monarch

Caterina de' Medici looked at Prince Sebastian sleeping soundly in the crib with interest, as if a jeweler were valuing a rough diamond.

"It looks a little weak." She sighed with some regret, "but I think it's fine for a premature baby."

"Mr. René?" Katerina looked at the pharmacist, "You are an expert, come and take a look."

The apothecary obeyed the queen's orders and made his way to the crib.

"If I remember correctly, Mr. René is a pharmacist." Robert put out a hand in front of Mr. René, "He is not a doctor."

"In our Italy, it's the same thing." Caterina spread her hands, "He's a pharmacist, he's a spice merchant, he's also a doctor, and he even mixes cosmetics for me." She tapped lightly with her finger Lipstick on his mouth, "As long as I need him, he can do anything."

Including the shady things, Robert thought.

He hesitated for a moment, and finally lowered his arm.

Monsieur René uttered an owl-like grin, went up to the crib, and bent down.

He stared at the face of the little prince on the bed, then stretched out two fingers, pinched the child's face, and let him open his mouth.

The child was awakened by his movement, and the faint cry of a cat's meow echoed in the room again.

Robert frowned at the apothecary's somewhat presumptuous behavior.

Monsieur René picked up the child, and by some magic, the child stopped crying.

He put Prince Sebastian back in the crib and turned to face the queen.

"It's indeed a wind chill." He said in a hissing voice, like a snake spitting out a letter, "I gave him three doses of potion, drink one now, another at ten o'clock in the evening, and another at ten o'clock tomorrow morning One, he'll be well by lunchtime tomorrow."

As he spoke, he walked to a corner of the room, opened the medicine box that he slung over his shoulder, took out the ingredients from it, and began to concentrate on preparing it.

Katharina nodded in satisfaction, he opened his arms and hugged his daughter, "Margot, come to meet your cousin Sebastian."

She lifted the little girl over the crib.

Princess Margaret frowned and looked critically at the sleeping child in the crib.

"He's ugly," she remarked. "His face is wrinkled, like that old nanny who took care of us."

"It's always like this when children are born." Katerina smiled and put the princess back on the ground.

"Francois, was it the same for Charlie and Henry when they were young?" Margaret's tone didn't sound quite convinced.

"It's all like this, even you." Katerina gently touched her daughter's head.

"You said we are cousins?" Margaret snapped her fingers, "Are we cousins?"

"Didn't your genealogy teacher teach you?" Katerina stopped her smile and became a little harsh, "Your step-grandmother, Eleonore from Austria, and Sebastian's Grandmother, Katharina from Austria is a sister... This means that you are cousins, of course, based on the premise of accurate paternal blood."

She glanced at Robert intentionally or unintentionally, and the faint smile at the corner of her mouth seemed to be tentative.

Robert looked at Queen Caterina blankly, as if he didn't understand her at all.

Monsieur René came forward with a small crystal cup, the potion in it was as clear as water.

Katerina laughed amused by Robert's suspicious eyes on the cup, "If I want this child's life, then he has already rested in peace, and I don't even need to come here myself. I don't need to let He doesn't need to let him eat what he drinks. In Italy, death's footsteps are silent. Only the most experienced experts can notice the breeze created by the hem of his robe when he walks through the room... Le It is a potion for curing diseases, if you don't believe it, he can drink it in front of your face."

Caterina winked at the pharmacist, and Mr. René immediately brought the cup to his mouth and took a sip of the potion.

He opened his mouth so Robert could see that he had swallowed the potion.

"You should feel at ease now," said Katerina.

"Not entirely reassured," breathed Robert, "but I'd like to have your pharmacist try it."

Mr. René took the cup and walked to the bed. He brought the cup to the prince's mouth and fed Prince Sebastian the medicine.

The little prince drank all the potion without spitting out a drop.

"After the three potions are finished, he won't spit up too much milk. I will send the remaining two potions tonight." Mr. René said to Robert.

"If I wronged you just now, I apologize to you." Robert looked at Prince Sebastian who was sleeping peacefully in surprise, "I am willing to pay you a generous consultation fee as compensation."

"That's unnecessary." Mr. René put the cup back into the medicine cabinet, "I serve Her Majesty the Queen, and everything will be paid by the generous Her Majesty the Queen."

"Thank you, my friend." Caterina nodded towards Mr. René, "Now that the child has finished reading, go and see his father."

"His Majesty the King of Portugal is not ill." Robert retorted.

"He has never been healthy." Katerina sneered, "Aren't you going to take him with you? I am willing to issue you a pass, but only if René gives him a check. This deal is not bad Is it fair?"

Without waiting for Robert's answer, she looked at Mr. René again, "Please take Margo to the reception room to rest on the way, I have some adult matters to discuss with the Lord Marquess of Pembroke." She read Robert's When titled, he deliberately emphasized his own tone.

The door slammed shut, and Caterina de' Medici lifted the hem of her skirt and sat in the armchair where Robert had spent the night before.

"I said just now that we should be friends." She blinked her eyes lightly. "What is better than a marriage contract to ensure the stability of a friendship?"

"Is that why you brought your daughter here?" Robert pulled up another armchair, facing Katerina, "Don't you think it's a little too early to plan a wedding for a baby who is still in its infancy? ?”

