Chapter 12 Chapter 12 Strategists

This is a teacher who is very proficient in power, so that (I don't want to belittle Satan's cunning) He is well qualified to teach the devil a lesson, Teach this old crook some new tricks. "Old Drama" As Louie entered the hall, he lowered his thick brows in the characteristic manner we have previously described, and cast piercing glances from beneath his darkly furrowed brows at those around him.His eyes, as Quentin later said, were so small now, so fierce, so keen, that they were like an enraged adder crouching and peeping in the heather. It was the Duke of Orléans who first confronted the king, who had discovered the cause of the commotion in the hall by just this short but keen glance.

Is it you here, good nephew?said he, and turning to Quentin sternly, said, Don't you have my orders? Your Majesty, forgive the young man, said the prince, who has not neglected his duty.It was I who came in without permission when I heard that the princess was here. I'm sure no one can stop you from coming here to court the princess, said the king; and his abominable hypocrisy is so tenacious, that you are corrupted by making the duke love his unhappy unrequited daughter. my guard.Yes, young man?However, what can't be forgiven for a man who lives by love? The Duke of Orléans raised his head, as if wishing to give some answer, to correct the wrong opinion contained in the king's words.But the reverence, not to mention the fear, for King Louis that he had cultivated from childhood kept him from speaking.

Is Jeanne uncomfortable?But don't be sorry, Louis, said the King.It will be over soon.You help her to the bedroom.I led the two ladies who were guests to their rooms. This command was spoken in a tone that was practically an order.Orleans obeyed and helped the princess out from one end of the hall.The king took off the glove on his right hand, and politely led Countess Isabel and her aunt to the room connected to the other end of the hall.When they entered, he bowed deeply to them, and after they entered, he still stood on the threshold for a moment, then he closed the door calmly, twisted the big key that was locked, and then He took it out of the lock and put it in his waist bag. This waist bag is a treasure he must carry with him.This made him more like a miser who couldn't even walk without the key to the vault.

Louis walked slowly and thoughtfully, eyes fixed on the ground, toward Quentin.Darwilt walks away.Anticipating that the king would vent his dissatisfaction with him, Quentin watched him approaching with great uneasiness. You are in the wrong, said the King, looking up at him from a yard away, and looking hard at him, you are so wrong that you deserve death.Shut up, don't defend yourself!What have dukes and princesses to do with you?What do you care about it other than carrying out my orders? Your Majesty's pardon, said the young guard, what can I do? Someone forcibly crosses your sentry post, what should you do?The king replied in a contemptuous tone, what is the weapon on your shoulder for?You should have put a gun on him, and if that daredevil doesn't leave immediately, he's going to die in this hall!You go, you go to the row of rooms inside.In the first room you will see a large staircase leading to the inner courtyard.You'll find Oliver there.Dan.You tell him to come to me.Then you go back to your barracks.If you value your life, don't let your tongue fail as you let your hand fail today.

Dawilt was naturally pleased to see that he could get away easily, but he also felt sincere disgust at the ruthlessness with which the king demanded that he strictly carry out his orders.He walked the way the king showed him, and hastened down the staircase, to convey the king's message to Oliver, who was waiting in the courtyard below.The cunning barber bowed, sighed and smiled again, and wished him good night in a softer voice than usual.After they parted, Quentin returned to the barracks, while Oliver went to see the King. As I write this, I find that the memoirs I used as the main basis for creating this true historical novel are unfortunately very incomplete.This memoir is mainly based on the information provided by Quentin, and it does not mention the content of the conversation between the king and his secret counselor after he left.Fortunately, the Otterlier Library has a copy of Jean.De.The manuscript of Troyer's History of the Courtyard is far more detailed than ever printed.This rare book has collected a few more interesting stories.I am inclined to think that it must have been written by Oliver some time after his master's death, and before he had the honor of being given the long-deserved noose.From this it is possible to glean an exhaustive account of the conversation that this obscure favorite had with Louis on this occasion.It helps us understand the ruler's artifice and strategy, which we cannot otherwise understand.

