The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 701 Charlotte's Journey East

In France, chaos continued, and the Mountain Party, which had seized power, began their brutal revenge of clearing out political enemies.

All the leaders of the Girondists, including members of the Committee of Twelve, who once held the highest power in the country, were ordered to be placed under house arrest.

The revolutionary leader, who was in glory just a second ago, became a prisoner in an instant, with little resistance.

The last elegy of the Girondists was sung by Charlotte Corday.

This woman, who came from a minor noble family, was a supporter of the Girondists. She supported the establishment of a so-called democratic system similar to that of ancient Greece, and was therefore extremely hostile to the radical Mountain Party, especially Marat.

At the same time, the prevailing idea in Europe at that time was that women were nothing more than objects and were useless, which made Charlotte Corday determined to prove that women could also contribute to the country.

So he disguised himself as a supporter of the Girondists who had sided with the Mountain Party, found Marat, and declared that he would report the Girondists' treasonous acts to him.

Before leaving, the woman wrote in her diary, 'I am convinced that Marat is corrupting this country and I will kill this man to save thousands of people.'

On July 7, Charlotte Corday, who had repeatedly come to request to inform on someone, was finally received by Marat, and in a rather ambiguous bathroom. Perhaps Marat had some other thoughts.

Charlotte Corday pretended to name a long list of names, and Marat was extremely happy.

Because this woman was a guest of honor at the reception of the Girondist bigwigs, it was known to many people. With her betrayal, the Girondists had solid evidence and were doomed.

Charlotte Corday looked around. Due to the ambiguous location, there were no guards around Marat, so she took out the sharp knife that had been hidden in her cloak and stabbed Marat fiercely.

Poor Marat, after struggling for so long and about to seize supreme power, he capsized in the gutter and was stabbed to death by a thin woman.

After Marat's death, the Mountain Party immediately accelerated its revenge.

On July 7, the Mountain declared 28 Girondist leaders enemies of the state and the people and arrested them all.

Robespierre finally found his track. He insisted on simplifying the trials of the Revolutionary Court to a terrifying level.

When the bailiff brings you in, before you even have the chance to sit down on the chair, the judge only glances up at you and immediately shouts contemptuously, "You are an enemy of the country and the people, a traitor, and you must be sentenced to death!"

As you opened your mouth to retort, the bailiff hit you with a stick, knocking your teeth and the words you were about to say back into your stomach, and then dragged you directly to the guillotine.

Click!

He instantly enjoyed the same treatment as Louis XVI. The whole process was said to take only a dozen minutes, and the trial only took one minute.

On October 10, Queen Marie Antoinette was sent to the guillotine.

On October 10, the Girondists were sent to the guillotine en masse, and all 23 of them had their heads chopped off in minutes.

On November 11, Louis Philippe, Duke of Orleans, who followed the revolutionaries during the French Revolution and changed his name to Philippe Equal, was succeeded by his son, Duke of Chartres.

That is, he was implicated in the defection to Belgium with the commander of the Northern Army, Dumouriez, and eventually ended up on the guillotine.

Along with the Duke of Orleans, a large number of old French nobles were also executed.

In March of the same year, Europe was shocked when it heard that the government of the First French Republic had executed Louis XVI.

The kings or plenipotentiary ambassadors of six countries, including England, Austria, Prussia, the Netherlands, Sardinia and Naples, rushed to Brussels, once again reconciling the anti-French alliance that had not yet been announced to be dissolved, and vowed to take the most brutal revenge on the French Republican government.

Within France, the royalist Chouans in the west and the clergy and peasants in the Vendée region also launched an uprising against the revolution. They formed the Catholic Royalist Army to fight against the government.

To the south, the royalists in Toulon successfully reached an agreement with England and Spain in exchange for the surrender of more than thirty ships of the French Mediterranean Fleet.

Led by British Admiral Viscount Hood, a total of 14,000 foreign troops arrived in Toulon, including more than 20 warships, 3,000 British troops, 4,000 Spanish troops, and 2,000 troops from the Kingdom of Sardinia.

On land, under the banner of the Holy Roman Empire, Austria, Prussia, Belgium, Saxony, Hesse-Kassel, the Palatinate and other Holy Roman Empire countries sent 45,000 troops to begin the siege of Mainz, which was captured by the French army in the late Battle of Valmy.

This was a series of anti-French wars triggered by the European monarchs' fear of the Republic. Since the Seven Years' War, the European continent was once again physically united.

"Mother! Mother! My mother!"

In the Grand Palace of Brussels, Princess Marie-Thérèse Charlotte of France, who was taken out of France by Cao Zhenyong, cried out in pain. Then, in great grief, she began to vomit continuously and then fainted.

Nine months earlier, when Louis XVI was headed to the guillotine, Princess Charlotte was still able to hold on.

Because Louis XVI can hardly be called a good king or a good father.

He was obsessed with mechanical carpentry and other work for many years, and did not care much about state affairs and his children. The most important thing was that the family had already successfully escaped, but Louis XVI insisted on making trouble when they were about to leave France, resulting in the family being captured at the last moment.

