I Am Louis XIV

Rembrandt's "Night Watch" was completed more than 20 years ago. Captain Banning Coker, the Dutch archer captain, accidentally saw Rembrandt's portrait of a businessman and his wife, the famous Ans. He admired the portrait of Mr. and Mrs. Luo quite a lot and decided to invite the painter to paint portraits of himself and his team members.

In the captain's imagination, he should see a huge portrait. He and his team members looked proud, sitting around a round table in rich clothes. On the table were porcelain plates, silverware and rich food. Everyone is full of energy and elegant in posture - of course, this is how most painters at that time treated them.

But Rembrandt obviously had his own ideas. He placed this group portrait on a stage at night. After hearing an alarm, the shooter captain and his team members went out together and took to the streets, surrounded by people. In this painting In the portrait, not only the composition is unusual, but also the image and light are different from usual. The only ones in the center are the captain and the adjutant, and a little blond girl clinging to the captain. Only these three people are bathed in bright light, and the others are Then it disappears into the dark middle and back background, perhaps only showing a face, or only a vague outline.

Although this narrative method created a picture like a grand drama, it annoyed Captain Cork and his team members because each of them gave Rembrandt a hundred guilders, which meant that they believed that Everyone (not just the captain and the adjutant) should occupy an equal position in the picture, with the same clear face and body, rather than a blurry mass. Even Captain Cork, who occupies the center, is not happy because Rembrandt also added an unknown little blond girl in the main position of the picture. Of course, she was the finishing touch, but Captain Cork and his team members obviously did not have that kind of appreciation. They only felt that they had lost their money. The water floated and Rembrandt was almost taken to court.

This incident greatly damaged Rembrandt's vitality and lost his good reputation. From then on, his life became difficult, so although in the hearts of the Dutch, King Louis XIV of France was a devilish figure. , he still traveled a long way to Paris at the age of sixty-eight, hoping to find an opportunity here.

But to be honest, even in his dream, Rembrandt never imagined that a poor man like himself, who was not even qualified to enter the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture of France (he was not recommended), would be favored by the Crown Prince of France. He was even introduced to the king.

The Sun King, who was hated and feared by the Dutch, turned out to be unexpectedly amiable. Not only did he appreciate Rembrandt's use of color and light, but he also invited Rembrandt to join his academy as a professor. Of course. , also gave him the title of royal painter. Since Rembrandt is good at painting stage-like group portraits, Rembrandt will succeed Leblanc and paint the king's banquets and parades, as well as the cultural landscapes of Versailles and Paris. record".

But that’s all for the future.

The Marquis of Loise's aesthetic must be consistent with that of the king. He even commented appropriately and accurately on Mr. Rembrandt's new "Night Watch". The Duke of Orleans on the side touched the handle of his cane and laughed unabashedly - - Even Louis couldn't help but patted the Marquis of Lois on the shoulder. Even if he knew that this gentleman was deliberately complimenting him, His Majesty the King must be grateful for this deep friendship - although, this is probably because someone recently suggested that no The Marquis of Loise should be allowed to succeed his father as Minister of War, which would cause the former to be so worried.

This suggestion may be selfish, but it is not entirely unreasonable, because if an important position is held by a family for too long, it will easily breed all kinds of ambitions.

The most impressive example is Pepin the Short, who ended the Merovingian dynasty. He was able to become king precisely because his grandfather, his father, and he himself were all Merovingian ministers of England. There have also been such rebellions caused by powerful officials and nobles, which made the kings not vigilant and the ministers not doubtful.

Of course, the Marquis of Lovas is also very aware of this problem, so he has become more and more attentive recently. Louis suspects that if he thinks that the sun is square, then the Marquis of Lovas will immediately try to pass a law - anytime, anywhere, anyone with To state that the sun is round in any way is a blasphemy and crime against the king and France...

Louis could only hope that the current state of stress of the Marquis of Loise was only temporary, lest he really have to find a new minister of war.

Louis did not intend to change his original idea. It was not that he was too arrogant. He really did not think that a second dwarf Pepin could appear in his court.

"You came to see me today," Louis asked as he sat back down in his seat, "You probably didn't come to discuss Mr. Rembrandt with me."

The Marquis of Lovas hesitated for a rare moment. He could see that the king was in a good mood today. Since the glorious victory in the Netherlands and Flanders, their king began to concentrate on domestic affairs, people's livelihood, and perhaps art. ...Everyone can feel that His Majesty's tight heartstrings are slowly relaxing. This is a good thing, and it is also what many people have long expected - the king should accept the service of thousands of subjects and enjoy himself to the fullest. What's the matter with being so puritanical?

But if he puts that matter in front of the king, at least the king will not be able to maintain his good mood today.

"Tell me," Louis noticed the other person's hesitation and asked him to sit down. "If it is something that I must know, I will always know it."

"Yes, Your Majesty." the Marquis of Loise said, and then he saw the Duke of Orleans stretching out his hand, "Wait, brother, do you need me to step aside?"

Louis glanced at the Marquis of Loise. What the Duke of Orleans said could make an important minister like the Marquis of Loise hesitate again and again. He must be a key figure. He could discuss the evening menu with the king, but sometimes he still had to know how to avoid taboos.

"Who is it?" Louis asked simply.

"The Duchess of Bouillon," the Marquis of Lois took a deep breath: "and the Duke of Luxembourg."

Louis leaned back slightly: "You can stay, Philippe." He called the Duke of Orleans' name: "Now you can tell us in detail."

If Bishop Barras had arrived in Versailles, he would definitely feel that the scene in front of him was quite familiar.

The story also starts with a minor character. A greedy woman, in order to obtain the inheritance of her father and husband, murdered several people in a row. This kind of thing is not uncommon, even if the dead father and husband both have a A title, but a baron and a knight (knight), could attract some attention in a small town like Privod, but in Paris - they might not even be qualified to meet the king.

