After careful preparations, Aiglon finally met secretly with Prince Alberto of the Savoy family in Paris.
After meeting Aigron, the prince seemed extremely excited, looking happy to "finally meet the son of his idol", and even looked like he wished he could become a brother of the opposite sex with Aigron.
However, both Prince Talleyrand, who was watching with cold eyes, and Aigron himself could sense that this was just a political performance by the other party.
Because the king is about to die and has no children, the prince is about to become the king of the Kingdom of Sardinia and the leader of the Savoy family. Therefore, when he considers the problem, he must also think about it from the perspective of the country and the family. If he is close to Aiglon, he must not It would be because of the so-called "feelings", but because he wanted something from the Emperor of France.
But even though he knew all this, Aigron put on a cheerful face and warmly received his "brother-in-law" who was more than ten years older than him. It didn't take long before the two of them deliberately encouraged each other. The relationship became as warm as old friends.
After chatting for a while, the prince saw that the time was ripe, so he took the initiative to ask Aigron a question.
"Your Majesty, I heard that after you came to power, you had already negotiated with the British, hoping that they could return the remains of Emperor Napoleon as soon as possible. Is this true?"
"It's true." Aigron nodded and confirmed, "And I also want to tell you good news. The Duke of Wellington and I have reached an agreement and have sent a delegation to greet the remains. In terms of time, they are already on their way back - which means that soon, the remains of the late emperor will be able to return to his loyal Paris."
"This is really excellent news!" The prince was overjoyed, and then tears suddenly filled his eyes. "Even though His Majesty has passed away for many years, I have never forgotten his voice and smile. Now I think back to the time when he and I I am still full of excitement during the conversation... Alas, it is a pity that I must return to China immediately after the visit to prepare for the throne, otherwise I must stay in Paris to witness with my own eyes the scene of His Majesty's soul returning to France!"
After finishing speaking, he sighed again, as if he was happy and sad at the same time.
Regardless of whether it was staged or not, people had assumed such a posture, and Aigron had to show his emotions and reasons.
"Your Highness, I am very grateful for your enthusiasm. However, as the heir to the throne, you should prioritize state affairs and not delay important events because of personal feelings. Therefore, I advise you not to delay and to return home as soon as possible to stabilize the situation." As Aiglon said, he looked at the other party very emotionally, "As for me personally, I am very grateful for your friendship to the late emperor and to our family. I will never forget this friendship. Don't worry, I will wait for you first." The emperor's remains were ceremoniously placed in the Invalides. I will have people paint the grand scene at that time, and then one of the paintings will be presented to you to congratulate you on your enthronement and to express the great friendship between our two families. Everlasting..."
"That's great!" The prince was overjoyed, and then held Aigron's hand tightly, "Your Majesty, I am waiting for this generous gift from you, and I will definitely regard it as my most precious treasure!"
The two people were close to each other half-heartedly, and they seemed to be very close to each other, but they also inadvertently revealed the gap between the status of the two people: the emperor of the French Empire always had a problem with the king of the Kingdom of Sardinia. This kind of high posture is regarded as a matter of course, and no one will feel that it is wrong.
After all, for a king, or for any feudal lord, what determines the difference in their status is not age or family history, but the strength they currently hold. Who has a larger territory, who has more bayonets, and whoever speaks more Whoever is brighter will have the advantage.
The reason why Prince Alberto behaved so kindly to His Majesty the young Emperor, almost to the point of flattery, naturally had his own motives.
Soon, seeing that the atmosphere was "in place", the prince began to carefully reveal his true purpose.
"Your Majesty, your early life experience was very rough, and I feel the same way, because I also suffered the pain of displacement when I was young... However, this pain has educated us and become the driving force for us to move forward. Now we are all Standing at the pinnacle of destiny, it’s time to show off your ambitions.”
"Yes, you are right." Aigron agreed quietly. "Now I am working hard to fulfill my promise and create a better future for my people."
"That's right! Our lives not only belong to ourselves, but also to the country and nation we serve." The prince nodded empathetically.
Then, he immediately sighed with regret, "At this point, I am far inferior to you. Although the nation you rule has suffered heavy losses before, it is still strong and unified, possesses unparalleled intelligence, and has created With countless wealth, what about my nation? It is torn apart, in endless chaos, and forced to groan in pain under the cruel oppression and exploitation of foreign rulers... When I think of this, my heart aches and I can't control myself."
What is your ethnicity? Your ancestors are not Italians, so why do you act so pitiful... Aigron chuckled in his heart.
However, Aiglon has nothing to complain about. His ancestors are not French, and the history of Corsica becoming a French territory is only sixty or seventy years ago... He didn't even grow up in France.
As long as he has a crown to wear, he is also willing to become the most loyal member of any nation.
"I also have deep sympathy for this." Aigron sighed, "In fact, the late Emperor was also full of affection for Italy. He personally brought the ideals of popular sovereignty and unity to Italy, and unified the divided countries. His contribution to Italy should not be forgotten, at least I will never forget his love for the Italian people."
Seeing Aigron pick up the conversation, the prince immediately became energetic.
"I will not forget it, at least I will never!" He assured Aiglon loudly, "In fact, I wholeheartedly follow His Majesty the Emperor. It is precisely because of his contribution to Italy that he defeated the people entrenched in this land. The foreign tyrants and hereditary tyrants implemented the concept of the "Kingdom of Italy" from the papers of dreamers into the real world. He allowed our entire nation to find light and hope in the midst of thousands of years of darkness! Although he unfortunately died due to a trick of fate Defeated, but the ideals he brought to us will last forever. We will not only welcome back his remains, but also inherit his legacy and bring his former ideals back to the world. And that day, we will surely It is a day that our nation will forever commemorate and celebrate..."
