monarch

The attendants carried the unconscious Majesty into his bedroom.Behind them, the dignitaries of the court poured into the room, partly out of concern for the situation, and more importantly, to ensure that they would appear in His Majesty's sight once the king woke up.

"Excuse me, my lords, make room!" cried Dr. Paganini, the king's court physician, in his Italian accent, as the little doctor and his assistant with the medicine box were fighting their way through the crowd. One way, when he came to the king's bed, the doctor's brow was beaded with sweat. "Stand back, gentlemen!" he yelled in vain as he watched the crowd rushing up.

"Tell them all to back off." Edward cast a cold glance at the crowd.

Robert Dudley drew his sword and pointed it at the ceiling.He shouted loudly, "His Royal Highness orders, everyone stand back!"

The guards next to them finally reacted, "Back up!" They shouted, forcing the crowd to back up.

The noisy crowd fell silent in an instant, and they stepped back, and in an instant, there was a large open space in front of the king's bed, and even Lady Mary and Princess Elizabeth retreated to the window.The queen looked at her stepson, she seemed to be hesitant, she took a few steps back, but then stepped forward, knelt by the king's bed, and took his hand.

Edward glanced at the queen, noncommittal.He turned to Dr. Paganini. "You may begin, sir," he said in Italian. "You can command anyone."

"Thank you, Your Highness." Dr. Paganini bowed slightly to the prince, and then he began to order the attendants in the room, "Open the window, Your Majesty needs fresh air!"

The windows were opened, and the cold wind that poured into the house made everyone tremble. There was a pungent smell of smoke in the air, and the whole city was burning.In the streets below, English troops fought rebels.

"Okay, that's all right now." After a few agonizing minutes, the Doctor nodded to his attendants, motioning them to close the windows.

The room warmed up again, the queen stood up and walked to the doctor, "Dr. Paganini, how is your Majesty doing?"

Dr. Paganini did not answer him, but looked at the prince, who glanced sideways at the crowd.

A cloud appeared on the queen's face, but it was only a fleeting shadow, and it disappeared after a while.

"Count, please let all the irrelevant people go out." Edward said to the Earl of Hertford, he looked at the crowd, "You stay, and Bishop Gardner, Earl of Essex, Mary and Elizabeth." He turned to look at Robert beside him, "And you stay too."

Robert held the hilt of his sword in his hand, stepped forward a few steps, and stood behind the prince.

"And you, of course, madam." The prince finally turned to the queen and nodded.Queen Catherine Parr pursed her lips slightly, but said nothing.

The crowd backed off reluctantly, no one wishing to offend the future king.

"Please speak now." The queen looked at Dr. Paganini impatiently.

The doctor looked at Edward, and Edward nodded slightly.

The mask of calm on the queen's face was on the verge of shattering, and she saw the mocking smile on Bishop Gardiner's face.Her greatest political enemy seemed to be saying to her "no one takes you seriously, sixth queen".She lowered her head to prevent others from seeing the corners of her mouth twitching slightly.

"Your Majesty has had a stroke, and the condition is serious." The doctor said, "Your Majesty has been greatly stimulated today, and her health has not been in good shape for the past few years."

"Will His Majesty wake up?" asked the Earl of Hertford.If the king died now, it would be the worst possible time, especially since His Majesty has not yet left a will.

"Should be." The Earl of Hertford breathed a sigh of relief.

"But it may be a few days later." The doctor continued, "And His Majesty's body may suffer some... irreversible damage."

"What kind of damage?" Edward asked.

"Your Majesty is likely to be paralyzed."

Several important ministers in the room looked at each other.

"Thank you, doctor," Edward said to Dr. Paganini, who rang the bell, and a burly attendant appeared at the door. "Please go to rest, James will take you to your room."

The Doctor wiped the sweat from his brow, he knew he was under house arrest, no doubt the Prince didn't want anyone outside this house to know the news. "Thank you, Your Highness." He bowed, "I completely submit to your will."

The prince nodded slightly, very satisfied with his knowledge and interest.

The door finally closed, and Edward turned to the others in the room. "My lords, I think we must admit that we have reached a critical juncture." He pointed to the window. "The Scots are rebelling, assisted by traitors at home and our centuries-old enemies. We have no time now. Talking about it." He glanced at the several important ministers in the room, "I know that you all want to maintain or even surpass your current status in the future court."

