Flowers, Swords and France

Under everyone's gaze, the Emperor and Empress of the Empire, along with a large group of attendants and ladies-in-waiting around them, appeared at the gate and walked in step by step.

In order to deliberately show the royal demeanor, their clothes were very luxurious and solemn. His Majesty wore a special military uniform, a cloak, and the Order of the Garter, which he had just been awarded by the British, on his chest. Her Majesty also wore a court dress, a diamond-studded crown on her head, and a fan in her hand. She looked like a queen, not a woman who was not yet twenty years old.

The Emperor was full of that kind of proud but pretentious smile. He accompanied Her Majesty the Queen, with a dignified attitude but also considerate, and smiled and said this to her from time to time, which made him look like a good husband.

This was not an act. Since marrying the Queen, the Emperor had been by her side, even away from his former mistresses, which surprised those who had thought it was just a political marriage for show.

However, everyone still believed that with the Emperor's dissoluteness, this exclusive favor might not last too long.

Although the Queen also smiled and looked radiant, this smile seemed a little forced and even a little alienated to a group of sophisticated people.

This attitude was not appropriate for a queen, but considering that she had just become the queen not long ago, no one felt unhappy about it, and some even thought that she looked more innocent.

When the couple came to the center of the hall, Charles and his colleagues bowed to them at the same time. Although the movements were not as uniform as those of the soldiers, they also seemed respectful.

After holding power for a period of time, these people at the highest level of the empire are already full of confidence. Their etiquette is also decent, and they have a bit more of the demeanor of state ministers. From their solemn faces, who can tell that this is an empire that has just been established for a year?

Amid the cheers of ministers and attendants, the emperor and the queen sat on the throne, and the others also sat in their respective seats.

As the chief attendant of Her Majesty, Charlotte also came to the palace today, and was arranged to sit next to Her Majesty the Queen. After the two of them sat down, they kept chatting. It can be seen that when Her Majesty did not have to talk to Her Majesty the Emperor, Her Majesty was obviously much more relaxed, and her smile became much more friendly.

In order to please the future Queen and expand her husband's network, Charlotte also suppressed her dissatisfaction and agreed to be her lady-in-waiting. After contacting Queen Karona for a period of time, she put aside her prejudice against the Bonaparte family and sincerely wanted to make friends with the queen, not wanting her husband to be hostile to her.

With the arrival of the two majesties, the banquet began. Exquisite dishes had already been placed on the table, and servants would bring new dishes every once in a while. However, just like all royal banquets, the people present did not focus on tasting these delicacies, but on guessing the majesties and interacting with colleagues.

"You have a very good wife, Monsieur Treville." Just as Charles was still observing the interaction between his wife and Her Majesty the Queen, Morny suddenly said in his ear, "Not only is she charming, but she can also become friends with Her Majesty the Queen and win her favor - to be honest, I can't help but envy you for this."

"I am also proud of my wife." Charles replied with a smile.

"Oh, you are so lucky. You have a duke's daughter by your side, and you have already captured her heart. You can marry her as soon as you come of age..." Morny smiled bitterly as if he was mocking himself. "If only a duke had fallen in love with me when I was young, we wouldn't have to worry about this matter."

Although it is a bit exaggerated to describe it as sad, what he said is also true - whether it is him, his brother, or Joseph Bonaparte's cousins, they were all unruly in their youth and had several lovers, but they did not get married.

This is because they think highly of themselves and always regard themselves as royal family, so they are unwilling to marry women of commoner origin - but at that time the empire had already collapsed, and how many women from old families would be willing to marry them? So these members of the Bonaparte family always got married late.

On the contrary, the emperor's Polish illegitimate son, Count Walewski, because he had a recognized title after all and was not very picky, he married three wives and left several heirs.

If Louis-Bonaparte had not taken advantage of the February Revolution to rebuild the empire and become the emperor, I am afraid that this single state would continue, and he would even remain single for life.

