I Am Louis XIV

Before Leopold I passed away from this world, he wrote a letter, dictated by him and written by the queen, to his lifelong enemy Louis XIV.

This letter was secretly brought back by little Eugen Savoy. Louis unfolded the letter under a bright kerosene lamp. The letter contained beautiful handwriting belonging to a woman, but the tone and writing were that of a male emperor. Leopold I In the last moments, he was extremely sober. He did not try to play some tricks or set any traps. He bluntly told Louis XIV that he was willing to give up his power over Spain and all Spanish territories and recognize the power of Carlos III. Legitimacy, but relatively, he hoped that the king of France could support Philip the Younger to ascend the throne of the Holy Roman Empire.

The conditions that Leopold I had put forward before were completely insufficient to bribe the Sun King. The chips in his hands were so pitiful that he couldn't even use them to seduce little Eugen. He could only use that method. to deceive him - which, of course, had failed. But he also said in the letter that no matter who became the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, he would never be a friend of France. If Louis XIV, as he said, did not have the ambition to become another Caesar, he should push Philippe In order to become the emperor, little Philip is still underage. After he ascends the throne, he will have to indulge in intrigues with powerful officials, generals and electors for at least ten years, fighting for power and profit. Even if he wins by chance, he may not be able to accumulate enough power to threaten France in his lifetime. Power, but what if the person who becomes the emperor is one of the secular electors? The Duke of Saxony was born in 56, and was in his prime; the King of Prussia was born in 31, and is in good health; Duke Maximilian II of Bavaria was born in 51, and was in his prime; and the Elector of Palatinate, Karl I, was born in 17 He is the eldest among the electors, but although he is old, he is still full of ambition and has great ambitions - you must know that the qualifications of the elector of Pfalz were banned, and it was he who single-handedly regained it together with the territory. To say that he is a moderate No one will believe it.

There is also the ninth elector, the Duke of Lunenburg, who is even younger.

Another worrying issue is that these secular electors are actually Protestants. Moreover, King William I of Prussia also involved an important part - that is, his son Frederick also had Orange blood, and his wife was the aunt of William III. They also intended to intervene in the internal affairs of the Netherlands as guardians. .

He is now the King of Prussia and may not do much, but if he becomes the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire...

Louis XIV was not surprised by Leopold I's "plea". If he were in Leopold I's position, he would do the same. He folded the letter and even made a decision—— Indeed, as Leopold I said, compared with several other ambitious and experienced electors, a minor emperor is more suitable for France today.

"What's next," Louis asked, "son, are you going back to Milan?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," said little Eugen.

"Then, if the negotiations go well, I will evacuate all the French before Lent tomorrow." Louis said that the Principality of Milan originally belonged to Spain, but the unification of Italy is imminent, but if it is abandoned in this way, it belongs to Charles Carlos II. The power and territory of this world may cause disputes in the future, so this issue must be treated with caution. Louis looked at little Eugen while thinking about whether to negotiate in Sicily or let Luciano come to Paris.

Since little Eugen returned to Versailles, people said that he had become calmer. People who knew the inside story speculated that he was hit by his biological father and lover, but Louis XIV felt that it might not be that much. Young People have experienced too few things. If they encounter huge changes, it is easy to go down an extreme and chaotic path. "Come here." He waved his hand and asked little Eugen to sit next to him. Louis XIV often did this to his children, but little Eugen hesitated today.

"What?" Louis asked: "Tell me, you have your own room in Versailles. My children regard you as a brother, and you regard me as a father. Is there anything you can't tell me?"

"I feel ashamed," little Eugen whispered: "Your Majesty, I feel... very ashamed." He trembled and shed tears: "Why, how I wish I was your child, so I don't have to bear this Torture - my mother is a shameless woman, my father, God, he is an emperor, why would he do such a despicable thing?"

"Because he is an emperor." Louis understood. He did not continue. Instead, he stretched out his hand and asked little Eugen to come to him in a firm manner. Then he thought about it, little Eugen was bad. Unfortunately, when he came to Versailles, Louis XIV could achieve his goals without resorting to tricks, so in his heart, Louis XIV was an upright holy king. When he went to see Leopold I , but also maintain the same extravagant desire.

But he couldn't tell little Eugen that while he was at the peak of the sun, Leopold I was already setting the sun. At this time, it was difficult for a person to have enough energy to think carefully and make detailed arrangements.——Louis XIV I bet that if it had been a year earlier, even just a few months, his plan for little Eugen would not have been so crude, and the result would not have been so embarrassing.

"I won't use empty words to deal with you," Louis XIV said slowly: "I think that the war is over and you should probably go out for a walk."

Little Eugen raised his head suddenly.

"Travel, study, and enjoy the beautiful scenery and people," Louis said. "I just need someone to visit my daughter and niece, and my cousin on my behalf. I think they will also want to meet Come on, kid, you want to see places other than France and Milan." He leaned down slightly: "You have already seen Vienna, what do you think?"

Little Eugen showed a look of disgust: "A poor imitation."

"If you saw other places and countries, you wouldn't think so," Louis said. "The pain wouldn't be as intense now."

"I don't know... Your Majesty, I don't know."

"So go ahead," Louis touched his curly hair: "Don't worry, your room in Versailles will never be occupied by others or used for other purposes. It belongs to you, no matter where you are."

——————

Leopold I struggled with all his strength until the end of the peace talks, but he was destined not to see his son wear the crown of Holy Roman Emperor. However, the previous emperors may not have been able to see it, but probably no emperor was on his deathbed. There was so much unwillingness before.

