Outside the Imperial Chamber, a panicked Brigadier General grabbed the guard's collar and shouted:

"Something's wrong! Something is wrong! I must personally convey this news to His Majesty the Emperor! Get out of the way for me, you two! ”

The two tall guards salute were unmoved, and one of them raised his gun and said with a steady expression:

"I'm sorry, sir, the meeting inside has already begun, Your Majesty and the cabinet ministers don't want to be disturbed, please don't be impatient, if there is anything to do after the meeting is over."

The brigadier general scolded: "Damn it! Are you all fucking wooden people? Do you only know how to follow the rules and don't know how to be flexible? Let me in! ”

A magnetic adult female voice came from the council chamber: "Who's arguing outside?" ”

The guard opened a crack in the door: "Your Majesty, it's General Reas, he has something urgent to find you, and we won't let him in, so he will make a big noise." ”

The Emperor looked a little puzzled:

"Brigadier General Reas? I remember this person, this guy is not good at garrisoning in the colony, why did he suddenly return to the imperial capital? ”

The attendant military attache on the side asked, "Your Majesty, do you want me to persuade him to go?" ”

The emperor shook his head: "No, maybe there is something really important." Guardsman! Put down the gun and let him in. ”

Brigadier General Reas pushed the door open, glanced angrily at the guards, and gave a military salute to the other end of the chamber.

"Oh, I'm in a hurry, Your Majesty, please forgive me for being in a hurry and not having time to change into decent clothes."

The long table was full of important ministers of the Scales Cabinet, both rich and noble, all polite gentlemen, and they looked at General Reas's dirty military uniform, and felt that this guy was rude and rude, and spoke like an uneducated old hat.

The most dissatisfying thing was that the boots had obviously stepped on horse manure and emitted an unbearable smell, and several ministers who were seated close to the door pinched their noses and glared at the uninvited guest with disgust.

A rich and powerful aristocratic lord stood up and said:

"General, you are really rude to bring feces into the sacred Golden Lake Palace. Look at this precious carpet, all ruined by you! ”

The emperor frowned at the noble lord and rebuked:

"You're the one who is rude! Count de Meller, your son hasn't suffered, has he? How can a young master like you, who grew up in a greenhouse, know about war? If he had time to clean his boots, he wouldn't be in a hurry! ”

The reprimanded Earl sat down and curled up in horror.

The Emperor stretched out his hand and pointed to Brigadier General Reas:

"You! Something is fast, don't stumble! ”

"Your Majesty...... The islands of Karasya, the colonial island where my troops are stationed, have been attacked by surprise, and we have not been able to hold them even after desperate resistance, and the islands have now been occupied by the enemy, and only a few dozen remnants of our troops have fled back in boats, and the matter is urgent, so I decided to send the news myself. ”

The entire council hall boiled, and the emperor slapped the case and said angrily:

"Who is so bold?"

Then her expression changed rapidly, and she looked a little puzzled:

"Is it King Solan's army? No, we just signed an armistice, and I married my daughter to Prince Solan, so there's no reason for them to be troubled...... At least not in the near future. ”

Brigadier General Reas said: "I thought so at first, but it was not the Solan people who did it, but our old neighbor, the army of the Knights of Crusside. ”

Hearing this, the ministers were in an uproar, and shock was written on the emperor's face: "What? Are you sure? ”

"It's true, the flagship mast of the enemy army fleet hangs the cross flag of the Knights Nation."

A minister stood up: "It's really an unprovoked attack, half a year ago, we formed an alliance with the Knights to solve the threat of northern pirates, and the diplomacy of the two countries is in the honeymoon period, why did they turn against each other so quickly?" I really don't understand what the Grand Master of the Order thinks! ”

The emperor looked sideways and said: "My father taught me that there can be no luck in politics and diplomacy, there are no eternal friends or enemies in this world, only eternal interests. ”

The Earl of Southgate, Foreign Secretary, who had been silent, spoke:

"You have to be absolutely right, Your Majesty, it is not difficult to understand that our neighbors smell the weakness of our country, just like a vulture in the air sees a carrion, and a jackal on the grassland sees a dependent antelope and will take the opportunity to bite it."

Facing this meritorious veteran, the emperor was full of respect: "Uncle Southgate, please talk about your high opinions. ”

The Earl of Southgate, standing up on crutches, expressed his opinion:

"Our country has just suffered a major setback, and the economy, production, and military are still in the recovery stage.

