I Am Louis XIV

But their relief was only for a moment, and the surroundings were still in chaos, with falcons screaming, hounds barking, people calling each other's names, although the Duke and Lupo's guards were doing their best to maintain order, but at this time there was another Several wild boars rushed out. Lupo didn't hesitate, he whistled, and led the Duke straight to the jungle.

Cavalry have never entered the dense forest, because the branches of the trees, the stalks of the vines, and the grass stalks climbing on the ground may cause a well-trained army horse to fall together with its owner, but at this time, they have not cared so much Now, they must get out of this swamp where friend and foe are inseparable. With the dappled light cast from the gaps in the dense foliage, Lupo steered his horse towards a path that looked like a ranger. The overgrown branches of the path passed by. Crude cuts, but all below the head height of ordinary men, they have to stick their heads down and bend their bodies.

At this time they heard the barking of dogs, and several shaggy hounds chased after them. The hounds could weave through the trees and pass them in a moment, and two extraordinarily tall hounds circled the horse's hooves, and the horse stamped restlessly, trying to get out of the way but unable to do so because of the narrow path.

"Press the horse's ears," said the Duke.

Lupo obeyed immediately. He held the rein and folded the horse's ears forward with his palm and thumb. Then he heard a loud gunshot. The loud sound made him lose his hearing—he even felt wet liquid flow out of the ear

The hounds fell to the ground whining, and the duke carried two double-shots with him, and he spent two bullets without hesitation. The hounds scattered frantically and fled, and their horses, though their ears were covered, seemed Still shaking, Lupo gave it a hard kick in the stomach with the silver spur, and it ran on.

The Duke of Orleans and Lupo couldn't be sure whether it was theirs who released the hounds, and they walked forward in silence until they left the hunting ground area.

This is not the first assassination nor the last. The people in the hunting ground, no matter they are intact, wounded, or dying, have all been brought under control. It was a conspiracy planned by the French forces, but some discerning people can see that the assassination may be because the Duke of Orleans touched the interests of some people, or made them feel threatened, just like France now.

Because they were friends before they turned enemies, they were all the more difficult to guard against, and as the Duke sat in front of the fire, enjoying mulled wine on a still chilly evening, Kitty licked the wine from his glass and said: "It seems that Senator Tamalit and Father Claris' control of the Catalans is not as perfect as we thought."

"I almost want to say that this is a good thing." Councilor Tamalit and Father Claris are out-and-out hidden dangers to the future Carlos III, but now they are not only helping, but hindering, just For example, when the Duke wanted to investigate the instigator of the assassination, they stood firmly on the side of the Catalans, not on the side of the Duke or France. When they were in Paris or Roussillon Having pledged allegiance to the future Spanish king, they now appear to favor an independent Catalonia.

"..." The Duke picked up the kitten and held it in his hand, watching it slump into a ball lazily. The look on Lupo's face when the kitten ran out of his pocket after they left the hunting ground was really amazing , maybe he said in his heart: French! But he didn't know that if the situation was out of control, this cat boy would tear up everyone who was against the duke: "Mr. Theoderic, guess what I'm thinking now?"

"Golding's knot," Kitty said.

The situation they are facing now, although they have won all the way - is becoming more and more chaotic. The authority of Tamalite and Father Claris is not enough to make all the Catalans obey, but this insufficient authority belongs to France. The constraints of the Duke of Orleans, but if they suddenly encounter misfortune-this situation can instead develop in favor of France.

Because in today's crowd, no one can replace them, except the Duke.

Those who only dare to curse in the shadows, or stab a dagger, the Duke is not afraid, what bothers him is those who are neutral, vacillating or leaning towards France, but still stubbornly remembering that they are Catalan Catalans, when encountering conflicts, they will inevitably lean towards "our own people", so he cannot solve his enemies as neatly as he did in Paris, so the Catalans will inevitably turn to Habs immediately. fort.

Theoderic said that the current situation is as complicated as Goulding's knot - what he said was a problem that Alexander the Great encountered when he conquered Asia Minor. The locals invited him to watch a legendary chariot. There was a knot of cowhide tangled grotesquely with the straps of the pole-shaft. It is said that someone predicted that the person who could untie this knot would be the king of Asia. They hoped to use this topic to embarrass Alexander the Great, but the Great only thought for a few seconds before pulling out his sword and splitting the knot.

The Duke of Orléans had such a plan—from Tamalite to Father Claris, these Catalonian nobles had no one to use, and their mediocrity was not a crime, but it was a drag, a drag. As a result of the failure of the previous riots, the Duke did not want to become one of the victims - he wanted to cut off their heads. When the Catalans were looking for their leaders, they could only look at the Duke .

"It's not difficult to do this, but how to do it is the problem." Maozai said.

"This is Catalonia," the Duke nodded. "We may have to wait a little longer." He said, "When we win Barcelona..."

At this time, someone knocked on the door suddenly, and the attendants outside came to inquire about the Duke, and Senator Tamalite suddenly came to ask to see the Duke. The Duke looked out the window, and the night was as dark as ink. "Now is not a good time to visit." He said.

Cat Zai got into his pocket, "He must have something important."

Isn't there something important! The Duke was dumbfounded. He had known for a long time that these Catalans had all sorts of weird views on him. They might have thought that they would welcome a fragile "noble man" who only knew how to dress up and talk about love. When they found him Although he is really good at dressing up and talking about love, but he is also very good at fighting and marching, and he can't help but start to feel anxious. They don't want to let him have any accidents, and they don't want him to really become the French in Catalonia. spokesperson.

