The Prince of Condé soon learned of the news that the Duchess of Montpensier was under house arrest in his room, and he did not care at all, the relationship between the Grand Princesse and him could only be said to be a mutual exploitation, or rather, because of the weakness of women themselves, the Duchess of Montpensier may indeed have real feelings for him, but for any man with status and moral requirements, it is a repugnable thing to really have something to do with a lady who has not yet entered into marriage, and if he is not married, he can also use marriage to cover up the prevarication, but the Prince of Condé married very early, although he did not like his wife at all, the niece of Cardinal Richelieu。

Clara Collements, the poor woman, was only thirteen years old when she married the Prince of Condé, and now she has bore him a son, seven years old, but this son unfortunately inherited her short stature and hunchback, which made the Prince of Condé go from ignoring her to hating her, and on the contrary, her love for the Prince of Condé was even stronger and deeper, and the inheritance she inherited from the Bishop of Richelieu, both money and connections, was spent on the Prince of Condé, and she also inherited another inheritance from the Prince of Condé, that is, a poisonous heart and a keen insight.

Today's face of the Prince of Condé was clouded, and both the prince's mother (whom was respectfully called the old lady) and his brother-in-law, the Duke of Longueville, believed that it was because of the assassination, and that the prince and the two dukes were safe, and that one of his favorite servants, and the most loyal, had died because he had to run to the king's party for help, and several other reliable servants, who had followed him here from the battles with the Spaniards.

"Your Highness," said Madame Prince Clara, referring to her husband, and sometimes sir, for he never wanted to be too intimate with her in any public or private setting, "Are you worried about the wives and children of those who are faithful?"

"I'm relieved to leave this matter to you. Prince Condé said: "This is not what worries me. ”

"If it were not for the sake of the dead," said Madame Prince, "then for the sake of the living, then I will tell you that I have arranged for the two officers you have brought with me, and that they will stay in the nearest inn, and that my servants will give them a great eju every day to prepare a meal for them, and each of them will be rewarded with twenty gold louis, for which they are indebtedly in your name. ”

At last the face of the Prince of Condé, which seemed to be covered with heavy clouds, showed a bright smile: "Oh," he said, "my lady, this is much more than the king promised, and he gave them only five louis each." ”

"It is as it should be," said Madame the Prince, "that they are not the king's officers, but yours, and it is only when I see the light chestnut straps that I decide to give them so much, otherwise I would rather them go and ask the king for a reward." ”

"This is not an option, ma'am," said the Prince of Condé, "whatever the color of their shoulder straps, they are brave men, and have saved my life, and twenty gold louis is not much." ”

"I think loyalty is more valuable than courage," said Madame Prince, "and you may choose a brave man out of a hundred, but not a loyal man out of ten thousand." ”

Then she saw her husband's face darken again: "Yes," murmured the prince, "you are right, ma'am, loyalty is a more precious quality than bravery, and it is rarer. ”

Madame Prince observed her husband's expression: "You look haggard, Your Highness, but I am sure that a little fight on the streets of Turbigg will not shake you, and if you have any troubles, please tell me, and I may not have anything to help you, but you can confide in me, even the most terrible things, and I can swear by the cross that I will keep my mouth shut." ”

"Alas," said the Prince, "is it not the matter of the two officers?"

"Aren't they your officers, aren't they loyal to you?"

"Here is the problem," said the Prince, "you see, my lady, one of them was one whom I had ordered him to come to Paris, because he had designed good fortifications in the offensive and defensive battles of Lorraine, and had distinguished himself in the war in the Champagne region, so I decided to reward him with my own hands, and confer on him the status of a full officer." ”

"That's a good thing. ”

But as soon as the king summoned him, he ran to the king and obeyed his command. "Though he was willing to do so," said the Prince, "there may have been a partly reason for me—that he and his friends had led the king and his musketeers through paths known only to them, and found us at once, and together with me had struck down three Assassins." ”

"yes. To the Prince's surprise, his wife was calm: "He is still willing to be loyal to you." ”

"That's right. ”

"But in his heart, the king's weight is greater than yours. ”

"Obviously. ”

"That's it," said Madame Prince, "that's the point, Your Highness, do you think your strength will be inferior to that of His Majesty the King at this time?"

"How is this possible?"

"And what about his exploits on the battlefield, can he compare with you?"

"No, he's still a kid. ”

"And in the study and conference hall, does he perform better than you?"

"Of course not," said the Prince, "he has not yet been allowed to engage in government affairs. He glanced at his wife, "What do you want to say, ma'am?"

"Don't you understand," said Madame the Prince, smiling, "Your Highness, I mean, the only thing you lack compared to His Majesty the King is a name." ”

This made the Prince of Condé jump up from his chair, and he glared at his wife as if she had suddenly stripped off her human skin, and appeared before him the true face of the devil: "What are you talking about!" he cried out, "Tell me, you don't know what you are talking about!"

"Quite the opposite. "I know very well what I am saying, and so are you, Your Highness, and you are just blinded by the so-called loyalty, like that young officer, don't you see?" The people of Paris now, and of France as a whole, are more willing to submit to your will than to submit to the robe of a priest and the skirt of a foreign woman, as I have seen from the day you entered Paris, if not, you have made our King with eight hundred soldiers, nay, even eight thousand soldiers against a hundred thousand mobs, and he be able to triumph as easily as you do?

Your Highness, if he could do it, he would not have been driven out by the people of Paris then!"

"O God!" exclaimed the Prince of Condé, "you are inciting me to do a sinful thing! Like Lady Macbeth, you are manipulating your husband to snatch what is not his!"

"Big mistake," said Madame Prince, standing in front of the fireplace, the red flames in the background, and her face almost completely immersed in a thick shadow, "Macbeth is only a minister, and your ancestors were the supposed heirs to the throne until 1601, and your grandfather, your father and you, have always been the chief prince of the royal family, and you have never been one step away from the throne......"

"A step that can never be taken. Prince Condé said, "I will never be a despicable rebel." ”

"Then it will happen again and again, and in three places," said the Prince's wife, who said from the darkness: "He will take everything from you, Your Highness, he is the king." She took a step forward, but the prince took a step back and fell into his chair: "Although you can now defy the bishop, mock the queen mother, and ignore the king, it is because this lion is still very young, but one day it will grow into a behemoth, and then you will be the one who needs to plead with him for a little mercy." ”