Chapter 46 Chapter 44: The Magical Use of Stove Chimneys

Our three musketeers, motivated only by the adventurous chivalry, had just done a service to a man who enjoyed the special protection of a cardinal, which they evidently did not expect. Now, who exactly is this person?This was the first question asked by the three musketeers; and then, feeling that their ingenuity could not provide any satisfactory answer, Porthos called for the innkeeper, and begged him for some sets of dice. Porthos and Aramis sat down by the same bed and began to play, while Athos paced and meditated. Pacing thoughtfully, Athos walked up and down the old iron chimney-pipe, which was broken in half and led at the other end into the upper room.And every time he walked up and down, he heard a murmur of words, which finally caught his attention.Athos drew nearer, heard a few words, which seemed to him undoubtedly worthy of careful attention, and motioning to his companion to be quiet, he himself stooped and stretched out his ears, carefully following the mouth of the pipe. Listen to it.

Listen, Milady, said the Cardinal, it's a big deal!Please sit down and let's talk. Milady!Athos groaned. I am all ears, my lord, replied a woman's voice that made the musketeers tremble. A small ship of war, manned by an English crew, is waiting for you at La Pointe at the mouth of the Chatran, the captain of which is mine, and he sets sail tomorrow morning. So I have to go there tonight? Set off at once, that is to say, on my order.At the door, you will find two people who escort you after you go out; you let me go out first, and you go out after I go out for half an hour.

yes my lord.Now we come to the mission you have entrusted to me; as I am determined, as always, to gain the confidence of my lord the bishop, please tell me the mission so briefly and concisely that I may not make any mistakes. There was a moment's silence between the two interlocutors; it was evident that the Cardinal had first considered what he had to say, and Milady had gathered all her faculties to take in what he had to say, and to stamp what might be said on the in mind. Athos took advantage of this moment, telling his two companions to close the door from the inside, and beckoning them to come and listen with him.

The two musketeers, who were accustomed to their comfort, brought up a chair for each, and another for Athos, and the three leaned head to head, listening with ears pricked.Go to London at once, continued the cardinal, and when you are in London, go to Buckingham. I would like to remind the bishop's attention, said Milady, that since the incident with the diamond pendant, the duke has always been suspicious of me because of it.Your Excellency the Duke no longer trusts me. But this time, the cardinal said, it was no longer about deceiving his trust, but about appearing frankly and aboveboard as a negotiator.

Frankly and aboveboard, repeated Milady with an expression of indescribable hypocrisy. Yes, frankly and aboveboard, the cardinal said again in the same tone, the whole negotiation must be open and honest. I will follow the bishop's instructions meticulously, please give me instructions. You go to Buckingham on my behalf, and tell him that I know all about his war preparations, and I am not worried about that, since he wants to risk it, and if he makes a move, I'll ruin the queen. Will he believe you can do this kind of threat that His Excellency Bishop issued to him? Yes, because I have proof.

I should be able to present the evidence and let him weigh it. Of course!Tell him, I will publish a report by Bois-Robert and the Marquis Beautruu that the duke had an affair with the queen at the wife of the commander-in-chief on the evening of a masquerade. and to dissuade him of any suspicion, you also told him that he went to the ball in the costume of a Mongol nobleman that should have been worn by a Gistrian knight, whom he paid three thousand pistols for. bought here. yes my lord. One night, he disguised himself as an Italian fortune-teller and sneaked into the Louvre. I knew all the details of his activities; He wore a cloak and a loose white robe, on which were scattered black tears, skulls, and cruciform bones; You know, whenever something big happens in the Louvre, the Virgin in White will always appear in the palace.

That's all, my lord? Tell him, too, that I know all the details of the Amiens adventure, and that I will send for a short story, cleverly conceived, in which the arrangement of the gardens and the main characters of that nocturnal scene are represented. I will tell him this. Tell him, too, that I have seized Montaigu, and that I am imprisoned at the Bastille, and that no letter has been found on him on the spot, and that it is true, but that the punishment will enable him to tell what he knows, Even things he doesn't know will be revealed. great. Finally, you say that when the Duke left the Isle of Ré, in his haste, he left a letter to him from Mrs. Chevreuse in his camp, which greatly troubled the Queen; Enemies of the king, and allied with the enemies of France.You've taken all that I've said to you by heart, haven't you?

