chapter 44 - jacobin of the royalist party
"It is an honor to meet our young scientist, too. For you know that all feats of greatness are but passing clouds, and time washes them away. Even Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar left behind empty names. The only thing that is truly immortal is scholarship. Like Greece and Rome, the most precious treasures left to us are not those great conquests, but their scholarship and laws. You have a talent for studying what is truly eternal, and that is truly honorable and enviable." Lafayette replied with a smile in return.
"Just as Rome's immortality is in with their laws. Isn't what you are participating in now, Your Excellency the Marquis, just as immortal, just as great as the light that shines through the ages?" Joseph smiled back and replied.
"You have a point. What are your thoughts on the constitution?" The Marquis de Lafayette asked.
"I don't know much about politics." Joseph replied, "But I think that just as Ancient Greek geometry was based on nine intuitive, unquestionable axioms and axioms, our constitution should also be based on such self-evident axioms. Your Excellency the Marquis, you have led the war of independence in North America. Sister you see the logic in the Declaration of Independence of the United States is actually quite interesting."
"Go on." Robespierre said.
"The Declaration of Independence says: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.' It is for the security of these rights that governments are instituted among men, and that the just powers of government are derived from the consent of the governed. These two sentences are the axioms of the entire Declaration of Independence, and the entire logical derivation behind the North American Declaration of Independence is based almost exclusively on them. If we are going to have a true constitution that will last through the ages, then we need to find its axiomatic foundation as well. Personally, I feel that these two sentences of the North American Declaration of Independence could just as well serve as the axiomatic foundation of our Constitution. So, when we write our Constitution, we first identify the rights that our Constitution is meant to protect, and then we center around how we are going to protect those rights. Anything that contradicts that goal can then be considered unconstitutional, and thus illegal and invalid."
"Interesting point." The Duke of Orleans interjected, "But Joseph, just now I heard you say that 'Ancient Greek geometry was based on nine intuitive, unquestionable axioms and axioms,' but shouldn't it be ten axioms and axioms? What, do you also think that the fifth axiom should be expelled from the ranks of the axioms from the axioms?"
"Who wouldn't want that?" Joseph laughed, "Since the time of ancient Greece, there hasn't been a single person studying mathematics who didn't wish to prove the fifth axiom, kick it out of the ranks of the axioms, and turn it into a theorem. If I could really solve such a puzzle, I would be really famous - even as famous as Mr. Lavoisier."
By "Mr. Lavoisier" Joseph of course meant the great chemist Lavoisier. But because of the surname, someone remembered something more.
"Mr. Lavoisier?" Robespierre said, "Well, Mr. Lavoisier's academic achievements are admirable, and it can be said that he is the light of French science. To say the least, his nephew is also very talented, only in the arts, and has lately become famous for a play, and some people think he will be having a Gonaye yet."
"He wrote Spartacus, which is indeed good tragedy, but too radical. Especially that Slave War Song, which completely negates all existing order." Lafayette, on the other hand, didn't seem to be a big fan of the play, as he frowned and continued, "It's true that there are a lot of problems with the existing order, and that it needs to be changed, but that change should be a reform that's peaceful and gentle, not a war that's like a flash flood."
"None of us want a flash flood like that." Robespierre chimed in, "It's just that that His Majesty of ours is really a bit stubborn. Regarding this issue, I actually talked to Mr. Lavoisier Jr. and he also admitted that it would be better to reform the existing order and create an English-style state than a North American-style state, the Glorious Revolution (a non-violent coup d'état by the English bourgeoisie and the new nobility to overthrow the rule of James II and prevent the restoration of the Catholic Church, in 1688. This revolution was so free of bloodshed that historians call it the 'Glorious Revolution') is better than war. But he added that it was not easy to bring about such a change in France. So sometimes you have to go a little over the top to get a touch. It's as if you said to our Majesty, 'This house of yours is so dark that an extra window must be opened.' And he never agrees. So you say to him, 'This house of yours is so dark that I am going to do it and take the roof off.' Then His Majesty the King might be willing to talk to us about how to open the window."