Therefore, Princess Charlotte had some resentment towards Louis XVI. In addition, it was well known that Louis XVI would be executed sooner or later, which gave Princess Charlotte enough psychological preparation.

But no one, including Princess Charlotte, had ever thought that her mother Queen Antoinette and her brother Charles Louis would be cruelly executed by the revolutionaries.

Princess Charlotte was even waiting for Cao Zhenyong to rescue her mother and brother, but ended up meeting such a misfortune.

"Mary, my poor little Mary, if only I hadn't gotten smallpox, you could have lived a carefree life forever and wouldn't have suffered such a misfortune." Mo Zirong's wife, Archduchess Maria Elizabeth, was also crying.

The Archduchess was engaged to Louis XV, the grandfather of Louis XVI, but the engagement was broken off because she suddenly contracted smallpox and was left with scars.

Indeed, if she had not contracted smallpox, her sister Marie Antoinette would not have had to marry into France.

"Uncle, Mary begs you to let me go to China. I want to become the daughter-in-law of His Majesty the Great Emperor. I want to use the power of the Great Emperor to avenge our parents. I want all those mobs to go to hell!"

With a thud, Princess Charlotte knelt down in front of Mo Zirong, speaking very standard Nanjing Mandarin.

Even before the French Revolution, a large number of people in the French upper class began to learn Chinese, and it became a trend.

After all, the Great Yu Dynasty of the Chinese Empire was France's largest trading partner and its most steadfast ally overseas. If the French wanted to get rich, or even just want to venture east, they had to learn Chinese.

Princess Charlotte was no exception. Before leaving France, she had studied Chinese for eight years. After arriving in Brussels, inspired by national hatred and family feuds, she studied even harder with the Chinese teacher found for her by Mo Zirong.

Today, Princess Charlotte can not only speak Nanjing Mandarin, but also speak relatively fluent Cantonese and simple Leiqiong dialect of Minnan. She has even dabbled in the Four Books and Five Classics, and is considered to know most of China.

Mo Zirong looked at Princess Charlotte kneeling in front of him with red eyes. What a sin! Princess Charlotte could have gone to China long ago and didn't have to experience such a bloody and cruel reality here.

As a result, his good son Mo Gongze sent a message from Nanjing, saying that if Princess Charlotte was allowed to go to China at that time and was not allowed to experience the cruelty of the Great Revolution, she might not necessarily consider China wholeheartedly when she arrived in Nanjing.

Moreover, France is China's ally and a beacon of European civilization. The original verbal agreement was that Princess Charlotte would come here to be the queen.

But this is the future queen's throne!

There were countless top civil and military officials and nobles in China who were eyeing it, so it was impossible to give it to Princess Charlotte. Not to mention that the Bourbon dynasty in France had already disappeared by then, it would be impossible even if it still existed.

So if Princess Charlotte's dreams weren't shattered, coming to China too early, she might harbor ambitions to become queen, which would be difficult to handle. "Mary, your uncle is about to teach you your first lesson in life." Mo Zirong didn't let Princess Charlotte stand, but instead continued to kneel, as the Chinese do when bowing to their elders.

"Politics is cruel. Originally, you were able to marry the Crown Prince of the Chinese Empire because you were a princess of France and your father was the king of a powerful country, but now all of this is gone.

It is impossible to become the mother of the country with beauty alone. One also needs to have high self-cultivation and, most importantly, have support from others.

Therefore, even if you were to go to the Chinese Empire, it would be difficult for you to continue to be the empress."

Princess Charlotte bit her lower lip, her entire chin stained red with blood, and her eyes showed extreme hatred.

"Uncle, I know it doesn't matter whether Mary becomes the queen or not. Even if she becomes the Crown Prince's maid, I have no objection. As long as I can use the power of China to avenge my father and mother!"

Mo Zirong shook his head again and asked his wife, Archduchess Maria Elizabeth, to wipe the blood off Princess Charlotte's chin. He then said in a deep voice:

“Hatred alone is useless, and the power of the Chinese Empire is not so easy to borrow.

Moreover, China is far away in the East and cannot freely devote all its power to Europe. Otherwise, I, your uncle, would have been the King of Hungary long ago.

So even if you go to the Chinese Empire, you must be mentally prepared. The scene of revenge will not appear so soon."

Mo Zirong paused for a moment, then looked at Princess Charlotte seriously, "Mary, this is my personal advice to you.

After you go to the East, you must raise a banner, that is, you can use your identity to help the Chinese Empire recruit all the talents in France who are unwilling to go along with the mob.

Physicists, chemists, philosophers, physicians, bankers, etc., they are the best of France. No empire would be bothered by having too many such people.

Only if you can bring such precious treasures to China and regard them as your dowry, you will become the most indispensable daughter-in-law to the great emperor.

After that, even if you are really just a maid, the emperor will satisfy your request and let you fulfill your wish of revenge."

