I Am Louis XIV

   Chapter 41 Devil's Apple

And just when the king was looking forward to it, the messengers of Fouquet and Colbert actually came to him on the same day, and they brought good news. Fouquet not only bought a weight of about a thousand marto 500 liters of wheat from Marto, and managed to smuggle artillery and muskets from the Sicilians, and the king immediately summoned Friedrich Schumberg, who was summoned by the bishop of Mazarin, and led about a Thousands of infantrymen came to protect the king's generals. He was born in Heidelberg and was a Protestant, so the Queen Mother Anne never made excuses for him. Fortunately, he did not have much contact with the lady - he obeyed the king. arrange.

Although when he came, Mr. Bishop said that he could obey the king's orders except marching and fighting, General Schumberg was a little puzzled, because the king was still underage, only a child, and he was said to be at the age when he should study Having been in exile, without an orthodox and coherent education, he was ready for a rambunctious and innocent young child, but the reality was much easier than he imagined - the king was very tolerant of him, barely interfering Any decision he made in military operations, although His Majesty had his thoughts on the refugees who followed the king's car, he still consulted with him at the first time.

   For the king's decision - Schaumberg said, not to drive, but to contain, from the general's position, he is in favor of it, for no other reason. Here's a mention of Europe's quirky recruiting system.

As we all know, the number of national standing legions should match the national strength of a country in order to ensure the army's provisions and stipends, as well as the inevitable consumption of equipment, horses and camps, but we can also notice that the current France is simply the entire A miniature of Europe, each country is at war with another or several countries, sometimes for prestige, sometimes for status, sometimes for money and territory, and more often to defend themselves and their families— The confusion of inheritance laws has aggravated this situation, so even the smallest country will have a huge army that is completely disproportionate to its size. In order to ensure that the needs of soldiers and officers are met, and the burden on oneself is reduced, it has been a long time ago. , there is a country-to-country mercenary transaction, that is, a country leases its own legions and equipment to another country for use. The most famous is Italy, but the Holy Roman Empire, England or the former France are not Exceptions, so if someone came to the battlefield of this era, he would be surprised to see that a general of the Holy Roman Empire, his artillery came from Italy, his musketeers came from France, his infantry came from Denmark or Other Germanic countries, and perhaps cavalry from pagan areas.

Schaumberg's army was no exception. Because of the long delay, some soldiers had fallen behind or fled. He urgently needed to replenish his troops. In his opinion, those who had to abandon their homes and follow the king's car because of the famine. Refugees are the best target.

First: they are almost all young lads - hunger is the cruelest and best screening machine, children and old people are always the first to fall, and women would rather starve to death than leave the village or town , because they know exactly what they will encounter.

Second: These people only need a loaf of bread to be recruited into the barracks, without the temptation of salary or violence, and they will not escape easily, although staying in the barracks is likely to die on the battlefield, but leaving the barracks But it is bound to starve to death.

  Third: Compared with the soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire, these French peasants are of course more willing to trust their king, otherwise they would not drag their tired legs behind the king's car for the first time.

But Schaumberg also knew very well that, as the Queen Mother Anne strongly objected (and even had a big argument with the king), keeping these people meant that they had to have something to eat, and in France now, everywhere They are all suffering from famine. Although they have enough gold and louis in their hands, they may not be able to exchange for a large amount of food. At that time, these thousands of people will become a threat to them - especially annoying is that where they pass, Those lords, not only failed to offer food for the king and his entourage according to law and tradition, but also instructed the merchants to raise the price of the food to a terrible level.

It's just—Schaumberg would laugh at the thought of this. Even the Bishop or the Queen Mother probably couldn't have imagined that the first and many battles he came here were not fought with the traitor's army first. , but to fight with those hoarding, immoral and loyal businessmen. Although some businessmen also hired guards, these guards can deal with some poor unarmed people, but they have nothing to do with these soldiers who have experienced 30 years of war. There is no fighting back.

   This is what the king asked Schaumberg to do.

Schaumberg was hesitant at first, but he soon found out that this kind of thing was really fun and enjoyable to do, especially when some hopelessly stupid lords dared to shout and ask the king to decide for them -Bondon, the king's first attendant, opened his eyes wide and asked them curiously, they were still begging the king before, saying that there was only wheat bran left in the castle, so where did the wheat they are talking about now come from what about? If they are appealing for businessmen, France has laws and courts, go to Paris, and appeal to the judges of the High Court, and think that these venerable lords will give them justice.

   How dare these lords and merchants go there? Everyone knows that in Paris now, whether it is a judge of the High Court or Gaston, the Duke of Orleans, they are madly accumulating money. They enter Paris and can't get out without being stripped of a few layers of skin.

