monarch

When the last minister left the meeting room, the king gestured to Ponsonby, and the strong man immediately bowed and led the soldiers out of the room.

When only the king and Robert were left in the hall, the king hesitated for a long time, and finally said: "Go and talk to your father, I think he must be very dissatisfied."

Robert shook his head and said nothing.

"Are you angry with me too?" The king looked at his good friend, a trace of inexplicable disappointment flashed in his eyes, "Because I didn't fulfill your father's wish and let him become the new Lord Protector? You know I can't do this, the reputation of the Regency Council is at an all-time low, and if I don't take the opportunity to dissolve it, there won't be such a good opportunity in the future."

"You told me about this a long time ago, and my answer is still the same as then-I am your loyal servant, and so is my father. Everything our family has today comes from your Ron, and It is a great honor that you have appointed my father First Minister, and it seems to me that he should be perfectly content with that."

The king nodded, "Having said that, I think it's better to make things clear with him... After all, he is your father, and now he must think that you and I are in the same group. I don't want any conflict between you. It's too noisy."

"I will always stand with you," said Robert firmly, looking the king in the eyes. "I don't think you will doubt it."

"I have no doubts about that." The king's eyes dodged a little.As if to change the subject, he went on, "Now go to your father, before his carriage leaves. You can tell him the good news, if it cheers him up."

Robert bowed to the king, turned and ran out the door.

The king watched his friend's figure disappear behind the door, and an inexplicable emotion flashed in his eyes.

"As expected..." He sighed and laughed self-deprecatingly, "Father, you are absolutely right. For a monarch, it is not so much that he can't trust anyone, it's better to say that he dare not trust anyone. ...we hold infinite power in our hands, and such is its curse, the price of great power."

He looked around the empty hall, and his eyes finally fell on the lonely throne placed at the end of the table.

"It's really the loneliest seat in the world," he said softly.

……

Robert trotted all the way, quickly passed through the complicated corridors like a spider's nest, and took a shortcut down a small staircase used by servants. When he arrived at the foyer, the new chief minister was boarding his carriage.

Robert gestured to the coachman. The coachman hesitated for a few seconds, but followed the young master's order and put down the reins and whip in his hand.

John Dudley frowned in displeasure. He looked at his son coldly, and got into the carriage without saying a word, but did not close the door behind him.

Robert followed behind him, got into the carriage under the gaze of his father, and sat down opposite him.

"What's the matter with you?" John Dudley asked coldly, as if the person sitting across from him was not his son, but just a mediocre colleague.

"I'm here to explain what happened today." Robert was a little embarrassed, biting his lower lip with his teeth, and rubbing his hands slightly.

John Dudley sneered, "Is it your explanation, or His Majesty's explanation?"

"Is there any difference between the two?" asked Robert.

"What Your Majesty should explain to me is why I didn't get what I deserved after I paid such loyalty; and what you should explain to me is what role you played in it."

"Your Majesty doesn't need to explain." Robert's answer became a little blunt, "Everything is due to His Majesty's grace."

"You sound like a priest preaching about God," said the new Chief Minister sarcastically. "In this day and age, when all the kings of the world are trying to make themselves half-gods, Could it be that the Majesty of our country is not satisfied with this? Could it be that he wants to be an all-knowing and omnipotent god, spreading his holy light all over the island, is that so?"

"Your words are really treasonous." Robert's face became more serious. "Are you going to slander your own monarch just because the king didn't give you the position of Lord Protector?"

"Aren't I qualified to be the Lord Protector? I was the first minister to join his banner, and I have always been loyal to him. Even if I became the regent, I would follow his lead." Old Dudley's voice was a little painful, "Is he going to be like his father, after squeezing out the value of his courtiers, then throwing them aside...even though I have dedicated myself to him."

"Even if you became Regent, it was only for two years, and His Majesty gave you the positions of Chief Minister and Speaker of the Privy Council. Isn't that enough? You know very well that the Regent Council is now a stack of beds. The design is like the cecum in the belly... It will only interfere with His Majesty's policies, and even cause some misunderstandings among the officials below, doubting the gold content of His Majesty's authority. In any case, the Regency Council should no longer exist, so naturally There is no Lord Protector."

Robert looked at his father, and the disappointment on his face showed no sign of diminishing, "If this doesn't make you happy, His Majesty has prepared a big gift for you."

Old Dudley raised his eyelids and looked at his son, indicating that he was listening.

"His Majesty has decided to grant you the title of Duke of Northumberland, and at the same time, Somerset House, the residence of the Lord Protector in London, will also become your property." Robert paused, "Now you are the most prominent nobleman in the country Yes, I want to congratulate you."

Old Dudley's face changed slightly, he looked at his son without saying a word, the wrinkles between his brows were quite obvious, obviously a fierce struggle was going on in his mind.

After about half a minute, he finally spoke, "Please thank Your Majesty for my kindness."

"Aren't you satisfied with this?" Robert was a little surprised by his father's ambition.

"I am very satisfied." The voice of the new Duke of Northumberland sounded hard to tell.

