Eagle’s Glory

While the Archduke Carl and his wife were worried about their daughter, the former Queen Louisa, whom they called "a mother worse than her mother-in-law," was also thinking tangledly in her palace in the Principality of Parma.

Although Parma is only a small principality located in a corner, and news has never circulated much, news of changes in the French political situation has already spread here.

Now, people here already know that the King of Rome has returned to Paris and is about to sit on the throne that originally belonged to him.

As Aiglon's mother, she should have been cheering and excited about this event, but the various jokes played on her by history cast a shadow over the originally joyful event.

In 1814, when the French Empire was facing the crisis of collapse, she fled France with her son and returned to her natal Austria. Then on the way, she fell in love with Count Nepperg, who was responsible for protecting her along the way. Then the two became lovers. They got along until 1821, when news of Emperor Napoleon's death reached the European continent, and they got married immediately.

During this marriage, she gave birth to two children, a boy and a girl. Her actions permanently broke the relationship between her and her son.

She left her son in Schonbrunn Palace for upbringing (care), and then ruled the small principality given to her by her father in Parma, enjoying her new family life. Aiglon, who grew up in loneliness, naturally did not take care of her. She treats her like a mother, and the two of them are almost strangers.

So this time, despite the historic victory, her son didn't even bother to send someone to inform him and share his joy, and Louisa was deliberately forgotten.

This is not only due to personal emotional alienation, but also due to political considerations.

There is no precedent in the history of French monarchs for the Queen Mother to remarry (there are queens who have divorced and remarried), so for the Bonaparte family, how to treat Louisa is a very difficult problem.

If she appeared in front of her son or his subjects, she would never get cheers, only silence and embarrassment, and no one would treat her like the Queen Mother.

Therefore, the wisest approach is to stay away and avoid talking about it, as if it does not exist.

Of course Louisa also understood this, so she never made any statement on Aigron's matter in public. She also deliberately made the world forget about herself, so as not to embarrass everyone.

A mother's greatest contribution to her son is silence. It sounds ironic but it is also reality.

It is of course impossible to say that there is no sadness in my heart.

Louisa had been the queen of France for a few years, and even briefly served as regent when Emperor Napoleon went to Russia. She had tasted the taste of holding a scepter, Versailles, Fontainebleau, Tuileries, the Louvre... …These magnificent palaces once belonged to her. Now it has only been more than ten years since she fled France in a hurry. How could she have completely forgotten the glorious scene back then?

But she knew very well that even if her son sat on the throne, those memories of the past were destined to be impossible to come back. She could no longer wait for a palace carriage to take her back to Paris, and could only spend the rest of her life in Parma.

Of course, she had already been mentally prepared for all this, so she was able to accept such an outcome. Her ups and downs life had now reached middle age, and she had nothing to look forward to.

If there was anything she couldn't let go of, it was the pair of children she had left by her side.

In 1829, Count Nepeg, who had been terminally ill, passed away suddenly. Louisa sent her husband away and became a widow for the second time. Before his death, the Count said on his bed that he was lucky enough to marry the eldest princess of the empire in this life. Lian Li had no regrets in this life, except that he asked his wife to take good care of his two children, and Louisa agreed with tears.

However, it's not that easy.

Although Count Neipeg is a noble, he is not a royal family after all. Louisa's marriage to the earl is still a miscegenation, and it is impossible for her children to enjoy the royal title (the old emperor deliberately forgot that Napoleon's origin was actually lower than Count Neppe).

Moreover, because of this, Louisa's children were also deprived of the right to inherit the Duchy of Parma. The Austrian Empire and the Bourbon Royal Family of the Two Sicilies signed an agreement, agreeing to hand over the throne of the Duchy of Parma to the Bourbon family after Louisa's death.

In other words, the two children of Louisa and Earl of Naiperg, as well as their descendants, will have neither royal titles nor an inch of land in the future. They can only continue to use the title of "Count of Naiperg", and they can only return to Go to the Austrian Empire and live as an ordinary noble.

Of course, Queen Louisa didn't want her two children to end up in such a situation, so when Count Neipeg was still alive, the couple actively participated in the court and made connections. After Aigron escaped from Austria, the couple One of them also secretly helped Aigron and funded his activities in Greece. There was only one condition in exchange: once Aigron got his long-cherished wish and ascended the throne, he would help support his younger brothers and sisters.

For Louisa and his wife, if they can let their two children live in the French court with a status similar to that of a clan, their future will naturally be much better than simply being the "Count of Naipegg".

Although Aigron had always been resentful of his mother, in business matters, he would not let his emotions affect his judgment, so after weighing the situation, he agreed to his mother's request.

Now, Aigron has truly realized his original dream, and his promise will naturally come into effect.

Louisa knew that she would not return to France, and would never have the chance to appear in front of the French people, but her two children were different. They had no dark history, and no one would really embarrass them. ——Didn’t Emperor Napoleon himself have an illegitimate child?

Because of her understanding of Aigron, she also believed that he would fulfill his promise. After all, these two children had no foundation, their interests were completely consistent with his, and they could only be attached to and loyal to him. He definitely needed this kind of confidant.

So Louisa made up her mind to write a letter to Aiglon. In the letter, she would compliment him on his victory, and she would never mention her past events or her next arrangements, but only make a sincere request to him. Fulfill the previous promise and ensure that these two children will always respect him, obey him and become his assistants.

