Although the atmosphere of this family dinner was a little weird, no one left the table early. ★ During the New 'Thinking' Road, the Chinese and the 'Cultural' Network ★ War, food was precious, and seven or eight out of ten dishes on the table were finally wiped out. In the second half of the dinner, the chatter of the Lordess became the main theme, and the men did not talk much, but drank a lot of wine.

Because of the special circumstances of the moment, Weiss was unable to prepare even the simplest birthday present for the Lord. In fact, for more than a year, the Lord and Bella have been steadfast in following the Resistance from place to place, never complaining. The hard years have made the already aging Lord a lot older, and the Lordess and Lady, who was originally white-skinned and round-faced, are also much haggard, which always makes Weiss feel a sense of guilt lingering in his heart.

In response to Weiss's apology, the Lord waved his hand and said meaningfully: "You are sitting here, complete, healthy, and safe, and it is the best gift for me!" ”

After dinner, Ze was supposed to have the orderlies take Weiss back to the Clumber-Heisen factory, but his car was damaged, and he drove on the mountain road at night without a front windshield, not to mention the bitter cold wind, and his safety was not guaranteed. So Ze personally called Major Vorar, explained the situation here, and promised to send back the "special gentleman" of the Clumber-Haysen family early the next morning. In this way, Weiss was able to spend the night at his long-lost home.

Ze, of course, didn't know that letting Weiss stay in the castle actually gave him an excellent chance to escape. Relying on his human radar, Weiss was able to pinpoint the surrounding guards at night - even if there was enough of a company of soldiers stationed around the castle, as long as there was no complete barbed wire fence and minefield, Weiss could take advantage of the quiet of night and the rotation of sentinels to quietly escape from the area. When he took a bath, Weiss had already gone through the escape route and the arrangements behind it, but when he came out of the shower, he was surprised to find Ze sitting at his desk.

"You don't mind if I stay here tonight, do you?"

Weiss smiled coldly: "What, worried that I will run away?" ”

"That's one of the reasons." Ze actually didn't deny it.

"What about the other reasons? Brotherhood at night? ”

"That's the second reason."

Weiss thought for a moment, "Do you still want to persuade me to play for the Normans?" ”

"It's not in tonight's plan - I don't want to be kicked out in the middle of the night by my father waving his cane." A smile finally appeared on Ze's face, even if it was only a self-deprecating smile.

"Come on, you're scared too?" Weiss snorted.

Ze replied: "What if you are afraid, what if you are not afraid, what should you face, but not to face it?" ”

Weiss walked over to the table: "It's just the two of us here, there shouldn't be any eavesdropping equipment, right?" ”

Ze looked at him, with a disgusted expression on his face, and clearly gave Weiss an affirmative answer: Of course not!

"Then we might as well talk about it frankly!" Weiss proposed.

Ze stretched out his hand: "Yes." ”

"Have you thought about the future?" Weiss asked, "What are you going to do if the Normans win?" What would you do if the Norman Empire was defeated? ”

Ze did not answer, but asked rhetorically: "What do you want to say?" ”

"I want to hear your plans, your plans for the rest of your life." Weiss replied.

Ze frowned: "Can you stop talking about this?" ”

"Why don't you talk about it?" Weiss asked rhetorically, "Because you didn't have a plan, or will your plan not be accepted and forgiven by your family?" ”

Ze was silent for a while, and sighed: "Regardless of whether the Norman Empire wins or loses, for me, there are many things that I can't decide, and ...... Unfortunately, I have become embroiled in a power struggle for the Hohenstaufen royal family, and my future depends in large part on the rise of my allegiance to the pinnacle of power. In fact, the less you know about these things, the better. ”

It is not surprising that in every country, whether centralized or democratic, monarchical or republican, there is a power struggle. Weiss put himself in Wei Ze's shoes and thought about it, and could only sigh in the same way: "The fate of the chess pieces!" ”

"Rationally speaking, the Norman Empire had a greater chance of winning this war, because in terms of the decisive factors of the war, it had a significant advantage in most respects, Wessex had been defeated, and Ulster was in its dark period all these years. If...... I mean, if the Norman Empire wins the war, and the people I serve win the battle for power, all my dreams can come true, and I have the ability to fulfill my promise to protect you and Lorraine. ”

Weiss pondered these words carefully, and was suddenly shocked: "They promised you the golden crown of the country of Lorraine?" ”

Ze stared straight at Weiss: "This is what you surmised?" ”

This rhetorical question seems to admit Weiss's inference.

