Eagle’s Glory

"I will truly seek the people's authorization. Only when I get this will I take power...I will not waver in this."

Aiglon's words did not surprise Marquis Lafayette, because before coming here, he had already obtained a lot of information from various news channels, and had a general understanding of what this young man wanted to do.

He had mixed feelings about this idea. Of course, he was happy that this young man did not have a domineering and violent style and knew that public opinion was his legitimacy; but he was worried that inciting public opinion was not as easy as imagined.

That will have serious consequences.

“The support of the people is of course very important, but if you blindly use the public opinion of the people as your talisman and please their every capricious idea, it will only leave you at a loss. In the end, what you do will become your own. Guilty."

Although Lafayette only advised Egron calmly, Egron could hear some hidden sadness in it.

What an ironic scene!

A passionate young man who once firmly believed in the Enlightenment and firmly supported the civilian revolution, when he got old, he said in front of himself, "Don't be too accommodating to public opinion." There is no greater disillusionment in idealism than this.

But this is indeed what Lafayette would say.

After experiencing the bloody storm of the Great Revolution, he lost his original vigor and his political views retreated to moderate reformism. He even believed that the general public should not be given excessive power at all to prevent politics from being hijacked by populism. .

In the original history, he supported the coup of the Duke of Orleans, supported him as king, and praised the July Monarchy as "the best political system in the history of France."

Although the July Monarchy was indeed reformist compared to the restored Bourbon dynasty, its total electorate was only 0.6% of the country's citizens, which excluded almost all the general public from politics. Fayet, how can you cheer for this?

The environment can shape people. Everything he experienced made him deny the political ideals he once believed in, and in disguise, he rejected the "hero of two worlds".

The Marquis de Lafayette had died when he escaped from France 36 years ago, and what stood before him now was the phantom, or remnant, he left behind.

But even the residue is useful. Although Lafayette has become humble compared to the past, he still has a reputation, and he can still be considered a progressive in this era.

At least when facing Aigron, he will end up with dignity and will not engage in any political conspiracy - this is enough for Aigron.

"I will keep your warning in mind. I will separate the authorization of public opinion from the rule itself, and I will not accommodate the mob. I am sure that I have enough iron fist to suppress anyone who dares to threaten the regime. I also have a wise mind. Go listen to the opinions of my trusted advisors..." Aigron made this declaration confidently.

Then, he looked at the old man in front of him, and then deliberately slowed down his tone, "Moreover, I will study eagerly to learn all the necessary knowledge and experience, and please feel free to teach me in the future."

Agron deliberately showed a humble posture in front of Lafayette, not that he was afraid that the other party would hinder him - in fact, Lafayette had long lost his political mobility - but that he I deliberately showed an attitude of being open-minded and respectful to my predecessors when I first came to power.

After all, he is still too young now. Even if others bow to him, they may still feel a little grumpy in their hearts. He needs some time to slowly convince everyone that he has the ability to control this huge machine.

And Agron's humble attitude gradually won Lafayette's favor.

As he said before, he had no enmity with the King of Rome. He supported the Duke of Orleans before just because he opposed the Bourbon dynasty and did not want to be a revolutionary party anymore, so this was the only choice.

If Aiglon had jumped out before he made his choice, he wouldn't mind weighing it up temporarily.

Now that the deal is done, he can accept the result.

While he was talking to the young man, he observed him carefully. From Aigron, he felt extremely energetic and eager to try. It was a kind of vigorous vitality, as if it were the same as those bold young people forty years ago. This was something that he could not have and could only do in his dying years. Savored in memories.

From this brief conversation, he believed that this young man should be able to use his abundant energy to lead the country into a new era for at least one generation.

"Today, there are indeed too many old men." Lafayette murmured to himself, "Talleyrand, Noirtier, Soult, Treville... I was talking about these people forty years ago. Names, they are still here forty years later. There is no doubt that they are all talented people, but they are too stagnant. Maybe a young man with strong blood can cheer up this decadent country, which can be regarded as a dose. Good medicine.”

Although Lafayette did not say it explicitly, this was tantamount to hinting to Agron that he would support him on the throne.

"Thank you for your statement. I will make sure that I will live up to your expectations." Aigron nodded slightly, "Then may God wish us good luck."

"May God wish us good luck..." Lafayette also nodded slightly.

Then, his cloudy eyes suddenly regained some brilliance, "If that's the case, then I still have something to ask for..."

"You might as well just say it." Aigron had already guessed what the other party wanted to say, so he remained calm.

"Just a few days ago, I received a notice from Talleyrand saying that the National Guard was to be disbanded. He also told me that this was your order... Is this true?" Lafayette Special question.

"Yes, that's exactly what I meant." Aiglon replied.

"Can you please be accommodating?" Seeing Aiglon admit it so calmly, Lafayette felt a little bad, but he still persisted and continued to ask, "I think that in the current chaotic situation, the citizens of Paris have It is necessary to maintain basic self-defense forces and maintain order in the capital."

"If you need to maintain order in the capital, it is enough to rely on the army and police." Aiglon replied, "I can tell you first, the next commander of the Paris city defense will be General Mippe, he is a courageous, And a wise soldier, he will use an iron fist to deal with any scoundrels who dare to disrupt public order. In addition, he was once the adjutant of Marshal Soult, so he can get the full support of the army and will never allow the capital to appear again. Any shameful turmoil!"

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Eggron's decisive answer made Lafayette hesitate again.

Although he was old, he was not confused. Of course he could hear it. Although the young man seemed to be comforting him, he actually contained a threat.