As the favorite entered Roland Hall, he saw the King sitting thoughtfully in the same chair as her daughter had sat some minutes before.As he was well acquainted with his temper, he slipped noiselessly within sight of the king, that he might know that he had come at his command.Then he humbly stepped back out of his sight, and waited for the king to order him to speak, or listened to the king.The king's first words were very unpleasant: Oliver, your trick is like fetching water from a bamboo basket in vain!I must pray to our Lady of Umbrun that these cunnings of yours do not come crashing down on us like the snow and ice that Switzer's yokel tells of.

Sire, I have been disturbed to hear that things are not going well.Oliver replied. Not good!exclaimed the king, rising up and walking up and down the hall, my good man, it's bad, it can't be worse.All thanks to your stupid romantic advice.Why should I be the protector of these two suffering women!I tell you that Burgundy is arming, and will soon enter into an alliance with England.Edward, idle at home, will drive his host to us through the ill-fated gate of Calais.If they had done it alone, I might have been able to cajole or deceive them, but they did it together, plus the treachery and discontent of that shameless St. Paul!Oliver, this is all your fault.It was you who suggested that I take these two women, and use that damned bohemian to bring letters to their vassals.

My lord, said Oliver, you know I have my reasons.The Countess' domain lies between Burgundy and the Flemish frontier.Her castle is nearly impenetrable.If Mademoiselle were to marry a man friendly to France, her rights to the neighboring regions, provided they were strongly supported, could not but cause Burgundy a great deal of trouble. This is indeed a bait.The king said, We could have arranged a marriage for the rich heir to France, if we could keep her presence from being known.But how the hell would you recommend such a pagan bastard for an errand that requires him to be absolutely trustworthy?

If you are not surprised, said Oliver, please do not forget that it is His Majesty himself who believes in him far more than I do.He could have quite reliably sent a letter to the Countess's relatives, telling him to stick to her castle, promising to help him quickly, but His Majesty insisted on testing his ability of prophecy, and it turned out that he had some things worth selling to Duke Charles. secret. I'm ashamed, I'm ashamed, said Louis, but, Oliver, they say these pagans are descended from the wise Chaltians, and he did say that the Plain of Sinar (Note: That is the plain where Babylon is located.) The mystery of the upper stars.

Oliver knows that his master is very clever and astute, but because of this, he is more likely to be deceived by fortune tellers, fortune tellers, Feng Shui masters, and such liars who claim to understand the mysteries of metaphysics, and even think that they have mastered these alchemy to some extent.He dared not go on, therefore, except to say that the Bohemian was not a good prophet as far as his own fate was concerned, or else he would not have returned to Tours, and thus escaped the hang which he deserved. People who have the power of prophecy, Louis replied very solemnly, are often unable to foretell things that concern them personally.

