Chapter 1224: Parisian Women (11)

After turning a corner, the black dog leading Severus disappeared.

Strange to say, the palace was heavily guarded outside, but there were no guards inside, as if the black dog was very familiar with the situation inside and avoided those people.

At this moment, a door suddenly opened, and several staff officers came out from inside, and Severus quickly hid in a corner where they couldn't see.

After those staff officers had gone far away, he came to the door again and opened it with the Arahor Cave Curse. There was no one in the room, but all the candles were lit.

Both reading and needlework require light. The Egyptians had no roofs, and the moonlight was brightest when the moon was full, which was very suitable for needlework.

There are gorgeous oil paintings on the roofs of the French, and the moonlight cannot come in, so they can only be illuminated by candlelight. Naturally, these soldiers didn't light so many candles for needlework. The long dining tables were covered with paper documents, which looked messy.

Severus frowned. He walked to one of the tables and stopped. There were two documents on the table, one was written in English and the other was written in French. The French ink was still wet .

What the two Americans said just now, "Only Britain is left" means that the main fighting force in the anti-French alliance is only Britain, and there are also some armed neutral countries still standing on the side of Britain. Severus The document I took was the charter issued by the United Kingdom to Denmark, an armed neutral country.

In the 18th century, the United States was still an agricultural country. In addition to food, cotton was also a major export product.

The cotton grown in the United States is not Egyptian cotton, but sea-island cotton from the Bahamas. This cotton, like Egyptian cotton, is also long-staple cotton. The biggest difference between these two types of cotton is that after being made into yarn, Egyptian cotton is stronger than sea-island cotton. It is softer and has a silky luster, while sea-island cotton does not have that strength and is suitable for cheap civilian products.

Cotton is not grown in France, and the materials for the cotton textile industry are all imported. This indirectly leads to the fact that the price of cotton products produced in France is much higher than that of British products, and the quality is not as good as British products. If there is "fair competition", French cotton products Cotton products cannot compete with British products.

In addition to the United States, India also produces cotton, but if India's cotton yarn is shipped from the Cape of Good Hope, the cost will be high. The best way is to dig through the Suez Canal.

At present, this canal is just a hypothesis, invisible and intangible. In contrast, it is much simpler to ban British goods from entering France. This creates a contradiction. France needs overseas cotton for cotton spinning, otherwise domestic textile The factory will shut down due to lack of raw materials.

If raw materials are allowed to be imported, other British products will also be released, and French products will face a crisis of being unable to sell.

A budget-minded housewife will of course buy cheap and good fabrics to make clothes for her family. Who would buy expensive and bad fabrics?

The low prices of British goods are obtained through squeezing blood and sweat. The first is the use of slavery in the planting of raw materials, and the second is that the wages of workers have dropped again and again, and a large number of child labor, women and bankrupt farmers are used. Naturally, the labor environment is not to mention. Even the capitalists sometimes don’t pay wages on time and according to the amount, and workers often go on strike.

But if there is a comparison, the British workers will be psychologically balanced. Look at the French, they often can’t afford bread. Britain at least has a poor tax. Even if the price of goods soars, the poor tax is calculated according to the price of bread. The reason why the working class is more secure.

Due to the Revolutionary War, the relationship between the United States and Britain and France was once very bad. During the Directory government in 1798, President Adams sent a special envoy to France to sign a treaty for some naval frictions in the Atlantic Ocean. However, the Foreign Minister of the Directorate told the Americans that he had to be bribed to sign it. The Americans who had just founded the country were still idealists. They felt that this was unacceptable and an insult to the United States, so the United States and France broke off diplomatic relations.

In retaliation, the Directory banned armed neutral countries from carrying British and American goods. Once all ships found British and American goods, they would be regarded as legal captures, that is to say, legal robbery.

The official channels were not available. Many law-abiding factories stopped producing textile machines due to lack of raw materials. The textile machines were less than half running, and a large number of workers lost their jobs. Some law-abiding factories obtained raw materials through smuggling. The Directory government not only lost the war, but also made the domestic economy a mess. People who are unemployed, have no income and are always facing starvation without food have become less orderly. The royalists gave money, food and guns, and saw the domestic situation start It became ambiguous, and Napoleon returned from Egypt by boat.

