Descending On France 1780
Chapter 326 - 319 The day of the grand wedding

Chapter 326: 319 The day of the grand wedding

The wedding preparations were proceeding in an orderly fashion.

Every morning when Nan Ning woke up, she saw Vanni holding a small notebook at the main entrance of the Royal Palace, tallying the greeting letters received that day.

All of Paris had gone mad trying to secure an invitation to Anning’s wedding, as if not having one meant you couldn’t claim to be an old Parisian under the correct flag.

As a result, a huge number of letters arrived daily, with people hoping to get acquainted with General Frost.

Left with no choice, Anning had to have Moura lead a group of Guards to form a letter-opening team to sort the letters by content after reading them.

Most people introduced themselves in their letters, so Anning instructed the soldiers to categorize people based on the professions mentioned in their self-introductions.

Those who claimed to be scientists or engineers would be personally reviewed by Anning, to see if they could benefit her great steam dream. If beneficial, Anning would personally respond with a written letter.

It didn’t take long before all incoming letters began with self-proclaimed engineers, likely because some soldier had let slip while drinking after work.

With no other option, Anning set a new standard: those claiming to be engineers would receive a letter asking about their achievements and if they had any, they could bring them to meet Anning at the Royal Palace.

If they came without accomplishments, Anning would shout, "How dare you deceive me! Get out with a pitchfork!"

Then Anning’s Guard would actually use a hayfork to oust these impostors.

Seeing Anning as an impregnable fortress, many people started scheming against Napoleon.

A few days went by, and Napoleon came complaining to Anning.

"You could be a bit nicer to those who want to cozy up to you, give them a glimmer of hope. Now they all come to me instead.

"Knowing my fondness for Rome, they’ve sent a multitude of Rome-related items. Now my place is overflowing; I’ve got five Eagle Flags of Rome! Five!"

Anning: "Isn’t that great? When you lead your troops into battle, you can carry five Eagle Flags."

According to "Total War Rome," an army that carries five Eagle Flags is a top-tier legion with formidable fighting strength.

Faced with Anning’s jesting, Napoleon sighed, "Finding they can’t corrupt you, they’ve come to corrupt me."

Anning: "Then show them with actions that you, too, are incorruptible."

Napoleon smirked: "That’s too difficult, they bring things I like."

Anning laughed heartily: "It seems they’ve picked the right person to corrupt."

At that moment, Lasalle arrived: "What are you talking about?"

"We’re discussing how the gentlemen of Paris are desperately trying to corrupt Napoleon," Anning stated bluntly.

Lasalle cursed: "Damn it, why does all the good stuff go to Napoleon? Why doesn’t anyone try to corrupt me? Aren’t I also a favorite by Andy’s side? Why am I treated differently?"

Napoleon: "Nonsense, someone sent you a pure white Arabian steed just a few days ago! That horse wasn’t cheap!"

Lasalle: "What? Does a horse count?"

Anning: "Of course horses count, and so do women."

Lasalle, massaging his forehead: "Ugh, if that’s so... ugh... wait a minute, what kind of woman counts? Do those that I woo myself also count?"

Napoleon laughed: "Hey, you don’t actually think you’re a great lover, do you?"

Lasalle: "I reckon I should be, right?"

Anning and Napoleon laughed together, filling the air with a joyful atmosphere.

**

Just like that, the wedding preparations proceeded in an orderly fashion, and soon the big day had arrived.

This morning, Paris saw its first snow of the year 1793, which put Anning in an exceptionally good mood.

He got up early, went to the garden of the Royal Palace to enjoy the snow, and began to hum a song: "The first snow of the year 2002..."

As he hummed, he thought: It couldn’t be such a coincidence that Beethoven would hear this, could it?

It seemed like a typical scene from a time-travel novel.

Just then, someone greeted Anning: "General, sir!"

Anning muttered "No way" to himself and turned around, only to see the painter David.

David: "I am ready to capture the scene of your grand wedding on canvas."

Anning: "Thank you for your efforts. By the way, isn’t Beethoven with you?"

David laughed: "Him? He has been struggling to sleep for several days, working on the composition he’s creating as a gift for your wedding. He started fussing over it since the news of the wedding broke three months ago, all the way until now.

"Yesterday when I visited him, I saw him angrily crossing out the composed scores! The tip of his quill pen pierced through the paper!"

Anning: "Is he really that troubled?"

That’s the great maestro, the super-genius who could conjur up masterpieces like Moonlight with a simple stroll by the river. Just imagine how impressive the work must be, pondered upon by such a genius.

Anning’s curiosity piqued: "Have you heard any of the pieces he’s composed so far? What do you think?"

David immediately replied: "Oh yes, it went something like this, dum dum dum~dum dum..."

Although David’s rendition of "dum dum dum" was quite speechless, Anning recognized it. That’s Dvorak’s "New World Symphony".

So Beethoven was adapting Dvorak’s New World, what would Dvorak write in the future?

But then Anning let it go, if Beethoven could take from the Slavic tunes, what’s wrong with adapting one from Dvorak?

They should understand the value of the great maestro’s work.

However, Dvorak was born nearly half a century later, and his style would be considered quite avant-garde for the current musical taste.

But if maestro Beethoven went avant-garde, it seemed there wouldn’t be anyone who could criticize him.

It seems that Beethoven of this timeline might well earn the reputation as a "mainstream music revolutionary".

That would indeed complement Anning, the direct initiator of the great revolution.

Anning could already imagine how future music historians might judge Beethoven’s work from this era: "Influenced by the direct initiator of the great revolution, Andy Frost, the spirited Beethoven dared to experiment with novel styles, shattering the shackles of mainstream music.

"This era’s Beethoven was an undeniable troublemaker who smashed the old classical music to pieces, much as his most-admired Frost shattered the old order of Europe."

As Anning pondered, Vanni appeared.

"It’s time to get ready to leave." Vanni said, "Miss Christina has already gone to the church to prepare, and as the groom, you mustn’t be late."

Anning: "Is Moura ready?"

"Of course, your Guards Cavalry are all prepared. Will you ride a horse there or take a carriage?"

Anning: "I’ll ride a horse. If I take a carriage, Lasalle will definitely laugh at me, saying I’ve gone soft."

The only one in Paris who would dare to laugh at Anning like that was Lasalle.

Vanni nodded, then turned to David and said: "Mr. David, you may ride in the carriage with the attendants, yes?"

"Of course, of course!" David nodded vigorously, "The attendant’s carriage will do just fine!"