monarch

With the intervention of the king, the religious strife finally subsided as the summer heat receded.After more than three months of turmoil, the whole country has finally calmed down like a mad horse. It seems that the dawn of peace and tranquility can be seen on the horizon.

The upper classes were unaware of the king's thunderous means, and they were astonished by this huge change like shells exploding under their feet.And when they reacted, the royal power had already won the most decisive victory in the struggle against the nobility and the parliament for hundreds of years.The dejected nobles also desperately needed a chance to divert their attention and return to the old life full of balls and fun, and such an opportunity came soon.

The engagement between the first queen and the Lord Protector's younger brother, Sir Thomas Seymour, had just been approved by the Privy Council, and they couldn't wait to set a date for their wedding—in the hot summer climate, the first queen's belly began to deform slightly soon It can't be hidden at all.Catherine Parr was married to King Henry for several years, but never conceived; less than a year after the king's death, she had a secret affair with her old lover.All this undoubtedly caused a lot of discussion, and the fiancé couple could only rush to get married to quell these rumors, so as not to shame the royal family.

At five o'clock in the afternoon on the day when the queen was expected to hold the wedding, there was already a cool breeze blowing slowly through the garden of Whitehall Palace, and the still dark green leaves on the branches were rustling in the wind.In front of the gate of the palace, the king's motorcade was ready to go, and the white horse pulling the cart neighed impatiently and kicked the pebbles on the ground with its front hooves.

At this moment, a luxurious carriage decorated with Tudor roses and Spanish pomegranates drove swiftly through the gate and galloped all the way to the steps of the palace.The servant sitting in the front seat jumped down before the carriage came to a complete stop, and opened the door for the passengers in the carriage.

Princess Mary stepped off the footrest with the help of her attendants. She was wearing a gorgeous bright red dress, and all the jewelry on her body came from her mother, the first wife of the former king, Catherine of Aragon.There is no doubt that she intends to demonstrate to the first queen at the wedding.

Princess Mary strode past the saluting attendants and into the hall.

A servant trotted behind the eldest princess, "What orders does Your Highness have?" He asked courteously.

"My brother, Your Majesty, how is everything these days?" Princess Mary asked as she walked, without looking at the attendant who was following her.

"Everything is fine, Your Majesty. If you are here to see His Majesty, it may be inconvenient now. Your Majesty is preparing to leave for the wedding at Hatfield Palace."

"I'm going to the wedding too, and I won't delay him for too long." Princess Mary walked up the stairs to the second floor, and at the top of the stairs, she happened to meet the king and the court attendant, Viscount Robert Rosyth. Dudley.

"Your Majesty." Princess Mary stepped forward, blocked the king's way, and curtseyed.

The king frowned slightly, "My dear sister, why are you still here? Aren't you going to the wedding tonight?"

"To be honest, I don't have any interest, but you have clearly told me that my attendance is of great significance, symbolizing religious reconciliation. So I will attend."

"In this case, why are you not on your way to Hatfield Palace now, but instead come here in a long circle?"

"Because I have something urgent to discuss with you."

"May I remind you that we are on a tight schedule and are leaving now when we arrive at Hatfield Palace just in time for the wedding."

"The wedding won't start if His Majesty doesn't arrive." Princess Mary smiled mockingly, "The couple will never start the ceremony without your presence."

The king frowned slightly.

"I won't keep you long."

"Okay then, but I only have 10 minutes." The king motioned Princess Mary to enter a small library next to the landing.

Princess Mary opened the door and went through the door, and went in, with the King following her.

Robert reached out to close the door, turned around, and stood outside.

……

"If you have anything to say, hurry up and say it." The king said coldly.

"I thank you very much for giving Catholics some of their rights." Princess Mary curtseyed again.

"I am for the peace and tranquility of the country." The king said seemingly casually.He turned his back to Princess Mary, picked up a collection of poems on the shelf, and started to read.

"However, I must point out that the limited freedom you give them is still incomparable with everything they deserve." Princess Mary stared straight at the king's back.

