Chapter 632 Hugo Is Here

Hugo's father was a general under Napoleon who was good at fighting, and his mother was the eldest daughter of an ancient aristocratic family. Their union should have been a typical fairy tale of a prince and a princess before, and later it was a sweet love story of a domineering president and a beautiful, rich woman.

However, their union occurred during the special period of the French Revolution, when a republican general and a traditional aristocrat had a fierce collision.

"The Republic is the future of France!"

"The Bourbon dynasty is the orthodoxy of France!"

"You are feudal and backward!"

"You are barbaric and cruel!"

"You are ignorant!"

"You are ridiculous!"

(Barbaric and cruel refers to the extreme rule of the Jacobins, and ridiculous refers to Napoleon's restoration of the monarchy.)

In the end, Hugo's parents chose to go their separate ways, and then he became a royalist under the guidance of his mother. As soon as the Bourbon dynasty was restored, Hugo published many articles praising the monarchy.

In the eyes of the Bourbon royal family, who had no relatives, Hugo was simply the light of France, and he was immediately named a "child prodigy" at such a young age.

However, as he grew older, Hugo began to lean towards liberalism. In the July Revolution of 1830, he enthusiastically praised the revolutionaries and hoped to establish a republic.

This was simply treasonous in the eyes of Louis Philippe of the Orleans Dynasty, so he tried to marginalize him.

Later, Hugo wrote "Notre Dame de Paris" to satirize the church and feudal monarchy. He was thrown into Arkham Prison by the angry church and king, and became a cellmate of Louis Bonaparte for a time.

(This period of history did not exist, but history changed. As France took Texas and suppressed the uprising in Lyon, Louis Philippe once became confident.)

However, Hugo was of noble origin after all, and had an amazing talent in literature. So Louis Philippe turned to a policy of wooing.

First, Hugo became a member of the French Academy of Sciences, and then he was made a hereditary nobleman. Not long ago, he became a member of the House of Lords.

Louis Philippe was very willing to portray himself as a people-friendly king, so he chose to talk to the young man who had once ridiculed him like an old friend.

Paris, France.

In the Tuileries Palace, Louis Philippe took Hugo's arm and led him into the front hall to formally introduce this genius at the king's ball.

Everyone in the audience knew that this was Louis Philippe's way of winning people's hearts, but no one exposed it.

But for Victor Hugo, who had been influenced by the royal party since childhood, at that moment he really hoped that Louis Philippe could restore the glory of France as he said.

In the following social time, Louis Philippe told the Orleans faction about his ideas:

"I think it is a mistake to occupy Tahiti. I thought the people would support it, but in fact no one cares about this.

People only care about what to eat at night and the price of potatoes. What's the use of a deserted place far away from the horizon for France? Maybe it's time to make a break"

This naturally won applause from the Orleans faction. These bankers and businessmen have long had opinions on this kind of negative-yield territory.

If possible, they really hope that Louis Philippe can also give up Central America. After all, the long-term guerrilla war in El Salvador is constantly depleting France's national strength.

At this time, the war in Algeria and Morocco is also a meaningless waste for them. They should fully develop the North American colonies and turn them into excellent lands like Texas and Serenbo.

However, any Frenchman with a little dream would not choose to do this. Hugo did not applaud but stood up and said.

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. Isn't it our duty as French people to spread the light of French civilization to the world?"

Hugo's words made Louis Philippe very embarrassed, but fortunately, someone immediately stood up to refute the former.

"Mr. Hugo! What's the use of an island country that is like a smudge to the great France?"

"Dear Mr. Clarence, people also said this about Venice before the seventh century AD, the Netherlands in the sixteenth century, and England in the eighteenth century."

Clarence: "So what?"

Hugo: "It is never ignorance that hinders the progress of France, but arrogance!"

Hugo, who was thrown out of the Tuileries Palace, felt that he was not wrong, so he planned to go to the most conservative, feudal, and backward country in the world to take a look.

After a two-month journey by carriage, Hugo finally arrived at the place where Napoleon's dream began-Toulon Port.

The moment he stepped on the clipper, he felt like flying, and the whirring wind reflected the speed of France.

"How wonderful! How great it would be if France had such a fast ship during the Battle of Trafalgar!"

The sailor on the side couldn't help but interrupt.

"Mr. Hugo, this ship can't fight."

"What? Why?"

"Everything about the clipper is designed to increase the speed of the ship. The hull is too slender and the height of the hull is too low. These conditions are not conducive to the installation of artillery."

"But we can use the high maneuverability of the clipper to break through the British blockade and transport all the French warriors to the other side, right?"

The sailor scratched his head, not knowing what to say. At this time, the captain knocked on the former's head with his pipe.

"Mr. Hugo is an academician of the French Academy of Sciences. Isn't he worse than you, a big rough man? Don't let it affect people's mood."

The sailors had to leave in embarrassment. They didn't know Hugo, but thought he was a delicate man from Paris who was ignorant of the world.

The captain was a branch of the Tropez family. His ancestors were heroes of France. He had also been to Paris, so he knew Hugo's name.

"Mr. Hugo, my name is Auffy de Tropez. It's my honor to have you on my ship."

"You are too polite, Mr. Tropez. I am going to the Austrian Empire next door this time. What do you think of it?"

Auffy de Tropez frowned immediately, as if recalling something bad.

At this time, the French fleet returned. The Grand Orient Fleet was the main naval force that France was proud of, consisting of 25 sailing battleships.

Looking at the huge ships of more than 2,000 tons passing by the sides of the ship, and the sails that covered the sky, Hugo suddenly felt heroic and wanted to write a poem.

It's just that Captain Tropez never answered his question, but Hugo didn't care. After all, it feels really good to stand on the bow and feel the sea breeze.

Looking at the endless sea always inspires men's desire for adventure. To challenge the legendary Kraken, or like Odyssey

However, when crossing the Strait of Otranto, Hugo encountered a scene he would never forget.

The steam giant ships with black smoke were like black iron cities rising from the ground, and even the passing water could disturb the stability of the ship under his feet.

At this time, Friedrich was in the captain's room on the top floor of the ship, overlooking the people under his feet, and happened to meet Hugo's eyes, and both of them subconsciously waved.

When Hugo arrived at the port of Venice, his legs were soft, and a feeling of suffocation in his chest could not be dissipated for a long time.