On His Majesty's instruction, replied the favorite, it seemed to imply that a man holding a candle could not see his own hand by the light of it, but could see everything else in the room. The light could make him see other people's faces, but not his own, Louis replied, and that would be more accurate.However, that's irrelevant to my current intentions.The Bohemian has had his comeuppance.May God give him peace.But not only are these two women Burgundy blaming us for harboring them and threatening us with war, but their presence here threatens to interfere with some of my family plans.As soon as my simple nephew Orléans saw this girl, I dared to predict that this glance would be of great importance, and would make him less obedient in the question of union with Jeanne. Your Majesty, said the counselor, you might as well send the two ladies of Croix to Burgundy, and make peace with the duke.Maybe some people will say in private that it is dishonorable to do so, but sacrifices must be made if necessary If vital interests demand sacrifices, sacrifices should be made without hesitation.I am an experienced old trout, replied the king, and I am not going to swallow a hook just because there is a little feather called honor hanging from the hook.But what is worse than the indignity is that if the two women are returned to Burgundy, all the advantages that have caused us to give them asylum are lost.In the heart of Burgundian territory, so close to disaffected Flemish cities, it would be sad to lose the golden opportunity of embedding our allies and Burgundian enemies.Oliver, I cannot forsake the advantage that we may gain in trying to marry this girl to a friend of our royal family. Your Majesty, said Oliver, after a moment's consideration, you might as well marry her to some reliable friend; who can blame himself for everything, and serve your Majesty secretly.You can publicly deny your relationship with him. Where can I find such a friend?said Louis, if I gift her to some unfaithful and disobedient lord of mine, won't it encourage his independence?Hasn't my strategy for so many years been to prevent them from doing just that?Dunois, well, he's the only one I can possibly trust.Regardless of the circumstances, he will fight for the King of France.But honor and fortune change a man's character. I can't even trust Dunois. Your Majesty may find someone else, Oliver flatters him most, for those who depend entirely on your favor, and who cannot live without your favor, as without sunshine and air, who are more thoughtful than hasty to act, and Ha, ha, a man like yourself!King Louis said, No, Oliver.To be honest, you shot the arrow too rashly!how!Just because I pamper you, give you trust, and let you sometimes scratch my subjects as a reward for you, do you think you are qualified to marry that beauty?What's more, she is the countess who belongs to the highest class?Look at you, you're humble and uneducated, your intelligence is at best a cunning, and your courage is more of a problem.Do you want her to marry you? Your Majesty guessed that I intended to climb high, and that was wrongly imposing on me a kind of arrogance that I dare not have at all. Man, I'm so glad to hear that from you.To tell the truth, said the king, you do not admit to wishing so, but I think you are more sound of mind.However, I thought the tone of your speech earlier sounded a bit strange.Alright, let's get down to business.I dare not marry this beauty to one of my vassals.Nor do I dare return her to Burgundy.But I dare not send her to England and Germany, for she may fall into the hands of a nobleman more likely to ally himself with Burgundy than with France.A man who would be inclined to pour cold water on the honest and disaffected citizens of Ghent and Liege, rather than to encourage them effectively, would cause enough trouble to bold Charles that he would have a good chance of showing himself without leaving his country. His bravery.The rebellion intended by these disaffected townspeople was ripe.Especially the citizens of Liege are eager to try.Just a good bit of prodding and some support, and they alone would have been enough for my dear cousin for over a year.To have another scrappy Count Croyer to add to the fun, Oliver, that's a very bright plan.I really don't want to give up easily.Can't your fertile imagination come up with a way? Oliver paused for a long time, and finally replied: "Isabelle named Chroyer and young Gelderez.What do you think of the marriage of Duke Adolphus? What!Said the king in amazement, Sacrifice such a lovely beauty to marry that violent fellow who deposed and imprisoned his own father, and constantly threatened to kill him!Oliver, it would be too cruel even for you and me to do so, even if we had our eyes fixed on our own good end, the peace and happiness of France, and little thought would be given to the means and means of its attainment. .Besides, his territory is far away from us, and the citizens of Ghent and Liege hate him.No, no, I don't want this Gerdreth.Adolphus.Think of someone else. My lord, my imagination is