The king closed the book of poems with a snap, "If that's what you want to say, then I don't think we have anything to talk about today." He put the book back on the shelf and was about to leave.

"Ah, no, Your Majesty. That's not the case." Princess Mary took a few steps forward, right between the king and the door. "I don't mean to criticize your bill, on the contrary, I want to apologize for my reckless behavior... I really didn't expect that the "Clarendon Bill" I asked Bishop Gardiner to introduce would cause such a big controversy. Bolan, this is such a tragedy." As she spoke, she began to cry.

"Well, do you have anything else to say?" the king responded dryly.

Princess Mary's face changed slightly, she bit her lip and controlled her emotions.

"Now that you have restored the legal status of Catholics, I think that if you want to reach a settlement with the Catholic Church, there will be no major problems except the issue of church property."

"The two are not the same thing." The king was a little impatient. "The Catholics are my subjects, but the Catholic Church is an organization that obeys Rome, and this organization has always been hostile to our country."

"That's a thing of the past." Princess Mary shrugged her shoulders, "I just received a letter from His Majesty the Pope." As she spoke, she took out a few neatly stacked letter papers from her sleeves. The Vatican coat of arms is clearly visible.

The king did not reach for the letter. "What did the Pope say?" he asked calmly.

Princess Mary put down the hand holding the letter paper in embarrassment. "His Majesty the Pope is willing to recognize the legitimacy of your throne, he is willing to give up the church property that was confiscated before, and he will issue an encyclical asking the Catholics under your rule to be loyal to you."

The king raised his eyebrows slightly.

"In addition, His Majesty the Pope is willing to mediate between you and Spain. His Majesty the Pope is very influential with Emperor Charles V," Princess Mary sounded proud, "My cousin is now the leader of the entire Christian The most powerful person in the world, His Majesty the Pope is willing to give you the emperor's friendship as a gift, I think this is enough to show his sincerity."

Edward laughed, "My dear sister, let's be honest. Do you mean the Pope, or Spain?" He took a step forward, watching Princess Mary's face turn pale slightly, "All It is well known in Europe that the pope is nothing more than an echo of Spain, and that the Spanish army is stationed in Italy, just outside the gates of the city of Rome... In other words, contrary to what you say, it is the emperor who intends to use Am I right in saying that the Pope's friendship came as a gift to me?"

Princess Mary's face turned red, she nodded slightly embarrassed, "You're right."

"Then the emperor gave me such a gift, what does he want? His Majesty the Pope made such a sacrifice, what does he want?"

"The Emperor wants you to fight the French with him. Now that the war in Italy has reached a stalemate, he believes that if you attack northern France at this time, it will have a decisive impact on the entire situation."

Edward was noncommittal, "Where's the Pope?"

"His Majesty the Pope hopes to send a Pope's special envoy to England." Princess Mary glanced at the king's face, he still looked expressionless, "This special envoy will serve as a representative of the Holy See to guide the Catholic Church in England."

The king's face became a little ugly. Although there was a polite smile on the corner of his mouth, if you look closely, you can find that his lips are already a little pale. "Then when my ideas conflict with those of His Majesty the Pope, to whom will the English Catholic Church give its allegiance? How will the Pope's envoy plan to guide?"

Princess Mary was speechless, she clasped her hands together and twisted the silk handkerchief in her hand.

"As for the emperor's friendship," the king looked towards the corner of the study, where a map of Europe hung, "of course I welcome it, but we have just concluded a peace treaty with the French, and I don't plan to tear myself apart with them in the short term."

The flush on Princess Mary's face due to excitement became more and more obvious, and it looked like the sunset glow hanging in the western sky by the window, "It's been less than two years since the French intended to blow us up in Edinburgh! You actually want to abandon the emperor's friendship for them?"

