespan." The eldest princess sighed. "But after I really got in touch with her, I found that I fell in love with her involuntarily, and so on," she thought for a while and added: "It's not like, it's..." She chose the words carefully: "It's comfortable, yes, Dad," she said to Louie, "I'll feel very comfortable when I'm around her, and there's nothing unsatisfactory. I can't hear or see anything that annoys me. She doesn't say a word when she wants to be quiet, and she always brings up topics that interest me when she wants to talk. "

"That's why I kept her by my side knowing she wasn't as harmless as she seemed," Louie said. "It's her gift, kids, and it's a very scary weapon, and more than that Her mother and her sister, she was able to use it with great skill and precision."

   "Aren't you afraid?" asked the Duke of Colonna, who had remained silent since the mention of Madame Montespan.

"If I'm going to be afraid, I've been afraid twenty years ago." Louis said meaningfully, glancing at his eldest son, "Mrs. Montespan could be said to have been expelled by her own kind, and I wouldn't even Feared because of that world, then how can I be afraid of a failed outcast?"

The Duke of Colonna lowered his head, and no one would believe it if Mrs. Montespan had nothing to do with Marie Mancini's eventual loss of control, not to mention that they already had an old hatred, just look at Marie Mancini After stepping off stage, Mrs. Montespan immediately appeared by the Queen's side, a seamless operation everyone knew why.

It's just that the king's side always seems to be so **** and bloody. In places that people can't see, let alone the noble ladies who are competing for the position of the royal wife, even the generals and ministers are inevitably fighting again and again - a few names that are often mentioned here. They are all unquestionable victors, but the means in the dark really need not be described - people compete for the position of the king, because the king is really generous to those he loves, and secondly, once the king trusts someone, he will The more willing he is to trust the other party, the stronger his position will be, and it will even benefit future generations.

For example, Colbert, Viscount Turenne, Prince Condé, Duchess Montpensier, etc. It can be said that if Marie Mancini hadn't made the most inappropriate mistake, the king would have been patient She is in the end - the Duke of Colonna sees it very clearly, so he does not resent Louis, but he will never accept Madame Montespan, but he also has to admit that it is only with Madame Montespan that the two royal families who were once revealed. Madam - although one of them is not public, what a dereliction of duty.

The princess    also sighed: "Mrs. Montespan has come to see the rehearsal of Mr. Molière's latest play these days. Your Majesty, she seems to intend to let the Glorious Troupe carry out an incomparably grand tour."

   The Duke of Orleans immediately understood what Madame Montespan meant: "She wants more people..."

"Let the names of Paris and Versailles radiate out faster." Louis said at the same time, which can be said to have the same meaning as the Duke of Orleans. The children, except for the still ignorant little Duke of Enghien, also understand that drama is not only music, dance and The synthesis of stories and stories can often drive trends and fashions at the fastest speed, even faster than the atmosphere brought by "famous people".

Since the completion of the Palace of Versailles, many local nobles have indeed come to ask to meet the king, to visit the beautiful Versailles and the prosperous ancient Paris, but there are still some stubborn and ignorant princes and princes watching carefully, unless the king is in the next few years. Rewarding people around you generously—from wealth to position—is like sprinkling a fish bait in a pond to attract them.

The problem is that Louis XIV was a stingy person, so Madame Montespan used this method to relieve the king's worries. Maybe some people still won't come, especially those old and cunning guys, but since they are very old, they The heir of a man can also have a heart as hard as a rock. Those young people who stick to the cold and barren castle, if they can keep their eyes covered, it is fine, but if someone holds the splendid world outside to them in front of it?

As the Duke of Orleans said before, to have fun, to be extravagant, to be depraved - it may be just a matter of one night. It is conceivable that Monsieur Moliere's dazzling troupe will not only bring wonderful music to those out-of-province people, Gorgeous dance, elegant demeanor, ups and downs of the plot and exciting lines, will also bring the latest wigs, perfumes, jewelry and clothing, and even food. They're like gorgeous birds that pass people's field of vision. You can't see it before you can see it, but it leaves enough shadows to make people desperate to catch up... catch up... Once they come to Versailles, come to Paris, will never leave again.

   "If the response is acceptable," the Grand County Lord said again, "The Glorious Theatre Company may leave France..."

"It's nothing," said the Duke of Orleans. "In fact, the Glory has already been to London once." He exchanged glances with the king, and it was on this visit that the Duchess of Orleans, as a secret messenger, successfully completed her The mission of the Duke of York not only made the Duke of York resolutely give up the spoils and victories at his fingertips, but also made the royal brothers Charles II and the Duke of York torn the last layer of the fig leaf and became an undead enemy.

   "Will they go to Poland?" Duke Colonna coughed lightly, suppressing the grief in his heart, and asked.

"I think so, but Mrs. Montespan will definitely put them last, oh no, maybe not, but it will definitely be the last few, making them impatient and anxious." said the Duke of Orleans.

   "In fact, when the envoys returned to Warsaw and their territories, they began to trumpet the hospitality they received in Versailles and Paris," said Louis.

"And gifts," added the Duke of Orleans, with a subtle smile—the gifts these envoys received were carefully "selected", china with gorgeous flowers; gleaming glass; from the court Oil paintings by the artist's hands - depicting grand palaces, nobles in fancy dress, and scenes of hunting, **** and banquets; exquisite and small ivory fans; velvet as soft as animal fur, sparkling with stars; dark satin And delicate and intricate lace like a spider's web... Even weapons such as muskets and daggers are inserted in holsters and scabbards inlaid with gold, silver beads and precious stones, not to mention whether such muskets are already in the If it was eliminated in the king's army, the decoration on the outside was worth hundreds of livres.

