I Am Louis XIV

The light comes from a kerosene lantern.

Carlos II was very concerned and angry about Louis XIV's unwillingness to marry the princess to him, but he was not stingy with using the good things from France. This kerosene lantern is comparable to ordinary torches and candles Different, it will not go out in the wind and rain.

However, someone who came over twisted the wick very small, even in the dark night, it will not be too obvious after a long distance.

Queen Antonia and her maidservants who are willing to leave with her always have a dozen or so. Although Mrs. Milady told her that there will be someone to meet and guide her, no one they are not familiar with came to the room. hair. They knew very well that if Carlos II could not come back, then their best ending would be confinement for a lifetime. If Carlos II could come back, they would also be unable to endure the days of fear and anxiety.

If the queen mother's female officer goes back and forth, she will be surprised that the queen's suite has become so "clean", most of the jewelry and clothes, expensive decorations and utensils (such as candlesticks, glasses and dressing boxes, etc.), and There are silk carpets and curtains with bright colors and gorgeous patterns, as long as they are not embroidered or adorned with double-headed eagle patterns, they are all put up for sale, and part of the money they exchanged is used to hire those bold famous ladies. Came to serve the king, part of it was used for bribes and bribes, and part of it was exchanged for a reliable money order, and part of it was hidden in the queen and several female officials she trusted.

None of these could escape Mrs. Milady's help, but Queen Antonia still couldn't help feeling uneasy when the incident came to an end. She tried her best to suppress the fear in her heart, pulled up her hood, and walked through the narrow passage with the maid. When she saw the light Of course, she expected that the other party was Milady's secret agent, but when she saw the man's face, she was so frightened that she almost screamed, because this man was none other than Patinio, the Admiral of the Navy who valued him the most. An officer with trust!

But she couldn't cry out. The officer said "forgive me" in a low voice, and pressed her face with a palm. The little queen is still a child, and her face is not big enough to be covered. She hasn't had time yet. Responding, a maid beside him rushed forward without thinking, pulled out the hair pin, and stabbed at the officer's arm.

Hair pins are nothing new. When ladies were still wearing headscarves, they used hair pins to fix the headscarves on their buns. Later, starting from the French court, both men and women began to wear gorgeously decorated hats with wide brims. Hats, these hats also need to be fixed with hair pins. The hair pins are longer, thicker and sharper than the ones that fix the headscarves, otherwise they cannot fix the hats that are thicker than the headscarves, but for women, this kind of hair pins It is a handy, concealed weapon.

The officer withdrew his hand and quickly backed away, then took out something from his pocket and held it up high.

Although raindrops kept hitting the Queen's eyes, at this moment she recognized a brooch that once belonged to her, and it was the one she gave to Lady Milady when she first met her.

"How could you..." the queen couldn't help asking—she knew this person a little bit, and Carlos II had boasted in front of her how this young man defeated an armed caravan of the British. Knowing that the Spanish Armada is already like the afterglow of the setting sun, it is already amazing to have such a feat.

The officer didn't speak, but just waved his hands, signaling them to follow him. It was late at night, and it started to rain again, and the torches on the outer wall were all extinguished, but this gentleman walked leisurely, without any hesitation, the queen He and the maids followed him apprehensively, sometimes through empty rooms, sometimes through dusty corridors, sometimes across a gloomy hall.

They had actually only walked a short distance, and it took very little time, but the girls were almost exhausted.

But the result was thankful, as if they had only turned a corner, they saw the convoy, like a heavy shadow under the cobalt blue sky, parked on the street behind the palace, which was used for the palace. The kitchen supply and water supply, so the stone lattice pavement has been well maintained, from here you can go straight to the outskirts of Toledo, Queen Antonia looked out from the northwest tower of the old palace more than once, imagining how she could escape from this city. hell.

As soon as she boarded the carriage, the queen's maid cheered in a low voice. She saw that a fur cloak had been placed on the seat, and there was a thick carpet under her feet. The carriage was inconspicuous from the outside, but it was surprisingly comfortable inside. When they sat down, they found a basket containing wine and food.

The coachman has already put on a hat that is wider than ordinary people, so there is no need to tell them. The officer who escorted them here counted the number of people. With a wave of his hand, the carriage started one after another in the rain. A bit of a splash—the three Spanish noble ladies were arranged in a carriage. Although they had experienced the same hardships as those Austrian noble ladies, at this time, such an arrangement was obviously more in line with their wishes.

The three girls reached out and shook hands at the same time, their eyes full of tension and hope.

"that person……"

"Well, Sonia's brother," said one of them, whom she recognized immediately.

