Mary Su Stuart

The young Duke of Guise felt that he was reaching the pinnacle of his life.Since the end of last year, due to the massive rebellion of the Protestants in the south of France, he was finally able to show his talents, display the potential of his descendants of famous generals, and apply the results of years of military study one by one.Also because of his bravery and dexterity, the French government army has been devastated and unstoppable in the past year.Half a month ago, he was accidentally hit by a spear in a hearty battle, leaving a heroic medal on his face like his father: scars.

However, many towns that were "plowed personally" by the French Marshal couldn't help rebelling again not long after they surrendered.Without him, the tyranny of this extreme Catholic made countless Huguenot citizens very desperate, thinking that if they did not rise up, they would only die.

Although the king and queen sent the Duke of Longueville beside him, this cousin who had been a civil servant for many years could not control the valiant Henry De Geese at all.So the Duke of Langeville had to report back to Paris: "Dear Your Majesty, Henry is young and promising, it is a blessing; but his arrogance is too arrogant and his methods are too cruel. Wherever he goes, the Protestants are wailing loudly, which is really against the law." Your principle of tolerance."

After receiving the report, Francois scanned it carefully and handed the letter to Mary. "The actions of the Duke of Guise seem to be very vicious. But—"

Mary followed with a long sigh. "However, at this stage, it is not a bad thing for us."

She put the letter paper into the hands of the eldest daughter again. "Vivian, come and read."

The little secretary, who was already full of curiosity, quickly stood up and grabbed the secret letter written by his uncle.For a moment, the study room was filled with childish reading aloud.Matilda, who was sitting under her sister, had a look of envy: Although the description in words sounds a bit complicated, she half-understands it; but she will definitely be able to read letters for her parents in the future.

"...After the city was broken, the fire rack was erected again, and the smoke and dust billowed, creating several nights of terror..." Vivian's hands trembled.She looked to her mother for help. "This kind of simple death penalty without trial is obviously against the secular law, and we should really try to stop it..."

"Okay." Mary nodded. "You've seen the surface. Now, you need to know more."

The Queen of France clapped her hands.As a result, Vivienne sat down on the couch under her younger sister's envious eyes, and was close to her mother.

François noticed the youngest daughter's longing.So, when the father also waved.Matilda's feet seemed to be loaded with springs, and she flew to her father's side as if flying.

"Well, a ten-year-old girl has a lot of weight after all." The King of France smiled after sensing the degree of collapse of the sofa cushion.

Matilda was a little embarrassed.Seeing Mrs. Melville's meaningful expression in the distance, she immediately straightened her body, straightened her skirt, and changed into a dignified and studious ladylike face.

Seeing that the two elementary school students had put on their postures, Mary began to lecture. "First of all, the Duke of Guise at this time is like a sharp knife. Now that he has swung it, the blade must be resolutely outward, denying that it is easy to hurt himself."

In fact, he cannot be easily denied, lest the "loyalty" of the generals and relatives be discouraged.

"Should those Protestants be killed? The answer may be yes, or no. According to our ideals and the principles of our rule, everything should go through secular laws before they can be found guilty and punished. However, objectively speaking , In this extraordinary period, in this war-torn situation, his simplicity and rudeness at a certain moment can more easily clear the way for the central government."

"After all, those who created the rebellion, whether from the perspective of freedom of belief or social stability, have seriously violated the law and threatened the royal family in Paris."

At this time, Francois interjected and added: "From the standpoint of the monarch, there is another method of operation. That is, after a period of torture, stand up to clean up the mess and cut off the previous atrocities; then appease the people, Show your magnanimity even more.”

Mary nodded with a smile.She blinked at the two daughters respectively—understand, my father taught me the skill of singing a bad face and the other a bad face, you have to study hard.

Vivian and Matilda nodded one after another.So Mary began to think and work again: "Also, don't overwhelm with sympathy after hearing some untrue complaints, thinking that Protestants are a minority in France, poor people who are oppressed and bound."

"In fact, most of them have some industries, are educated, and can read some "Bibles", which is why they have so many skepticism."

To describe Mary with a modern vocabulary, it would be a bit like "angry youth".

"But I think the general direction of their efforts is very contradictory. They are eager to change society, intervene in the secular world, and seek rights, and they say they expect theocratic countries, or theocratic communities."

"Look at the Jesuits they're trying to target. There's some old camaraderie in those old priests. They're more than happy to mingle with the common folk, and don't want to lock themselves up in a monastery with high walls and be isolated from the masses. They're also pragmatic. "Strict Christian ethics, only hermits and saints can fully practice... Human nature is complex, and there should be no excessive requirements for perfect norms, and there should be room for relaxation... so as not to force sinners to rebel." [Note [-]]

"Therefore, it is completely unreasonable for the Duke of Vendôme and others to expel them. They didn't take the initiative to hurt people, they were obviously just educating the people..." Vivienne puffed up her cheeks.