It's a pity that this kind of behavior can be repeated again and again, but it can't be repeated three times, especially after the lords and businessmen have become obedient. Although they can't fully support this huge team and supplement all the provisions, they can at least make A proper gesture, the problem is that in this way, the wheat like a mountain flows out continuously like a river.

However, as soon as the general entered the room and saw the happy face of the king, he knew that the two people they had placed high expectations on had lived up to their expectations. He hurriedly took off his hat and bowed deeply to the king. Then, after getting permission, he stepped forward and took the letter that had been opened. He read Fouquet's letter first, his smile never disappeared from beginning to end, and he was still breathing deeply, as if he could sniff between the lines. To the fragrance of wheat.

   "Those guns, muskets?"

"As you wish," said the king. No one knew his army better than Schaumberg, and according to Bontang, the general was so dedicated to his soldiers that even though the period of employment had passed, it was the During the harvest period, most of the soldiers remained in the army, and the newly recruited soldiers Schaumberg also watched one by one, and assigned his most trusted officers to guide and train.

   "I already have an idea," said Schaumberg excitedly.

"And this one belongs to Colbert." The king motioned Bontang to hand over the second letter to Schaumberg. Schaumberg opened it and read it. Colbert's harvest was greater than Fouquet's, but One of the ships, that is, about ten Marto's cargo, he couldn't understand, "Excuse me, Your Majesty, what is this 'Pommes'?"

   is a potato.

But Louis couldn't say so directly, because the Spaniards who first discovered the potatoes were the Spaniards who discovered America, but they ate the potatoes directly. Of course, it was not only astringent but also poisonous; the Scots refused from the beginning, because the Bible says Potatoes are not mentioned, and they are buried in the ground like devil's apples; as for the French, they took a different route and tasted the berries of potatoes, and it is conceivable that the sour taste is simply unbearable for human beings of.

There are also things like blue potatoes that directly lead to death, and the blackening of cut potatoes, which is considered to be related to leprosy - not to mention, anyway, potatoes have since become the most disgusting plant in Europe. , only some nobles planted a few in the courtyard because of its beautiful flowers.

Colbert's potatoes are still from America. He is a man of ideas and courage. In his letter to the king, he said that he had roasted and boiled some potatoes according to the indigenous method without any accident. It is equally energetic and has a quick mind, and only a small piece of this fruit can make people full, and the cooking method is simpler than that of wheat. Even if it is not washed, it can be cooked directly into the bonfire.

"A novel kind of food," said Louis, "but it's delicious when done right." He smiled at the still bewildered general, having decided that when the potatoes were delivered, the royals would lead by example, given that People's curiosity, they might be willing to try this tuber that can save them from starvation now and in the future.

  ————

They were at Hertel at this time. It is located on a high ground on the right bank of the Aisne. It has been an important military fortress since the tenth century. Dang, as soon as he saw the king's messenger, he followed the messenger all the way to meet the king and the queen dowager. He was also very thoughtful about the service of the royal family and his entourage, and it was not a problem to sort out a kitchen that satisfied the king.

Potatoes are a kind of good thing that can be used as a main meal, a snack, and a dish. The hardcover recipes that the king's first attendant, Bontang, took very seriously, which made the people in the kitchen hold their breaths. They didn't dare to say a single extra word - they followed the orders that Bontang read aloud, washed what looked like a lump of mud, peeled the lumpy skin, then cut into pieces, sliced ​​into pieces, Shredded... grilled with chicken, boiled with pork, roasted in goose belly or sandwiched with cheese, and extravagantly made a big pot of oil and put the potato chips soaked in brine fry…

The golden potato chips were the first to be brought out, and of course, it was brought to the king first, and all the people stared at the king as he took a pinch of salt and sprinkled it carefully and evenly on it, I flipped it slightly with a fork, and then I picked them up with my fingers and chewed happily.

The rich aroma could not help but make the index finger move, and when their portion was placed on the plate, everyone participating in the banquet followed the example of the king, sprinkled salt, turned it over with a fork, took his finger— Some impatient people grabbed it with their hands and got burned. Fortunately, almost all of them were immersed in the crispy outside of the potato chips and the soft inside, and the sweetness brought by the starch. Few people noticed that they came out. Ugly.

Afterwards, there were roast chicken with potatoes, stewed potatoes with pork, and baked potatoes with cheese... The new delicacies kept people guessing, and some people guessed the sweet potato similar to the potato - interestingly, the sweet potato is almost indistinguishable from the potato, but the sweet potato was earlier in a few days. Having entered the European royal family and gained popularity a decade ago, potatoes have had ill fortunes.

When the king announced the answer, people were a little surprised, but they didn't panic. After all, they had eaten potatoes many times at the banquet. No one died of poisoning, no one suffered from leprosy, and they were as honored as the queen mother and the king. They ate it all, what are they worried about?

   (end of this chapter)