Chapter 8 Church of "Saint Francis on the Shore"

(Translated by Li Xiong) Alister and Dorrent had written about the subject, and Erast wanted to try it out. On September 30th an Italian chronicler gave a detailed account of the love affair of a Roman princess with a Frenchman, which I translated. It happened in 2010, which was the beginning of the last century.At that time, cronyism was in full swing in Rome, and the resulting abuses and vices flooded the city.However, the Holy See was unprecedentedly prosperous.Pope Benoit VIII (Orsini) presides, or rather his nephew Prince Compobasso presides in his name over all the affairs of the country, great and small.Foreigners flocked to Rome from all directions.The princes of Italy, and the Spanish nobles, whose fortunes were still enriched by the gold of the New World, also flocked.Whoever has money and power is above the law.Regardless of whether they are natives or foreigners, what they have to do when they gather together is to be romantic and pompous.

The Pope's two nieces, the Countess of Orsini and the Princess of Compobasso, shared the uncle's authority and the honor of the Holy See.Even in the highest classes of society, their beauty makes them stand out.The Romans fondly said that Madame Orsini was gay and unrestrained, and Princess Compobasso gentle and pious.However, when angry, this gentle woman will also be angry.Every day, the two sisters-in-law went to the palace to meet the Pope, met there, and often went to the other party's house. On the surface, they seemed to have a harmonious relationship, but in fact they were competing everywhere: comparing appearance, reputation, and wealth.

The Countess of Orsini is a little less beautiful, but frivolous, lively, treacherous, and eye-catching.She has some lovers, she can't take care of them, and she changes them every day.It was her happiness to see two hundred guests sitting in her salon at her disposal.She looked down on Princess Compobasso very much.The princess had been dating a Spanish duke for three years, was seen everywhere, and finally gave him an order to leave Rome within twenty-four hours or die.Mrs. Orsini said: "After he was driven away, my pretty sister-in-law's face no longer had any joy. In recent months, she has been particularly troubled by boredom, or love. And her husband is not stupid. This boredom was expressed in the presence of the Pope's uncle as a high degree of piety. I expect this piety will lead her to a pilgrimage to Spain."

In fact, Princess Compobasso did not miss the Spaniard at all.For at least two years, he had left her feeling utterly empty and bored.If she really missed him, she would have sent someone to look for him.She was born with this personality.Such people are not uncommon in Rome.Although she was just twenty-three years old, the age of youth, she often knelt down before her uncle out of fanatical piety and prayed for "the Pope's blessing."We don't know the details of this "pope's blessing", except that it forgives all sins except two or three extremely cruel sins, without even needing to repent.The benevolent Pope Beloa VIII was moved to tears every time, and said to her: "Get up, good niece, you don't need my blessing. You are better than me in the eyes of God."

Although the Pope is infallible, in this matter he was as mistaken as all the people of Rome.Princess Compobasso fell into a mad love.Her lover also shares her passion.But she felt very unfortunate.For several months, she fell in love with Chevalier Senase, nephew of Duke Saint-Thérion, the ambassador of King Louis XV to Rome, and saw him every day. The son of Philippe de Orléans, the regent, by a mistress, Cénasser, who was very popular in France, had been a colonel for several years, although he was only twenty-two years old.He had developed a habit of being self-important, but he wasn't born that way.Joyful, playful, bold, brave, kind, these constitute the main features of his distinctive personality.If there is anything good to be said about the French nation, we can say that he is a very real sample of this nation.Princess Compobasso fell in love with him at first sight.

"But," she told him, "you are French, and I don't trust you. Let me tell you: when the Romans know that I have had a few trysts with you, I will think you have betrayed the secret, and I will never love again." is you." Originally, Princess Compobaso was just playing with love, but she fell into a real love net.Cénaser also loved her, but they had been intimate for eight months, and time made the Italian woman's love more and more intense, but made the French man's love more and more weak.The knight was bored, but the satisfaction of his vanity comforted him.