On the contrary, it is not difficult to understand that the Knights of Crusside are in a period of rapid development of national power, and they need aggression and expansion to break through the bottleneck of development, especially the colonies far from the interior to expand overseas military ports. ”

A young baron asked: "I don't understand a little, even the Papal States have been cleaned up by us, and they have been very honest lately, how can he dare to act privately on behalf of the power of the Templar Church?" ”

The Earl of Southgate replied:

"Do you know that the Knights represent the interests of the Templar in name only, but they do not obey the leadership of the Pope, they have their own theological opinions and doctrines, and in vain they are a group of feudal knightly lords who rule in the name of religion, and they have considerable independence.

With the tough rule of Alfred Heinlein, Grand Master of the Knights, the Knights have now risen extraordinarily, and have become a powerful country second only to us on the continent of Ulassis, and their strength is really unseemable. ”

The emperor nodded in affirmation: "This is a blatant provocation, the enemy has not declared war, obviously there is no fear, I think there must be the secret support of King Solan behind this." ”

The Earl of Southgate gave a thumbs up and complimented:

"Your Majesty, you are a great visionary and can see the problem at a glance. The Kingdom of Solan is not embarrassed by our country on the surface, but it is secretly doing some disgusting actions.

I suggest that you write a letter to Her Royal Highness the Queen of Rosemary, and ask her to blow the pillow breeze on her husband, so that the kingdom of Solan can be restrained a little, and it will also relieve our diplomatic pressure. ”

"Makes sense, I'll write it."

At this time, Brigadier General Reas, who had been standing by and waiting, looked very anxious:

"Your Majesty, we don't understand these advanced things of yours, after all, we are just a big old man who is a soldier, and what I care about now is what to do with the colonial islands occupied by the enemy?"

"Don't worry, General, you look terrible, Squire, give General Reas a seat, and tell the royal chef to cook him some food."

"Your Majesty, many of my brothers have been captured and imprisoned on that island, how can I be in the mood to enjoy food!"

The emperor's attendant military attache said angrily: "Bold! Your Majesty, she cares about you with good intentions, but you bastard doesn't appreciate it! ”

The emperor waved his hand: "It's okay, this is a good soldier of our empire, care about his subordinates, don't flatter, General Reas, my answer will definitely satisfy you." ”

The general was overjoyed and asked eagerly, "Your Majesty, you must negotiate with the Knights to at least rescue our captured soldiers." ”

What do you think about that? Mr. Simon. The Emperor asked.

Sir Simon Gallieni, the Emperor's mentor and Chancellor of the Empire, said:

"Obviously, the Grand Master of the Order wants to take advantage of the low morale of our country, and the surrounding neighbors are all watching, and we must not show even the slightest weakness and hesitation now.

The experience of history tells us that people only fear the strong, and no one will pity the weak, so we must fight back strongly. ”

One of the field marshals said worriedly:

"Prime Minister, are you suggesting that Your Majesty go to war? Please don't forget that the Kingdom of Solan is still eyeing the other side of the Narrow Sea, and our Royal Highness the Princess is still in their hands! Moreover, our troops need time to recuperate, and they cannot make major military movements in the near future. As soon as this remark came out, it immediately aroused a voice of approval.

In the face of doubts, the elderly prime minister did not flinch, and he said firmly:

"There can be no more peace talks, and compromise will be devastating, in which case we will soon lose all our overseas colonies, and we will lose our original hegemonic deterrent and international status.

Your Majesty, you must take tough countermeasures and completely eliminate the arrogance of the provocateurs with your actions, so that the other neighboring countries will be intimidated and let them know the power of the Valstad Empire. ”

The Emperor stood up energetically: "Teacher Simon's opinion is exactly what I want!" I won't go to war without declaring it, that's a human thing, and it's not in line with our great power.

Royal Clerk, in a moment you will go to the diplomatic consulate of the Knights, and tell their diplomat that I am urgently summoning him. ”

Brigadier General Reas was stunned, he just wanted to rescue his captured subordinates, but he never thought that this conflict would cause such a violent concussion, he trembled and stumbled:

"Your Majesty...... You're here to ......"

The Emperor smiled at him and motioned for him to sit down:

"Grand Master of the Krusside Knights wants to take advantage of it, he thinks that the Valstad Empire is no longer good, anyone can step on it, I will pour cold water on his head, let this guy sober up!"