Sonia was tortured to death by Carlos II. People said that her brother would stab Carlos II in the chest sooner or later, and for this reason, Patinho transferred him back to Madrid, but his previous few months as a page at the court were enough for him. The old palace is well known.

Sonia's elder brother watched the convoy go away. The convoy was not his handiwork, he didn't have enough money and he didn't have such contacts—except for the sturdy and comfortable carriages, although the horses used in these carriages were all variegated Yes, but they are all top-quality Jerez horses, that is, Andalusian horses bred by the Carthusian priests. Motley also needs a lot of money, but if you want to travel on such a rainy night, you may have to gallop day and night to escape possible pursuers. These horses are indispensable.

If his sister could also escape from the palace and the king in such a carriage, the officer sighed in his heart. When he was fighting for Carlos II, Carlos II was hurting and insulting his dearest. However, he naively thought that when he lost his parents and his brother was going to fight for several years, the Spanish royal palace and the queen's maid should be the safest place and the safest position. Facts have proved that he was completely wrong. .

So, when Lady Milady approached him--he unexpectedly and quite simply agreed.

————

When the Archbishop of Toledo walked out wearing sacrificial robes and holding a baby wrapped in a double-headed eagle king flag, the people looking up at the tower fell silent.

The Archbishop said in his loud, clear voice (after all he was used to preaching to thousands of people) that His Majesty the King already knew the grievances they complained about, but there were still some who, besides the blasphemous priests, The wicked who smelled ominous had fled before they could see it. But don't worry, disappointment, His Majesty has personally chased after him with his attendants, and soon, at dawn, he will bring those heinous criminals back in triumph, and they will be in the square after the high mass on All Saints Judging and punishing these hateful sinners, all sins will be completely purified in the flames, and those unfortunate souls will go to heaven without regret.

In other words, there are no obvious mistakes in the archbishop's statement, or that the people at this time do not have the qualifications and ability to receive systematic education. Even in Toledo, most people with logical reasoning ability It was nobles and priests, and the archbishop's appeasement obviously played its due role. Although some people were still very sad, they had already calmed down. Only the relatives of the deceased were still reluctantly hesitating in pain.

Madame Milady was in the crowd, she was wearing a brown turban, she looked inconspicuous, which was also expected by her-Louis XIV once said that the people are like a group of blindfolded donkeys , without the ability to judge and analyze, it is easy to be instigated or coerced, especially if they are all mortal bodies, if they have no savings (most of them do not), then three meals a day and a place to live are in their minds. the most important thing.

There may be no problem for an hour or two, but if it goes on, it will directly affect their work the next day. If they can't see the result, or think they have seen the result, they will disperse like birds and beasts, no matter how important it is. It is difficult for the secret to stir up waves in their hearts.

Therefore, when the archbishop thought that the matter had come to an end, and was about to persuade people to return home as soon as possible to prepare for All Saints' Feast the next day, Bella's lover came out, holding his head up, exposing his face to the torches. "I see His Majesty's son," he said, "and Bella, her parents, also want to see their daughter—oh, God, maybe that's why they lost track for no reason. Why!? Your Excellency, do you know where we found Bella's reliquary!"

The Archbishop doesn't know, he doesn't even remember Bella very much, but he knows that the Inquisition sewed up the mouths and eyes of many people in order to cover up their crimes—and maybe Carlos II's, but...

"You really don't know anything about this!?" Bella's lover continued to shout, his face didn't know whether it was rain or sweat, and there was a piece of shiny fine dots, which made him look like tears His face was full of tears, "That is God's abode on earth!"

This is the biggest problem—the relationship between the Inquisition and the Roman Church is extremely complicated, not to mention difficult to explain, even if it can be explained, can the archbishop clearly tell these mortal poor people? No way!

"You said that your Majesty went to hunt down those sinners," Bella's lover said coldly, "but I heard that the Santo Domingo Monastery is His Majesty's second palace. More time there than anywhere..."

The archbishop's face darkened. Bella's lover couldn't see it but knew that from now on, he might not be able to hide in Toledo or the whole of Spain, but he just felt extremely happy!

"You are talking nonsense, sir," said the archbishop. "Are you slandering our king!?"

"We just need a definitive answer!" Bella's lover yelled.

The archbishop could only ignore that person—but he had already given the attendant a wink and asked him to get rid of that person... Whether he is or not, he will appear on the execution ground tomorrow, and the charge is of course treason.

But when the attendant led the servants to run down, they could only see the dense and dense crowd. They squirmed and accommodated the young man in the innermost part of the crowd. The archbishop's attendant looked at the cold faces and did not dare Threatening and insulting as usual, he returned to the archbishop in vain after several dry "pleads" to no avail.

