I Am Louis XIV

   Chapter 279 The King's Parent-Child Time (5)

  The sun was shining, the water was blue, and seabirds with red bills and white feathers swept over the towering masts of ships.

  Here is Nantes, the name is memorable, because Louis XIV's grandfather Henry III signed the famous Edict of Nantes at the Nantes Cathedral here, but it was called the Edict of Peace at that time.

At that time there were still many Huguenots in the city, but now they have migrated more to Nimes, Montauban and La Rochelle, and they will be gathered in Orleans in the future, of course, this makes France The Huguenots are fearful and miserable, partly because they will be forced to abandon their homeland, partly because they fear a repeat of the massacre of St. Bartholomew, but allow them to continue living in France Going down is the greatest manifestation of the king's kindness - although the Huguenots have suffered for hundreds of years, the crimes they have committed against the Bourbon royal family cannot be forgiven by any ruler. Do what Louis XIV asked for, and maybe there is a chance to breathe, if not... The Catholics gathered around the Huguenots are like firewood, and they will burn violently with a little provocation. .

Louis XIV did not want these black sheep with horns on their heads. The main reason was that unless he had to, he did not want to ignite the flames of religious wars in his own country. The victory of religious wars was of no use to him, but it was very beneficial to Rome. The power of the church has expanded, and now the relationship between France and the Roman church is… really bad.

Now there are very few Huguenots in Nantes, but it is not impossible. First of all, there is one, only one in the king's shipyard. After all, no disobedient people are allowed in such a sensitive place. Here, it must be because he is indispensable.

   "When Dennis Papin comes to meet him," Louis said while tidying up his sleeves for the eldest princess, "You must remember not to use the name Huguenot."

   "Why?" asked the eldest princess, since there would be no Huguenots in the French court, of course she did not understand. "Because the name Huguenot means contempt," Louis explained patiently, reading the word first in French and then again in Swiss German: "It means oath to join the Union, Then it gradually evolved into the meaning of outsiders and rebels, and in the period of François II, there was a dangerous rebel named Zangsong Hugue. Catholics intentionally linked this name with Huguenot. , intentionally making this title filthy."

"Let's put it this way," said the Duke of Orleans bluntly, "you call a Huguenot a Huguenot, and it's like shouting, 'Hey! There's a gang thief here, a foreign spy, A homeless wandering in the streets, a scumbag... wait, that's about it."

The king glared at him, he just didn't want to say these foul words to the children - forget it, he turned to the eldest princess: "In short, when facing a Huguenot, if you want to mention his faith, just call him Protestants will do."

The child said well in a neat and tidy manner, while the little Duke of Enghien tapped the plate with a spoon. At Versailles, there would be a ceremonial officer to remind him, but here, only the king, his brother and their children, from Bontang down, the maids. He and his attendants listened and turned a blind eye. The king only wore loose shirts and tights. The Duke of Orleans put his arms on the back of the chair. A rare, relaxed and comfortable atmosphere lingered in this Roman-style restaurant. , people can't bear to break it.

Some people may still remember that since the help of wizards, the ambitious Louis XIV began to put the improvement and use of the steam engine on the agenda - in fact, the original steam engine can be traced back to the first century AD, the ancient Greek scholar Hirohi Luo connects a closed pot and a metal ball with two hollow tubes. When the water in the pot boils after heating, the steam overflows from both sides of the metal ball and pushes the ball to rotate. This kind of thing is in the It was regarded as a toy then and a thousand years later, and in the Renaissance it was reproduced and dedicated to the dignitaries to play - Louis's toy room had this, but it was Leonardo Da Vinci's share that caught the king's attention Manuscript, on which the pioneering artist and scientist scientist designed a steam cannon…

Steam cannons are impossible, but steam-driven machinery is possible. Louis' spies searched around, looking for scientists who might have talent and interest in this area. What Louis didn't expect was that this scholar was actually right in front of him. Blois found him, and he wasn't a scientist or a mathematician, but a doctor, and he was packing up to run from France to England or Holland when the spies found him with the manuscript. -Because unfortunately he was a Huguenot and had a keen sense of smell, he said in his diary: "Since this king (referring to Louis XIV) allowed only one voice in the court and in the army, he probably did not Will allow two voices in the church."