It is his unshakable will to disband the National Guard, and he is advising himself and others not to take any chances.

But as the commander of the National Guard, he is not alone, but an interest group. The survival of the National Guard is also related to the interests of this group, so he has to continue to fight to see if there can be any change, at least in exchange for A little compromise.

"Your Majesty, I can understand your thoughts. You hate the emergence of an armed citizen organization in Paris." He tried to cheer up, and then continued to argue to Aiglon, "However, under the current circumstances, retaining it is also of great importance. Benefits. In our country, the capital is everything, and unrest in Paris will affect the entire country. King Charles X has hundreds of thousands of troops, but when Paris breaks free from its rule, he will have no choice but to capture him! Your enemies are often Right in the heart of the capital lies those disaffected mobs. I have seen their power, and speaking from historical experience, suppressing the capital is often a task that the regular army is unable to do... So, if you can retain a force in the capital, If it belongs to the armed forces of the propertied people, then it can at least divide the Parisians and allow you to rely on it to solve those sudden riots..."

After the outbreak of the Revolution in 1789, the people of Paris formed the National Guard to resist the suppression of the royal army, and Lafayette became the commander of the National Guard; and during the revolution of 1830, the Parisians once again formed the National Guard. He was elected commander again.

History has reincarnated, but it has changed beyond recognition.

In the last time, the main members of the National Guard were lower-class citizens and sans-culottes full of revolutionary passion. They promoted the revolution, defended the revolution, and finally kidnapped the revolution. In the end, any politician who dared not be radical enough would be killed by them. But this time, Lafayette and others learned their lesson. They deliberately let wealthy citizens, petty bourgeois, businessmen, nobles and other upper-class members of society control this citizen army and turned it into a property-owning army. It has also changed from a revolutionary tool to an armed force for property-owning citizens to suppress the proletarian revolution.

Lafayette learned the "lesson" from the last time, so he did it deliberately, and his warning was not only out of consideration for the interests of his own group, but indeed out of some concern in his heart .

He has become the man he once despised, fearing mob revolution even more than tyrants, and that is why he is so determined to keep this National Guard alive.

However, in the face of his earnest advice, Aigron did not give in and still insisted on his opinion.

"Sir, I admit that what you say makes sense, but it is also obvious that I am not afraid of taking responsibility. I do not need to allow the capital to have an armed force with its own ideas in order to prevent a revolution... No! Arms should It's in my hands, and only in my hands." Aigron looked at the other party calmly but firmly, "I do what I need to do, with the authorization of the people as the will of the people. I bear all responsibilities and will not be subject to At the mercy of others. Since the poor cannot become a mob to threaten me, and the rich cannot form their own armed forces to blackmail me, I dare to face each of my people on my own, and will bear all praise and criticism, if it is true If there is a revolution waiting for me in the future, then I will bravely suppress it myself instead of hiding under the so-called protection of some citizens! If I really degenerate to this point, then I might as well collapse! "

The Marquis de Lafayette listened quietly, he already understood.

Although this young man was very polite to him, it was just a politeness, an attitude of respect. On key issues, he was stubborn and had no intention of giving in.

Unless you can use your strength to force him to make concessions, it's useless to say anything.

But what strength do you have now to force him? The situation was established, and there wasn't much he could do - and he didn't want to cause any more turmoil.

"You are indeed an emperor..." After being silent for a long time, he finally smiled bitterly. "You destroyed the last of my legacy."

"You still have a lot of legacy." Aigron replied casually, "For example..."

Like what's going on? Aigron was stunned for a moment.

The life of the Marquis de Lafayette was a life of great fame but few achievements. He was famous but seemed to have never really accomplished anything... Of course, it was limited to his motherland.

"For example, your sincere love for the country and your eternal pursuit of human welfare are all things I must inherit and learn from."

Finally, Aigron was smart and managed to smooth things over after a moment.

Of course the old man saw his pause, but what could he say? I can only smile bitterly.

"Then can you promise me that you will never pursue the previous unfortunate incident?" Finally, he asked with a hint of pleading.

In the previous "revolution", Lafayette's National Guard teamed up with the Duke of Orleans to besiege the palace, causing a lot of bloodshed, and even robberies and riots. If Aiglon intends to purge all dissidents, he will use these incidents to make a big impact. If he makes a fuss, many people will certainly be charged with serious crimes, which is what his subordinates are worried about.

"I can personally promise in front of you that I will never hold accountable your subordinates for what they did before." Aigron was generous about this, and he immediately promised, "Logically speaking, they drove away the false king. Hero, even if some unfortunate events were caused by this, it was just an unintentional mistake... Now, this is the past, now is the period of reconciliation and forgetfulness, we should not mention these past events again. "

"Forgetting is indeed a good medicine." Lafayette nodded.

Although he didn't get Aigron's concession, ensuring that he wouldn't liquidate was the last bit of comfort.

"Since you insist on disbanding the National Guard, we have no choice but to do it." After a pause, he accepted Aigron's will, but looked at the young man unwillingly, "But Your Majesty, you said you will bear everything If you have made any mistakes, I will also tell you the truth."

Lafayette has been in opposition for decades, and he will continue to be in opposition.

But it doesn't matter to Aigron. Historically, he died in 1834. For an old man with only four years left to live, why bother with him so much? He couldn't change anything anyway.

On the contrary, he felt a little pity for this dying old fossil.

"You are free to do whatever you want, sir. I tolerate constructive criticism, always have."