OR1-EP4: Prelude to the Millennium (11)

With a history much shorter than that of Loyang, Paris became a mecca for the inner longings of those who aspired to freedom throughout Europe after the French Revolution, and leaders since Napoleon Bonaparte have worked hard to make the city a home for the arts and sciences. Despite the financial boom that has inevitably tainted the city, Paris is still a dream city, and there is no other city in the EU that is more prosperous.

It was with a sense of awe that Michael McNeil accompanied Governor-general Herzog to Paris. The last time his plane stopped in Paris, he didn't even have a chance to go to the city to play, but anxiously waited for the plane to take off again, so that he could return to South Africa to resume his duties. This time, he finally had the chance to come to the heart of the EU and draw from it the best of the different ideas and cultural heritage of the new century.

Jacob Herzog had to meet an old friend, François Malcal, with whom McNeil had previously had a meeting. Speaking of which, Mr. Malcal was a benefactor of McNeil's, who had set up the foundation that was used to grant pensions, and all of this activity was run under McNeil's name. Maybe Francois Malcal made these moves for money laundering or other illegal transactions, but all McNeil cared about in this case was that the families of those fallen comrades got the symbolic comfort they deserved.

"There's nothing for you today. If you want to spend the day traveling around Paris, then feel free to walk around; what if you don't want to walk around, then go back to the hotel." Governor-general Herzog gave McNeil the address of the hotel, then got into another limousine and sailed away. McNeil looked around at the crowded crowd, but inwardly he felt a little panic for no reason. Not only did he not belong to this city, he didn't even belong to the world, and had no way of knowing how these citizens walking past him were thinking inside. Different ways of thinking meant different perspectives and methods of dealing with problems, and McNeil hadn't learned a new set of methods until now; he was still following his old ways.

Romanticism infected the city. After the overthrow of the old monarchy, the thinkers of the Republic desperately needed to manifest the subject position of man in all places, from the details of life to the layout and planning of the city to the arts, they set off an all-round change. Paris could not escape the various movements, and the citizens of Paris were some of the most enduring citizens of the EU. There is a saying that every Parisian citizen is multi-talented so that they can keep up with the times and not become obsolete or outdated.

But without the necessary force that would ensure this free development, all romance would be mere talk. Napoleon Bonaparte became the savior of the republic when Washington met defeat across the ocean. Though he was ultimately kicked down by the citizens who put him on the pedestal for dubious rumors of his claim to the throne, today's EU still recognizes his remarkable contributions. Statues of Napoleon have been re-erected, first as a saint and then as a sinner, and no one sees him as mortal.

McNeil got a map from a street guide. He followed this map to the location he had identified for old Jake, a secluded place for retirement away from the downtown and less secure areas. Along the way, McNeil saw smiles and joy on the faces of every citizen who greeted him, and he had never seen so many smiling faces anywhere else. The citizens of South Africa were sad, the citizens of Pendragon were wooden. What brought endless happiness to the citizens of Paris were the colonies that wailed under the rule of the EU and the people who lived in them.

He bought a newspaper on the street and saw no news related to the crime case from the beginning to the end.

"That's good." He thought, "There will be no freedom at all where there is not even law and order."

Michael McNeil walked at a brisk pace down the main street to the north of the city of Paris. He looked at the street names on the signposts and looked around at the buildings with a sense of satisfaction. This residential neighborhood had a variety of stores selling household goods and was relatively close to the hospital. The downside was that it was surrounded by gray-haired older people, which worried McNeil a little. He had always believed that old people stayed active by spending more time with young people, and if they spent their days watching others grow old and die, they might soon lose the belief in continuing to live.

"That's okay, I have two alternative locations." McNeil looked at the map, "It's not costing me any of my own money anyway."

