Seeing the Dragon's flagship, which appeared for the first time in the port of Marseille, there was a cheerful and enthusiastic mood among the lively French people watching from the shore. A few of them could not wait for www.biquge.info the Chinese warship to enter the harbor and jumped into a dinghy to meet it, and the Frenchmen on it cheered loudly to the Chinese on board as the Chinese warship passed by.

A young man on a Chinese warship in a splendid Chinese official uniform saw the enthusiastic Frenchmen and waved his hand at them. He was a slender young man, about twenty years old, with black eyes and jet-black hair; His appearance gives people an extremely calm and resolute feeling, and that kind of calm and resolute temperament can only be possessed by people who have experienced strong winds and waves, hardships and dangers since childhood.

After hearing the cheers, another middle-aged man wearing a similar Chinese official uniform stepped out of the cabin, and when he saw the French people cheering and waving to the Chinese warship, he was stunned for a moment, and then waved his hand to the Frenchman like the young man.

"I can't imagine that my Qing division ship will also have a day when it will be stationed in the port of the western country." The middle-aged man, that is, Hong Jun, the deputy envoy of the Qing Dynasty to France, said to Lin Yizhe with a smile, "When the news comes back, it is also a happy thing to raise your eyebrows. ”

Lin Yizhe smiled and didn't say anything.

He didn't bother to explain to Hong Jun, in fact, according to the provisions of those so-called "unequal treaties": foreign warships can dock at any treaty port in China, but the Chinese have never known and do not understand that they also have such rights!

Now the "Weiyuan" and "Fubo" ships can be stationed in the port of Marseille this time, in fact, it is the right of the Chinese Navy ships to be very common.

Since the Qingliu people in China are so willing to regard this matter as a glorious thing to "promote the country's prestige", let them be so optimistic.

The "Weiyuan" and "Fubo" warships sailed into the port of Marseille one after another, and there happened to be a number of foreign warships anchored in the port, and when they saw the arrival of the Chinese warships, the foreign warships fired salutes one after another, and the Chinese warships fired salutes in return.

After saluting each other, the ships "Weiyuan" and "Fubo" docked, and officials from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Admiralty were waiting there early, and when the Chinese mission appeared, the surrounding crowd once again burst into cheers.

Marseille, France's largest commercial port in the Mediterranean, has hosted sailors from all over the world. However, the arrival of the Chinese mission of "Weiyuan" and "Fubo" this time aroused the curiosity of the locals.

The Chinese naval officers who led the team were seen wearing silk uniforms with Chinese plackets, but the cuffs were decorated with varying amounts of gold trim according to Western rules to indicate their rank. The Chinese sailors wore turbans around their heads, bands around their waists, and wore clothes similar to those of Western navies on their sleeves. The logo of the craftsman makes Westerners sigh at the wisdom of the Easterners, painting an oil pot for the oil, painting a shovel for the fire, and the blacksmith carrying an anvil. The civil servants of the mission wore splendid silk robes. And everyone, regardless of the officers and soldiers, dragged a long braid behind their backs.

It is difficult for such a "fancy dress" team not to attract attention.

The Daily News reporter relished the action of all Chinese officers delivering red greetings on their way to the town hall, and the folding fan, which seemed ordinary to the Chinese, became the subject of discussion: "It is so strange for the French that the military use the folding fan, and some Chinese officers are either unaware of the effect or do not care about it." They use folding fans at a leisurely pace, comparable to the ladies of high society." This French reporter obviously doesn't understand the Confucian demeanor of "lupine scarf, talking and laughing, and the canopy is in ashes".

The three-day stay in Marseille left a good impression on the city of Marseille by the Chinese mission, but the arrival of news brought a touch of sadness to the mission.

Hayashi learned of Tsang's death from a French official who greeted him. The French newspaper of the same day also reported on this in detail. After knowing that Zeng Guofan died, Lin Yizhe, Hong Jun and others were in mourning. According to the photo of Zeng Guofan published in the French newspaper, Hong Jun personally painted a portrait of Zeng Guofan's regular clothes and hung it in the hall, and Lin Yizhe led everyone to burn incense and worship. French officials, as well as the mayor and municipal officials of Marseille, presented wreaths in accordance with Western etiquette.

Subsequently, the Chinese mission, arranged by the French reception officials, took a train to Paris to attend the enthronement ceremony of the French Emperor Napoleon IV.

