Flowers, Swords and France

September 1792

France-Paris

The Duke of Treville was alone in his study, feeling very gloomy and heavy.

Outside, the sky was overcast, and the air was dull and depressing, just like France today.

The situation was getting worse and worse, the mobs were getting more and more rampant, and there were riots everywhere, and the fear brought to him by the mobs was getting deeper and deeper. The king's family had been held hostage by the mob to the Tuileries Palace in Paris, and the Treville family, who originally settled in Versailles, had to move back to Paris with the court.

The Duke of Treville, who had been doing well in the court of Versailles and was deeply trusted and relied on by the king and his wife, found himself helpless in the face of this situation and could only watch the situation get worse and worse.

Just a few days ago, the Duke learned a piece of news: in a monastery outside Paris, the mob concentrated on executing 160 clergy who were unwilling to swear allegiance to the new axe, and none of them survived.

The huge fear stunned the Duke at the time, and it took him a long time to regain his mind.

There was no time to delay. He made a desperate decision.

A moment later, his eldest son Philip was called to his study.

He looked at his son, who was only 18 years old this year. There was still a trace of childishness on the elegant and handsome face of the young man, but years of painstaking education had given him the calmness that a member of the Treville family should have. He looked at his father thoughtfully, as if he wanted to say something.

The young man was still not calm enough, and the Duke sneered in his heart.

"Philip, what do you think of the current situation?"

Philip, who finally got the chance to speak, became a little excited.

"Dad, it's very bad, very, very bad."

"The answer is correct, but unfortunately there is no reward." The Duke smiled half self-deprecatingly and half sarcastically.

But his son did not have this calmness.

"Dad, let's run! Leave France," he shouted anxiously, "Many people have already run, it will be too late if we don't run now!"

"Don't panic." His father waved his hand gently, signaling him to stay calm, "I called you here today because I have something to tell you."

"Have you decided to run?" Philip's face flashed with joy.

"Yes," the Duke nodded, "I decided to let you and Victor leave France tomorrow."

The joy on the boy's face instantly turned into astonishment.

"You...you won't run away?"

"No, I won't run away, and I can't run away. If I run away, I will be discovered." The Duke replied calmly, "So I have to stay at home, so that you can have a chance to run away. If we run together, then none of us will survive."

"Father!" Philip almost shouted, "Then we won't run away either. We will protect you to the end. If anyone wants to murder you, they will have to step over my body. Let those mobs wait and see. We, the people of the Treville family, are not lacking in courage!"

"Pah"

A heavy slap resounded throughout the study.

"Idiot!" The Duke scolded, "What use is your boring courage other than destroying our family? Do you think I want to die? If there is another way, would I let you run away?"

After being slapped, tears flowed from Philip's eyes, but he did not cry. He stood stiffly and looked at his father.

Looking at the bright red palm print on his son's face, the Duke sighed slightly.

"Philip, although it's a pity, everything in the Treville family will be handed over to you in the future. I'm sorry that you have to bear all this at such a young age."

Philip did not answer, but just listened quietly.

"If you really have the courage, then take good care of your brother. I'll hand him over to you too. Don't let me down." The Duke continued his instructions before parting, "Remember, only those with the surname Treville in the world are worthy of your cherishment. Others are either to be used or to be attacked. There are only these two types. People cannot live alone. Our family can do anything to the outside world, but we must stick together and support each other internally. Only in this way can the Treville surname last for a long time, and only in this way can we have the opportunity to enjoy the glory and wealth that our ancestors have fought for. You must protect your family and live up to your surname. Do you understand?"

Tears welled up in the boy's eyes again, and he answered very solemnly.

"Dad, I will. I will take good care of Victor for the rest of my life, as long as I am alive."

"Good job, I believe you." The Duke smiled, and then patted his son's shoulder heavily, "Okay, don't cry! If you don't have this little courage, how can you do great things in the future?"

The father's eyes were stern and tender - these two emotions were blended together without any contradiction.

Under this gaze, the future Duke of Treville straightened his back and suppressed all his tears. He knew that starting from tomorrow, his life would be completely different. In the face of the unknown darkness, he was full of fear and at a loss, but he knew that he could not fall down.

The only thing he knew was that he must not fall down.

"Hurry up and get ready. Leave at 2 a.m. tomorrow. Don't delay any longer." The Duke calmly issued an order, "Go find some civilian clothes, preferably a little worn out. I will arrange for someone to take you east. As long as you run out of the French border, you will be safe."

Philip nodded heavily.

"Everything will be left to you after that!" The Duke repeated again, "Go and pack up!"

Philip turned around mechanically and walked out slowly.

"Louis-Philippe, this idiot, is still jumping up and down. He thinks he can use this flame to burn the obstacles in front of him clean, this idiot!" I don't know what he thought of, the Duke suddenly scolded.

His son stopped immediately and listened quietly to his father's last teachings.

[This Louis-Philippe refers to the Duke of Orleans at the time, who was later the father of King Louis-Philippe. He actively speculated on the revolution and played himself as a revolutionary radical. He changed his name to Philippe-Equality and became a member of the French National Assembly. In October 1793, he was sent to the guillotine by the Jacobins. 】

"One day, this idiot will be sent to the guillotine, just wait and see." The Duke's tone was full of contempt and sarcasm, "He wants to play a revolutionary? Bah, a white dog wants to play a black cat? He can think of it! Philip, you must remember in the future, no matter how you change your family, you are still a noble, a descendant of the Treville family, you will never become a mob, no matter how much you act like a mob, remember it!"

The Treville family's contempt and disdain for the Orleans family began with this generation, and continued to **, and even to the end.

