From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

"Huhu. Jeanne"

Inside the King's Suite

Louis XV lay on the royal bed listlessly, his eyes closed tightly, and his forehead wrinkled slightly unconsciously, as if he was experiencing an unprecedented nightmare in his sleep.

Even his mouth would occasionally let out a string of low sleepy babbles with the ups and downs of his breathing.

Although His Majesty the King was in much better condition than when he vomited blood just now, his pale face and weak breathing still made everyone present break into a cold sweat.

Even those courtiers who were not qualified to enter the king's suite were waiting outside the door. Many people prayed devoutly, hoping that the merciful God would call their monarch to heaven at a later date.

After all, almost no one in the entire Tuileries Palace is looking forward to His Majesty the King's early death, at least not at this time.

Crown Prince Louis sat on his knees beside the bed, with tears in his eyes. He had never seen this majestic and kind grandfather show such a weak side.

Since the death of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's father, the previous Crown Prince, five years ago, the old king has become the closest family member to Crown Prince Louis, and Louis XV has never been stingy in showing his love for his grandson.

At this moment, looking at his closest grandfather lying weakly on the bed, Prince Louis couldn't help but clenched his fists, turned his head and cried:

"Damn it! Where's the royal physician? Why hasn't Mr. Quesnay come yet?"

A courtier outside lowered his head tightly, carefully got into the room, and whispered:

"Your Highness, it seems that Mr. Quesnay is not in the palace. Moreover, due to the influence of the mob outside, Mr. Quesnay may not be able to return to the palace for a while."

François Quesnay, although historically known as a Physiocratic economist and admirer of Chinese Confucian culture, was also an outstanding medical scientist who cured the Dauphin in 1752. After suffering from acne, he gained the trust of Louis XV and has been serving as the chief physician to His Majesty the King.

Crown Prince Louis was obviously stunned. He knew very well that the only one with real talent among the palace doctors was Mr. Quesnay, and the rest were just quacks who only knew how to bleed blood and make spice soup.

However, the thousands of mobs outside have already surrounded the Tuileries Palace. Even if François Quesnay learns of the sudden change in the palace, he may not be able to pass through this area. A huge crowd of people entered the Tuileries Palace to treat Louis XV.

As for the other royal doctors, Prince Louis didn't even want them to step into the door of the king's suite. He just wanted those quack doctors to stay away with their bloodletting knives and spice soup.

Everyone's expressions were a bit more solemn than before, and they all knew that if the famous Mr. Quesnay was not in the palace, they would have no choice but to stand here helpless and let His Majesty the King follow his fate. .

"how come."

Crown Prince Louis stared blankly at his grandfather on the bed, tears quietly falling from the corners of his eyes. Even though he was the crown prince of France, the crown prince at this time only felt as helpless as falling into an abyss.

"Your Highness, please forgive me for being rude."

At this moment, Lawrence gently stepped forward and knelt down beside the bed with Prince Louis. While looking at the unconscious King, he said seriously:

"But please allow me to examine it for Your Majesty. I am also a scholar."

As soon as these words came out, everyone looked at Lawrence in surprise:

"Wait a minute. Monsignor Bonaparte is an academician of the French Academy of Sciences!"

"Oh yes, it is said that the entire Academy of Sciences committee is convinced by him. He must have something to do."

"Thank God, I really don't know what I would do without Monsieur Bonaparte!"

It was only then that they suddenly remembered that the identity of His Excellency Bonaparte was not only the Prime Minister of the Kingdom, but also a genuine academician of the French Academy of Sciences.

Although none of the ministers had heard of Lawrence's research in the field of medicine, in the academic world of the eighteenth century, the boundaries between various disciplines were very blurred. A doctor who was proficient in physics, and a doctor who was extremely knowledgeable in mathematics This is very common among painters.

Including Mr. Quesnay. Although he has been the chief physician to Louis XV, his most important identity is as one of the founders of the Physiocratic School of Economics.

Crown Prince Louis's eyes also flashed with surprise:

"By the way! Lawrence, you are also an academician of the Academy of Sciences. How could I forget this!"

However, Foreign Secretary Caesar Gabriel and Dean Edmund looked at each other with frowns. Dean Edmund gave Lawrence a secret wink and at the same time cautiously dissuaded:

"Your Excellency Bonaparte, perhaps it would be better to let the royal doctor come to diagnose and treat your Majesty."