The king's voice was also tinged with anger, "I really don't like the French, but now it's the Spaniards that piss me off the most." He raised his finger and pointed to the map, on which a large amount of space was symbolized to rule The Spanish Habsburg family is full of gold, "Spain, Austria, Bohemia, Hungary, Milan, Naples, and the Netherlands are all under the rule of the emperor. As long as the emperor defeats France, the whole of Europe There is no one in the mainland who can stop him. Once he wins in Italy, who do you think his next target will be? The Spanish legions in the Netherlands are already facing us across the sea. Without the French, these troops can tomorrow Use it against us!"

"The Habsburg family has achieved what it is today because they believe in God!" Princess Mary trembled with anger and excitement, "while other European monarchs are tempted by the pitiful benefits promised to them by the Reformation , when they go astray, they are the ones who stand up and use their swords and wealth to become God's shields to maintain the glory of the Catholic Church... Their current status is God's gift to them! The glory of the Catholic Church will eventually shine on the whole world In the world, all heresies will have nowhere to hide, this is the fate planned by God! Why are you standing on the opposite side of the wave of justice?"

"Who is your allegiance to? Me or Spain?" The king stared at Princess Mary, took a step back slightly, and hid his face in the shadow cast by the curtain. "I understand your feelings for your mother's country, but Acting as a lobbyist for foreign interests is incompatible with your position as Princess of England."

Princess Mary's face seemed to be covered with a layer of frost, "You question my loyalty, Your Majesty?" She raised one hand and pointed her index finger to the ceiling, "The throne you are sitting on should belong to me! My mother is the king's only legal wife! Yet I never challenged you for it, I never questioned your position! I could start a civil war tomorrow if I wanted to, but I didn't, I Neither! Do you think this is enough proof of my loyalty?"

The King's eyes blazed hideously, and his pupils blazed eeriely, like an offended lion in a pride glaring at his challenger.

"That sounds like a threat," he said as calmly as he could, but the anger in his voice was still identifiable.

"This is not a threat, it's just a repetition of the facts." Princess Mary said slowly.

The king looked at his sister indifferently, and after about half a minute, he finally said, "Please tell the emperor that I am grateful for his friendship, but our country is currently unable to carry out a military expedition. As for the pope On the other hand, if he wants to send a special envoy, then he can do as he pleases. But this special envoy will only be treated as an ordinary diplomat, in other words, he is only the ambassador of the Papal State, and he will not communicate with other countries. Ambassadors are no different and have no right to dictate anything in England."

Princess Mary curtseyed to show that she had heard the king's words.

"Who is the pope going to send? A cardinal or a diplomat?"

"His Excellency Cardinal Eugenard Pearl."

The king looked at his sister incredulously, "A pretender to the throne of England? You conspired with the Pope to let him return to the land of England?" This descendant of the Plantagenet Dynasty was declared by the Pope as the legal heir to the throne of England.

"Isn't this the best symbol of reconciliation?" Princess Mary was unmoved.

The king smiled angrily, "Reconciliation? After his mother, the Countess of Salisbury, was chopped into a pulp by our father in the Tower of London? After my father sent countless waves of assassins to the European continent to take his item After the head? If you were Bishop Pearl, would you be willing to reconcile with us?"

"Your Excellency Cardinal is the most devout person I know. He has dedicated his life to a greater cause, and he no longer cares about these worldly trivial matters." Princess Mary clasped her chest tightly Looking at the cross in front of him, as if to draw strength from it, "He is already an old man, let him return to his hometown."

"If he wants to come, he can do as he pleases." The king replied stiffly, "but if he has any misdeeds, then his status as a diplomat will not save him." He bypassed Princess Mary and walked away. To the door, "I'm going to Hatfield Palace now. If you don't want to be rude because you arrive too late, then I suggest you leave immediately."

He turned around, never looked at Princess Mary again, opened the door and left.

After half a quarter of an hour, Princess Mary finally walked out of the hall. She boarded the carriage with her usual haughty expression, and sat deep into the carriage.The door closed behind her, and the horses trotted forward, the wheels rattling on the sand.