Chapter 154: Paris Fashion Week
On the eleventh day of Frost Month, at 5 PM.
Inside the Tuileries Palace, newly adorned with countless ribbons, oil paintings, and designer emblems, the Paris Fashion Week, a spectacle now drawing the attention of all Europe, was about to commence.
The Tuileries Palace was a castle-like edifice, with towering halls on all sides surrounding a massive central plaza. Its original purpose was to serve as the king's final stronghold in times of emergency, the plaza acting as his parade ground for mobilizing troops.
However, at this moment, the parade ground was filled with thousands of visitors from various countries, all eager to attend Fashion Week.
Many other visitors, unwilling to pay for expensive seats, stood in the gaps between the plaza and the buildings, curiously craning their necks towards the giant runway on the east side. Of course, even for standing room, a ticket cost 6 Livres.
Because Joseph had arranged for overwhelming publicity in various countries—with catchy phrases like "Paris Fashion Week, only for the truly fashion-savvy," "Experience the most romantic Paris with your beloved," and "The winds of longing have reached Paris Fashion Week"—these slogans had already been drilled into the ears of nobles across Europe.
Under such immense hype, Paris Fashion Week had abruptly become the focal point of discussion within aristocratic circles across Europe. As long as one could afford the trip to Paris, no one wanted to miss this grand event—that would leave them unable to hold their heads high among those who had experienced Paris Fashion Week.
This resulted in at least a hundred thousand visitors attending Paris Fashion Week!
Although tickets for the opening ceremony were not cheap, they had sold out a month prior. Any nobles who wanted tickets for the opening ceremony afterwards had to pay four or five times the price, enduring the exploitation of ticket scalpers.
"When I first saw the newspapers talk about 'Experience your royal life in the Tuileries Palace,' I just thought the Frenchmen were boasting. I didn't expect them to have pulled it off quite well."
The young man beside him, who had been holding a notebook and pen, nodded with a slight smile:
"Mr. Walsh, in fact, the Tuileries Palace used to be the French royal palace."
"Thank you for the reminder, Mr. Alvin." Walsh nodded in surprised admiration. "No wonder it's so luxurious! It seems my money wasn't wasted this time."
His wife chuckled:
"Darling, I remember you saying on the ship coming over that the French were only good at making frivolous things like food and clothes."
"Well, I have to admit, their palaces aren't bad either."
Just then, melodious music filled the air, and Ballantyne, the gorgeously dressed Keeper of the Seals of Versailles, was the first to step onto the stage, delivering a very lengthy opening speech in an operatic style.
Subsequently, Queen Marie, in magnificent white attire, her elaborate coiffure a foot and a half high, gracefully emerged from backstage, surrounded by her attendants and maids. Brilliant fireworks immediately erupted in the sky.
The French guards and officials around them immediately bowed their heads in salute. The visitors, having not expected the Queen of France—a paragon of European fashion and luxury—to personally attend the event, quickly rose to their feet and politely nodded in deference to the Queen.
The atmosphere in the venue immediately reached its peak.
Queen Marie smiled and gestured to the crowd, then began her address, following the script her son had prepared:
"Welcome, everyone, to Paris, this city of fashion and romance, to participate in Europe's largest fashion extravaganza..."
Walsh didn't understand French, secretly wishing that the "five fashion shows daily, featuring hundreds of beautiful models" promised in the newspapers would start soon.
Fortunately, Queen Marie didn't make him wait too long. After saying, "Please enjoy this wonderful week," she turned and returned to her room on the third floor of the Tuileries Palace, directly overlooking the runway.
A famous singer then performed a song, and with that, the main event of Fashion Week officially began.
To the sound of light accompaniment music, three tall, beautiful models, dressed in the season's latest, most splendid long gowns, emerged from the end of the runway, strutting down the catwalk.
All the spectators present were instantly stunned.
This was completely different from any fashion show they had ever witnessed!
They were not mere clothes hangers, nor were they attracting attention through overt displays of sensuality. Every gesture and movement of the models exuded an elegant and noble aura, their expressions serene and natural, like three confident noblewomen simply passing by.
This made the fashions they wore appear exceptionally refined and full of character.
At the same time, on two display boards, over four meters tall, flanking the runway, information such as the designer, design concept, features, and price of the gowns worn by the models appeared.
