Sebastian's visit was unusually short, not because the king was unwilling to talk much with the young man he deared, but because Vauban was now burdened with heavy wounds—when he left Condé, he alarmed the Spaniards who had come to meet them, and one of the counts of the Prince of Condé insisted on the execution of the traitor, while the other count thought that he should be forgiven—and the young man was brave and fearless, and he could be said to have severely rebuked the Prince of Condé, since the Spaniards and the French were enemies at this time.

The last decision was made by Prince Condé, who released Sebatisian, saying that he did not want to see such a good young man die, and that he knew that there were many people in his army who were inclined to the king, but that he was willing to be lenient as long as they were willing to be loyal to him, but before Sebattisian left, the count, who insisted on executing him, offered to fight him in a duel, in which Sebastian was almost killed by a sword piercing his shoulder.

"Then how did you come to Versailles through fifty fats?" asked the king.

"Thanks to that venerable gentleman. Sebastian said that although he was wounded, his voice was still very loud, and he was more energetic than a healthy man, "He was my assistant, and after I fell, he faced two fierce enemies at the same time, and won, and then he had the doctor wrap my wounds and give me a horse," and bowed to the king, "and thank you for the Queen Mother's Cross that you erected along the way, as long as I rest below, no one will dare to steal or steal my horse, and even someone will give me a little to eat." ”

"Speaking of which, they're doing pretty well. The king said sharply.

"Yes," said Sebastian, "there are people in towns and villages, potatoes are grown in many places, even hills and swamps, Your Majesty. ”

"Well, can you make out a potato?"

"I'm sorry," said Sebastian, "Your Majesty, I am like an arrow, and though the Count gave me a bag full of Eju, I barely touched the money in it. ”

"It is not your fault," said the king, "that you have made the right decision, sir, and I am glad to see you, for your return will pleaseth me more than any legion, and tell me that you are willing to serve me." ”

"Of course, Your Majesty, there is no doubt about it. ”

"Then you are mine...... By the way, the last time you told me that you had come to Paris to take over the post of 'cavalry officer' from the Prince of Condé, I should have called you ......"

"His Royal Highness the Prince has given me the position of flag officer. Sebastian said that, although he felt at the time that this was not what Prince Condé had intended in the first place, perhaps from that time on, he did not like the young man whom he had once taken a fancy to, for the king was clearly much heavier in Sebastian's heart.

"Then we should call you a second lieutenant," the king called the name of the person who came intimately, "Sebastian, but I don't think such a position is appropriate for you, and I think you should be able to take on more responsibility," Louis paused, for he was busy with the matter: "I also have the position of acting captain of the Guards Company here, if you wish......"

"What an honor!" cried Sebastian, who sprang up from his chair and bowed deeply to the king, his eyes sparkling and his cheeks crimson, so unrecognizable that he had been dying when he first arrived at Versailles.

Even the king, who was amused by him, raised his hand lest his lieutenant faint from over-excitement, and told him mildly that he ought to go to rest sooner, and to listen to the doctor, for they were soon to depart for Paris, and although Versailles was close to Paris, it was not so close as to allow a seriously ill man to move around at will.

Sebastien Vauban immediately obeyed the king's orders, and it was completely unexpected that he was able to obtain this position - in any case, he was once in the army of the Prince of Condé, his soldier, and although he decided to return to the king's command, to be said to be suspicious, It was not impossible to interrogate or encounter something worse, he even considered that he might be disqualified as an officer, become a soldier or imprisoned, but he did not expect that he not only won the favor and trust of the king, but also became the acting captain of the Guards. In addition to being promoted from second lieutenant to captain, the captain of the Guards, even if he was originally from a humble background, could be acquiesced to be a count in the court after obtaining this position, and he could be called and call himself Mr. Count even if he was not officially canonized.

And as far as the king's attitude is concerned, as long as Sebastian doesn't make any stupid mistakes, it's only a matter of time before he gets a knighthood.

"That's right. Just as Sebastian was about to walk out of the room, the king asked, "Who is the man who insists on putting you to death?"

"It was the Count of Coliny who insisted on putting me to death. ”

"Ah," said the king, "I know the surname, and he has served three French kings (François I, Henry II, and Charles IX), so he is the Count of Collini, a Huguenot." ”

"Exactly. Sebastian said.

"And who is the one who insists on forgiving you?"

"He's the Earl of Boutwell. ”

"I also know this man," said the king, "and again the brother of the Prince of Condé (he was adopted by the mother of the Prince of Condé) and a friend of the Prince of Condé." ”

"A good man, Your Majesty, even if he didn't save me, I'll say so. ”

"I'll remember. Louis said that when Sébastien Vauban had left, he opened a small parchment book, which was only one palm square, flipped through the blank space, and wrote down two names.

