monarch

Robert finally settled in Lisbon, not at the British Embassy, ​​but in an elegant Italianate house with front and rear gardens near the Royal Palace, which he spent generously on during his stay. Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess donated money.It is worth noting that the last resident of this house was the Italian bodyguard of the princess. He lived here temporarily after he was arranged to leave the palace. As for where he went after that, I am afraid that It's going to be an eternal mystery.

After several secret talks, the Duke of Braganza and Princess Elizabeth finally reached a preliminary agreement: when King Joao III dies, whether it is Prince Joao Manuel or the child in the womb of Princess Elizabeth will succeed him. If the crown prince dies and the fetus in Elizabeth's womb is not yet born and the throne is vacant, a three-member Regency Council will be established, consisting of Princess Elizabeth, the Duke of Braganza and King João III. Composed by younger brother Cardinal Henry.Cardinal Henry has always shown a lack of interest in state affairs, and anyone can see that he is using it to make up the numbers. The other two brought him into the Regency Council just to borrow his grand reputation.As for the power to be shared by the Duke of Braganza and the Crown Princess, the cardinal will not get involved.

With the arrival of autumn, King Joao III's health deteriorated rapidly. By September [-], the king had suffered from a high fever for a week, accompanied by painful convulsions all over the body from time to time. The only thing left is an unlimited amount of tranquilizers, and otherwise they are not as effective as a confessor.

On the morning of October [-]st, the king was so excited by a sudden improvement in his health that he decided at once to celebrate his recovery with a great party that evening.At the same time, he also plans to move to the Sintra Palace in the suburbs in a few days. The palace is located in the dense forest, and the fresh air and wonderful environment are extremely suitable for patients.

But the king's doctors didn't seem to share His Majesty's joy at all, and they all had that ominous thought in their minds.The improvement of the king's health is not a good sign that His Majesty is about to recover, but a deceptive cover-up before the arrival of death. The doctors have seen such flashbacks countless times, but none of them dared to tell the excited king the truth.His majesty's good mood was more like a trouble to them, because they had to smile as naturally as possible when facing the saint, so as not to make the king feel suspicious.

At eight o'clock in the evening on this day, the palace was brightly lit, and the doors of all the living rooms were pushed open to connect them as one.It was filled with fragrant guests and courtiers, nobles and diplomats whispering, ladies and adventurers teasing each other.In this gloomy and misty capital, the whole joyous palace shone like a lighthouse on a dark sea.

All the dignitaries of the city and the diplomatic corps were invited, including Robert, who was temporarily in Lisbon as an envoy of the King of Britain.The letter of appointment sent from London did not mention the powers of the special envoy and the content to be discussed with the Portuguese government, which made this appointment seem a bit strange. It is speculated on the intention of the British king to let the minister who "has a negative distance from the king" stay in Lisbon during this sensitive period.

King Joao III, who had been bedridden for several months, showed a strong willpower on this day that even his heroic ancestor "Henry the Navigator" would admire.When the sun was still far away from the horizon, he had already got up from the bed and dressed with the help of three servants.

Applying make-up to King João III was a Herculean task, and while the king himself thought he was in better health, that was far from the case to outsiders.The make-up artist noticed that the king's face had taken on a dead whiteness usually seen on corpses, and that beneath the goosebump-ridden skin, the king's muscles were atrophying.His eye sockets and cheeks were deeply sunken, and the outline of the skull was clearly displayed in front of outsiders. That noble head was now nothing more than a skeleton covered with skin.

At a quarter past eight in the evening, the king finally appeared in the banquet hall, and immediately met the curious and concerned eyes of the crowd.Everyone noticed the white makeup powder and bright red rouge on the king's face. This thick layer of makeup hung on the king's face in a vain way, like a layer of oil floating on the water.As long as the muscles on the king's face twitched slightly, the white powder would rain down from the king's face on his collar or shoulders, and the blood-red rouge could hardly cover up His Majesty's sickness.

Armed by his chief of attendants, the king staggered through the bowing crowd, looking as if he would fall to the ground any second.His legs were trembling with weakness, and this short distance, which was not worth mentioning to a healthy person, became a difficult long march for him.When His Majesty finally took his seat on the throne, he was already panting like Pheidippides who arrived in Athens from Marathon.

Dauphin João Manuel was carried on a soft couch and followed the king into the hall.The crown prince's condition is deteriorating just like his father's. What's more unfortunate is that he suddenly climbed onto the dining table during a dinner, fell from it again, and accidentally broke his calf. No matter where he goes, he can only rely on the help of soft couch and wheelchair.

The crown prince smiled foolishly as usual. For him, there seemed to be no difference between pain and comfort. The world was like a cloud of mist, and he never showed him his true face. This might not be a gift, At least on the face of this unloved young man, there is always a dull smile.

Princess Elizabeth walked towards the throne with the gentlest and sweetest smile that a daughter-in-law can give to her father-in-law. She had maintained such an expression when the king walked past her just now, but the king did not stop to look at her. What to say, didn't even look at her, maybe His Majesty didn't want to look at her at all.

She made a deep curtsey to the king, her head bowed so that she did not notice the black fire in the king's eyes as he gazed at her graceful neck.This gaze was like a sharp sword, and also like lightning piercing the sky on a rainy day. It contained endless threats, as if it was going to stab Elizabeth's swan-like slender neck in the next second.

"My dear father." Elizabeth kissed the king's withered hand lightly, "Do you feel better today?"

"It's much better, thank you, my daughter." The king picked up the painkiller that was placed beside him and drank it in a big gulp. "The doctors suggested that I go to the countryside to rest... I have always loved natural scenery, and the fresh air there will Very good for me."

"This is really good news." Princess Elizabeth shouted happily.

