Flowers, Swords and France

As a scenic spot in the suburbs of Paris, the Bois de Boulogne is still crowded with tourists today.

The early autumn season is cool and pleasant, with a slight breeze of sunlight rippling in the forest, blowing past everyone, making people feel a unique comfort of autumn. Tourists walked through the forest, and the shadows and voices of people were looming in the woods, which made people feel neither lonely nor crowded - they could also talk about some private topics with each other.

In this warm breeze of early autumn, three girls strolled in the breeze of dusk. They were dressed very exquisitely, and it was obvious that they came from wealthy families, but their looks were also beautiful enough, so they did not drown themselves in the luxurious clothes. They strolled leisurely in the forest, and they seemed to become a part of the exquisiteness themselves.

Although there were bright and dark sights from everywhere, the three girls did not pay too much attention to these, but just strolled slowly. The sun cast golden rays behind them, as if even the creator had a preference for them.

The girl walking in the middle of them was the most outstanding. She had beautiful blonde hair, all tied up with a red ribbon, with only some hair hanging down from her forehead, swaying slightly in the breeze. She was walking in the forest with a small parasol, but her expression was somewhat thoughtful. She raised her head but her eyes were unfocused, and she frowned and looked around, as if she had an inexplicable sadness.

However, this faint sense of sadness did not weaken her beauty, but seemed to add a different kind of charm to her, making many people stop and watch secretly.

"Ms. Treville, why are you always so sad recently?" Miss Lola de Bovan, who was standing on her left, looked at Fran with interest, "According to your age and status, you should be very happy, right?"

She was dressed as usual, wearing a silk dress full of pleated lace, with her hair tied up high, and she glanced around arrogantly. She didn't look at anyone, and her expression was very firm, as if she was never moved by external things.

"Flan has been feeling unwell recently, so she is a little depressed," she hadn't answered yet, and Miss Marie de Léoran on her right suddenly gave her an answer. "She has been staying at home recently, and she came out to relax today..."

Her face was also beautiful, with light yellow curly hair coiled around her forehead, but because she often appeared in public, she looked a little more sophisticated and smooth than Laura, but she often looked back and forth at her close friend beside her inadvertently, as if she was very worried about her.

Originally, according to the habits of those young ladies, the outstanding appearance of the girl in the middle would certainly arouse the jealousy of the two people next to her, but the two of them seemed to be completely unaffected by this habit, and they all looked at Fran with great concern, sincerely worried about her - but how much of this sincerity was true and how much was just superficial, it was unknown.

"Oh, I'm really sorry for calling you out on a day like this..." After getting Mary's answer, Laura raised her eyebrows and expressed her apology to Fran.

"It's nothing. Anyway, I've been bored at home for a long time. I've been wanting to run out for some fresh air." Fran's eyes regained focus as if she was awakened. She turned slightly and glanced at Laura, "Thank you, Miss de-Bovan."

"Ha, you don't have to be so polite to me. Aren't we friends?" Laura replied with a smile, and then suddenly changed the subject, "You've been in the limelight recently. I've heard about you in many places. Everyone says you're a forgotten gem in the social world, but you've been shining since you were discovered..."

"I'm afraid it's because my family's power has started to shine recently..." Fran lowered her eyebrows slightly, obviously not looking very happy. "If it's not for this, then what's the point of me dressing up so gorgeously?"

…After a short period of time in the social world, Fran has gradually become familiar with how to show up with other young ladies like her. In the remnants of dusk, she dressed in a rather expensive dress and played a newly launched upper-class star appropriately, which was enough to make most people envious.

When she first entered the social world, although she was reserved, she was still a little happy and excited about other people's compliments. But after a while, she, like most of her predecessors, understood that such compliments were actually just bitter sourness wrapped in sugar - sometimes even poison - so she could no longer be moved by the most sincere and corny compliments. To some extent, this is also the inevitable path for young ladies.

Fran's slightly cold answer did not make Laura unhappy, but made her smile even deeper unconsciously.

"This sobriety is even more admirable, beautiful Miss Treville. That's right... isn't society always like this? Beauty and talent are just embellishments of money and power. If there is no wealth and power, even if it is no longer No matter how beautiful or talented we are, we still cannot get the respect of others, let alone occupy a prominent position in the social world. Because of this, those of us with brains should not be like those in our heads. Like an empty grouse, they only think about how to dress up and show off all day long. After more than ten years, they will be despised and thrown into a corner where no one cares. Instead, they should find ways to accumulate and seize wealth. As long as they We have this, and as long as we can occupy this, we are the most beautiful people in the world, and countless people will rush to worship us, compliment us, and be happy to do anything for us, right?”

