msmithbooks Chapter 112 Giants
Chapter 112 Giants
Grace walked out quickly with her skirt in hand, and greeted His Majesty outside the door.
The king smiled when he saw him, and asked: "Why is this meeting so long? Is my Grace also fascinated by those disturbing things?"
Grace was busy explaining, but saw His Majesty approaching again, and whispered in his ear, "Are you overwhelmed?"
This question made Grace feel her belly swell unbearably, she walked upstairs very shyly.
The meeting room is connected to a cloakroom. In theory, there is no gender limit, and men and women can use it together.But Grace had learned the difference between theory and practice, and he would never pee in the same room with other men, even with a tapestry separating them.
Under normal circumstances, their meetings basically lasted within three hours, which was still within Grace's tolerance.But today's meeting was indeed too long. Grace ran upstairs and shivered with comfort when she peed on the king's exclusive chair.
Grace thinks that everything in the summer palace is better than the palace in the capital, especially the toilet embedded in the chair, the flushing function has never failed, and it is very easy to use.After urinating, he stood up, lifted the skirt in front of him and hugged it in his arms, took a clean handkerchief from the cabinet next to the chair and wiped the place.
At this time, he heard movement from the outside door, hurriedly threw away the handkerchief, straightened the hem of the skirt, and went out from the compartment where the inlaid chair was placed.
It was His Majesty who came in.In fact, there can be no one else, this is a hidden place dedicated to the king.
His Majesty hugged Grace, rubbed his nose and cheek against Grace's face like a cat expressing intimacy, and touched his butt, "Did you pee so fast on purpose? When will you let me see it?... He put his lips on Grace's ear and said, "Your ears are getting hot, and you're shy again, and you're shy when you say this."
Grace wrestled out of his arms and hugged his arms to keep him from touching them.His face was still flushed, but his expression was serious, "Chris, I want to talk to you about something."
The frivolous and joyful smile on the king's face disappeared, and he sighed and said, "Okay."
Because it was time for them to walk together, and the king valued this very much, Grace didn't speak at first.When they got to the lake and they walked along the shore of the lake, he talked about the content of today's meeting.
In the middle of speaking, His Majesty interrupted him, "So, our gentlemen have decided to hold a national conference, haven't they?"
Grace carefully looked at His Majesty's expression, "Don't you want it, Chris?"
His Majesty shook his head, "I don't agree."
This was somewhat beyond Grace's expectations. His Majesty rarely expressed such a clear and decisive attitude towards these matters.He couldn't help asking: "Why? Because it was originally brought up by the archbishop and the high court?"
His Majesty did not answer him right away, but said something even more unexpected: "Tell me more, Grace, tell me what each of them said, what tone they used, and what expression they used.
So Grace recounted the whole meeting to the king.Speaking of the last dispute, Grace became emotional and asked His Majesty: "Why did the Earl of Arundel say that? Is he making up a lie about Rousseau?"
"No, Rousseau did abandon his illegitimate son, a crime he himself confessed in his Confessions, and which Voltaire used to lash out against him. The Earl of Arundel was wise enough, if he If he attacks Rousseau's thoughts and views, Captain Stone will definitely have a heated debate with him, and the outcome is unpredictable and exhausting; but if he attacks Rousseau's private life, the captain will have nothing to do."
Grace's expression is that of a rabbit that has been interrupted from feeding, with its round eyes and round mouth.
His Majesty was amused by him, "Are you surprised? It turns out that the king can also read, are you thinking about this?"
Grace hurriedly closed her mouth and asked curiously: "Have you really read Rousseau's book? Have you read his other books? They say he is fanatical and violent, is it true?" He has long been curious about this matter. It's okay, but I'm ashamed to ask William or Allen, because they often talk about the names of Voltaire, Plato, Montesquieu and Rousseau. They are so familiar with these famous people, it seems that he is so ignorant .
"Rousseau's description of high society as lice-infested wigs and places where STDs are exchanged in toilets is, to me, the most disgusting slur; yet when you look around you cannot deny that he is wrong. This example It can explain everything, all his remarks are disgusting to make people angry and dangerous to make people tremble, but after thinking about it carefully, I think what he said is very reasonable."
