Good evening. Welcome to the Just Sleep podcast. I'm Tasia, your host. Every week, I will read you

an old story to help you relax, put the stressful day behind you, and drift off to sleep.

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Tonight I will be reading The Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas.

So lie down, close your eyes, and let me read you a story.

Chapter 1 The Three Presence of D'Artagnan, the Elder.

On the first Monday of the month of April, 1625,

the market town of Mung in which the author of the Romance of the Rose was born,

appeared to be in as perfect a state of revolution, as if the Huguenots had just made a second

larochele of it. Many citizens, seeing the women flying toward the high street, leaving their children crying at the open doors,

hastened to dawn the cuirass, and supporting their somewhat uncertain courage with a musket or partisan,

directed their steps toward the hostelry of the Jolly Miller, before which was gathered, increasing every minute,

a compact group, vociferous, and full of curiosity. In those times, panics were common,

and few days passed without some city or other registering in its archives an event of this kind.

There were nobles who made war against each other.

There was the king who made war against the cardinal.

There was Spain which made war against the king.

Then, in addition to these concealed or public, secret or open wars,

there were robbers, mendicants, Huguenots, wolves and scoundrels who made war upon everybody.

...