The matter was finally sent to the High Court because the priest who provided the woman with the "inheritance potion" produced letters of power of attorney from the Duchess of Bouillon and the Duke of Luxembourg. In other words, they were for These two big shots worked for them, and they also said that most of the bribes and illegal gains they obtained from others were taken away by the Duchess of Bouillon and the Duke of Luxembourg. They were only agents at best.

Since Louis came to power, the Parlement of Paris had become his second court, and the judges did not dare to go further into the case - the Duke of Bouillon had sided against the king in the first and second Fronde rebellions. Needless to say, even after Prince Condé fled to Spain, his wife and son were warmly welcomed by this group of people in Bordeaux. Although Louis XIV said that he would forget the past - even Prince Condé was sent to prison by him. The King of Poland, but the Duchess of Bouillon has indeed never been eligible to return to Versailles or Paris.

No one knows what His Majesty the King of France is thinking. This case is undoubtedly a lever placed in the hands of Louis XIV. With just a slight push, he can make the Duchess of Bouillon fall into an abyss from which she cannot be saved. , and even regained the Duke of Bouillon's fiefdom - because the charges in this case were blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and the practice of witchcraft... considering that the bottle of potion was really the work of a wizard.

But the problem is that this case refers to another person, the Duke of Luxembourg, Francois Henri de Montmorency-Boutville.

Although this man had great military exploits in the army of Louis XIV, he was mediocre in the court. There was no other reason than that he was the bloodless brother and closest friend of Prince Condé.

During the second Fronde riot, he not only always stood on the side of Prince Condé, but also fled to Spain with Prince Condé after his defeat, and considered himself an enemy of Louis XIV.

Louis has always been tolerant of those with talent, and the Duke of Luxembourg is certainly no exception, but he always seemed a little unable to accept the fact that Prince Condé returned to Paris and returned to the service of the young Louis XIV, swearing allegiance to him. Even Prince Condé said that his ability to become the Duke of Luxembourg was indispensable to His Majesty the King's help. He also always maintained a relationship with Louis that could not be said to be distant or close - at least without calling, he was absolutely He would not take the initiative to meet the king, which was in stark contrast to General Vauban who had recently returned to Versailles.

Of course, this situation was noticed by people who were interested. Neither the Duke of Luxembourg nor Louis XIV thought this was an unacceptable bad thing. The former did it because he didn't know how to face the king, and the latter did it because he was willing to tolerate it - even if The Duke of Luxembourg had no military talent. When Prince Condé left France for Poland, one of them was the young Duke of Enghien and the other was the Duke of Luxembourg. Louis had to treat them well.

However, the alienation between the Duke of Luxembourg and the king gave some people an opportunity to provoke. They did not intend to start with Viscount Turenne, General Vauban or the Duchess of Montpensier at the beginning, but like Bou The Duchess of Rong, and the Duke of Luxembourg, were replaced by a narrow-minded king. Perhaps he would eagerly accept the evidence presented by the Marquis of Lovas and send his former enemy to hell in one fell swoop.

"Forget it about the Duchess of Bouillon," Louis shook his head: "From what my mother told me, she is a confused person, but how did they get the carte blanche from the Duke of Luxembourg?" As a general and a duke, like this How could important documents be obtained by someone with ulterior motives?

Upon hearing this, the Marquis of Lovas immediately pressed his forehead and said, "Your Majesty, you probably wouldn't have thought of such a ridiculous thing..."

"My royal wife, one is a witch and the other is a werewolf," Louis said without raising his head, "What else do you think I can't accept?"

The Marquis of Loise's head suddenly hurt even more. He only found out after Madame Lavalriere and her son went to Halebourg that this shy and gentle royal lady was actually a werewolf and the leader of a werewolf group. , Harlepur was a reward given to her by the king - not because she had served the king for so many years, no, wait, he meant, not just serving between the beds... Well, he shouldn't care too much about it. A royal lady, but when he thought of Queen Teresa telling him these two incredible things with a smile... the Marquis of Lovas felt that maybe the position of the Minister of War was not that important.

"You are right, Your Majesty." The Marquis of Lois said, not knowing whether it was a compliment or a mockery: "Compared to you, this is really not a big deal." He sorted out his thoughts: "Your Majesty, you know, the Duke of Luxembourg has There is a secretary named Bonnard."

"Well, I really don't know about this." Louis said, and then he saw the Marquis of Loise finally couldn't help but glare at him.

"Look at your majesty," the Duke of Orleans lost no time in interjecting: "you are so lively. You should be happy."

The next step was that he was stared at. Fortunately, the two royal brothers were just trying to make the Marquis of Loise stop being so nervous. It was also a hint that His Majesty the King had no intention of taking the opportunity to eliminate the remaining forces of Prince Condé.

"This M. Bonnard," said the Marquis of Lois, "he was ordered to deliver an important letter of appointment to Bordeaux, so he took this document with him from Luxembourg to Bordeaux. As a result, he was unlucky. After losing it, he had no choice but to ask the priest for help..."

Now Louis was really surprised: "You mean, he lost the documents and didn't look for the police or the judge, but went to a priest."

"That's what he did, a believer who was so devout that he fainted." The Marquis of Lois said with a subtle expression: "He went to a priest, and the priest told him that if he wanted to get the documents back, he would have to wait for nine days. He recited three hymns in three different churches over a period of time, so that’s what he did.”

"Did you find the document?" the Duke of Orleans asked enthusiastically.

"How is it possible?" said the Marquis of Lois: "He went to beg the Duchess of Bouillon, and the captain of the Duchess of Boulon's guard helped him find it from a young girl, but she was unwilling to return the document."