[Archduke Karl seems to have a bit of a meaning in history, although he is very old, he has never married, until 1815 (exactly two months after Napoleon's Battle of Waterloo), he married Princess Henrietta of the Nassau-Welburg family, and in 1816 he had his first child, five years younger than Napoleon's son.

This is set to marry a few years earlier, and then the eldest daughter Teresa was born in the same year as the protagonist in 1811, only a month younger, which can be regarded as a small fluctuation in the historical line......]

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Her Royal Highness Princess Teresa."

Princess Teresa, who was staring at the young man, did not change her expression, but also bent her knees slightly to him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Duke Lechstedt."

Her voice was much more tactful than that of girls of the same age, but it also exuded a sense of indifference.

Then she shifted her gaze to her father.

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting, father. I wasted too much time trying to draw some of the rare plants inside......"

"It doesn't matter, you can spend as much time here as you like." Grand Duke Karl looked at his daughter and smiled dotingly, without the slightest hint of the shelf he had just put in front of everyone.

Then, he walked up to his daughter, then reached for the sketchbook in her hand, "Just let me see my daughter's masterpiece!" ”

Taking advantage of the time when the father and daughter were having fun, Aglon came to his stepfather, Count Nepeger, without a trace.

"Sir, I've probably guessed a little, but I'd like to ask you to explain—what's going on now?"

"That's what you guessed." Count Nepeg replied in a whisper, "I have tried my best to intercede with the Grand Duke by virtue of my past affection, and at last he has agreed to see you, and let you know his daughter. But that's all we can do here, so please do it yourself. ”

"Is this what it's called making amends?" Aiglon asked again.

"If you're happy to understand that, then that's fine." Count Nepeg nodded, "Also, your mother is very supportive of this matter, and has worked very hard to speak in front of His Majesty the Emperor, and in fact we have come back for this purpose. I'm telling you this because I want you to calm down a little bit of resentment, she's not so careless about you. ”

She thinks that if she can become a family member with Archduke Karl, she can satisfy her vanity...... Aiglon wanted to complain but didn't.

A man should have a clear grievance, and since she took the initiative to plan for herself this time, the objective motive is no longer important, and she should indeed be grateful.

"Then I admit her affection, and I am very grateful for her help." Aglon was silent for a moment before replying, "I don't think I need to think about this now, though, I'm still young. ”

"It's true that you're still young, but it's time to think about the future, and your situation requires you to seek a better future as soon as possible, instead of getting used to living now." Count Nepeg replied in a low voice, "Archduke Karl inherited the property of Duke Cheshen, the wealth of this ancient family has made him one of the richest nobles in our country, although his daughter is destined to not inherit the family business, but he loves Princess Teresa so much, he will definitely prepare a large dowry for Her Royal Highness, enough for her and her son-in-law to live a rich and worry-free life - and, with Archduke Karl's status in the Habsburg family, if you do become a son-in-law, then your other treatment will definitely be very different." ”

Yes, in this era, or in all eras, when the elders consider marriage for the juniors, they are based on such realistic considerations first - after all, love always has a shelf life, and it will fade when it expires; There is no gold, it will always shine so brightly.

"Your Highness, please don't forget what I told you last time." At this time, Captain Forrestie, who had been silent, also spoke. "This is definitely a good opportunity for you, you should go for it, and be fast! It's hard to find someone like this who is so good and suitable that you can find it again if you miss it, and you've seen it, she's good-looking, and she's such a rich princess...... What more do you need to hesitate about? ”

Aiglon was silent, quietly listening to the persuasion of his stepfather and teacher.

He knew that they had said these things purely for their own sake, and that he should be grateful for the kindness.

But that doesn't mean he has to do what they say.

If he considered staying in Austria for a long time, it might really be an excellent choice, after all, Count Nepeger's words were reasonable, and he could rely on marriage to get better treatment.

But things in the world aren't so wishful thinking – and who says that Princess Teresa will definitely be favored by herself? Maybe it's just a waste of effort to be generous.

Besides, I didn't even think about staying here, let alone trying this path.

However, these thoughts were buried deep in his heart and did not reveal them.

"Thank you for your kindness - I'll think about it." He calmly replied to the two of them, "However, I think there are some things that cannot be forced, and I am not a very ideal son-in-law for the Grand Duke, after all, I can be said to have nothing." ”

"You don't have to be so self-deprecating." Count Nepeg shook his head. "As far as I can tell, you have a lot of qualities that people love. In addition, I can see that Archduke Karl has just been very pleased with your performance, I know him, he is arrogant and can not many people in his life can identify with him, and Napoleon happens to be among them—and you, as Napoleon's son, are in themselves worthy of his high attention. ”

"Your Highness, as long as you work hard, I am confident that you will be able to fulfill everyone's expectations." Captain Forrestie nodded approvingly. "If Napoleon's son marries the daughter of Archduke Karl, it will be a historic event, and I am afraid that the whole of Europe will be amazed."