Both Caesar Gabriel and Abbot Edmund knew that Louis XV's sudden illness was definitely not part of their and Laurence's plans.

In this case, the safest decision is undoubtedly to sit back and watch. If something really happens to His Majesty the King, just let those incompetent doctors bear the blame. There is no need to get angry.

Lawrence naturally received the hints from the two of them, but he just shook his head with a wry smile and said:

"I once treated gout for Lord William Pitt of England, and I have some attainments in medicine."

Although the current situation has deviated from his original plan, Lawrence does not intend to stand aside silently and leave everything to fate.

Of course, if you ask yourself, Lawrence is not sure that he can cure Louis XV's illness. After all, he did not graduate from medical school in his previous life. The last time he was able to treat William Pitt's gout, he was just able to prescribe the right medicine.

But despite this, Lawrence still decided to take the initiative to check Louis XV's symptoms. Only in this way could he obtain enough information to judge the current situation and take control of the discourse initiative in the entire king's suite.

Seeing that Lawrence had said this, Caesar Gabriel and Dean Edmund did not dissuade him any more. They could only sigh slightly and look at Louis XV on the bed worriedly.

"I believe you, Lawrence."

Crown Prince Louis nodded firmly to Lawrence, indicating that he agreed with Lawrence to examine his grandfather's body.

The courtiers in the king's suite also looked at each other understandingly, and then quietly left the suite, leaving only Lawrence and Crown Prince Louis to accompany Louis XV in the suite.

They didn't want to, and they absolutely couldn't, see His Majesty the Holy King unconscious on the bed and being manipulated.

After everyone left, Lawrence took a deep breath, gently stood up and lifted up the silk quilt on Louis XV, and then carefully took off the jumpsuit on Louis XV's lower body.

"Ugh! This is...?!"

The moment Lawrence took off his trousers, an extremely unpleasant rancid smell quickly spread from Louis XV's body like an explosion.

Even the pungent perfume smell of His Majesty the King could not cover up the stench like corpse stench at all.

Crown Prince Louis covered his mouth and nose tightly, suppressing the churning in his stomach, and looked intently at His Majesty the King's thighs.

And when Prince Louis saw the scene in his eyes clearly, an uncontrollable feeling of vomiting suddenly surged up in his throat:

I saw that the two bloated and fat thighs were actually covered with fungal rashes.

The dense lumps were crawling all over the inner thighs. Many of the lumps had ulcerated into a disgusting yellow-brown color. Some of the lumps were even opening and closing with pus oozing out as Louis XV breathed. liquid.

"vomit!"

Crown Prince Louis didn't even have time to take out his handkerchief, and he retched violently. Fortunately, he hadn't eaten yet this morning.

Looking at the horrifying sight in front of him, Lawrence couldn't help but frown. He continued to unbutton Louis XV's shirt and found a few scattered rashes on His Majesty's chest, but they were not as good as those on the thighs. Just bad.

Afterwards, Lawrence quickly checked the skin of Louis XV's body and found some scattered lumps and pus on his head, back and other parts.

Faced with this very identifiable symptom, Lawrence almost instantly found the matching disease name in his mind - syphilis.

"The systemic rash has signs of fever on the head. Combined with his licentious style, it is basically unmistakable. This should be the second stage, no, even the third stage of syphilis. It is most likely that he contracted it from Madame Du Barry. I guess, but it could also be her previous mistress."

Lawrence quickly came to a conclusion silently in his mind, then looked at the unconscious His Majesty the King and murmured softly:

"The reason for the sudden coma is that on the one hand, the blow was too severe, and on the other hand, the nervous system may have been damaged by the syphilis virus."

Then, Lawrence looked at Prince Louis, who still hadn't come back to his senses, and sighed slightly:

"Your Highness, there is good news, and there is bad news."

"What's the bad news?" Prince Louis was startled and quickly suppressed the nausea in his stomach and asked.

"I can confirm that Your Majesty is suffering from a very difficult disease called lily disease."

Lawrence said as cryptically as possible:

"Furthermore, these problems on His Majesty's skin are not the most important thing. What is most worrying is that the various organs in His Majesty's body may have been damaged."

The development of syphilis can be divided into three stages. The symptoms of the first stage are mainly reflected in the rash in the private parts. If left unchecked and develop to the second stage, it will cause systemic rash and damage to the skin, mucous membranes and some joints.