The United Kingdom will issue licenses to ships from armed neutral countries, so that these smuggling ships will not have to worry about being seized when they encounter British and American warships. Napoleon’s smuggling inspections were not so strict after the Brummoon Coup became the first ruling. .

One is because most of the French navy was destroyed, and the other is because the domestic economy does not allow the blockade to continue.

Not all the parts for manufacturing warships are produced in France. It needs a lot of top-quality wood and gunpowder. Britain restricts the export of saltpeter from India. The French can only give privileges to local saltpeter workers and allow them to break into private land to dig soil containing saltpeter. . Regardless of whether the Americans dug it from the ground in the New World, or obtained the saltpeter from India through bribery, this legal license is now on the table of the French General Staff, and it has also been translated into French.

Of course, the British hated the independent Yankees, but in 1801, Britain and France were at war, and the British factories needed American cotton to start. They had to appease the Americans who were seriously injured in the French trade blockade, allowing the Americans to load in neutral countries, and then As a neutral country asset, it took a "roundabout route" and sold it to France.

The American is like a woman who appears intimately with her British husband in public and holds hands with her French lover in private, earning money on both ends.

It is also thanks to their ability to make money that they were able to spend 80 million francs to buy Louisiana in 1803, just over 20 years after the founding of the country.

Severus looked at this "military secret" with a smile, as if imagining how the British in the first years of the 19th century would feel if they knew that their allies were such people?

But the smile quickly disappeared from his face.

He folded the "Military Secret" and put it in his jacket pocket, then raised his wand, knocked down one of the candlesticks, and deliberately let the flames fall on the papers.

But as soon as he finished all this, the door behind him was kicked open, and a group of soldiers in blue uniforms blocked the door in three rows, holding muskets with loaded ammunition and bayonets in their hands.

"Fire!" someone yelled, a word that Severus knew even if he didn't know French.

The moment the soldier shouted the command, the gun rang out, and a dozen bullets crackled and shot at the wizard, and the room was filled with the smell of gunpowder.

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Pomona rubbed Napoleon's back vigorously with a brush.

Anyway, he's a donkey, so it doesn't matter how hard he brushes.

"If you work as a scrubber in Alexandria, you will definitely be fired." Napoleon said, "Why do you have such strength?"

"Do you dare to undo my shackles?" Pomona threatened.

"Have you ever taken a Turkish bath?" asked Napoleon.

"No!"

"I like the Turkish bath. The Egyptians like to talk in it. I have a general's wife who used to be a back scrubber in the bath." Napoleon said, "She is an Egyptian woman. After she got married, she continued to work in the Rosetta bath. when all the women there courted her and asked what it was like to live with the Frenchman, she said he let her sit at the head and gave her the best things to eat, and when she sat down he gave her Pulling back the seat, constantly taking care of her, trying to fulfill all her wishes, these words soon spread through the bathhouses in Rosetta, and the women of the whole city went to Cairo to demand that the Egyptian men also treat them according to the French customs. I haven’t received any news from France since I left Paris, and I heard that the French navy was completely defeated, so I thought about treating Egypt as a French colony. I wrote a letter to ask Josephine to come, but she refused to come, but other things The family members of the personnel and a song and dance troupe came. Most of these people were women, as well as doctors and pharmacists. We spread modern medicine locally, and exempted the land tax of Atal, and the lives of Egyptians were greatly improved. , They have a good impression of the French, and everything was fine, but one morning I crossed the Nile to inspect the Giza arsenal, and when I came back at nine o'clock in the morning, riots broke out in Cairo."

Pomona stopped brushing her back.