The Earl of Hertford knelt down and seemed to want to say something, the prince waved his hand, "Please listen to me."

The earl stood up in embarrassment, and the prince walked up to him, "You want to be my regency, Your Excellency."

"I..." The count was caught off guard by the prince's straightforward expression.

"This is a declarative sentence, you don't need to answer." The prince said coldly, and he turned to Bishop Gardiner, "And you, Your Excellency."

Bishop Gardiner bowed obediently, "I hope to use all my talents to serve Your Highness."

The prince smiled noncommittally.

"If this is what you think, then I want to say that now is your chance to express yourself." The prince glanced at the two important ministers, and they lowered their heads involuntarily, "I believe His Majesty will handle this matter according to what you are doing." His performance in a crisis...makes his own decision." He paused for a few seconds, then added in a low voice, "I will also adjust my views on you according to the performance of the two of you."

The Earl of Hertford was shocked. He looked at Bishop Gardiner next to him. Although there was no emotion on the other side's face, the slightly curved corners of his eyes had already revealed his inner excitement.The earl gritted his teeth slightly. He has been leading so far in this long-distance race for the regency crown. If he was intercepted at the last moment, he might become the laughing stock of all courts in Europe.He made up his mind, took a step forward, and half-kneeled in front of the prince, the patterns on the other's boots were clearly visible.

"I am completely your obedient servant, and I will obey all your orders." The count obediently held the prince's right hand and kissed his hand.His humility surprised everyone.However, for the Earl of Hertford, either do not do it or do it to the end, this is his creed.Since you want to show your loyalty to the Crown Prince, it's better to do it thoroughly.

Bishop Gardner was a little embarrassed. He stood there in a dilemma.The Bishop's knees were bent, but after all he didn't have the courage to imitate the Earl of Hertford.He bowed, bent as far as he could, and kissed the prince's other hand.

"May God bless you, Your Highness."

Edward smiled slightly, "Thank you, Your Excellency." He withdrew his two hands and looked at the two important ministers in front of him.

The figure of the king appeared in Edward's mind. It was a snowy winter day a few years ago. In the warm study of Whitehall Palace, the king sat in an armchair and played with the documents on the table. "Being a king doesn't mean you have to do everything yourself, but you have to know people and make good use of them." He said to his son, "Let the right people do the right things and reward them accordingly."

"I won't pretend that I know everything." The prince glanced at the two people in front of him, "so I leave things to professionals." Your Excellency, I entrust you with everything in the military, and I believe you can hold Castle, and put an end to this ridiculous rebellion. said he to the Earl of Hertford.

"I have already sent a messenger to mobilize the army to enter the city, I hope you will forgive me for my self-assertion." The count said.

"You've done a good job, Earl. What we need most now is time." This was a raid. If the raid failed to achieve results, the rebellion would be nothing more than a farce when the English reacted. "I won't waste your time any longer." The prince waved to the count.

The Earl of Hertford bowed, turned around and strode out of the room.

"As for you, Your Excellency." Edward turned to Bishop Gardiner again, "I leave the chattering parrots in the castle to you." He pointed to the door of the room, and the chattering voice of the crowd outside the door was particularly harsh, "Steady Stop them, but don't tell them anything." He paused, "Especially those Scottish nobles, you should pay attention to whether there are any people who secretly communicated with the rebels."

"Follow your orders, Your Highness." Bishop Gardner bowed deeply.

"As for you, Lord Essex." Edward turned to John Dudley standing behind him. "I entrust your Majesty and my sisters to you. Please ensure that they are safe, stay here, and don't go anywhere. Robert is my closest friend. I trust him, and he trusts you, so I trust You, please don't let me down."

The Earl of Essex knelt on one knee, "I thank you for your trust, Your Highness." His voice was very excited, "I will use my life to protect the safety of the two ladies."

"Okay, my sisters, the Earl of Essex will ensure your safety." He looked at Queen Catherine Parr again, "and of course you, madam."

Princess Elizabeth burst into tears, horrified by what happened today.She ran forward and hugged her younger brother, Edward patted her on the back lightly, "We will all be safe, I promise."

