I Am Louis XIV

Amsterdam in 1672 was the first monument erected by the Sun King during his long and glorious journey.

Louis XIV had kept his word, and the French soldiers, with their purses full of gold and silver, were as content as their king, and eager to return to Paris—the defense of Holland would be taken up by Captain Vauban, For this young man, this is a great challenge and reward—although I have talked to Viscount Turenne before, the ruling of the three Dutch provinces in France will be held by Viscount Turenne, but Viscount Turenne must first discuss with the king. Back to Paris together, at the triumphal ceremony and the celebration banquet, he will be the closest minister to the king, half of it comes from the sincerity of Louis XIV, and the other half comes from the needs of the future, after all, Viscount Turenne will stay in the Netherlands For several years, and during these years, the king would devolve to him, as in Lorraine and Alsace, to Duke Philip, so that he could face the inevitable intrigues and rebellions with ease.

The king must drive his trust and respect for Viscount Turenne into people's hearts like nails into wood, so as to avoid the suspicion and fear between the monarch and his subjects, otherwise the three provinces of the Netherlands can only be said to be a crisis that may explode at any time. powder keg. Viscount Turenne knew the king's intentions very well, so on the way back to Paris with the king, he appeared by the king's side more frequently than Madame La Vallière. Madame La Vallière once, She even jokingly said that she should give up her title of first lady of the royal family - this made everyone present laugh out loud, but objectively speaking, although such behavior is excessive, the effect is obvious. The number of Dutch merchants and parliamentarians of the Viscount Turenne is almost equal to that of Mrs. La Vallière.

"How many people came to visit you today?" During dinner, the king asked Viscount Turenne like this. Viscount Turenne quickly put down his knife and fork, bowed politely, and said, "Nine."

"Then I win," Madame Lavallière said with a pleasant smile, "I have twelve here."

"How dare the fireflies compete with the moonlight?" Viscount Turenne complimented without losing the opportunity.

"But I remember that the Viscount Turenne won two days ago." Louis said, "Aside from buying back the shares of the East India Company and the West India Company, what other demands do they have?"

"It's still a cliché," Viscount Turenne said contemptuously. "These merchants may think that even the Netherlands can buy them back. They want ships—the ones we captured from the North Sea naval battle, as well as shipping routes and charter certificates." Wait, by the way, Your Majesty, there is an emissary from New Amsterdam, where the governor Peter Stewiesan is willing to offer his loyalty to you, but on the contrary, he hopes to continue to keep his position and power."

"Didn't he dedicate New Amsterdam to the Duke of York in '64?"

"He took it back after the Breda treaty [the Second Anglo-Dutch War], so now New Amsterdam is New Amsterdam, not New York."

"Oh, I remembered. Those Dutch MPs wanted to go to New Amsterdam. I didn't delve into it at the time. It seems that it is true. The Governor seems to have his own plan." Louis gestured slightly, The waiter on one side took away the plate in front of him and brought a fresh and tender roast lamb, which was one of the king's favorite meals. He poured mushroom sauce on it and said casually: "A foreigner China, maybe that's what he planned, and yes, I've heard that there are also some Dutch people who have set up a provisional government at the Cape of Good Hope."

"If you allow this emissary to come and see you..."

"No," Louis said dully, "I'm really fed up with merchants, especially Dutch merchants," he said, "money has given them too many illusions, and now is the time to break them, Viscount Sir, you don't need to give the envoy any answer. When we return to Paris, the envoy of Charles II should have been waiting for a long time, and perhaps the envoy of Austria, Denmark or Brandenburg-of course, the latter depends on When will the Duke of Luxembourg and the Prince of Condé be able to make them change their minds."

"As far as I know, His Royal Highness and the Duke can handle it well." Viscount Turenne said, this is not a lie. Louis XIV's army was like a thunderous blow, which not only destroyed the psychological and physical defenses of the Dutch, but also let Leo The alliance of Bod I was caught in a dilemma - if they gave up their original plan, all the money they had spent on this war would be in vain, but if they sent troops, then they would have to face almost unscathed The 90,000 French troops did not even go deep into the Netherlands, but stuck to the border between the Netherlands and the Holy Roman Empire, just to prevent the coalition forces from attacking them-they are moving now, but judging by the number and momentum, it is obvious that they are all trying Sexually, I just want to confirm whether the French army is pretending to be strong.

But they must be very disappointed. Louis never thought that only by stationing troops in every city represented the complete conquest of the Netherlands. Only by pinching his fingers tightly can he fight out, and only when the troops are not scattered can they form a deterrent. They will definitely be met head-on. Bash.

Not to mention the present, even in the future, regarding the three provinces of the Netherlands that Viscount Turenne is about to manage, the king also believes that the power should be concentrated on the most critical cities, instead of paying attention to every place and everyone. Let them fight each other—it's not that Louis despises the Dutch. Since they are all businessmen, the best way to rule is to use interests to impress and divide them.

You know, when Louis went to war against the Netherlands, some Dutch people were complaining that because the Dutch government was too tough, the King of France imposed excessive taxes on Dutch goods, which affected their business, although it sounds ridiculous ——They don't seem to understand what war is, but this is not bad news for Louis.

Louis is planning to implement different taxation systems in the three provinces of the Netherlands, including Flanders, according to regions and cities. Cities and provinces that are willing to submit to Louis XIV will receive preferential treatment, but those places and people who complain and hate will have to taste Homemade bitters.

"Businessmen are really disgusting things," Louis said as if talking to himself, "but in the face of power and interests, they are a very useful tool."

