Flowers, Swords and France

The negotiation with Count Pierre Bezukhov ended smoothly beyond Charles's expectation. Although he was evasive, he still tactfully expressed his willingness to support the Count's cause, and in this way indirectly admitted that France did intend to harm Russia in the near future.

The Count was naturally satisfied. He got what he wanted, and Charles agreed to all the additional conditions he proposed. He became Charles's guest of honor - although he might never say it out loud.

After reaching this secret deal, Charles invited the Count to visit his home first, and the Count agreed very straightforwardly.

So, the old man, who was still a prisoner for a few hours, soon became a guest of honor and took a carriage with Charles on the road to Paris.

Because he had stayed in Paris for a long time in his early years, the old man felt familiar with many places along the way, and then he would be reminded of the old man's unique sigh of the passage of time, and Charles was very kind to chat with him, and finally enlightened the old man.

They returned to Paris after nightfall and went to Charles's house together.

Although it was his first time here, the count was one of the richest men in Russia, or perhaps in Europe, so he was used to the world. He was not surprised by the grandeur of the mansion that Charles had taken from the previous prince and carefully renovated. Instead, he acted very normal, just like visiting an old friend.

As soon as she returned home, Charlotte personally went to greet her husband as usual, but was slightly surprised to see the visitor that Charles suddenly brought back. "Charles?"

"Charlotte, my dear." Charles walked to her side with a smile, kissed her cheek, and then pointed to the count, "This is Count Bezukhov from Russia. He is traveling in Europe. This time he came to visit me."

After that, he winked at Charlotte, indicating that there was something inside and asked her to keep it secret.

"Count Bezukhov?" Charlotte was surprised again. After all, she had heard of the great name of this rich man.

Charlotte had been with Charles for so many years, so she immediately understood, "Sir, I'm glad you can come to our house..."

"Madam, I'm honored to meet you too." The Count bowed slightly to Charlotte.

Charlotte looked very pregnant. It was not convenient to move around, so the people on both sides did not make any special etiquette, but just greeted each other lightly, but Charlotte still showed her welcome attitude very appropriately and did not disappoint the guests.

The three of them had dinner together and chatted, and the atmosphere was relaxed and easy-going.

"French cuisine is really amazing! We Russians are good at everything, but we are too rough!" After tasting the exquisite mayonnaise baked oysters made by the chef brought by Charlotte from her mother's home, Count Bezukhov's taste was opened and he couldn't help but praise it. "After so many years, whenever I think of France, these are what I miss the most!"

"If you like, eat more. I can ask them to make more." Charlotte said to the count with a smile, "In fact, I met a lot of Russians in Paris, and they all hold the same view as you. Maybe it's because Russia is too cold, and you have been trained too hard, so you are not interested in cooking..."

Although Charlotte does not have any profound geographical knowledge, she still understands some basic common sense, and she has been trained in social circles for so many years. So it is easy to deal with.

"Oh, the Russians you can see in France now are soft enough! They are intoxicated by the warm wind of Paris and do not have that kind of indomitable spirit." The count smiled and shook his head, obviously very happy with Charlotte's hidden compliment. "We were much more resolute when we were at home!"

"I also heard them say that Russian nobles often duel..." Charlotte seemed to remember something, and drank a mouthful of soup while speaking, "They are more daring and brave than our French nobles. I heard them say that many years ago, one of your noble poets once challenged one of our professional soldiers? That's really courageous!"

…………

After hearing Charlotte's unintentional words, the atmosphere suddenly became a little strange.

The count's face froze slightly, and even Charles bit his lip for a moment.

"That's a friend of mine." After a moment of silence, the count regained his unusual calmness. "And he is really a very, very good poet, perhaps the best poet in Russian history... His death is a great tragedy, and I still feel sad for him."

Charlotte realized that she had said the wrong thing at this time, and she looked at Charles with some uneasiness.

She didn't know Pushkin, she just heard about this incident in social occasions, and she didn't forget it at the time, but just took it as a topic of conversation, and mentioned it casually at the dinner table today. She never thought that the Count would take notice of what she heard - after all, she was too lazy to even remember a few French poets!

"Mr. Pushkin's death is indeed a huge tragedy. I still remember several poems he wrote, especially the "Napoleon". It's hard to imagine that a Russian would view our emperor so objectively! When I was a child When I read this poem, I really wanted to pay tribute to him." Charles quickly came to terms with his wife, "Although he died in a duel with the French, I think that in his death, the Tsar. His will probably played a big role..."

"He has shed enough blood for Russia, not less than this." the count said coldly.

"I'm... I'm so sorry, sir." Seeing that the count was still a little sad, Charlotte apologized to Pierre with a little embarrassment. "I think since you said so, your friend must be an extremely good poet. I will read his works next and never let his legacy be buried in dust..."

