As if listening carefully to the bewitching lady who looked like a black rose, Charlotte didn't realize that someone was approaching her from the side, but before she was startled by Natsuki, a lady in a blue dress next to her screamed exaggeratedly, "Ah, it's the champion of the rowing prince, Prince Joachim, he's so young!" ”

Natsuki's ears and heart were immune enough to such high-decibel noises, and he walked up to Charlotte's mother and daughter with a polite smile, and said politely, "Madame, ladies, your beauty has made every chandelier here look dull, and I think it's a lost moth who has come here with the brightest halo." Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info”

This poetic compliment made the ladies smile one by one, and they did not know that the brightest halo had nothing to do with them.

Mrs. Hill and Miss Hill also laughed, and the smile was very shallow, like the elegance of a lily.

The lady in a long black dress with her breasts exposed praised in a soft tone: "I only heard that His Highness is an amazing genius in ship design, but I didn't expect His Highness to personally drive a boat to participate in the race, and he can win the first place with the boat that ranked sixth in the preliminaries...... You are destined to be a great person! ”

The bewitching black rose twisted her waist like a weeping willow in the wind as she spoke, and her charming eyes frequently discharged at Natsuki. This posture is typical of a noble lady with all kinds of amorous and coquettish style, and ordinary men may not be able to cope with it.

Natsuki had no intention of hooking up, but explained in his usual humorous tone: "Ha, I'm ashamed to say that I was driving the boat because I was the lightest and was able to reduce the load of the speedboat accordingly, so I was lucky enough to turn the tide around." ”

After saying that, Natsuki faced Charlotte and bowed down with a smile: "Dear Miss Hill, can you enjoy your face and dance together?" ”

If Charlotte refused, the ladies around her would have rushed to invite the Prussian prince to dance, and the beautiful flower fairy waved her hands and gently pulled the corners of her skirt, and replied in the affirmative with grace. Accompanied by the light melody of Brahms's "Hungarian Dances", this handsome and beautiful multinational dance partner stepped into the dance music and danced to the envious gaze of everyone.

Without anyone else to disturb him, Natsuki smiled and said, "Is Miss Hill ready to fulfill the bet between us?" ”

The English girl in front of her resembled Hermione from Harry Potter Part 4, her face was calm and her nose wrinkled slightly: "I have always kept my word, but there is a question to be figured out, who won the bet." ”

"Is there still a disagreement?"

"Of course."

Charlotte turned gracefully and continued, "Your Highness has set a record for the speed of a ship to date, 58. 7 verses, and the bet between us is about 60 verses. ”

Natsuki took over: "That's right, at the same time, the technical evaluation team of the event also confirmed the top speed of more than 60 knots, that is, the top speed of my speedboat has exceeded 60 knots. ”

"That's our disagreement - should we be based on the official record or on the subjective inferences of the panel?"

Looking at Charlotte's serious face, Natsuki smiled heartily: "It seems that this is an argument that will never be answered, even if we tie?" ”

"Agreed." Charlotte readily accepted the suggestion.

"Well, how about I pay for the clothes you and Mrs. Hill have chosen, and you invite me and Louise to the manor?"

Charlotte raised a pair of willow eyebrows playfully: "This is what you have envisioned a long time ago?" ”

"I'm not a gypsy girl!" Natsuki had a strange expression that made the flower fairy laugh.

"Your smile is beautiful and charming, and smiling a lot is actually good for your physical and mental health." Although this is vulgar, Natsuki still has to say it.

Charlotte hurriedly restrained her smile, but she couldn't hide the flush on her cheeks. The two silently finished the rest of the dance, saluted their partners, and then pulled each other out of the dance circle. At this time, Charlotte whispered, "Out of courtesy, and out of respect for each other, grandfather will personally invite you to the manor later." ”

Natsuki always felt that Duke Hill was a typical British aristocrat, and that one day he would let the British Navy cede maritime supremacy, and let these arrogant and conceited guys bow down to him. But now, because of the beautiful Miss Hill, he put away all this subjective prejudice and decided to show Duke Hill his steady and wise side.

Saying goodbye to Charlotte for a while, Natsuki happily returned to Louise, and the German princess, who was no less beautiful than Miss Hill, looked at him with a smile, as if her brother had won another championship trophy.

"How many days are we going to Thetford?"

Natsuki smiled very reservedly: "Yes, I heard that the scenery there is very beautiful, English-style scenery. ”

"You've got enough of your vacation, right?" Louise kindly reminded.

