Chapter 1202 The Ship of Theseus (Part 2)

Fortune is half the master of our actions, but the other half, or almost half, it leaves at our disposal.

——Machiavelli's "The Prince"

Almost every girl will encounter such a problem, how to dress up so that she can become the center of attention, stand out among many equally young and beautiful people of the same sex, and gain the attention of her "target".

This "target" can be your sweetheart, or it can be an emperor, king, prince, duke, rich bachelor, etc. "material worth marrying".

It is undoubtedly unwise to marry a young man for love who has no material foundation and can only talk sweet words or be handsome. There are many other girls who hold the same idea. Even if they don’t think so, they will be rejected by their parents and relatives.

Persuasion. In this way, these successful men will have many, many female suitors around them, and they will not have to spend as much time pursuing women as men who have not yet achieved success in their careers.

In the story of Cinderella, the one who dances with the prince will definitely become the protagonist of the ball. In order to compete for this position, the girls will not only fight with each other, but also "self-mutilate" their bodies. Tights will not harm the body at all.

It is no smaller than cutting off one's own toes, and may even be larger. It is enough to be used as a murder tool. Perhaps it is precisely because of it that it makes it so difficult for noble women to give birth.

Josephine was a woman from the Bourbon dynasty. When she was young, she was fine. But as she got older, the damage to her body caused by beauty began to appear. In the birth competition in the Bible, Jacob initially preferred young and beautiful women.

Rachel was better than the older and ugly Leah. However, Leah could give birth to children, while Rachel could not, and his love gradually favored Leah.

Participating in this "competition" will make some people feel very unhappy, but some people enjoy it. Anyway, as long as she gives birth to a child for Napoleon, she may replace Josephine and become the wife of the First Consul.

, this is such a simple shortcut.

Normally Pomona wouldn't want to get involved in this muddy water, but the problem is that now her body doesn't belong to her.

Hathor found in her velvet pocket the dress that the Grand Duke of Lorraine had given her in Vienna the last time she took a European train. It had been improved by a talented costume designer in Venice and became as contemporary as the 18th century.

The dresses are somewhat similar, yet so different.

The imperial era began in 1804 after Napoleon became emperor. At that time, women's skirts began to become high-waisted. Judging from the clothing of women at the scene, the era of this ball venue should be before Napoleon became emperor. If we talk about imperial rule

The women's clothing of the period was "light clothing", while the women's clothing of the Bourbon Dynasty was "heavy clothing". It was as heavy and cumbersome as a tank. The only advantage was that the skirt was very large, similar to the one worn by Scarlett in the movie "Gone with the Wind".

A tutu skirt will look very elegant when dancing.

As for who will wash the floor-length dress after it gets dirty, it is not something that girls at the dance will consider. They won’t be the ones washing it anyway. Su said that a girl’s hands are the other face of a woman. If it is for washing

My clothes have become thicker, but what should I do?

Pomona never dreamed that she would have to compete with young girls at her age. Fortunately, they didn't use a time turner to go back two hundred years ago.

"Did these people on the dance floor really ever exist?" Pomona's soul asked in the depths of her consciousness.

"Ka represents a person's vitality and vitality, and Ba represents a person's personality and behavior. The 'shadow' originally accompanies the living body, but can exist independently after death. I remember that your wizarding century paintings are movable, and are stored in

All are the 'shadows' left behind after the people in the portraits died. These "shadows" are not as good as when they were alive, not even half as good. I can't take away Bonaparte's soul, but I can leave his shadow.

', His shadow does not need to be stored in the painting, everyone else is a living ghost." Hathor said, perhaps because he disliked the color of the golden dress and did not like it, Hathor changed it to red.

"When Cleopatra first met Caesar, it was said that she was wrapped in a blanket. She was still a girl at that time. Even though her behavior was reckless and almost the same as an assassin, Caesar still found it very interesting.

The opposite sex is always particularly tolerant towards the opposite sex. For example, men are easy to forgive women, and women are easy to forgive gay men. Oh, the wizard who gave the speech in the grave is in love with the headmaster of Hogwarts?"

"It's not the black-haired principal, it's the white-haired one with a beard. Also, do you know Legilimency?" Pomona asked helplessly.

"Now our minds are connected. I can detect what you are thinking. I am sorry that Dumbledore is dead. You are wondering why his portrait is not moving, right?" Hathor asked.

Pomona stared at the phoenix. It couldn't help at all.

"The shadow accompanies the body of a living person. Maybe it is trapped on his body by something and cannot move freely. As long as the thing is removed, it can return to the portrait." Hathor organized.

He touched the chest of the skirt and pulled it down. "Oh, your body is so heavy."

"Are you saying I'm fat?" Pomona yelled angrily.

"I haven't had this physical feeling for a long time." Hathor said happily.

"Do you want to take my body?" Pomona asked.

"I'm not such a scary devil, borrow it and I will return it to you." Hathor said softly.

Pomona secretly prayed to God, hoping that he would send a thunder to kill this monster.