"Thank you, madam." The Earl smiled again, and then raised his glass, "Cheers to the two great nations to put an end to their grudges!"

This time, Charlotte picked up the wine glass, drank it all in one gulp, and then smiled at the Earl with an even redder face. "Count, you have a great capacity for drinking! Every Russian I know seems to be able to drink heavily!"

"Among the Russians, I am not a very good drinker." The count also laughed, "However, today, in front of such a beautiful lady, I cannot embarrass my motherland. This is a battle of a Russian noble. The spirit is sustaining me.”

"The fighting spirit of the Russians is really amazing." Charles also added a compliment at the right moment, "So I don't think anyone would like to be enemies of the Russian people."

"We are also happy to be friends with all the people of Europe, sir, especially those as outstanding and charming as you and your wife." The count also paid the compliment very nicely. "Russians show no mercy to their enemies. But to their friends, they are the best people."

Then he picked up the cup and shook it towards Ciel. "Then let's drink to the beautiful Lady Treville! May she always be as beautiful as she is today!"

After all, Charlotte was pregnant, so she didn't drink much, but after hearing the count's toast, she still picked up the wine glass and poured some wine, and then toasted with the two men.

"Count, you are so good at complimenting people. You deserve to have stayed in France for so long!" Her face became redder and redder, and seemed to glow with an intoxicating luster under the light.

"...Although some people call us barbarians, madam, please believe that we Russians can also feel beauty - especially the beauty of mothers." The count bowed slightly towards Charlotte, "Madam, I’m sure this is one of your most beautiful moments.”

Both the couple understood that the count was actually apologizing for embarrassing Charlotte just now.

After exchanging a few words. The Earl then chose to leave, and this time, he left an excellent impression on both Treville and his wife.

"I never thought there were such reasonable people among Russians!" Charlotte exclaimed to Charles after he left. "This old man is so nice. I wish I could talk to him more."

"He is not only reasonable, but also full of beautiful beliefs." Ciel shrugged. "It's a pity that he can't stay in Paris for a long time, and neither can we."

Yes, in a few days, Ciel and Charlotte will officially leave. Went to Austria to visit Emperor Franz-Joseph.

"Then while he is staying in Paris, how about I lend him our chef? I think he seems to like French food very much." Charlotte suggested.

Ciel was slightly shocked, Charlotte was not usually such a generous person.

Sure enough, do you still feel guilty for what happened just now?

Read the original text in Liu#9@书/吧!

"Okay, it's up to you." Charles smiled, and then wiped Charlotte's hair from the temples.

"Okay, then you can rest for a while, and I'll get us some coffee to relieve the hangover." Charlotte pushed his hand away embarrassedly, then turned around and wanted to leave.

Originally, Charlotte had a bloated belly and had difficulty moving, so Charles was not willing to let her work so hard on him, but Charlotte insisted on doing it by herself every time, so after many times, Charles no longer resisted her good intentions. .

He walked to the desk and looked through the letters he had received today. Then, he saw a mark inside an ordinary-looking envelope and quickly picked up the envelope.

There was no inscription or identification on the envelope, but Charles knew that it was from Matilda.

"My father does not agree with my opinion for the time being, and I am very sorry. Please give me some more time to convince him, thank you. Please believe that I will do my best for this." The content of the letter is also very simple.

However, Ciel sighed.

Sure enough, Count Dilion still misses his position of power and refuses to give up his position even if his daughter persuades him?

Huh, that's to be expected. I'll deal with you when I get back. He thought to himself.

Suddenly, another question flashed through his mind.

If it were Matilda, she would know Pushkin's...

This thought lingered in my mind and was difficult to get rid of.

After a while, another thought suddenly occurred to Charles.

However, even if I make a mistake, even if I don’t know who Pushkin is, she is my wife anyway, so what’s the big deal?

Then, Charles shook his head gently.

Indeed, it's no big deal.

She may not have much culture and doesn't think highly of culture, but what does it matter? We can still live without culture. I can still be my high official and... my future father without reading poetry.

"Hey, what are you thinking about, Charles?" At this time, Charlotte, holding a cup of coffee, had come to Charles. Looking at Charles who was in a daze, she asked curiously.

"Oh, nothing, I'm just thinking about some official business." Charles smiled.

Then, he folded the letter again without shaking his hand and put it back into the envelope.

"Well, drink it while it's hot." Charlotte handed over the coffee, and then Charles took it and drank it mouthful by mouthful.

The heat flowed along the esophagus and warmed his heart.

"Thank you, Charlotte."

He knew that Charlotte was not so easy to talk to. Even if she offended someone, she would never apologize or flatter. She was so attentive to the Count because she was afraid of offending this person who seemed to be very important to Charles and affecting her husband's work. "You don't have to wrong yourself for me. Isn't he just a lousy poet? He is not as cute as you." (~^~)