This is not to mention, with the consent of the king, Madame Montespan also pulled dozens of rolls of tapestries and carpets from the warehouse that were looted or ordered by the French royal family during the Capetian Dynasty and gave them to Poland. Messengers, these tapestries and tapestries were once one of the greatest treasures of the French royal family. When the kings were still living in the castle, there were no tapestries and carpets to cover them. Shabby.

People in later generations have their own opinions on Mrs. Montespan's practice. Needless to say, the richness of tapestries and tapestries can easily arouse the dissatisfaction of the Polish Schlachita people with the original plain life, even if they are very aware of their income. Should be used to enrich the army - but as they lay in bed, facing the lavish tales told by the tapestry... They have always regarded themselves as kings of their lands, and now they see how the real kings profligate, There was a sense of injustice in the hearts of the French nobles who were willing to buy their output at twice the original price, and the sudden increase in income also made them feel that it was not a sin to indulge once in a while.

   "While it is said to be twice as much," said the Duke of Orleans, "in fact it should be said to be the original price, since we have bypassed the merchants and bought their wheat and rye directly from the Polish nobles."

   "It would be nice if other transactions could do the same." The eldest princess sighed.

Louis smiled: "No no no, merchants are very important, without merchants, the world's goods and currencies cannot flow as they are now, and our transaction with Shirazita is only a small part, and it does not affect to all merchants."

   "But the scope will gradually expand." The crown prince said sensitively.

   "Of course it will expand," said Louis. "The Marquis of Lois is building more warehouses for me. In order to fill these warehouses on our border, I will buy a large part of the wheat in Poland in the past three years."

   "And what about the merchants?" the princess asked.

"I will give them another license for businessmen in this country, as for businessmen elsewhere..." Louis cast a playful glance at the eldest princess: "I will also give some privileges to businessmen in Sweden, other countries will depend on the situation, but Philippe Make sure that Shirazita's wheat, rye and oats don't go elsewhere within three years."

   "Leopold I will definitely get in the way."

"As long as he has that much money." Louie said softly, "As long as those Shiraztas can endure falling from heaven to **** again," he smiled: "Of course, maybe someone can, maybe it's not that bad, But anyone would think, if a quart (about 1.14 liters) of wheat can sell for three livres, how can they put up with two or even one livres per quart?"

"We still have so many good things," said the eldest princess happily, and little Eugen looked around. Indeed, every room in Versailles was so splendid with the usual Dauphin, the eldest princess and the lord of the county. , everything you can see is as beautiful as the painter's Garden of Eden - door frames, window frames, domes and furniture covered in gold and silver leaf, and the huge milky white porcelain vase is even higher than the maid, with roses or The peony, the floor is as clean as a mirror, reflecting the delicate wood-grained wall panels and tapestries, or oil paintings. Even the villains that the king brought them to play with are carved from ivory and ebony, and the small flags are also made of taffeta. , the length and width of less than a finger actually has fine embroidery, the silver pot containing grape juice and lemonade is shining at the children's feet, and even the small porcelain plate that holds the cake is also inlaid with silver borders. .

But to say the most memorable, little Eugen thought, should be the sanitary equipment and installations of Paris and Versailles - some people may not understand, but only when you don't have to put your fingers in your nostrils, and don't have to worry about getting out of the dark sky at any time. Anyone who falls, or watches tumbling maggots spend long minutes in extreme cold and heat, knows how important a bathroom is.

  There is also the bathroom. It was only after Eugen came here that he realized that his grandmother's perfume didn't smell like it used to - it still smelled good, as long as it wasn't mixed with old dirt and grease...

   It is said that the Duke of Orleans has an extremely large engineering team. Maybe they will go to Poland before they finish their work in France. Those envoys have discussed and renovated their castle.

  It took the king twenty years to build Versailles. How long would it take them? And it's not something that can be fixed with a single fix - ladies will go from haircuts to shoes for a new hairpin, men will buy a strong new warhorse for a new spur... The pleasure is never ending. Louis XIV did not care about throwing money to monopolize Polish grain exports, also because he knew that the money that flowed out would soon return to France.

The Duke of Colonna seemed to want to say something, but he finally stopped, after all, there is little Eugen here - little Eugen's identity is known to all members of the royal family, he thought, once the Polish Schlachtas exit The trade is controlled by the French, so it is easy for the French to provoke conflicts between them - when the French are always the highest bidders, the sellers will definitely fight each other - especially later, the warehouses in France are full. After it is full, Louis XIV will definitely cut down on the purchase of wheat. Of course they can sell it to others, but as the king said before, if they can sell three livres a quart, how can they Willing to take a livre or two for a quart?

  In order to be able to sell for three livres a quart, they will definitely regard those competitors as enemies, and then there will be more places to make a fuss.

"Okay," Louis clapped his hands and said, "it's now..." He glanced at the clock, "It's almost time for afternoon prayer (three o'clock in the afternoon), children, our little meeting should be over, Bang. Don, put away the cake, I don't think our little Duke of Enghien won't need dinner tonight, the others put things away..."

   "But I still want to talk to you," the eldest princess begged.

"Yes, boy, we will spend a long time together," said Louis, and the Duke of Orleans, remembering that Louis had said that he would keep his daughter until she was twenty, couldn't help making a face, and he also thought: "Don't Worry, children," said the Duke of Orleans, "you must rest well these days, and don't get sick, because the king and I have decided to take you out to play."

  The eldest princess was the first to give a loud cheer.

   (end of this chapter)