The King

  Chapter 357 Unexpected temptation

   Stepping into the capital again, Hudson clearly felt a sense of sadness blowing towards his face. Obviously, the death of Caesar III not only affected the high level of the kingdom, but also spread to the people.

   Perhaps affected by the atmosphere, I was invited to the party in the evening. The table full of delicacies from mountains and seas failed to mobilize Hudson's appetite.

  Different from the usual banquets, this time there is no good wine or beauties. Smiles on everyone's faces are even rarer, and even if they do appear, they are very reluctant.

  Human nature is the most complicated.

  When the king was alive, the constrained nobles wanted him to die immediately; but Caesar III was really dead, and everyone missed him again.

   Listening to the analysis and discussion of the international situation by a group of nobles, most of them have the same judgment as Hudson, and they are pessimistic about the future situation.

  Especially the border nobles in the southern part of the kingdom, they are even more frightened by the current situation. The rear suddenly became the front line of future conflicts, which caught everyone by surprise.

  Comparatively speaking, the southeastern province is pretty good. At the very least, there are still a few mountains in the middle, and there is no need to face the pressure of the Kingdom of Hesse for a while.

  The main reason is that Caesar III died too early. According to everyone's prior estimates, it is believed that the king can still last for three to five years.

   With such a long time buffer, the kingdom's debt crisis has basically been resolved; the kingdom's emerging nobles, who can keep their foundations, have gained a firm foothold; the recovered land has almost been reintroduced into the rule.

  The provinces in the south-central part of the kingdom that were less affected by the war have all come out of the shadow of the war and recovered.

  The strength has recovered by seven to eight points. Even if the new monarch has limited ability, he can protect himself in the face of complex international situations.

  Unfortunately, the reality is cruel. Caesar III did not live as long as everyone expected, and all kinds of contradictions that were suppressed before are now in danger of being detonated in advance.

   Seeing the crowd constantly calling for unity, Hudson knew that unity was getting farther and farther away from the Alpha Kingdom.

  The guys from the Northland didn’t show up at the party, but in Hudson’s mind, figures gloating over others’ misfortune had already appeared one by one.

  Unity is very important, but it is based on the premise of self-interest.

  Perhaps they will not talk about unity until the nobles in various parts of the south are weakened and the kingdom is on the verge of collapse.

  …

   "Dear Earl of Hudson, you are a master of military affairs. Judging from the current international situation, if one day several major countries in the central region want to move northward, where will they choose to start?"

  Count Carles' words pushed Hudson to the foreground, and everyone's eyes focused on him.

   "Dear Count Calais, this assumption makes no sense.

  The central kingdoms are not monolithic, and we cannot treat them as a whole. Even if they all want to go north, their respective strategic goals are not the same.

   At most, they will join forces in name, but when it comes to specific actions, they will still fight on their own.

   Open the map of the mainland and you will know that there are too many entry points that the countries in the central region can choose.

  If you want to guard against their invasion, all border provinces in the south of the kingdom must build defense lines.

  Maybe we can be a little more optimistic, they are just testing, and they are not ready to invade the north now! "

   Hudson said helplessly.

   I thought I was pessimistic enough, but I didn't expect these guys to be even more pessimistic than him. They were all thinking about what to do when the enemy came.

  It is a good thing to have a sense of crisis, but if you are too nervous, it becomes unfounded worry.

   are all problems left over from history.

  Alfa Kingdom has been facing the threat of orcs all year round. Whenever there is a situation, it will be a **** battle, and the sense of crisis has been implanted in everyone's bones.

  The way to deal with the crisis is also aimed at the orcs. Now that the venue has shifted to the infighting of the human race, the original traditional thinking mode obviously cannot keep up.

   After all, the orcs can go south without any scruples, but the countries in the central region are subject to multiple checks and balances, and they must follow the rules.

  It is impossible for everyone to change their minds in a short while. The only effect Hudson's words brought to everyone was to strengthen everyone's idea of ​​building a defense line.

   Withdrew from the discussion circle, Earl Oran came over and took Hudson to the corner, and asked in a low voice:

   "Hudson, I heard that you are going to be a father soon, how is Melissa doing now?