His Excellency the Bishop has said several things, which I will summarize as follows for the Bishop to judge: the ball of the Marshal's wife; the night at the Louvre; the Amiens party; Yes, said the Cardinal, yes, you have a good memory, Milady. But, said Milady, whom the cardinal had just flattered, what if, despite all the reasons, the duke continued to threaten France? The Duke was madly in love, or intoxicated, and Richelieu said jealously that, like all ancient heroes and knights, he fought this war just to win the smile of the beauty in his heart.Had he known that this war could damage the honor of the beauty he so longed for, and even destroy her liberty, I assure you he would think twice.

But, asked Milady stubbornly, it seemed that she must be clear about her mission: but what if he was stubborn? If he's stubborn, the Cardinal said, that's impossible. Possibly, Milady said. If he's being stubborn the Cardinal paused and went on, if he's being stubborn, fine!I am pinning my hopes on some great event, and only those great events can change the face of nations. If the bishop is willing to list a few such events in history to me, Milady said, maybe I can share your trust in the future. OK, listen carefully!Richelieu cites, for example, that in 1610, for reasons almost similar to those which had driven the Duke of Buckingham, Henry IV, the immortal King, sent troops simultaneously to Flanders and to Italy, in order to confuse Austria, Hey!Didn't a great event happen to save Austria?Why can't the current Dharma King have the same luck as the Austrian Emperor?

Your Excellency the Bishop, you want to talk about the knife that happened in Ferronere (Note: The place where Henry IV was stabbed.) Street? Exactly, said the cardinal. Lavaillac (Note: The old believer who assassinated King Henry IV.) was tortured, which terrified those who temporarily wanted to follow in the footsteps. Isn't the bishop afraid? At any time, in any country, especially in those countries that have been torn apart by religion, there must be fanatics who want to be martyred.Mind you, it just so happens that I think of the Puritans, who are furious with the Duke of Buckingham, whose speakers are accusing him of being a false Christ.