Aside from that, another point worried him just as much. The prices in Paris were high compared to the South African region. This might not be a big deal to the citizens of Paris, who might have salaries that matched the prices of this class, but those who were used to living a hard life would not be able to adjust to it. Old Jake had been a poor man all his life, and when he suddenly became rich in his seventies and eighties through the lottery, it was hard for McNeil to speculate on what would happen to his mindset. After thinking about it, McNeil decided to hire some more servants to take care of the old man for Old Jake, so that these people could help the old man to adapt to the life in Paris.

Now that the decision had been made, McNeil intended to ask for quotes at once. He found a company that specialized in this kind of service and discussed issues such as cost and quality of service with the receptionist.

"Last week I read in the newspaper that there was a murder of an old man by a caregiver in Germany." McNeil has never known subtlety when speaking, "I hope nothing like that will happen in Paris."

Any waiter hearing such a statement would have thought the other man had come to pick a fight. As a result, the waiter called the manager, who unceremoniously threw McNeil out. Looking at the closed door, McNeil thought of going to dial the complaint number, he should follow the example of those users who dared to extort the company to fight the lawsuit decisively, so that these merchants would not dare to act rashly in the future. However, he didn't have a lawyer, and the cost of hiring one was something he couldn't afford at the moment.

"... lawyer, I'll have to hire one for the old man." McNeil found that he had too much to do.

He could not say why he intended to arrange so many services for Old Jake. It was true that Old Jake had taken in McNeil, who was almost sleeping on the streets, but beyond that, he had not done McNeil any additional favors. If it was a matter of the size of the favor, Governor-general Herzog was the one to whom McNeil should be most grateful. Of course, it was more valuable to give him a favor in the difficult situation, and Governor-general Herzog didn't need McNeil's repayment at all, and a man as powerful as he was might even suspect that he had ulterior motives for offering it.

Lawyers have always been a very popular profession, they can enter politics in advance, but also can be a decent person when meet bad luck. As long as they were paid enough money, these lawyers wouldn't mind defending any vicious outlaw or traitor. However, their spirit of not minding their clients waned when it came to the poor. McNeil was unsurprisingly stymied; the Parisian lawyers were clearly not interested in giving private counsel to a dying old man.

By the time McNeil lumbered out of another law office, it was afternoon. He thought of a few things he had to do once he got to Paris and decided to visit a nearby museum. You couldn't come to Paris once for nothing; there was little pleasure in just doing other people's work, and McNeil hoped to find a chance to get a serious look at what kind of life the Napoleons of this world had.

One can't talk about Napoleon Bonaparte without mentioning the Hôtel des Invalides in Paris, where Napoleon himself is buried. The building is also the famous French Military Museum, a testament to France's recent successes and the abundance of EU martial virtues. There was no better place to be the grave of Napoleon Bonaparte, and the EU's praise for him was limited to his military achievements.

Michael McNeil hailed a cab to get to his destination quickly. He bought a ticket at the ticket office for eight euros and managed to get into the museum. It was a weekday and there were very few adults or children in the museum, only a few older people with gray hair wandering through it. Each generation has a different view of the same historical figure, one that has evolved in the context of the times in which they grew up. The EU during the world wars desperately needed another Napoleon, while the youth of today may only refer to him as a tyrant.

On the front wall of the hall was a huge mural depicting the burning of the Royal Navy battleship HMS Victory in public after the French had defeated the United Kingdom.

McNeil sat on a side seat, looking at the rest of the museum's collection. A large part of these collections was looted by the French army or the EU from other countries, mostly weapons and equipment, which marked the change of an era. It was a pity that Napoleon had burned that battleship, or else the HMS Victory would have been the most deserving trophy to be taken out and flaunted.

"How did he win the battle?" McNeil's eyes re-reflected the mural, "It's reasonable to say that the French Navy didn't have a chance to defeat the Royal Navy at that time."

"I heard it was because the Royal Navy's command fell into disarray." The museum security guard and docent beside McNeil said, "Bonaparte commanded the navy as if it were a land army, and his hijinks almost buried the French navy, but Nelson was killed by a sniper during the battle, and the Royal Navy immediately collapsed."

