At this time, Egron didn't know the small storm that happened in Austria and Parma, so he still led his huge team to continue his parade ceremony.

With the help of the wealthy businessman Maxim Durenny, who was attracted by him, he settled the protracted labor-capital dispute in the Lille textile industry, and thus gained the heartfelt support of the people. With the joy of the crowd, he took his followers leisurely to leave Lyon and headed west.

He walked through Alas and Amiens along the way, and then came to the Normandy area.

Compared with other places, the place name "Normandy" is much more familiar to the Chinese people in the 21st century, because the world's largest amphibious landing battle broke out in this place.

Of course, the Normandy area was at this time, with a deafening bombing, a smoke that soared into the sky, a battlefield where the dead were sleeping... All this had not happened yet. Aegron passed by a quiet countryside along the way, with white farmhouses made of limestone, a continuous small farmhouse carefully cut by fences, and a small church in the center of the village. If there is really a so-called "pastoral pastoral song" in this world, you can indeed find it in this place.

The people who settled here were hardworking and simple. With their generations of efforts, Normandy became one of the most developed regions in France's agriculture and animal husbandry. Farmers planted large quantities of wheat, rapeseed, flax and other economic crops, while herders raised sheep and cows, and also a large number of improved pack horses. Before the emergence of the railway, it was this kind of pack horse with excellent quality and amazing endurance that supported the nationwide carriage transportation network and also supported the prosperous travel and accommodation industry.

At this moment, every day, dozens of carriages are loaded with butter and eggs, leaving Normandy to Paris to deliver the carefully cultivated products of farmers to the dining tables of thousands of households in the capital. The economy flourished in this material exchange of "demand and supply".

Prosperity and tranquility were originally an opposing phrase, but when Egron and his group set out along the well-revised country road, they could not help but feel both at the same time as they looked at the pastoral scene around them.

Looking at such a beautiful pastoral scenery, Egron couldn't help but feel excited.

However, the local welcome was far less than that of Strasbourg and Lyon he had passed by before.

Although local officials, like their colleagues from all over the country, received the Roman king and his group in fear and held various large-scale ceremonies without any expense, Egron could feel from the cold eyes of the people that he was not as loved as others. The people of Normandy were not so eagerly looking forward to his rule and the changes he could bring, but rather with a helpless attitude, he accepted another new ruler that Paris forced to him.

This is not surprising, because western provinces such as Normandy, Brittany, and Vendée have always been areas where religious conservatism is prevalent and have always been areas that support the royal family. During the Revolution, there were years of unrest in these places, and it was not until Emperor Napoleon came to power.

But the situation in Normandy is a little more special.

In the ancient feudal era, the Principality of Normandy has always been a local vassal force with strong independence within the Kingdom of France. As we all know, Normandy was also the place where the dragon rises of the "Conqueror William". It was from this place that the Conqueror William led thousands of Norman Knights to land in Britain. After a series of wars and devastating massacres, it finally conquered England on the other side. Although the dynasty of William the Conqueror had disappeared without a trace, the descendants of the "Eight Banners" still dominated Britain.

In the next few hundred years, Normandy became the focus of the competition between the British king and the French king many times. The Norman nobles competed with the French king and once wanted to get involved in the French throne. In the end, the Hundred Years' War broke out between the two sides.

In 1346, Edward III led the British army to land in Normandy. Because England was poor and unable to support the army on the mainland, the British army pursued a thorough "fighting with war" strategy from the beginning. From the beginning, they burned, killed and looted all the way. Wherever they passed, they were corpses everywhere, and the countryside was also reduced to ruins.

In the next nearly a hundred years, the two countries tug of war in the vast western and southern territories of France, and areas were trapped in war. British troops looted everything they passed by, whether it was Caen, Gascone, or other well-known cities, all of which suffered from disasters from the sky.

In addition to the British army, refugees and bandits are naturally indispensable in places where the ruling order collapses. In the bloodiest period, wars, famines and plagues were rampant, and the world and ghosts were almost the same.

After difficult twists and turns, with the efforts of Charles VII and Louis XI, father and son kings, France finally won the victory of the Hundred Years' War and restored most of the occupied areas of the British army. Normandy was finally occupied by Louis XI in 1468 and was completely incorporated into the territory of the kingdom.

It was precisely because of the brutal policy of the British army to treat everyone equally that Normandy, which was once a place of prosperity, was also poisoned. Therefore, the Normandians and the British broke up in one fell swoop, and basically cut off relations in national feelings and culture, and instead became a loyal territory of the French royal family.

Religion and royal family are not only an illusory concept for people in these places, but also the center of emotions maintained by the entire region.

It is precisely because of this that in the early days of the Great Revolution, the rebellion swept across the entire region so quickly.

However, the times are still different after all. During the Great Revolution, the people in the western region who rose up to "rebellion" against the National Assembly suffered heavy losses. Several provinces such as Normandy and Vandai died hundreds of thousands of people under the bloody suppression of the "Blue Army". It was precisely because so much blood was shed that in 1830, after the Bourbon royal family was ousted again, the Normandians did not take up weapons to fight for the king this time. Most people chose to be emotionally inclined to the royal family but silently accepted the changes in the situation.

Of course, this is also because Prince Talleyrand and Egron deliberately took a gentle attitude from the beginning. They neither planned to change the religious beliefs here nor promoted extremely radical policies, so they were finally within the "tolerance" of the locals.

