Seeing the young man making a solemn promise, the old man felt a little relieved.
He himself also knew that the King of Rome's time was precious and could not be delayed any longer, so he took the time to stop talking nonsense and quickly told Aiglon the location of his home and the location where the relics of his two sons were stored.
After explaining all this, he also made a promise to Aiglon, "Don't worry, although I don't want to participate in your career, I will act according to my conscience, and you can just do your thing."
, I will stay here forever and will never cause you any trouble."
Although he only made a verbal promise, Egeron certainly believed in the other party's promise, so he nodded goodbye to the other party again, and walked out of the room with Andre Davout.
Andre Davout still had the excitement and sentimentality he felt just now, and he sighed softly.
"What a poor father! Who can blame him?"
"There are fathers like this all over France." Aiglon replied seriously. "I can't expect them to love me, or even be as reasonable as the old mayor. If they blame me for the death of their son, then
I can only bear this resentment because it is my duty as a king."
"I believe that most people will still forgive you and the Bonaparte family, Your Majesty." Andre Davout quickly comforted Aiglon, "Everyone is mortal, and sacrificing one's life for one's country is the most supreme way to die. The French people
They followed His Majesty until the last moment and paid such a painful sacrifice. Their enthusiasm and loyalty are really touching... The late Emperor had no complaints against the people before his death, and the people will definitely miss him forever. No one has ever brought him up.
It has helped our nation reach this height.”
"Heh." Aigron just smiled.
Andre Davout is his loyal follower, and he will naturally tend to look at issues from the perspective that is most beneficial to the Bonaparte family, without any objectivity.
Just listen to this kind of comfort. If you really believe it, you will probably die miserably.
After a moment of silence, Aigron cheered up again.
He walked back to the lobby of the cafe with his head held high.
At this time, although there were still as many people in the cafe as before, it was no longer as lively as before. Instead, it was completely silent. Even the cup that they broke when they took the mayor away was not picked up by anyone at this time.
The dark brown coffee liquid drew an ugly outline on the ground.
Everyone was sitting in their original positions, not daring to vent their anger, obviously fearing that they would encounter an unexpected disaster; beside them, several people brought by Aigron were controlling the entire scene, and they were looking around with guns.
, alert to any tiny anomalies.
After Aiglon reappeared, their eyes immediately focused on him.
These gazes were mixed with curiosity and excitement, as well as a little bit of disgust and fear, but there was no such deep-seated hatred.
As the old mayor said just now, the French people do not hate him. Why should they hate a child who was only three years old when he left the motherland and cannot be responsible for anything?
Under everyone's gaze, Aigron walked slowly to the center of the hall.
He knew that someone must be rushing to the military camp of the nearby fortress at this moment to inform them of the news that "Duke Lechstadt has appeared". After receiving this news, the military camp would immediately mobilize urgently and come to arrest them.
Own.
But the more he knows, the less he can show any cowardice, he must show the calm and unhurried demeanor that a king should have.
The old mayor's resolute refusal to cooperate was undoubtedly a blow to his head, but he was not discouraged at all. On the contrary, he recognized the reality more clearly, and the fluke mentality due to past success had long since disappeared.
.
This handsome young man is now getting ready for the throne. Today is a solid step for him on the road. He must go carefully and steadily without making any mistakes.
He looked around confidently, and then spoke in a loud voice.
"Gentlemen, I believe you have all heard my self-introduction just now. Yes, I am the King of Rome. I have returned to the country that gave birth to me. I have returned to the country that I am destined to rule and protect.
nation!"
There was no applause, only looks of surprise and uncertainty, but Aigron was not surprised and continued.
"As you all know, I was forced to leave this country since I was three years old. This was a fate that brought me misfortune. At that time, I was ignorant and had no ability to make my own decisions. I later regretted it countless times, why?
I wasn't older at the time, why couldn't I understand what was going on? If I could know and decide, then I would never leave. I would choose to fight and fight with the people who still support the Bonaparte family.
, if everything is irreversible... Then I choose to shed all my blood and die like an heir to the throne. I would rather die in the mud pit of France like Louis XVII than live in a foreign court...
…”
Having said this, Aigron seemed to be choked up and tears appeared in his eyes.
Then, he continued loudly with a slightly trembling voice, "I think you all still remember the Duke of Enghien. He went on the same dangerous adventure as me, but the difference is that the Duke of Enghien participated in the conspiracy against Emperor Napoleon.
Despicable assassination, he himself only dared to stay in Germany; but I am different, I did not let my followers take risks alone, I came to this land myself! I want to kiss this land and feel its breath, I want to see
I will not hesitate to protect my people, even if I face death, because this is my natural responsibility, and this is the purpose for which I was appointed by God to this world!"
After sighing with emotion, Aigron looked at the crowd in the cafe again. They were old and young, and looked rich and poor based on their clothes. But at this moment, Aigron had captured their full attention.
As long as we put more effort, we can drive them, Aigron thought.
"Has any of you ever served in the Emperor's army? Has any of you served the Bonaparte family?" Aigron asked.
No one answered, and some people looked at each other evasively, as if they couldn't understand what the young man was thinking.
"If I remember correctly, in France at that time, all citizens were in military service. Except for shameful deserters and a very small number of people who were exempted from military service, almost everyone had to serve the emperor. So is there not a single warrior here who has ever fought for the country?
?Is this town a place for cowards to huddle together for warmth?" Aigron curled his lips and sneered, "Ah, I am such a poor man, I just came back to the wrong place!"
This is a very simple provocation method, but it is usually quite practical.
There were some whispers in the crowd, and soon, three people walked out of the crowd.
"I served in the military back then." said a tall middle-aged man closest to Aigron.
