Shadow of great britain

In a detached villa on the outskirts of London, Sir Peel was comfortably leaning on the sofa next to the fireplace, enjoying a pleasant vacation.

He was holding a delicate black tea cup in one hand and a freshly baked Times newspaper in the other.

"This is the best of times, and it is also the worst of times. Damn it! This piece of writing is really great. That kid will definitely become a great writer in the future!"

As soon as he finished saying this, he looked up and saw Mrs. Peel walking in holding a stack of neatly stacked newspapers.

Sir Peel couldn't help but joked: "Oh, madam, why did you buy so many newspapers? Are you planning to sell newspapers part-time?"

Mrs. Peel rolled her eyes at him angrily: "Robert! You told me that there might be news about Officer Arthur today, but you never told me that there would be so much news.

I told the newspaper vendor that I wanted a newspaper with Officer Arthur on it, and he was so eager to give me a copy of every newspaper he sold!

Although I am also a big fan of Officer Arthur, but how much does it cost to post so many posts for him at once? "

Sir Peel smiled and shook his head: "No, no, no, madam. I only spent the money of The Times. The money of other newspapers was all kindly sponsored by our young and promising member of the House of Commons, Mr. George Morris."

Mr. Morris is a man with a strong sense of social responsibility, so when I showed him the report about Officer Arthur, he immediately stood up and said that he would donate generously. "

When Mrs. Peel heard this, she wondered: "I know that Mr. Morris just inherited his father's bank shares, but no matter how rich he is, he can't afford to spend it like this, right?

And even if he is willing to spend money, his mobility is too high. I just counted, from broadsheets to tabloids, Mr. Morris has found a total of more than thirty newspapers. How did he get in touch with so many newspapers? "

When Sir Peel heard this, he finally couldn't hold it in any longer, and he threw his head back and laughed with joy.

"Dear, Mr. Morris has to be found even if his legs are broken! Because I told him that if the public's attention is not focused on the glorious image of Officer Arthur, then all the things he used to bribe votes with his umbrella will be exposed. . George Morris is a member of the Tory Party like me. As a senior, I have to give him some advice on how to handle crisis public relations, right?"

Mrs. Peel burst out laughing when she heard this. She threw all the newspapers aside, then pressed on his thigh and slapped him lightly.

"Robert, you are so evil! Morris will definitely pay a fortune this time."

"Oh, no, no, no." Sir Peel shook his finger: "Dear, in the political field, we usually call this win-win cooperation.

Morris retains his future and has my thanks.

And I not only retained the most outstanding police officer of Scotland Yard at the minimum cost, but also showed the bright image of Scotland Yard to the public through this incident.

You know, Scotland Yard was built by me from top to bottom. If Scotland Yard is good, I am good, so this is also my political achievement.

Even the young court clerk who wrote the news was given the opportunity to present his article on a larger stage.

There are no losers in this transaction, all are winners. "

"What about Mr. Morris' wallet? Robert, you are such a lying little villain."

Sir Peel raised his eyebrows and took his wife into his arms: "My dear, this is your fault. You have been married to me for so many years, why do you still not understand your husband's occupation?

I'm a senior congressman, so don't try to pry anything bad out of me. I never speak harshly to civilized people. "

"Don't you tell me when the House of Commons is in session?"

"Oh, dear, you are not a civilized person sitting in the House of Commons. It is just a bunch of baboons. Do you think the animal trainer will be nice to the animals? I am totally justified in scolding in the zoo. It should be done and has sufficient theoretical basis."

Mrs. Peel buried her face in Sir Peel's arm, laughing so hard that she could hardly breathe.

"Robert, that's really rude of you to say that. How can you say that MPs are all baboons?"

Sir Peel didn't care. He opened the newspaper and read the next article about the Ottoman Empire considering recognizing Greek independence.

"Because they also think I am a baboon, and they attack me because we are different breeds. My dear, you have to know that respect is always mutual, just like you and me."

