Eagle’s Glory

Although Aiglon and the Duke met for the first time, they both left a very good impression on each other.

To the Duke, Aigron had the demeanor to achieve great things, and he was also very polite to him. Most importantly, he also provided sufficient bribery conditions, which had fully met his previous psychological expectations.

For Aigron, he was also very happy.

Although the Duke has no talent and cannot provide him with any useful reference, he is very good at observing people's emotions and flattering others, and his skills are quite high. When complimenting others, he is very natural and does not appear stiff at all, which makes Aigron feel spiritually better. Pleasure - this "emotional value" is also meaningful.

Aiglon originally planned to reconcile with the famous nobles of the past after returning to the country. He needed a sign to demonstrate, and the Duke was very suitable to be this sign.

What's more, he also offered to let Agnes "deepen the relationship" with him...

Because she has suffered continuous mental trauma, Agnes is now much more fragile than before. Now she has her father beside her to add fuel to the fire. It is conceivable that she has been deeply trapped in the quagmire, and it is extremely difficult to escape. .

However, Aigron is not anxious at all. For him, this is just a game that is guaranteed to win. Rather than saying how much he longs for sensual satisfaction, it is better to say that the greatest pleasure is to subdue this kitten bit by bit. the process of.

The Duke didn't know Aiglon's theory. He just confirmed that this young man was indeed interested in his little daughter - and if this scene could be made true, it would mean that his family would Obtaining the "Holy Scroll" will be enough to prosper for a long time in the future.

Of course he knew the fact that Aigron was married, but it didn't matter to him at all, and it wouldn't make him embarrassed - from the perspective of traditional aristocratic concepts, a king never has to be loyal to marriage, although Theresa The princess was of noble birth, but she could not change the customs and habits that had existed for many years.

Not to mention, the queen of Sun King Louis XIV is also a princess of the Spanish Habsburg family. Does this prevent him from giving birth to a bunch of illegitimate children?

The Duke was even vaguely looking forward to the fact that if his daughter was favored enough in the future, she might be able to compete with Her Majesty the Queen in the palace, which would mean that his family's status would rise even more, and it might become a center of power.

——Of course, this is just a sweet dream of this little old man. It seems too early to have this dream now.

all in all,

The father, who was well aware of his own mediocrity, bet all his family fortune and ambition on his youngest daughter, but Agnes herself is still ignorant.

After a long time, the two people finally ended their cordial conversation with each other.

Because it was already winter, and this place was in a high mountainous area, the sky became overcast very quickly. In the blink of an eye, the window was filled with gray shadows, and the original towering mountains were hidden among these shadows. .

"You are a guest here, so if you are interested, you can stay here for two days and enjoy the scenery. Queen Ortense is happy to receive guests like you." Aigron gave the Duke a final warning, and then walked out Room.

He went straight to the living room and said goodbye to his aunt who was sitting here passing the time.

"Aigron, won't you stay and have dinner with us? Queen Hortense asked.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Your Majesty the Queen. However, I still have some things that I need to go back to deal with, so I won't be dining here." Aiglon replied with a smile. "Next, please entertain the Duke well. After he leaves, you can just send someone to report to me."

"So, you are satisfied with his performance?" The queen laughed.

"Yes, he behaved respectfully, which can very well reflect his sincerity in surrendering to me." Aigron also answered with a smile, "I gave him a lot of praise and encouragement, and he will serve us next."

"It is indeed a good thing to be able to subdue such a person." The Queen also agreed, and then she sighed, "Oh, this is the first time in so many years that a big shot from Paris has visited me! That kind of behavior, With that kind of words, you can easily feel the atmosphere of Paris, especially since he was so respectful to me..."

Seeing the nostalgic look on Queen Hortense's face, Aigron understood what she meant.

Although the title of "Queen" on her head now is completely unworthy of the name, during the imperial period, she was the adopted daughter of Emperor Napoleon and a genuine Queen of the Netherlands. She was one of the most noble women in the imperial royal family. It is conceivable that At that time, she was always surrounded by a team of high-ranking officials and dignitaries, who constantly flattered her and satisfied all her vanity.

However, those glorious moments eventually came to naught. With the collapse of the empire, she lost everything she owned and had to flee far away from home and live in seclusion in this remote country. At first, the stars surrounded her like a moon to flatter her. The courtiers and nobles have all disappeared.

She can accept the reality, but it is naturally impossible to forget everything she has experienced before.

Can't forget.

Indeed, how can someone who has experienced that feeling once forget it so easily?

Those memories and reluctances were buried deep in her heart with the passage of time, but today the visiting Duke easily brought back those memories with his respect and words.

Because he understood the queen's mood at this time, Aigron used a particularly emotional tone to comfort and encourage his aunt.

"Today there is only one duke, but tomorrow, there will be countless princes and dukes who will flatter you, just like back then... Everything you have lost, I will pick it up for you one by one, and then give it back to you with both hands. Although I cannot give you another country, but you will enjoy the highest courtesy at my court.”

Unlike Napoleon's ambitious younger brothers and sisters, Queen Ortense didn't care about "country" at first. On the contrary, she just wanted to experience the enjoyment and wealth of the world in Paris, so even after becoming the Queen of the Netherlands, she rarely went to the Netherlands to work with other people. She lives with her husband Louis, preferring to stay at the court in Paris.

That's enough for her.

Therefore, Aigron's words immediately made Queen Otis feel extremely kind and warm.

She couldn't help but hugged the young man again, and then joked with her adopted brother and nephew in a friendly tone.