They did not want to arm the rebellion, but they did not want to express their empire and their closeness to the Bonaparte family. This is their choice now.

The only thing the Roman king's carriage received was calm treatment. Although some people were cheering, the people's emotions were indeed extremely cold.

Aegron knew this very well. He knew that no matter how great a ruler was, he could not be liked by everyone. He just wanted to make sure that he became the greatest common divisor of the entire nation.

Indifferent acceptance is also a kind of "negative recognition".

Moreover, he still has a lot of time and many ways to get the public's welcome.

Amid the picturesque scenery along the way, Egron and his group walked through the countryside, heading towards the city of Rouen, the capital of the Upper Normandy region.

Agnes, now sitting next to him, staring out the window and admiring the surrounding scenery.

"Agnes, Rouen is a great place to you." Agron said coldly.

"Ah? Why did Your Majesty say that?" Agnes was obviously not prepared, so he asked him back. "I... I have nothing to do with this place? My relatives don't have their hometown here."

"It is true, but don't forget that it was the place where Joan of Arc died." Egron replied.

Agnes immediately understood, "Yes... that's it."

In the late period of the Hundred Years' War, under the leadership of Joan of Arc, the French army survived and defeated the British army all the way. The situation suddenly reversed, which also made the British full of hatred for her.

In March 1430, Joan of Arc was unfortunately captured by the Burgundian army in a battle in Compière. After some trade-offs, Philip of Burgundy handed over Joan of Arc to the British army who rushed to the news.

The British brought Joan of Arc to his own control area, and after a series of pretentious trials, they finally stolen her in the market square of Rouen, the capital of Normandy - that is, it was the place of Jean of Arc's martyrdom.

After the Hundred Years War ended with the victory of the French, the city of Rouen also left a memory of Joan of Arc's martyrdom, and there is still a church named after her for future generations to pay tribute to.

After understanding what Agron meant, Agnes also felt a little sad and emotional in her eyes. So she looked at the endless pastoral scenery around her and the outline of the city of Rouen that was looming in the distance, and finally let out a sigh.

"If she had a spirit in heaven and could see such a scene, she would definitely be relieved of her sacrifice... It is precisely because of her efforts that everyone can enjoy this."

Logically speaking, although Joan of Arc was famous, it was very far away for Agnes hundreds of years later. However, in the past few days, following Egron's instructions, she has been parading knights in various places many times in the image of Joan of Arc. Over time, not only did the people around her seem to regard her as the incarnation of the saint, but she herself seemed to have a little more "transferential" in her heart, and she was full of respect and remembrance for the girl who had long been martyred.

Although Agnes knew that she could not compare with the girl who saved the country in terms of personal abilities, this did not prevent her from using Joan of Arc as her role model.

Brave and firm, compassionate, patriotism and people, even if you can learn a little, it will be enough to make a person respected. Agnes firmly believes that she can also embark on this path in the future and help more people, rather than enjoying wealth alone.

Of course, Egron knew Agnes’s thoughts, but in addition to expressing the saint’s feelings, he had more ideas.

"Agnes, you know, I've never been a devoted believer, but I can play a protector of religion-and I have played well so far, even the Pope has praised me, do you agree with that?"

"Of course, you made great contributions to the Christian world." Agnes nodded immediately, after all, she was also a witness at that time.

Under Egron's heavy bribe, the Pope himself praised him twice in public sermons, praising him for his efforts to protect Christian virtues, which invisibly gave Egron a spiritual capital.

In those areas with indifferent religious consciousness, this "spiritual capital" may not be very useful, but in Normandy, where the religious atmosphere is strong and the extremely conservative small farmers dominate, his spiritual capital has some effect.

What's more, Egron had another card - the girl sitting next to him.

During the tours these days, Agnes' performance also caused a national sensation. On the one hand, it was because Agnes herself had a humble, simple, brave and fearless temperament, which to some extent made people feel the charm of "idol"; on the other hand, it was also deliberately fueled by Agnes and his supporters.

They clamored everywhere in the newspapers, creating a better effect than Agron expected. At first, he was the focus of the parade, but later, Agnes's "popularity" was almost on par with him. Every time they went to a place, local celebrities, women and children watched from both sides, wanting to see the style of the "saint".

Indeed, although the 19th century was only two hundred years apart from the 21st century, it was spiritually separated by two thousand years. In this era when most people were illiterate and had basically no scope of activities for their whole lives, the spiritual world was too poor, so that a little strange thing in the newspaper would attract everyone's attention.

No wonder so many people believe in the so-called "miracles".

For Egron, this is of course a good thing.

Agnes has no desire for power, nor does she want to run for parliament or even president. Even if she has a nationally renowned popularity, she will not threaten him politically, and she almost obeys herself, so this "popularity" is equivalent to saving it for him - this was also his initial plan.

And now, he has come to a new place.

In Normandy, Egron felt that the welcome he received might even be worse than Agnes.

Those who don’t like the Bonaparte family may not necessarily dislike Joan of Arc. As long as Agnes can get people cheers to some extent, it is slightly equivalent to Agron herself gaining support - after all, the "Saint" is on her side this time.

In religion, people have always been conservative and harsh. They will not like any changes, but even such people will not reject a "saint". This is due to thousands of years of human nature.

"Agnes, conquer this place for me." Looking at the city of Rouen in the distance, Agron said excitedly, "I need you."
Chapter completed!