Aglon could only smile wryly at their imagination, after all, such wishful thinking was meaningless.

It was then that he noticed that Archjustice Karl was approaching him, so he interrupted the conversation and turned his gaze to the Archduke.

The Grand Duke smiled and handed him the sketchbook in the princess's hand just now, "This is Teresa's drawing, what do you think?" ”

Aiglon took it and looked through it.

Each page is depicted with plants, which are depicted in great detail, and you can see that every stroke is carefully drawn, and the basic skills are also very good.

"Very well drawn." He casually complimented, and there could be no other answer anyway.

"Then please give it back to me......" At this time, Princess Teresa suddenly walked in front of him, and then stretched out her hand, "I'm sorry, Your Highness, I don't like to be judged by others......"

Her sudden move made everyone present a little surprised, and then the atmosphere suddenly became awkward.

"It's a coincidence, and I'm the same, so I can understand your feelings." Aiglon quickly regained his composure, then smiled and handed the sketchbook back to the other party, "Hope I didn't disturb you." ”

"It doesn't matter." Princess Teresa shook her head, "It's already done anyway." ”

The two men were silent.

"Your Highness, shall we go over there and rest?" Napperg suddenly suggested to the Grand Duke, "I have some questions for you—"

"Okay." Grand Duke Karl shrugged his shoulders, "Bad old men, don't bother the young people, let them talk to themselves." ”

As the Count was leaving, he gave Aglon a look, as if urging him to act.

However, as they walked away, Aiglon remained silent.

For one, he has no motive to please the other party; Second, he didn't know how to please the other party.

Although it was only the first time they met, it could be seen from the few words of the princess that she was introverted and not so easy to get along with.

The two of them were relatively silent, and the princess lowered her gaze slightly, unable to see what she was thinking.

The awkward silence didn't seem to be the way to go, so Aglon reluctantly spoke.

"I'm sorry if you think this is embarrassing you. My mother and stepfather were overzealous in this matter, and as a result, even I was a little embarrassed. ”

After he spoke, Princess Teresa finally looked up, then looked at him, "...... You don't have to apologize, it's a must-have experience for me, even if it's ...... Even if you don't have it, there will always be other arrangements, so I can understand you. ”

"Why do you say that?" There was something strange about Aglon.

"My father is very old, so I hope to see that I have a future to rely on as soon as possible, so that he can rest assured." Princess Teresa replied in a whisper, "So I was mentally prepared to be taken by him to meet people, relatively speaking, now is not my worst expectation." ”

"That means it's already bad, isn't it?" Aglon asked with a smile. "I'm probably a little self-aware, too."

"I didn't mean that......" Theresa quickly shook her head, "I just said ...... It's embarrassing. ”

"It's okay, you're not the only one who thinks so." Agron nodded.

There was another brief pause in the conversation.

"Actually, Your Highness, I admire you a little." After a moment of silence, Princess Teresa suddenly said.

"Why do you say that?" Aglon was surprised.

"I've heard my father say that you refuse to serve in the army because you prefer words. He had some opinions about it, but I ...... But I think it's rare that you can still insist on your own will in such a difficult situation. Princess Teresa looked at the boy calmly, "Besides, to be honest, because I saw the guys in military uniforms every day with my father, I have long been a little sick to military uniforms...... I don't understand why they're so keen on the smell of blood, but I think the text is more comfortable than guns. ”

"Really......?" Agron couldn't help but laugh. "I'm glad you understood me."

He didn't expect that his actions because of the motive of seeking profit and avoiding harm would cause such unexpected consequences, and his life was really full of accidents.

"Do you really want to make a difference in this?" Princess Teresa asked.

"I'm not confident in my talent in this area, but I think I'll try it." Aiglon replied happily.

"How are you going to try it?" Teresa asked curiously.

"I'll keep this a secret." Aiglon smiled and shook his head, "If I fail, I'll be eager to bury myself in the sand instead of having everyone look at my failure with sympathy." ”

"That's a very real thought! Maybe I do the same. Princess Teresa was stunned at first, and then the corners of her mouth moved slightly. Okay, so I'm going to wish you success, and that might give me some encouragement and let me know that we're not just props. ”

"No, I'm the prop, and you're destined for a good life." "You have everything, so there's no need to find a way to entertain yourself like I do." ”

"You're too humble." Princess Teresa shook her head, "Okay...... It would be a bit insulting to say that we are exactly the same, and I am much freer than you, but I will have the same obligations as your mother. ”

"Then I sincerely wish you better luck than my mother when you do your duty." Aiglon nodded, and said to the other sincerely.

"Your Highness, I believe that your present situation is unjust and unreasonable, and that it is not the magnanimity and generosity of the Habsburgs. Unfortunately, this is not something I can control...... In conclusion, I wish you all the best of luck, whatever the future holds. Princess Teresa bowed to him again as a sign of farewell, "The strife of our ancestors has long since passed with the wind, and perhaps we can become friends because of our hobbies." ”

"I hope so." Aiglon waved goodbye to her as well.