Chapter 29

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Chapter 29: I’m Mostly the Attacker

It was just an ordinary evening.

The bored Your Highness the Regent sat lazily on the big sofa, staring at the ceiling.

"Catherine is pregnant. I want to spend the night at Anna’s palace…"

Freeman scratched his forehead, "Your Highness, it might not be possible in the next few days. Princess Elizabeth is about to arrive in Berlin. If anything happens between you and Mrs. Bismarck…please be patient for a while."

Leader One (灬°ω°灬)

He and Anna only spent one night together, and the long gap before the second night made Leader One miss Anna’s happy face.

"What is Anna doing now…"

Anna is still working even after coming home from work, as she manages her duties in the comfortable Prime Minister Palace bestowed upon her by the prince regent. Working at home is cozier than the Cabinet Office.

The room next to the living room has been converted into an office. After coming home from work every day, Anna relaxes there and continues to read documents in a loose shirt, not paying attention to her appearance. With only two silly maids around, it doesn’t matter if she’s seen casually dressed.

As the sun sets, the maids come in to light oil lamps made from whale brain oil, which emit a dim light and a subtle smell when burning.

In Eastern culture, these whale brain oil lamps are known as eternal lamps, mainly used for the deceased. However, in the West, they are considered prestigious and symbolize power and wealth in high society.

The maids light the lamps on the walls, then sit casually on the nearby sofa, chatting and laughing.

Anna glanced at them briefly and went back to concentrating on the documents.

Sophia, from a noble family in Mainz, is diligent and elegant, with a youthful face that exudes a noble air. She excels at making strong black coffee that would make one frown like a prune.

Aini was from a noble family in Nuremberg. She was shy, obedient, and kept to herself. Even though she had never met the prince regent, she often fantasized about being forcefully taken by him. She was good at making grilled sausages.

Both girls were seventeen years old with a weak magic ability, but they had never received formal training. In a real fight, the two of them together couldn’t beat Anna.

Anna didn’t care that the two servant girls were lazy and didn’t work. She would often chat with them while working because it was boring to focus only on documents. Most of the things from the Ministry of Finance and the Foreign Office were confusing and trivial matters.

For example, a clerk from the Cabinet Office wrote over ten thousand words in a report to explain that he didn’t intentionally break a chair and wanted to use public money to buy a luxurious sofa.

For instance, an English person and a French person got into a fight while touring Berlin, accidentally damaging the statue of the Soldier King. They were sentenced to five years in Prussia, but then the English and French foreign offices wrote letters asking for their release.

Holding two Chief Secretary positions meant double the trouble and working hours, but Anna enjoyed it. She woke up at seven in the morning, rested at nine in the evening, and found delight in the busy schedule. When she felt too tired, she would take a break by going on vacations and then return to work.

The two servant girls were playing around and suddenly leaned their heads together to whisper, tightly holding hands and waving them excitedly, as if discussing something very thrilling.

Aini, who was shy and reserved, nudged Sophia, a bolder girl, to speak up.

"Mrs. Bismarck, when you were with the prince regent… was he also very handsome?"

Anna’s pen slightly paused, saying, "Hmm, I’m probably more of an attacker."

The maid excitedly stomped her foot, saying that hearing the stories of Mrs. Bismarck and the prince regent was really interesting.

Two seventeen-year-old girls admired and envied Anna a lot, even though they were similar in age and background. Mrs. Bismarck could become the top government official in Prussia, and to some extent control the country, while the two could only be maids here.

Whenever the two showed regrets and feelings of inferiority about themselves, Anna would comfort them.

"The world is fair to everyone. Everyone has their own strengths. If you haven’t found yours yet, keep trying. You wouldn’t want to be maids forever, right?"

Aini softly said, "Maybe it’s fair for everyone by God…"

Anna, "Am I God then? Am I fair to everyone?"

The two maids were stunned because Mrs. Bismarck… she completely ignored religion, and no one dared to say such things in that era.

Anna was only devoutly Protestant when she received religious subsidies each month. The rest of the time, she was an atheist and strongly suppressed religious influence, strictly forbidding religious forces from interfering in politics.

Archbishop Cologne, the person who named the prince regent when he was just born, wanted to be the head of the Cologne council. But Anna scolded him harshly, using very bad language.

After scolding him, she pointed at Archbishop Cologne’s face and said, "Just mind your own business and make your money honestly. If you guys dare to meddle in politics, I will dare to kill all of you."