And just one month after the Duke of Treville calmly walked to the guillotine, the Duke of Orleans was also sent to the guillotine.

………………

October 1792

In the endless fields, the two teenagers walked slowly forward. They didn't know how long they had walked, nor how long they would have to walk.

Before, because of the attack of the mob, their carriage had to be abandoned, and the old servant who took them to escape was unfortunately killed by a stray bullet. Now only the two of them were left sneaking along.

They were sleepy, tired, and hungry, but they did not stop.

The only thing that drove them to move forward was the last belief, that they would be safe if they went east and east. As for what was waiting for them there, they were too lazy to think about it.

After many days of wandering, the clothes that were originally neat had become unrecognizable, and it was doubtful whether they could still provide windproof and warmth.

At least for Victor, it was very doubtful - he had a high fever a few days ago, and it was getting worse.

The days of pampering were gone, and the two brothers lacked the corresponding preparations. It was not surprising that such a result occurred.

They ate wild fruits and fruits and vegetables stolen from the fields along the way, and just kept going east.

"Brother?" The younger brother who had been silent all the time suddenly spoke?

"Hmm?" Philip answered with only one sound. He didn't want to say a word more, so as not to waste precious energy.

"Brother, I can't walk anymore. Let me rest for a while." Victor's originally fair face turned a strange red due to the high fever. "You go first. I'll catch up with you after I've rested."

As he spoke, he collapsed on the ground and sat down.

He forced a smile on his face and said again, "You go first..."

The original text can be read in Liu # 9 @Shu/Bar!

"Stupid!" His brother scolded him, "If I leave, can you still live? Who will find food for you? Do you want to die? Stand up! Keep walking with me!"

"Sorry, I can't walk anymore," Victor smiled apologetically, "Brother, I'm sorry."

Then, as if he had used up all his strength, he fell to the ground with his face facing the sky.

He seemed to be mumbling something, but Philip couldn't hear it at all, and soon even the low whispers were gone.

"Victor, stand up!" Philip shouted to his brother lying on the ground, "Stupid, stand up!"

In the empty field, only his scolding echoed everywhere.

"I swore in front of my father that I would take care of you for the rest of my life, stupid, do you want me to break my promise! Stand up! Stand up! Stand up!" Philip scolded his brother and patted his shoulder heavily with his hand, "Did you hear me? I told you to stand up, don't die... don't die!"

But his brother did not respond to him, just lying on the ground with his eyes closed, as if he had fallen into a coma.

"Stupid!" Philip cursed again.

Then he forcibly pulled his brother up and let him lie on his shoulders, and then he forcibly took his brother to walk. His brother's whole body was hot, as if he was on fire, but he seemed to be unaware of it, and he half carried and half dragged his brother on the ground, slowly moving forward.

He did this not only because of his oath to his father, but also because of fear. In the deepest part of his heart, he was afraid that he was the only one who survived in the world.

They all survived.

………………

September 1805

Germany-Düsseldorf

The two Treville brothers, who used the pseudonym Friedland, have been living in Germany for more than ten years.

At first, when the two brothers came to Germany, they were penniless and knew nothing. But ten years later, they had a life again.

For the first three years, they worked together as apprentices to a shoemaker. Then they went to their current settlement and started to open a small shop as shoe repairmen. Seven years later, their skills have become very sophisticated. , well-known locally.

Ten years later, the two brothers have become young men, married and had children, and their surnames have been passed down secretly.

[During the Revolution, foreign French aristocrats generally used fabricated surnames when "holding business" to avoid "insulting their ancestors", and they only married into families who were members of the same aristocracy. Only at home do they use their original surnames. 】

In ten years of life, the two children of Duke Treville have learned a lot and left behind a lot, but there is one thing they have not taken away, and cannot take away - that is, the two brothers can once again shine the lintel of their family and rebuild their special character. The determination of the Revell family.

On this day, in the workshop of the two brothers, Victor once again expressed his thoughts to his brother.

"Brother, I want to go back. Napoleon recently issued an edict. As long as we **nobles go back, he will return all the property and industry to us, and let us enter his court."

"Let's take another look, Victor." Philip replied in a low voice, "Let's continue to repair these shoes, there is still time."

"It's just shoes, shoes, shoes all day! I've had enough!" Victor cursed under his breath.

"You can't repair the shoes if you are so excited." Philip said quietly, while continuing to work on his hands.

"Brother, I've had enough. I don't want to see these people anymore. I want to go back." Victor's face was full of excitement. "I already have a wife, and now I have Edgar. I can't continue like this. If my life goes on, should I let my children continue to repair shoes? "

Seeing his brother's excitement, Philip knew that he could no longer persuade him.

Well, now that Napoleon's reputation is at its peak, it seems that he will continue to rule France. If his brother returns, there should be hope that he can revitalize the family business.

He thought for a long time and finally answered.

"Okay, then go back."

"Aren't you going back?" Victor was very surprised.

"No," the future Duke shook his head, and then glanced around the workshop he had worked hard to build from abject poverty, "I still have a lot of shoes to repair."

………………

September 1830

The Bourbon dynasty fell and Philippe the Equality's son became king.

Both brothers are old and have white spots on their temples.

"It looks like we are going to be dormant for a long time." Even in this situation, Phillip remained calm. "My brother, I can't help you during this time. You have to take care of yourself and don't be stupid."

"Louis-Philippe, that bastard, has become the king. Does he deserve it? Bah!" Victor spat in anger.

"This is France." The Duke sighed.

Then, he changed the topic, "Charlotte and Charlotte are already three years old. Let them play more in the future. We will always be a family."

"Well, a family!" the younger brother replied loudly. (To be continued.)