Fran and Mary looked at each other secretly, feeling a little confused by her sudden tirade, but because her words were surprisingly convincing, they didn't know how to refute them.

"Maybe it's true..." In the end, Fran decided not to get entangled with her and went directly to the topic, "But, this shouldn't be the theme of today, right? What a beautiful day, what a beautiful scenery, we don't Should we talk about something else?"

"Wealth and power are eternal themes in any era, aren't they?" Laura still had that vague smile on her face, "Actually, I called you here today just for this theme."

"Um?"

"As I just said, if you want to live easily and comfortably in this era, achieving personal financial independence is the only credible and feasible way. The more wealth we possess, the happier we are. Especially for us women, it is Even more so..." Laura stopped and raised her head, "Without this thing, wouldn't our life be a meaningless tragedy? In life, our parents and brothers do whatever they want with us. We have nothing to rely on and can only bow our heads and obey orders. At the same time, we have to kneel on the ground and pray to God to send us a husband who is not addicted to alcohol, gambling, and does not like to look for flowers. Oh, we also need permission from our parents! Then, we also need to pray for children who love us and pray for their safety... My dear friends, don’t you think God is too busy?”

"That's true. Only with money can we be happy." Mary nodded subconsciously, and then she suddenly raised her head again, looking at Laura suspiciously and defensively.

She instinctively felt that there was some great danger hidden in her words. This person was so dangerous, and almost every word he said had ulterior motives.

"Even if you say that, what can you do?" Fran's brows were still slightly frowning, "We can only obey God's will."

..."No, God only helps those who are willing to help themselves, Miss Treville." With absolute confidence, Laura answered word by word.

After a moment of silence, she spoke again, "Besides, you don't have no chance of independence now. Compared to many people, your situation is already lucky enough. If you don't make good use of this luck, , that’s simply a lamentable waste.”

"What does this mean?" Fran had deep confusion on her face.

"Nothing else," Laura still smiled, and then suddenly seemed to ask an irrelevant question, "Your brother hasn't been at home recently, right? What a pity, I still have a lot of business issues I want to talk to him about. , Dad seems to be pushing me a little too hard lately..."

From this obvious hint, both Fran and Mary understood what she meant, and then they looked at each other uneasily.

The originally leisurely atmosphere suddenly became a little tense. Laura's gaze was so aggressive that Fran flinched for a moment.

"He just went out on business for a short time. He will come back sooner or later..." After a moment of silence, Fran whispered, "Can't you just have a good talk with him then?"

It's just because he wasn't here that he was able to find you without leaving a trace. Laura sneered in her heart.

"Flan..." Laura sighed suddenly, and a trace of disappointment flashed across her face, "Didn't you understand what I just said? People value their independence, and there is no point in waiting for others to help. But you clearly have the ability and opportunity but don’t use it, which is even more disappointing.”

"Ability?" Fran opened her eyes wide.

"Aren't you a director of the company now? As a director, it is natural for you to pay attention to the operating conditions of your company, right? Why can't you understand the business of the company? Maybe you can get some benefits from it, and maybe you can find out that everyone The risk was not discovered and we were lucky to avoid the loss.”

"But shouldn't it be wrong for me to interfere in these things rashly? Brother and the others must have their own arrangements..." Fran still had some hesitation on her face, "I am a girl, and I am young."

"Brother, brother...it's related to your destiny. Don't you even have the courage to understand it yourself? What about women? What about being young?!" Laura's face suddenly became a little stern, Her tone also increased a lot, as if she was declaring not to her friends but to the whole world, "Even if you are a girl, are you born with Should I be inferior to others? Should I just be an accessory? No, this is not the case! In this age, do you still believe in this pedantic view? Right, then unless I die, I will never give up my hope! I don’t want to rely on anyone for the rest of my life!”

The two girls in front of them subconsciously took a step back, making Laura suddenly understand how terrifying her face suddenly became.

No, there is no rush yet. We have to do it step by step and don't scare the children.

She regained her composure and put on her cold smile again.