Xia Shu shrugged his shoulders slightly: "Thanks to the Minister of the Navy, I was granted half a month's official leave. ”

The playful elf quipped, "In that case, we could have spent ten days in Thetford!" ”

"Hah!" Natsuki wanted to say that if he stayed for so long, Hill Manor would probably be in trouble, but at this moment, a well-dressed, capable and shrewd middle-aged gentleman walked up, with an extremely friendly smile on his face, and said in a straight English language:

"Your Royal Highness Prince Joachim, I beg your pardon for taking the liberty of Michelle, the chief commercial representative of the International Shipping Company in London. Johnson, I've admired you for a long time...... Her Royal Highness Princess Louise must be honorable, and it is a great honor to meet you! ”

(The International Shipping Company, or IMM for short, is funded by the Morgan consortium.) In 1902, it acquired the largest British White Star steamship company, which brought a great shock to the British, and the British Parliament regarded it as a disgrace to the British Empire. It hit an iceberg and sank on its maiden voyage in 1912)

Compared to those long-established shipping companies, the IMM (International Shipping Company) invested by the Morgan consortium has only been established for a few years, but in J. P。 Under Morgan's attention, it quickly became the most powerful shipping trust on the transatlantic route, and in this era, the "Morgan Consortium" was not as powerful and established as the Rothschild family, but it was already a dominant monopoly in the fields of steel, railroads, finance and public utilities in the United States, and had expanded its business to Europe.

Taking the bronzing business card with a purple background from the other party's hand, Natsuki glanced at it casually and deliberately put on an arrogant posture: "Mr. Johnson, may I ask if there is anything I can help you with?" ”

The middle-aged American with a wide face and a high forehead smiled: "First of all, I would like to congratulate you on winning this King's Cup Sprint Race, it is an honour that I witnessed the wonderful race and you and your boat have achieved an amazing advantage." ”

Out of pure courtesy, Natsuki thanked him.

Seeing that the other party's attitude was lukewarm, the American businessman hurriedly cut to the chase: "To tell you the truth, in addition to continuing to expand the advantages of transoceanic shipping business, IMM also plans to invest in some emerging fields. If possible, we hope to be able to cooperate with Your Highness on the high-speed speedboat project. ”

IMM and the British government-backed Canard Company are business rivals, and the possibility of helping the British to obtain a "Kraken" should be very small, but the strategic environment of the US Navy is not suitable for high-speed torpedo boats to play a role, and the Morgan consortium's investment in the military industry is mainly vehicles and electrical equipment, and rarely involves the construction of ships. Therefore, Natsuki was very curious about the true intentions of the American in front of him, and he clasped his hands to his chest: "So far, it is only a hobby for a few people, and the most suitable use is to transform it into a high-speed torpedo boat. ”

Johnson sneered and complimented: "Your Highness's brilliant mind and extraordinary vision are indeed worthy of the name. In fact, we have already invested in several of the world's leading military ships and are preparing to further expand our stakes, and as far as we know, the Friedrich-Royal Shipyard that you run is building ships for the German Navy, and its future operations will be mainly for the German Navy. As you said when you won the sprint race, a high-speed torpedo boat was an outstanding defensive weapon, and the equipping of other countries with such weapons did not threaten Germany's national security. For example, if two countries that are not adjacent to each other go to war, there is usually no direct confrontation between their defensive weapons. ”

Natsuki blinked: "If I'm not mistaken, you mean that the British Navy is equipped with the same high-speed torpedo boats as us, and even if there is a war between Britain and Germany, they do not pose any threat to Germany?" ”

The businessman's mind is indeed very flexible, and Johnson did not get caught up in Natsuki's circle, but subtly replied: "I believe and wish the two countries a long time to maintain friendly relations." ”

Natsuki had no intention of delving into the logic of the Americans' inferences just now, and he simply stated that the "Kraken" was not for sale.

"We are prepared with enough sincerity." Johnson's face was piled with a businessman-like smirk.

Natsuki snorted coldly, "Then I want to see how sincere you are." ”

Businessmen have never liked to show their cards at the beginning of negotiations, and Johnson said vaguely: "The price should be satisfactory for both of us." ”

Natsuki shook his head, "You probably don't know my appetite yet. ”

"Oh?" Johnson said he wasn't convinced.

Natsuki pretended to be arrogant: "A royal family member who has no worries about food and clothing, has never had a clear plan in terms of making money, and his appetite may be zero or infinite. In fact, princes and nobles care more about their status than money, and this status comes from the perception and evaluation of the country's rulers and the people. Just imagine, the news that the German boat has won the King's Cup water race has reached the country, and people are cheering for Germany's victory. If someone dedicates their valuable championship rowing skills to Germany, even if it is paid, they will get a lot of honor. On the contrary, if it were to be sold to a foreign country and eventually used by a potential German adversary, the damage to the reputation would be catastrophic! ”

(End of chapter)