Seeing that Elaine withdrew her hand in restraint and completely lost her former vitality, Sophia actually laughed out loud.

"Brother, you've scared Elaine. She covered her mouth and laughed softly, her lively and playful posture almost the same as when she was depressed just now.

"Really?" Swain just glanced at Elaine, not paying much attention to the girl.

"Count Jericht!" Gladys suddenly shouted uncharacteristically.

"Huh?"

Swain turned his gaze to Glatis, "Any orders, Miss Rank?"

"There's something I want to ask you...... Gladys hesitated, swallowed, and his face was slightly nervous, "I heard that you sent someone to investigate Professor Niebuhr, I don't know why you did this?" Professor Niebuhr is just an ordinary scholar, he ...... I don't think it provoked you, did I?"

Swain frowned, he was slightly surprised, Cesarthurso was a very cautious person, and there was no reason why he could be so easily noticed that he was investigating Niebuhr.

Perhaps, someone is doing this on purpose......

With this doubt in mind, Swain turned his mind to the matter at hand.

"I'm afraid I don't have anything to tell you about this, Miss Ranke. At present, I am only appointed to assist Her Royal Highness the Princess, and the empire has its own complete system, and I only act according to the system. ”

Hearing Swain's words, Gladys and Elaine couldn't help but scold a couple of sentences. However, since Swain said so, they could only listen to it like that.

After a few brief words with the two girls, Swain turned his attention to Sophia. He stroked his sister's hair a few times, and the tenderness in his eyes was visible even to Gladys and Elaine, who were outsiders.

If you don't like the atmosphere, take your classmates to the inner city. ”

"I'm fine, brother. Sophia smiled quietly, "Please don't worry about me, you are so busy, I would like to talk to you slowly in my free time." ”

"That's right......" Sven lowered the corners of his eyes slightly, as if apologetic, "then take care of yourself, I'll come back to see you later." ”

"Hmm. Sophia nodded, then silently watched her brother's departing back.

Seeing Sophia's expression, Elaine couldn't help but sigh. Gladys, on the other hand, looked at Elaine and did not speak.

Swain's figure disappeared into the crowd, and after making sure that Sophia couldn't see him, Swain motioned with his eyes to Franz, who had been roaming nearby and waiting for him, to come over.

"The marshal has arrived, and he is waiting in his guest room to see Her Highness Katarina...... Or you. ”

Swain nodded silently, and he glanced in the direction of the Celestial Princess, but the red figure was obscured by countless gorgeous clothes and dazzling lights.

"Optimistic about here. Swain didn't look at Franz, and his voice was unusually cold, "Use your life to ensure the safety of Her Royal Highness." ”

Franz swallowed.

"I promise!"

————————————————

Far from everyone's sight and noise, Marshal Rudolph and Lieutenant Colonel Ralph were silently staring at each other.

"Father ......" After a long look at each other, it was Ralph who couldn't bear the pressure first, "Are you okay?"

Field Marshal Rudolph did not pay any attention to his son's greetings, his face was extremely serious, and his huge body was like a mountain in front of Ralph, which was a shadow that pressed on Ralph's heart and could not be removed for the rest of his life.

The silence of the marshal "Father ......" put an unparalleled pressure on Lieutenant Colonel Ralph, who even oozed beads of sweat from his forehead, "You look ...... Feeling bad?"

The marshal suddenly threw a punch that knocked Ralph directly to the ground.

Although Lieutenant Colonel Ralph was in the prime of life and physically strong, Marshal Rudolph beat him as easily as a cat and mouse.

"Are you unhappy with your rank of lieutenant colonel?" the marshal crouched down and patted his son's face, "for the sake of your own promotion, you also caused your uncle to lose his position, and even watched him get caught in prison, huh?"

"Father......" Ralph Steamed Bun Khan, he knows his father too well, so now his fear is even deeper, "I, I'm just thinking about ...... for our family"

"Hmph-" Marshal Rudolph slapped Ralph in the face again.

He tried to stand up, but when he tried to straighten his legs, he squatted several times and found that he couldn't stand up directly with his whole body weight.

"Father?" Ralph asked hesitantly, looking at the marshal's embarrassment, "Want me to ......"

The marshal didn't even give him a chance to finish his sentence, and punched him directly in the nose.

Grabbing the chair on one side, Marshal Rudolph stood up with difficulty, he was even a little panting, and the movement he did was just a very ordinary squat.

He sat down in his chair and smoothed his breathing.

"You're just an idiot, Ralph, an idiot being taken advantage of. Caterina and Jericho are just using you to win over the Guderian family, or to create the illusion that the Guderian family has been co-opted, so as to deal with Pete and them. Do you think you are such an important person, huh?"

He kicked his son with his foot, and his tone was anger rather than a lesson in hating iron and steel.