"Little guy, I'm still annoyed by the highest courtesy. As for the flattery of those people, you can have the best, but you can still live without me. I even think it's pretty good to stay here. I'm already old. I no longer expect to be the center of attention in social circles. If I can go back to see old friends and take a look at the familiar scenery one day, I will be satisfied... By the way, I can also help take care of your son. I hope this time, He should be able to inherit the family business peacefully. It would be unlucky if three consecutive generations had to start a business."

At this point, she suddenly changed the topic again, "By the way, I have another thing I want to ask you, and I hope you won't hide it."

"Excuse me?" Aigron felt a little confused, but still nodded.

"The reason why you are so courteous to Mr. Duke is that you covet his daughter?" Queen Ortense asked with a half-smile, "Although I don't have much information, I have also heard about Miss Agnes, and just now While chatting with him, I also heard him mention that he had a daughter named Agnes..."

Since the queen already knew this information, Aigron naturally had no need to lie anymore, but he just shrugged slightly. "...If you want to talk about it, I do mean that."

"Then does he know it himself?" the queen asked.

"He knows." Aigron smiled, "Not only does he know, but he also took the initiative to mention it to me just now, hoping that I can help take care of Miss Agnes in the future."

"Humph." The queen snorted coldly, seeming to be mocking, "He is really impatient, is he afraid that he will not be able to make the trip?"

However, after all, the queen has seen too much of the world, so she is not surprised by what Aigron and the Duke did. She does not think it is a big deal. She just complains in a low voice, "You are quite clever. In order to achieve your goal, He even worked for me."

"I'm really sorry." Aiglon quickly apologized to his aunt, "Because his identity is a bit sensitive, I thought it was best to entertain him at your place. It did cause you trouble. But... at least you haven't been there lately. You’ve got someone to relieve your boredom, haven’t you? People from Paris will always bring you something new.”

The queen quite agrees with this point.

"You're right. I like this guy quite a lot. However, Aiglon, you'd better control yourself. If a duke gives you a daughter and you accept it, what about a marquis and a count in the future? God knows how many there are in France. Can you take care of people who are ambitious and want to be in power? Moreover, can you support everyone? So don’t involve yourself with so many romantic debts."

Hearing this question, Aigron almost laughed out loud.

This is because Her Majesty the Queen's biological son, Napoleon III in the original historical line, had had affairs with many women before seizing power and gave birth to several illegitimate children; and after becoming emperor, he became even more violent. With the help of the emperor's honor, power and wealth, he showed mercy everywhere and had countless affairs. People even ridiculed his court for being a liar.

Although Aigron is now considered a prodigal prince, once compared with that family member, Aigron can naturally puff up his chest with pride.

It was a pity that by the time Napoleon III became emperor, it had already been decades, and Queen Ortense had already passed away by then. Otherwise, Aigron would have really wanted to hear what she thought of his prince.

"Don't worry about this. I have very good taste. Mere beauty can't dazzle me. I need something else to do it -" Aiglon replied with a hint of pride.

"You're quite proud, aren't you?" Her Majesty the Queen said with a straight face at first, then couldn't help but chuckle, "So, how many people have you fallen in love with?"

"Well..." Aigron smiled and shook his head, "I'm sorry I can't comment for now, because some things are really not convenient to disclose, but please don't worry, I will handle all these things. But... since Today is a rare opportunity, and there is something I want to tell you.”

"What?" The queen was stunned for a moment.

"I already have a daughter—" Aigron told her in a low voice.

Telling this matter to the queen now is a temporary idea of ​​Aigron, but he has been secretly planning to ventilate the family members for a long time.

Since he plans to give Kristel a legal identity in the future, he must let family members know about it in advance.

However, Aigron planned to tell the trustworthy members first, and then slowly let the entire family know her existence and accept her.

"Isn't your child a son?" The queen retorted subconsciously at first, then she immediately reacted and looked at Aigron with wide eyes.

After confirming that Aiglon was not joking, she finally accepted the reality.

"You are really... quite amazing. You are so good at being so troubled at such a young age." After a moment, the queen could only laugh dumbly when she saw Aigron's calm look.

After all, she couldn't really control her nephew now, and she would be even less qualified in the future.

"Who is her mother?" she then asked.

"For the sake of her reputation, I can't tell you for the time being." Aiglon replied.

Queen Ortense carefully recalled Aiglon's previous experience. It was relatively simple. She grew up in Austria, then ran away and went to Greece.

Could it be that after having fun in Greece, the seed was left behind?

If this is the case, there is no need for Aigron to be serious.

Maybe there was some romance in the Austrian court, and then the crystallization was left behind?

The more Queen Hortense thought about it, the more it made sense, but since Aigron didn't want to explain it clearly, it was hard for her to ask further questions.

After all, she herself had an illegitimate child (in the original historical line, this illegitimate child was regarded as a close confidant by Emperor Napoleon III and was also named a duke), so of course she would not find this kind of thing shocking.

"Does Teresa know about this?" After another moment, the queen, who recovered from the shock, asked again.

"She knows." Aigron nodded, "I can't tell you the details about this now. I just told you privately. I will tell you the details when I have the opportunity in the future. At that time, I also ask you to Accept this girl graciously.”

"Huh?!" If Aiglon's words had only surprised Queen Otis before, then she was really horrified now. "Do you plan to make this illegitimate daughter an official member of the family?"

"Yes." Aigron nodded matter-of-factly, "Is there anything you can't do?"

This matter-of-fact attitude made Queen Ortense choke for a moment.

She couldn't say what was wrong with it, but she instinctively felt that something was wrong.

"But...but what will the outside world think? This will affect your reputation. You need it now."

"I know the price. Maybe many people will take the opportunity to attack me, or at least laugh at me. But this is the price I have to pay." Aigron replied solemnly, "Undoubtedly, I have broken many promises and gone back on my word many times, but this I will keep my promise, and as for the loss, it is completely within the acceptable range."