Although the prince spoke impassionedly and passionately, Aigron heard the naked cold reality from his "good words".
"We will not only welcome back his remains, but also inherit his legacy."
He didn't say "you" but "us".
In other words, he quietly placed himself alongside Aigron and secretly replaced himself as the manipulator of Italian national unity.
He kept recalling the emperor's ideals and career, but he deliberately did not mention it and pretended to have forgotten that Aiglon was the former heir of the Kingdom of Italy and the former king of Rome.
In other words, he does not recognize the Italian attributes that Aigron once had. In his opinion, only he can now become the leader of the cause of Italian unification.
Of course, Aigron himself also knew that the European powers would never accept him to personally pursue the great cause of unifying Italy. If he tried to do so forcefully, he would inevitably face another round of siege across Europe - and now he The strength in his hands cannot withstand an anti-French alliance in any case, so he will not have such unwise ideas, so he has never called out the so-called Italian problem since he came to power.
However, just because he ignores his Italian identity does not mean that he is willing to see others steal him.
The prince in front of him was very talkative, boasting about the so-called last wish of Napoleon, as if he was destined to complete the emperor's unfinished business, and this inevitably made Aigron feel disgusted in his heart.
What is your level and what qualifications do you have to inherit his career? Aiglon thought.
You obviously want to get help from me, but you still want to use me by playing the emotional card... Do you really think that I am young and easy to deceive?
In history, although the Savoy family received the "great favor" from the Bonaparte family in the Italian Unification War, it did not provide any substantial help to the Bonaparte family. Although it participated in the Croat War as an ally of France, The Lemean War did not play an important role (less than 20,000 horses were invested in total). Although there was a marriage with the Bonaparte family (Princess Clotilde was married to Napoleon III's cousin), It only provides so much "reward".
During the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, the Savoy royal family did not provide any help. Only the legendary hero Garibaldi participated in the French army as a volunteer.
Therefore, Aigron knew that it would be meaningless to invest too much resources or emotions in the Savoy family, and he would definitely get little in return.
The Savoy family will only make false use of themselves, but conversely, I will also only make false use of the Savoy family. Neither party owes the other.
Although he was well aware of the situation in his heart, in order to cater to the other party's emotions, Aigron still looked impassioned on the surface.
"You are right, Your Highness. To be honest, before I became emperor, I was already carefully considering how to inherit all the causes of the late emperor. I have never forgotten my feelings for the French people, and naturally I have never forgotten my feelings for the French people." I will forget my feelings for the Italian people; in this case, now that I have great power, I am very happy to contribute my strength to the national cause of the Italian people - of course, you also understand that now I am also facing I have too many concerns and it is impossible for me to stand up publicly and pursue this kind of career, so I can only find some like-minded friends and provide indirect help through them. I hope you can understand."
Aigron's words not only did not disappoint the prince, but played into the prince's hands.
His so-called "grand ambition" is precisely to use himself as the center and use Italian national sentiment to expand the power of the Savoy family. Therefore, he is very worried about Aiglon's personal fate and goes about it under the banner of Emperor Napoleon. , harming others and himself, of course he is happy to see Aigron rationally hiding behind the scenes and secretly helping the so-called Italian national cause.
To put it bluntly, his wishful thinking was that the Savoy family could act as the "agent" of the Bonaparte family, and then use the investment from the French to start their own business and expand their business step by step. The power eventually became the most powerful state in Italy, even dominating the entire Apennine Peninsula.
To do this, he had to play the emotional card to win over the young and energetic Emperor Napoleon II, and then direct his hatred towards the Habsburg family and let France and Austria fight each other. The relatively weak House of Savoy profited from this.
Judging from the current situation, the first step of his plan has been implemented quite smoothly.
In order to further arouse the hatred of the young emperor, he decided to add further fuel to the fire.
"Well, during these years of travel, I can personally feel that the times are progressing and changing almost with each passing day, but our poor Italy is still lethargic and at the mercy of others! Habsburg and Bourbon Two ancient zombies, uninvited outsiders, occupy the vast territory of Italy, steal Italy's wealth, and make the entire nation groan in pain and oppression... This situation should not continue, we should These two zombies will be wiped out and our great nation will be revived, and for this, I am willing to give everything I have."
After saying this, he looked at Aiglon with admiration, "Your Majesty, you did a great job in driving away Bourbon in France! If Bourbon is still in power, it will definitely help it in Italy." Comrade, you suppressed our great cause, and now that you have removed for us a damnable stumbling block, it is now up to us to finish our work.”
What the prince said is indeed correct.
After the Restoration, the French Bourbon royal family became the leader and big brother of each branch of the Bourbon family, and used France's military strength to help maintain the rule of other branch families. For example, in 1823, it sent troops to Spain to suppress the revolution. Maintained Spanish Bourbon rule.
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies is now also ruled by the Bourbon family. If Aigron does not come to power, the prince's so-called "national dream" will really be a castle in the air and cannot be discussed.
It was precisely because Aiglon drove away French Bourbon that the prince saw the coveted opportunity, so he came so quickly to please Aiglon.
Aigron just smiled humbly at the prince's compliment.
"This is all the credit of the people. I am just responding to the call of the people. The Bourbon family is at the end of its life and they should not stay here in the first place."
"Yes, it is not only exhausted in France, but also in Italy. We must also wipe them out and return them to the garbage heap of history." The prince nodded heavily, and then asked Aiglon, "So, What do you think of Austria?”
Come on, come on, it’s really started...
A backstabbing scene between two sons-in-law? Interesting, Aigron chuckled inwardly.
