Starting My Treasure Hunting In England

The journey from Dublin to Marseille took Liang En more than six hours, mainly because there were no direct flights between the two places, so they had to change flights in London.

Fortunately, when night was about to fall, they finally saw the stretching coastline and the blue Mediterranean Sea under the wings of the plane through the porthole, which meant that they had arrived in Marseille.

"This city should be one of the few French place names that foreigners know clearly except Paris." Joan of Arc said softly on the way to the hotel in the car.

"Yes, people in each country may have different understandings of this country, but Marseille may be the common denominator for many foreigners' understanding of French place names."

Of course Liang En knew what Joan of Arc was talking about. People from different countries had different understandings of a country. For example, the first names of French places that Chinese people might know were Havre, Alsace and Lorraine.

This is mainly because these two places have been mentioned in two famous texts in Chinese primary and secondary school textbooks, "The Last Lesson" and "My Uncle Jules".

As for why Marseille is a French city that people from all countries know well, it is because it left a strong mark during the French Revolution.

After the French Revolution broke out, the locals actively supported the French Revolution and sent 500 volunteers to Paris in 1792 to defend the revolutionary government.

During the march, the volunteers sang their march song "Battle Hymn of the Rhine Army" all the way from Marseille to Paris. The song later became the French national anthem and was called "La Marseillaise."

This is why everyone can remember this place, because this city is connected to the entire country through a march, and people can think of this city when they think of the country.

According to the previous plan, they will travel here and wait for their subordinates to collect intelligence, and then based on the intelligence, I will decide how to conduct the next search work.

Early the next morning, Liang En and the others left the hotel and started traveling. Marseille is a big city with prosperous commerce and frequent cultural exchanges, and it is also the intersection of various civilizations.

For example, the city's population has always been relatively mixed, with people from the Mediterranean and European regions as well as people from sub-Saharan Africa.

Nearly 25% of the Maasai population is of North African descent, mostly Algerians and Tunisians. Demographers estimate that Marseille will become the first European city with a majority Muslim population in the near future.

At the same time, its Jewish community ranks third in Europe, but immigrants from Southeast Asia and East Asia often choose the north of France instead of the south, mainly because of local security problems.

Fortunately, if you are just a tourist, it is not a big problem to simply lock your travel route near tourist attractions and hotels. You only need to guard against thieves.

Liang En and the others' first stop was the port of Marseille. After all, the port is the real core part of the city. The whole city first had a port and then a city.

The current Port of Marseille is divided into the Old Port and the New Port. The Old Port is located in the city harbor and is a very good tourist location, while the New Port is now the main seaport.

Various restaurants and museums are gathered around the pier, and the most attractive thing is a huge Ferris wheel, which can be seen from a distance. It is obviously provided for tourists to enjoy the city view.

"It's so beautiful to look down from here. It's a completely different feeling from visiting on the ground." As the Ferris wheel gradually rose, Joan of Arc lay on the window like a child to watch.

When looking down from the Ferris wheel, the surrounding scenery is unobstructed: there are both ancient castles from the 14th century and densely packed modern yachts; there are both ancient and solemn churches and modern commercial buildings.

The entire area is home to various ethnic groups and the blend of Eastern and Western cultures truly reflects the "cultural mosaic" of Marseille, a port in southern France.

Next, they took a boat to Chateau d'If, two kilometers away from the port. This is a castle with three towers, located on a limestone island less than 200 meters long and 168 meters wide.

In order to defend against Spanish invasion in the 1620s, French King Francois ordered the construction of this fortress. After it was completed, cannons were placed, and at most 300 soldiers were stationed.

Due to its dangerous geographical location, whenever a war breaks out, it becomes a battleground for military strategists. But later, with the innovation of ships and cannons, the castle gradually lost its strategic value and was converted into a state prison.

It was not until 1953 that the French government issued a decree approving Chateau d'If as a national historical and cultural relic protection unit, and allocated a group of funds to repair and manage it for people to visit.

The island is more famous as a prison than as a fortress. It was here that Dantès was imprisoned in the famous novel "The Count of Monte Cristo".

Soon, the cruise ship docked at the pier. The path to the central platform of the castle was a deep path surrounded by tall and thick walls. Every few steps, there were high walls and gates blocking the way, so you had to turn right.

This is an ancient design, because most people are right-handed, so this road turning to the right will prevent the attacker from wielding weapons and can bring a certain advantage to the defender.

At the end of the winding path is a suspension bridge, and only after passing the suspension bridge and the gate can they see the main castle. Compared with other castles, the internal structure of this castle does not have much characteristics. If I have to say it, the castle seems colder. Some.

This coldness mainly comes from two aspects. On the one hand, it gives people a psychological feeling as a prison itself. On the other hand, because the entire castle has not undergone non-military modifications, the walls are thick and the doors and windows are narrow.

Of course, the fact that the entire castle is located on an island surrounded by sea is also an important reason.

When Liang En and the others climbed to the rooftop of Chateau d'If, they could see a straight rock on the southwest corner of the island, which was once the cemetery of the national prison.

In Alexandre Dumas's novel, it was here that Dantès pretended to be the body of Elder Faria, was thrown into the sea and escaped, thus gaining a new life and becoming the mysterious and wealthy Count of Monte Cristo.

For this reason, there are many tourists on the entire platform, and Liang En and the others can see the prosperous urban area and the calm Mediterranean Sea when they stand here and look outside.

. "Can we see our expected target here?" At this moment, Joan looked at the city in the distance and approached Liang En and whispered, "I thought I heard you say that the target is not located in the urban area."

"It should probably be in that area." After carefully identifying the urban area to the north for a few seconds, Liang En pointed to an area outside the old city and said. "That location used to be outside the city, but now it's inside the city."

"Yes, it is true, but this is not good news for us." Looking at a group of buildings in the distance not far from the sea, Joan sighed and said.

"Think about it, nearly two hundred years have passed, and the buildings there may have been demolished and rebuilt many times. If so, it may not be that easy to find Mary's treasure."

"I am more optimistic in this regard. After all, the treasures hidden by Mary filled two entire carriages back then. And if such a fortune is discovered, it will definitely not go silent." Liang En lightly shrugged his shoulders. said.

"So I believe that there is a high probability that that wealth is still there, waiting for us to find them!"