By the time Charles woke up, it was late at night.

When he first woke up, his mind was still confused, but soon he found Charlotte lying in his arms, resting on his right hand, and remembered the confusion of a few hours earlier.

Just now, in the midst of the firework outside, I pushed Charlotte down on the bed and did it again. Charles mentally told himself this fact, and then, suddenly, he felt embarrassed - was this such a determined fellow? Obviously just came to persuade her, how can she persuade and persuade her......

However, he quickly came up with an excuse for himself. Forget it, aren't all men like this?

He forced himself to turn his thoughts away. There's a lot more to do, isn't it?

He decided to get up first and go downstairs to take a look, so he slowly withdrew his hand. Since Charlotte was still asleep, he moved very gently, for fear of waking her. This girl had just suffered a blow of this magnitude before, and she really deserved to rest more.

By the moonlight outside, Charles looked at Charlotte, who was still asleep.

She was now sleeping deeply, her fair face flushed slightly, her breathing was very even, her chest was slightly heaving, and her long eyelashes covered her face, like a scene from a fairy tale.

It's really beautiful!

Looking at Charlotte, Charles had mixed feelings in his heart at the moment. There is not only an appreciation for beauty, but also an indescribable pity, and even more guilt - guilt that he has always been so unkind to her.

Feeling agitated, Charles couldn't help but lean over. He kissed her lightly on the forehead again, and then slowly got up and put on his clothes again. Then. He carefully put the quilt over Charlotte and left the room.

As soon as he got downstairs, a servant came up and politely told him that the Duke of Treville was waiting for him in the study, and he hurried with the servant to the study.

Since it was late at night, the constant roar of gunfire was now much quieter, and only sporadic gunfire remained. Occasionally, the silence can be broken.

"Woke up?" He had just walked into the study, and the Duke of Treville, who was immersed in writing papers, raised his head slightly and greeted him coldly. "Looks like those few hours were pretty good?"

Although his face was still as cold as ever, Charles always felt a little teasing in it - but of course, at this moment, he didn't have the courage to talk back, so he had to avoid the topic with embarrassment.

"Just now you tried to persuade me to drink. And you didn't taste a drop. Charlean looked at the Duke with displeasure. If I'm not mistaken. ”

"Yes, I didn't drink it." The duke didn't even raise an eyebrow, "I said, I'm too old to drink spirits." ”

"Is that all there is to it?" Charles asked.

After waking up, Charles naturally figured out that there must be something wrong with the wine he drank before, which is why he was suddenly so impulsive.

"Is this important?" The Duke asked rhetorically. And then looked at him the same way, "I think." What really matters is that Charlotte loves you, so you can give her the best comfort you can in the midst of her loss—and that's what your grandfather and I would like to see the most. Even before you were born, we said we wanted our grandchildren to marry. And now you're all grown up, you've all reached this age......"

Then, his gaze softened considerably. "Charles, you should all know what we old men think, our time is running out...... Of course, we want our children and grandchildren to do well. Don't think these words are boring, for an old man like me, family affairs are everything. ”

Listening to the duke's rare earnest words, Charles fell silent, and for a while he didn't know what to say.

There is no doubt that as a politician who has been in the sea for many years, the Duke of Treville's considerations cannot be just so warm and superficial, his main purpose is to quietly eliminate Charlotte's troubles, and by the way, reward Charles for his contributions to the family. However, in any case, he must still have a lot of feelings for Charlotte's granddaughter, and he will definitely hope to find her a better home - if he can marry Charles, who has a promising future, as agreed at the beginning, it must be the most reassuring for this old man.

Seeing Charles' slightly embarrassed appearance, the Duke sighed secretly in his heart and stopped pressing Charles.

"Okay, let's put this aside for now, there are a lot of more important things to do recently......

"Don't worry......" Suddenly, Charles spoke.

"Huh?"

"Don't worry, I know Charlotte's feelings for me." Charles didn't look at the old man again, but his tone was very determined, "So, I will never let her fall into misfortune." ”

After hearing Charles's promise, even the duke, who had always been moody, flashed with joy in his eyes.

"Since you can think so, it's for the best." He nodded slightly, "I hope that day will come soon." ”

Then, without waiting for Charles to answer, he changed the subject.

"Last night Philip told me that they were going very well, that the mob was about to be driven out of the city, and that they were now struggling to survive in the suburbs. This mess looks like it will soon be completely quelled by the army. ”

The Philip he was talking about was, of course, the little Duke of Treville.

"Something to be expected." Charles replied indifferently, "No matter how desperately they resist, those people will not be able to resist the heavily armed army." ”

"That's right." The Duke picked up the conversation, "Whoever controls this army will control the country." Therefore, we must not let them be in the hands of General Kafenyak. ”

Charles was about to agree with the old man's opinion when he suddenly added another sentence.

“…… Of course, it is also better not to be completely in the hands of Louis Bonaparte. ”

This sentence made Charles's heart skip a beat. There is no doubt that such words must never be said to any outsider again.

"What you told the officers that day. Philip has already relayed it to me. The Duke glanced at Charles, then continued, "Good idea. But the intensity is not enough. Yes, we must not make Louis Bonaparte too popular – but we should be more subtle in our approach, and a few words will not do. ”

"You mean ......?" Charles was a little confused.

"Boom!" Suddenly, there was another shelling outside, and the silence that had been there was for a moment was instantly wiped out.

"Do you hear that? What is this sound? The Duke asked Charles in a low voice.