"All arteries were cut off, sentries were placed at every fork, earthen walls and barricades were erected, women on balconies were wailing in fright, and the Great Sheikhs tried to enlighten the people and tell them to do so However, those people did not listen at all, and instead threatened the Great Sheikhs to join the riot. General Dupuyui was a brave and excellent officer, but he was very irritable. When he saw the riot, he immediately ordered the French The army entered the state of combat. When I entered the city, the gunshots were already loud. Rumors were spreading everywhere in the city. The Kebir Sultan was killed. The French took off their masks and were massacring the orthodox Christians. Thirty-five thousand people, excluding injuries, and the number of battle damage, are far from the opponents of the residents of Cairo. We cannot break out a full-scale conflict with the people of Cairo. I immediately ordered people to find out what caused the citizens to rebel suddenly. It turned out that There are rumors in the city that Degerza of Damascus and Jerusalem is leading an army to Cairo. The whole city of Cairo is divided into fifty districts, and each district is surrounded by walls. The opening and closing of the gate is the power of each district chief. , can cause traffic to be cut off at any time. I reached an agreement with Sadar Sheikh. He agreed to demolish part of the wall. Some malicious people are spreading rumors that the French are going to impose a special tax and ask them to pay a lot of money. Cairo people are very cheerful and enthusiastic, love to chat, and rumors spread very fast. We demolished a mosque and then in A fort was built on the ruins, and the residents were even more disturbed at this time. Why did the French point their cannons at them? Aren't we friends? I immediately asked someone to write a bulletin in Arabic and Turks to clarify the facts, Setting up arms is only a military regulation, but the leader of the rebels used this to convince the people that we were cowardly, which made the people even more arrogant and unreasonable, so I had to order the artillery to fire. Killed our artillery, but because the range was not enough, it finally failed. Later, General Dormatian ordered to use bayonets. The rebels were repelled. The cavalry began to attack and captured some prisoners. The local Syrians and Copts who supported us Someone acted as a guide for us and led us to the command post of the rebels. The fighting did not end until 7 o'clock in the evening. The police chief arrested 80 senior officials who participated in the defense meeting. Some rebels left Cairo at night and went across the desert. Suez. It all started because of rumors and suspicions. The Egyptians who liked us very much didn't like us so much after this riot. The soldiers were also wondering why I didn't execute the leader of the rebel army. The French were in The blood shed in the rebellion should be paid for by them, and at this point I'm glad that Josephine didn't come to Egypt like the family of the clerks, although they are all right, just frightened. I don't want to leave a reputation for tyranny, but deal with some People need to use heavy codes, politeness and kindness to them is not effective, I didn't deal with those old sedition Sheikhs because they are old, can't ride a horse, can't use a knife, and do everything just to protect their own interests, they Much easier to deal with than a young leader with dreams, since last year I have had people contact the Pope, there can be no society without property inequality, there can be no social inequality without religion, when one is starving to death He can't tolerate the difference when there's another person next to him who eats enough to spit it out, unless a priest tells him that it's God's will, that there must be rich and poor in this world, but in the afterlife Unlike in eternal life, the distinction between rich and poor will be completely different. You will not embezzle other people’s property when you are alive, and you will not go to hell or suffer in the execution ground of the underworld after death, but those cardinals who stay in France are not so close to the people. As they said, you British bought them and asked them to provide support for the Royalists. I asked the Pope to remove the bishops, but he did not obey my order. He was waiting for the result of my war in Italy. If I lost, he would continue to support the royalist party. If I won, he would back down. I later let Murat attack Taranto, which is an important port. The city, Hannibal also attacked there before, although the French navy suffered heavy losses and was unable to repel the British warships at sea, but your ships could not reach the shore, even the best warships are sampans at sea, from the soles of Italian boots we are the same You can escape the blockade of the British Navy and go to Egypt. "

"Why are you telling me this? Isn't this a military secret?" Pomona asked.

"The fate of Egypt has been decided, and you have won." Napoleon looked back at her with piercing eyes, "The warship I sent to pick up the children was delayed. Egypt was occupied by the British. Bretus set sail, and Murat's cavalry and artillery attracted the attention of most people. It would hardly encounter attack, but Guntom feared losing the entire fleet like last time, and drove the ship into In Toulon, fate is sometimes wonderful, predictable, and may change at any time. You once predicted that we can only bring back those children by negotiating with Britain. I want to prove you wrong, but my plan did not succeed. You told me again that the peace talks need the pope to come forward, but he keeps delaying, and my patience is almost exhausted."

He raised his wet hand from the tub and grabbed her arm.

