Alder South, Obsidian Palace.
On a rare sunny day, the sun dispersed the mist that shrouded the entire Alder South area, and the brilliant light shone from the sky, penetrated the thin and light clouds, and slanted on the In the courtyard of Obsidian Palace.
In the small flower hall on the first floor of the palace, the attendant opened the window facing the courtyard. The fresh morning breeze passed through the bushes outside the window and blew into the small hall leisurely. Rosetta Ogu Stuart was sitting on the bench by the window, half of his face illuminated by the sunlight, as if coated with a layer of shimmer.
"News came from Hadiron. He was defeated in the Throat of Orandale." Rosetta raised her head and looked at Matilda sitting opposite her. "He had previously I happened to be inspecting the factory near Orlandale, but I still couldn't detect when the Eternal Sleepers evacuated."
"If a secret organization has been operating in our empire for seven hundred years, then when they are determined. When you want to evacuate secretly, it is normal for us to be difficult to detect and intercept at the first time." Matilda sat opposite her father, a thin golden chain hanging from her hair, swinging by her cheek. Fragments of golden light, "I just didn't expect that Gawain Cecil would be standing behind all this..."
Rosetta glanced at Matilda: "Judging from the time, when I sleep forever When the Order encountered an accident and launched its evacuation plan, it was also during the few days you stayed in Cecil City."
Matilda couldn't help but frown, with some expression on her face. A look of regret and shame: "Yes...I was near Gawain Cecil those days, but I didn't notice anything..."
Rosetta's expression was very indifferent: "If even If a young man like you can easily discover his secret, then he is no longer Cecil's emperor, and Typhon can rest easy."
"Gawain Cecil's secret... ..." Matilda muttered subconsciously, then raised her eyes, "Father, the secret of 'Outlander' can be used to shake his ruling authority. If he is no longer 'Gawain Cecil', then The support he gets based on the prestige of pioneering heroes will definitely be greatly shaken. In addition, he has a connection with the Eternal Sleeper. Is this also true..."
Rosetta raised her eyebrows and looked at Mattie Erda's eyes seemed to be smiling slightly: "I remember you said not long ago that he was a kind and generous elder, and you learned a lot from talking to him."
" …I don’t deny that I have a certain respect for him, no matter whether he is really ‘Gawain Cecil’ or not,” Matilda replied seriously, “But he is our opponent after all, no. "?"
"...Matilda, you have grown up again," Rosetta looked at her daughter quietly for a moment, and said slowly with a smile in her eyes, "It's just that You haven't grown up enough, and you said something wrong.
"Our 'opponent' did rely on the support of 'Gawain Cecil' when he rose in the South. , but he sat in the position of emperor, damnIt’s not the identity of ‘Gawain Cecil’. It’s not the name that he relies on to maintain his rule over the empire. "
Matilda didn't react for a moment and asked subconsciously: "Then what does he rely on..."
"Of course his army, and him A vigorously cultivated bureaucrat, my child," Rosetta suddenly laughed, "You are not usually so slow to react - you didn't expect this? "
Matilda looked slightly embarrassed: "I..."
"It doesn't matter, you are still young," Rosetta smiled and shook her head, "Just like me That said, it is not a 'good reputation' that allows an emperor to sit in that position. Of course, a good reputation is important. It can make your crown look more beautiful and make you feel more comfortable in that position, but Military power and political power are the key factors that determine whether you can continue to stay in that position. Unfortunately, Gawain Cecil had both, and held on to them very securely.
“If he loses control of the army and social order, then without us taking action, countless remnants of the old Ansu era will jump out and label him a lot of usurpers. , his 'resurrection' will undoubtedly turn into a conspiracy of the devil.
"If he firmly controls the army and social order, no matter how many people reveal his secrets, it will only happen. "The malicious slander of restorationists and vicious conspirators", his "resurrection" will still be a miracle, even a miracle when necessary.
"And if you take into account his effective methods of controlling public opinion and attracting people's hearts, boy, do you think that a mere rumor about the "resurrection of evil spirits" can shake Gawain Cecil's confidence? As far as I know, there have been similar rumors since the day he was resurrected. Have these rumors had any effect? ”
Matilda showed an open mind and accepted the teachings. He looked like he listened carefully to Rosetta's words, and then asked after the other party finished speaking: "But... this is still a very important handle, isn't it? For us, this 'secret' is a big one An unexpected gain."
"Yes, it is a very important handle...but it is also a handle that does not have much effect, and as you said, this gain is just an 'accident'," Rosetta · Augustus nodded slightly, "So if we really want to do something with it, then we must not do it 'personally'. It is not worth it. Gawain Cecil and his are specially used to control intelligence. The department must have been prepared for public opinion counterattack. If we are not careful, our losses will be greater than his. Secondly, don’t expect too good results. Just like the swordsmanship you have learned, facing a strong enemy will There is no secret to winning in one move. Advantages need to be accumulated slowly, and often what we accumulate is not even an advantage, but just a little time to accumulate advantage.”
Mattie. Erda listened quietly, with a thoughtful look on her face. She heard her father speak in a meaningful way.She said to herself in a tone of voice: "Matilda, governing an empire requires more than just an iron fist and resoluteness. More often, you also need patience and caution."
Matilda's subconscious location He nodded, but suddenly realized something, and looked at Rosetta with wide eyes: "Father, you..."