  It may seem like an ordinary statement about family life, but it contains a lot of content. It is one thing to care about the daughter and grandson, but more is for the marriage of the two families.

  Melissa and the child in her belly are the bond of the alliance between the two parties.

   "Don't worry, Earl. Melissa is in very good condition, and the baby in her womb is also healthy.

   Counting the days, the birth will be almost at the end of the month. It's a pity that the royal capital is busy now, and I'm afraid I won't be able to go back early! "

  Looking at the regretful Hudson, Earl Oran smiled slightly. Perhaps realizing that the occasion was wrong, after showing a smile, he immediately restrained himself.

   "Don't worry, the child will be proud of having a father like you. The situation at home and abroad is very tense now, and it is right for you to stay in the king.

   Those guys in the Northland are already starting to move around. You and the Lochnard family are mortal enemies, people in the north should be careful. "

  Hearing Earl Oran's reminder, Hudson immediately realized that trouble was coming.

   Without the lead of Caesar III, the kingdom's policy of suppressing the nobles in the north would definitely be relaxed.

  Once they are loosened, the newly opened branch of the family in the north will have a hard time.

  Although they will not lead people to fight there directly, it is still possible to secretly engage in some conspiracy and tricks to force the Koslow family to give up the fief in the north.

   Rubbing his forehead, Hudson found in embarrassment that he could do nothing but remind everyone to be careful.

  Even if they wanted to take revenge, the Koslow family couldn't reach out that long.

  You can’t fight Sap yourself, can you?

   If you really want to do that, the conflict will escalate. With a proper way of playing both sides, the final result has a high probability that the two will go down together.

   will be able to take advantage of it, and Hudson will never want to hang out in the aristocratic circle. If everyone played like that, who would feel safe?

   "Why, the Holliser family also felt the pressure?"

   Hudson asked concerned.

  For a big family, it is very simple to target a few small nobles, there is nothing to say.

   But if even the emerging aristocrats like the Holliser family felt the pressure, it would be another situation.

   "It's not that serious for the time being, but after the news of His Majesty's death came out, the nobles of the North held a group meeting, and it took two days to discuss it before it ended.

  The specific content of their discussion is unknown, but it can be seen from the happy faces of everyone when they left that the meeting was fruitful.

   Perhaps the family relocation this time was a wrong decision. Compared with the five major families in the Northland, the Holliser family is really too weak! "

   Count Oran couldn't help sighing.

  The biggest problem with the newly recovered seven provinces in northern Xinjiang of the Kingdom is that they are too close to the five major families of the Northern Lands.

   If there were no shackles to restrain the five major families, what would the nobles in the seven northern provinces who hadn't even moved out of their homes fight against them?

   Just because you haven’t made a move now doesn’t mean you won’t make a move in the future. Maybe they worked so hard to relocate the population and supplies, and in the end they were making wedding dresses for others.

  It's a pity that there is no medicine for regret in the world. After taking this step, there is no possibility of turning back.

   Either go all out and gain a firm foothold in the north; or fall into the dust.

   "Your Excellency, don't worry too much. Those guys in the Northland are powerful, but they also have many enemies.

  As long as they can unite a group of nobles who went north, they dare not act rashly. After this period of weakness is over, everything will improve. "

   Hudson comforted him insincerely.

   It was precisely because he knew that there was a big pit in the north that he chose to take root in the southeastern province. At the beginning, he had secretly persuaded Earl Oran, but the Holliser family was determined to fight.

   Now it depends on whether the new monarch can suppress the five major families in the Northern Territory at the next royal capital meeting, otherwise the future northern border is doomed to be peaceful.

  …

  The succession of the new king, the state funeral, everything is being prepared step by step. Whether it is a group of nobles in the kingdom or representatives of various countries, they have all realized their peace during this period.

   It’s just that Hudson’s heart is not peaceful, and his intuition tells him: Behind the tranquility often represents a greater crisis.

   "My lord, Your Highness invites you to discuss matters in the palace."

  Receiving this news, Hudson couldn't help but wrinkle. The more critical the moment, the more it is necessary to cut the mess quickly.

