[Henry VIII] Tudor Crown

Paris, Louvre.

Catherine de' Medici walked blankly through the ornate aisle.

I saw carved beams and painted columns decorated with all kinds of colorful satin and tassel ornaments.

The maids in the past all lowered their heads in terror at the moment Catherine de Medici passed by, as if walking in front of them was a gorgon from Italy.

And when Catherine de' Medici's back gradually disappeared, the maids who hadn't dared to show their air just now withdrew their octopus-like eyes glued to the floor, and then gathered together to whisper.

"The queen looks really mad." A maid who seemed to be the leader of the small group said first, "Even if it's Princess Elizabeth's wedding banquet in a few days, His Majesty the King will not let the queen intervene in anything."

"No way, the Duchess of Valence is the real 'queen'."

None of the maids present had any sympathy for Catherine de Medici, because in this man-eating court, watching the high-ranking people fall into the mud was undoubtedly their greatest pleasure in their busy lives.

It is true that some people felt sympathy for the situation of Catherine de Medici, but in the environment of cannibalism, they quickly understood the survival rules of the Louvre, and then they would not be sympathetic to a person whose status was higher than their own, and the surrounding Man is all to serve her woman, generating worthless pity.

Catherine de' Medici knew that many people were talking about her existence, seeing her as an anomaly and a crowned clown in the Louvre.

"Your Majesty..." Diane de Poitiers, who was preparing for the wedding ceremony, put down all the work in her hands the moment Catherine de Medici arrived, and greeted Catherine de Medici gracefully. Qi curtseyed, so humble that it was impossible to imagine her as the king's chief mistress.

"Princess Anna of Austria hasn't set off yet?" Catherine de' Medici glanced at the surrounding decorations, and her eyes were hurt by the pomegranate-like red: "People who don't know why think this is Spain!"

Listening to Catherine de Medici's complaint, Diane de Poitiers couldn't help but smiled wryly: "This is what His Majesty the King meant, and you also know that the Duke of Savoy is an important ally of Spain, so we have to Accommodate them."

"As for Princess Anna of Austria..." Diane de Poitiers looked at Catherine de' Medici's face, and said as softly as possible: "As you know, Charles V has just passed away and inherited Rome The Archduke of Austria on the throne has always been at odds with the King of Spain, so the Austrian Princess had to leave for France after the Spanish envoys left."

"Oh! I didn't expect the Habsburg family to have what it is today." Catherine de Medici showed a gloating expression.

Diane de Poitiers suddenly asked: "You don't seem to welcome the Austrian princess, is it because of the old hatred between the Medicis and the Habsburgs?"

"That was an old thing decades ago, and I don't need to hold on to the grievances of the previous generation." Catherine de' Medici is a descendant of a businessman, so she knows what it means to "seek advantages and avoid disadvantages."

"A Habsburg princess .

Diane de Poitiers did not care.

After all, in the French court, even the queen can't be the master, let alone a little princess who is thousands of miles away from home.

Of course, at this time, Diane de Poitiers was still not aware of the plan of the Duke of Guise and Catherine de Medici, so he exchanged a few words with the queen, and then returned to the work of arranging the venue.

Isabelle de Limoil, who got the news from the Duke of Guise, whispered something in the queen's ear, and then returned to the queen's bedroom with Catherine de' Medici.

"Has the Duke of Guise decided on a candidate?" Catherine de' Medici knelt in front of the statue of the Virgin in the house, repenting for her crimes: "Merciful Virgin! Please understand the difficulties of a mother, and Forgive my crime."

After all, Catherine de' Medici made a sign of the cross on her chest, her face was full of firmness that failed to achieve her goal and vowed not to give up.

Isabelle de Limoy helped the queen up after praying, and whispered in her ear: "The Duke of Guise has asked Miss Claire to contact the chosen gentleman, and then sealed the Spanish ambassador with ten thousand Ducat's favor fee."

"Ten thousand ducats?" Catherine de Medici said in disbelief, "It took so much money just to shut up the Spanish ambassador... Is the Duke of Guise doing something? Or is he using my money to please Spain? ?”

Isabelle de Limoy on the side pursed her lips. After hesitating again and again, she still stood on the side of the hostess: "The Duke of Guise has always been very close to Spain. If Prince François succeeds to the throne, With the support of Spain, the Duke of Guise has emptied you and Prince François of power, then you have to consider joining forces with the Duke of Montmorency or Austria."

