monarch

In a blink of an eye, Cecil and Ponsonby had been living in Mrs. Sewell's hotel for nearly a month.

Compiègne is worthy of its title of the hunting capital of France. The royal forest outside the town is under the dense shade of trees, which is the habitat of countless animals. There are all kinds of hunting tools, ranging from bows and arrows, muskets to hounds. If the tourist's wallet is big enough, he can also rent a few falcons to experience the feeling of falconry.

Cecil and Ponsonby, aliased as Sir Henry Macmillan and Lord John Cornwallis respectively, came in the name of hunting enthusiasts, claiming to experience the prestigious hunting season of Compiègne, so they I also had to ride out of the city at the same time as other nobles who came to hunt every morning, and spent four or five hours in the forest hunting stags and hares.

One afternoon at the end of June, although the sun was already westward, the sweltering heat showed no signs of abating.The air was like a pool of stagnant water, without even a breath of wind.The air in the city was filled with the rotten smell of swill and rotting garbage in taverns and residents' homes.

The men who were still outside, all shirtless, sat listlessly on the doorsteps or under the arched openings, with the pungent smoke of the inferior tobacco burning in their pipes. smoke.It's only half a century since the Spaniards brought back this addictive plant every week, and now even farmers in the French countryside can't do without it.The women also took off their hats one after another, and moved forward step by step with feeble steps.

Two fine horses crossed the street like shooting stars, kicking up a cloud of dust, but the people on the side of the road just raised their eyelids and glanced at it.For these common people, these nobles who braved the heat to go out to seek punishment were completely another species.

In a blink of an eye, the two panting horses ran to the square in the center of the town, and stopped in front of Mrs. Sewell's hotel.

Two knights sprang from their saddles, Cecil and Ponsonby.

"Pierre!" Cécile called to the boy dozing on the threshold of the hotel gate.

The child was about eight or nine years old. He woke up suddenly when he heard Cecil's cry. He raised his head in a daze and looked out the door. Shocked, he stood up and ran down the steps.

"Good afternoon, my lords." The boy had a silly and innocent smile that is common at this age, "How did you two get today?"

Cecil shoved the reins into the boy's hands, "It's really unlucky today, only two hares were shot." He pointed to the hunting bag on the horse's back, in which lay two rabbits with arrows stuck in them. gray rabbit.

"I heard from my father that in such hot weather, those deer and foxes are hiding in the caves deep in the woods. You two might as well wait until the wind blows before going out." Little Pierre He held the two horses, stroked their foreheads, and said in a milky voice.

"I hope tomorrow will be better than today." Cecil said, pointing to the hunting bag hanging on the horse's back, "These two rabbits belong to you, let your mother stew them, let's eat together as a family .”

The little boy jumped excitedly, "Thank you, my lord!" He bowed awkwardly, laughed sheepishly, and scratched his head.

"Take the horses home," said Ponsonby this time. "Remember to wipe them with hay, and give them some water and some oats, but not too much."

"Yes, my lord, the little boy nodded quickly, "I will tell my father. "The child's family all work in Mrs. Seville's hotel. The father Jean-Baptiste is responsible for managing the stables, taking care of the horses and carriages of the guests, while the mother is helping in the kitchen. Their son and daughter, Just help out with errands and odd jobs in the store, and earn a few coppers every month.

"Lead the horse in, good boy." Cecil waved at him.

"Okay, my lord!" The child led the two horses towards the backyard, and from time to time smiled and approached the ears of the two horses, as if talking to them again.

"That kid really likes horses," said Cecil. "He'll make a good groom."

Ponsonby raised his eyebrows noncommittally, and the two walked into the door of the hotel one after the other.