…

In front of the Royal Naval School in Greenwich.

Arthur was slightly distracted as he looked at the teaching building with a light blue roof and milky white exterior walls in front of him.

Elder was beside him and introduced eloquently: "This is where you will study in the future. It is not only a school but also a work of art. The overall interior design is by Sir James Thornhill. The whole building adopts pure Baroque style.

By the way, there is a special painting hall here, which people like you who understand art will definitely like.

The oil painting inside is the largest in Europe and even the world. It took more than ten years from design to completion. It passed through the hands of many people and was finally completed in 1696 by Sir Christopher Wren.

The overall architectural design of the school is from the famous designer Andre Le Nôtre. Do you know him? He was Louis XIV's chief landscape architect, and he also designed the Palace of Versailles, an absolute master's work.

In addition, the school also collects many fragmentary paintings, the themes of which are mostly about the glorious history of the Royal Navy, from the Battle of Graveline, which defeated the Spanish Armada, to the Cadiz Expedition of 1596, which completely destroyed them. Or maybe it was the Battle of Chisabique in 1814 that taught those rebels in the North American colonies a lesson when they burned down their Congress and the White House.

Of course, the Royal Navy's most proud battle of Trafalgar in 1805 is indispensable. In that war, we completely annihilated the combined fleets of France and Spain. Unfortunately, the soul of the Royal Navy, General Horatio Nelson, was here. He died heroically in battle.

However, although General Nelson has passed away, the order he conveyed by flag language before the war still remains in the hearts of every serving officer and soldier of the Royal Navy.

As General Nelson said - England expects everyone to do their part. "

Elder's mouth was almost dry as he spoke, but when he turned around to look, Arthur beside him obviously didn't listen to a word.

His good friend's eyes were empty, and he must be in a daze.

Elder held his forehead and complained: "Damn it! Arthur, you drank so much yesterday that you still haven't woken up yet? As soon as I took a sip, I knew that the wine was watered down, just a little bit of cheap beer. How did you faint until now? Drinking It’s not that powerful, right?”

Arthur just came back to his senses, and he rubbed his face: "The stamina of the wine is not that great, but the stamina of the article is really great."

"Article? What article?"

Elder had long forgotten what happened yesterday, and it was not until Arthur reminded him that he remembered the court clerk named Charles Dickens.

Arthur asked: "You are a professional in literature. What do you think of his writing style?"

Elder held his chin and thought for a while. He picked up the knowledge of literary criticism that he had lost for a long time and commented: "His writing is just okay, but if he wants to become a great writer, he is still not ready yet."

"What's the difference?"

Elder recalled Dickens's behavior and waved his hands disdainfully.

"He speaks like a gentleman, and he is too polite. In my opinion, unless he makes changes, such a person will not become a literary giant."

Arthur thought Elder would give some legitimate reason, but he didn't expect it to be this reason.

He was about to ask further, but out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a man in a navy uniform walking towards them.

Elder also noticed the other party. The boy who was neither standing nor sitting actually shuddered, and then quickly stood at attention and saluted.

"Good morning, Colonel Fitzroy!"

The middle-aged man didn't regard Arthur as an outsider. He spoke directly to Elder: "I was just looking for you."

"What do you want from me?"

Colonel Fitzroy stroked his wrinkled white gloves and said, "I don't want the person you recommended to me two days ago."

"Ah? Why?" Elder became anxious when he heard this: "Colonel, how can you just say you don't want it? I've already negotiated with him!"

Fitzroy was also helpless: "Elder, it's not that I don't want it, that's what the above said. Is there something wrong with the person you are looking for, or is he related to some big shot?

The content of this order is very strange, and the levels involved are also very high.

I don’t know if that guy had a seizure, but he actually gave a separate order to the fleet commander just for the sake of a little naturalist, and then transferred it to me.

I see that the man you recommended is named Hastings. Is he related to the Marquis of Hastings? Could it be his grandson? "