"Since Napoleon is just a shadow, why do you dance with him in a living body?" Pomona asked.

"I told you, the shadow accompanies the body of the living person. Matter is the entity, the thing itself, and the form is abstract. The two are not in one-to-one correspondence, just like my grandfather's old axe. The blade has been replaced three times, and the ax handle

It has been replaced four times, but the ax is still the same old axe.”

"You can go on, I understand," Pomona said.

As long as he can avoid dancing with Napoleon, Hathor can listen to Pomona even if she talks about the divine genealogy.

"I won't tell you anymore." Hathor complained delicately, "Except for your lover, you have never dated any other man?"

"You're a nightmare," Pomona whined.

Time will make people forget many things, such as the debts owed to them by others, or the feeling of hating someone, but only embarrassing moments will pop up in their minds from time to time, and then let you relive that "too painful to live" feeling.

Pomona really wanted to pretend that she didn't know anything. The problem was that she could see what happened, like a third party.

There were many men surrounding the First Consul. They were talking in low voices. When "Pomona" in costume appeared, they stepped aside knowingly and gave their place to her.

Although the dancing guests are already ghosts, the real Pomona can still feel the edge at her back.

Hathor bowed his knee to the First Consul gracefully, and then looked up at the short Corsican.

"I remember you." Napoleon held a glass of champagne in his hand and said with a smile in French with a strong accent, "We met at the Tuileries Palace, you are a 'prophet'."

"I have brought you a new prophecy, First Consul." Hathor said, "Do you want to hear it?"

"You can say it here and let everyone see if it's accurate." Napoleon said loudly and deliberately, as if intending to embarrass her.

"I heard that you like to read The Prince, so do you agree with what Machiavelli said?"

"Which sentence?" Napoleon said with a smile, as if he was waiting for her to make a fool of herself.

"Machiavelli believed that the Medes became docile and cowardly because of the long-term peace, which eventually led to the destruction of the Medes by Persia. Do you think so too?" Hathor asked somewhat provocatively.

Napoleon looked at the people around him. They all lowered their heads subconsciously, not daring to look into the eyes of the First Consul of the French Republic.

"So do you agree? Lady in red." Napoleon turned his attention to Pomona.

"Of course not." Hathor said immediately, "The Medes have not really become as docile as sheep. They are still brave and tenacious, but they have forgotten war and fighting skills. This is why they lost to the Persians.

The reason is that their little cleverness in conspiracy could not cope with the situation at that time. War requires real wisdom."

"Are you flattering me?" Napoleon asked.

"I thought that in order to invite a woman to dance, a man needs to say nice words to flatter her. Are you waiting for me to invite you to dance? Your Majesty the Archon?"

There were quite a few exclamations from the surrounding area.

Napoleon looked a little unhappy. As a soldier who had been on the battlefield, his eyes were full of murderous intent and looked very scary.

But no matter how scary those eyes are, they are not as deadly as the basilisk. One look at them will kill you.

Hathor looked at him fearlessly, and Pomona didn't feel guilty at all, so the lion that roared lowly, as if it was about to pounce and bite her throat at any time, quieted down, and began to evaluate her with cautious eyes.

, as if wondering why this creature that it could kill with one bite dared to stand in front of him so boldly.

"You can tell me about your experiences in Egypt later when we dance." Hathor said, "I'd love to hear it."

Napoleon handed the wine glass in his hand to the adjutant, and then looked at her up and down.

"You want to waltz with me?" Napoleon asked.

'No, I don't want to at all.' Pomona wailed deep in her soul.

"Can you do it?" Hathor asked. "It's a fashionable dance."

"In your eyes, am I the kind of person who refuses to change?" Napoleon asked.

"No one has seen you dance the waltz, Archon, but I think with your current status, no one would dare to laugh at you even if you can't dance. Are you right?" Hathor said loudly to the people around him.

.

The people around me were extremely embarrassed and didn't know what to say at this time.

Napoleon laughed contemptuously, walked to Pomona, and bent his arms, as if this was an invitation to dance.

Hathor took his arm unceremoniously, and they walked to the dance floor together.

The dance music was only played halfway, the musicians hurriedly stopped playing the music, and the dancers dispersed. They formed a circle and watched the "shadow" of the French First Consul dancing with a foreign woman.

"What's your name?" Napoleon asked, looking into her eyes after taking her hand and arranging it for a waltz.

"You have already given me a name. I am the woman in red." Hathor said with a pleasant smile, "Just like Rosie, it originally refers to a person with red hair."

"What kind of red is this red on you?" Napoleon asked.

Hathor tilted his head in slight surprise.

"I never thought a soldier would be interested in fashion."

"This is Paris." Napoleon said. "I don't want to be told that I have no taste."

"You can call it Egyptian red. The pharaoh's crown in Lower Egypt is the same color as it." Hathor said in a sleepy tone.

"No! Don't seduce him!" Pomona shouted.

It was a pity that no one heard her roar, because the band started to play the waltz.
To be continued...