"Sorry, I was a little excited just now. I was just a little anxious because I was thinking about you. Please forgive me." She lowered her head slightly, "Also, please don't worry. I am definitely not instigating you to fall out with your brother. In fact, I'm helping you. Think about it, your brother is very busy, right? How can you have time to take care of every business operation? You have to leave it to the person you trust most so as not to suffer a loss - then, can't you be his most trusted person? Is it malicious? In fact, he should be happy if you are willing to stand up and share his worries."

... Under the golden light of the setting sun, Laura, whose hair seemed to be shining, asked this series of questions with confidence, because she knew that the person in front of her would not be able to give a negative answer - because, she loved he. That kind of blind love is one of the easiest passions to influence.

Read the original text in Liu#9@书/吧!

In order to inject a flame of jealousy into this love, she deliberately added, "Of course, maybe the future Madame de Treville is the person he trusts most, but I I think your intelligence is at least not lower than that of that lady, right?"

As expected, after hearing her words, Fran lowered her head and fell into deep thought.

"Ms. de Beauvin, please be more restrained!" At this moment, Mary, who had been silent, suddenly spoke. She plucked up the courage and looked directly at Laura, "I don't know what your intentions are, but is it too much to say Fran? Everyone has something they are good at or not good at, why do you have to talk about autonomy? Woolen cloth?"

This was the first time that she had so boldly denounced Laura head-on - in three years of studio study, she had never had the courage.

The reason why he suddenly ignored the gap between the two people was, firstly, because he was now more or less a person with status and property; secondly, more importantly, he wanted to make amends for his previous behavior.

Ever since Mary told her brother about Fran's private meeting with Ezreal Walter, there had been some inexplicable estrangement between the two friends. It was precisely because of this that Mary He will try his best to repair the relationship between the two people, and at least let Fran feel that he is wholeheartedly devoted to her.

This kind of effort actually allowed her to overcome the deep-seated fear of Laura in a short period of time. It was also very difficult for her to bite the bullet and deal with the opponent face to face - unfortunately, it was not easy. I don’t know if I was moved by the other party.

"Plot, what plot can I have? Even if I have one, it's to help Fran, isn't it?" Laura still had that calm smile on her face, "Isn't this obvious? Our Miss Treville is getting better and better. The more you can be independent, the more you can help your brother, and therefore the more you will be valued by him, and you can also use this to gain enough capital to establish yourself in the upper class for a lifetime. I don't understand why I can't do such a thing that kills multiple birds with one stone. Woolen cloth?"

After a pause, Laura looked at Mary with a smile, "Not to mention, isn't this situation also very beneficial to you? You are Fran's close friend and someone she can trust. Now that she can go and take care of things , judging from the results, aren’t you also given a heavy responsibility?”

Laura's words made Mary suddenly speechless. She wanted to refute again, but she didn't know how to refute.

To be fair, she supports Fran and sincerely hopes that she will not have to bear the same unlucky fate as herself - and isn't extremely huge wealth the greatest guarantee of being able to enjoy prosperity?

Moreover... I can also take this opportunity to become someone who can indirectly use her wealth as a close friend and best advisor. That is much more attractive than being Mr. de Treville's subordinate... Especially It was after she couldn't become Mrs. de Treville.

All of this is just a matter of responding to this person's suggestion...

When she thought of this, Mary suddenly felt a chill running down her spine.

It's really disgusting. This person... This person can really see into people's hearts. An inexplicable panic suddenly flashed through her heart.

But even so, she still couldn't say anything against it. Even if she opened her mouth several times, she still couldn't say anything.

Fran didn't notice her friend's confusion. She just lowered her head and pondered, not knowing what she was thinking.

Until the moment when the sun was about to set and the last ray of the setting sun was about to disappear, she slowly raised her head, with an indescribable brilliance shining in her eyes.

And Laura did not speak again, but waited quietly, waiting for the answer that the other party was destined to come.

"I think what you said does make sense. I will discuss it with my brother later... I also hope to help him."

Sure enough, she waited.

An inexplicable sense of joy surged in Laura's heart, making her almost want to laugh, but she did not laugh, because she knew that her plan had only been implemented for the first step, and the future was still uncertain.

But her heart was unshakable, because she had vowed that she would never let her own destiny be out of control.

In this way, when Charles, Albert, and Lucien were still sighing at the sunset, the three girls also reached a tacit understanding. r1152