Paris: The Novel

Scores of them. We’ll give the craftsmen space there. It’ll be like a huge academy. A hive of activity.” His enthusiasm was palpable. “A country is nothing, de Cygne, until it has peace. And a king is nothing if he does not promote the arts and crafts of his country. And a palace is nothing but an empty shell, unless it is the center of useful activity. So I am going to fill this palace with workshops.”
    He turned to Robert.
    “You are staying in the Marais, aren’t you?”
    “I am, sire.”
    “You must show your brother the site of my new square. They’ve started clearing the ground. It’s on the rue des Francs-Bourgeois, before you get to the Bastille. There’ll be colonnades at street level where people can walk. And above that, houses and apartments for honest working people. All built in brick and stone. A haven for modest townsmen, in the aristocratic quarter. I’m going to call it the Place Royale.” He suddenly looked at Alain. “Do you approve of my efforts for ordinary people, monsieur?”
    “Yes, sire.”
    “Why?”
    Alain paused to think. He really hadn’t considered such a proposition before.
    “I suppose,” he said, “it’s similar to the religious question. France is at peace now after being torn apart by religious divisions. But men can be divided by other things as well. If there is hatred between the classes, that is dangerous too. After all, there have been peasants’ revolts in history, and they were terrible. It seems to me that Your Majesty is seeking to make France at peace with itself.” He stopped, afraid that he might have spoken too much.
    “Good,” said the king. He nodded approval. “Now then, to business, messieurs,” he continued. “As you have only the one estate,” he addressed himself to Robert, “your brother will have to make his way in the world. Have you been to see Sully?”
    “Yes, sire.”
    Alain did not know what this meant, but Robert did. The king’s questionwas not really a question at all. It was a broad hint that Sully had already told him about his efforts on behalf of his brother.
    “I doubt you got anything from him,” the king remarked. “He never wastes money. Did he tell you I was extravagant?”
    Alain’s mouth opened wide. What a question. How on earth did one respond to that? But Robert knew better than to tell his king a foolish lie.
    “He did, sire,” he replied with a smile. “But I did not believe it.”
    “What a good answer!” The king grinned. “You can never believe a word that comes out of Sully’s mouth. If you see him again, tell him I said so.”
    And this promising conversation seemed about to take a useful turn, when a group of ladies came up to the king.
    “Your Majesty is neglecting us,” one of them said reproachfully. “You were going to tell us what happened at Fontainebleau.”
    Robert looked dismayed at this sudden interruption. Just as they had the king’s attention, were they about to lose it?
    King Henry turned to the ladies.
    “So I was.” He nodded. “You shall all hear it,” he called out. And at this signal the entire company hastened to gather in a circle around the monarch. “It happened last week, at the Château de Fontainebleau,” the king explained. “I was there, my wife was there, my little son, and the usual company. And we had an unusual entertainment, arranged by the English ambassador. A company of players. They gave us a play by a man named Shakespeare. Has anyone heard of this writer of plays? No? Well, nor had I, but they think highly of him in England. And you can imagine my excitement when, as I supposed, they told me their play was about myself.”
    “A wonderful subject,” cried one of the courtiers.
    “I quite agree,” said King Henry amiably. “But it turned out that it was about the English Henry IV. My chagrin was great. But what could I do? We all sat down. I put my son beside me. He’s only three, but I thought it would be good for him. A prince cannot be too young to learn how to be bored.” He gave them all an ironic look. “And so, my friends, the play began. I will not say I understood it all, but it had a big, fat character in it called Falstaff who seemed to be quite amusing.
    “And to my astonishment, my little boy seemed to be enjoying it more than anybody. He was fascinated by this Falstaff. I have no idea why, but he was. We came to the end of a scene. We applauded. There was a silence.And then, suddenly, my little boy stood up,