At least that's what the ex-Duke thought tonight.

"You...why do you have such an idea?"

"I think this is completely logical. Your Highness," Tamalit said respectfully and happily, "you must know that the title of Earl of Barcelona can be traced back to the time of the Carolingian Dynasty, when Charlemagne conquered Catalonia, He set up a feudal guard on this remote territory, although we don't know why he did it-but before the twelfth century, the Count of Barcelona was almost independent of the Kingdom of France-after all, they were Served to the King of the Carolingians."

"But the successors of the French kings also inherited the Carolingian heritage," said the duke.

"I don't deny it," said Tamalete, "and then in 1258, although the relationship between the two existed in name only, the title was inherited by the King of Aragon through marriage. In the Treaty of Kolbe, Aragon renounced his claims to southern France, and in return, Louis IX ceded Barcelona to the King of Aragon, that is to say, the title of Count of Barcelona to the King of Aragon."

"You can say that, but in 1641, it was retaken by the King of France. Given what the descendants of the Aragonese kings did in the Thirty Years' War, I can say that my father, Louis XIII, took back the Count of Barcelona. The title is in full compliance with canon and secular law."

"There is no doubt, so." Tamalit said something earth-shattering: "So, why don't you come to inherit your father's inheritance?"

—————

When the nobles of Catalonia changed their minds and prepared to push the Duke of Orleans to the position of Earl of Barcelona in order to seek the independence of Barcelona, ​​they probably forgot the Duke of Orleans' loyalty to the Sun King Louis XIV, so loyal that the king suddenly When he disappeared, he was unwilling to accept the position of "King Regent" with the full support of the Queen Mother and Bishop Mazaran. Perhaps they hadn't forgotten it, but they thought it was impossible.

Who can be indifferent to the monstrous power.

In their thoughts, the Duke of Orleans will definitely be moved - he is thousands of miles away, and there is no one around him who can restrict and threaten him. If he accepts the allegiance of the Catalans first, it can also be said that To open up a smooth road for his nephew Carlos III-the Catalonia of the Duke of Orleans can also become the backing of the French army.

Of course, this is just hypocritical rhetoric, and everyone knows what this kind of behavior means-but Catalonia...don't forget, it was even a country.

"The Duke of Orleans will not agree," said the Archbishop of Toledo. He rolled up the small note with information and lit it on a candle. In front of him sat Pero, who was also an important minister of Spain. It is worth mentioning that he was a supporter of Queen Mother Maria Anna. , was also a pawn placed by her side by Leopold I, a fanatical supporter of the Habsburgs, and an Austrian - people like him made up the majority of the Toledo court, they Certainly the last person to want a Bourbon to inherit the Spanish throne.

If the heir is the son of Leopold I, there is no doubt that the future Spanish court will still be dominated by the Habsburgs. Their status and property will not decrease, but will increase, but if it is Bourbon... ...Based on what they see now, even if Spain and France do not merge, according to Louis XIV's disposition, Spain will undergo changes like France - the power of nobles and officials will be stripped and replaced by a centralized monarchy .

Therefore, even if the sudden death of Carlos II caught them by surprise, and the death of the queen mother made them lose their main spokesperson, they still firmly and stubbornly guarded the Habsburgs in Spain. Position, never allow Bourbon to take over Toledo or Madrid, Madrid, thinking of this minister Perrault's expression became extremely gloomy, obviously, the court of Madrid is inclined to accept Louis XIV's second son Charles ...

Carlos III? Pooh! He spat in his heart, didn't they know that Carlos II's death must have something to do with that Sun King? That's a villain who can make a deal with the devil! They didn't even have to curse him to hell because he was already there! It is a pity that Patinho, the Secretary of the Navy, is a cowardly traitor, and he even said that the genetic disease of the Habsburgs might bring them another mad or sickly king. How could it be possible! Everyone knows that the little Habsburg prince is healthy and... strong...

Perrault found that he really couldn't tell whether he was beautiful or smart. Although he and the Prince Charles of France were still toddlers, they were not smart, and a baby of a few months could tell-but that's another matter. what relationship! They need such a king!

After Louis XIV, Leopold I also announced that his son Philip would become Philip V. The meeting between Perrault and the Archbishop of Toledo was to determine how they would reply to each other. It must be loyal to the Habsburgs, so Louis XIV must regard them as enemies: "Will Madrid go to war with us then?" he asked worriedly.

"Yes." The Archbishop of Toledo replied wearily, "Yes, Spain will usher in a civil war."

Perot turned his head away: "Then I will reply to the French like this." The archbishop nodded.

Perot got a response and left the room. The Archbishop of Toledo sat there for a while, stood up, and opened the door leading to the next door.

Behind the door is a small room for confession and prayer. In the room stood Alberoni, a disciple of the archbishop.

The archbishop took off his mask.

Alberoni was probably one of the few people who could look directly at the archbishop's face without turning his head. He had been in the archbishop's service for several months, and he was used to it, no matter how hideous it was.

Also because of this credit, Alberoni was not held accountable for the crimes he committed during the turmoil. He was still a disciple of the archbishop, but his future was uncertain. Compared with Jose who has been taken to Madrid, he is in danger of his life at any time.

But perhaps he was the only one who thought so, for the archbishop asked him point-blank: "Are you going to France?"

The stupid author made a mistake, the Queen Mother of Spain was written to death by me before! ! Groundhog screams!

Going to change it... Readers who have read it, please remember that it is the remaining forces of the Queen Mother instead of the Queen Mother herself. Take a bow and apologize.