From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

Louis XV was filled with a warm and warm smile, and like a kind and generous grandfather, he shook hands with the nobles on both sides and said hello. It was obvious that he enjoyed this feeling of being surrounded by stars.

The two young men, the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess, had little interest in these tedious palace activities. They followed Louis XV without any interest and waved to everyone.

Soon, Louis XV walked slowly to Lawrence.

"oh--"

Louis XV stopped in front of Lawrence, looked at Lawrence carefully with curiosity and surprise, and then the smile on his face became wider, even his eyes narrowed into a line, and he nodded repeatedly and said:

"A strange face that I have never seen before at Versailles, but such a handsome young man. I think I know who you are, Governor Bonaparte, don't you?"

"Exactly, Your Majesty."

Lawrence lowered his head slightly and said, put his left hand on his right shoulder and performed a simple knight's salute, and then raised his head to look at his future monarch.

Louis XV grinned twice, looked into Lawrence's eyes, and seemed to see from the clear eyes that he was indeed a gentle and respectful minister.

As for the infinite ambition of the young man in front of him, Louis XV was not aware of it at all.

Madame Du Barry, who was on the side, glanced at Lawrence with some uneasiness and disgust, kept a smile very reluctantly, and nodded at Lawrence twice as a greeting.

On the way to the Hall of Mirrors, Madame Du Barry also heard what Lawrence had just said about outstanding women at the door of the Hall of Mirrors. After learning that Lawrence had actually married his last official mistress Madame de Pompadour and Saint Priestess. After the juxtaposition of virtue and virtue, Madame Du Barry's woman's jealousy was completely aroused.

After all, the flattering aristocrats around her usually praised her to the sky. Madame Du Barry was very ignorant and believed that she was really higher than Madame Pompadour. , thinking that Lawrence was deliberately belittling himself.

Facing Madame Du Barry's nod, Lawrence bowed politely and said calmly:

"Good evening, ma'am."

After meeting the king's beloved concubine with his own eyes, Lawrence also admitted that she was indeed a beautiful woman, and no wonder she was able to attract the attention of Louis XV.

It's just that Lawrence had no interest in observing other aspects of Madame Du Barry.

This is not because Lawrence underestimates the enemy, but because this Madame Du Barry is different from her predecessor Madame de Pompadour. Her political ability is almost zero, and she is indulged in luxurious jewelry and palace decorations every day. Politically, The power and affairs of the prince are also managed by the Duke of Richelieu.

"Well, what Choiseul said is indeed true. He is indeed a young man who looks talented."

Louis XV reached out and patted Lawrence on the shoulder twice, nodded with a smile and said:

"I've heard a lot about you recently, and it's very interesting. I'm also looking forward to hearing some of it from you yourself over dinner."

After hearing this, several nobles around him immediately cast envious looks at Lawrence. King Louis was inviting Lawrence to dine at the same table with him later. Such an opportunity was not available to everyone.

"I am very happy to serve you." Lawrence lowered his head and agreed without any surprise. King Louis' pleasure was also expected.

Louis XV kept his eyes on Lawrence for a few more seconds, then looked at the Duke of Choiseul aside, shook hands with him and said:

"Chiseul, my brother, I wish you a pleasant evening. Your recent work has pleased me, but those old habits are still there: stop being so hostile to Madame Du Barry and the Duke of Richelieu, and Stop advocating war to the British, I believe you can do it."

Although Duke Choiseul seemed to be listening carefully, he was obviously listening in one ear and out the other. As soon as Louis XV finished speaking, he said nonchalantly:

"I will do my best, Your Majesty, and I wish you good health."

Having said that, the Duke of Choiseul glanced at Madame Du Barry with undisguised hostility.

Louis XV sighed helplessly when he saw this, and said nothing more to Duke Choiseul.

Louis XV had intervened many times to mediate the struggle between the two major factions, but such a struggle for interests was obviously not something he could suppress by using his status and power.

Lawrence on the side couldn't help but clicked his tongue when he saw this. It is estimated that there are not many people in France who can talk so freely in front of King Louis.

And looking at the reactions of the surrounding nobles, they were obviously used to this.