After the religious reform led by Martin Luther, things calmed down for a while. But recently, they started becoming bold again, wanting to restore the superior status of religion in the medieval times, only to be ruthlessly stopped by Anna…

"I am God, such words are meaningless," she said, because she didn’t care about religion at all.

When Anna was young and reckless, she once stood in the street, with people watching, pointed at the sky, and cursed God.

God = bitch

Anna = God

Anna = ?

Ahem, this doesn’t matter, the crazy things you did when you were young don’t count.

"You two, go prepare hot water, I will rest soon."

"Yes, sir."

Anna gently rubbed her tired eyes, the day’s work was done, and she stretched lazily.

After a hot water bath, Anna lay on the big bed, hands behind her head, thinking about what Leader One was doing at that moment…

It was late at night, Leader One had already fallen asleep when he was suddenly awakened by Freeman banging on the door.

"What are you doing, you fool? What if you disturb Catherine?" Leader One muttered softly, glancing back to check if Catherine was still asleep.

Freeman looked very anxious as he handed over a telegram.

This was a message from Queen Victoria, the power struggle with the Duke of Kent’s rebels had reached its final stage. The Royal Navy and non-royal Army stood by, waiting to defeat the Duke of Kent’s forces. Victoria hoped that Prussia would directly send troops to land in England for a decisive victory.

They do not need to go into London, just to the Port of Portsmouth will be enough. They don’t need to fight anyone, just arrive at the port.

The reasons were clear. England and Prussia had a secret military alliance treaty about the Far East War. Prussia could use the reason of preparing for the Far East War to send troops to England, and the Royal Navy would not stop them.

As long as Prussia’s army reached Portsmouth, Victoria would win.

Victoria had planned to seize power in two weeks, and she gave a secret letter to her sister Elizabeth to pass to Leader One when she went to Berlin.

However, Victoria’s plan was leaked, leading to an early uprising by the Duke of Kent’s forces. The Queen couldn’t wait for her sister to deliver the letter, so she sent a telegram directly to Portsmouth. Ships were sent from the Port of Portsmouth to Prussia’s naval base, and then another telegram was sent to the palace. This means the information was delayed by more than ten hours.

Leader One thought for a moment.

"Go ahead, gather a force of five to six hundred men and immediately board ships to sail to the Port of Portsmouth at the fastest speed."

Freeman said, "Yes, Your Highness!"

Leader One walked into his office and sat alone in the dark, pondering for a long time. He wondered if Victoria would fail, although the chances were low, it was still possible.

Victoria of England, Duke of Kent of England…Different rulers had an impact on international situations and Prussia’s diplomacy.

Leader One hoped to gain a big favor from Queen Victoria, especially since Prussia had been very helpful. He thought that Victoria owed him a favor which might be useful in the future.

Many people say that countries only care about their own interests and not friendship, but that’s not entirely true.

Countries indeed prioritize their own interests, but countries are made up of people, and people are emotional beings. It’s hard to find completely rational humans in this world, so emotions do play a part in the relationships between nations and their leaders.

A classic example is Peter the Great of Prussia.

Leader One understood the kind of person Queen Victoria was. She wasn’t as extreme as Peter the Great, but she also wasn’t heartless. Emotions do have value.

Currently, England and Prussia are on the same side and will likely have a good relationship for a long time. Besides sharing interests, there are also personal connections, as Victoria’s family has German roots, and her sister is marrying Leader One, in addition to the favor.

Therefore, Victoria leading England aligns well with Prussia’s needs and strengthens the alliance between England and Prussia. Leader One must assist her in gaining power.

Freeman sent a telegram back, noticing the Prince Regent’s intent to promote the alliance between England and Prussia. He warned, "Your Highness, the English have a tradition of stabbing their allies in the back."

Leader One asked back, "Don’t other countries betray their allies? Besides aligning with England, who else can we rely on? The French? The Russians? The Austrians? The Ottomans? Which one is trustworthy?"

English people may be tricky, but they were very strong in the 19th century. It was the time of the Royal Navy, the time of English infantry, the Victorian era. The British Empire was unrivaled, not like that embarrassing brother country.

In the 19th century, other countries in Europe were not only tricky, but also weak.

Freeman, "If Italy unites and becomes independent, this new country could be a good ally for us, maybe?"

Leader One, "You really have good insight."