Fashion Week staff moved among the guests, politely informing everyone that if they liked the displayed fashion, they could place an order at any time.
This method of fashion presentation and sales, common in later generations, was in the 18th century the most innovative and cutting-edge model.
Mrs. Walsh immediately fell in love with the light green gown worn by the model on the left, then glanced at the price on the display board—220 Livres.
She lowered her head, silently converted the price into Pound Sterling, confirming her husband would have no objections. When she looked up again, a charming smile graced her face, and she looped her arm through Mr. Walsh's, whispering, "Darling, what do you think of that green gown?"
Walsh was busy admiring the ample bosoms, glanced at the price, and nodded absently, "Buy it if you like it."
"Thank you, darling!" His wife immediately called over a staff member.
However, she soon regretted it, because the next model appeared in a purple ball gown that captivated her even more than the green dress she'd just seen.
The fashions that followed were each more fashionable and beautiful than the last. Mrs. Walsh was already dazzled, her mind filled with the single thought of 'buying them all.'
An hour later, the first catwalk show concluded.
After strenuously restraining herself, Mrs. Walsh only bought three outfits. She also bought her husband a dark blue suit.
Mr. Walsh, meanwhile, had had his fill of slender waists and ample bosoms, only realizing when paying that he had to pay nearly 40 Pound Sterling!
These were gold pounds; 1 Pound Sterling could be exchanged for approximately 25 Livres.
Nevertheless, the wealthy British merchant who dealt in wool paid the bill with an air of nonchalance.
There were countless other international guests in similar situations. The 23 staff members responsible for pre-sales at Fashion Week were busy until 4 AM, their hands cramping, before they finally managed to sort through all the orders.
Alvin, the British journalist who had accompanied Mr. Walsh, immediately rushed back to his reserved room, compiled more than ten pages of Fashion Week news reports, and sent them back to Britain overnight.
That evening, the Walshes tasted authentic French court delicacies at the "Royal Restaurant" on the first floor of the Tuileries Palace—baked snails with sugar beet, Crown Prince oysters, pan-seared foie gras with cherry sauce, roasted pigeon with red wine and truffle...
A lavish spread of delicacies left the two, who came from a culinary desert, eating with such delight they were reluctant to leave, their mouths glistening with oil. In the end, they were so full they had to lean on the wall as they walked out of the restaurant.
Although the meal had made them wait in line for over 40 minutes and cost 1 Pound Sterling and 12 Shillings, they felt it was well worth the price.
Returning to the Tuileries Palace, the Walshes initially intended to have a couple of drinks, but along the way, they saw a brightly lit hall adorned with various strange machines. It was filled with laughter and cheerful chatter. The two were immediately drawn to it.
Their accompanying translator and guide pointed to the hall and said, "This is the amusement hall, with many interesting games to play."
Mr. Walsh walked in with keen interest and immediately saw a young man, who looked Spanish, vigorously pulling a lever in front of a machine taller than a man. The machine's reels immediately spun rapidly.
The Spaniard stared intently at the reels, muttering, "Stop! Stop!"
A moment later, the front reel stopped, displaying a yellow fleur-de-lis motif of the French monarchy.
Then, the middle reel stopped, showing another fleur-de-lis.
The Spaniard's breathing grew rapid.
Soon, the reels' speed had slowed considerably. The last reel slowly rotated from a long sword to an apple, eventually stopping on a fleur-de-lis.
The young Spaniard cheered wildly, repeatedly pumping his fists and jumping.
A cascade of clinking coins emanated from the machine, and the Spaniard quickly bent down and pulled a wooden box from the bottom. It was full of silver coins, at least seventy or eighty.
"What is this?" Mr. Walsh turned in surprise to ask the guide.
The latter gestured towards the machine. "Mr. Walsh, this device is called a 'slot machine.' If you insert one Livre, you can pull the lever once. The reels inside will spin. If they stop on three identical symbols, you can win several, or even dozens, of times your silver coin back.
"That young man just won the highest payout multiplier—a hundred times."
Walsh was immediately intrigued. He looked around, only to find that all dozens of machines in the hall were occupied.
Ultimately, at the cost of 10 Livres, he took over a slot machine from a middle-aged man, impatiently dropped one Livre into the coin slot, and then forcefully pulled the lever.
After spinning rapidly, the reels stopped on a cat, a shield, and a cross mark.