"Is this the sound of shelling?"

"No, Charles, not shelling." Duke Treville shook his head. Then he replied, "It's a shout." ”

"Shout?"

"That's right, it's the shrill roar of the army." The Duke said coldly. "'Thirty years have passed! Let's never be a bystander anymore! ''We want to make this country do what we want!'' And so on. The army didn't want to be idle in this small country anymore, and even the blood of the mob couldn't calm down their restlessness - what was the point of killing a few mobs? Honors can be found there, as well as large sums of military spending, as well as medals. And knighthoods? ”

"That's right. The massacre of the mob could not satisfy the growing ambitions of the army. Charles nodded in agreement with the Duke of Treville, "They want to play big and fight a few wars, so that they can get the opportunity to be promoted, and they can get the so-called honor." ”

"Boom!" "Boom!"

The continuous shelling was heard, and it was clear that the army had started a new round of shelling.

Sooner or later, the shells that are fired in Paris today will fall on other countries, and Louis Bonaparte will let someone else do it if he does not do the army. That's one thing for sure. After proving that they are practically omnipotent within their borders, what scruples will the army have?

"In our venerable great army. There are no words for freedom, equality, and fraternity, but instead for infantry, cavalry, and artillery. After a pause, the Duke said rather harshly, "The only people who can gain their respect must be those who are good at using all three............

His last sentence dragged on for a long time, apparently wanting Charles to figure out what he meant. But Charles pondered for a while, but still couldn't guess.

"You're saying the army will respect their commander?"

"Yes, and the commander who led them to victory." The Duke nodded, "After all, wasn't that the uncle of Monsieur Louis-Bonaparte like that back then?" ”

"But ......," Charles understood what he meant, but was still a little confused, "what should we do?" ”

An ambiguous smile suddenly flashed across the duke's face.

"Charles, haven't you been planning for a long time? Soon after Monsieur Bonaparte seized power, the country was going to have a big fight with the Russians to clean up the reputation they had stolen through the cold winter......"

"Yes, I do." Charles nodded, "And Mr. Bonaparte agrees." However, my age ...... And I have no military experience, I can't be a commander......"

The Duke still looked at him with a smile.

Charles suddenly understood what the old man meant.

"Are you saying that my grandfather should be the commander? Let him command this war against the Russians? ”

The Duke did not answer, nor did he make any moves, but it was evident that he answered Charles with silence.

"No, isn't that okay?" Charles replied subconsciously.

His grandfather, the Marquis of Treville, has been idle for so many years, and even if he is activated again, can he really be placed on the position of commander-in-chief of the French army in the future war? Don't forget how many people will be eyed by the location that is destined to go down in history!

And that's not where the real concern for the charr lies.

In this day and age, the Thousand Miles Expedition is not just a joke, and soldiers are exposed to all kinds of diseases, and even senior commanders are exposed to this unpredictable risk. Later memories tell him that during the Crimean War, the commander of the French army, De. Marshal Saint-Arnaud died of illness on board the command ship in 1854.

Born in 1801, Marshal San Arnaud was in the prime of life at the time of the Crimean War, but he still did not withstand this fatigue. And the Marquis of Treville is already seventy years old, if he participates in this kind of expedition, his current health is quite passable, but will he really be able to withstand it then? The consequences are really unpredictable, and I am afraid that there will be more than one luck.

Charles's worries were absolutely heartfelt, and they went beyond pure profit calculations, making him want to reject his cousin's proposal without thinking.

"I think at his age, if he goes to war again, I'm afraid he will ...... I'm afraid it won't be very convenient. Under this concern, Charles quickly refuted the duke's opinion. No matter how much honor this position can bring, and how much anger it can give to grandpa what happened back then, it is not necessary to take such a big risk...... It doesn't make much sense!? ”

"You're right, Charles, we're all old. We've seen everything over the decades, and we're no longer surprised by anything. The Duke still looked at Charles and remained unmoved, "That's why we feel all the more urgent, because time will not wait for us any longer, and we want to do everything we can, for ourselves and for you." ”

"But ......"

"People always die, sooner or later, at least for people of our age, the most important thing when you leave is not the time but the way." The Duke said quietly, "I know my brother, he has been very passionate since he was a child, and he loves to watch those magnificent scenes, if he can accomplish such a great feat with his own hands before he leaves this world, Charles, don't you think it will be the greatest comfort for him?" In that case, shouldn't you fulfill his last wish? ”

The Duke's words made Charles's heart move. Judging from what he knew about the old marquis, it was absolutely normal for him to think like this. How could a person who is always obsessed with his military career not think about personally commanding a major war?

"Is that what he meant personally?" With the most hopeful of the last, Charles asked in a low voice.

"Yes, that's what he wants." The Duke nodded, "It's just that he doesn't want to come and ask his grandson for help." ”

Then he looked at Charles.

"Charles, you don't want him to ask you himself, do you?"

There was no hope of stopping it, and Charles smiled bitterly inwardly.

At this time, there was a sense of pride in his heart.

And, why should we stop it? This is the dream of many people!

"If that's what he wants, I'll do it for him. I will definitely be able to make him the future commander-in-chief of the Black Sea War! Charles nodded with a mixture of excitement and melancholy.

Then he looked up out the window, where flashes of light and the roar of guns could be heard.

He said it as if to the duke as it was to himself.

"Then let him take this army with him and make the Russians weep bitterly." (To be continued......)