If in another twenty years, the French royal family welcomes Chinese envoys, it is likely to use Chinese sedan chairs directly.

At that time, the royal families of various European countries were competing for the luxurious decoration of horse-drawn carriages.

Louis XIV took the lead and made a palanquin carved with gold, silver, and silk, which instantly compared to a bunch of carriages. Even, even the sedan chair bearer is wearing a Chinese costume, and every time he leaves the palace, he is called a puller.

"Charlie, you've been to China, and you've been with your guests." Mazarin commanded.

"Yes! Your Excellency, Prime Minister! ”

D'Artagnan happily accepted the order, and stepped forward with his guards to escort them with the Chinese guards, which immediately aroused the resentment of the other French guards.

Mazarin is a traitor that everyone shouts about, and d'Artagnan is Mazarin's lackey.

When Mazarin stepped down for the second time, d'Artagnan also lost office. Instead of leaving Mazarin, he became a retainer of Mazarin.

Now that Mazarin was back as prime minister, he overrode the crowd and appointed d'Artagnan as captain of the birdhouse.

Of course, friendship is friendship, and the money to buy an official is still available.

Mazarin was very generous and willing to give d'Artagnan a discount. Later, d'Artagnan sold the position of captain of the guard for 80,000 livres, and because he made a lot of net money from the discount, he pooled his money to buy the position of captain of the Guards infantry company.

"Dada-da-da!"

More than a dozen carriages marched slowly, with the guards in front of them and the Chinese guards and d'Artagnan on both sides.

The citizens of Paris stood on the side of the street and wanted to see the excitement, but they could not see the Chinese nobles in the carriages. They could only focus on the Chinese guards, and the peculiar guards helmets became the center of attention.

Mazarin and Zhang Ruifeng were in the same carriage, and an interpreter was sitting next to him: "Honorable Envoy, Queen Mother and His Majesty the King, I will receive you at the Louvre. A grand banquet will be held here, and hundreds of nobles have been waiting for a long time. If you like to hunt, you can go to Versailles on the outskirts, where there is the hunting palace of the former kings. ”

The Palace of Versailles, which had not yet been officially built, was only a wooden house in the forest, which was reserved for the French royal family to rest during hunting.

"It's all about work." Zhang Ruifeng smiled.

The Louvre is only a few hundred meters away from the Seine, and you can get off the boat in a blink of an eye.

Queen Anne stood at the front, leading 15-year-old Louis XIV. Hundreds of nobles gathered together to accompany the royal family to await the arrival of the Chinese mission.

The two failed rebellions of the Duke of Condé led to the complete loss of power of the local power faction in France. The lords of the provinces had moved to Paris, built a large number of villas on the outskirts, and taxes were paid on the lands for them to squander in the capital. This is similar to the Japanese shogunate, which also allows the lord to settle in the capital, preventing rebellion and strengthening the centralization of power.

The two sides introduced each other to the main figures, and Louis XIV's gaze kept circling the Chinese envoys.

The young king, feeling cheated. The style of clothes worn by the Chinese is different from that made by the French tailor, and he decided to let the tailor make a few new sets.

The gala dinner was scheduled for the next day, and the Chinese guests had to rest at the Louvre for a day after a tiring journey.

When the nobles dispersed, the court minister arranged for the Chinese envoys to stay. Not long after the break, Queen Mother Anne took her son and took the initiative to come to Lu Tianxiang, Zhang Ruifeng and others, and invited Chinese guests to visit the palace collections.

Queen Anne pointed to a box and said, "This is what I asked top French craftsmen to make, does China have such a technology?" ”

"Although exquisite, it is rarely seen in China." Lu Tianxiang replied with a smile.

It is a treasure chest made of gold filigree, with gold and silver filigree to outline the pattern, and then inlaid with gems and other ornaments. It is golden, rich and luxurious, but it is also very cheesy, densely packed with gold wires, and has the same aesthetic as Qianlong.

Hearing that it is rare in China, Queen Anne's vanity was satisfied, and she said to Lu Tianxiang: "If Her Royal Highness the Imperial Concubine likes it, when I return to China, I can give you a gold and silver filigree product." ”

"Thank you very much." Lu Tianxiang said along with the words.

After visiting the room, Queen Anne pointed to a wall: "This is a jade mosaic from Italy, which is now popular all over Europe." I've set up a mosaic studio, and it's not perfect, but in a few years, it's definitely going to be better than the Italian side. ”

"It's beautiful."

It was difficult for the Chinese envoys to complain, and they didn't know what the jade was made of. The flowers are green and colorful, and after being made into a mosaic, they are put together into intricate patterns on the wall.

What's so nice about this thing? It is also popular all over Europe.

Immediately afterwards, we visited the porcelain showroom.

Blue and white porcelain, imitation Ru porcelain, multicolored porcelain...... Densely packed, everywhere, there are even half-human-high porcelain vases.

Pan Wei came from a wealthy family and was accustomed to all kinds of porcelain. He couldn't help but bow his head and pout, because many of the collections here belong to the middle and low-end goods in China.

"Hey, what is this?"

Pan Wei walked to a porcelain plate, which was held by a wooden base inlaid with gold and silver.

