Talleyrand was concerned that certain men in the French army, such as Marshal Berthière, and Marshal Sirte, who had recently seized his last chance to win the title of marshal in Ireland, were said to be interested in turning to politics. To be honest, if Napoleon's opinion is not taken into account, they actually had a slight advantage over Talleyrand. Although they had no political experience at all, they all had the aura of war heroes, and they came from the army, which the French generally trusted.

Coupled with the fact that these two did not have those messy scandals, their reputations were much whiter and more flawless than that of Talleyrand.

However, Talleyrand was not particularly worried about them, because he knew that Napoleon was a man full of vanity and lust for power. He abdicated in order to establish himself as a saint, but that doesn't mean he was really willing to give up power. He felt that Napoleon was probably trying to hide behind the scenes and continue to manipulate the situation. And Napoleon did have such a power, neither the French people, nor the French army, which can be said to be recognized by anyone except Bonaparte. Whoever it is, even if he is already in the position of first consul, as long as his performance does not please Napoleon, he can remove that guy from power with just a hint.

"So, whoever sits in this position can only be a puppet. At the Ministry of Public Security, at least I have the final say in everything, even Napoleon, who rarely interferes in the affairs of the Ministry of Public Security. But if I become the first consul, the Ministry of Public Security, which is almost completely autonomous, will be handed over, and I will become a puppet who has no decision-making power in major matters. Am I the one who would do such a stupid thing? ”

At the Ministry of Public Security, Fuche is also discussing the matter with his subordinates. As for Fouché did not intend to "go further", several subordinates were somewhat disappointed.

"Maybe I'll go for that position in the future, but not now." Fuché Road.

Indeed, he was not the same as Talleyrand. Talleyrand cannot live without money for a day, and he cannot rest without power for a day.

Of course, Talleyrand knew that being the first consul did not necessarily expand his power much, but there were many more ways to make money - Napoleon would only control the big things, as long as he grasped the proportions, he still had a great future as the first consul.

So, in the end, as everyone expected, after Napoleon officially announced his withdrawal from the next first consul race, Talleyrand, who had Napoleon's support, successfully became the next first consul, and at the same time, the French parliaments quickly passed the last bill proposed by Napoleon as the first consul: the bill on prohibiting anyone from serving more than two consecutive terms.

After Talleyrand became the first consul, the first bill proposed by the State Council was to build a large construction project in Paris.

"In honour of my predecessor, the eternal leader of the French people, the eternal first consul, the greatest commander-in-chief in the history of France, the greatest thinker, revolutionary, statesman, military strategist, scholar, the founder and commander of the great French Republic and the invincible French army, the guardian of peace and order in France and Europa, the embodiment of the French spirit, and the great achievements of Napoleon Bonaparte the First Consul, I propose that we should erect a wonder of the world for him— Right on the site of the already demolished Bastille. What do you think? ”

If you ask the French parliamentarians if they approve of this kind of thing, then of course they are in favor. Of course, the parliamentarians questioned Talleyrand's plan.

"Talleyrand is in power, what about your design? Can you show us? A councillor shouted.

Although Talleyrand's position was that of First Consul, everyone, including the various newspapers, deliberately or unconsciously removed the modifier "first" when addressing him. This was even true of Talleyrand himself, for example, when he was sworn in, he read out the word "first". Perhaps only Napoleon would call him "First Consul" in the whole of France today.

"Yes, Talleyrand is in power, we don't doubt your sincerity, but we are very optimistic about your aesthetic level." When it wasn't for Napoleon, the parliamentarians generally became more fond of jokes.

But Talleyrand was not offended by this, and he replied with a grin: "On this point, we are on the same page. So I don't have a design solution, yes, at least not yet. I don't think it's my business, it's not the French government's thing, it's the whole of France, it's the whole of Europa. Therefore, my plan is to first solicit proposals from all over France and even all of Europe, and then the parliament and the government jointly organize a committee to conduct a preliminary review, and then send the proposals to the Academy of Sciences for review, and then the Academy of Sciences will give the final candidates, and then vote democratically through the parliament. I suppose no one is going to doubt the aesthetic level of the French Academy of Sciences, right? ”

So everyone laughed together.

Then the bill passed unanimously, as if it had been proposed by Napoleon himself.

So after Napoleon's resignation, there was another wave of frenzy throughout Europe, and from the whole of Europe, and even the whole world, from Mexico to St. Petersburg, almost everyone, who had a little education, talked about it. Many people, with or without an education in architecture, joined in the design of this wonder of the world, and the snowflakes were sent to the "Paris New Landmarks Organizing Committee" in Paris, where they were then packed in batches and sent directly to the paper mills to make pulp and recycle paper. If it had been quicker, those participants might have had time to recycle the paper a few times.