exhausted, said the adviser, and I cannot think of anyone who would marry the Countess Croyer to suit your majesty's wishes.He had to combine these different advantages: he was both a friend of His Majesty and an enemy of Burgundy, enough cunning to please the people of Ghent and Liege, and enough courage to defend his small territory and resist The mighty Duke Charles.In addition, he must be of noble birth, which is a condition His Majesty insists on, plus good moral character. You're not right, Oliver, the king preaches, I don't put much emphasis on I mean, I don't put much emphasis on character.However, I don't think Isabel's bridegroom should be like Gerdreth.Adolphus was universally hated.Since I have to call a name myself, why can't it be, say, William.What about Dramack? My lord, said Oliver, if the boar of Ardennes can meet your needs, I can't complain about the virtues you demand too much from your lucky bridegroom.You point Germany.Lamarck?Why, he was the most notorious robber and murderer on the frontiers of nations, and was excommunicated by the Pope for infringing a thousand laws. Oliver man, I'll let him pardon punish Holy Church is merciful. He was almost an alien, continued Oliver, and was condemned by the Empire by order of the Regensburg Council. My good fellow Oliver, I shall rescind the writ, continued the King in the same tone, and the Imperial Council is reasonable. Even if he was of noble birth, said Oliver, she would never have him if he looked and looked and carried and felt like a Flemish butcher. If I'm not mistaken, said Louie, I think the way he proposed will make it difficult for her to make her own choice. I was so wrong that I blamed His Majesty for thinking too much.Said the counselor, I dare say, Adolphus's virtues are compared with Deramarch's vices.But how does he meet his bride?Your Majesty knows that he dare not leave his Ardennes forest. This must be considered, said the king, and first the two ladies must be privately told that they cannot remain at my court unless there is a war between France and Burgundy.Besides, I don't want to give them to the Duke of Burgundy, so I want them to leave my domain secretly. They'll ask to be sent to England, said Oliver, and if so, you'll see her back in Fran with a king of an island with a nice round face and long brown hair and three thousand shooters at his back. Germany. No, no, said the King, I dare not (you know what I mean) offend my Burgundian cousin too much by letting her go to England, which would offend him as much as having her here with me.It won't work.I only dare to hand her over to the church and let the church protect her safety.The best I can do is acquiesce to Ms. Hamelin and Isabel.De.Mademoiselle Croyer took refuge in disguise with the Bishop of Liège, with a few entourages.He would temporarily hide the beautiful Isabel in a convent for protection. If Delamach knew His Majesty's good intentions for him, unless I was mistaken, it is hard to imagine that the Abbey would be able to keep her from him. It goes without saying, said the king, that with our surreptitious money, Delamarch already has a sizable army that can do as he pleases.With this army he had managed to gain a foothold in the forest, and was capable of intimidating both the duke of Burgundy and the bishop of Liège.All he lacked was a piece of land.Since this is such a great opportunity for him to become king by marriage, by God, I think he'll work his way out of it without our hinting.In this way, the Duke of Burgundy would have a thorn in his waist that no surgical needle today could pick out of his muscle.If the boar of Ardennes, whom he declares a robber, can strengthen his power through the fiefs, castles, and noble status of the beauty, and with the support of the disaffected citizens of Liege, I dare say that under these conditions, The citizens of Liege would be happy to make him their leader. If that was the case, Charles wanted to go to war with France, and that was up to him.Rather, he would be lucky if France did not go to war with him.Hey Oliver, what do you think of this plan? That was wonderful, said Oliver, but the good luck that the lady bestowed on the Ardennes boar was not worth it.My goodness, Triston the Martial Arts Officer is a better fiancé than Delamach, except for being a little less handsome in appearance. You also recommended Mr. Oliver the barber first, said Louis, but my fellows Oliver and Triston, you are not counts for earls, though you are great in counseling and execution.Don't you understand that the citizens of Flanders value other people's birth precisely because of their own bad birth?The populace wanted a noble chief.What did that Cade or Cade in England call him?Pretending to belong to Mortimer (Note: An English earl, fled to Paris, colluded with the French queen to send the French army to occupy Britain, and was finally executed by Edward III for treason.) In order to lure a group of hooligans to follow him.William.Delamach was born of a noble family in Sedan, as noble as I am.Alright, let's get down to business.I resolved to let the