This middle-aged man had a big beard, his clothes were shabby, stained with a lot of dust, and his hands were covered with cracks. He looked like he was living a very poor life.
As he spoke, he opened his clothes and exposed his shoulder. There was a shocking wound on his shoulder.
"King of Rome, you can accuse me of anything, except that you can't accuse me of being a coward. I worked for the emperor and was shot through the shoulder by a bullet! This injury still causes my hands to move involuntarily when drinking coffee to this day.
The ground trembles"
Aiglon looked at the wound carefully and then nodded.
Eggron knew that the post-traumatic syndrome suffered by the other party was definitely not just "hands shaking when drinking coffee". The injury to his right arm would definitely affect his ability to do farm work. Perhaps this was the reason why his life was so miserable.
"I'm sorry, I made a mistake." Aigron apologized directly to the other party, and then bowed and saluted, "I take back my accusation. I saw that standing in front of me was a warrior who had served the country...a warrior who I must
Admired hero. What is your name?"
"Jean-Pierre Anles." the middle-aged man replied. "Just an insignificant person."
Aigron asked the other party again, "Where were you injured?"
"This wound was in Portugal in 1809." The middle-aged man replied with a wry smile, "But there is another wound on my stomach that came earlier. It was left in Prussia in 1807. You may not believe it.
When my father and the Tsar ran to meet on the raft, I was watching as a private on the bank of the Neman River!"
Although his words were unfounded, from the demeanor and tone of his words, Aigron and his men immediately believed his words.
"Please allow me to pay tribute to you!" Aigron immediately changed his attitude and said to the other party respectfully.
"There's no need for you. I'm just an ordinary soldier until the end, and I'm not qualified to be paid tribute by the King of Rome." The middle-aged man quickly shook his head.
"No, warriors have nothing to do with military rank. Even a marshal may have cowards and traitors, and even the most ordinary soldier will have the noblest courage." Aigron shook his head, and then solemnly thanked the other party, "Thank you for your previous service to the country.
, everything you pay for the emperor!"
The middle-aged man was flattered to be so respected by the young man. He was originally inspired by Aigron, but now he was a little at a loss.
Standing in front of this richly dressed and handsome young man, he instinctively felt a little uneasy. Especially, considering that he was the emperor's son and heir, that uneasy feeling became even stronger.
"You don't seem to be doing too well," Aigron continued.
"Yes, it's not just bad, it's downright poor." The middle-aged man replied quickly, "I didn't have much savings when I was in the army, and I didn't get much compensation after I retired. I was also injured... What else can I do?
What? I can only curl up in my hometown, talk about the past and play cards with my fellow villagers every day..."
"How could they treat someone like this to a man who had sacrificed everything for his country?" Aiglon was half sincere and half hypocritically angry. "The Bourbon family themselves never captured an inch of land, but they left the warriors who fought bloody battles alone.
, how despicable! It’s really a shame for me to see this ugly dynasty that confuses right and wrong and is still ravaging this beautiful country!"
After getting furious, Aigron finally calmed down, and then he turned to look at the other person, "What do you want now?"
"I just want to drink coffee. It would be better if I had some wine." The middle-aged man blurted out.
"You will have it, and there will be a lot of it." Aiglon replied immediately, and then he glanced at Andre Davout next to him.
Andre Davout understood this and quickly took out a few gold coins from his pocket and handed them to the other party.
"Please accept my gift, Mr. Unlers." Aigron said to the other party sincerely, "I owe you, and I should make some compensation."
What he gave to the other party were Napoleon gold coins. In the imperial era, Emperor Napoleon rectified the chaotic currency and issued new francs. He also minted gold coins, one worth 20 francs and the other worth 40 francs, because they were all stamped
The portrait of Emperor Napoleon himself was directly called "Napoleon" and "Double Napoleon" among the people.
After the return of the Bourbon dynasty, they followed the monetary system created by Emperor Napoleon, and naturally they also had to mint new gold coins with the heads of the two kings Louis XVIII and Charles X. Of course, the original Napoleon gold coins were already circulating in the market.
, they did not take it back, but allowed the people to continue to use it.
The Bourbon dynasty tried to destroy all traces of the empire. However... although the empire was extremely short, it had left such a deep mark on French history that it could not be erased even if it wanted to.
When Aiglon returned to China this time, he naturally considered the need to "spread coins", so he prepared a lot of gold coins that were popular in France beforehand. Of course, due to political considerations, he only selected gold coins with Napoleon's head.
The golden light instantly covered the middle-aged man's sight, causing him to swallow a mouthful of saliva subconsciously.
It's no wonder he was so shocked. He hadn't seen such a large sum of money for a long, long time. He had been tortured by his poverty-stricken life for so many years.
"Please accept it." Seeing that he was still in a daze, Aigron couldn't help but urge.
"Thank you, King of Rome."
The middle-aged man's voice was filled with tears, and his voice and his hands trembled, and then he took the gold coins tremblingly.
The weight of these gold coins was heavy, totaling several hundred francs. If he saved some money, it would be enough for him to spend more than a year in this remote town.
Aiglon's gift instantly turned the dull atmosphere of the cafe into a commotion.
And this was exactly his purpose. He knew that France, where all the people were soldiers at that time, would inevitably leave many veterans, and there would definitely be veterans in the cafe. He wanted to find these former soldiers and mobilize their emotions.
, so that a breakthrough can be found.
"I'm sorry." After receiving these gold coins, the veteran suddenly apologized to him with tears in his eyes, "Our fight did not bring you victory, and we did not preserve the empire you deserve... everything was in vain."
"No, not yet." Aigron held his head high and answered with a smile. "That's why I'm here!"