Everything seemed to be moving in the direction Louis had hoped.

Charleroi was followed by Tournais, then Art, and before the attack on Lille, three more small cities presented the silver keys to the king, and only one city called Douai showed a slight intention to resist, and to say that it was a rebellion, but only to refuse the king's messenger to enter with silence, but after Louis's banner was unfurled in their field of vision, and after a long time of hesitation, the seemingly solemn gates slowly opened.

But then, Lille, which is said to have had six thousand defenders, arrived outside Lille at dusk, and the king's party did not appear until it was completely dark, and of course no one would blame His Majesty, who would have been forgiving enough to say that the king had been forgiving and benevolent—that he could have waited in Tournai or in Art, until his generals and soldiers had taken Lille for him, and then he would have graced the city in a chariot or on a white steed, surrounded by obedient subjects.

There is also a little selfishness on the part of Viscount Tirenne and Captain Vauban - in any case, they have always been worried that the king intends to intervene in the war, after all, the king is also a young man, and any young man would want to be able to gallop across the battlefield and strategize...... Thankfully, Louis remained humble and cautious, and as a mascot of distinguished status, he was always willing to give consideration to the advice of Viscount Tyrrenne or Captain Vauban ...... "But what is this?" he asked, pointing to the platform on the sand table.

This sand table was about the size of a desk, perhaps the accompanying craftsmen had misunderstood what the king meant, and the models in the sand table were so elaborate that they looked like toys used by ladies to decorate their hair, and instead of dirt or sand, they were piled up with golden wheat, which was now divided into trenches - this Louis could understand, the question was what was the meaning of a flat platform behind the outermost trench (by the French position)? There was also a very small royal flag on it, "Does this represent me?"

"Yes," said Captain Vauban proudly, puffing out his chest, "Your Majesty, this is the stand I have built for you. ”

"The stands?" Louis could barely laugh, "this is not a show." ”

"Not really," said Viscount Tirrenne, "but your majesty, if you were watching, our soldiers would have been a hundred times more courageous." ”

Louis looked at them very carefully, to see if they had suddenly made a fool of themselves, or had been bribed to mock him and his soldiers, but he was saddened to find that the two men were serious, and they sincerely thought that the move was extremely wise.

"It's about 1,500 feet from the city walls. "They only have small cannons, they can't get here, and you don't have to worry about seeing a terrible sight – just how your soldiers fought bravely." ”

"I believe that there will be no cowardly villains among my soldiers," said Louis, "but are you sure? You asked the soldiers if they were willing? I mean, they paid with their blood and their lives, and I think we should have more respect for them." ”

"Isn't that the greatest respect?" said Viscount Tirrenne, "in fact, when Captain Vauban made this suggestion, I also hesitated, Your Majesty, your body is more expensive than ten thousand gold, and you should not appear on a dangerous battlefield, but......" He hesitated for a moment: "If I am not mistaken, the victory you need is beyond doubt." ”

Louis nodded slightly in affirmation, the Viscount of Tyrene was right, in this era, the king's martial arts are still ranked before the Bunji, a king who can achieve victory for the country will be worshiped and loved by his subjects, and vice versa, since he was in power, he has not increased taxes, has not set harsh punishments, and even deliberately introduced potatoes and sweet potatoes to improve people's livelihood, clean up bandits, expel aliens, rectify the chaos of the city and configure the water and water system, but people will only say that he is indeed a good king, but not as brave as his grandfather and father, because he has not yet won a victory for France or himself。

Louis drove the expedition to dispel this unfavorable rumor, and although he laughed at himself as a large symbol, like a metal coat of arms and a flag, there were times when he was tempted.

"If you think you can ......," Louis said tentatively.

"There is no doubt about it!" said Viscount Tyrenne.

So on the morning of the next day, the soldiers saw a huge tent set up on the outermost trench, on a flat platform, made of dyed white cowhide, which could hold a hundred people, and the side facing the battlefield was opened to the left and right, and in the center of the tent was a golden high-backed chair, covered with bright red velvet goose feather cushions, and in front of the chair there was a footrest of the same texture, behind the seat was a canopy, and the royal blue curtains fell from both sides, and in their expectation, a figure surrounded by people entered the tent。

Before Louis could sit down, he was taken aback by the sound of cheers like a landslide and tsunami, but when he heard the people shouting "Long live the King!" and "Long live France!" he was relieved, and instead of continuing to sit down, he boldly walked to the front of the tent, which overlooked the three trenches dug by Vauban, where the soldiers were busy or running, but now almost all stood still, towards the tent— Some of them couldn't see the king clearly at all, but they were constantly throwing their hats and shouting loudly.

Louis could scarcely contain his joy, he took off his hat and raised it high at the soldiers, who almost jumped for joy.

"Thanks to France," Louis finally returned to his tent with the comfort of the ministers, and the soldiers finally went on with their work under the orders of the officer: "Thanks to France, it has given me such a dear and respectable soldier," he sat down in his chair contentedly, with his hat on his knees, "and thank you too, for I might never have known that I was loved by so many people." ”

He looked at Vauban and said, "Tell our soldiers," he said, "that the king, in gratitude to his loyal friends, each soldier was given a large ecu." ”

A large eju was not enough for a musketeer, but for an ordinary soldier it was already a windfall, and the king was very generous when considering the considerable number of people.

"They'll be ecstatic. Viscount Tirrena said.

"I'm hoping they can relate to how I'm feeling right now. Louis said, and then his expression darkened slightly: "I just hope that these good lads will be lucky enough in the next battle." ”

"Yes," said Captain Vauban confidently, "St. Michael and St. Denis are bless us. ”

"You mean," said the Marquis de Loiss, who had been subtly quiet, "if I'm not mistaken, you're planning to keep the king on the battlefield?"

"Sir," Louis reassured when he heard his disapproval, "this is fifteen hundred feet from the real battlefield, and you should trust our generals and soldiers." ”

"But Your Majesty ......"

"You may not know," said Louis, "I have heard that my brother, the Duke of Orleans, was always the first to fight, and that the Prince of Condé often threw his marshal warrant into the enemy's trenches—which I have always envied......"

The Marquis de Lois, as well as some of the ministers who did not approve of it, immediately shut their mouths.