He had already sent two or three portraits of the Princesse Compobasso to Paris.Besides, he had been pampered since he was a child, and he had formed a carefree character, even when it came to things that interested his vanity, he didn't worry much.And the French in general are very interested in such matters. Senather had no idea of ​​the character of his mistress.Sometimes her eccentricities amused him.On St. Babina's Day, the feast day of her birth name, she felt guilty and disturbed by her actions, out of sincere and fervent piety.At this point he had to comfort her, reassure her of these feelings.For ordinary Italian women, Sennaser can make them forget religion, but for her, she can't.He won her over by coercion, not persuasion, and quarrels always occurred.

For the first time in his life, this well-meaning young man encountered obstacles.It pleased him, however, and formed the habit of being tender and considerate around the princess.Sometimes he also thinks it is his duty to love her.Plus, there's another unromantic reason.He has only one confidant, and that is the ambassador, the Duke of Saint Terrion.He sometimes served ambassadors through the Princesse Compobasso, who knew everything.In the eyes of the ambassador, he is a figure of great importance.He is particularly proud of it. Princess Compobasso is very different from Senase.Her lover's social superiority did not concern her at all.The only thing she cares about is whether he loves her or not.

"I gave him my life's happiness," she thought, "and he, a pagan, a Frenchman, could not have made the same sacrifice for me." But Sennath's happiness seemed so lovely , so overflowing, and so sincere, from the heart, all these surprised and fascinated Princess Compobasso's heart.At the sight of him, all her dark thoughts melted away as she had stored up her thoughts to say to him.For this proud woman, this feeling was so fresh, and it still lingered in her heart long after Senather had passed away.She finally found that she could not think and live without him.

In Rome, the Spaniards enjoyed great popularity for two centuries.Now the French are back in favor.There is a character, wherever it goes, there will be happiness, there will be happiness.The Romans came to understand this character.But this character exists only in France, and after the revolution of 1990, this character has disappeared.This is because a kind of lasting happiness needs to be maintained with carefree, but in post-revolutionary France, no one can have a safe job, even geniuses (if there are geniuses) have to worry about their jobs. War broke out between Senather's class and the rest of the nation.Rome at that time was also very different from the Rome in the eyes of people today.In 1999, when people had no idea what would happen sixty-seven years later, when the Jacobin Basewell wanted to civilize the capital of Christendom, some parish priests bribed the people and killed him.