Catherine de' Medici looked at Isabelle de Limoy who was pouring out her heartfelt words in surprise, and her originally frowning brows gradually relaxed.

"You are right, the Duke of Guise is very likely to join forces with Spain." Catherine de Medici pondered: "Is there anyone else in Flying Squadron who can approach the Duke of Guise?"

In order to strengthen her control over the palace, Catherine de' Medici gathered a group of young beauties with low status but ambitions.

They are like the wisteria sisters of the sixteenth century, who used their beauty to win among men, and then exchanged their information for high rewards from Catherine de Medici, who supported them.

Arguably, the FlyingSquadron was the most notorious court organization of the sixteenth century.

It was also Catherine de' Medici's first step in mastering France.

Isabelle de Limoy was also a member of the Flying Squadron before becoming Catherine de' Medici's henchman.It's a pity that the target she chose was Prince Condé of the Bourbon family, and after the latter became the leader of the French Protestantism, he automatically broke off with the queen's maid, lest the Protestant plan be reported to the Italian snake by this beautiful snake hair banshee.

"Miss Claire, whom you sent to contact the Spanish knights, is a lovely girl." Isabelle de Limoy's eyes darkened, and the ruthless face of Prince Condé naturally appeared in her mind, so she immediately calmed down , dutifully replied: "The Duke of Guise should be interested in her."

"But the Duke of Guise knows that she is from the Flying Squadron." Catherine de' Medici knew that Isabel de Limoy had feelings for the Duke of Guise, so she deliberately softened her tone and changed the subject: "Dear Isabel, I want you to think of your poor unacknowledged child before you fall in love."

Catherine de' Medici's words hit the fact that Isabelle de Limoil was least willing to face, making her turn pale, and forced her to calmly say: "With a godmother like you, there is no need to worry about Louis' future."

"But it's best for the child to be recognized by the father, isn't it?" Catherine de' Medici patted the maid's hands, pressed her trembling shoulders and said, "You know what to do, don't you?"

"Yes." For the sake of her son's future, Isabelle de Limoy gritted her teeth and said.

…………… I am the dividing line……………

The Duke of Richmond finally found Guillaume eating behind the red floor-to-ceiling curtains.

In the small partition space, Guillaume was sitting cross-legged on the ground, with a circle of plates containing food or debris, and some empty bottles were crooked in the corner.

The Duke of Richmond, who had high blood pressure at a young age, quickly supported the wall to prevent himself from falling headlong in front of his younger brother.

Oh, God!How could he have such a brother.

The Duke of Richmond, who was breathing deeply, freed one hand to hold his chest, preventing his heart from beating out there.

Unexpectedly, the Duke of Richmond could find Guillaume who came here, and he was gnawing on a greasy chicken leg at the moment.Facing the collapsed eyes of his brother, he put on a posture that a dead pig is not afraid of boiling water.

"Want a piece?" Guillaume raised his orchid finger, picked up a napkin and wiped his hands, seeing the Duke of Richmond's blood pressure rise again.

"No need." The Duke of Richmond smashed the pot and sat down on the ground, took out a handkerchief and handed it to Guillaume: "Aren't you going to dance with your fiancee?"

Guillaume followed the gaze of the Duke of Richmond to the dance floor not far away, and saw Princess Margot whispering with Joan.

The two little girls obviously chatted about something very interesting, and they laughed together wildly.

"Do you think she needs me to disturb her?" Guillaume looked at Princess Margot's shaking shoulders, and shrugged: "She is too young to know what our marriage means."

The Duke of Richmond looked at Guillaume's sloppy look, and suddenly felt that his brother was not so pleasing to the eye.

"Henry II of France is dying."

After the two brothers were silent for a while, the Duke of Richmond, who spoke first, almost scared the chicken leg out of Guillaume's hand, causing the latter to stop eating quickly, and said in a serious tone: "Are you joking?"

Although Guillaume has not yet participated in the power game, it is impossible for him not to hear a little news about such a major event as "the death of the King of France".

What's more, France has just married Spain and England, and Henry II's physical condition has no serious problems.

Guillaume could think of no other explanation unless someone was going to do something to Henry II.

only……

"This is a critical moment for France!" Guillaume glanced at the confident Duke of Richmond, and asked tentatively, "Even if Henry II wants to die, he can't take advantage of this fatal moment."