  In his view, Crown Prince Caesar might as well ascend to the throne earlier if he engages in these cumbersome etiquette procedures.

  The king and the crown prince have never been a concept. As long as the crown is not worn for a day, things have the potential to change.

  Following the attendants into the meeting hall, Hudson immediately realized that something was wrong.

  No matter how you say it, Crown Prince Caesar is also the future monarch of everyone. Even if you don’t like it in your heart, you have to live with face.

   But the reality is that everyone didn't even bother to pretend, and put on a bitter face, and many people glared at Crown Prince Caesar.

   The doubt didn't last long, and Hudson's face became gloomy.

   "Your Highness, since the beginning of my Alpha Kingdom a hundred years ago, the Holy See has nothing to do with the succession of the monarch. Now you ask the Holy See to come and be crowned, what is it?"

   It's not that Hudson is impatient, it's that Crown Prince Caesar is too nonsense.

  The Alpha Kingdom is the arch-enemy of the Holy See. At this time, the people of the Holy See are crowned, isn't it a compromise with the enemy!

  In addition to the obvious reasons, the more important thing is that he does not deal with the Holy See. They all started by stepping on the Holy See, and the kingdom repaired the relationship with the Holy See. Hudson was definitely the most injured one.

   "Earl Hudson, don't worry. It's just a ceremony, and it won't harm the real interests of the kingdom.

   Besides, the Holy See also made a promise, as long as we..."

   Before Crown Prince Caesar could finish speaking, Hudson forcibly interrupted: "Your Highness has such a big heart, the battle between kingship and theocracy is just an ordinary ceremony in your eyes.

   It's just that His Highness did this, did he consider the political consequences brought about by it? Leaving aside the domestic ones, let's simply analyze the international influence.

  The most direct impact is that our relationship with the Frankish Kingdom will definitely break down, and our relationship with several other major human nations will also deteriorate.

   As for the promise of the Holy See, as long as you read the history books more when you are free, you will not have such illusions! "

  As soon as the voice fell to the ground, all the great nobles who opposed the Holy See spoke in agreement, and in an instant it became a verbal siege of the crown prince by a group of fief nobles.

  The court ministers who were supposed to stand on the side of the king and fight with everyone on the grounds of reason, are now also watching from the sidelines.

   Obviously, everyone is not interested in the proposal of Crown Prince Caesar.

  Hudson vaguely realized that something was wrong. Since everyone was against it, why did Crown Prince Caesar do this?

   "Everyone, be quiet, this is not a vegetable market, what's so noisy.

  According to the usual practice, who will host the coronation ceremony is decided by the new king.

  Since His Royal Highness has decided to invite people from the Holy See to preside over it, let them be in charge. Don't go beyond the rules for your own self-interest! "

  Duke Hero's words instantly detonated the audience.

  It is definitely big news that the Northern Noble Group and Xinjun are getting mixed up. The difficulty was that Crown Prince Caesar dared to make such a proposal, and his affection won them supporters.

   Currently, the opposition is the most fierce. Except for Hudson, the rest are all veteran nobles in the south-central part of the kingdom.

  Northern nobles + emerging nobles were pulled over, and the two camps formed a new balance.

   "Okay, the coronation ceremony should be handed over to Archbishop Tyron, and the matter of inviting the Holy See will be over!"

   After the dust settled, Hudson, who won the victory, could not see a smile on his face.

  When talking with Earl Oran yesterday, he was still worried about the threat of the northern nobles. Now that the two sides have merged, there must be a story behind it.

   Hudson can't think of a third person other than the Crown Prince Caesar who can match the relationship between the two parties.

  In an instant, he understood that the proposal made by Crown Prince Caesar just now did not really intend to invite people from the Holy See to come and be crowned, but a deliberate temptation.

  Perhaps in addition to testing the reactions of these people, Crown Prince Caesar is still sending a signal to the outside world: I am in a hurry, and I will go to the Holy See.

  Don't talk about contradictions, in the face of interests, this stuff has always been worthless.

  It was all planned, no wonder all the ministers in the DPRK were silent on the sidelines.

  (end of this chapter)