Beside Senase, Princess Compobasso lost her mind for the first time, and was intoxicated or deeply unfortunate for some things that reason did not agree with.In the eyes of the sincere and serious princess, religion and reason are two different things.Once Senather had overcome her religious beliefs, love surged through her until it became an unbridled passion. Princess Compobasso had long seen that Lord Ferratella was a useful person, and she had planned to acquire his property.Ferratella told her that Sennaser had not only been more frequent than usual at Madame Orsini's, but that he had also caused the countess to send away a famous singer who had been her official lover for several weeks.After hearing this news, the princess must feel so uncomfortable! Our story begins on the night she heard the sad news. Princess Compobasso sat on a large golden leather chair, motionless.On the small black marble table next to it, there are two tall silver desk lamps.This is the masterpiece of the famous Bonviluto Cellini.It is better to say that they illuminate the hall on the ground floor of the palace than to show the darkness of this hall.There are some oil paintings hanging on the walls of the hall.Because of the age, the picture is a bit dark.For this century, the era of those great painters showing their talents is far away. The young Senase sat on a small ebony chair inlaid with gold, with an elegant posture.He was face to face with the princess, very close, almost at her feet.The princess stared at him.From the moment he entered the hall, the princess not only did not go up to meet him and put him in his arms, but also did not say a word to him. In 1980, Paris has become the capital of fashion trends.By mail, Cénaser regularly brought in items from Paris that would reflect the elegance of the most handsome men in France.He learned how to deal with women in the beauties of the Regent's court, and he was taught by the famous teacher Carniac.Cargnac was his uncle, one of the profligate friends of the regent.A person of his status is born with a kind of self-confidence, but today in front of the princess, he quickly showed an embarrassed expression.The concubine's golden hair was a little disheveled, and her two big dark blue eyes were fixed on him, with an unpredictable expression.She has a deep-seated hatred for him, and wants to take revenge mercilessly?Or is she just showing this deep, serious look because of passionate love? "So, you don't love me anymore?" She finally squeezed out the words from her throat. This declaration of war was followed by a long silence. For the princess, it was quite painful to give up Senather's charming elegance.If she hadn't put on this indifferent scene, he would have said a thousand sweet words to her.But she was too proud to explain why she held this attitude.A flirtatious woman is jealous out of pride; a flamboyant woman out of habit.A woman who is passionately and sincerely in love knows her rights.The way she looked at Cenacer was peculiar to Roman love, and Cenacer found it very interesting.He saw deep emotion and hesitation in her eyes, and he could even say he saw a naked soul.There was no such expression in Mrs. Orsini's eyes. This time, however, the silence was a little too long.This French youth, who is not good at penetrating into the inner emotional world of Italians, pretends to be nonchalant and understands the truth, and no longer feels embarrassed.In fact, he was still a little annoyed at this time.When he had just passed through the basement and the underground passage, and came to this living room on the ground floor from the neighboring house, several cobwebs were stuck to the exquisite clothes he had just shipped from Paris yesterday.He looked very uncomfortable, and he hated this kind of little bug. Senaser thought that from the eyes of Princess Compobasso, she could see that her heart had recovered, so she planned to avoid quarrels and refused to refute her accusations.However, the unhappiness he felt made him change his mind.He wondered: "Isn't this a good time to let her know the truth? It was her own question just now. This saved me half of the trouble. I'm definitely not a romantic material. Look at this woman, And her eyes are so different, I have never seen such a beauty. But she has some stinky rules, let me come here through the damn tunnel. She is the Pope's niece. The king sent me Come, I am here to serve the Pope. Besides, women in this country are all brunettes, but she is the only one with blond hair, which is an unusual sign. Every day, I hear some people praise her beauty. No, their compliments are all sincere and not flattering. As for the rights of a man over his mistress, I am not worried. One word from me will make her abandon the palace and the gilded furniture , to leave her uncle the Pope, and follow me to France, to the remote provinces, to live a life of indifference in my dominion... Good God! Such an outcome would only make me decide never to ask her Make such a request. Mrs. Orsini is far less beautiful than she is, but she loves me. Still, she has no more affection for me than the singer Butofac, whom I let her dismiss yesterday. But she is human, Knowing how to live, I can go to her house in a carriage. I believe that she will never lose her temper with me, and she doesn't love me enough for that." During this long silence, the princess never took her eyes off the handsome forehead of the young Frenchman. "I'll never see him again," she mused.Suddenly, she threw herself into his arms, and pressed kisses one after another frantically on his forehead and eyes.But those eyes were no longer red with happiness when they saw her.The knight underestimated the gesture, though he had not forgotten