Marianna, one of the maids in the store, was sitting behind the counter, listlessly, eating dried prunes from a clay bowl that was at hand.In addition to the Baptistes, Mrs. Sewell employed two valets and two maids, all born and bred, such as Marianna, the daughter of a shoemaker's two streets away.The only exception is the chef, the smiling fat Provence man who used to serve in the army of the French king, feeding the French soldiers, and when he got tired of living a life of wandering, he was in this small town Settled home.

"Good afternoon, Mariana." Cecil took off his hat, "Where's the proprietress?"

Seeing the guests coming back, Marianna quickly stood up from her chair, "Good afternoon, Sir, Mrs. Sewell is in Mr. Sewell's room." She clumsily hid the clay bowl containing the snacks, with a trace of awkward smile.

"I won't denounce you." Cecil blinked at her, and the girl blushed even more.

"Thank you, my lord." She lowered her head shyly, "Do you need something?"

"Send some iced fruit wine to our room." Cecil snapped his fingers, "I've been riding a horse for most of the day in this heat wave, it's really terrible!"

"I'll ask someone to prepare it right away." The girl curtseyed, then walked around the counter and ran towards the back kitchen.

"Let's go upstairs," Cecil said, heading for the stairs.

The two climbed the stairs, came to the corridor on the second floor, and walked to their rooms.

Suddenly, Cecil felt that his cuff was being pulled by his companion. He turned his head in surprise, and was about to say something when he was stopped by the other party's "silence" gesture.

Ponsonby let go of Cecil's arm, and pointed to a door on the left with one finger. Cecil turned his head and found that what his companion was pointing to was the room of Mr. Sewell. There were voices from a man and a woman in the room, which sounded like they were arguing.

"I... this is too much... I can't do it..." The woman's voice sounded broken, but the two of them immediately recognized that it was Mrs. Sewell's voice.

A deep male voice interrupted her, but the voice was so low that it was impossible to hear what he said.

"I... that's enough... the agreement..." The woman spoke again, her voice more excited than before.

The man's voice sounded again, and after about half a minute, there was the sound of porcelain falling to the ground and broken footsteps from inside the door.

The two hurried to their room, and they had just closed the door of their room when Mr. Sewell's door opened.

"It was really dangerous just now." Cecil took a long breath, "We are only a few seconds away from being seen."

"So what if we are seen? We are guests, isn't it normal to appear in the corridor?" Ponsonby glared at him, "Please don't always act like a guilty conscience, so you don't wait for others to ask , you just wrote the answer on your face."

"Okay, okay, I will definitely pay attention next time." Cecil pulled an armchair and sat down on it. "Did you hear what she said?"

"I heard her say things were too much, and talk about agreements." Ponsonby frowned, "I heard nothing else."

"It's about the same as what I heard." Cecil nodded. "Unfortunately, we don't know what Mr. Sewell said. What did he ask Mrs. Sewell that made her feel too much?"

"And that agreement," added Ponsonby. "What agreement was there between them?"

"It seems that the husband with tuberculosis is not an easy role," Cecil said.

There was a sound of footsteps in the corridor, Cecil pouted, Ponsonby immediately understood, and the two immediately changed the topic and began to discuss their hunting experience.

There was a knock on the door, "Please come in." Cecil said.

Mrs. Sevier opened the door and entered the room, looking paler than usual, and her temple hair a little disheveled.

"This is the cider the gentlemen want." She was holding a tray in her hand, which was shaking because of her trembling hands.She walked to the side of the coffee table and put down the tray. Inside the tray were a glass bottle and two cups filled with a peach-colored liquid. A few crystal ice cubes fluctuated up and down with the liquid in the bottle. Frost had already formed on the bottle. There was a light mist of water on it.

"Thank you, ma'am." Cecil walked to her side, pretending to casually glance at her face.

"Oh, ma'am." He sounded very surprised. "What's the matter with you, so pale? And you're sweating so much on your brow."

Mrs. Sewell wiped her forehead quickly, "It's too hot, I'm really sorry." She turned around as she spoke, "If the two gentlemen don't mind, I will take my leave first."

