I Am Louis XIV

Mr. Nicolas Fouquet can be said to be proud of his spring breeze now. Although Bishop Mazarin is his benefactor, it is also a huge rock on his head. He is glad that he was out of fear of Bishop Mazarin when the king was seriously ill. He didn't choose to stand on the side of his younger brother Philip clearly. When the king returned to Paris, this villain who was actually very easy to turn the steering wheel took this prudence as his credit. When the bishop was dying, he He was full of joy, because he didn't think there was anyone who could surpass him and be more qualified to be the heir of the Bishop, even that Colbert, although he was highly valued by the king, his birth was his biggest weakness. The arrogant nobles would never allow the son of a traveling merchant to be one of them.

He also noticed that the king was not very happy recently, but he was so rare that he didn't even think about the reason, but wanted to show courteousness to the young king to make him happy. Maybe when the king was happy, he would appoint him as the What about the new prime minister?

Fouquet had such an idea, so he sent an invitation to the king without hesitation after a meeting before the imperial court. What he didn't see was the unimaginable look in his younger brother Philip's eyes. "It's just that I was dazzled by selfish desires," Louis said. .

"Then are you going?"

"Why not?" Louis said, "I'm also curious about the Vaux-le-Vicomte castle, which has been praised so much."

They set off at dusk, and arrived at the castle of Vaux-le-Vicomte in the dark of the sky. On the road that turned from the road to the castle, there were servants at intervals holding silver candle holders, snow-white. The golden flame flickered at the end of the candle, illuminating the unhappy face of the road and the king's brother, but Louis remained calm, and the lights in front of the castle were even brighter. Countless torches turned the geometrically symmetrical courtyard into a During the daytime, the king's carriage drove straight in, and Mr. Fouquet proudly greeted him at the door. Compared with the king's dull dark coat, the red coat intertwined with gold thread and embellished with diamonds in his red coat looked like a bird under the firelight. The flamboyant bird, the younger brother Philip almost pouted, because of Louis, he was wearing a silver-gray coat today. Although the value of this coat may not be inferior to Fouquet's, it is obviously inferior in color .

Seeing the black coat on the king, Fouquet was slightly taken aback, a vague feeling arose in his heart, maybe he did something wrong, but soon, the nobles who surrounded him made him have to throw away this doubt in the back of the head.

There are three designers in the castle of Vaux-le-Vicomte, one is in charge of architecture, one is in charge of decoration, and the other is in charge of gardens. It can be said that they are all talented people. It is no wonder that people are envious of Nicolas Fouquet's new residence. Even in the dark night, the quartz mixed with the golden flower marble used in this building is still shining brightly. Exquisite marble statues, human heads and garlands can be seen everywhere. Entering the mansion, the ceiling is full of colorful flowers. Murals, velvet curtains with gold and silver tassels, walnut or oak wall panels and silk wall coverings, according to people's preferences at the time, use gorgeous acanthus leaf decorations, swirls, floral decorations, and mysterious biological patterns.

In the spacious dining room, the long table is covered with white linen, gold plates and silver dishes, glasses or utensils are neatly arranged together like soldiers, and everything has been wiped so that it can be seen that you can pick it up One piece, you can see the emblem of the Fouquet family engraved on it, that is, a squirrel (the squirrel is pronounced Fouquet in the Anjou dialect), and there is a Latin sentence below the squirrel: "I will not climb any high branches. "

Of course the king could understand it, but he put down the plate with just a glance. No one noticed except the king's brother. Fouquet ordered the servants to open the curtain leading to the rear courtyard from the dining room, so that they could see through the huge landing. The doors and windows can directly see the garden, but today there are not only flowers and trees here, but also Mr. Molière’s Glorious Theater Troupe. He originally wanted to win the king’s favor through the introduction of the Duchess of Montpensier or the Count of d’Artagnan. Knowing that since he came to Paris, Paris has not been peaceful, and then the king went to Dunkirk, he was even more useless, but fortunately some of his satirical dramas caught the appetite of Parisians, so he gained Nicolas Fouquet's attention, and was hired to perform for the king.

It would certainly be pleasant to be able to enjoy a sumptuous meal while watching an interesting drama. Not only the king, but even the people invited by Mr. Fouquet today, whether they are his enemies or his friends, could not help but smile. There were displeasure on the countenances of austere men—among them the Prince de Condé and his friend the Vicomte de Turenne.

The king didn't pay attention to Molière's drama. His eyes were not so much angry as he was always guessing. He steadily ate from the first course to the thirteenth course. It was already early morning, even if Even sitting and eating, people couldn't help feeling tired. At this time, the sky was as black as ink. Seeing this, Fouquet gave a signal to the servants. The servants rushed to inform Molière, so they beat the leather drums fiercely and blew The sound of the horn woke up the drowsy guests, and then they were invited by Fouquet to the heights of the castle to enjoy a firework show like flying flowers and meteors.

Fouquet did his best for tonight's banquet. Everyone could see that he was trying to please the king. Unfortunately, the king didn't make any hints even when he was parting. Some people couldn't help laughing secretly.

As soon as Louis returned to the carriage, he immediately leaned on the soft cushion. He was cursed and poisoned before, and although he has recovered, his body will still be weak for a while. Anyway, there is only his younger brother Philip on the carriage. He is in front of his younger brother. There was nothing to hide, Philip immediately took off the cloak on his body and covered his brother, the cloak was still warm with him, Louis sighed a long time, feeling much more comfortable - the carriage was shaking regularly, the king was standing on the window After the firelight reflected on the glass finally disappeared, he opened his eyes: "Philip, do you still remember what I asked Fouquet to do when we were welcoming the former Queen of Sweden, Christina, and how he betrayed my trust?" ?"