"Yes, for a marriage." Katerina nodded, "Your little prince really looks...how can I say it? Who knows if he can grow up healthy. As for his paternal lineage, I don't know if those rumors are true or not, but if he is really the son of the pathetic idiot you want to take away, then I have reason to suspect that he will grow up to be the same imbecile. As for his future, it is more important It’s hard to say, who knows whether your King Edward is satisfied with this heir? My Margo is going to marry the future King of Britain, and the wedding will only take place after everything is confirmed.”

"But you just said..."

"I'm talking about a marriage contract, not a marriage." Katerina lightly fiddled with the hair falling from her temples a few times, "There are many marriage contracts signed in this world, but only a few of them have been truly fulfilled. I myself was betrothed to the Duke of Albany in Scotland, but in the end I married Henry, Duke of Orléans, second son of the King of France; daughter-in-law. Marriage is decades of living together, and a marriage contract is just a piece of paper.”

"So all you want is a piece of paper?" Robert asked.

"Currently yes." Katerina nodded, "A piece of paper will make our common enemy no longer suspect that we are standing together. As for whether this piece of paper will develop into a real marriage in the future, that is It depends on the will of God."

"You just mentioned our common enemy...I don't think it includes the Spaniards." Robert looked at Queen Catalina coldly, "You betrothed your daughter Elizabeth to King Philip...just wait for the present day The Queen of Spain has passed away, and she will go to Madrid to be the Queen of Spain, and this time it is not just a marriage letter, but a real marriage."

"Elizabeth is a good daughter, quiet and gentle, and knows how to listen to her mother." Katerina sighed, "I wanted to marry her to your King Edward, but I was rejected without hesitation... See Come on, he thinks you are much stronger than my daughter, and I really can't imagine the reason."

"You're right, Spain is indeed not France's enemy... at least it's not mine right now." Katerina continued, "We just signed a peace treaty. Got a much-needed break. France is exhausted and has no energy to devote to those bloody adventures. War between your country and Spain is about to break out, and the victor will be master of the sea...and France will be Winner's friend."

"So our common enemy is only your daughter-in-law." Robert stared at Queen Catalina.

Katerina snorted disdainfully, "She's just a little girl wearing a crown. She thinks that she can do everything well with a pretty face and a noble background, but she's just someone else's marionette... The real enemies are those who manipulate her from behind."

"My husband is immersed in balls and knightly tournaments every day, and hangs out with his mistress. He can't see, or maybe he doesn't want to see, that the storm clouds are gathering in the distant sky." Katerina shook her head , "The Guise family used Mary Stuart as a pawn to continuously expand their influence in the court. They colluded with those Catholic extremists, the Spaniards and Rome, and wanted to use a fire to burn them. and the throne; in the south, the Bourbon family, the Condé family and those local nobles, in the name of defending Protestantism, practiced secession. France is now a powder keg, and a religious war is about to break out. We My husband could have died, but he left me and my children on the powder keg."

"Mary Stuart wanted the French throne, Mary Stuart wanted the British throne, and there were people in both our countries who wanted to see this straw-brained doll sitting on the throne while they passed Control her to control the country. She is a plague and we should join hands to stop her spread!"

"Then what can Britain do for you?" Robert shrugged. "You don't like your daughter-in-law, but this is an internal affair of France. What can we do?"

"When civil war breaks out in France, won't you choose sides?" Caterina said, "Both the Bourbon family and the Guise family want support from abroad, and so do I. Even if you don't have to do anything, As long as there is this marriage contract, they can think twice before raising their troops against the royal family."

"I've also heard some rumors about this child. Being engaged to Margot means that the French royal family has recognized his identity, and the credibility of those rumors will be greatly reduced. You see, both of us can learn from this Proceeds from the paper marriage certificate."

"I will tell His Majesty your proposal." Robert held out a hand to Katerina, "But I think if you just want a marriage contract, then Your Majesty has no reason not to agree, so I will tell you It's just a piece of paper."

Katerina also extended her hand, and the two briefly shook hands.

"Ah, Mr. René is back." Katerina looked at the pharmacist who walked back to the room, her eyes were full of questions.

Monsieur René, with his left hand by his leg, made a secret gesture to the Queen.

"Since you want to take King João Manuel with you, as a sign of my sincerity, I will issue him a pass." Katerina stood up, "It was a pleasure talking to you, Monsieur Marquis, then we are friends now, are we not?"

"Very good friend." Robert bowed to her with a smile, and led Katerina to the door.

The queen led her daughter into the same carriage with the apothecary.

"Well?" Caterina asked Monsieur René, as the wheels began to turn, "how long will that idiot live?"

"One year." Mr. René laughed strangely again, "No more than two years at most. Frankly speaking, it is already a miracle that His Majesty the King can grow so big."

"Then let our new friends take him back, since they want him so badly." Katerina yawned, "I'm always very generous with friends."

"Mom." Princess Margaret, who was sitting next to Queen Caterina, pulled her mother's skirt, "Do I really want to marry that Prince Sebastian? I don't know if I like him or not."

"Maybe, little Margot." Caterina smiled and hugged her daughter in her arms, "Maybe it's him, maybe it's not him, who knows? But as my uncle, His Majesty Pope Clement VII, always To me it's like, 'God willing, it's going to be for the best'."