I will be crowned king

The sweet and refreshing wine entered the throat, and the atmosphere in the smoking room also improved.

With the help of his status as the deputy commander of the Southern Army and the son-in-law of the Rune family, Anson was able to gain some trust from the Grand Duke of Thun as his "nephew"; but this did not mean that he was willing to immediately lead Thun's 20,000-strong army and leave without taking any money. They even "brought their own dry food" to help Clovis capture Eagle Point City and established an unbreakable alliance with Clovis.

Both sides knew that that was absolutely impossible - this had risen to the level of diplomacy between two Order World countries, and was far beyond the scope of Anson's ability to interfere as the deputy commander of a legion.

But Anson doesn't care, because what he wants is not these, but other more practical things.

"Then, let's continue the topic just now." Grand Duke Thun's expression was much gentler than it looked at first:

"It's true as you said, if Eagle Point City can be captured from the Ysel elves, even if it becomes part of the Kingdom of Clovis, Thun will still be able to gain huge benefits without having to be taken over again. Israel is exploiting, but..."

"How can we ensure that Clovis will not betray Thun immediately after capturing Eagle Point City and defeating the Elf Kingdom of Yser?"

The fire in the fireplace kept dancing, reflecting the extremely deep pupils of Grand Duke Thun.

Anson took a sip of rum, hesitated for a moment as if thinking, and then slowly said:

"Can not guarantee."

Um? !

Karl was so frightened that he gasped on the spot - at this time, you shouldn't agree to everything first, even if you lie to him, it's better than telling the truth!

"Not only can I not guarantee it, but no one can make such a promise to you." Anson said extremely seriously, as if he didn't feel Karl's eyes behind him:

"Even if His Majesty Carlos II comes in person now, sitting in front of you with the 500 powerful nobles of the Clovis Privy Council, and sworn to tell you that Clovis has no intention of coveting Thun and the Seven Cities Alliance... you will Do you believe it?"

Grand Duke Thun was stunned for a moment, then he laughed dumbly: "You are right, I'm sorry."

"There is nothing to be sorry for - as the leader of the Thun and Francois families, these are of course issues you need to consider." Anson smiled slightly:

"I can't guarantee you that if you decide to join forces with Clovis, you will definitely get the maximum benefit; but on the other hand, even if Clovis doesn't join forces, won't the Elf Kingdom of Ysel ask the Seven Cities Alliance to join the war? "

"Both of these two parties covet the Seven Cities Alliance, especially Thun; since they want to cooperate with the devil, why not just find the strongest one?"

"As for who can gain the greatest benefit from this war in the end, who will be used by whom or who will be used by whom, and who will become a stepping stone to victory..." Anson put down his wine glass and looked at the Grand Duke of Thun meaningfully. :

"Who can tell clearly until the end?"

The kind-faced Grand Duke Thun and Anson looked at each other and nodded seemingly pleased.

Very good, so far Anson can basically conclude that the Grand Duke of Thun is exactly as he expected, and indeed has the ambition to seize the opportunity in this war - otherwise, he can just "send himself out of the country as a gift", and there is no need to hold it at all. For this banquet, the most elite Grand Duke's personal guards were specially assembled to show off their power to themselves.

His appearance was not a trouble for him, but an opportunity - a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to have unilateral contact with Clovis and reach a private agreement.

From this point of view, the so-called "Southern Seventy Percent Alliance" is not an unbreakable alliance.

"And one more thing."

Just when Anson felt a little proud in his heart, Grand Duke Thun suddenly said: "To be precise, this is not a reason, but confusion."

"Anson Bach...why are you doing this?"

The moment the words fell, Carl Bain's expression was startled.

Why? Of course, this is to get a wave of free supplies, have a few banquets, and finally ask you not to get in the way when we are laying siege to Eagle Point City.

Oh, and we are actually lying to you. Clovis has no intention of actually going to war with the Yser elves. We have more than 10,000 people in our army. We are prepared to fight casually and we can negotiate peace. We can capture Eagle Point. The city is just to make it easier to rob from you.