his plan to part; the mistress, though passionate, could not forget her jealousy.After a while, Senase stared at her in amazement, and saw big tears rolling down her cheeks. "Why!" she said softly, "I've become so worthless that I'm going to tell him about his change of heart. I swore I'd never pay attention to these things, and now I'm going to blame him It's not cheap, but what's worse is that I was impressed by this charming face again! Cheap! Despicable princess... It's time for this kind of thing to end! " She wiped away her tears and seemed to regain her composure. "Knight, it's time to end." She said quite calmly, "You often go to the Countess's house..." Her face became extremely pale at this point, "If you love her, go to her house every day Well, just don't come here again..." She seemed to be unable to help herself, waiting for the knight to say something.But the knight didn't speak.So she continued, her body twitching slightly, her teeth clenched tightly: "This will be your death sentence." This threatening sentence made the knight's hesitant heart make up his mind. Just now he had been surprised by the princess's silence at first, and then her unexpected kisses on him. He laughed. The concubine's face turned from white to red, and finally flushed. "She's suffocating," thought the knight. "She's going to have a stroke." He stepped forward to undo her dress.She pushed him away decisively.He had never seen such determination and energy.Later, Senather recalled hearing her talking to herself as he tried to pull her into his arms.So he stepped back a little.In fact, this caution is superfluous, because she seems to pay no attention to him.She murmured to herself as if confessing to a priest: "He insulted me. He assaulted me. He is young, and the French are rash, and he will tell Mrs. Orsini about my despicable behavior... I to myself I can't hold it anymore. I can't say I can remain indifferent before this charming face..." After this there was another silence.The knight felt very bored.The princess finally stood up, repeating in a mournful voice: "It's time to end! It's time to end!" Senase just wanted to reconcile with the princess, and forgot to give a serious explanation in a moment of impatience.He only said two or three jokes.Referring to an affair that was widely discussed in Rome... "Knight," interrupted the princess, "please leave me alone for a while, I don't feel well..." Sennaser complied immediately.He thought: "This woman is tired. I hope this feeling is not contagious." The princess watched him walk to the end of the hall... "I decided my fate so recklessly!" She said with a wry smile, "Okay His ill-timed joke woke me up. How stupid this man is! How can I love someone who doesn't understand me so well? My life and his life are at stake, and he's trying to distract me with a joke! … ...I also know that I am in a bad mood, and he made me unhappy!" She stood up suddenly from her chair, "How beautiful his eyes are when he talks to me! ... To tell the truth, the poor knight's intentions were not bad.He understands my personality flaws, and he wants me to forget the troubles that torment me, so he doesn't ask me why I'm troubled.Dear Frenchman!After all, I don't know what happiness is until I love him. " She began to think sweetly of her lover's loveliness again.Gradually her thoughts were led to the charm of the Countess of Orsini.So she was pessimistic about everything.Again her heart was tormented by the cruelest jealousy.In fact, as early as two months ago, she had this unfortunate premonition.With the knight she thought she could get by, and when she was out of his arms she almost always spoke to him with a tinge of sarcasm. It was a rough night.She was exhausted, and the pain calmed her a little.She wanted to talk to Sennatha. "Because he sees me angry after all, but doesn't know why. Perhaps he doesn't love the Countess. Perhaps he goes to her house because a stranger should be familiar with the society of his country, especially Familiar with the monarch's family. If I had Sennaser introduced to me, if he would openly come to my house, he would probably sit for hours, as in Orsini. "No," she snarled, "I'm giving myself up to talk to him. He'll despise me. That's all I can get. Mrs. Orsini is frivolous, and I often look down on her because I'm a fool. In fact, her character is more pleasing, especially in the eyes of a Frenchman. As for me, I was born to live a boring life with a Spaniard. Is there anything more absurd than that? ... What shall I become when the knight leaves me, no longer animates me, no longer kindles a fire within me?" She ordered the door to be shut.But Monsieur Ferratella could not close the door, for he had come to tell her what they had been doing at Orsini's until one o'clock in the morning.So far, the senior priest has done a lot of sincere service for the princess's love, but he is also sure that if Sennaser and the countess have no relationship, then from tonight onwards, they will be as close as glue. Lord Ferratella thought: "For me, a pious princess is more useful than that woman who is good at socializing. There will always be a man who is more favored by her than me, and that is her lover. If one day she finds A Roman lover, then her uncle may make him a cardinal. If I make her believe, then she will think of the priest first, and with enthusiasm... With her, in her uncle's place. By the way, what else can I not hope for?" The ambitious prelate had a sweet dream.He seemed to see the princess kneeling before the Pope and begging him for the post of cardinal.And the pope was grateful for what he was about to do... Once the princess had firmly established her faith, he would present the pope with indisputable