"Please do what you want."

Mrs. Sewell came to the door of the room and stopped suddenly.

"What's the matter with you, ma'am?"

However, Mrs. Sewell still stood there with a belt, and after more than ten seconds, she turned around and looked at the two surprised guests, "I'm really sorry, I just remembered to say something to the two gentlemen, However, I couldn’t remember it, and it took me a while to remember, I’m so sorry!”

She still had a smile on her face, but the corners of her mouth trembled more than before.

"My husband, Mr. Sewell, has not been seen since the arrival of the two gentlemen. He feels that he has treated the two gentlemen. His lung disease has been much better these two days than before, so in order to express his apology, he I want to invite two adults to have dinner tonight, and all the expenses will be charged to the hotel account."

Cecil and Ponsonby exchanged a surprised look.

"Mr. Sewell is too polite." Cecil looked at the proprietress again, "If we refuse such a generous invitation, it will be too rude."

"My husband will be very happy." The smile on Mrs. Sewell's face became more rigid, as if two invisible ropes were pulling the corners of her mouth, "The dinner will be at eight o'clock in the evening, then It’s time for the weather to cool down.”

"Then see you at eight o'clock, ma'am."

"See you at eight." Mrs. Sewell curtseyed, walked out of the room, and closed the door behind her.

When the other party's footsteps disappeared at the end of the corridor, Cecil walked to the side of the coffee table. He picked up the glass bottle, poured half a glass of fruit wine into each of the two glasses, and handed one of the glasses to Ponsonby. He took another cup and sat down in the armchair just now.

"What do you think about this?" He took a sip of the cold liquid in the glass and nodded with satisfaction.

"I think," Ponsonby tilted his neck, and drank the liquid in the glass, "I feel that no matter what they said in the room just now, it must have something to do with us."

He poured himself another glass of wine, walked to the window, looked out at the patio, and drank slowly.

The sun finally went down, the heat gradually dissipated, and the square outside the hotel became lively. People came to the square with their own dinners in groups, sat by the fountain, and drank from the nearby tavern. ale and cider, talking about the day's news.

When the church clock struck eight, Cecil and Ponsonby came down the stairs punctually, while Mrs. Sewell was waiting downstairs.

"The two adults are very punctual." She seemed to have fully recovered, and now standing in front of the two of them was the lady boss with a good face.

"We can't wait to see you and Mr. Sewell." Cecil took the landlady's hand and kissed it lightly.

"My husband is already waiting for the two of you at the restaurant." She led the two guests towards the restaurant.

Mr. Sewell had already sat down in the dining room. When he saw two guests coming in, he put his hands on the armrest of the chair, stood up, and bowed deeply to the two guests who walked in front of him.

"Your Excellencies are welcome," he said in a hoarse voice, speaking English with a slight accent, "Sir Henry Macmillan and Sir John Cornwallis." He nodded to each of them. .

Since the glimpse a month ago, this was the first time that Cecil and Ponsonby had the opportunity to take a closer look at this eccentric male master.He looks about 50 years old, but the actual age may not reach this number.This frail man, like a little old man, wrapped himself in a large black top, as if he hadn't been affected by the heat at all, and the exposed skin looked a little blue and haggard.Surprisingly, the pair of small yellow eyes on his face are shining brightly, like two shiny opals are swirling around, and this seems to be the only organ in his body that still has sufficient vitality .This bony body looked as frail as it was a month ago. Obviously, the lung disease gave this Mr. Sewell a huge torment.

Mr. Sewell sat back on his chair and coughed a little more.

"I want to apologize to the two adults." He grabbed the cup on the table, took a sip of water, and said to the two guests who had already sat down at the table, "You two have lived in this shop for a month , but I have never welcomed the two adults, it is really rude, so I have prepared a simple dinner today, and I am very glad that the two adults can appreciate it."