Viscount Turenne and Madame Lavallière glanced at each other. The king often lost his mind when he was eating or chatting. It was not a rare thing. Madame Lavalier took a pan fried Salmon to the king, interrupting his thoughts, "Thank you, ma'am," Louis said, and then resumed the previous topic: "Mr. Viscount, you know, we already have Nova Scotia and Quebec, so you think, Which part should we lean towards in negotiations?"

"Are you talking about the Dutch colonies? Your Majesty." After receiving a positive nod, Viscount Turenne drew a picture on the map in his mind, and then counted carefully: "The first Dutch colony is In Batavia, then they went west from Batavia to occupy Sumatra Island, and later they took the Spice Islands from Portugal, Malacca and Sidulan were also owned by them, and it is said that there are some islands in the Far East, You mentioned the Cape of Good Hope before, and the New Netherland area, which is New Amsterdam, and by the way, they also got some small islands in South America."

"If you want to seek wealth," Viscount Turenne said, "then there is no doubt that the Spice Islands, Malacca, and Cidulan are the real treasure houses." Mr. Viscount spoke slowly, peeping The look of the king, his understanding of the colony still comes from his uncle, Prince Maurice. In fact, the kings of Europa are not so keen on the colony at this time. What they are looking for is still Europa and the route that can bring gold and silver. , but out of the sensitivity of a soldier and a politician, Viscount Turenne hesitated for a while, and then said: "My personal opinion, Your Majesty, may not be mature, but I think we should continue to seek Ameri Plus... as far as I know, it's a pretty vast territory."

"...You are quite right, except for one thing," said the king after a few seconds of silence: "Monsieur Viscount, the problem lies in its astonishing spaciousness, sir, we don't have that many people."

Viscount Turenne sighed after hearing the words: "You are right." Indeed, according to the king's census data three years ago, France has only 20 million people so far. The area may be as large as sixty-two Frances. Even if the population is all invested in America, it will be as sparse as the peppercorns sprinkled in the soup by the stingy hostess. Viscount Turenne continued to sigh regretfully: "But Your thoughts are still precious," he heard the king say: "I will write them down in my little book."

"It's a great honor," Viscount Turenne said, "Also, Your Majesty, it's time for you to dine, your fish is almost cold."

"You are right, any act of wasting food is unforgivable." Louis said, he looked at Mrs. Lavallière beside him. When they were talking, Mrs. Lavalier did not move her plate. The fish in the fish: "Don't wait for us next time, you know, madam, men are always careless," he said, holding out his hand, pouring a little lemon juice for Madame La Vallière before frying the fish. superior.

Madame La Vallière is happy to enjoy the king's courteous service, which used to belong to the queen or queen mother. Her silver fork pierced the crispy fish skin and pierced the soft fish meat. She lifted the fork When waking up, the first thing she smelled was a strong sour smell, and then the peculiar fishy smell of fish, which indicated that the delicious taste was coming, she thought so, but her stomach turned violently at the next moment— ——She stood up from the chair at an almost unstoppable speed, and quickly disappeared from the sight of the king and Viscount Turenne.

Both Louis and Viscount Turenne had wives and children. Since Mrs. La Vallière seemed to be in good health recently, and Viscount Turenne remembered that the lady had conceived several times before, so he immediately guessed Mrs. La Vallière may be pregnant. She has been with the king for several months, and there is no queen or other women around the king.

Sure enough, after examining and inquiring about Mrs. Lavalier's recent condition, the imperial doctor can basically confirm that Mrs. Lavalier is pregnant. This is good news. The king and Lavalier Mrs. Er gave him generous rewards, but after a while, another imperial doctor specially summoned by the king broke the illusion of tenderness—it was Valo Vesalius who came.

Varo Vesalius is not only a doctor valued by the king, an alchemist and a potion master, he is also a wizard. Under his command, there are witch potion squads ranging from twelve to twenty-four people. , to be loyal to the king, and to serve him——as a person who has cooperated with him several times, Mrs. La Vallière is very clear.

Madame Lavallière's hot body, which was so excited about her pregnancy before, suddenly cooled down, especially her heart, which was so cold that it seemed to be freezing. She looked at the king pleadingly. The king was gentle but Resolutely pulled out his hand: "Ma'am," he said, "You promised me."

"Your Majesty...you can't..."

"I will keep my promise, madam, and you shall keep yours," said the King.

"This is our child."

"As long as it's not a werewolf, it doesn't matter if it's male or female, it can get what I promise," Louis said, looking into Madame La Vallière's eyes. for his punishment."

"His Majesty!"

"They'll take good care of you, ma'am, until the baby is born." Louis said, "Now, though you're a werewolf, let's pray to God together."

—————

Varo Vesalius has witnessed all of this, including Madame La Vallière's madness and grief after the illusion was shattered, he can no longer say that the king is wrong, since he became the king's physician, he has seen too much This kind of tragicomedy also deeply understands what kind of person Louis XIV is...or, in other words, what kind of existence a perfect king should be. Personal emotions can never affect the king's political, military or political achievements. Decision-making - his concession to Mrs. La Vallière is also because after having won the victory over Flanders and the Netherlands, in case there are some emergencies that are not good for the king, the same is true for this majesty Reasons that might keep it firmly under control.

Mrs. La Vallière would not be ignorant. She could only say that she still had a glimmer of hope. It was the gentleness and enthusiasm of the king in the past few months that gave her the illusion, but the king's meaning was very clear. He always remembered his relationship with him. Madame Lavallière's promise.

Vesalius shook his head. He went back to his room, sat down on the desk, opened the drawer, and took out the portraits of his wife and daughter. The king is always tolerant to useful people, and their portraits are sent to him every year. In the world, his wife has become more and more reclusive because of her unfading appearance, and his eldest daughter has become the Marquise of Montespan, with a son and a daughter.

He is a grandfather.