Eagle’s Glory

As spring gradually fades away, the temperature begins to gradually rise, the air becomes humid and dull, and it rains from time to time.

Today is also a rainy day. Since the morning, large raindrops have poured down from the sky, trying to clean the earth.

And in the midst of the heavy rain, several carriages passed through the cordon and entered the Fontainebleau Palace.

The guards quickly surrounded the carriages and checked their identity documents. The nervous expressions of the guards surrounding the carriages also meant that the Fontainebleau Palace welcomed an important guest.

Although there were several visitors, everyone's eyes were focused on an old man with gray hair.

There was no joy or hatred in these eyes, just curiosity and a bit of unfamiliarity, as if they were looking at a well-known exhibit in a museum.

Although everyone was watching, the old man seemed calm and composed. He stepped out of the carriage alone without the help of others.

Andre Davout, the captain of Egeron's guard, greeted the opponent and then saluted him in an extremely polite manner.

"Marquis de Lafayette, my name is Andre Davout, and I am the captain of your Majesty's personal guard. It is an honor to meet you."

Yes, this gray-haired old man was a legendary figure decades ago. He once became the "Hero of Two Worlds." He was daring in his youth and ran to North America to participate in the American Revolution as a volunteer. Helped Washington defeat the British army and promoted American independence.

Such a brilliant performance brought him great fame. He returned to France and hoped to make a brilliant innovation in this country that was on the verge of bankruptcy. Because of this, after King Louis XVI convened the Estates-General, Although he belonged to the aristocratic class, he personally participated in and led the great revolution that changed the world together with representatives of the third estate.

He had been an ardent Enlightenmentist, a visionary who truly believed that the world could be made a better place and that it should be done as soon as possible. He was also lucky enough to see his dream slowly come true after a series of dramatic events.

Because of his outstanding performance, he became the commander of the Paris National Guard and the person who actually controlled the armed forces of Paris - which also meant that he became one of the most powerful people in the revolutionary regime.

However, the good times did not last long, and his innocent and romantic fantasy was quickly shattered by the cruel reality. He was born in a noble family and enjoyed the social status and wealth that this class brought him. He never thought about living in the motherland. tear it all to pieces,

He just wants a humanitarian constitutional monarchy, a world that can become a better world without paying much price.

The young Marquis had forgotten that after the thousand-year-old old order collapsed, rebuilding the order would inevitably lead to an era of turmoil and bloodshed.

In the early days of the Revolution, France was a constitutional monarchy as hoped by the Marquis de Lafayette, with the king and the National Assembly sharing power. However, neither party was able to resolve the long-standing social conflicts. At the same time, the king was still aggrieved by the loss of power. The various factions in the parliament were fighting each other, making everything even more chaotic.

Chaos means the further disintegration of order, and in the process of the disintegration of order, the revolution will inevitably become radicalized. The poor in Paris are so angry that they are willing to destroy everything, and anyone who refuses to agree with them will be cast aside.

Gradually, people felt that the monarchy had become extremely outdated, and crimes such as the king's escape and betrayal of state secrets made the monarchy even more shaky.

During this period, the Marquis de Lafayette was still trying to safeguard the constitutional monarchy of France that he helped to create. Instead, his ideas became "reactionary" that everyone despised.

In order to protect the king, he ordered the protesting people to open fire on the Champ de Mars, resulting in dozens of deaths. This tragedy discredited him, and he turned from a "hero" to the king's lackey and butcher.

He had to resign as commander of the National Guard and was separated from the core of power.

In 1792, after the Jacobins came to power, he saw that the situation was not good, so he chose to flee the country. From then on, the "revolution" had nothing to do with him. He changed from a revolutionary leader to an exiled aristocrat, the Marquis de Lafayette. , he fled to the Austrian Empire, where he was imprisoned.

Although the days of being imprisoned were not easy, he was lucky enough to escape the bloodiest and most chaotic years. During those years, King Louis XVI, Queen Louis XVI, the Duke of Orleans, Brissot, Danton, and Robespis Well... characters from various factions took turns to be guillotined. If he had not escaped, his name would have been among the names of the victims.

In 1797, when the Directory came to power, the bloody era of liquidation finally came to an end, and he was deported back to France.

However, because he participated in the revolution and then betrayed it, and more importantly, he once fled abroad, his political influence was exhausted, and he no longer had the intention to participate in any major events. He returned to a peaceful life, just Occasionally speaking in the parliament as a member of Parliament reminds people that there is a person like him in the world.

Since then, more than thirty years have passed. The bloody storms of the past have gone far away, and there are not many influential figures left. The people who hate him and those who love him are almost dead. When the young guards see When it came to him, he only looked at the exhibits.

The old Marquis has become accustomed to facing people's looks like this. He knows that his own era has long passed, and he also knows that there is not much left that he can do.

His arrival at the Palace of Fontainebleau today may be the curtain call for his long political career.

But even so, he still hopes that for the rest of his long career, he can try to retain some warmth for this troubled country.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Davout." Faced with Andre's greetings, the old man also responded with corresponding courtesy.

Then, he looked at the young man in front of him carefully and said, "You are full of energy and good. By the way, your last name seems to be the same as that of a certain marshal..."

"That marshal is my uncle, sir," Andre replied.

The Marquis de Lafayette nodded understandingly.

"Then his spirit in heaven will surely be comforted by you."

"I believe so too," Andre replied with pride.

Then, he bowed to the other party again, "Your Majesty is already waiting for you, please come with me..."

"please."

The Marquis did not say any more greetings, but politely followed Andre through the palace and corridors to the meeting hall where Aiglon was.