"I really don't understand why you care so much about the false name of the Protector of the Country... You also said that even if you become the Protector of the Country, you will still follow His Majesty's lead. Whether you have this title or not has nothing to do with your power." Influence... If you care so much about this position, it can only mean that you have the idea of ​​relying on this position to compete with His Majesty."

Old Dudley suddenly raised his eyes, and two sharp sword-like gazes stabbed straight at his son.

There was an embarrassing silence in the carriage again. After about half a minute, the newly appointed Duke looked at his son with some irritability, "Why, are you still not getting out of the carriage? Does Your Majesty have any other orders?" He Tapping lightly on the window frame of the carriage with his fingers, he obviously couldn't wait to end the conversation.

"I explained for His Majesty, now it's my turn to explain for myself." Robert sat up straight, looking at his father with a sincere expression on his face.

"Don't worry, I can roughly guess it." The Duke of Northumberland put on that mocking smile again, "You probably want to say that your loyalty to His Majesty is unreserved, so you support His Majesty in everything Decide, even if it involves your family, am I right?"

Robert bowed his head, his silence clearly a tacit consent.

"You think that everything we have, property, title and honor, comes from the king, so we should work for him and be his loyal servants, don't you?" Old Dudley sneered, "But you forgot Our other identity - we are members of the aristocratic class. Among this group, our first allegiance is to our own family. We safeguard the interests of our own family. Like vines, our family is entangled with the big tree of the royal family. , but the existence of the vines is not for the big tree, on the contrary, the big tree is just a tool for the vines to climb. Our allegiance to the king is ultimately for ourselves, not for others.”

"My son, this is the situation you face, you are playing two roles at the same time, wearing two masks, but I think there will always be a few moments where you need to make a choice," said the old Dudley face There was a weird smile on his face, "For example, at a moment like today, you have to think about who you are first, whether you are a servant of King Edward, or a member of the Dudley family. Which role do you put on?" In first place?"

He reached out and turned the door handle, and pushed the door open.

"Go back and tell His Majesty, thank you for his kindness, and I apologize for my gaffe today." He looked at his son, "You would say that, right?"

Robert glanced at his father and got out of the car without saying a word.Behind him, the car door was slammed shut from the inside.

The coachman flicked his whip, and the two gray horses that drew the cart strode forward.

Watching the carriage disappear outside the gate, Robert turned around and returned to the hall he had left along the path he had walked before.

The king was standing by the huge French windows, and the sun, which had already set in the west, was gradually changing from white to golden yellow.The king bathed in the warm golden light, his long shadow cast on the wall behind him.

"How does he look?" Hearing the familiar footsteps behind him, Edward asked, still looking out the window without turning his head.

"My father..." Robert pondered, and glanced at the back of the king's head cautiously, "Please let me convey his thanks. He apologized for his gaffe today."

"That's why he's dissatisfied," said the king softly, turning to look at Robert. "Did you tell him I planned to make him a duke?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." Robert lowered his head, not daring to look into the king's eyes.

"But he is still not satisfied." The king sighed, walked to the table, pulled out a chair and sat on it.

"I think he was just confused for a while..." Robert raised his eyes and glanced at the king's expression. The king looked very calm, "I believe that when he calms down completely, he will understand His Majesty's considerations, and at the same time appreciate His Majesty's Ron of."

The king smiled and shook his head, "You don't have to explain, I don't mind what happened today... I think anyone would be equally disappointed... If a person feels that he deserves something, then he finds that he has to When it comes, the reaction will be stronger than someone taking that thing from him."

"Everyone has ambitions." The king stared at Robert. "Your father wants the position of Lord Protector, just as a small employee with a salary of three hundred pounds wants to replace his boss who died suddenly. There is no difference between the two. When they find that their hopes have failed, whether it is the chief minister or the small staff of the township office, they will be disappointed. This reaction is rooted in the depths of the human soul. I will not alienate your father because of this subconscious move, as long as he If he can calm down and accept my arrangement, then I will, as always, give him my full trust."

"My father is a realist, he will make the best choice for himself." Robert replied.

"That's good." The king stood up, walked to Robert's side, and patted him on the shoulder, "I am very grateful that you can carry out this plan with me... Your father didn't know about our arrangement, which gave him He was caught off guard. It is undoubtedly an unreasonable request for a son to hide from his father and do something that harms his father's interests... But you still accepted it, and I am very grateful for that."

Robert looked into the king's eyes, and His Majesty's eyes were full of gratitude, but there seemed to be a faint sense of inquiry in those eyes.Robert suddenly had some doubts in his heart, whether the person standing in front of him was the king or his friend.Edward, like him, plays these two roles, and if one day Edward has to make a choice, which role will he put first?

"I will act as you ordered," Robert felt a little bitter in his heart. "If this happens in the future, you can be sure that I will always stand by your side."

A smile appeared on the king's face, which looked much more lively than before, "I never doubted this." He waved towards the door.

"Let's go." He headed towards the door.

Robert followed behind, looking at Edward's back in a daze - the back made him involuntarily think of the back of the late King Henry VIII.The sunlight stretched the king's shadow so long that it filled the entire room.

Without a word he followed the king out of the hall.