"Of course I remember, Your Majesty," Philip said. "He is a man of audacity." Remembering what they had seen a few minutes ago, the Duke of Orleans hissed in disgust. "It seems that he has done more than that."

"Then you should be happier now," said Louie, "for he will soon have his comeuppance."

The younger brother Philip immediately understood what the king meant after a short pause. When he smiled, Louis curled his fingers and tapped on the carriage, and a musketeer immediately rode close to the king: "Your Majesty..."

"When you get back to Paris, call the Count d'Artagnan to my room."

The musketeer galloped away immediately, and Count D'Artagnan got up and set out immediately after hearing the order. When he arrived at the Louvre, the king's carriage drove into the street ahead.

The king met Count d'Artagnan in the small drawing room outside the bedroom, "I want you to arrest a man."

"Speak, Your Majesty."

"Nicolas Fouquet. My financial director."

"Give me three hours, my lord," said d'Artagnan, "and you will see him in your prison tomorrow morning."

"I believe." Louis said, and when d'Artagnan stepped back and left, he heard the king still instructing Bontang to prepare a credible list of judges. His jury is also ready.

How horrified Mr. Nicolas Fouquet is, neither Louis nor we will care about it. Louis has been stranded in the other world for more than a quarter. Although there is Mr. Bishop Mazarin, his legacy affairs are still piled up. After returning to the embrace of God, the king who decided not to set up the position of prime minister will inevitably face countless complicated tasks while he is monopolizing power. He is almost busy every day until ten o'clock in the evening before falling asleep and getting up at five o'clock in the morning ——He almost wanted to cancel the daily morning prayer, but thinking of the church in Rome and the monks around him, the king could only regard it as an important job.

Of course, the queen mother is very clear about this, but some things are urgent. I saw a document in Louis - a few months ago, the bishop shelved an unbelievable proposal. After the death of King III, some people deliberately urged the French king to compete for this glorious throne, but even the bishop, who had unlimited expectations for Louis, was not moved at all—if it was during the time of the handsome Philip IV, that is, the Roman Church It may still be possible to lament the shame of Avignon today, but now, either France's wealth can impress those greedy electors, or the French army can go straight into Rome, or don't expect the election of the Holy Roman Empire. The emperors would allow people from outside the peninsula to claim the throne, but it is being brought up again today because the new Holy Roman Emperor, Leopold, the eldest son of Ferdinand III, is now Leopold I , is competing with Louis for the same bride.

For kings and emperors, their marriage is destined to sacrifice for the country. Before Louis was assassinated, Mr. Bishop was preparing for his marriage. This may be when the accident happened, Mary thought without thinking. As the niece of Bishop Mazaran, she must know a lot because of restricting Louis with a blood oath marriage contract. Being able to avoid a major crisis does not mean that he is willing to forgive Mancini, whether it is the family or Mary—since what Mary wants is marriage and children, then Louis will give her. I only hope that when her long-cherished wish is fulfilled, she can safely accept the subsequent backlash.

Shaking his head lightly, Louis left Mancini and Li Shijie behind. Bishop Mazaran won two possible engagements for him before his death, one from the Principality of Savoy and one from Spain.

The Principality of Savoy is a small country, located on the south side of France, but it can be said to be the gateway to the Paris Basin, so of course its princess can also be selected as Louis' wife. As for Spain, Louis' mother was born in Spain, and the Spanish princess Mary Teresa and Louis are double cousins. Louis' father, Louis XIII, is the elder brother of Teresa's mother Elizabeth, and Teresa's father is the younger brother of Queen Mother Anne. Such a relationship makes Louis a headache. If possible, he Will not put Teresa in his wife candidate list, but the meaning of the queen mother and important ministers is infinitely inclined to Spain instead of Savoy. After all, Savoy can be said to be a vassal of France, and although Spain is the enemy of France, but this status has shown that they are evenly matched.

After the Thirty Years' War, and the civil war France and Spain had provoked against each other, both were tired, and it was time for marriage, but Leopold I of the Holy Roman Empire was also a good one. He is two years younger than Louis and is better at controlling, but it is said that he is also an ambitious person. However, no one who can sit in this position will be a kind person. Louis is thinking about how to turn Spain around. Philip's idea, while signing Nicolas Fouquet's verdict.

Nicolas Fouquet may indeed have stolen a lot of money from the country and the king, but the money now belongs to the king. Although it cannot be compared with Bishop Mazarin, it is still enough for the king to arm an army he wants. The army, for which the king is willing to give him a chance, he will be imprisoned forever, but will not be executed.

Now that the decision has been made, Mr. Fouquet has become a darkened name in the king's heart. There are not many such names now, but there will be more and more in the future—the king mentioned his marriage in the At the front, I went to see the queen mother, but unexpectedly the queen mother told the king with a smile that she had a wonderful method for this matter.

The Queen Mother is not like Bishop Mazaran, she is a natural political animal, but she is the sister of the current King Philip IV of Spain anyway, and she may know him better than anyone else, and even if her method fails France was not harmed, so Louis's portrait was sent to the Duchy of Savoy the next day. At this time, such an act was tantamount to saying that a marriage contract was about to be concluded.

Of course, Philip IV was very anxious about this, and he repeatedly urged Leopold I to give a clear answer, but at this time Leopold I was being overwhelmed by the attack from Sweden and the rebellion in Hungary. He couldn't even take time to think about marriage, which disappointed Philip IV.

So, Philip IV's daughter, Marie Teresa became Louis' wife after all.