two Ladies of Croix, under the escort of their trusty guides, make their hasty and secret escape.This is easily done, we only need to hint to them, and the only other way is to give them to Burgundy.You have to get William.Delamak knew of their whereabouts.Let him decide the time and place to propose to the girl.I know someone fit to go with them. Excuse me, who does His Majesty intend to entrust this important task to?asked the barber. To a foreigner, of course, replied the king, to a man who has no friends or other concerns in France, who can freely carry out my will.Also, he should know very little about France and its sectarian activities.No more doubts about my intentions than what I wanted to tell him.Anyway, I'm going to make use of that young Scot who just went to get you here. Oliver hesitated for a moment, as if doubting the prudence of this choice, and then said: His Majesty's trust in that strange young man so quickly is really beyond your usual practice. I have my reasons, replied the king, you know (he made the sign of the cross now) that I am very devoted to the blessed Saint Julian.I prayed to this Holy One until late the night before.In prayer (for he is known as the patron saint of travellers) I made my humble request to him, that he might send me some of those foreign tramps who would best help me in building my boundless devotion throughout the country, to enrich the royal family. Strength.I make a vow to the good sage and swear in his name to take in, help and support these vagabonds. So, preached Oliver, St. Julian answered your prayers and sent you this long-legged Scot? Though the barber knew very well that his master filled his lack of religious belief with superstition, and at the same time it was on such subjects that he most easily offended him. The above question was carefully posed, yet Louis sensed the innuendo it contained, and regarded what he said with great dissatisfaction. Good boy, he said, calling you Oliver the Devil hits the nail on the head.How dare you mock your Master and Blessed One.I tell you, if I hadn't absolutely needed someone like you, I would have hanged you from that oak tree in front of the castle, as a warning to mock the sacred!Tell you, you unbelieving slave, this is how it happened: as soon as I closed my eyes, I saw Blessed St. Julian come to me with a young man whom he said was destined to escape Kill, and also escape being hanged and drowned.He will bring good luck to the party he supports and the ventures he undertakes.Early the next morning I met the young man I had seen in my dream.He escaped the massacre of his family in his native country, and here, in a short period of two days, he miraculously escaped drowning and hanging, and, as I have lately alluded to, Yours did me a great favor on a special occasion.I took him to be St. Julian's, who had been specially sent to me in order to help me with the most dangerous and risky business. Saying this, the king took off his hat, selected the idol of St. Julian from the many little lead idols which adorned the hat-strap, and, as he usually happens when some special hope or penance crosses his mind, Having done so, he placed it on the table, knelt before it, and murmured with deep reverence: Sancte Juliane, adsis precibus nostris! Ora, ora, pronobis! (Note: Latin: Saint Julian, support my plea, pray for me!) This was one of those superstitious and pious fanatics which King Louis so often experienced on such special times and occasions.Such frenzy makes one of the wisest princes in the world look like a madman, or at least like a guilty and disturbed philistine. His favorites looked at him with undisguised sneer and contempt at seeing him engage in these tricks.It is indeed one of the peculiarities of this man that, throughout the whole of his contact with his master, he put aside all the pretentiousness of ingratiating and servile obedience.But these are the places where he treats others differently.If he was still a cat in the king's presence, it was a cat on high alert watching excitedly, ready for sudden action.The reason for this change may be that Oliver realized that his master was himself a great hypocrite, and it was impossible not to see through the hypocrisy of others. With all due respect, said Oliver, does this young man have the same features as the lad you saw in your dream? Very very similar.said the king.At this time, he, like superstitious people, is easy to become a captive of his own imagination.Besides, my name is Gagliotti.Martivar did the math for him.Through divination and my own observations, it has become clear to me that this helpless young man was born with the same horoscope as mine, belonging to the same constellation. Oliver did not dare to express any objection to King Louis' boldly conceived reasons to favor this yellow-haired boy, because he knew very well that King Louis had devoted himself to studying the so-called astrology during his exile, and would not Accept any sarcasm that condemns this alchemy.He therefore merely replied that he trusted the young man to perform so delicate a