March 22, 1872, was the day of the coronation of Emperor Napoleon IV of France. To celebrate this grand ceremony, people gather in Paris from far and wide. The stands set up specifically for the ceremony were also fully booked, and the balconies on the emperor's path during the coronation ceremony had already been rented at a high price. The whole city of Paris is full of festive atmosphere, all kinds of exquisite ornaments decorate the streets of Paris beautifully, countless French tricolor flags flutter in the wind in the city, and posters with portraits of father and son emperors can be seen everywhere in the city. These days, everyone has a holiday, and every little one gets a gift of their choice. Now all the French want to witness it.

In the eyes of the French Emperor Napoleon IV, his entire coronation was tinged with mysticism. As a child, he had seen many times with enthusiasm the painting painted by the famous painter Dawit of Napoleon I's coronation of Empress Josephine. Now, he will face his coronation with the same enthusiasm. Every day these days, Napoleon IV would have countless rehearsals in the living rooms of the Palais Royal, striving to be the best in every liturgical move. When the Emperor began to practice wearing the French Diamond Crown, it was suggested that the Imperial Crown should be worn instead. Because the French diamond crown was made of pure gold and set with a large number of diamonds, it was too heavy for the emperor, while the imperial crown was a lightweight crown specially made at the coronation of Emperor Napoleon. However, the Emperor believed that the French Diamond Crown was the official crown worn by the French Emperor at his coronation, so Napoleon IV decided to wear the French Diamond Crown.

The emperor also gave careful and careful consideration to the special meaning of the dress he wore at the coronation. The emperor's coronation dress was an ivory brocade robe with a red robe, all embroidered with a variety of beautiful and representative flowers, including not only the fleur-de-lis motif of the French royal family and flowers from all over France, but also the corresponding representative plants of French colonies such as Algeria. The emperor was very satisfied with his flowery coronation dress. Because this allows people everywhere to see their local representative plants at the coronation, so that they can fully feel the importance that the new emperor attaches to them, which is exactly what the new emperor wants to see.

On the first day, there was a drizzle in the sky, but that didn't dampen the enthusiasm in the slightest. On both sides of the main street through which the emperor's carriage would pass, stood with people who had come to watch the ceremony. Everyone brought tents, sleeping bags and food and waited in the rain for the next day.

Early in the morning, 8 o'clock. The drizzle still shows no signs of stopping. At this time, the first group began to set off from the Château de Fontainebleau to Notre-Dame Cathedral. At the front, the carriage of the mayor of Paris, accompanied by a guard armed with a spear, to Notre-Dame. This was followed by relatives of the royal family who rode in luxury four-wheeled carriages. This was followed by a procession of carriages, including members of the royal family, speakers of the House with scepters in hand, rulers of various colonies, and envoys of various countries.

At 11 o'clock, the luxurious carriage carrying Emperor Napoleon IV and his wife arrived at Notre-Dame Cathedral, and to the opening chants, Napoleon IV walked slowly towards the altar in the church.

"Gentlemen! I am here to introduce you to your true Emperor, Emperor Napoleon IV! The deep and loud voice of Pope Pius IX resounded in the Cathedral of Notre-Dame. Suddenly, the whole cathedral thundered with joy, and the atmosphere suddenly became enthusiastic, and even foreign journalists shouted in unison: "God bless Emperor Napoleon IV!" ”

Amid the solemn and holy chanting of the Bible, the attendants took off the emperor's jewelry and gown one by one. Now, Napoleon IV has stripped off all his ornate coats and is standing waiting for the ceremony of ordination to begin. The Pope anointed the Emperor, then sat on the throne, donned a plain white sleeveless tunic woven of linen, and solemnly received the elaborate symbols of kingship - a transparent crystal ball, an emperor's scepter with a cross, and a royal ring with a ruby sapphire cross. While accepting these symbols, the emperor also accepted the royal power that had been granted. Finally, when the Pope held the sacred French diamond crown in the air, Napoleon IV slowly bowed his head, and the Pope solemnly placed the crown on the emperor's head.

Lin Yizhe looked at this scene and couldn't help but think of the coronation ceremony of Napoleon I.

It was also at Notre-Dame Cathedral on December 2, 1804, and in order to consolidate the throne, Napoleon had been extremely arrogant enough to have Pope Pius VII come to Paris to crown him personally, in order to take advantage of the pope's great religious appeal to make the French people and even the European people recognize his "legitimate status". But at the time of the coronation, Napoleon refused to kneel before Pope Pius VII and let him crown himself, but took the crown and put it on himself.

The current coronation of Napoleon IV is presided over by Pope Pius IX, who was once "patronized" by Napoleon III.

In this same place, two Napoleonic emperors and two popes appeared. History seems to have a reincarnation at this moment.

――――Dividing Line――――

Collect! Ask for recommendations!