———————

As the king said, they left five days later, and then the royal brother's "hanging trouser ceremony" was held in the Louvre, and Philippe was finally able to change into trousers, and then at the king's coming-of-age ceremony, he was allowed to hold the hem of the crown for the king, and to serve wine to the king at dinner. So everyone knows that the position of the first person next to the king, whether in terms of etiquette or the king's private feelings, belongs to His Royal Highness.

This situation may continue until the king marries, and of course, this is the main concern of Bishop Mazaran and Queen Mother Anne, and the king is ready, but he is really surprised that the first person is chosen.

"Queen of Sweden?" Louis shouted.

"Well," said Bishop Mazarin, "is there anything strange about that, and you should say 'king,' for she is enthroned in the name of king, not queen." ”

"It's not something we should be concerned about, Mr. Bishop, if I'm not mistaken, she was born in '26. ”

"Yes, Your Majesty, yes, you have a good memory. ”

"I'm 38 years old, Mr. Bishop, and she's twelve years older than me!"

"What a mature beauty!" said Bishop Mazaran skilfully, "like a bright red apple, overflowing with juice and fragrance." ”

"But it is impossible for a king to marry me. Louis said amusedly and angrily.

"You don't have to worry about this, in fact, most of Sweden is intent on her cousin Karl to succeed to the throne, and she will give up this heavy responsibility nobly and calmly before God takes away her power and duty to the kingdom. ”

"I remember she was a Protestant. ”

She was trying to convert to Catholicism, and the Jesuit priests had determined that she was sincere. ”

"I still think it's unlikely. Louie said.

"It doesn't matter," said Bishop Mazarin, "that we still have a lot of candidates. ”

——————

Leaving behind this ridiculous choice of queen, Louis began to get busy again after arriving in Paris and completing his coming-of-age ceremony and the royal brother's suspender ceremony, he was not yet able to access important government affairs, but there were some things that the Queen Mother Anne or Bishop Mazaran could not do for him, such as the trial and punishment of the judges of the High Court, Prince Conti, the Duke of Longuville, and the Duke of Gaston.

The king's first thing to do was to merge Pontoise with the two High Courts of Paris, and he was fed up with the fact that during the war the two opposing symbols of law and authority convicted each other in a way that children threw mud at each other, and then he disposed of a group of judges—those who were against the royal family, those who rebelled against the king, those who offered a bounty on the Bishop of Mazarin (yes, yes, during the war, the judges of the High Court took great pains to come up with a bounty notice worth a total of 150,000 livres, and posted it all over Paris— A bounty of 10,000 livres for cutting off the cardinal's nose, 5,000 livres for cutting off an ear, 30,000 livres for gouging out an eye, and the characteristics of a man - worth 50,000 livres), to tell the truth, not only did not serve to deter the enemy at all, but also made them the laughing stock of the common people, and the king felt that he might be able to endure cruelty and tolerate madness, but he could not accept stupidity alone.

As for the fourteen judges who had moved to Pontoise at the king's behest, each of them received an annuity of 10,000 livres, and a house near the High Court, which made them all the more grateful to the king, especially compared to their former colleagues who had been thrown into prison and would not have had a good result.

The Duke of Longueville died unfortunately or fortunately before the complete defeat of the Prince of Condé, and a monk performed a deathbed sacrament for him, and it is said that he repented of his actions at his last moments, and confessed his sins to the king and the queen mother, and the king forgave him, and as for the Duchess of Longueville, she was expelled from Paris, and she could not return to the court without the king's permission, which at this time could be said to be a rather severe punishment.

Gaston, Duke of Orleans, was exiled by the king to Blois, and his daughter, the Duchess of Montpensier, also received the same treatment as the Duchess of Longueville, that is, she was expelled from the court, even if she asked to see her several times, but the Queen Mother, who had been chilled, never wavered, and the king did not care, and later he heard that the Duchess of Montpensier went to Blois to ask for her father's forgiveness, but in the battle with the Prince of Condé, the betrayal of his daughter made the Duke of Gaston, who did not like this child very much, more determined his idea, and he could be called ruthlessly rejected the Duchess of Montpensier。

Eventually, Louis received the news that the Duchess had gone to Saint-Fagor in Burgundy, where there was a castle belonging to the Montpensier family, and that the Duchess had spent nearly 200,000 livres to renovate the castle, a figure that was so impressive that even the Bishop of Mazarin said that if she had not been so stupid at times, he might have brought about the king's marriage to her.

Louis:......

Sometimes he wondered what the bottom line was for Mr. Bishop...... Hell?