evidence of her affair with the young Frenchman.His Majesty was devout, sincere, hated the French, and would be eternally grateful to a man who put an end to an affair that had displeased him too.Ferratella was born into a well-to-do Ferrar family, in his early fifties... and would soon be promoted to Cardinal.Excited by this prospect, he did things extremely well, and dared to change his role suddenly in front of the princess.If it hadn't been for the past two months, Sennaser had obviously become estranged from the princess, and it would have been dangerous to attack him, because the senior priest didn't know Seneser well, and thought he was also an ambitious man. The reader must find it too long to transcribe the full conversation between the madly in love and jealous princess and the ambitious prelate.Therefore, only a brief introduction is given here.Ferratella spoke the sad truth first.With this captivating beginning, it is not difficult to awaken the dormant pious religious feelings in the heart of the young Roman woman.Because she is, after all, sincerely religious."Misfortune and humiliation ought to put an end to blasphemy," said the prelate to her. It was daylight when he left the palace of Campobasso.He asked the princess who had just strengthened her faith not to receive Senase today.The princess agreed without difficulty.On the one hand, she thought she should be pious, and on the other hand, she was actually afraid of appearing weak in front of the knight and being despised by him. This resolution she held on to until four o'clock, when the knight might come to meet her.He passed a street behind the gardens of the palace, saw the signal telling him that he could not meet, and went cheerfully to the residence of the Countess of Orsini. Slowly Princess Compobasso felt as if she was going crazy.Strange thoughts and plans emerged in her mind one after another.Suddenly, as if insane, she ran down the grand staircase, jumped into the carriage, and called to the driver, "To the Orsini Palace." Extreme misfortune made her involuntarily visit the countess.She found her among fifty guests.Those brilliant and ambitious people in Rome, since they could not go to the palace of Campobasso, they all came to the palace of Orsini.The presence of the princess became an event: the guests stepped aside as a sign of respect.The princess didn't seem to bother to pay attention to this detail, she stared at her competitor intently, admiring her.Every loveliness in the countess was a stab in her heart.After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the countess saw that she had stopped talking and had other thoughts, so she resumed her interesting, natural and generous chat. "When I am emotional, I am either mad or troubled, and she is so happy, of course it attracts the knight even more." Princess Compobasso thought. She admired and hated the countess at the same time, out of an unexplainable impulse, she rushed forward and threw her arms around the countess' neck.Now she saw only the charm of the countess.It is equally captivating from a distance as it is up close, and she compares her hair, eyes, and skin to the Countess's.After such an examination, she actually felt disgusted with herself.She felt that everything about the countess was more lovely than herself and superior. Princess Compobasso was sullen and motionless, like a basalt statue among this group of gesticulating, talking and laughing people.People kept coming and going in the living room, and the loud laughter made her upset and unhappy.When she suddenly heard someone announcing the arrival of Mr. Senaser, how complicated was her mood!At the beginning of their relationship, they agreed that they would not talk much in the public.This is more appropriate. Because a foreign diplomat can meet the Pope's niece and daughter-in-law at most two or three times a month. As usual, Sennasor greeted Princess Compobasso respectfully and solemnly, and then returned to the Countess of Orsini, talking happily and cordially.This tone is only used when talking to a smart woman who you see every day and treat you well.Princess Compobasso was stunned.She thought: "The countess is telling me what to do. This is how I should treat people, but I can't do it!" Princess Compobasso fell into the greatest misfortune of her life.She almost made up her mind to take poison and kill herself.The long night was long, and the extreme pain she felt far exceeded the happiness that Senather's love gave her.It seems that these Roman women, when they suffer, have a potential that other women do not have. The next day, Senaser passed behind the garden and saw the signal that he could not meet again, so he left happily again.But after thinking about it, he still felt uncomfortable. "Is that how she dismisses me? No, let her receive me with tears in her eyes," said his vanity.It was only when he lost this stunning beauty forever, the Pope's niece, that he felt a tinge of love.He got out of the carriage, walked into the dirty underground passage that disgusted his appetite, pushed open the door on the ground floor, and entered the living room where the princess usually received him. "Why, how dare you come here?" The princess was taken aback. "Her surprise is feigned. She didn't expect me not to come here," thought the young Frenchman. The knight came over and took her hand.She shuddered and her eyes filled with tears. To the knight she was so beautiful that for a moment he felt pity for her.As for her, how many oaths she had sworn to her religious beliefs in the past two days were all thrown into the river of forgetfulness at this moment.She threw herself into his arms, feeling extremely happy in her heart! "It is this kind of happiness that the