That was a good laugh. This metaphor, in fact, originated from Lu Xun's article that Joseph had learned in his previous life, and after crossing over, he stole this metaphor and used it when he was chatting with Amang. Now it seemed that Amang was also using this metaphor that he had heard from him.
"That thought is not unreasonable." Lafayette laughed along with him for a moment before frowning slightly again, "It's just that I'm still a bit worried that this play has mobilized the emotions of the citizens, especially those bottomless trouserless men. And once their emotions are up, they may not be willing to settle for just opening a window."
"But if they don't, His Majesty the King won't feel the pressure at all, and won't agree to any changes at all." The Duke of Orléans, however, said so.
The Marquis de Lafayette raised his head and looked deeply at the Duke of Orleans, but did not make a sound.
The Duke of Orleans continued, "What's more, Gilbert, as you know, His Majesty the King has mobilized the army, which is also putting pressure on us. Hell - you're the one who told me this news. --How can we not respond at all?"
"The French army does not turn on its own people. Our army is there to protect the motherland, not to slaughter people." Lafayette replied.
"You can guarantee that?" The Duke of Orleans asked next.
"Of course I can!" Lafayette replied without hesitation.
"Then can you guarantee that those mercenaries won't slaughter the people either?"
The Marquis de Lafayette did not answer.
"What would the French army do if those mercenaries fired on the people? Would they defy the king's orders and go to war with those foreign mercenaries; or would they stay out of it and watch?" The Duc d'Orléans pressed the question again.
The Marquis de Lafayette remained silent.
"You know that the army doesn't know what to do." Duke Orleans continued, "If the army engages those mercenaries of the king, that would mean the war has begun. That is not what you wish to see. If they are allowed to slaughter the people, I believe that this is not what you want to see either. Besides, the army interfering in politics is not a good thing in the long run. Once this kind of habit is formed, it's an endless source of trouble."
To this statement of Duke Orleans, Marquis de Lafayette actually agreed in his heart, so he remained unable to speak.
"So, the contrast in power today is very unfavorable to the people now. Without an equalization in the power contrast, there will be no fair negotiations." Duke Orléans continued, "In such a situation, His Majesty the King won't have the sincerity to accept our opinions either. Therefore, it is necessary for us to have the power of the people displayed in some way so that we can sober up the king before he does anything irrational."
"I'm afraid what you're thinking of is making the people feel that the king is their enemy so that they can override him or even replace him in the future." The Marquis de Lafayette thought like this, however, he did not say this out loud. Because although he didn't have the idea of replacing the king, (Marquis Lafayette wasn't from a royal family, and didn't have the right to inheritance) he also had the same idea of overthrowing the king, and grasping the power of the kingdom in his own hands. Although he couldn't become the king, it wasn't impossible for him to become Richelieu, or even further, a palace minister like Pippin. So it would be just as good for him to discredit the king and turn the people against him. So he still could not refute it, and could only say, "What power can be displayed by a play?"
The Duke of Orléans smiled and said, "A group of slaves, if determined to revolt, could also shake the mighty Rome. The people of France to-day are stronger than the slaves of Rome; and France is much weaker than Rome. At least Rome's legions will do all they can to suppress the slaves; our armies will not - and the king knows this, and the only ones he can trust are the mountain men and the German mercenaries. If our king is smart, he should be able to read the message this drama is sending him. If only the king is willing to compromise, we can use it to realize the goal of constitutional government."
"And if the king still refuses to compromise?" The Marquis de Lafayette asked again.
"Then arm the National Guard and use that force to even the playing field with the mercenaries." Robespierre said, "The National Self-Defense Force is certainly no match for the mercenaries in terms of combat skills, but in terms of numbers, they can easily be made to outnumber the mercenaries by several or even ten to one, if need be."
"I hope our king gets the message of this play. Does he really want to go the way of Charles I?" The Duke of Orleans added.
The Marquis de Lafayette frowned, the Duke of Orleans' words were just a little too revealing.
"It's really like what Shakespeare said: 'The closer the blood is to ours, the more they want to drink our blood.' (from Macbeth)"
After thinking about it, he finally spoke up, "Our Majesty is not a stubborn man like Charles I. He will follow the trend of the times and become a king who is loved by his people."