Fortunately, the spy was bold and careful, he knocked the Huguenot unconscious, emptied his suitcase for his clothes, put him in, and then rented a carriage as a traveler and delivered him overnight. Paris (the King was still in the Louvre at the time), after making sure that the gentleman had a brilliant idea in steam engines and had already made a crude model, the king sent him to Puteau with wizards and craftsmen island.

Puteau Island is located on the Seine River, behind the Boulogne Woods, is a long and narrow Hanoi Island. The strange noise and smoke of the steam engine can be covered by the Boulogne Woods. Because of the particularity of the Boulogne Woods, there are often carriages. What a strange thing - but to study a steam engine of course it can be on this small island, really put it to the test must be in a huge lake or even a bay.

There are not many choices in front of Louis. Originally, the closest to Paris is the Seine Bay, which is the mouth of the Seine River, but it is only separated from the United Kingdom by the English Channel, and it is difficult to hide the movement inside from the eyes of the British. , so we can only change the location, that is, the south side of Brittany, the Bay of Biscay in the Atlantic Ocean. The bad part of the Bay of Biscay is that it is also occupied by Spain, so Louis moved the location up and finally landed. in Nantes.

Nantes is an ancient and huge city, the best of which is that it has three rivers, the Loire, the Sèvres and the Eder, where the rivers meet, about twelve leagues from the mouth of the sea, the widest part of the river. About one hundred and fifty feet, and there are many ribbon lakes, shipbuilding here is not a whim of Louis.

After nearly ten years of construction, the port and shipyard of Saint-Nazaire in this small town at the mouth of the Loire River has reached a certain scale, but because this port is for military use and does not allow merchant ships to dock, so It is not as prosperous and lively as other ports. On the contrary, there are far more animals visiting here than humans, because whether it is the workers of the shipyard, the soldiers on the ship, or the residents of the small town, they all live a prosperous life under the generosity of the king. In these days, they do not need hunting and fishing to survive, but many scraps discarded at fixed times become delicacies for seabirds and fish.

But this is destined to be a special audience. First of all, the king is not indoors, but receives Mr. Papin in a Roman-style open dining room, and this Mr. Papin did not present the king with jewelry. , did not offer weapons to the king, he... brought a pot...

Although the king, his younger brother, and the children were indeed dining, the pot was indeed beyond everyone's expectations. It was so big that it could fit half of the little Duke of Angie, the little Duke of Angie opened his mouth wide and was stunned. Looking at the gorgeously dressed Mr. Papin as if he was holding a plate of precious and fragile glassware, he covered this tightly, and he couldn't see any pots inside, about ten feet away from them. place to put it.

After putting the pot away, Mr. Papin took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat on his forehead. He took a pair of tongs from the servant and slowly unscrewed a **** on the lid of the pot. The steam rushed into the air. It was small and slender before. After a few seconds, it expanded with a sharp whistling sound, throwing a mist on the faces of the people around. murmured. It was really fragrant, and it was the smell of sea fish and shells, and they were right, because after the steam gradually dissipated,

  Mr. Papan opened the lid of the pot, and a stronger aroma came out. He brought a plate larger than the pot and began to scoop fish, meat and shells into it.

Because they were all cut into pieces, they couldn't tell what kind of fish they were for a while, but they could eat flounder, cod, sole, and a huge moray eel, mutton and beef, and the shells were The oysters that people are familiar with, these may also be eaten in Versailles, but no matter how they are kept fresh with ice cubes, they can't compare with the fresh ones that were still alive a few hours ago, and they don't know how long they have been stewed, whether it is fish or meat. Lamb, melts in your mouth.