"I don't mean anything else," Rosetta said quietly, and suddenly Changing the topic, "Actually, if our information is correct, we may even owe Gawain Cecil a favor."
"Owe him a favor?" Matilda couldn't help but Asked in surprise, "What do you mean?"
"...How many nightmares have you experienced since the end of the Cold Moon?" Rosetta asked.
"...Only twice," Matilda thought for a while, and although she didn't know why, she still answered seriously, "The power of the curse had been strengthened before, but the curse was cured after the late Cold Moon. The impact has returned to its original state...maybe even weakened, and the duration of my nightmare has become shorter."
"The curse that haunts our family comes from the Throat of Orandale, from the collapsed old imperial capital. And now we know that those fallen dream priests have not gone anywhere else in the past two centuries. They have been studying forbidden things deep in the ruins - the information provided by Lord Bomel shows that it is The Eversleeper's own research led to a disaster of divine calamity, so they had to seek help from the 'Outer Territory Wanderers', and the timeline of all this happened to coincide with the fluctuations in the power of the curse in recent times."
Matilda’s eyes gradually became serious.
"According to the analysis of the royal advisor, if the disaster caused by those dark priests broke out, the entire Augustus family would suffer huge losses, and all of this did not break out in the end..." Rosse Ta said slowly, watching Matilda's reaction with critical eyes, "Gawain Cecil has his own purpose. What he provides us is not 'free help', but in fact, we owe He's a favor."
Matilda's expression looked a little strange, as if she didn't know how to respond to her father's words, but after a few seconds of silence and thinking, she still shook her head: "Favours are okay. The interests of the empire are different if you repay favors."
"This is your best answer today," Rosetta's serious expression softened, "Go and do your own business - stay with me. My nagging father has been talking for so long, and you must be tired."
"I always gain a lot from talking to you," Matilda stood up and said deeply to Luo. Rosetta bowed, "Then I will retire first, Father."
Rosetta waved her hand gently, and Matilda left the room shrouded in sunshine and the fragrance of flowers. small hall.
The room became quiet, with only the bright morning sunshine accompanying Rosetta Augustus, who was no longer young. The Typhonian ruler sat quietly in the quiet atmosphere. For a moment, then slowly turned his eyesline, his eyes fell on the round table in front of him.
A large book with exquisite printing and gilding on the surface lay quietly there, bathed in the bright sunshine that was not common in Aldernan.
This is the gift that Matilda brought back from Cecil. It was given to herself by "Gawain Cecil".
"You are so lucky," Rosetta suddenly laughed softly and said to herself as she reached for the book. "The whole Aldernan has cleared up to welcome you."
His eyes swept across the pages of the book, and neat lines of text came into his eyes -
"...A country is an ordered collective, including the people and the land. Within, a collection bound by consistent cultural identity and interest demands...
"Maintaining social stability and development is one of the basic missions of the country's ruling class..."
In the quiet hall, the only sound left was the sound of turning pages.
After a long time, a sigh filled with inexplicable complex emotions sounded in the small hall: "I can understand what you want." What to say..."
...
"Sir Gorosh, Ms. Asarena, I hope you are still used to living in the Autumn Palace," said the meeting at the Cecil Palace. In the guest room, Gawain looked at the dragon-born ambassador in front of him with a smile and said, "We have limited knowledge of the customs and habits of the Holy Dragon Principality. If there are any improper arrangements, please feel free to speak up. "
"No, we are very satisfied with your hospitality," Sir Gorosh smiled in a relaxed tone. "We can feel Cecil's sincerity and friendliness - as a first contact, This is a very good start. "
"That's good," Gawain nodded. Yesterday's greetings and politeness were over. Today was the time to talk about business, so he quickly got to the point, "Then let's get started directly." Well - the Cecil Empire hopes to establish a closer relationship with the Holy Dragon Principality, not just a business, not just sending a few more envoys, we hope to establish a relatively stable commercial channel between the two countries, which is important for us. There are benefits to the living standards of the people of both countries as well as to the national economies. ”
Sir Gorosh obviously appreciated Gawain’s straight-to-the-point way of speaking. After realizing that this new “Cecil Empire” was not as full of red tape and staleness as the description of the human kingdom in the information, After following the rules, his attitude became relaxed and direct: "Frankly speaking, this is exactly what Grand Duke Baloger wants - although the Holy Dragon Principality does not often communicate with the outside world, it does not mean that we are Although we are stubborn and closed-minded, we are also curious about the outside world and are also very interested in your country's magic technology. But I wonder what your vision is for the ‘commercial channel’ between the two countries? Or to put it more bluntly, what are you going to sell us? ”
The corners of Gawain’s mouth raised slightly, revealing a sincere and pleasant smile.
When facing business partners, he always smiled sincerely.
< p>"Sir, you rode our magic train when you came here - are you interested in it?? "Sir Gorosh and Asarena looked at each other.
"Ah..." Two seconds later, Gorosh blinked and nodded and said, " It is a very magical thing with very obvious uses, so we are naturally interested in it. "
Gao Wen smiled and motioned to the attendant on the side to bring over some information: "Then based on your interest, we have a complete investment plan. ”
(Recommend a book, "The Legend of the Heroes of the Border Song Dynasty" written by Zhonghua Giant Panda. The author is Liming Book Friends. It is a story about traveling to farming in the late Northern Song Dynasty with a martial arts system. Everyone can support it. )