One clear evening, beside the central square of the Clumber-Heisen factory, Weiss wore his usual brown overalls, clasped his hands in front of him, and watched the changing workers with a calm and kind gaze. Major Vorral, the Norman officer in charge of the security of the factory, looked at the workers in his sight with a very different kind of indifference, with his head held high and his hands behind his back.

At the end of the shift change, the Norman soldiers closed the factory gate as usual, but after a while, they quickly opened the gate again, only to see a yellow-green camouflage car drive into the factory area and go straight to the central square. Before the car had stopped, Major Vorar had already changed his arrogant posture and faced the sedan in a standard military stance.

After the car stopped, Ze's orderly came out of the co-pilot's seat, walked quickly to Major Vorar, and explained a few words to him in Norman, only to see the lame Major nod a little reluctantly, and the orderly said to Weiss, "Get in the car!" ”

Unjoyed, sad, or unhurried, Weiss came to the car, pulled the door open, and sat in the empty back seat.

After the car drove away from the factory, Ze's orderly turned back from the co-pilot's seat: "The Governor has gone to the Château Klumber-Heissen first. ”

Weiss nodded, but did not respond. Since his return to Somsonas, he has been tethered to the Klumber-Haisen plant. He did not come to the factory again, and talked to Weiss on the phone every three or five days, but the conversation was mostly business, and only occasionally mentioned the situation of his family. Today is the Lord's fifty-fifth birthday, and Ze has informed him in advance that he will be allowed to leave the factory tonight to be with his family.

As the sedan was driving on the mountain road leading to the Klumberg-Heisen plant, a biplane flew in from the northeast. Weiss squinted, and sure enough, it was a fighter plane of the Federal Army, and it was obviously carrying a powerful weapon - the upper limit of attack power was comparable to that of a second-class cruiser!

The biplane skimmed over the city of Somsonas, leaving behind the sparse anti-aircraft fire, and then circled around the city, apparently reconnoitring the Norman army's disposition. Without waiting for the plane to approach, Ze's orderly asked the driver to drive the car to the side of the road. The rocky mountains and sparse vegetation, with the occasional few trees and bushes, were not enough to hide the car's tracks.

The orderly drew his pistol from his holster and shouted at Weiss in Ulster: "Get out of the car and lie down on the ground!" ”

Weiss could identify the identity of the fighter plane, and the pilot of the fighter plane would not know that there were his own people in the car, and he might see that the sedan looked like a Norman officer's car, and dropped a bomb directly. So, he quickly got out of the car and ran more than ten meters with the driver and the orderlies and lay down on the spot. I only heard the roar of the plane engine getting closer and closer, and when I looked up, the white fighter plane flew low at a low altitude, and did not fire at the first time, and after a while, it came back again, this time unceremoniously using machine gun fire, and the glass of the sedan was shattered to the ground.

Under the deterrence of the federal fighters, the driver and orderly lay on the ground tightly, not daring to move. With Weiss's battlefield experience and melee ability, this would have been a good opportunity to grab the gun and fight back, otherwise he could have taken the opportunity to slip away, but he hesitated for a moment and didn't make a move after all.

A sedan with its occupants already fleeing, apparently not very attractive to the Union pilots, did not turn around and come back after strafing, but shot back at the city of Somsonas. About two minutes later, a loud explosion was heard in the direction of the city.

The Federal fighter plane quickly flew out of sight, Weiss climbed up unhurriedly, and the sparse sound of anti-aircraft artillery had stopped. As the sun sets, a puff of black smoke rises, and judging by the direction, the bombs fell not far from the Clumber-Heisen factory, where Norman anti-aircraft positions were deployed, as well as a barracks and training ground, all of which were optional bombing targets for Union fighters.

"Will the car still work?" The orderly asks the driver questions in Norman.

Weiss, of course, understands.

The driver got in the car and tried it, and the car was still starting. When Weiss got closer, in addition to the front windshield, the roof and left door had also been hit by bullets, and the aesthetics and the ability to protect from the wind and rain had suffered, but it shouldn't be a big problem to repair.

The sedan was barely working, and the orderly seemed relieved, he turned to look at Weiss, put the pistol back into the holster, and seemed to be satisfied that Weiss did not take advantage of the chaos to escape, and spoke in a tone that was obviously polite: "Please get in the car!" ”

Weiss sat in the car without saying a word, his mind shifting from the longing to be reunited with his family to what had just happened. The Federation fighter plane was carrying a powerful bomb and had spent a lot of time near Somsonas, which meant it wouldn't have to fly too far from the airfield. The front of the federal army may have advanced into the territory of Lorraine!

"Ever since the Ulster fleet was annihilated by us, they have relied on these rudimentary flying machines to fight us, what's the point? This is the era when the flying fleet is king! The driver muttered in Norman.