"Although the battle was lost, the death of the enemy's commander-in-chief left the enemy army in a de facto rout." McNeil was thoughtful, "It's like the duel between Wallenstein and King Gustav II Adolf of Sweden, the world knows Wallenstein lost, but from the time he defended the authority of the Habsburgs and the Holy Roman Empire."

"Exactly." The age-spotted narrator smiled, "But it would be hard to do the same thing now. The modern chain of command doesn't have a total meltdown just because one man dies."

Unlike the Napoleon McNeil had learned about in history class, Napoleon Bonaparte had never attempted to invade Russia. Instead, after eliminating the United Kingdom and removing the danger of being blockaded, Napoleon, satisfied with the hegemony he had achieved in continental Europe, proclaimed the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, and replaced it with the United Republics of Europa. With the elimination of the last remnant of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austrian Empire, Napoleon was left without any rival, and the Russian Empire was in any case unlikely to challenge Napoleon, who controlled half of Europe and monopolized overseas trade.

So, Napoleon took the most unsuccessful step of his life: he decided to become emperor.

"Napoleon Bonaparte's abolition of a portion of the republican calendar was seen as evidence that he wanted to compromise with the church, the old order." The narrator pointed to the painting in front of McNeil, "He named his son King of Rome, and it looks like he wished to accept the Pope's coronation and become Emperor of all Europe. Precisely because he was a hero in defense of the Republic, the citizens could not tolerate this betrayal ..."

In the painting, Pope Pius VII is placing a golden laurel crown on Napoleon's head.

"He is the First Consul of the Republic, the First Citizen." McNeil murmured, "Perhaps everyone thought he was going to follow Augustus' example and become Princeps and Emperor."

His people, his ministers, his marshals raised the flag against him. The revolt lasted about a hundred days before and after, and the defeated Napoleon Bonaparte was guillotined by his citizens. Those who lost their lives together because of their allegiance to Napoleon also included marshals and generals such as Michel Ney and Joachim Murat. It wasn't until decades later that the EU decided to rebury Napoleon. However, the EU did not want another Napoleon Bonaparte, and successive consuls and senates have been very wary of brilliant men of exceptional talent. The greatest fault a mediocre man could commit was nothing more than malfeasance, whereas the elite were able to use the trust of others to fulfill their own ambitions.

"Boring." McNeil sighed, "That's their excuse for constantly electing singers, businessmen, and performance art hooligans to the consulship? Those people can cause more damage than the nonexistent Napoleon Bonaparte that the citizens fear."

"That's true." The narrator and McNeil started chatting, "People prefer to choose new people with no experience or background, back in the day the German Director Herzog was targeted by everyone because he was too smart ..."

"What?" McNeil was stunned, "Are you telling the truth?"

"I even voted for him at the time." The old narrator played with his red baseball cap in boredom, "Then he rolled over to South Africa as governor and now has a bad reputation. Everyone says he's a contemporary Caligula."

If this is the way public opinion is, then I'm afraid Governor-general Herzog won't get the results he wants in Paris. The citizens would rather have incompetents stealing high positions than have any fellow who might be the next Napoleon in their sights. In this way, Adalbert Herzog's decision to join the army was more like avoiding suspicion, since under current EU law, active military personnel could not stand for election.

McNeil tilted his head back to look at the fresco on the dome, where Napoleon on a white horse was gazing down at him.

"You have died for nothing."

TBC

Chapter Notes:

As the capital of the only republic among the three superpowers, Paris deserves all its glory.

It is very common for soldiers under Stratocracy regimes to worship military strongmen, not to mention that soldiers such as Nick Seymour Parker openly oppose liberalism and democratic politics.

Even then, however, it is unlikely that McNeil would have supported a military dictator's conversion of a republic into a monarchy. After all, he was an all-American soldier.