"All this is for some plans that cannot be made public." Anson said suddenly with a serious expression:

"I can't reveal too much details to you. In fact, there is also a very big dispute within Clovis. Both sides cannot convince each other immediately. This is reflected in the command level of the Southern Army, which is Luther of the Franz family. Vichy became commander and I was deputy commander.”

"The cause was the sudden attack from the empire last year, which made many knowledgeable people suddenly realize that Clovis, which was rapidly expanding, had made enemies on all sides and could not find any firm allies."

"Clovis must find a strategic partner as soon as possible who has a close interest relationship with himself and makes the empire feel threatened." Anson said solemnly:

"This is the reason why I made up my mind that I would rather cross the snow-capped mountains to establish contact with Thun - because in my eyes, there is no more trustworthy ally than the Francois family, which is connected by blood to the Bach family!"

Of course Grand Duke Thun agreed with this. He stared at Anson silently: "Then the Rune family..."

"The Luen family has been working hard to promote this matter." Anson said with a deep expression:

"Of course, it is through funding and support; you may not know that since the establishment of the Privy Council, Clovis's big family can no longer directly participate in politics as it did in the past. It must start privately to make the plan more like 'public expectations.' public opinion."

Grand Duke Thun suddenly understood, and his eyes suddenly turned cold and glanced behind Anson.

Carl Bain trembled with fear.

"Please rest assured, my adjutant is absolutely trustworthy." Anson chuckled and waved to Archduke Thun:

"He has been loyal to me for many years. He knows all my secrets, and there are many secrets that I don't know. He is a thoughtful man."

"oh?"

Grand Duke Thun looked a little surprised and nodded slightly to Karl: "My dear nephew is really lucky to have a talent like you following him."

Carl Bain could only smile and nod repeatedly, scolding Anson thousands of times for insisting on taking him with him.

After talking about the "most critical" part, the rest is about some more specific things.

Grand Duke Thun shook the bell on the table to let the waiter outside the door come in, filled the wine glasses for the three of them, and brought some simple dried fruit platters. It was not until the waiter left and closed the door that he spoke again:

"What are your plans next?"

"I will convey your alliance's wishes to the commander of the Southern Legion as soon as possible, as well as some parliamentarians in the royal capital."

Anson picked up a few dried fruits and threw them into his mouth: "Of course, my army and I need to rest and resupply before that, probably about two or three days."

"In addition, many troops under my command have become separated. Maybe they will find their way by following the traces, so these few days also include the time to wait for them."

"No problem." Grand Duke Thun said very cheerfully:

"You and your army can rest in Jinshi City for the past three days. If you need anything, ask as soon as possible; I will also send people to find your soldiers. If I find anything, I will tell you as soon as possible."

"You are so generous." Anson expressed his gratitude with a smile and pointed to Carl Bain beside him:

"I will ask my adjutant to contact you about specific matters and give you a clear list of material items."

"Okay, then I will let Henares be responsible for this matter." Grand Duke Thun nodded lightly, not taking it too seriously, and casually mentioned:

"It's just that besides forming an alliance with Clovis, can you think of a way to work around it and connect Francois with the Luen family?"

"Of course, it doesn't matter if it's really difficult; the war has just begun, so there's no rush."

"What do you need?" Anson's face showed an understanding smile.

"Weapons, and large-scale weapons." Grand Duke Thun said without concealment:

"Once a war breaks out, the little equipment that the Ysel elves get from the empire will be quickly consumed. The same is true for the Seven Cities Alliance - we need a more stable source of weapons than the empire."

"Of course, we will pay - in the name of the Seven Cities Alliance."

Sure enough...compared to the alliance with Clovis, the Grand Duke of Thun cares about more practical interests; basically similar to himself, but with a larger appetite.

However, this is not too difficult for Anson. On the contrary, he can take this opportunity to continue to show his goodwill to the Luen family and make his "fiancée" believe that he is still loyal to the family.