In fact, even Napoleon himself used anonymity to depict a magnificent Romanesque temple building in geometric painting. Napoleon felt that, with his own level, this design could enter the second selection stage no matter what. Then, the design, which may not even have been opened, was packaged and sent to paper - who made you anonymous?

Napoleon, on the other hand, couldn't keep his voice silent, because if some bastard knew about this ugly thing, he would surely be able to laugh at him for the rest of his life. Well, not only that bastard, but also that bastard of Lucien. Napoleon thought about it and thought about it, and the more he thought about it, the more angry he became, and finally decided that he had already retired anyway, and that he had nothing to do, and that he would go to Lucien's side tomorrow to find fault, and then scold him for being angry.

However, what made Napoleon even more angry was that after the committee finally submitted some of the proposals after the primary election to the French Academy of Sciences, Napoleon actually found a plan in it that was often similar to his design.

"This, isn't this blatant plagiarism? How could there be such a thing? Can the world still be better? I've never seen anyone so brazen! Napoleon was so angry that his hands and feet were cold and he trembled.

"Napoleon, what's wrong with you?" Joseph, who was also looking at the design on the side, noticed that Napoleon's face was not right, and asked.

"Nothing." Napoleon tried to behave as if nothing had happened.

"Shall I see?" As he spoke, Joseph took the drawings in front of Napoleon.

"Well, it's geometrically drawn." "But this aesthetic taste," said Joseph, "is so bad that it compares to what you have." How did this kind of thing squeeze into the second selection? This must have been deliberately made up by the guys in the primaries under the influence of your hillbilly aesthetic......"

Listening to Joseph's unscrupulous criticism of this drawing, and also denying himself in fact, Napoleon couldn't help but say: "Joseph, about aesthetic matters, you'd better shut up. Who doesn't know that you have no talent in art. What else would you do besides drawing big eyes? Let you listen to music, you can't even tell the difference between Mozart and Beethoven. Oh my God, the difference between them can be told by a child for a second......"

Joseph was not angry at Napoleon's claims and did not intend to fight back. Because to tell the truth, Joseph really can't do it in terms of artistic literacy, or rather artistic talent—he's just a vulgar guy. Joseph still has some self-knowledge on this point. For example, he once visited the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, but it did not cause Stendhal syndrome, which shows that Joseph's artistic cells are not so much. And never entangle others in areas that he is not good at, which is also the principle that Joseph has always pursued, so Joseph immediately switched in.

"Well, so you think it's a pretty good design? Well, anyway, this building is related to you, and you can do whatever you like. I don't think anyone else will have a different opinion on this matter. Joseph said.

"I ......"

Napoleon found himself in a dilemma. If he had been approven, and think that the thief who had stolen his design, the thief, could have engraved his name on the pedestal of this great spectacle, and thus be revered forever, Napoleon would have found it intolerable.

However, this is Napoleon's own design, and if he is vetoed, it is like shooting himself. But can you point out that this is plagiarism? After all, I still have a manuscript there. But if it were to do so, it would make the whole of France, the whole of Europe, and the whole world aware of it. And then who is the most disgraced person? Napoleon, without a doubt. I love Heeon, I brag about myself, and then - this is a perfect harlequin. Therefore, this matter must not be known to others, no matter who it is, especially Lucien and Foucher.

So Napoleon gritted his teeth and said, "Although this design is not as bad as Joseph said, it is not so good that it is." Overall, it has a certain merit, but on the whole, it is not enough to serve as a design ...... for our spectacle"

"I always think your attitude is weird." Joseph said.

In the end, Napoleon, who was in a bad mood, chose another option among other options, which was a steel obelisk of ancient Egyptian style more than 300 meters high.

When the obelisk was inaugurated, Napoleon was present in person, and the crowd cheered for Napoleon, but Napoleon looked a little melancholy. Some people noticed this, and they attached various stories, some about love, some about morality, and some with aliens...... It also became a common theme in later French literary creations.

In short, since that time, Napoleon has not faded into the limelight, although Napoleon is no longer in the political arena, and rarely speaks about the political affairs of France and the world, but the political arena is still full of Napoleonic legends. Moreover, Napoleon often appeared in various public events, such as various charity events, various artistic events, and various scientific activities, and every time he appeared, he always won a lot of cheers. It's just that the people used to call him "Your Excellency the First Consul", but now everyone calls him "Our Majesty", because although he is no longer the First Consul of France, he is still the emperor of the whole of Europe.

Fast forward to 1821. In the original history, Napoleon died in this year, but Napoleon in the certificate time and space was alive and kicking, and there was nothing to do. As for Joseph, because of his good living habits, his physical condition was even better than that of Napoleon.

By 1835, the last high-ranking official of the Bonaparte family. Lucien, the Minister of Truth, also left politics. It is said that when he resigned and left, hundreds of people came to bid him farewell, and called out to him affectionately: "Dear Daddy! ”

(End of book)