I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1324 A Glimpse of Eastern Europe
As the two were discussing the dress room, Charles excitedly knocked and entered. He first bowed, then said to Alexandra with a hint of pride, "Madam, Baron Perez has arrived, you..."

He then noticed the Crown Princess's formal attire and hurriedly urged, "You need to change your clothes quickly, otherwise you might be late."

Joseph looked at Alexandra: "Are you going to take a swordsmanship lesson with Charles?"

The latter shook his head and smiled, "Today I will have one last sword duel with His Highness Charles. Baron Perez will be the referee."

Charles became somewhat frustrated: "Madam said that after the formal wedding she would focus on being a good wife and wouldn't have time to practice swordsmanship with me."

“Please wait for me in the swordsmanship classroom.” Alexandra gestured to Charles, then curtsied to Joseph. “I’ll go change my clothes first.”

After she left, Charles grabbed Joseph again: "Brother, please come and watch our match."

He lowered his voice and said excitedly, "I've learned the 'spinning strike,' which is said to be the signature move of Master Joachim Mayer. I'm sure I'll win this time!"

Joseph, who rarely gets a moment's rest, gladly walked with him toward the swordsmanship classroom.

Twenty minutes later, Alexandra, dressed in a white coat, tight riding breeches, and a dark red swift sword at her waist, pushed open the door and entered.

When she saw Joseph arrive, she immediately came over happily: "It's not often that I see you practicing your sword."

“I’m here to see Charles show off.” Joseph smiled and gestured to his brother, then asked, “Are you really not going to practice swordsmanship with him anymore? I mean, you’ll still have plenty of free time after the wedding.”

Alexandra winked at him and whispered in his ear, "Charles' swordsmanship is improving rapidly. It won't be long before I can't beat him anymore. If I want to maintain my perfect record against him, I can only use this as an excuse."

Joseph couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head, thinking to himself that you have quite a heavy "sisterly burden".

Shortly afterward, Baron Perez signaled for both contestants to take their positions.

Charles and Alexandra put on their helmets and protective gear and then came to the middle of the classroom one after the other.

"start!"

With Peresce waving his hand, Charles launched the first attack with a straight chop.

He was now much taller than Alexandra and significantly stronger, so the latter dared not block and dodged to the side.

Joseph smiled. No wonder Alexandra chose to "retire"; it turned out that the days of being able to "bully" her younger brother by relying on her height were over.

The Crown Princess moved with remarkable agility, circling around Charles like a butterfly, occasionally seizing an opening to launch a surprise attack.

Ciel, on the other hand, employed the "elephant tactic," simply going head-to-head with her sword.

Because he was using a heavier sword, whenever the two clashed, he could knock a large section of Alexandra's swift sword away, and then take the opportunity to counterattack.

After a little over a minute of fighting, Alexandra was already struggling to keep up.

She suddenly spotted an opening, and immediately and skillfully lunged forward, thrusting her sword tip diagonally towards Charles's waist. This was one of Charles's defensive weaknesses, a move she had often used to win in the past.

But this time, Charles held the sword upright at his side, turned it half a circle to the left, and then forcefully lifted the sword, the blade instantly sliding upwards along the blade of the Swift Sword.

With a sharp clang, his sword struck the hilt of the Swiftsword. Alexandra's wrist went numb from the violent impact, making it almost impossible for her to lift the sword, and she could only retreat hastily.

"I won!" Charles immediately raised his sword and gave chase.

Seeing that the Crown Princess was powerless to defend herself, he suddenly reached behind her and shouted, "Stop!"

Charles froze, then saw a pistol pointed at his chest. "You..." he cried out, "This is so ungentlemanly!"

"I was never a gentleman."

"You might not be able to hit me!"

“I have six chances,” Alexandra smiled smugly. “That’s thanks to Your Highness.”

Charles looked angrily at the referee, who then looked to the crown prince for help.

Joseph sighed, stepped forward and patted his younger brother on the shoulder: "In terms of swordsmanship, you are undoubtedly superior, but remember to carry a pistol with you next time. Also, you are no longer a child, so be prepared to frequently encounter unreasonable ladies in the future."

The three were arguing about who was winning in the classroom when Berthier suddenly appeared at the door, bowed to Joseph, and said, "Your Highness, you wanted to see me?"

Joseph walked over to him: "I thought you wouldn't be here for another half hour."

Berthier took out a document from the Shapu signal tower: "There is a report from Portugal that I need to give you; I was already on my way there."

Joseph took the file: "What happened?"

"Our allied forces in Portugal cleared all the outer positions northeast of Gibraltar last week," the Chief of Staff said. "General Talavera wants General Juno to join him in a full-scale offensive to capture the fortress."

Joseph frowned and looked at Berthier: "How confident are you of success?"

The latter immediately said, "If the morale of the British is low, and the supplies in the fortress are insufficient, there is a good chance of a breakthrough."

Joseph thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Now is not the best time to occupy Gibraltar."

"With the Gibraltar fortress under siege, the British have lost control of the straits. And until we completely defeat the British navy, merchant ships will be unable to leave the Mediterranean for the Atlantic."

"That's why the fortress was left in British hands for the time being, so that they could keep sending supplies and soldiers there."

Berthier hesitated, then asked, "What do you mean?"

"Under the premise of minimizing casualties, intensify the attack on the fortress as much as possible. We can send some more heavy artillery over," Joseph instructed. "On the other hand, order the Toulon fleet not to keep a close watch, and to let some British transport ships pass by from time to time. Sink them when they return after unloading their supplies."

For Britain, as long as there is even a glimmer of hope in Gibraltar, they will never give up. It could easily become a "festering wound" for Britain, drawing blood from them for years to come.

After discussing Gibraltar, Joseph asked Berthier, "By the way, were those Russian prisoners sent to Warsaw?"

"It will be soon, Your Highness. There are 4300 people in total. They just passed through Reva yesterday at noon."

"Won't those people be noticed?"

"Yes, Your Highness. These people come from different legions and basically don't know each other."

Joseph nodded.

Of these 4-plus people, only about 300 were the real targets.

More than half of them were Russian soldiers personally selected by Alexandra, who were extremely loyal to Paul I and ready to avenge him.

Another small group consisted of liberal officers who had been influenced by the Declaration of the Rights of Man and had witnessed the "advanced and civilized" aspects of France, and who decided to save Russia.

(End of this chapter)