Yes, although there are many important officials here, there is a lack of noble ladies to decorate the place. After the Emperor married Princess Caroline, other members of the family also began to think about it, thinking that they could also follow suit and get married with the royal families of various countries.

"I can't help you this time." Charles shrugged and joked. "I can't go around Europe to find a royal family for you to marry. Besides, I can't always do this, can I?"

"You are really a joker..." Morny couldn't help laughing, "Charles, I dare not use you as a matchmaker like His Majesty, but don't worry, I will find a suitable partner one day - more suitable than a duchess."

"Then I wish you to find one soon?" Charles picked up the wine glass and toasted the other party.

He was really just joking, because he knew that even if he did nothing, these Bonapartes who were determined to marry into the old royal families on the European continent would still succeed with the strength and influence of the French Empire.

In that world, in 1857, Morny married the daughter of Prince Trubetskoy of Russia, and in 1859, Joseph Bonaparte married Princess Clotilde of the Kingdom of Sardinia. They finally found the right person and realized their dream.

That is, in this generation, the Bonaparte family finally got rid of the label of local tycoon nouveau riche, and was finally accepted by European countries and became part of the royal family. God knows how much effort they put into this, and God knows how much France paid for this.

Of course, this happened a long time ago. The princess who was going to marry Joseph Bonaparte was only nine years old. Charles just made a joke that was not malicious.

"Charles?" Just as he and Morny were still joking, His Majesty the Emperor suddenly looked up and called him.

"Your Majesty?" Charles was a little confused, but he still stopped the greetings and looked up at the emperor.

"I heard that your son is very cute. Can you send him to the palace in a while so that we can see him?" His Majesty the Emperor looked at him with a smile, "Karona envied your wife very much, and she also wanted to experience the life of a mother first."

"Of course, Your Majesty." Charles agreed immediately. "I am very happy that Clovis can have such an honor and be blessed by Her Majesty the Queen herself."

After saying that, he smiled and nodded to Her Majesty the Queen, but the Queen just nodded slightly coldly, as if she was not happy about it.

It seems that she has already felt the pressure now.

The original text is available at Six # 9 @Books/Bar!

Like his uncle, after getting a princess as his queen, he now wants to get a legitimate heir for the empire. And Her Majesty, the Queen, naturally shoulders the heavy responsibility of giving birth to a child for the emperor as soon as possible so that the empire can continue.

In particular, time waits for no one. His Majesty is already in his forties. God knows how many years of energy he can have. He can only seize it as soon as possible.

In this case, it is normal for Queen Karona to feel stressed and even worried. She wants to see Charlotte's son, which is probably a way to relieve stress.

Thinking of this, Charles suddenly felt sorry for her - which woman would not feel anxious in the face of such pressure?

"Today, everyone is gathered together, which is really a rare event..." His Majesty was in a very good mood, and he picked up the wine glass and waved it towards everyone, "Cheers, everyone, for the beautiful France."

"Cheers!" Others all catered to His Majesty.

"Paris is good in everything except that there are too many people. The air is not pure and the noise is too loud when there are too many people. This is not good for people who need to rest..." After drinking, His Majesty the Emperor suddenly said.

Because no one understood what His Majesty meant, no one responded, but just exchanged glances with each other to guess His Majesty's intentions.

"So, in order to allow Karona to rest, I plan to renovate Fontainebleau and use it as a detached palace. The air there is very good, Karona will definitely like it, and it will also be good for our lives." His Majesty the Emperor said, smiling and nodding at his queen. "Isn't it, Karona?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." The voice was crisp, but it seemed a little weak.

Charles and Morny were both people who had been in the social scene for many years. They could see that Her Majesty the Queen was not particularly enthusiastic about this, and she only said this to please the Emperor.

Fontainebleau was a hunting ground for ancient French kings. It was expanded during the reign of Emperor Napoleon and turned into a magnificent palace where they lived for a long time. However, after the emperor abdicated, the kings who followed him did not like the place, so it is now quite deserted.

"Charles, can you spare some time now? If you can, you can be responsible for supervising the reconstruction of the Fontainebleau Palace." (~^~)