Clearly, he hadn't won.
He pursed his lips, inserted another coin, still winning nothing.
It wasn't until his fifteenth pull that, finally, three apple symbols appeared on the reels, and a crisp clinking of silver coins emanated from beneath the machine.
Walsh retrieved the wooden box, gleefully picked up the 5 silver coins inside, looking happier than if he'd won 5 Pound Sterling.
An hour later, Mrs. Walsh, yawning, returned alone to their reserved room on the second floor.
Mr. Walsh, meanwhile, saw that a nearby pinball machine was now free, so he curiously moved over to it.
He inserted a coin, pulled the lever, and the steel ball bounced around inside the machine, falling into a small hole marked "X3." Three silver coins immediately dropped from beneath the machine.
Walsh was overjoyed, immediately switched his focus, and began to play the pinball machine intently.
The amusement machines in this hall were precisely what Joseph had prepared for celebrations like Fashion Week.
Their internal structure was not complex, consisting only of springs, flywheels, and a few gears. They were crafted over several months by artisans from over a dozen watchmakers in Paris, far less complex than clocks.
Although they were very simple gaming machines, people of this era had never seen anything like them. Each of them seemed utterly captivated, pulling the levers or handles again and again, simply unable to stop.
A total of over 70 such machines were set up in the Tuileries Palace. Each one was voraciously devouring visitors' silver coins.
At past 3 AM, when Mrs. Walsh awoke from her sleep to find her husband still hadn't returned to the room, she hastily dressed and hurried to the amusement hall, where she found Mr. Walsh, eyes bloodshot but spirits high, still relentlessly pulling the lever...
The next day.
There were no fashion shows in the morning or at noon.
So, after breakfast, Mrs. Walsh dragged her husband, whose dark circles now covered half his face, towards the Eden Amusement Park, which everyone was raving about as "incredibly fun" and "a place you'd regret not visiting for the rest of your life."
Outside the amusement park's entrance, which looked as if it had been transported from a fairy tale, several figures dressed by workers—"large mice" with fluffy black round ears, big eyes, and pointed noses—were greeting visitors everywhere.
Indeed, these adorable mascots were precisely the Mickey Mouse of later generations.
However, in the 18th century, there was no Disney to bother Joseph, so he unhesitatingly copied them.
Many visitors were drawn to the incredibly cute Mickeys, either followed behind them or cautiously patted their heads, occasionally letting out exclamations of "Wow!"
The Mickeys enthusiastically pointed out the ticket booth locations to everyone.
The ticket prices were not cheap at all—unlimited access to all rides, plus complimentary tea and snacks, for 30 Livres per person. Or, choose four steam-powered rides for 18 Livres per person, without drinks or desserts.
Mr. Walsh grandly handed the ticket seller 2 Pound Sterling and 10 Shillings for the unlimited pass, then entered the amusement park with his wife.
His wife, who was over thirty, instantly transformed into a giddy teenage girl, skipping and laughing between the Carousel and Coffee Cups.
After she had finally had her fill of fun, Mrs. Walsh pulled her husband along, saying she wanted to visit the Paris Angel Specialty Store headquarters. Though there were franchises in Britain, rumors said the Paris headquarters had a new product called 'eye cream' on the market, and there were even discounts recently—how could they not go shopping?
They had originally intended to call a carriage, but a public omnibus happened to pull into the station. The two, on the guide's suggestion, curiously boarded the massive carriage, capable of holding 25 people.
Two horses pulled the omnibus along the newly laid wooden tracks. The wheels encountered minimal resistance, allowing it to travel at a brisk speed. Moreover, because the carriage was equipped with a new Leaf Spring Suspension system, and the wooden tracks were naturally very flat, there was hardly any bumping or jostling inside the carriage.
Mrs. Walsh felt as comfortable as if she were rowing a boat down a gentle stream.
She looked around in pleasant surprise: "This carriage is truly wonderful."
The guide immediately introduced, "You have excellent taste! This was built using the same technology as royal carriages. Similar carriages are now the preferred choice of Parisian high society."
Mrs. Walsh quickly whispered, "How much does a carriage like this cost, the kind that seats four people?"
"Probably less than 600 Livres."
Mrs. Walsh immediately looked at her husband with pleading eyes. The latter nodded grandly, "Let's go look at carriages tomorrow."
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