Normally, when Aigron receives visitors, he always stands proudly in the middle of the hall, waiting for others to pay tribute. However, today when facing a "legendary old man" like Lafayette, his attitude is much more polite and he takes the initiative to greet the guests. He was waiting for him at the gate.

When the old man appeared at the door, the two people's eyes met instantly.

Sure enough, he is already old...Aigron thought to himself.

The young hero is no longer young. He is now seventy-three years old. The ups and downs of his life have worn away his once almost endless energy and enthusiasm. Aigron can no longer see the "hero of two worlds" in him. "The high-spirited and indomitable momentum left was only the boredom after having had enough of everything, and the exhaustion of wanting to rest as soon as possible.

Boredom and exhaustion dominated the second half of his life. In a sense, the disillusioned Marquis de Lafayette died in 1792, and all that was left was a habitually living exhibit of the times. He had no ambitions and He has no motivation and doesn't even want to change many things. He just endlessly repeats the tunes he has said countless times, that's all.

"Nice to meet you, Marquis." After a moment of looking at him, Aigron proactively bowed to the old man, "I wish you good health and a long life."

"Nice to meet you, His Majesty the King of Rome." Marquis Lafayette also expressed due respect to the young man in front of him.

After a brief greeting, Aigron led the Marquis to the center of the hall. At this time, the old Marquis was also constantly looking at Aigron.

Then, he let out a sigh.

"I feel a lot of vitality in you, which is in sharp contrast to the decaying old man like me. Our country really needs new blood. Even when I was as old as you, I didn't have it in you. With this high-spirited spirit...you will definitely be able to accomplish great things."

Although he knew that the other party was deliberately complimenting him, Agron still felt quite comfortable after hearing it - after all, this was Lafayette. When he was 20 years old, he was already volunteering to join the army to participate in the American Revolution and became " Founding Fathers".

"You've given me the award. Compared with the achievements you made at that time, I'm quite inferior." Although he was happy in his heart, Aigron was still modest, "Fortunately, I still have many opportunities to prove myself. I will Use all my talents and energy to make this country stable and prosperous as soon as possible."

"Now the entire country depends on your kindness, and I sincerely hope that you can fulfill your promise." The Marquis of Lafayette agreed with Aigron's words.

Then, he bowed slightly again, as if apologizing to Aigron,

"Even though I have unfortunately been on the opposite side of you, I have no personal ill will towards you. Please forgive me for everything I have done before. I just have to shoulder my responsibilities for this country."

He seemed to be apologizing for "standing up for the Duke of Orleans" before, but as the person involved, Agron understood that he was actually talking about something else.

After Emperor Napoleon came to power, the Marquis de Lafayette did not choose to surrender to the emperor. Instead, he quietly existed in the political arena as a member of Parliament and became a moderate opposition.

At first, he did not participate in any conspiracy against the emperor. After the empire was on the verge of destruction, he believed that Emperor Napoleon could no longer rule the country and that continuing to keep him in office would only lead to the bloodshed of the French. Therefore, he chose to participate in the overthrow. Among the emperor's waves.

After the defeat of Waterloo in 1815, in the Parliament, faced with Lucien Bonaparte's call to continue supporting his brother Napoleon, he stood up as a member of Parliament and declared that the French nation had shed enough blood for Emperor Napoleon and could no longer The bleeding continues.

Faced with the emperor's motion to pass the throne to his son and continue the empire, he and his supporters also opposed it.

It was precisely because of the raging wave of domestic opposition that the emperor, whose situation was over, had to give up any idea of ​​struggle and was willing to become a prisoner of Britain.

It is precisely because of this that Emperor Napoleon never forgot these opponents before his death, and also named Talleyrand, Lafayette and others in his will.

The reason why Marquis Lafayette brought up the past in front of Aiglon was not to beg for mercy from Aiglon, but just to explain his position.

Aiglon really didn't care about this.

"Please rest assured on this point. Although I am not old, I understand the truth, Marquis." Aigron waved his hand gently, indicating that everything in the past was a thing of the past. "I was only a three-year-old child at that time, who Do you have the guts to hand over this capricious country to me? Even if you give it to me, it will not be a blessing for me, but a curse. There will be countless conspirators around me, and there are people who have become accustomed to it. The riots and revolutionary people... All of that is a burden that I cannot bear, so you did nothing wrong. On the contrary, I think you did something good for the country."

Although this is true, the fact that Agron was able to say it so easily also means that he has personally concluded the disputes of that year - which also made Lafayette relieved.

He was not worried about his own safety, but he was afraid that the King of Rome would not let go of the old scores. Now that this young man can look at the problem so objectively and openly, it means that there will be no bloody reckoning in the future. Appeared again.

"It's really rare that you can be so reasonable." He praised Aigron again, "If that series of catastrophic events had not happened, you would have been able to sit on the throne, but now, you have come back on your own. Okay...I guess this is also a kind of training for you."

"Training? I prefer to describe it as an education that has to be endured." Aigron smiled bitterly, "If there is no choice, who is willing to bear the unnecessary training? I just have to go because of fate. Just learning how to take back what I originally deserved... Fortunately, I did it, although I'm still a step away."

"It's only one step away." Lafayette sighed helplessly. "So what else are you going to do until then?"

"There are many things I have to do, but the most important thing is to get the due authorization for my power." Aiglon replied proudly, "Sir, you have supported the Duke of Orleans. Maybe you like his ideas. But you should admit that he is a conspirator. He just tried to steal the throne. He never had the confidence to face the people. But I am different. I will really seek the authorization of the people. I will only go if I get this. To be in power...I have no qualms about that.”