task faithfully. I'll make sure he doesn't have the chance to go off the rails, Louis said, keeping the details a secret from him except that he was escorting two Croyet ladies to the residence of the Bishop of Liege.As for William.He would be as ignorant as they were of any possible robbery by Delamach.We only let the guide know this secret.Triston or you must find me a guide who suits my purposes. If that was the case, Oliver said, then judging by the youth's nationality and appearance, he might have resisted the boar as soon as he saw it coming at him, rather than evaded it as easily as he had done this morning. Tusks of wild boar. If the boar's tusks have torn his heart, said Louis serenely, blessed be his name, St. Julian!Another foreigner will be sent in his place.The task is completed, the courier is killed, it doesn't matter like the wine bottle is smashed.After all, we must hasten to let these two ladies escape, and then convince Count Krevig that I did not connive at their flight; Their sudden departure has unfortunately made the original plan come to nothing. But the earl may be too shrewd to believe this statement.His master was too prejudiced to believe it. Our Lady!Louis said, a Christian doesn't believe this or that, what kind of talk!But, Oliver, they'll believe us.I shall show my good cousin, the Duke Charles, a complete and infinite trust, who is nothing more than a heathen if he does not believe that I am completely frank with him!Let me tell you, Burgundy.As far as Charles was concerned, I was sure I could make him feel whatever he thought of me.So long as it is necessary to reassure him of his suspicions, I will ride unarmed, on a pony, and take only you Oliver fellow as my saddle, and call on him in his camp myself. And I, said Oliver, though I dare not boast of wielding any sword but the razor, I would rather attack a battalion of Swiss buffers than accompany your majesty to Burgundy.Charles was on a goodwill visit, as he had every reason to believe that His Majesty was at heart hostile to him. You are a fool, Oliver, said the King, that though you think you are wise, you do not understand that prudence often wears a mask of simplicity, as bravery sometimes wears a mask of cowardice.As long as necessary, I will certainly do as I say.It seemed that the saints were always protecting me for my purposes, and that the course of the heavenly planets showed auspicious omens favorable to this action. It was through these few words that Louis XI hinted for the first time that he had actually made a decision in order to fool his rival.After this decision was put into practice, it almost ruined everything for him. Immediately after parting from his counselors, the King went to the chamber of the two Ladies of Croix.He hinted that he could not forever offer them refuge from the Duke of Burgundy, and that they would have decided to leave the French court with his permission and without his persuasion.But it was not so easy to persuade them to choose Liege as their refuge.They begged to be sent to Brittany or Calais, where they could be safe under the protection of the Duke of Brittany or the King of England, until the Burgundian monarch softened and abandoned his harsh intentions.But both places of refuge were at odds with Louis' plans, and finally he induced them to accept Liege, which was to his liking. The ability of the Bishop of Liege to protect them cannot be questioned, since his dignified office entitles him to protect the fugitive from any prince in Christendom.In addition, the secular armed force at his disposal was small, but at least sufficient to protect himself and those under his patronage from sudden violent attacks.The difficulty was how to reach the Bishop's small Vatican safely.Louis promised to try to spread a rumor that two Ladies from Croix, fearing to be handed over to the Burgundian envoy, had fled Tours by night for Brittany.At the same time, he also promised to equip them with two faithful attendants, and wrote letters of introduction to the commanders of the cities and fortresses they passed, ordering them to do everything possible to provide them with protection and assistance during the journey. Although the two Ladies of Croix were deeply displeased with the selfishness and insolence shown by King Louis for canceling the asylum he had promised them, they had no objection to their immediate departure, even ahead of his plan. One step, asking to let them go that night.Lady Hamelin was weary of this haunted place where she could see neither courtiers admiring her nor merry feasts, and Miss Isabel thought that from the many facts she had seen it was sufficient to conclude that, if there had been more Strong temptation, King Louis will not be content with merely driving them out of court, and will not even hesitate to hand her over to her enraged guardian, the Duke of Burgundy.At last Louis readily acquiesced in their haste, for he was anxious to reconcile with the Duke Charles, and lest the beautiful Isabelle should interfere with his wish to marry his daughter Jeanne to his nephew Orléans.