After talking with Lawrence and the Duke of Choiseul, Louis XV's conversation with the nobles behind him was not so serious, and it was basically just formatted greetings.

On the other hand, Prince Louis stopped when he passed by Lawrence. He approached Lawrence excitedly, held Lawrence's arms, and asked with great concern how his injury was.

Crown Princess Mary also stopped where she was, nodded to Lawrence with a smile and lifted her skirt, then reluctantly pulled her husband back from Lawrence, and whispered in German:

"Okay, hurry up and move forward. Do you know that you are undermining the dignity of the royal family?"

"Uh okay, see you later, Lawrence."

Only then did Crown Prince Louis glance angrily at his two younger brothers who were blocked behind him, and quickly followed Louis XV's footsteps.

When the nobles around him saw this scene, they looked at Lawrence with admiration or fear, and kept in mind the information about Lawrence's close relationship with the royal family.

After greeting everyone, Louis XV took the royal family to his throne in the Hall of Mirrors and delivered a short speech to everyone, which was also very clichéd in the sense of thanking you for participating and enjoying yourself in time.

There were only a few sentences in the speech that mentioned Lawrence, the protagonist of the banquet, but this was enough to make the guests present look at Lawrence with envy.

After Louis XV's speech, the banquet officially began, and the tune of the accompaniment band returned to the melodious symphony.

The guests sat in the seats arranged in advance according to their status, and Lawrence was invited by Louis XV to meet with the royal family and several guests including the Duke of Choiseul, the Duke of Richelieu, and Justice Maupe. The important ministers were dining at the same long table.

Louis XV sat on his seat, slowly shaking the brandy in the crystal glass, looking at the guests in the hall, couldn't help but take a sip of the mellow fragrance that filled the hall of mirrors, and sighed happily:

"Ah, what a wonderful evening. I hope you all enjoy it. Then, please start dining."

After saying that, Louis XV took the initiative to use the silver knife and fork to put a large piece of tender beef into his mouth, and let out a satisfied hum.

Lawrence stuffed two grapes into his mouth and whispered casually to the Duke of Choiseul next to him:

"I thought you had to pray before dining in the palace."

Duke Choiseul shrugged, chewed the food in his mouth carelessly, and said inarticulately:

"Occasionally, but the king doesn't like the style of a magician. You see, there is not even a bishop here today."

Lawrence nodded in understanding. It seemed that the religious power of the church was indeed declining, and was basically transferred to secular power.

It is no wonder that the Papal State, which today can be called the dominant hegemon in Apennines, has weakened into a small Vatican City State in just a few decades.

Including the treatment of the Pope in the Roman Curia, starting from the current Clement XIV, it also became humiliating and displaced. His successor Pius VI was not only driven out of Rome many times, but also died in humiliation. Napoleon's imprisonment.

Later, Pius VII was not much better. He was first captured by Napoleon from Rome and taken to Paris to forcefully hold a coronation ceremony. During the ceremony, the famous scene of Napoleon taking the crown and crowning himself took place; later he felt more The disgraceful Pius VII angrily excommunicated Napoleon, and the consequence of this was that Napoleon broke into the Vatican and imprisoned him two months later. He was not released until Napoleon stepped down.

Most of the subsequent popes also had their power shrink due to the Italian unification movement. In the end, not only did they lose their religious power, they did not even retain their secular power, and they only existed as spiritual leaders.

"It seems that the barrel of a gun is much more effective than the scepter of God."

Thinking of this, Lawrence sighed to Duke Choiseul casually.

Although Duke Choiseul didn’t know why Lawrence suddenly mentioned this, he nodded in agreement:

"Yeah, don't look at those magicians who say they can go to heaven every day, but if you really want to point a gun at them, they are simply more scared than women."

The two of them chatted while tasting the royal dishes, and at the same time observed the movements of Duke Richelieu and Justice Maupe. Whatever they were going to do, they must be doing it on this long table.

"Ah, right!"

Louis XV, whose face was slightly red, put down his half-empty wine glass, put one arm directly on the table, looked at Lawrence with narrowed eyes, and said:

"I just said that I wanted to hear about Governor Bonaparte, but I almost forgot. I'm a little curious about you. Why do you want to lead the people of Corsica to surrender to me?"