"They..." he said timidly, "They said they would wait here for His Majesty the King to come back..."

The adults in the room showed annoyed expressions. The person who went to look for the king hadn’t returned yet. They didn’t worry about anything else. They only worried that Carlos II would not come back until All Saints’ Day. Then they would have to face a large group of people. People full of doubts and anger.

Suddenly someone coughed lightly. The archbishop looked up and saw that it was Alberoni. "Maybe I can try," he said, "I'll go and persuade them to leave."

When the Archbishop of Toledo saw the child, his expression softened. "Don't go," he said, "it's too dangerous."

Ordinary people would be numb with fright when facing a few vicious thugs, let alone tens of thousands of people...

"It's just some ordinary people." Alberoni said: "Please let me try, teacher, I can't let them gather here all the time-long waiting, useless waiting, will only make the anger rise even more. violent."

"How do you convince them?" Duke Don Juan asked, "They don't seem to believe us very much." He looked around: "And I always feel that our enemies are pushing inside."

"There must be," said the Queen Mother, "otherwise this mob would have dispersed."

The archbishop also thought it was very possible, but Alberoni insisted on going. He said that even if these people didn’t want to listen to him, he was still just a child. Take a look and see who is instigating and instigating those civilians.

What finally made the archbishop give in was a sudden change—those civilians placed the dead found from the Santo Domingo Monastery together with the priests who failed to escape in front of the old palace, so that even if Carlos II came back, he would It will be a problem, under the watchful eyes of everyone, Carlos II, and the priests and monks of the Inquisition who were too stupid to escape... No one can predict how the situation will change and develop.

Alberoni obediently accepted the mission given by the teacher, and a squirrel-skin cloak—Carlos II’s torture had greatly damaged his body, such as this wet and cold weather, His cough never stopped.

"I'll go with you." Jose Patinho, who had been silent all this time, said, everyone was not surprised, the two of them were a very good pair of friends, if Jose hadn't been kicked out by Carlos II, Alberoni may not have been locked up for how long no one knows.

"No need," Alberoni smiled, "Maybe I'll be back soon."

"How do you convince them?" Jose asked.

"As long as they get out of here," said Alberoni, "I will tell them that the criminals have probably escaped somewhere in the Arena."

"Ah..." the queen mother said, the arena refers to the ancient Roman arena in Toledo. Like many traces left by the ancient Romans, almost only the outer city walls and circular seats are still intact, and the other buildings inside are still intact. It has collapsed or crumbled a long time ago, but the arena and the old palace where they are located are at the east and west ends of Toledo. When these people go there, it may be difficult to have the time and strength to come back.

"If they find out it's a lie..."

"That's just a kid talking nonsense," Alberoni said. "They should be angry with themselves for trusting me so easily."

"I'll go with you," Jose said.

Alberoni glanced at him: "If you insist."

Alberoni's behavior was quite risky. After all, there were too many people gathered in front of the old palace. As long as there were one or two people who didn't understand the truth, or whose emotions were controlled by anger and sadness, his situation would be very dangerous.

"We can let others go," said the archbishop.

"No," said Alberoni, "unless it is you, or Monsieur Patinho, or Duke Don Juan—who may trust a king's squire, but how can they trust a stranger? "

This sentence is also true, Alberoni, and Jose, in the years when they were close to Carlos II, the three of them often appeared in one place, and people were very familiar with them.

—————

Mrs. Milady reached out her hand to touch the drops of water dripping from the brim of her hat. The rain was not very heavy, but at this time, the rain was not so pleasant.

The archbishop guessed right, if there were no organizers and maintainers, these people would have dispersed long ago, but Milady, her dozen or so subordinates, and some dexterous and eloquent Judahs with inconspicuous appearance , shuttled back and forth among the crowd, while encouraging the relatives of the victim to persevere until the last moment, while distributing wine and bread as friends of the latter, promising a small amount of compensation, etc. to maintain the current situation, of course, It is necessary to play with the tongue to arouse their empathy and sympathy, and some cunning spies praised them greatly, and said that when the king came back, he would definitely meet them in person and give them rewards.

This kind of speculation is not too much. In people's memory, there are many people who were born as civilians but made a fortune because of hunting "witches" and even became "lords".

People drink heavily to resist the all-pervasive cold, while imagining with longing.

When Alberoni and José were hung from the city wall, they didn't notice until the attendants lit the torches, and under the light of the torches, two teenagers walked among them, one of whom was quickly recognized , "That's the king's attendant and friend." Some people whispered.

"I'll take you to see His Majesty," said the young squire, "he's in the arena."

Between the flames and the rain, his eyes met Milady's.