The terrible allure of the golden crown, the person concerned may be deeply involved in it, and Weiss hurriedly advised: "The vast majority of Lorraine people have no interest in independence, and they are proud to be a member of the Ulster Free Federation. The kingdom of Lorraine, which the Normans promised you, even if it were established with their help, would not have the support of the people of Lorraine, because it violated the freedom we believed in! Besides, the pride of the Clumber-Haysom family lies in its manufacture, in its contributions, and has nothing to do with politics or power! ”

Ze was a little angry, he suppressed his voice, and said very hard: "That's because it has no advantage in politics, and it has never had the opportunity to touch power!" If you look at those famous families, their peak is that there are outstanding political or military figures in the family members, and ordinary powerful families, the peak period is only two or three generations, if they become a royal family, it may last for many generations. ”

After speaking, he changed his words: "Long, as long as I can succeed, your talent can be displayed to the fullest, and you don't have to be suppressed and humiliated by the old magnates!" In the past, although you were lazy and lazy, once your potential was realized, at least in military terms, you were not inferior to mine. Come to think of it, the two of us join forces, and there is a real chance that the Clumber-Haytham family will truly rise. ”

Weiss was not a sage and had no ambition for power, but exploring the history of two planes and two trajectories, Lorraine's independence was undesirable. Seeing that Ze was so obsessed, he decided to pour a basin of cold water on him:

"From your point of view, the Normans have a chance of victory, but it seems to me that the chances of the Normans winning the victory are actually very small, and the combined forces of Ulster and Wessex have survived the most difficult times and are now trying to turn the tide of the war. Think about it, the current Ulster army and the Wessex army are in a situation of fighting against the water, with a strong fighting spirit and full dedication, while the current Norman army has been paralyzed by the existing victory, and even put a large part of its energy on fighting for the fruits of victory. If this continues, maybe in a year, maybe half a year, the offensive and defensive trend of the war will be completely reversed! ”

This basin of cold water really made Ze's state of mind gradually cool down from the frenzy just now, he pondered for a while, and asked: "From your point of view, the current Norman army, compared with the early stage of the war, has begun to degenerate significantly?" ”

"When was the last time the Norman army won a major victory on the battlefield? It seems that it is still in Aocheng? Weiss asked rhetorically.

Ze's brow furrowed even tighter.

Weiss took the opportunity to probe tentatively: "They are pinning their hopes on turning the tide of the war in Lorraine, and they have made precise arrangements for this, right?" ”

Ze was noncommittal, and stared at Weiss intently.

Weiss was careful to guard against the opponent's counter-routines, and at the same time tried to shake his position: "You think that by defeating Lorraine's guerrillas, you will eliminate the threat from the rear of the battle line? In Lorraine, and even in any of the Ulster cantons, as long as there are still inhabitants alive, you are the role of the invaders, and you are militarily punished by the invaders. According to the rules of wargames, that is at least a 30% reduction in combat power, and in the real battlefield, the proportion is probably more than that! I don't know exactly what your deployment will be in Lorraine, but I have a hunch that you will not be able to achieve your intended goals in this campaign, and at best you will prevent the Federal forces from retaking Lorraine, and you will lose the strength to relaunch the offensive in the battle. ”

Ze tapped his fingers lightly on the table, which seemed to be his habitual action of deep thinking. After a long while, he spoke: "The Battle of Lorraine will begin soon, and it will not be long before we know whether the battle will develop as you speculated, or whether it will develop in the direction we envisioned." If you're right, I'll consider your suggestion carefully, but if we win a crucial victory, I want you to put aside your outdated liberal ideas and think about the future of your family, and stand by my side. ”

The Norman army has indeed made a key deployment in Lorraine! We must find a way to pass on the information so that the federal army can prepare early. If the Normans had committed heavy troops in Lorraine, they would have taken the opportunity to inflict a heavy blow on them and consolidate the effectiveness of the counterattack...... Weiss thought to himself.

"Until then, you can only stay in the factory, under strict supervision, and you can't have any contact with the outside world, which ...... That's what they mean. Ze reluctantly admits that everything is under their control, and in many ways, his role is no different from that of a pawn.

"Don't worry, I promised you about this matter, as long as our family and fellow villagers are not harmed, I can give my life. In comparison, such servitude is nothing now! Weiss used the previous sentence to let the other party down his guard, and used the latter words to spy on the military situation: "But there is one thing I think I am curious about, you see, when I came back from the factory today, the Federal Army fighter plane was almost unhindered in reconnaissance and attack, and you have nothing to do with it." How could you turn the tide of battle in Lorraine without air supremacy? ”

"You are lucky to see the answer for yourself tomorrow morning, but I must warn you not to try to pass on this news, which will not only hurt you, but many others." Ze said with a serious face.

Tomorrow morning? That being said, the air deployment of the Norman army will be in place early tomorrow morning. If it is a battleship, it can be seen by an individual, and there is no need to deliver the message by itself at all, then, what is the answer? New ground-based anti-aircraft guns? No matter how strong the anti-aircraft artillery is, it can only be used for passive defense, and cannot be used to seize air supremacy. There seems to be only one plausible answer...... The Normans also began to build planes in batches!

The next morning, as Weiss lay in bed, he heard the roar of machinery, as if the castle was located next to the airport. Go to the window and take a look, ho! The open area to the north of the castle has become a makeshift airport! What's going on?