Countess of Orsini will enjoy!..." As usual, Senase didn't know the heart of a Roman woman very well.He thought that the princess wanted to get along with him and break up with him politely. "As an attache of the royal embassy, ​​I was sent to work next to the pope, and it is not appropriate to make enemies with the pope's niece and daughter-in-law." He was very happy to accept this ending.So he also spoke rationally: they will get along very well; why shouldn't they be very happy about it?Does he have anything to blame?A tender and good friendship will take the place of love.He earnestly asked the princess to give him the privilege of coming here often.They will get along happily forever... The princess didn't understand what he meant at first.Later, she finally understood, and she felt disgusted in her heart.She stood there with her eyes wide open, motionless. When the knight said "always pleasant to be with," she interrupted him coldly: "That means, after all, you think I'm pretty enough to serve you!" "But, my dear friend, let's not hurt our pride, shall we?" Senather replied, taken aback by her reaction. "Can you put those complaints aside? No one ever doubted our rapport.I am a man of integrity who knows what he says, and I assure you again that no one will ever know the happiness I have enjoyed. " "Doesn't Mrs. Orsini know?" She asked coldly, again causing the knight to have an illusion.He said stupidly: "Before I became your slave, the woman I loved, when did I mention it to you again?" "Of course I respect your promise, but I don't want to take that risk." The princess said firmly, which really surprised the knight. "Farewell, knight..." she called to him as he walked hesitantly, "come and kiss me." Evidently she relented, and then she said firmly, "Farewell, knight..." As soon as the knight went out, the princess sent for Ferratella. "You want to avenge me," she told him.The prelate was overjoyed. "Now she's stuck. She's in my hands forever." Two days later, at midnight, the weather was unbearably hot.Senather went for a drive on the boulevard to cool off.He found that all the people of Roman society were there.When he was about to board the car to go home, his servant was so drunk that he couldn't answer any questions he asked; the coachman disappeared.It wasn't until the servant regained consciousness that he learned that the coachman had just quarreled with an enemy. "Drink! My coachman has enemies!" Senase said with a smile. On his way home, the knight was only two or three blocks from the main road when he noticed someone following him.There are about four or five people.He stops and they stop; he goes and they go. "I can make a detour and enter the main road from another street." The knight thought, but then changed his mind. "Huh! I have a weapon with me, and I am afraid of these guys!" He drew his dagger. Thinking thus, he walked down two or three lonely streets.The streets are getting deserted.He heard the people behind quicken their pace.Just then, he found a small church of St. Franciscans right in front of him.A strange light shone through the windows of the church.He ran over quickly and knocked hard on the door with the hilt of his dagger.One of the monks opened the door, and after Sennaser rushed in, he closed the door again and put the iron bar on it.At this moment, the stalker also kicked hard at the door.The monk scolded: "These blasphemy guys!" Senase handed him a gold coin and said, "These guys have hatred against me." The chapel was brightly lit, with at least a thousand large candles burning. "What? The ceremony is still going on at this time!" the knight asked. "Yes, my lord. By dispensation of the Cardinal Vicar." A solemn mourning hall was erected in a narrow open space in the chapel of "St. Francis on the Shore".Someone is doing a memorial service. "Who died? Was it a prince?" Senase asked. "Perhaps," replied the monk, "because mourners don't spare money. Only princes and nobles can afford such funerals. But then again, it's a waste of money and candles. My lord tells us that the dead didn't do anything when they died." Dying confession." Senase took a closer look and saw the French-style coat of arms on the altar.He felt even more curious, so he took a step closer and recognized it as his family's crest!And there is also a stele on which it is written in Latin: The noble knight Jean Noble Senaser died in Rome "I am the first person to live to attend his own funeral." Senaser thought to himself, "I think only Charles V would have such fun... But I should not stay in this church for long." He took another gold coin to the monk and begged, "Father, please open the back door and let me out." "Ready to serve." Senase held a pistol in each hand, and ran as fast as he got out of the church door.After running a few steps, he heard someone chasing after him.When he ran to the door of the mansion, he found that the door was closed and someone was standing in front of it. "It's time to go all out." He thought he was about to shoot the man when he suddenly found out that he was his valet. "Open the door," he yelled. The door opened.They ran in quickly and closed the door again. "Oh! my lord, I have been looking for you everywhere. Here is some sad news: the poor coachman was killed with a knife. The fellows killed him while cursing you. My lord, they want your life..." While the servant was speaking, eight shots were fired simultaneously from the windows on the garden side.Sennath fell to the ground.Beside him lay his valet.Each of them took more than two dozen bullets. Two years later, Princess Compobasso was regarded as a model of Roman piety, and Monsieur Ferratella was already a cardinal. Readers, please forgive the author for his mistakes.