Ms. Mary came forward, she looked at Edward, "I will take good care of her, don't worry." She paused for a few seconds, "And him." She looked at the unconscious king on the bed, with complicated eyes .

The prince shook her hand.

"Let's go, Robert." He turned around. "Your Majesty needs to rest."

"Yes, Your Highness." Robert Dudley followed closely behind the prince. They opened a secret door in the wall and walked out of the room, avoiding meeting the crowd outside the room.

The queen gritted her teeth resentfully. No matter what you say, she is also the king's wife. She should be in power at this time, and she should be regent in the future, but everyone acts as if she doesn't exist at all.She looked at the rest of the room. Lady Mary was at the King's bedside, and the Earl of Essex was at the door.In the corner of the room, Princess Elizabeth sat alone, her eyes were red.

The queen smiled slightly. She could be an old man's sixth wife, or a nanny, for the sake of power, and she would never admit defeat.

She walked up to Princess Elizabeth, "Are you all right, Your Highness?" she asked in the gentlest tone she could.

……

A few miles away, at Holyrood Palace, Baron de Epernell, Commander-in-Chief of the French Army, stood in the center of the room, looking down at an overturned bust lying on the ground.The base of the bust is written with the words "James IV", which is the brother-in-law of the current King of England.He knelt down and straightened the statue.

There was a sound of hurried footsteps outside the door, he raised his head, the door was opened, and a man about 30 years old walked into the room, he was wearing a black suit, and the saber hanging casually on his waist was still dripping down. Bleeding.

"It's an honor to meet you, Baron." The man walked to the center of the room and bowed to the Frenchman.

"It's an honor for me too." The Baron returned.

"I'm sorry to hear about the situation with your army. Everything is a little out of order, and the situation..." he sighed, "somewhat unexpected."

"I heard." The baron said a little coldly, obviously dissatisfied with the other party's straightforwardness. "But before we start, may I have the privilege of knowing who I'm talking to?"

"Forgive me for forgetting to introduce myself." The man in black bowed, "I am the Earl of Surrey."

The baron looked at the man across from him in surprise. He looked handsome, but he didn't look like a traitor at all, the baron slandered.

"So what do you want us to do?" said the baron. "Your plan has failed in my opinion. The royal family has run into Edinburgh Castle, while the English army outside the city will enter the city in a few hours, and you even Not even the city is under control." He pointed out to the burning Edinburgh City, where fierce street fighting was erupting.

"I think we have no other choice but to attack the castle." The Earl of Surrey still looked calm, but if you look closely, you will find that his left arm is twitching slightly.

"We don't have any equipment!" The baron was furious. "Do you expect my soldiers to climb up the castle with ladders under the rain of bullets?"

"There are several guns at your disposal."

"But there are dozens of doors in the castle!" The baron looked at the madman opposite him like an idiot, "This is impossible, I can't accept it! All this is over, it's time to accept the reality."

The Earl of Surrey looked straight at the other party. After a long time, a stiff smile appeared on his face, which looked very permeable on his pale face.

"So what are you going to do?" He held out his hand, pulled an armchair over, and sat down.

"Surrender?" He smiled and picked up a ceramic cherub statue on the desk next to him, and played with it in his hand, "You ran all the way here, and lost more than half of your people on the way, just to make a special trip to meet the Englishmen. Surrender?" He chuckled, "Imagine what the whole of Europe would say?" He put the cherub on the table, "Another stupid thing by King François of France?"

"How dare you say that!" roared the baron angrily, his right hand on the hilt of his sword.

"Do you think your king will be happy with this situation?" The Earl of Surrey ignored the other party's anger at all, "What do you think he will think of the culprit who made him a laughing stock?" He looked viciously at the other side French officer.

The baron stared at him coldly, and he looked like he was about to explode.

"Of course, the decision is up to you," said the Earl of Surrey.

"Okay." The Baron looked like he was about to jump up and tear him apart. "I'll try to attack the castle, but only once." He turned and strode out of the room, as if fleeing for his life.

The Earl of Surrey looked at the closed door, and suddenly laughed hysterically.He grabbed the little angel on the table and swung it hard, smashing it to pieces on the ground.