I Am Louis XIV

People who have been sick, especially those that can cause headaches, know that when a patient is uncomfortable, let alone loud noises, even ordinary voices, the sound of tables and chairs colliding, the sound of music, They have all changed from the usual tolerable, neglected, and appreciated to terrible torture, and Alexei I was no exception, and because he was the tsar, he didn't need to hide his temper, so he grabbed the brass chamber pot next to the bed and Throw it at the door!

I forgot to mention that Alexei I was not in good health, so the meeting was held in his bedroom, but this behavior was common at the time.

The sound outside the door stopped immediately, and then there were a few more cries of children, sharp, slender and confident, Alexei I pressed his forehead, "Bring them in!"

Soon, a group of terrified maids came in surrounded by the two children. It was not so accurate to say that they were children, because among the two, Sophia, the eldest daughter of Alexei, was already thirteen years old. Although he was an adult, the other child was an out-and-out child. He was the Tsar's second son, Ivan, who was only four years old.

Alexei I let go of his hand, his swollen forehead was deeply imprinted by his ring, and everyone looked at him worriedly, lest the Tsar throw something readily available at the princess and the princess in a fit of anger. Princes, but unlike the tsars people imagine, the Romanov emperors have always been very patient with their children-perhaps because the example of Ivan IV (the Thunder Emperor) of the Rurik dynasty is so difficult. Forget - the latter accidentally killed his most capable and beloved eldest son (the original second son, the previous eldest son died) in a rage, and also caused the eldest son's wife to have a miscarriage because of this incident, although Yi Fan IV had two sons, but like the current Alexei I, they were both weak in body and stupid in mind, unable to bear the responsibilities of the tsar at all, but they died and disappeared in ten years, so the Rurik dynasty The extinction of the heir led to the current Romanov Dynasty.

The Tsar gazed at his eldest daughter.

As if a curse, or a blessing, his two sons kept disappointing him, but his first daughter was as strong as a she-bear, and sometimes Alexei wished to trade her health and vitality for the two. Some sons, of course, this is impossible, even wizards, shamans or priests say that it is impossible - not impossible, although evil spells can make a sick and weak person healthy, but there must be hopeless sequelae , Maybe there are kings or emperors who want to try it, but after seeing Carlos II of Spain, not many people have the courage.

Of course, Alexei I would not let his two sons be the wizard's guinea pigs, but he did let the wizards and shamans do a fortune-telling to see which noble daughter might give birth to him The next perfect heir, as it turned out, was known to Natalia of the Naryshkin family.

But before Natalia gave birth to his son, he was still very concerned about his only two sons. Ivan was in worse condition than Ferdo. He was not only weak, but also a little demented. Boys of his age He can run, jump, and speak fluently, but he still only screams like a piggy.

"What happened?" Alexei I said, "Tell me, Sophia."

Sophia, the eldest princess of Romanov, quickly organized the words in her mind-speaking of which, she may have more faults than Ivan-she was eavesdropping on the conversation between her father and the ministers in the corridor.

Russia has always implemented the primogeniture system, and women are not considered by nobles and ministers. As the eldest princess, the only place where Sophia may be involved in politics is probably her future marriage, but as the only healthy child of Alexei I, she After all, I still got some privileges, from education to the court, and occasionally Alexi I would talk to her about the outside situation, but this kind of treatment is like a kind master caring for his own puppy. Dogs cannot So get the power to interfere with the master's actions.

But seeing her two younger brothers—where Alexi I and the queen couldn’t see them—how they were ridiculed and scorned, Sophia certainly couldn’t raise her respect for the future tsar, Fer He needs the help of others to walk, and can only stay in bed for half a day. Ivan has been confirmed as an idiot. The wizards said that he did not grow well in his mother's womb, and his brain was damaged. solve things.

In comparison, Sophia is better than these two boys in everything except being a girl.

Her intelligence allows her to see her future at a glance. Unfortunately, compared to the princesses of Europa, the Russian princesses are really worthless. So far, it has not been recognized by the kings. For real kings like Leopold I and Louis XIV, the status of the Russian Tsar can only be equal to or even lower than the Grand Duke, let alone their children? Therefore, as a Russian princess, she is most likely to be married to a nobleman in the Russian court, as a bargaining chip and a hostage in exchange for their loyalty to her brother.

Sophia was not reconciled.

If it was really going to be a gift, why didn't she fight for her own interests?

The problem is that her father is not Louis XIV. Although Alexei I treats his only grown-up daughter almost dotingly, he will not allow her to interfere in the affairs of state, especially after she becomes an adult, she loses her father. The power to pretend to casually flip through important papers on his knees. But sometimes, she can still pretend to be naughty, and secretly hide behind the curtain or door to listen to what her father and courtiers are saying.