  Looking at the children eating happily, Louis couldn't help but smile: "Sir," he said, "I didn't even know that you became a cook after you became a doctor, an inventor and a craftsman."

   "It's just a small gift," Mr. Papin wiped his face again, "but no one can better understand the idea and function of steam than this."

"It's up to you to explain it," Louis realized that it was because he had brought the children that Mr. Papin had attracted the interest of these little nobles in such a pre-emptive way—a trick still in the king's hands. Within the tolerance, Mr. Papin is indeed a talented person. After the Dauphin and the Princess enjoyed the perfect taste, he lifted the lid of the pot and showed them the rubber sealing ring, the exhaust valve and the most important safety valve inside.

   "Why do you say this is the most important?" asked the crown prince.

"Because the power of steam is no less than gunpowder." Mr. Papin said, and then he deliberately created a small accident, or the sealed pot, after estimating that the pressure inside should have reached a reading, Mr. Papin The gentleman threw it directly off the cliff, and when it touched the ground, an explosion occurred, and the servants retrieved the twisted metal pan and the smashed stone.

The eldest princess let out an exclamation. Papan did not noticeably look at these young visitors, and was disappointed to find that whether it was the crown prince, the grand princess, or the Duke of Colonna who was accompanying him as a courtier, The eldest son of the Count of Soissons did not show any signs of flinching, but showed a look of eagerness to try. He heard that the king kept several of his children by his side, instead of simply throwing them to the queen or theirs. Mother, it seems this is true.

As a Huguenot, Papin certainly does not want to see a strong and decisive king, but he is destined to regret that even if something happens to Louis XIV, his children will carry out his will to the end. Finally - Papin hid his thoughts and introduced these distinguished guests into the shipyard. According to the king's intention, he intentionally used the kinetic energy generated by the steam directly on the warship, but after the steam machinery was manufactured, it was It was first used for armor, rams and other metal fixtures required for warships.

In the deafening sound of the crash, in the rising smell of soot and the gray-white steam, the armor plates that bulge slightly downwards are rapidly formed between the heavy and huge upper and lower molds—stamping and forging The method has been around for a long time, but at that time craftsmen used livestock and water power to build armor for the gentlemen. The thickness and width of the armor could not be compared with the armor plate of the warship. The striker, which is the hole for the riveting of the armor plate.

The Marquis de Seneret held up an armour plate to show the king, he was about the same height as the king, so he bent his knees a little so the king didn't have to look up - the head of Saint-Nazaire was indeed like his father Colbert is so cautious and subtle, and understanding.

  The king reached out and touched the armor plate in the shape of fish scales, and then it would also cover the sides of the warship like scales to fight the increasingly powerful and dangerous artillery. Then he also let the children touch, and the personal experience is always deeper than hearsay, the children's eyes are shining, especially the little Eugen.

In addition to the steam punching machine, there are also steam boring machines, grinders and punching machines, drilling machines, etc. Other ordinary people may not be able to understand them, but the gun barrels drilled from the boring machine can be understood even by the master of the county. He couldn't help but stretch out his hand, and the next moment he was scalded... "That's good," he looked around, as if he had come to a paradise that only belonged to him, but also as if he was drunk and fainted. : "How many cannons will there be here, Your Majesty."

   "Cannons are not made here." Louis said kindly: "At least it's more than that."

They walked along the dark corridor, flanked by thick rails and machines on both sides, and the trolleys loaded with parts and ingredients parked in place - if it was normal, they would run around happily under the push of workers, Now they were all sitting there quietly, as if curtsying to the king.

After passing through the corridor, the strong sea breeze blows, and the scorching light stands side by side with the deep shadows. It will take a while for the children to realize that a huge ship is standing in front of them. .

   It was so huge that it took away half a day.

   (end of this chapter)