"Father, I am doing this for a reason......" Ralph got up with his head in his hands, perhaps a characteristic common to the people of Nicholas I's time, both Nicholas I himself and his representatives of the diplomatic and military spheres, the Marquis of Metternich and Marshal Rudolph, who taught their juniors so harshly that their children feared them to the extreme.

Marshal Rudolph grabbed Ralph by the collar at the back of his neck and dragged him up like a cub.

"Shut up, I don't want to hear a word of your idiot's reasoning!"

"Then ......" Ralph's face was bitter, no matter how shrewd he behaved in front of others, but as soon as he met his father, he was like a mouse seeing a cat, "then you want to refuse the appointment of prime minister?"

Marshal Rudolph snorted coldly and threw Ralph aside.

"Idiot! utter idiot! How the hell did I teach you, ah? I don't know why I gave birth to such a stupid son!"

Ralph looked at each other stunned, unable to understand what his father meant.

"You think I can't read your mind, and when your telegram arrives in my hand, I'll know what you're up to as a fool!"

Ralph staggered to his feet again.

"Then, why did you still accept the appointment of the prime minister, and even hide your whereabouts, so many days in advance, to come to see Count Jericho and His Royal Highness the Princess......

Marshal Rudolph stared at Ralph very earnestly, his eyes meticulous, neither as harsh as a son nor as angry as this coup.

"I will always be loyal to the Empire, and although I know that you guys, those of you who hold the future of the Guderian family, may not do my bidding, I still ask you to be loyal to the Empire. My loyalty has always been to the Empire, not to a certain person, not to a monarch, and no one can force me to swear allegiance to him personally, not even His Majesty Nikolai!"

Ralph was stunned, before today, he really didn't know the slightest difference in his father's loyalty.

"However, the era in which I served His Majesty Nikolai was indeed the era of my life that I regretted the least. Marshal Rudolph suddenly sighed, and added a little nostalgia to his expression, "Alexander's approach is too cowardly, such a monarch is not what I expected, he can't lead the empire well, he can't even manage his own family! Therefore, I accepted the invitation of His Royal Highness Caterina to appoint him as Prime Minister, for His Majesty Alexander, I have no need to pay my loyalty, but His Royal Highness Caterina's words ...... Perhaps she is indeed the Gyan who can restore the glory of this empire. ”

"Father, then ...... you are here this time" Ralph looked at his father blankly, and now he finally understood what his father had always believed and wanted.

"Pete and Reinhard were so clever. "Field Marshal Rudolph did not answer Ralph, but simply continued his own words," They only think about maintaining order and maintaining the status quo, what they are afraid of is not what will happen to the empire, but they are afraid that this order will be broken, and even the empire is just a part of the order, just like the politics and other means they play, how many things can be replaced, as long as everything goes according to the past, even if they change their names, even if they change their skins, they will not feel uneasy, but when this change enters the substance, cuts into the level on which they live, they will be terribly afraid, for fear that everything they have will be lost。 ”

"So I accept this appointment as prime minister. For me, only the empire, only this country, is worth everything and my allegiance!"

Applause came out of the door abruptly.

Marshal Rudolph turned his head and looked at the young man standing in the doorway with a frown.

"Sven Noe Jericht?"

"I am. Swain nodded calmly, "First meeting, Your Excellency Marshal Rudolf No. Guderian, what you just said really makes me admire. ”

"But there's no look of admiration on your face. Marshal Rudolph did not mean anything polite, "I still like your father more than you, and Ernest will not be as indifferent as you are." ”

"Apathy...... Is it?"

"I can't see your heart. Marshal Rudolph's eyes were particularly sharp, the kind of gaze that Swain had only seen in the Marquis of Metternich and Nicholas I, "How can a man who locks himself up in his heart win the trust of others?"

"So you don't trust me?" Sven still didn't show any expression, "but aren't you here anyway?"

"Not for you!" Marshal Rudolph struggled to his feet, propping his hand on the back of his chair, "I heard when I first arrived at the Tiamat Palace that you seem to have instigated Her Highness Caterina to reject Hadrian's request to renew the Treaty of Stramboli?"

"They demanded that we cede the interests of Silesia. Interfering in the succession to the throne in Silesia was only the beginning, and although at the moment they were only asking for equal interests, that little thing would not satisfy the appetites of Hadrian, or even the whole of Silesia. ”

Also in the face of the huge shadow of Marshal Rudolph, Swain seemed much calmer.

"However, this will lead to war. The marshal raised his eyebrows, looking at Swain's gaze, not knowing whether to question or interest, "Are you confident that you can handle it?"

"The Hadrians are nothing more than clowns, they have lost their golden age, and that era will not befall them again. Swain's tone was lighthearted, and he really didn't seem to take the Hadrians seriously, "As for the desert people...... The desert people are the ones who have been forgotten by the times, and their civilization has no future. ”

"And what about Siliul?" asked the marshal suddenly.

"Silul......" Swain lowered his eyes, "her fate and future are in our hands, isn't it? ”

"The place of the future empire in this world is up to you, Marshal. ”