Of course Alexi I knew, but out of tolerance or indifference, he did not punish or warn Sophia.

What bad thing can a cute little girl do?

Sophia's mind was spinning rapidly, and within a few seconds, she decided not to lie to her father and the Tsar: "I was eavesdropping on your conversation outside the door," she said bluntly: "Ivan rushed over suddenly and pulled My hair." Alexei I glanced at her turban—Russian noble ladies have not been influenced by France for the time being, at least in public, they still wear extremely strict dresses—that is, the upper A century of women's favorite clothing, a black hair scarf wraps the face without revealing the hair, and a robe with wide sleeves covers the curves of the body. There is no lace or ribbon, only a small amount of embroidery.

It can be seen that Princess Sofia's hair scarf has been put on again, and it is a little crooked. There are still a few thin scratches on her face. Looking at the distance and size, you can tell that it was written by a young child. Alexei I sighed, he could even imagine the scene at that time - the princess knelt on the carpet outside the door to eavesdrop on his conversation with the minister, the four-year-old prince staggered over and grabbed her by the hair - To everyone's surprise.

No, wait, maybe... Alexei I was silent for a while, and his sharp eyes swept over Ivan's maids. Ivan is an idiot, which is something everyone knows, which means that he is easily fooled. For example, this time, some people who hated Princess Sophia used his hand to push the eldest daughter in front of him, forcing him to punish her.

"Your behavior is inappropriate and beyond your duty," Alexei I said to Sophia: "Go to the monastery, Sophia."

Sophia's eyes widened suddenly.

Alexei I smiled, and it was time for this daring girl to learn a lesson: "You must sincerely repent to God, and pray for your father and country." He took a deep breath: "But no Forever, Sofia, we can go back to Moscow together."

Sophia immediately knelt down, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty."

"I hope you can remember this lesson." His eyes stayed on Ivan for a while, and he remembered that he heard Ivan's scream. He said that at the beginning, Sophia was just momentarily defenseless , but when he came back to his senses, he must have hit back her younger brother fiercely. He knew that his eldest daughter did not have much brotherhood for brothers: "There are also Ferdo and Ivan, and you have to pray for them too," he said. Say softly: "You should love them before you can be loved by them.\

,"Sophia wanted to retort - she didn't need the love of a brother who could die at any time, or who couldn't even speak, but she made a mistake first and didn't dare to say anything.

When all these people had left, Alexei I reached out to recruit his personal attendant—his identity and power were similar to those of Bontang next to Louis XIV. No one could hear the tsar’s murmurs, but Everyone understands that after today, Princess Sofia and everyone around Prince Ivan will have to change again.

After dealing with these "little things", Alexei I felt a little tired, but he still managed to hold on, and transferred about 1,500 people from another city to Karsava.

—————

No one thinks that the small city of Karsava can stop the attack of nearly 30,000 Russians. There are no natural barriers outside, swamps, wilderness and low slope hills are simply the battlefields that every siege party desires - after all, now they don't need to rely on cloud chariots and battering rams to decide the outcome of the battle.

"Now is the age of artillery." The general of the Russian army said proudly.

In fact, when it comes to artillery, the Russian side cannot compare with that of Prince Henry of Poland in terms of caliber, range or accuracy. Prince Henry’s artillery is all made by French craftsmen, while Russian artillery is uneven. Some are from Austria, some are from Ottoman Turkey, and some are even the heritage of the Golden Horde...

But in terms of numbers, they seem to be quite impressive. In addition, because the number is far inferior to the enemy, the Poles cannot go out of the city to meet the enemy. The Russians can embrace Karsava as much as possible, but their commander still decided to Try to find out where the city is weakest.

Of course, the city wall of Kalsava is the strongest and thickest facing Russia, but it may not be facing other places. Although all available methods have been used, Prince Henry still cannot guarantee that he will not lose it. Karsava, he glanced at Amon, the head of the Zmixi clan who was leaning against the table.

Except for Louis XIV, staying in the same room with this sometimes crazy, sometimes cruel non-human is a kind of torture. Amon made no secret of his contempt and desire for "food", even in the face of wizards, The same is true of the priest or the dauphin, whose crimson eyes always project their frail necks, or their heaving chests, his fingers idly gliding over wood, metal, ceramics, leaving There are traces that look like they have been hacked by a sword.

"Don't worry," he said politely, "even if you lose Calzava, I won't make you a ham."

"Because in your mind, Karsava belongs to my uncle, not to me, or to my father," said Dauphin Henry.

Amon glanced at him with a little interest: "That's right. So I will take you away. After you fail, after all, Louis can't just ignore you."

"You think I'm doomed."

"Yeah, that sucks."

"But I have an idea." Henry said, "It might work."