I Am Louis XIV

  Chapter 76 The City That Never Sleeps

In order to show respect and love for this lady, the king took her hand and walked into the hall first, followed by the Queen Mother and Cardinal Mazarin, behind them were Queen Mary of England and Princess Henrietta, Henrietta Princess Tower was held by Philip, Duke of Anjou, followed by princes, nobles, and ministers of civil and military affairs. They were orderly and solemnly followed by two by two holding hands and following the king, like a pack of dogs following their masters. .

As soon as the king entered the hall, the band began to play music. It was an arrangement of a brisk Swedish folk song, which made Mrs. Christina smile. The chairs and long tables in the hall had already been set up. In addition to the snow-white linen tablecloths, there were countless flowers, which either spread like cushions in the corners or hung like drapery from one corner of the ceiling, and the table was covered with silver and white china The tableware and the flowers on the table were placed in crystal bottles. Although it was not late at night, the servants had already lit the candles, so that the light reflected from them illuminated people's eyes.

As for the white ones, silver and gold dishes are already full of preserves and pastries, jars and jugs of coffee, juices and honey water almost overflowing, hot with a white mist, and the ice is the same, in the king , in front of the king's brother, the queen mother and the bishop, in front of Queen Mary of England and Princess Henrietta, and in front of today's distinguished guests, there is a beautiful statue. Mrs. Christina looked at it for a while before confirming that it was a statue. It is carved from the solidified white powdered sugar.

Of course, these are not all. Tonight's dishes have been prepared since 4:00 in the morning. By now, some guests can almost smell the rich aroma of the delicious food that is ready to go, which makes them especially feel that this time The pre-dinner prayers were too long - but thankfully, before their belly called rudely, the soup had been brought up, three thick soups, one clear soup, the thick soup was sea fish soup, partridge soup, and then a double soup. Flavored soup, quail and beef stewed together, then eggs, vegetables, and salt, sprinkled with precious spices—such as cinnamon, pepper, and cloves; the clear soup was a cream of mushroom soup, although in the eyes of today’s people, this soup The flavor is also strong enough, but since there is no meat in it, it is a clear soup. But the king instructed the cook to put a meringue hat on it, which is something that people in France or other places have not been able to eat. The skin is torn, and then thrown into the soup to eat together.

The soup is followed by the main dishes, stewed lamb shank, honey-steamed ham, roasted deer loin, pheasant stuffed with chestnuts, etc., one after another, the taste is different and extraordinarily delicious, although in this kind of banquet, people can't help but whisper. After a while, they dealt with the information they had, but from the time of the soup, very few people were able to speak anymore, and their tongues were almost filled with these rare and delicious things, even those who valued their body. Women are also constantly asking for extra dishes.

After the main course are vegetables, parsnips, white asparagus, artichokes, parsnips (radish), cabbage, cauliflower from Cyprus, spring onions and thistles from Italy, some fresh, some pickled or other Treated, but all clean and refreshing, sweeping away the greasy food brought by the main dishes, fruits and boiled eggs after the vegetables, these are to ensure that some guests with big appetites fill up, but today even a giant dragon came, Louis It is also believed that it has been fed, but when they see the brightly colored fruits with water droplets, some people can't help but hold them in their hands and play with them.

Because of the season, the fresh fruits are mainly apples and some berries. Apples are divided into three types, spotted apples, purple apples and small red apples. Pies, assorted jams, etc.

  The wines on the table came from Champagne and Burgundy, and all the wines of Burgundy were presented to the king by the Duchess of Montpensier for this banquet.

This sumptuous dinner lasted for three hours, and at the end everyone was eager to go out and "walk", and a special servant took them to their secret rooms, so they enjoyed it again after that A view like nowhere else.

From the bottom of his heart, Louis felt that after dinner, it would be most comfortable to take a walk alone or go to the study to read a book quietly. Unfortunately, it was not possible. After the banquet was the scene he most wanted to see— He invited Madame Christina to a terrace in the northeast corner of the Louvre, from which he could see a sparkling aqueduct, beside the canal is the Red Children's Market, and looking to the right, you could see Notre Dame, next to Notre Dame is the Place de la Bastille.

  —

Vauban, who was standing on the bell tower of Notre Dame, had been holding up his binoculars nervously, with a piece of stuffed bread that he had only bitten into twice. The tower was freezing cold in autumn, but even so he didn't dare to drink it. A few sips of wine to keep out the cold - as soon as he saw the king appear on the terrace, surrounded by countless ministers, he immediately ran over to pull out the torch and shook it vigorously at the people under the clock tower - several horses galloped quickly from under the clock tower Out, street after street, the riders had whistles in their mouths, the sharp whistles rolled over people's ears like the wind, so the people who were waiting by the oil lamps immediately lit the lamps and set them high. It hangs high on a street lamp post.

These lampposts have long been seen by people, but at that time they only used them as flagpoles or for other purposes. Until now, under the dark sky, it seems like they are trying to capture the light of the stars in the sky. Countless lights illuminate the streets of Paris, they clearly outline each street, and the inhabitants are no longer trapped in their houses, they go out of their homes and gaze with joy at the light brought by the king.

Then they were pleasantly surprised to find that under the orders of the king and the bishop, almost all the shops began to open at night, and the candles in the glass windows illuminated the storefronts brilliantly. Under the beautification, even the inferior products show different colors or textures from those in the daytime. Some customers who were misled by their own vision foolishly bought a lot of them that they dismissed when the light was abundant. goods, so they became extra sincere as they chanted long live the king.

The cheers of one or two people certainly can't reach the towers of the Louvre, but people here can see the scenery below. In this era, people only illuminated by candles and grease can only feel the difference on religious festivals. night - even in Paris, night is still dangerous, dull and uninteresting, but now it's like turning the clockwork of a toy box, and all the people in it are moving, the dark night and the golden streets Giving this ancient city its distinctive beauty, all were conquered.

   "This is only the first day," they heard the king say, "and every day after that."

   He turned and declared proudly: "This will be a city that never sleeps!"

  ——

One might wonder why Louis held such a grand banquet and carried out such a gigantic project when the treasury was empty and even loans were needed to keep the army and the government running, but in the seventeenth century it was a noble prince One of the most common ways we use to show our power - the endless, unrestrained and careless spending and extravagance that will make your friends happy, your enemies cringe, and greedy merchants scrambling to get your hands on your money. Loan eligibility, no kidding, that's it - they'd rather lend money to a lord who uses up a thousand livres a day on shoes than a man who desperately needs ten liards in exchange for a loaf of bread of starvation.

In order to hold this banquet, the king also made great efforts. The reason why the palace was decorated with so many flowers was because the velvet and gold leaf used to decorate the walls were insufficient. Some tableware was even temporarily borrowed from the bishop's palace and some merchants. The curtains and tablecloths, candles and charcoal of the Louvre and half of the Tuileries are concentrated in the hall and a handful of rooms. When people exclaimed for the light on the street, most of Paris The area is virtually still immersed in darkness.

It is also an oath of strength to France's allies and enemies, at least to those envoys from other countries, who will describe tonight's banquet in detail in their letters tonight, so that their monarchs can consider them carefully. The attitude of the young new king of France.

   And for those ministers and judges, at least for this moment, they were completely convinced by their king.

They couldn't even hold back their excitement, and rudely whispered before the king left, but this was exactly what Louis wanted to see. When he left the hall, everyone bowed and greeted him until his figure disappeared in the behind the door.

   Only Bontang, the king's trusted chief of the palace, could see the king's exhaustion. Louis simply washed himself and fell asleep, missing a visit from Prince Theodoric of Vandra.

   (end of this chapter)