After the letter was written, she called the two children, Amberdine and William, over.

Amberdine is now 13 years old. Girls have always developed precociously, and her father has passed away, so she already looks a bit more stable than an adult. However, William, who is only 11 years old, is more like a child and has a focused attention. Not very focused.

However, because these two children have received very strict education since childhood, they behave well and have a bit of royal style. Louisa is confident that they will never lose face even if they are in the French court in the future.

Of course, on the surface, Louisa still had a straight face and looked at the two children seriously.

"Children, I have written a letter to the King of Rome. If nothing unexpected happens, he will reply to me after receiving the letter and allow you to enter France. From that time on, I will not stay with you. I'm with you, but you must remember what I taught you, because it is very important to you. If you don't want to disappoint me, and you don't want to disappoint your father's spirit in heaven, then you must do it well, do you understand?"

Facing their mother's stern expression, the two children were frightened, but they still nodded.

Seeing the two children so well-behaved and sensible, Louisa was quite pleased.

Ever since they reached a secret agreement with Aigron, she and her late husband have been instilling in her sister and brother for the past two years that "your brother is your future support, and you must respect him and obey him, so that you can have a future." Consciously, in this subtle way, these two children who lost their father did subconsciously regard Aigron as a guidepost for the rest of their lives.

Of course, this is also because Aigron is indeed "promising" and has achieved such great achievements at a young age. Children all worship heroes. Under the conscious guidance of their parents, it is indeed true that they regard their elder brother as a god. Not surprising.

"Remember, although you are indeed somewhat related by blood, you must never really call yourself his sister or brother. You must know that many people will hate you because you block their way... so you should call him your Majesty more often. Everything is subject to his orders, and you must believe that since he has promised to take care of you, then you can just follow the path he has designated for you, and he will not harm you."

Louisa continued to teach her children, "Also, the relationship between Your Majesty and I can be bridged thanks to the help of Princess Theresa. She is compassionate and values ​​family and blood relations. When you arrive in France, You have no relatives. Apart from Your Majesty, she is your biggest supporter. You must firmly flatter Princess Teresa and do whatever she asks you to do. Remember!"

"Mom, what if there is a conflict between Princess Theresa and His Majesty? Who should I listen to?" Amberdine asked after hesitating for a moment, and then felt a little embarrassed. "Maybe I'm thinking too much..."

Louisa was not irritated by this question. On the contrary, she found that this young daughter seemed to be much more perceptive than she thought.

However, judging from the last time she received the couple, they had a deep relationship, especially Theresa was so obsessed with Agron, so how could there be any conflict between them.

"Of course your brother is the priority." She replied calmly, "Never try to offend him, otherwise it will be difficult for you to be forgiven."

Both children nodded in understanding, indicating that they had remembered their mother's warning.

"Mom, we don't have to be in such a hurry..." After a moment of silence, Amberdine spoke carefully again, "We are still young and can't help much. If we just go there like this, I'm afraid we will be raped. Disgusting...Besides, what will you do if we all leave? It would be too lonely for you to be alone here."

Her daughter's tender words made Louisa feel sad, and then she smiled bitterly.

"Silly boy, you are having such a good time here with us! What kind of place do you think the palace is? It is a place where desires flow, full of jealousy and slander. If you don't rush over there as soon as possible and save a place next to your brother. , in a few years the positions you should have will be taken by others, what's the use of you even if you pass? And it's better to be younger, so that he won't be wary, let you use the cleanest resume Go and walk on the road paved by him..."

At this point, Louisa couldn't help but sigh again.

People tend to be nostalgic when they get older, and she is no exception. When she had just lost her husband, the children under her knees were already her biggest spiritual support. If it were not for their future, she would How could you be willing to send them all to a foreign country?

"After you go there, if you have any questions, just write to me. Although I can't go there now, I can still give you a lot of advice. But no matter how much you miss me, don't easily ask him to come back to see me; etc. Come and see me every year after you become adults. I hope that by then you will have grown up to be smart and reliable people and become your brother's helpers..."

The mother's expectations for her children are also fully revealed in these indifferent words.

There was no possibility of repairing her relationship with her eldest son. Even if Princess Teresa came to negotiate an agreement, it could only stay at this point - she did not dare to hope that it could go any further.

Now, because she was asking for help from him, Louisa had to lower her head and speak softly to her son, but in her heart, she also felt a lot of helplessness and bitterness.

Her fate was indeed bizarre and tortuous. She became the Queen of the French Empire unwillingly. She had already accepted this fate, but a sudden turn made her lose it all. She struggled to accept the reality and tried to rebuild herself. life, but now new twists and turns lie helplessly in front of me.

If nothing happened, maybe she was already the empress dowager of the empire, so why should she worry about this little Parma anymore?

That's all, what's the point of thinking about this now? Everything that has been lost will never come back.

She went to France alone at first, and now she is alone again, with two husbands and three children, but she seems to never be able to get rid of loneliness. Maybe this is her destined destiny.

The last time mother and son met was almost two years ago. When will the next mother and son meet? Maybe there will never be a chance...

"I wish you good luck, Your Majesty." She slightly bent her knees facing the void, and then put on the black veil belonging to the widow again, covering her face under the blurry black mist.