"Although Voltaire was kinder to the nobility, and Rousseau was a bit harsher to attack, to me, this man is just as annoying, except that he loves the theater - oh yes, you can also add His articles attacking the church, a man who is very good at sarcasm, makes people laugh."
The way Grace looked at His Majesty could be described as adoration.
His Majesty smiled again, and touched his face, "It seems that my Grace is really fascinated by those things. When performing a play I wrote on stage, I always hope to see you show me this expression , but never succeeded.”
"Chris..." Grace couldn't help calling him softly, "You are so smart and know so much, why don't you go to the meeting with us?"
"Because it doesn't make sense." His Majesty walked away from him and walked into the lake.The water ran over his feet, soaking his shoes.
"Grace, you're 19 now. When I was your age, or even younger, I was just as obsessed with that stuff as you were. I was probably even more crazy than Rousseau then, because I was the future The King, the Crown Prince being repressed by the Queen and the Regent, I want change more than any of the gentlemen with whom you are meeting today."
"But I soon discovered that nothing changed. I could use intrigue and I could stage a coup. Everyone who tried to kill me ended up being killed by me: the regent died in the queen's bedroom, my My mother died in a castle under house arrest, my brother had smallpox. I made myself a real king, and nothing changed. The country was still inevitably going down day by day, like a giant The wheels roll down from the top of the mountain, and all those who try to stand in front of it look so pitiful and ridiculous, and are destined to be turned into dust by it."
"Chris!" Grace yelled, and hugged His Majesty from behind, her voice became choked up, "Why do I feel so sad to hear you say this!"
His Majesty did not turn around, but he leaned gently into Grace's arms, and covered Grace's hands in front of him with his own.
"I also cried a few times because of this. Fortunately, I quickly figured it out: People always die inexplicably. If this is the case, why not enjoy as much happiness as possible while still alive?"
"I don't understand," Grace said behind him, her face buried in his neck, her voice muffled.
"There was a king who was also called 'Louis' who said, 'After me, the flood came', and that's how I feel, Grace. I've tried countless times to build castles in the sand, but every time I Make a little shape, and the lake comes up, washes away my castle, and retreats back into the lake, like it's spying on me, waiting for my next overreaching attempt. It's like this every time."
"Admitting this is actually very embarrassing, especially in front of you. But now I do choose to stay away from the lake to prevent my shoes from getting wet." The king left Grace's arms, walked out of the lake, and stood back. to the beach.He showed Grace his shoes, "Look, it's all wet, how uncomfortable it is to walk back like this, you should get out of the water quickly."
But Grace still stood stubbornly in the water and said to the king: "You are irresponsible and lazy!"
"Are you blaming me?"
Grace pursed her lips and said nothing, which was her acquiescence.
"It's kind of hurtful for you to say that, Grace."
"But there are more people who are hurting more! So many people can't eat enough, don't wear warm clothes, can't afford to raise their children—"
"There will always be people suffering, and it's not my fault. Blame God for driving people to such poor soil that they can never grow enough food to fill their stomachs."
"Who can guarantee that what someone has done will make the country suffer less? Isn't France's lesson deep enough? The Enlightenment has been proven to be a failure, and the giants worshiped by the gentlemen who have a meeting with you have also It was they who failed to hold back the great wheel that led the French people into deep misery themselves. Rather than risk that, I would rather keep the lake calm than set up a huge wave myself to wash everything away."
"Grace, I know you don't like the palace, don't like those dresses and jewelry, I can follow you. Let's move to the summer palace, avoid those annoying people, and you don't have to wear those tiring clothes , even if you like to mix in those things and listen to them say those things, I won't stop you."
"But you have to understand that it doesn't have to be new to be good."
"The reason why the palace is so crowded is that my great-grandfather attracted the great nobles to the palace in order to avoid civil wars among the lords. He invented many ways to enjoy himself, not to please himself, he just wanted the nobles Live in the palace with peace of mind, instead of always thinking about how to fight with your neighbors, or how to join forces to deal with the king. Including those extravagant rules, it is just to make the nobles worship the king, imitate everything about the king as fashion, and The king is an example."