"I think I am a good person. I want to resolve disputes in a benevolent and civilized way, but there are always people who make trouble with me. All those who obey my orders are my children. I will do my best to protect them, and those who do not obey I command, and anyone who dares to hurt my children is my enemy, and I have never been soft on the enemy. Now I give you two choices, one, go out later, take off your clothes and wait for me on the bed, I will treat you tenderly, as if you are the mother of my child, two, I hand you over to that American, you will be cruelly punished, which I do not want or want to see. Every night, My spirit is like a spark, sometimes you, the midnight genie will appear in my dreams, I hope you are single and don't have that husband. You asked me just now, the whereabouts of that little Cleopatra , Pauline is a talented woman, she can paint, she's a musician, her new husband will have a great time in her company, the old one I gave him a promotion, and he's still loyal to me, I introduced a loyal noble lady to him. Everyone knows that women related to me will be taken care of properly. You don’t need to worry about living on the streets. Even if you owe a huge debt, I will help you pay it off , do you have any concerns to tell me?"

"Can you give me the poison?" Pomona begged. "Please don't hand me over to the Scavengers."

He rubbed his eyes with the other hand, and the corners of his mouth curled down, looking like a child who didn't get his favorite toy.

"Why don't you love me?" He suppressed his excitement and said in a trembling voice, "Am I not good enough for you?"

"If I say yes, I will become the kind of woman I despise most, and I will become the kind of person you hate the most, like the young man who was with Josephine while you were away."

"I don't think it's any different. Everyone knows you're my mistress."

"That's different." Pomona racked her brains, hoping to come up with a suitable adjective from her confused thoughts.

"What everyone recognizes is not necessarily the truth, just like people used to think that the earth is flat, until Columbus discovered the new continent and proved that the earth is round. In fact, this is not a new discovery. People already knew it in ancient Greece."

"I can sacrifice honor to the truth, but why should I sacrifice honor when no one benefits?"

"I don't think this matter has anything to do with your honor? Others will still respect you as always."

Napoleon looked at her in surprise.

"What?"

"You don't understand what I just said, do you?"

"I understand the military plan you mentioned earlier. The Chinese call it Mingxiu plank road and secretly crossing Chencang."

Napoleon looked at her unacceptably as if he had heard something incredible.

"Are you really ignorant or are you kidding me?"

She still didn't understand what was wrong.

At this moment, the gunshot rang out, which interrupted the silence of the night and brought Napoleon back to normal.

There was a smile on his face that had been expected and everything was under control.

"What happened?"

"Don't worry, it may be a thief or a spy from another country." He turned his back and leaned against the bathtub, letting out a long sigh of relief. "This is a common occurrence."

Then he pointed to his big head, "Help me wash my hair."

She felt tempted to say no, but finally did.

She dipped in the tub and wet his hair, thinking of the first snow of last winter when she was washing another man's hair.

The hot water in the bathroom kept out the cold outside, and they passed a balmy day in the bathtub.

"Do you still love Josephine?" Pomona asked Napoleon.

"Of course." He said with his eyes closed.

"Then why do you still ask me so?"

"I told you on the sofa before, it is terrible to love only one person and put all my feelings on her. I want someone else to share my feelings." Napoleon said, "otherwise the fountain of my feelings will Exhausted, you don't want to see that done to me."

She was speechless for a long time.

"Have you ever thought that the supplies you found in the desert were not given by God, but you encountered a pirate's lair?"

"Maybe it's not, but it was arranged by God. Theodora means God's gift, and you are God's gift to me." He smiled contentedly, "Thank you, my God."

"Why do I feel that you are not religious at all when you say this?"

"There are so many people in this world who are less religious than I am and don't believe in it. Why does it punish me?" Napoleon said calmly.

"I don't care about fame."

"I care, stop talking and concentrate on working."

She looked out of the window with some worry, and the sound of gunshots continued.

"Aren't you going out to see?" Pomona asked.

"With Juno and Louis here, there's nothing to worry about." He closed his eyes and said, "Better worry about yourself than anyone else."

For a moment, she wanted to slit his throat with a sharp object, but she didn't.

Maybe there will be a turning point, she can't imagine what France would be like without Napoleon.