Queen Anne said: "This is a Chinese porcelain plate collected by her deceased husband, and the purchase price at that time was 10,000 livres (1,040 taels of silver). ”

"Can I touch it?" Pan Wei asked.

"Absolutely." Queen Anne smiled.

Pan Wei carefully picked up the porcelain plate, and the more she looked at it, the more strange she felt.

The main pattern of the porcelain plate is a deer and crane pattern, and the background pattern also has a pine tree, which is indeed a Chinese theme.

But the deer, the crane, and the pine trees, how awkward to look. The pattern is divided into two layers, densely stuffed, there is not much white space at all, and Chinese will feel panicked when they see it.

Turning over and looking at the bottom of the plate, Pan Wei almost laughed out loud, there was the logo of Qumisha Studio.

During previous visits to Persia, the Chinese mission had seen this symbol, and many of the porcelain used by the Persian royal family came from this workshop.

Three words: knockoffs!

Persian porcelain craftsmen, in order to make money from Europeans. Therefore, Chinese elements such as deer, crane, and pine were used, and at the same time, they catered to the aesthetics of Europeans, and made the patterns complex and dense. Such a nondescript thing happened to be liked by the European aristocracy, who was willing to spend huge sums of money to buy it as a Chinese product.

Until now, the French royal family has been kept in the dark, thinking that this is a Chinese porcelain plate.

Pan Wei pointed to the logo of the Persian studio, squeezed his eyebrows at Cai Yuncheng, and said to the Queen Mother with a smile: "This kind of porcelain plate is extremely rare in China, and it is the first time I have encountered it. ”

Queen Anne was even happier and felt that her deceased husband had bought the right one.

Lu Tianxiang said: "This time I came to Europe, and His Majesty the Emperor of our country prepared five pieces of porcelain as a gift to the most friendly countries. Thanks to the hospitality of the Queen Mother and His Majesty the King, one of them is intended to be presented to France. ”

"That's great, please thank His Majesty the Emperor of China on your behalf." Queen Anne rejoiced.

The old lady couldn't wait, so Zhang Ruifeng asked the female official to bring the porcelain.

Louis XIV looked at the wooden box curiously, and the layers of packaging were unpacked, and it was a porcelain bowl.

Ru kilns have long been gone, but imitation Ru porcelain is blooming everywhere. In particular, Zhao Han lifted the ban, and the people could also buy it legally, and the imitation Ru porcelain technology became more and more exquisite.

The bowl in front of me is the best imitation Ru porcelain, which is also expensive in China, and it is impossible to export it overseas.

There is no pattern, it is pure azure, which is in response to Song Huizong's sentence "The rain is clear and the clouds are clear**".

Louis XIV was dumbfounded for a long time before he said, "I seem to see a clear sky after the rain." ”

Pan Wei flattered: "Your Majesty has good eyesight, this kind of porcelain is the clear sky after the rain." There was an artist emperor in ancient China, who saw the clear sky after the rain and felt that he wrote poems for the craftsmen to develop painstakingly, and finally there was this kind of Ru porcelain. ”

Queen Anne couldn't take her eyes off it, wondering how to return the salute.

Such a peerless thing, I'm afraid that tens of thousands of livres can't be bought, and the price unit should be calculated in 100,000. Lakh? Two hundred thousand? Three hundred thousand?

300,000 livres is 30,000 taels of silver!

But it's worth it, no matter how much money it is, it's a big deal to set up a few more official positions, and then let Prime Minister Mazarin sell officials.

The historical Louis XIV was a master of selling official positions, and took the initiative to set up countless messy official positions. 14,000 livres can buy the stewards of the capital, who are responsible for managing the timber handlers in the ports and squares of Paris; 9,000 livres can buy the steward of Rouen, who is responsible for the timber workers of Rouen; 400 livr can buy Rouen's pig tongue monitoring, which is to pry open the pig's mouth with a small stick and check the pig's tongue to determine whether it is diseased.

Now it is still the prime minister who helps sell officials and quietly shares the spoils with the queen mother.

When Louis XIV came to power, a special agency would be set up. Since buying and selling official positions is a legitimate business, the government has a reason to levy taxes, which range from 10 to 25 percent.

Investing in official positions, just like investing in real estate, can be inherited and transferred. Some popular official positions can not only make money, but even have room for appreciation, just pay taxes to the government when the official position is transferred.

There is also a tax to be collected for buying and selling official positions, and Emperor Han Ling has to call him an expert when he sees it!

After dinner, Queen Anne called the Prime Minister and asked, "What kind of gift should we give back when the Emperor of China has given him a work of art of extraordinary value?" ”

Mazarin replied, "You can't give back the gold directly, that would be too vulgar." Artisans must be summoned to create a unique work of art, and such a gift is a testament to French character. As...... It is better to choose two of the most powerful BMWs and build the most magnificent carriage. The ornaments of the carriage must be in the Chinese style, and they must be decorated with gold and inlaid with the rarest and most beautiful gems. ”

"It's a good idea, I'll leave it to you." Queen Anne said she had great trust in the Prime Minister.

The people thought that Mazarin was a traitor, but in the eyes of the queen mother, Mazarin was a great loyal minister. It can not only help her make money, but also cut off political enemies for her, and settle those local nobles who oppose the royal family.

As for the life and death of the common people, what does it matter to her French Queen Mother?

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