Norman City.

The elderly like shade and quiet, so this castle uses heavy velvet curtains to cover the narrow windows tightly, and a trace of sunlight and a wisp of breeze cannot penetrate it.

Even in the daytime, the chamber was as dark as late at night, and only in the middle of the obsidian table was a cast-iron candlestick, and the trembling candlelight made the room with a steep dome look even more depressing.

On either side of the long table, there sat several old men with wrinkled faces. The Duke of Tagore at the bottom is actually one of the younger ones, at least his body is quite tough. And those old people who are on the top of the rank are either out of breath, or half-paralyzed in the circle chair, and it seems that they will not have a few days to live.

In human society, wealth, status, and power are all acquired by time. These old guys, who have been in Vanity Fair for many years, are all at the top of the power. The vast majority of them are the former or former heads of the Snowton family, and they are also the real decision-makers behind the aristocratic power.

"Is that news true?" said the old man on the left. He speaks in a peculiar rhythm, deliberately elongated at the end of each syllable, as if he were singing an opera.

"Indeed," replied another white-eyed old man coldly, "not long ago, the list of officials submitted by the Ministry of Government Affairs was completely rejected by the South. ”

The so-called "south" in his mouth is naturally the king of Nacini who personally conquered under his guide. With his departure, the Snowton government was split in two. The civil and military officials accompanying the army were basically close associates of King Nacini, while most of the high-ranking officials who stayed in Norman had their own thoughts, and Kudran alone could not suppress it, so he could only let them control the government.

"It seems. Nacini wants to establish a bureaucracy in the south that is completely loyal to him," a deep voice said, "veto the list we have provided, and prefer to select officials from among the army and civilians until he cultivates the nouveau riche of the south." It's going to turn around on us. ”

"Don't forget, the so-called Bunsho Academy," someone reminded, "it is said that in two months, the first batch of students will be enrolled...... Among them were even natives of the southern occupation areas, but not a single child of the northern aristocracy. ”

There was silence in the room for a while. Everyone is contemplating, thinking about the past and the future, and the difficulties they are facing. and how to deal with it.

"Also, is there any possibility of a peaceful settlement?" asked the short and fat old man at the bottom of the right side, softly.

"Do you think, Porter, that Nacini will respond to any of your requests?" said the old man on the left, in that characteristic procrastination voice, and then replied himself, "no. He won't, in his heart. The sooner we get to the grave, we old fellows...... When Victory Day was chaotic, in order to win us over, the promise he made in a low voice is now like a naked insult, which makes the talented Lion King. How can you endure it?"

There is no doubt that he is telling the truth. Even the most glorious and powerful people have unbearable pasts, and after the king has landed in the world, those who are forced to make promises. It must be a deep sore spot for King Nacini. More importantly, the aristocracy, which thought they had worked hard, encountered a strong monarch who was eager to prove themselves, and the conflict between the two sides intensified, and finally became irreconcilable.

"In that case, let's do it. On the right side, the old man who seemed to be asleep spoke for the first time, and his voice was as hoarse and low as a scrapped clockwork.

The old man sitting across from him nodded in agreement. He waved slightly, and the thin black-clothed butler quietly stepped out of the shadows and placed a few pieces of parchment on the table.

The candlelight is faint, and faint handwriting and strange dark lines are visible.

"Confidentiality contract," the old man curled his index finger and tapped on the table, attracting everyone's attention, "If there is any remorse, you can leave now, as if this qiē has never happened, we will not pursue it." ”

No one expressed their opinions, let alone dared to get up, these treacherous and cunning people knew that the so-called "will not be investigated" was just a hypocritical polite remark.

General's Palace.

Today was a seven-day rest day, and Kudran didn't have to go to the royal court, but he didn't feel much lighter.

King Nacini led the army to the south, taking with him a large number of capable civil and military officials. So to stabilize the rear and ensure the burden of logistics, all of which was pressed on the old general, plus those nobles, often made trouble in secret, so that their work was carried out quite unsmoothly, and many times they were powerless, so they could only cry out in vain.

Kudran understood, and the king must have known this. In the official documents he submitted, he hinted more than once that the aristocratic group had bad intentions, but he did not get any response.

"What is the king thinking......" In the flower hall, the old general frowned, and even the tea in his hand looked a little bitter. The letters on the surface could not escape the ubiquitous eyes of the nobles, so he had to mention it vaguely, could it be...... Didn't the king see it?

No, he shook his head, denying his guess. Even if the king has made some omissions in his busy schedule, the strategists beside him are not stupid, such as that Modescic, isn't he as cunning as a fox, and he can understand it at all?

"Grandpa, what are you worried about?" said Fennie's voice, dressed in a water-green gown like a swaying lotus, with a few pages of paper in her hand.

"Nothing," asked Kudran lovingly, recalling the gloom on his face, "Fennie, is there anything wrong?"

"Send a letter," Fernie raised her hand, "and let the messenger take her way to the valley of the Herseus, you won't refuse, will you?"

"Of course not," Kudran laughed, "you just leave it there, and I'll send someone to fetch it later." ”

There is an endless stream of messengers coming and going between the north and the south every day. However, the family letters of ordinary soldiers will inevitably waste a lot of time in cumbersome procedures, but if the ministers left behind in the imperial capital speak in person, then there is no such problem as zài.

"Grandpa, are you going out later?" Fennie smiled softly, and then asked with concern, "Isn't it a day off today?"

"I'm going to the barracks," replied the old general, taking his coat, "and I'll be back before dinner." ”

Norman was in turmoil, and he couldn't control the whole situation. But Kudran knew that as long as the Praetorian Guards defending the imperial capital were firmly in his hands, there would not be much of a difference.

The army, and only the army, is the basis of bargaining. In the halls, he is not the opponent of those sharp-tongued bureaucrats, but on the battlefield, the old general is confident that he can defeat an enemy.

... (To be continued......)

PS: (Today.) ）