Chapter 3513 Green Hill (I)

There is also a horse in David's painting of Napoleon crossing the Alps. This horse is an Arab horse that Napoleon bought from Egypt. It originally had an Arab name, which roughly means "dust storm", but this name is too common for horses, just like "thunder" and "star chasing". This gray Arabian horse was not very eye-catching in Napoleon's stable. The reason why David chose it was because it was Napoleon's mount during the Battle of Marengo. It was later renamed "Marengo".

David's painting actually beautified Bonaparte so much that the person in the painting is a little bit different from the real person.

Riding a horse is basic for nobles, even for noble ladies who are trained according to etiquette requirements. However, most of them still wore women's clothes and sat sideways at this time. Georgiana changed into men's clothes and rode astride. They went to the fisherman's town on the shore of Lake Como together.

There were indeed a lot of fresh fish early in the morning. Georgiana bought some at the vegetable market and bought a bunch of roses at the flower market in the town. The other two also bought some things. No one doesn't like elegant and polite people. After buying things, they rode back to the villa.

Riding for a long time actually consumes a lot of physical strength. It is not much easier than walking, but riding a horse can go a longer distance than walking. They slightly missed lunch and returned to Villa Melzi.

At this time, General Ney had decided to return to France tomorrow. He gave Georgiana a "note" with his signature and seal on it. She could use this note to find Devry, the current president of the Swiss Republic. He also came from the Swiss Guard of Louis XVI. He advocated moving the capital of Switzerland from Bern to Freiburg. He could provide Georgiana with a "private guard", although the number may not reach the 16,000 stipulated in the "Mediation Act".

The Swiss territory involved in the "Mediation Act" does not include Valais. After the signing of the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, the French left Switzerland in accordance with the treaty, but soon a civil war broke out in Switzerland, and Valais immediately declared itself an independent republic.

If we count the roots of the entire dispute, it was because the Swiss Republic government wanted to control a trade route across the Alps into Italy, which led to the three old Swiss states to arm themselves in resistance.

In order to build this tunnel, the French Republic, Italy and Switzerland all contributed manpower, not only French engineers and Italian beggars, but also Valais mercenaries.

At this time, Switzerland's military strength was still the top priority. A large number of Swiss troops could be assembled to rush to the battlefield within 1 hour, and they could also be used for disaster relief. The Simplon Tunnel had many shelters similar to the Saint Bernard Valley Monastery. Travelers could take refuge in these houses when they encountered danger.

Compared with blizzards, avalanches and floods caused by melting snow, the Swiss are more afraid of landslides. In addition to granite, there is another kind of "conglomerate" in the Alps. There used to be a village where Radetzky and his gang were ambushing. After the conglomerate fell, the village below the mountain disappeared without a trace in an instant. Only outsiders like them dared to hide there.

The day after Ney left, Georgiana returned to Milan with Bougainville and Lorbon.

Although they were about to go to the Castle of Stuppini, they had to pick up Paulina and say hello to Saint-Cyr. Regardless of whether Murat would be transferred back to Paris as Napoleon said in his letter, Saint-Cyr had to deal with the military supply contract first.

"Buyout" is a medieval term, which means hoarding goods and then reselling them. Before the news of a new round of grain harvest in the Baltic Sea came out, this "conflict" that no one expected gave grain merchants a good opportunity to raise prices.

When Massena was trapped in Genoa, rats were sold at sky-high prices, but it was useless to send him bills and coins in this situation.

Saint-Cyr was originally the son of a tanner. His mother ran away from home when he was less than four years old. After his younger brother died, his father often used him as a punching bag, which may have led to his sensitive and domineering personality in adulthood. He rarely showed his true emotions and was easily angered by well-intentioned jokes.

Saint-Cyr was not the name of Guvion's father, but his mother's. When he became an adult, he added his mother's name to his own name. At the age of 18, he went to Italy, yearning to be an artist.

In 1798, Saint-Cyr was sent to Italy to command the Roman Legion. After arriving, he ordered some French generals to return the jewelry and artworks. Because of this incident, Saint-Cyr established a group of political enemies and was dismissed soon after. In early 1799, Saint-Cyr commanded the Danube Corps and was transferred to the Italian Corps in May.

As soon as Murat left, the Italians with "vouchers" ran to the Sforza Castle to "exchange" them.

Saint-Cyr was not a close confidant of Napoleon, and he had openly refused to cooperate with Moreau. The two even had an open dispute. His nickname came from the Rhine Army.

"I heard that there was a countess who met an Estonian noble in Vienna." Marquise Crusoe said to Oshana of the Hacock family.

"Where is Estonia?" Oshana asked curiously.

"It was on the Baltic Sea. Later, they left Vienna and returned to her husband's house. I think the young lady was already a well-educated lady. She didn't like to attend parties. Her biggest hobby was reading. However, when she passed through the Russian customs, the books she carried were either confiscated by the censor or blacked out. She had to go to a big city in Estonia to subscribe to magazines, but when she got home, she was questioned by her mother-in-law. She asked her why she read so many books? A good housewife should take care of the whole family, and she also gave orders about her clothes. According to local customs, married women can only wear black, not brightly colored clothes."

"Isn't black mourning clothes?" 17-year-old Mary said with a frown.

"In the eyes of her parents-in-law, the most important task of a woman is to have children. Once, a farmer dared to sing the Marseillaise and was beaten half to death by her husband with a stick." Mrs. Bolt lowered her voice and said, "She later fled back to Switzerland and recuperated there, vowing never to return to Estonia again."

The young girls were frightened and screamed, and Georgiana smiled indifferently.

"Love" in Vienna is different from "life" in Estonia.

"So it's better to marry a man from your own country, at least there won't be such a big cultural difference." Mrs. Bolt said.

"Madam and the First Consul are not from the same country!" Mary retorted, her chin raised high, as if she felt she was right.

"What does Madam like about the First Consul?" Marquise Crusoe asked softly, like a private talk between besties.

Georgiana thought of the famous blue skirt, although in France such topics would not ruin the career of politicians, and everyone was used to it, as if they were not talking about a married man.

"Many reasons." Georgiana smiled and said, "I think he is a good man."

Marquise Crusoe's pupils shrank, but she still kept smiling stiffly.

Mary seemed to like this answer very much. Although her braids that were originally tied at the back of her head were made into a fashionable hairstyle, she still had that kind of rural temperament in her bones, and her reaction formed a strong contrast with the silence in the carriage.

I'm afraid only little girls believe that you are a good person, Leon.

She smiled bitterly helplessly and continued to look at the peaceful scenery outside her window as if she was out of the picture, while listening to the idle chatter in the carriage with one ear.