This was truly the truth, and Princess Charlotte was quite sensible, so she kowtowed to Mo Zirong three times again according to Chinese customs.

"Uncle, I remember it. Thank you for your teachings."

Sure enough, major changes in life are the key drivers of growing up. Princess Charlotte seemed to have transformed from an ignorant girl who was not even fifteen years old into an adult in an instant.

Mo Zirong was also somewhat moved. After hesitating for a while, he finally said to Princess Charlotte, "If you can't do these things, there is still a way out. You can tell the Emperor.

You are willing to recruit some exiled French talents to govern the local area and make it the New France of the Bourbon dynasty.

And the new King of France in India will be the Emperor's grandson, your son."

Mo Zirong actually wanted to remind Charlotte not to get involved in North America, because it was very dangerous. Neither the Spaniards nor the Americans were easy to mess with, and it was bound to be a huge fight.

But Third Brother Mo didn't say anything in the end. He didn't dare to interfere with the strategy of his brother, the emperor. So after talking about local governance, Mo Zirong waved his hand.

"Go, leave this sad place. Take revenge if you can, but if you can't, at least continue your father's bloodline."

Princess Charlotte bowed again. No one mentioned her brother Louis-Charles during the conversation.

Because after his father and mother were beheaded, there was no chance for this eight-year-old boy to survive.

At the end of November, Princess Charlotte was escorted by the eunuch of the Imperial Treasure House in Brussels and the European vice president of the Renaissance Company, who had already been arranged to escort her to the Chinese Empire.

He left France on a merchant ship of the Fuxing Company, escorted by four warships including the Qin Liangyu, a third-class battleship of the Chinese Outer South China Sea Fleet.

At the end of December, the First French Republic won the Battle of Toulon. Despite being at a disadvantage, they captured Toulon and inflicted heavy casualties on the British and Spanish fleets with the artillery in Toulon port.

The Allied commander, English Admiral Viscount Hood, had no choice but to retreat. The First French Republic finally eliminated the danger from the Mediterranean and avoided being attacked from both sides.

Napoleon shined in this battle. He was just passing by, but was recommended by his fellow villager Saliceti and became the artillery commander of the French army.

With his extraordinary military talent, he trained the poor French artillery in Toulon Port into an elite artillery and played a decisive role.

This battle not only brought Napoleon into the vision of high-level officials, but also made everyone in France know that there was such a talented artillery officer.

What's more, Napoleon gained the favor of the highest level of the First French Republic and was promoted to brigadier general. He easily achieved class crossing and became the youngest general of the First French Republic.

In addition, Napoleon accumulated his own team during the first major battle he commanded, and it was at this time that Marmont and Junot followed him.

However, on land, the French army suffered a series of devastating defeats as expected. The worst of these was the Siege of Mainz, where more than 3,000 French soldiers were killed and more than 20,000 were captured.

But Wang Wubing's evaluation of this battle is shit!
He said to Lieutenant General Rakoczi Zog, commander of the Lufan Hun cavalry: "These European monarchs seem to be indignant, but in fact they are just pretending.

They pretend to be so indignant and so willing to do anything, but it is all for the people in China to see, hoping to scare those in China who are also ready to make moves.

In fact, they did not have much determination to defeat France, and few people really wanted to avenge Louis XVI.

So this isn't a war; this is training for the First French Republic. No matter how many people we kill here, it's useless because France can't be defeated by just a few tens of thousands of people."

I have to say that there is a reason why Mo Zibu has always been optimistic about Wang Wubing. This person has a really broad vision and is a rare academic scholar.

His words accurately described the current situation of the anti-French coalition.

Is it a rebellion? It is a rebellion!

Is it really reversed? It seems not!
After that, Wang Wubing was no longer willing to fight to the death with the Lu Fan Army, because in the siege of Mainz, the main force was the Lu Fan Army, and more than 200 of the 3,500 people were killed in the battle.

As a result, after Mainz was captured, the Allied commander, Prussian Marshal Count Friedrich Adolf von Karlkrotz, released all the French troops after receiving their assurances that they would not fight the Allied forces again.

This is a direct manifestation of the fact that they had no intention of making enemies with the First French Republic.

Sure enough, in the Battle of Watigny that followed, without the desperate efforts of the Lufan army, the coalition forces began to fight back and forth with the French army. It seemed to be a huge battle, but in fact it was just a garbage battle for the French army to train their troops.

Cao Zhenyong saw all of this and wrote the last memorial of the year to Mo Zibu.

That is to let the emperor determine as soon as possible how to reinforce the Lu vassal army, and most importantly, send back the Lu vassal prince Mo Gongze.

Just as the French army is waiting for a genius to come out and lead them, Lu Fan’s current situation is also very dangerous.

What should he do next? Prince Mo Zirong of Lu had lost all his ambition and was unable to make any wise decisions.

For example, whether to reluctantly give up Belgium and retreat to Hungary was a decision that required the support of Prussia and resolute resistance. The time had come for the Lu vassal state to need a courageous and capable king to make the decision.

(End of this chapter)