The orderly was still sitting in the co-pilot's seat, he turned his head to look at Weiss, and then responded in Norman: "Don't underestimate these flying machines, they don't need Star Source Stones, and they are not limited by the production of Star Source Stones, as long as there is enough steel and wood, they can produce as much as they want." The attack power of these things alone is not strong, but when there are many of them, they can threaten our warships. ”

"They just don't dare to fight us!" The driver's words were full of disdain.

In contrast, the orderly's thinking is much more pragmatic: "Come on! Dignified battles only exist in the stories of knights. As long as you can win, who cares in what way! ”

When the car arrived at the castle of Clumber-Hasen, the sunset on the horizon was as red as a fire. For those who have not experienced the trials and tribulations of war, this natural landscape is beautiful and spectacular, but for those who have participated in battles and seen a lot of bloody scenes, this scene cannot help but evoke memories that they do not want to touch.

The crystal chandeliers in the castle hall were lit up, and although there was no music, the enticing aroma of food wafted through the air, and there was a faint sound of talking. Suddenly feeling the smell of home, Weiss's nose was sour: if there is no separation, if there is no war, everything is the same as before, what a happy thing!

Before Weiss could enter the castle, an unfamiliar figure appeared at the door of the hall.

"You were attacked by enemy planes on your way?" This is Ze's voice, as calm as ever, and it doesn't seem to be worrying.

"Sorry, for me it is not an enemy aircraft, but a combat aircraft of its own people." Weiss corrected without thinking.

Ze was generalized and was speechless. The Norman orderlies who followed Weiss hurriedly reported in Norman: "Baron Sabre, Your Excellency the Military Governor of Lorraine, we were indeed attacked by enemy planes on the way here, the car was hit by bullets, the glass was broken, and the top and door were pierced, but fortunately we got out of the car and hidden, and no one was injured. ”

"This reminds us that the war is going on and that we must not let our guard down at any time." Ze said in an instructive tone.

"Yes, as you command!" The orderly answered.

"You are here to stand by, and you are not allowed to enter without my call." Ze left the command, turned around, and walked with Weiss into the door of the hall.

The furnishings of the castle hall looked the same as the last time Weiss came to meet Ze alone, but it felt very different - at this moment, their families were sitting on the sofa in the hall: the Lord and his wife, and Bella!

The parting with the Lord and the Lady was a matter of this month, and the last time I saw Bella was more than a month ago when Camp 4 fell. The family reunion, there was no scene of crying and grabbing the ground, and there were no tears in the words, they just came together silently, hugged silently, and were unwilling to separate for a long time.

"Alright, you're all hungry! When dinner is ready, let's go to the restaurant! The Lady was the first to break the silence.

So Weiss and Bella walked towards the dining room with the Lord in their arms, Ze was left behind, but he was not alone, and the Lord held his arm tightly, as if she was afraid that the eldest son would be lost. For the mother, it does not matter what position or position, and the well-being of the child is more important than anything else.

The five of them came to the table and took their seats according to their customary positions. Weiss realized that Ze's seat had been reserved for him all along.

The strange servant brought them hot food, and the menu was similar to that of Weiss's tardiness when he was late. Ze unscrewed the wine bottle, poured wine for everyone personally, and said: "Tonight, we have no camps, no different identities, and we don't talk about outside things, we are just an ordinary family, having an ordinary dinner." ”

No one responded to this, but no one disputed it either.

"Today is your birthday, my beloved father." Ze raised his glass and said, "I know that no gift can change your opinion of me, and besides, no matter how the gift came from, you will not accept it, so...... I have no choice but to give you a special birthday gift – a promise: no matter what happens, I will do my best to preserve the Clumber-Heisen plant and keep your life's work alive. ”

The Lord didn't look at him squarely, but snorted coldly. In the old gentleman's concept, the honor of the family is inseparable from loyalty to the country. The Clumber-Haythens had been working for Ulster for hundreds of years, and even after the fall of Lorraine, they would rather close factories and mothball machines than compromise with the enemy, and Ze not only betrayed Ulster, but also became an invader and occupier. With the Lord's temperament, it is probably for the sake of the Lord's beloved son that he can let him enter the door and allow him to sit at the table.

It was not pleasing to the lord here, Ze had no temper at all, he drank a glass of himself, poured himself wine, and raised his glass again: "Anyway, it is really not easy for our family to sit together today. No one can predict what will happen in the future. Tonight, just this moment, let us raise a glass together, not for anything else, but for our family. ”

However, no one at the table raised a glass, not even the Lordess and Madame only looked at the Lord.

The lord grimaced, frowned, and was silent for a long time, before he looked at his eldest son, who had "risen from the dead", with sharp eyes, and said word by word: "A family should unite with the outside world and help each other, even if it falls to the lowest level of society, and cannot lose its dignity and dignity if it is not well fed or warmly clothed!" Otherwise, what is the point of making the whole of Lorraine the family property? ”