William Parr, Earl of Essex, and Isabel took a dozen or so attendants along the River Thames to Gersenwich, southeast of London, where Henry VIII's royal workshop was built. Afterwards, the two rode to the royal workshop while chatting with the horses they had brought with them.

Since William had already decided to give Isabel a complete set of chic armor, he warmly invited the other party directly to the hall of the royal workshop. The hall displays a replica of the sumptuous and elaborate cavalry plate armor and the infantry plate armor worn during dismounted infantry battles, which were made by Henry VIII and some high-ranking nobles in the royal workshop since its inception.

The first thing that catches Isabelle's eye is a replica of the "silver openwork armor" created specifically for Henry VIII. The head of the workshop explained in somewhat proficient English that the cavalry armor of the monarch Henry VIII was made in 1515 by the famous Italian master craftsman Paul Van Wieland. The plates are silver-plated and decorated with gold, and the skirt is decorated with the initials H and K of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon to commemorate their marriage.

The figure on the cuirass is St. George, and on the back armor is Santa Barbara. The rest of the armor features the Tudor rose and Catherine's pomegranate logos. Although the decoration is not exquisite, it is also very delicate, not so much a protective gear as a testimony of love.

While nodding her head in appreciation, Isabel noticed that Tudor roses and pomegranates from Aragon were everywhere on the shin armor, helmet, shoulder armor, and elbow armor of the "Silver Skeleton Armor", symbolizing the eternal marriage between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, the first queen. There is also a beam of arrows by Ferdinand II, the father-in-law of Henry VIII, above the knee pads, and a combination of roses and pomegranates below.

Raising his upper body to think, he whispered to the Earl of Essex beside him, "This suit of full-body armor bears witness to the marriage of His Majesty to the first queen. Unfortunately, Your Majesty will never wear it to battle. ”

The Earl of Essex glanced at the Italian standing on either side of the two and whispered, "Isabel, be careful to be heard. ”

Isabel glanced at him and then at the Italian who was looking at himself in full armor, and shrugged her shoulders, "Well, in order to avoid violating the laws of the kingdom, I will remain silent." ”

William then led her to a replica of Henry VIII's second full-body armor. After nodding to the Italians who came with the two, he pointed to the whole body armor in front of him with some happiness, "Isabel, this is the gift I am about to give you." ”

Isabel is presented with a high-quality full-body armor skirt that could only be used for foot combat, derived from a pleated skirt worn by the knights of the Holy Roman Empire in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Due to the slender feeling of the whole body armor, coupled with a "pleated skirt" made entirely of steel, this set of foot combat armor is almost tailor-made for Isabel.

The person in charge of the workshop glanced at the infantry armor on the stand, looked at Isabel respectfully, and couldn't help but smile and said, "My lord, ma'am, this infantry armor looks very suitable for you to wear. ”

Isabel stared at this suit, which was probably unisex and full armor, for a long time before turning her head and saying to the Earl of Essex, "William, even if you give me such a full suit in a skirt, I think I will be dragged into the sea and drowned by it before I even set foot on French soil." Did you know that the dress was made of steel and iron? ”

"Hahaha......" The Earl of Essex laughed and whispered to the other's right ear, "Isabel, you are indeed a lovely and pleasant lady. ”

Ever since Isabel was given the title of nobility and title of Baroness Ripley, William Parr's attention has been almost entirely focused on her. As for Elizabeth Brooke, the unmarried lady-in-waiting of the court who had a crush on him, the daughter of Baron IX of Calais, he left it out completely. In any case, Isabel is now a female noblewoman with titles and titles of nobility from the king, and is also a viscount. I am afraid that this glory is not even possessed by the two "illegitimate daughters" of Henry VIII.

While Isabel was very happy, the fact that the other party was a married nobleman who was preparing to divorce his first wife suddenly flashed in her mind. When she thought of the scene when the other party could only divorce and remarry with the permission of the new King Edward VI, her joy and sweetness slowly disappeared unconsciously.

However, there was still a smile on his face and he said to the other party, "William, I don't think I will wear this full-body armor with a steel skirt to the port of Le Havre in France." ”

William seemed to anticipate her words and nodded, "Well, I understand. You love archery and swordsmanship, and wearing it will only drag down your body, hands and feet. ”

"William, I appreciate your generosity, so let's go back." After Isabel finished speaking, William stopped her as she was about to leave, "Wait, Isabel, I will do it if I make a promise." Since you won't wear it to France, you can have it in your castle. ”

The Earl of Essex insisted on giving him a suit of infantry armor worth thousands of pounds, and Isabel had no choice but to agree. However, she still insisted on her bottom line: never have premarital sex with the Earl of Essex until he officially divorced to avoid giving birth to an illegitimate child.

Since the high-quality plate armor of the time was tailor-made, the Italian craftsmen who accompanied the two men soon called in two other craftsmen to measure Isabel's body. Dramatically, Henry VIII's armor skirt and the breastplate were modeled after a man's chest. However, Isabel was an aristocratic woman, so her cuirass also needed to be individually created to contour the female breasts.

After the craftsmen had finished measuring the data on the various parts of the body, William accompanied Isabel to walk on the grass outside the royal workshop. The two laughed and talked lightly as they walked, and couldn't help but talk about the time two years later. Isabel looked at the Earl with a smile, "William, where will we live if we get married?" ”

"There is no doubt that it will be the Winchester House." ”

Isabel deliberately said, "If I still like to live in the north, I'm talking about Ripley, Yorkshire." ”

William was a little puzzled and said, "Isabel, don't you love the city of London?" Life here is much better than in the north. ”