"As long as the Clovis army can capture Eagle Point City and open up the communication line, none of this will be a problem." Anson agreed decisively:

"In the past, the arms trade in Clovis was completely in the hands of the royal family, but recently the Luen family has opened a new arms factory that produces all types of light and heavy weapons. They will be happy to have a customer in the south with a steady stream of orders."

"Then I will wait for your good news."

Grand Duke Thun smiled and raised his glass to Anson.

The two negotiated the details of the alliance for a while, and the happy time passed for almost half an hour. When Anson saw the middle-aged noble knocking on the door and entering, he got up and left with a look. He turned around and left the smoking room with Karl, and walked towards the banquet hall. go.

The two of them walked forward in silence in the brightly lit corridor. It was not until they were approaching the banquet hall that Anson suddenly stopped, turned around and held Karl's shoulders:

"You can go find Alan Dawn immediately and get a sufficiently detailed list as soon as possible - remember to ask Alan to write it. He knows several kinds of handwriting and it is not easy to leave evidence."

"Then tell Fabian and let him be responsible for notifying all the officers to be ready. We will only rest in Jinshi City for two days and set off immediately after two days; at the same time, let the troops stay vigilant and not contact any locals without orders. Be prepared to reveal your secrets and retreat at any time!”

"What?" Carl Bain was stunned.

"It's nothing, don't worry too much, just in case - everything is still in my plan so far, just don't worry and enjoy it for a few days, this opportunity will not come soon! "

Anson replied absently, took a glass of wine from the passing waiter's tray, and walked into the banquet hall in an extremely relaxed manner.

With a confused look on his face, Karl looked at Anson's back and found that he could hardly see through this guy more and more.

………………

"boom!"

With the sound of the door closing, the smoking room with the roaring fire returned to silence.

The silent middle-aged noble stood in front of the door with his hands behind his back, his head lowered somewhat gloomily, and said nothing.

This tranquility lasted for a long time. Grand Duke Thun, who silently drank the glass of wine, finally raised his head and looked at the middle-aged noble with a calm gaze:

"You don't agree?"

"I will always support any decision you make, Lord Claude. You should really stay out of it this time." Henares said with some worry:

"You are cooperating with him now, and you are almost betting on the fate of the entire Thun and François families - not to mention whether you can succeed in the end, even if you just leak the news in advance, you will face extreme situations within the Seven Cities Alliance. A lot of pressure!”

"Leak the news?"

Faced with Henares' concerns, Grand Duke Thun snorted coldly: "Do you think the news hasn't leaked out yet?"

"You mean..."

"It only takes two days from where you patrol to Jinshi City. Why do you think I waited for you in Jinshi City for four whole days?" Grand Duke Thun laughed:

"My dear nephew is very smart. He deliberately spread the news of his appearance in Thun to force me to make a decision!"

"Either we must eradicate him regardless of the consequences, even at the expense of my loyal subordinates and only son, plus the lives of thousands of soldiers; or we must cooperate with him and accept the olive branch offered by the Clovis people!"

"As for staying out of the matter? Haha, from the moment he appeared in Hantu... no, it should be from the moment Clovis declared war on the Yser elves, the Francois family and Thun can no longer stay out of the matter!"

Grand Duke Thun stood up from the armchair and looked at Henares with a stern look in his eyes:

"So what Anson Bach said is right. You have to cooperate with the devil anyway, so why not just find the strongest one?"

"Can the Iser Elf, a weak and incompetent country, really protect us from invasion? Clovis's army can already cross the snow-capped mountains, what's the value of letting her continue to lie on Thun's body and suck blood?"

Looking at the agitated Grand Duke Thun, Henares still had some concerns: "Then the Seven Cities Alliance..."

"I will tell them that this is all just a misunderstanding. The Clovis people who appeared in Jinshi City are just distant relatives who came to visit - anyway, as long as they give a reasonable reason, what else can they do?" Grand Duke Thun waved his hand:

"The war has come, Henares; the Ysel elves cannot protect us, and the Seven Cities Alliance cannot protect us."

"The only one who can protect us is ourselves!"