"For some people yes, for some people not." The king had an inscrutable expression on his face, "When a king dies, no matter how stupid or heinous he is, someone They will feel that they have lost something, because they know in their hearts that under the next king's rule, they may not be as good as they are now."

He scanned the room, and wherever His Majesty looked, everyone lowered their heads, not daring to look directly at the condemning gaze.

Princess Elizabeth stood up, walked to her husband's side, and kissed him lightly on his cheek, which was stained with a little black and gray. The gesture was like King St. Louis condescending to kiss a leper.

"Liz." The crown prince laughed again, the saliva overflowed from his thick lips like a flood breaking a bank, dripping everywhere on his collar.

Elizabeth still had that angelic smile on her face, but she involuntarily moved her body back, and at the same time slightly averted her gaze, trying not to be reflected by the embarrassing scene of the servant wiping her husband's saliva. into their eyes.

King Joao III looked at Princess Elizabeth meaningfully, but the gaze did not stay on the princess for too long, and soon the king looked at the position where the diplomatic mission was standing.

"Your Excellency the Marquess of Pembroke." He greeted Robert, "I am so glad to see you here today. I heard that you seem to plan to stay with us for a while? It is our great honor .”

Robert walked out of the queue of diplomats, "I am ordered by our king to temporarily stay in Portugal as a special envoy to further strengthen the friendly relationship between the two countries."

"Great, great." Joao III clapped his hands exaggeratedly, "You have been appointed as a diplomatic envoy, and Viscount Canning is still here as the ambassador to Portugal... Portugal is only a small country, but it can Let His Majesty the King of Britain send two envoys... This is really rare! It seems that a small country can also become the decisive weight in the balance at a critical moment."

"Your Majesty is too modest." Robert replied respectfully, "Although your Majesty's country is small, your Majesty's overseas empire is vast. Portugal is just the part of an iceberg above the sea, and your great country is still hidden under the water. "

"Overseas Empire?" King Joao III breathed out, "It's just temporary...just temporary..."

His voice became lower and lower, and finally turned into a soliloquy that no one else could hear clearly.

After a long time, he suddenly raised his head, as if he had just recovered.

"Then what kind of role do you want to play as a special envoy?" The king continued, "A special envoy has a special diplomatic mission... You are here to wait for my death, right?"

He laughed loudly, "Then I'm afraid you will have to wait for a long time!"

Everyone around the king laughed in agreement, and Robert also smiled slightly, "Although this is not the reason for me to stay in Portugal, I still hope that Your Majesty will live a long life."

"Well said!" The king leaned his neck again and drank another cup of painkillers, his facial features were slightly loosened, "You have been in Portugal for a long time, what do you think of us? how?"

"Your country is beautiful and peaceful." Robert carefully chose his words, "I hope she will be safe and stable forever."

"You mean lifeless." The king sneered, "You are right, we are indeed not as good as each year, and each generation is not as good as one generation... This country, this family, is like a dying tree. Worms eat away at the tree trunk, and everything is wiped out."

Princess Elizabeth trembled nervously as if struck by lightning.

"Your Majesty's words are a bit too absolute. In time, who can tell whether the old tree will regenerate new branches?" Robert said.

The king gave a noncommittal "hmm", and his interest turned back to the Duke of Braganza standing not far behind Elizabeth.

"You are here too, my dear friend!" he cried to the Duke of Bragança, "I saw you standing behind my dear daughter-in-law... It is very good, very good, and I miss you The misunderstanding must have been resolved by now, right? The enemy in the past should have become a friend now, right?"

Had a man left Lisbon a few months ago for a short stay in the country, he would have been surprised at the conviviality which prevailed in these crowded halls.The two groups of people who were trying to strangle each other a month ago are now like best friends, holding hands in the hall, complimenting each other with hypocritical and gorgeous words, and using the most sincere smiles to communicate with themselves. The sworn enemies talked and laughed happily.

Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Braganza have now turned enemies into friends, and their common enemy is the Spaniards on the other side of the border.Philip II had already regarded Portugal as his own, and many of the rumors about the fetus in Elizabeth's womb were written by his subordinates.

The Duke of Braganza had a fox-like sly smile on his face, "I must correct Your Majesty, Her Highness the Princess and I have never been enemies, on the contrary, we are loyal patriots who love Portugal deeply, and our goals are both It's the same, it's just that the means are different."

The King's eyes alternated between the Dauphine and the Duke of Braganza, as if assessing the strength of the friendship that bound them together.

"Great, great." The king's tone was far from being as excited as the content of his words, but as cold and lacking in enthusiasm as the surface of a catfish, "I like to see this kind of scene."

At this moment, the crown prince suddenly yelled at his father, "Dad, I want pudding!"

The king frowned slightly, but he still said to his son in a soft voice: "Manuel, I told you just now that pudding is not good for your stomach."

The crown prince's request was not met, which made him very unhappy. He clenched his hands into fists and waved them vigorously in the air, "I am the prince, and I want to eat pudding!"

Joao III looked really helpless, he let out a long sigh, "Well, if you must eat, then eat a little bit."

He looked at Princess Elizabeth and ordered in an unquestionable tone: "Elizabeth, please feed your husband some pudding, but not too much, just let him taste it."

The smile on Elizabeth's face froze like a mammoth frozen in ice, "But Your Majesty..."

"I don't want to repeat it a second time." The king's dark tone showed that he had lost his patience.

Elizabeth bit her lips tightly, tiny spots of blood oozing from those red lips, she walked to the dining table, picked up a plate of pudding, walked to the Prince's side, tried her best to smile, The pudding was fed spoon by spoon into the Dauphin's mouth with a silver spoon.Perhaps she was hoping that the monster in front of her would choke to death on the pudding she had swallowed.

Joao III watched this scene with enjoyment, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly because of the pleasure of revenge.