"In most areas, maybe so." The blackened Francois took the initiative to teach his daughter again. "But in the most entrenched stronghold of the Huguenots, I wish they would go overboard and bring out the contradictions—"

"As for the government's surveillance, preparations have been made in advance. At that time, we will use this good reason to eliminate those rebellious people with deep intentions." Mary praised. "This is exactly the grand plan of the king of a country."

Today, it is the first time for the husband and wife to teach their daughters such intriguing political lessons.Judging from the reactions of the two of them, it seems that Machiavelli's thick black theory cannot be digested immediately - Vivienne is better, at least she is silently thinking about something; It's all a paste.

Twelve and ten years old... well, elementary school kids please take your time.

Mary also wanted to remind the two of them that even though the Catholic forces represented by the Jesuits are now willing to cooperate with the monarch, they may not really support the monarchy—oh, those priests face the strong control of the central government and are staggering in the process of social secularization Akira, but never gave up regaining the lost ground.No, not long after the "Declaration" was fermented, there was a discourse among them: "The power of the secular government comes from the people. The people have the right to depose or even execute a bad king through legal representatives, including the Pope. The identified heretic king..."【Note [-]】

Forget it, talk about it next time.Mary then smiled and said, "That's it for now. Don't worry if you don't understand, think about it later. Livingston, the warm milk can be passed on. When the princesses finish drinking, let's take a walk to the horse farm."

"Good mother" asked casually: "How about the newly cut hunting suit this year? Is the length of the trousers suitable?"

Vivienne and Matilda said in unison: "It fits well, but it doesn't look as good as the skirt..."

Tsk, these two stinky little girls.Mary complained.How much effort did I spend to make those stubborn old men dare not to slander their women wearing long trousers and riding a horse with legs apart? It seems that they don't cherish this opportunity at all?

Seeing her mother's hesitant expression, Vivienne hurriedly said: "But the pants are more crisp. I am the fastest on the court, and Morris even praised me for my good riding skills."

Wake up, that is the heir who is flattering the queen.Mary suppressed her laugh and looked at Matilda again.The youngest daughter is still a little obsessed with appearance issues. "I'll add some lace to the top next time, and it'll look just as good as the dress."

Vivienne showed the demeanor of a eldest sister and gave Matilda a look. "Your love for lace is too much. My mother taught you last time that you should dress plainly when you go to help the common people on Sundays; you still picked out that one, and you didn't realize it until you got into the carriage. I heard that the maid didn't stop her..."

Francois hurriedly excused the younger daughter. "I was also negligent."

Seeing that Matilda's eyes were still a little red after being criticized by her sister, the good father comforted him again: "It's okay, you have many other beautiful dresses... It's just that the riding clothes should be light. Of course, when riding a horse in public You are still wearing a skirt, and you can keep more floral decorations."

Listening to this conversation, Mary felt both funny and helpless.Therefore, Livingston, who was watching the situation, kindly reminded him. "time--"

Time is up.Mary waved her hand.Goodbye little girl... She has serious business to talk to François.

When the two sisters followed Mrs. Melville out of the big study, they heard a lingering sound—"At this time, please invite the Duke of Nemours?"

"It's good to replace Henry for a while." Mary thought for a moment, and felt that her husband's choice was not bad. "It's better to buy people's hearts if you take one piece and relax."

"Well, let's do that."

The supreme two had a high degree of agreement, and the letter was quickly sent to the Duke of Guise.Henry was a little depressed: In the current situation, he is clearly in the upper hand, so why did he get transferred back.The Duke of Nemours is a good fighter, he was once quite popular, and he is also his "stepfather"...but he is not young at this age.When he comes to the front line, can he still command the battle so quickly?

The Duke of Guise was right to be worried.The Duke of Nemours is more than just not warlike... He took over the army seal for two weeks, and he held up the kingdom's decree, calling for a temporary ceasefire between the two sides.Then, following the instructions of Paris, he put forward harsher conditions for the Protestant leaders: they must surrender completely-you must swear to God, and no longer wantonly use force in the territory in the name of governance, "because they are also the sons of the King of France." people”; or send troops to assist the rebellious parties in the surrounding area, “because the country has its own laws”.

"This kind of request is simply delusional!" The Duke of Vendôme, who had been retreating steadily before but recently regained his foothold, was very angry when he heard this. "I won't agree."

The more experienced Coligny advised him not to be impatient. "It's okay, this is just a preliminary test, we still have a lot of room to maneuver."

"That's right," the little Prince Condé, who was also unfavorable in the previous expedition, comforted his cousin, "taking advantage of the opportunity when the Duke of Nemours was ordered to make peace and stand still, we tried to capture two cities and give him some color. In this way, At the very least, there are more bargaining chips when negotiating."

"If you say that, you really intend to make peace?" Duke Vendome bared his teeth. "My mother would have preferred us to fight until the end."

But soon, he had to seriously consider the issue of peace talks, because the leader of the Huguenots, Jeanne, who was the most indomitable and active in resistance, went through the last journey of her life-Queen of Navarre, died of pleurisy in the La Rochelle, aged 53.