Hearing Louis XV's voice, the conversation on the table suddenly subsided. Everyone's eyes were focused on Lawrence, waiting for his answer. Even the nobles at other tables pricked up their ears and secretly paid attention. The power is put here.

Lawrence did not panic when facing everyone's gaze, but instead slowly picked up the wine glass and put it to his mouth, while quickly organizing some words in his mind.

If this question was asked by Duke Choiseul, even though Duke Choiseul would not ask such a stupid question, Lawrence would definitely say it bluntly:

In order to seek the protection of France against the annexation threat of the Kingdom of Sardinia and Genoa; at the same time, joining the French market and customs union can also provide a good environment for Corsica's economic development; finally, surrendering to Louis XV can also A huge personal benefit to Lawrence himself.

However, since this question was asked by Louis XV, Lawrence had to think carefully about how to get a satisfactory answer to this king who was not interested in politics and was obsessed with the corrupt palace life.

"Ah, Your Majesty"

Lawrence smiled and put down his wine glass, sat upright, looked at Louis XV respectfully, and said loudly:

"In fact, you only need to look at the courts of various European countries, and the answer will automatically arise in your mind."

"Oh? What does this mean?" Louis XV became interested and asked a little drunkenly.

"Among all the countries in Europe, you are the only one who can be called an enlightened and benevolent monarch."

Lawrence said sincerely and sincerely:

"Although Carlos III of Spain and Ferrante IV of Naples came from the same Bourbon dynasty as you, the former indulged in hunting and the latter was incompetent; Carlo III of the Kingdom of Sardinia was even more ambitious; Doge Alve of Venice King Cyril IV was unwilling to make progress; Grand Duke Pietro of Tuscany was extremely mediocre; King George III of England was insane; Tsar Catherine II of Russia was a womanizer; King Frederick II of Prussia was cynical."

The nobles listened in stunned silence as Lawrence announced the names of the monarchs and their flaws, almost with the word "outrageous" written on their faces.

Many of them have even personally dealt with the above names, and are fully aware that many of the monarchs in this list are talented and strategizing rulers, but when it comes to Lawrence, they have become unworthy of mention. .

However, Louis XV ignored everyone's astonishment. Instead, his eyes sparkled and he listened with interest. He was so absorbed that he didn't even notice that his clothes were stained with the soup on the table.

"So, Your Majesty"

Lawrence said in a deep voice, speaking from the bottom of his heart:

"When I need to swear my loyalty to a certain monarch for the rest of my life, when I need to entrust the people of Corsica to a more capable monarch to govern, I think of you without any hesitation. A kind and generous enlightened king; among the heroes of Europe, you are the only one, Louis XV.”

Louis XV looked at Lawrence with a smile, his head could not stop moving up and down, and at the same time he covered his chin and groaned, seeming to be thinking about what to say next.

Although the king said nothing, everyone could see that King Louis was obviously very satisfied with this flattery.

Although many people looked down upon Lawrence's blatant flattery, there were also many astute people who discovered that King Louis really fell for Lawrence's tricks.

Duke Choiseul frowned slightly and whispered to Lawrence:

"I thought you had something to say, but I didn't expect you would still say such flattering words."

"Your Excellency, there is a saying in my hometown that you can tell people what they say, but you can tell ghosts if you see ghosts."

Lawrence shook his head and also whispered:

"My identity combined with King Louis' identity determines what words will have the best effect."

"Your identity is what you said, no wonder." Duke Choiseul understood what Lawrence meant as soon as he turned his head, and then he nodded at Lawrence unexpectedly and appreciatively.

If any other ordinary nobleman said these words to Louis XV, the king would basically sneer at him. After all, this kind of flattery could be said to have been seen countless times in Louis XV's life.

But Lawrence is different. He is still a foreign ruler now.

The flattery of one ruler to another naturally served Louis XV particularly well.

"Hehe, but I'm afraid many people will slander you as a flatterer in the future." Duke Choiseul joked casually.

Lawrence shook his head indifferently and said:

"Famous fame doesn't matter at all. I have decades to change the world's view of me."

"Really, then I'm looking forward to it."

Duke Choiseul nodded meaningfully.