He coughed again, obviously speaking so many words in one breath had reached the limit of his respiratory system, and Mrs. Sevier on the opposite side looked at her husband with worried eyes.

"We are honored to accept Mr.'s invitation," Cecil said on behalf of the two.

The maid named Mariana came out of the kitchen with the first course on a tray.

"Mr. De Rouen has prepared the local seafood soup in Provence." Mrs. Seville stood up and helped the maid to serve, "He has been preparing it since the afternoon, which is also his specialty, but unfortunately we are far away from here. The sea is too far away, and it is really difficult to buy fresh seafood, so many raw materials can only be replaced by local river seafood." She said, filling the soup plates for the two guests with thick soup.

There is a faint white hot air above the thick soup in the soup plate, and a few slices of bread are floating in the soup, and the rich aroma permeates the air.

Cecil took a spoonful of the soup, "It's really delicious, Madam, please express my thanks to Mr. Derouhan."

Mrs. Sewell smiled and bent her knees, "What would you two like to drink? How about Burgundy? We have 15 years old wine in our cellar."

"Okay, just drink the Burgundy bar, I like it too." Cecil looked at Ponsonby who was opposite, and the other side nodded.

Mrs. Sewell walked out of the dining room, and about 5 minutes later, she returned to the room with a dusty earthenware bottle. The diners on the table could smell the fineness of the wine immediately.

"It's a fine drink, ma'am," said Cecil, laughing. "I must praise you and Mr. Sewell for your generosity."

"I hope it can express our apologies to the two of you." Mrs. Sewell rang the bell and called the maid into the dining room. "Marianna, please go and take this wine to the kitchen and prepare it."

"Yes, ma'am." The maid hurriedly picked up the wine bottle and walked back to the kitchen.

"You speak good English." Ponsonby took a sip of the soup and put down the spoon, "Your wife is British, are you also our compatriot?" He looked at Mr. Sewell with probing eyes .

Mr. Sewell also put down the spoon in his hand, "Ah, no, sir, that's not the case. I'm French and I was born in the Saint-Antoine district of Paris. As for English, I learned it for business. I used to be in England did business, and it was then that I met my capable wife."

"You were a businessman? In England?" Cecil asked. "A hotel too?"

"Ah, no, my lord, I used to be a silk merchant." Mr. Sewell picked up the spoon again and scooped up a spoonful of soup. "I buy from Antwerp, and then ship it to London to sell to the local clothing store." He put the spoon in the spoon. The soup was sent into his mouth, and there was a "ho ho" sound deep in his throat.

"It must be very profitable." Cecil said, "Nowadays, not only ladies can use silk, but men also use a lot of popular styles. Whether it is oriental silk or silk produced in Turkey and Europe, the supply is in short supply." He said Putting his cuffs up to Mr. Sewell's eyes, "Look at my oriental silk shirt... The tailor charged me ten pounds."

Mr. Sewell looked seriously at the other party's cuff under the light, and rubbed it lightly with two fingers of his left hand, "In my opinion, your tailor is not lying." He said with a smile, "So The best oriental silk is indeed worth the price."

The smile on Cecil's face grew wider. "I always thought he was a liar."

"I think you're mistaken." Mr. Sewell shrugged, and drank from his soup plate.

The door to the kitchen opened again, and the maid reappeared in the dining room with the tray.

The second dish is a tender chicken roasted with various spices. This chicken is only more than two months old, and it is even more fragrant with the secret seasoning made by Mr. De Rouen.

Mrs. Sewell deftly picked up a table knife, cut open the chicken, and placed the tenderest parts on the plates of the two guests.

The maid went back and forth, and this time on the tray in her hand was a long-necked, pot-bellied glass bottle, with purple wine swaying in it.

Mrs. Sewell took the glasses again and filled everyone's glasses with a glass of wine.

"To the health of your lordship." Mr. Sewell said with a smile that could be called sly.

He picked up the glass and drank the wine in the glass.