It is said that at his funeral, in addition to the electors, his ministers, and generals, there were actually many officials, minor nobles, and civilians who were willing to see him off. The streets of Vienna were crowded. Fortunately, the King of Prussia’s envoy—his son Philip Trey had seen how the French maintained order in such a situation in Paris, and he quickly discussed it with the Viennese people. In view of his status, most of his proposals were accepted, so there was no coffin of Leopold I. While walking across the street to the cathedral, people were injured and killed due to pushing and stamping.

With the departure of the last enemy of Louis XIV, the power of the Sun King finally reached its peak throughout Europe. After the signing of the "Contract of Vienna" (the armistice agreement between Leopold I and Louis XIV regarding the succession to the Spanish throne), a series of new negotiations were also launched rapidly, between Britain and France, between the Holy Roman Empire and France, There are also Italian and French ones, not to mention Prussia, Sweden, Savoy, etc...

Boundaries need to be redrawn, cities need to be redefined, and import and export trade also need to be further adjusted. Some people are eager to show goodwill, while others are still stubbornly unwilling to take even a step. The foreign population in Paris and Versailles has once again surged to several times its original size. There is almost no difference between night and day.

But the primary event that Louis was most concerned about was the coronation of the King of Italy.

Although Luciano had held a coronation ceremony as the King of Italy in Naples Cathedral ten years ago, this coronation ceremony was obviously not orthodox enough and there were not enough witnesses - when he wanted to rule the whole of Italy, the number of people in each region of Italy was Envoys should come with tokens and territory to meet and observe the ceremony.

Finally they decided to make Rome their capital and were crowned in the Church of San Giovanni in Rome.

Because Luciano finally nodded and allowed the Roman Church to continue to retain the Vatican, the Pope even generously offered to crown him in St. Peter's Basilica (originally only the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire could be crowned in St. Peter's Basilica), but this How could the ridiculous trick be hidden from Louis XIV and Luciano, who insisted on holding the ceremony in the Basilica of San Giovanni - the largest religious site in Rome after St. Peter's Basilica, located in Lateran, on the outskirts of Rome, was the first Catholic church, and its history even predates the basilica of St. Peter's by thirteen years - not only that, he also refused to be crowned by the pope, but was crowned by Cardinal Elario.

As soon as this decision of whether to respect or despise the church came out, some people knew that the new king of Italy, like his biological father, was a troublesome figure who could not be threatened by hell or tempted by heaven.

But no matter how difficult it was, Luciano I, who fought several battles with the Ottoman Turks and recaptured several port cities on the edge of the Adriatic Sea, could no longer shake his position in the Catholic Church. Sometimes France is called the eldest daughter, and sometimes Austria is regarded as the eldest son. Isn't it because these two countries were once the knife and shield of the church, eliminating the threat of pagans to the Vatican.

Young Eugen came to Rome as an envoy, and he was not very familiar with Luciano. After all, when he came to Versailles, Luciano was already the lord of Gaiola and had lived with Marie for a long time. In Calais, but later when they were studying at the Military Academy, little Eugen was also cared for by this brother, so even if Louis did not send him to Italy, he would come to congratulate Luciano in his own name.

Unexpectedly, they heard some unfortunate news just after they arrived in Rome.

Lady Milady is seriously ill and dying.

Young Eugen and the Duke of Orleans who were traveling with him hurried to Quirinale Palace. This palace once belonged to several popes and was their summer residence. It is now the residence of Luciano I in Rome. They all know that Mi Madame Leddy can almost be said to be half of Luciano's mother. After the departure of Marie Mancini and the Duchess of Colonna, she may be the only emotional sustenance of the young king, second only to Louis. One of fourteen.

"Uncle?" Luciano asked with a little surprise. He looked haggard and his eyes were sunken. He could tell he was suffering. "Is it the father?"

"Louis may not know about this yet." Duke Orleans paused: "Maybe he knows now." The flight of a raven also takes time.

"Man-made? Or..." the Duke asked.

"It's not man-made." It was Madame Milady who answered him: "I am old, sir. Even if I am a wizard, I have reached the end of my life." She was left by Bishop Richelieu to Bishop Mazarin, and was left by Mazarin. The bishop left her to Louis XIV, and Louis XIV gave her to Luciano. "This is an ending that I never expected in my best dreams." She turned her beautiful eyes that were still shining: "On the soft bed When I died, there was a king, a duke, and a general to see me off."

"You deserve this." The Duke said, Mrs. Miledy has done a lot for His Majesty the King, especially in the past ten years or so with Luciano, but she is a woman and a wizard. With a poor family background, a criminal, and an unknown job, the king could not openly reward her as he did others, but she never complained.

"Help me persuade Lucy," said Lady Milady. "He will be crowned in a few days."

"We all have many regrets," the Duke said. "Don't let Lucie have another regret that is clearly avoidable."

"Don't worry," Luciano said softly: "I am the king of Italy. No one dares to disobey my words. I can hold the coronation ceremony whenever I want." He was silent for a while: "I can't Farewell to my mother, madam, please let me stay with you in the last days."

Lady Milady sighed and turned her head.

The Duke of Orleans asked the accompanying doctors and wizards to see Madame Miledy. They came to the same conclusion as their counterparts in Italy. The candle had burned out and the light was about to give way to darkness. This was something that no one could resist or change. matter.

Sure enough, as Luciano said, his coronation ceremony was postponed until one month later. During the coronation ceremony, he never showed any joy, but showed a trace of sadness.

"Parting will inevitably bring pain." The Duke of Orleans looked at the new king of Italy and murmured: "But there is always parting."