As for something as serious as Louis XV, there is a high probability that it has reached the final stage:

The virus will further damage the skin and mucous membranes, cause joint nodules, and at the same time damage the cardiovascular and nervous systems, causing a series of hopeless brain diseases such as meningitis and increased intracranial pressure.

Lawrence could basically guess that when Louis XV found out that he was suffering from the disease, he must not have mentioned it to any imperial doctor for the sake of dignity and face. After all, a king of a big country actually contracted the disease. Such a thing If word spread, it would definitely be a great shame for France.

This has also led to his condition continuing to develop to the present point. If treatment and intervention are carried out at an early stage, syphilis will rarely progress to the third or even the second stage.

However, at this point, Lawrence had no good solution for Louis XV's condition.

The old king was already over sixty years old. Under the erosion of late-stage syphilis, his life was like a candle in the wind and could not last more than a few years.

Historically, Louis XV died of smallpox three years later in 1774, but judging from his current physical condition, even if the old king had not been infected with the deadly smallpox virus, he would have died at about the same time, or even Passed away suddenly earlier.

"In other words, the time left for me is almost only three years, or even shorter."

Lawrence dressed Louis XV thoughtfully, and at the same time mentally sentenced the king to death in advance.

Prince Louis stared at his grandfather on the bed with wide eyes, as if he had not fully understood Lawrence's words. It was not until a long time later that he said in a daze:

"Lawrence, you mean, grandfather."

Lawrence sighed sympathetically, shook his head and said:

"I understand your pain, Your Highness, but my duties and mission require me to be sincere to you, Your Majesty. He will soon accept the call of God, maybe in two or three years, and if I'm lucky, it will be longer. But the disease has reached this point where there is no cure.”

"This, this, two or three years?!"

Crown Prince Louis was already panicked and kept saying at a loss:

"Isn't there any way? Mr. Quesnay may have some ideas. Let him see it."

Lawrence shook his head silently. Louis XV was already old, and the virus had already reached its terminal stage. This situation would still be a very difficult case even in hospitals in later generations, let alone in the eighteenth century.

Even a medical scientist like François Quesnay who was at the forefront of the times would feel helpless in the face of this disease.

Seeing Lawrence rejecting all possibilities without hesitation, Prince Louis realized something. He sat down on the ground and stared blankly at his grandfather on the bed.

After a long time, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince suddenly asked:

"Lawrence, what's the good news you just said?"

"Your Majesty's coma this time is not fatal. If nothing else happens, your Majesty will wake up in a while."

Lawrence explained in a deep voice:

"Since the disease has affected His Majesty's nervous system, I mean His Majesty's brain, I guess that such syncope and coma will become more and more common, and the harm to His Majesty will become more and more serious, until one day."

"One day."

Prince Louis repeated this word that made him feel extremely heavy. He knew what Lawrence meant. One day in two or three years, his loving grandfather would close his eyes forever in a coma like he did today.

Thinking of this, the corners of Prince Louis' eyes couldn't help but become moist again. He stared at Louis XV on the bed with a hazy vision. Every second he spent with his grandfather seemed to become luxurious.

Lawrence also sighed slightly emotionally. In any case, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is still just a kind-hearted sixteen-year-old boy.

The two of them looked at Louis XV quietly on the bed, as if they were waiting silently for His Majesty the King to wake up, or simply killing time.

And just when the time in the king's suite was about to freeze, a loud noise suddenly came from outside the door:

"Get out of the way! Don't stop me. I have an emergency and I need to report it to Your Majesty immediately!"

"Wait outside the door first, Colonel! You can't go in yet!"

"Damn it, there's no time to lose!"

Before Prince Louis could react, the door to the king's suite was slammed open.

The person who rushed into the suite was a colonel. Judging from his plate armor and red tassel helmet, there was no doubt that he belonged to the Swiss Guard.

Lawrence had quick eyesight and quick hands. He immediately stood up and stood in front of the officer, preventing him from seeing His Majesty the King on the sickbed. He shouted sternly:

"Step back, don't be rude in front of His Majesty!"

In the current situation, no more people can know about Louis XV's coma.

The officer was also well aware of his rudeness, so as soon as he broke into the king's suite, he immediately knelt down on one knee, lowered his head tightly, and did not dare to face Prince Louis and His Majesty the King directly. He just shouted at the top of his voice:

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty! The mob outside the palace has begun to attack our defense line! If we don't take the initiative to suppress it, the Swiss Guards can resist for up to ten minutes. Please give the order, Your Majesty!"