so what?asked Milady. How about it?The cardinal said nonchalantly that, for the moment, for example, it was only necessary to find a young, beautiful, smart woman who wanted to take revenge on the duke.A woman like this can always be found.The duke is lustful by nature, although he swore to sow many seeds of love, but his fickleness and ungratefulness also sowed many seeds of hatred after all. Perhaps, Milady said grimly, such a woman would be found. That's all right, a woman who saved France just by putting the knife of Jacques Clement or Lavaillac into the hands of a lunatic. True, but she was an accomplice in an assassination. Has anyone ever recognized Lavaillac or Jacques Clement's accomplices? No, because they are placed in such a high position that no one dares to find them, and no one will set fire to the High Court for some people, my lord. Do you think, then, that the fire at the High Court was accidental?Richelieu asked in an insignificant questioning tone. Me, my lord, Miledy replied, I don't believe in anything, I just present a fact, nothing more, I just say that if I were Miss Montpencier , a powerful faction in the alliance of French princes.), or Marie Medici (Note: Queen Henry IV, Regent of Louis XIII.) Queen, I will not be as cautious as I am now, but I Only Mrs. Clarick. That's right, said Richelieu, and what do you want? I want a pre-approval order authorizing me to do all that I think I should do in the best interest of France. But first the woman I speak of must be found, the woman who wanted revenge on the duke. The woman has been found, Milady said. Then the brave lunatic must be found as an instrument of God's court. That person will also be found. Very well, said the Duke Cardinal, then the time has come to approve the order you have just requested. His Excellency was right, said Milady, that I had misunderstood the mission His Excellency had bestowed upon me, but it was true.That is to say, in the name of your lordship, the Duke of Buckingham, you are well aware that he approached the queen in various guises during the masquerade ball held by the wife of the commander-in-chief; the queen agreed to receive an Italian astrologer at the Louvre He, and that man was none other than Buckingham, and you have proof of all this; and you have organized a novel about the adventures of Amiens, with a well-conceived plot, a garden scene in which the adventure takes place, and the main scene The characters are fully represented; Montaigue is imprisoned in the Bastille, and the torture will make him say everything he thinks, even what he may forget; Mrs. Forrest's letter, which was found in the duke's palace, not only caused great harm to the writer, but also caused great harm to the people mentioned in the letter.Secondly, if Buckingham is obstinate in spite of all this, as I have just said, because of the limitations of my mission, I can only ask God to grant a miracle to save France.Is it so, my lord, I have nothing else to do? Exactly so, the cardinal said dryly. Now, Milady seems to have noticed that the cardinal's tone has changed. Now that I have received His Excellency's instructions to deal with your enemies, will my lord allow me to say a few words about my enemies? You have haters too?asked Richelieu. Yes, my lord; you ought to help me with these enemies, for it was in my lord's service that I made them. Who are they?the bishop continued. First of all, there is a little daughter-in-law who can play tricks, her name is Bonacieur. She is now in Mount Prison. She had been imprisoned there, it should be said, Milady said, but the queen had orders from the king, and she sent the woman into a convent by order. Into a monastery?asked the Duke Bishop. Yes, transferred to a monastery. Which monastery? I don't know, the means of transfer is secret I will know! Will your lordship tell me which convent the woman is in? No problem, the cardinal said. good!Now let me talk about another enemy, who is more terrible to me than Bonnacer's little daughter-in-law. who is he? her lover. What is the lover's last name? oh!Your Excellency, you know him well, exclaimed Milady, furiously, that is the evil spirit of both of us; in an encounter with His Excellency's guard, it was he who decided the victory for the King's Fusiliers; yes He stabbed three times your emissary, Wald; it was he who made the case of the diamond pendant run aground; it was he who, knowing that I had kidnapped his Madame Bonacier, swore to kill me. ah!ah!said the cardinal, I know whom you are referring to. It is the villain D'Artagnan that I am speaking of. This guy is kind of lawless.said the cardinal. It is precisely because of lawlessness that it is all the more terrifying. There must be a proof of his collusion with Buckingham, said the Duke Bishop. A proof, cried Milady, and I have ten too. That's great!The matter is very simple, you give me the evidence, and I will send him to the Bastille at once. yes my lord!What about after that? Once a person enters the Bastille, there is nothing left.The cardinal said in a low tone, ah!That's all right, he went on, if it's so easy for me to get rid of my enemies, and so easy for me to get rid of yours at the same time; if it's for such people that you're asking for impunity from me! My lord, went on Milady, barter, life for life, man for man; give me that, and I'll give you this. I don't know what you want to say, said the Cardinal, and I don't want to know; but I'd like to make you happy, and it won't be inconvenient to tell you what you need about a very nasty fellow; especially like you The boy d'Artagnan is presumptuous, aggressive, and rebellious, not to mention. A nasty bitch, my lord, a nasty bitch indeed! Give me paper, pen, and ink, said the Cardinal. It's all here, my lord. Then there was a momentary silence, which showed that the cardinal was choosing every word he should or was about to write.Athos did not miss a word of the above conversation, and taking each of his two companions by the hand, he led them to the other end of the hall. Well, said Porthos, what do you want?Why don't we hear the conversation through to the end? Hush!We heard all we needed to hear, whispered Athos; and I don't prevent you from listening, but I must go out. You have to go out!Porthos said: But if the cardinal asks you, how shall we answer? You don't have to wait for him to ask me, you have to say that I went out to investigate first, because something the shopkeeper said made me think that the road is not safe; I will mention it to the cardinal's attendants first; I will take care of the rest, so you don't have to worry up. Be careful, Athos!said Aramis. Be assured, answered Athos, that I am calm, as you all know. Porthos and Aramis sat down again by the chimney of the iron furnace. As for Athos, he went out in a stately manner to the winch of the shutter, led his horse, which was tied to the two friends', and by a few words persuaded the bishop's retinue that there would be something to be done upon his return. It was necessary to stand in front of him personally, and he also pretended to check the bullets of his pistol, and then he held the blade of his sword in his mouth, like a warrior who feared death, and walked along the road leading to the camp.