"And the clothes, the wigs, the snuffboxes, the rugs, all these extravagances that you don't like, are also made to scrape money from the nobility. These fashionable rules were invented by the most unfashionable Chancellor of the Exchequer Yes, he wrote the laws stating how many layers of clothes must be worn in the palace and how many new sets of jewelry must be made in a year. He is not a fan of wigs himself, he only does it to make the nobles spend money. The nobles Not taxed, but his tailors are taxed, his barbers are taxed, his jewellers, his pastry chefs, his coachmen, everyone who earns his money. Only through those who have lice Wigs, piss-stained skirts, and desserts that turn teeth black and mouths stink, money flows from the aristocracy to the treasury and then to the poor."
"Grace, all is not what it seems, and all the rules that exist have their reasons. They were not originally in this world to look ridiculous and make you laugh." Wasvernünftigist, dasistwirklich; undwaswirklichist ,dasistvernünftig', remember this sentence, let Colonel Ston explain it to you, don't always try to subvert tradition. I don't like theater because it always surprises the audience, on the contrary, I like its predictability, As soon as the script is written, you know it's going to end that way. And that's not the reality."
After His Majesty finished speaking, he turned and left.
Grace stood alone in the water for a while, and suddenly shouted at his back: "But it is already changing! Alan Ston used the new army and tactics to win a battle that he hadn't won for several years, Hull Dr. Mann's vaccinia stopped smallpox from spreading in the city, it's new and it works! Chris, you're not alone with that goddamn giant wheel, those people in that conference room, Even the ones I hate the most, they are all on your side, they are standing at the foot of the mountain with you! We may not be able to stop it!"
"'Not necessarily'? You also admit that you may fail, right?" Chris turned his head, "That kind of failure is different for ordinary people than for kings. Knowing that 'Louis' who agreed to hold a national conference How did he die? Beheaded by a gigantic machine in front of tens of thousands of citizens. There is no more indignant way for a king to die. That's why I hate when people call me that: 'Louis King'. I'd rather slit my own throat than be a second 'Louis decapitated.'"
His Majesty left, without waiting for Grace for the first time, and just left.
The next day, Grace still woke up before His Majesty.He didn't get out of bed immediately after waking up as usual, simply freshen up, eat something, and then go to the meeting room.
He sat on the bed in a daze today, looking at His Majesty's peaceful sleeping face.When Chris closed his eyes, his eyes appeared longer and his pale face was more endearing.
At this time, Grace has two choices, go to the meeting room as usual, or go to the small theater.
He had been happy with His Majesty in the little theater.In the palace there is a painting of Zeus and Europa, a naked woman sitting happily on the back of a bull.He told His Majesty that the painting was not mysterious at all, but very ridiculous, because it is impossible for a woman to sit on the back of a cow without clothes, in the open air.
He made His Majesty laugh then, and the next month he saw a burlesque on the subject in the Little Theater.
The actors said that no one had ever written ancient Greek mythology as a burlesque, which made them awkward.But Grace still laughed like a rooster when he saw the actor in the bull's head and the hide lay on top of the actress playing Europa buttocks.
But he couldn't laugh like that in a conference room.As soon as he walks through that door and sits at that table, his heart is wrapped in tension, his eyes become sharp, his lips become tight, he moves his body like a soldier about to go to battle All the energy in it to prepare for a fight.
But what if those battles end up being lost?
Will William and Allen be afraid of failure when they go into battle?
If all their efforts made things worse instead of better, would he then regret not going to the little theater and laughing at the bawdy shows?Regret not taking Chris's advice?
Will he kill Chris?Let that terrible thing happen to them too?
He stared at His Majesty's sleeping face in a daze for a long time, then got out of bed very slowly and put on his clothes.
He eventually walked into the conference room, and when he did, the tables were already full.He saw William and Alan smiling at him.
In the middle of the meeting, the door was opened, and he saw the king's bodyguard enter, announcing that His Majesty was coming.
He saw Chris walk in steadily, announcing that he would be meeting with them later.
The king also said, "People like to imagine that the king is more than two meters tall, with iron fists and shoulders. Unfortunately, I am only of medium height, but I hope I can prove to him that the king can be a giant in spirit and action. .”