I will be crowned king

While Anson and Carl were being protected (softly) and (tightly) by the inquisitors of the Truth Seeking Order, the riots caused by multiple assassinations did not die down immediately, like sparks falling into a frying pan, igniting Fireworks soaring into the sky.

The first to bear the brunt are the "public opinion representatives" of various communities... At the same time as the assassination occurred, the vast majority of these people were still immersed in the cafe fire case in which more than 20 nobles died mysteriously. Dozens of representatives protesting at the scene were whitewashed. Amid the news of the arrests by the Tingjie police, for fear of being implicated, they took the initiative to keep a low profile and controlled the militiamen in their communities not to cause trouble in such a situation.

Faced with the fact that Ludwig Franz, the archbishop's eldest son and a military veteran, was in charge of both the Privy Council and the Whitehall Street Police, most people were still in awe; especially after the mutiny, he almost appeared to be the only winner. When he walked to the stage, he was already the most powerful person in Clovis in the eyes of most people.

As for Sophia, who is a woman and has no knowledge of military affairs but was appointed as Minister of War, or Anson Bach, who was promoted to lieutenant general because of the "appreciation of the new king", they are all obviously inferior to one level - even in many cases In people's eyes, these three people should be together.

But when the news that "Anson Bach was assassinated and his whereabouts are unknown" came out, the group that had originally planned to swallow their anger and keep a low profile were completely shocked. They took to the streets one after another and demanded an immediate explanation from the Privy Council!

Up to this moment, the so-called "citizens' assembly" is still just Anson's personal proposal, and has not received written permission from the royal family or the Privy Council; in the eyes of the "public opinion representatives", this is the Privy Council's attempt to prevent the establishment of the assembly. Whatever it takes!

In less than half a day, tens of thousands of militiamen spontaneously formed, blocked off communities and streets, and prohibited Privy Council officials and Whitehall Street police from entering - not just the outer city, but even two-thirds of the inner city. The streets are involved.

In the past, in order to suppress citizen riots, the most common method used by Clovis's upper echelons was to divide the inner and outer urban areas - trying to prevent soldiers from entering the inner city, while at the same time using all means to suppress the outer city with the fastest efficiency.

Such a poor outer city cannot really have an impact on the inner city. Even if some cruel acts occur during the crackdown, the inner city residents whose lives have not been destroyed at all will only sigh and think that this is "inevitable." Nor could he complain about the conduct of the Crown and the Privy Council.

Coupled with the level of infrastructure, the security environment, and the amount of wealth... there is almost natural opposition between the citizen classes in the inner and outer urban areas. Most of the time, countless conflicts can break out between the two sides without any deliberate effort.

But for the "Citizens' Council", a piece of pie that fell from the sky, the two parties came together for the first time. With the mediation and cooperation of "Red Heart" and the Shotgun Club, they organized a public protest and demanded an immediate explanation from the Privy Council.

At the same time, Alexei, who suffered an assassination, finally successfully reunited with Norton Crosell. The two comrades who shared the same fate decisively returned to the Storm Legion station and contacted Fabian to organize a temporary military meeting.

After getting first-hand information from Minister of War Sophia, the deputy commander of the legion who was 100% convinced that Anson was still alive immediately made up his mind: "Assemble the entire army to defend the royal family!"

"The current situation is very dangerous. Even Anson Bach, the dignified chief of the royal guard and Army Lieutenant General, was in danger. This is enough to prove that there are very threatening gangsters lurking in the inner city, which may be detrimental to the royal family at any time."

"As the most loyal army of the royal family, the Storm Legion should step forward and become the first barrier to protect His Majesty; any gangster who attempts to do harm to the King and Clovis will become our enemy!"

Without any hesitation, the eight thousand Storm Legion men immediately took action and advanced towards Osteria Palace.

In order to prove that this was really to protect the royal family, Fabian sent a letter to the Privy Council before going to the military camp, asking Ludwig to approve the Storm Legion's actions "for the sake of fellow loyal ministers."

Of course Ludwig, who had been scapegoated for no apparent reason, would not refuse, and he also wanted to see how these eight thousand people would pass through the streets that had been completely blocked by the militiamen and appear in Osteria openly. Outside the palace gate.

This is a total of 300,000 militiamen, and it is impossible for the temporary Storm Legion to greet all of them in advance; if they really need to explain each community and each street to get approval, I am afraid that I will not see the vanguard until tomorrow morning. .

However, the outcome of the matter was completely beyond his expectation... The Storm Legion was not blocked at all, and marched through the entire Clovis City in a swagger. They set off in the morning and were already gathering outside the Privy Council before noon!

Ludwig, who had originally planned to defeat the community representatives one by one and then consider how to deal with Anson Bach, immediately lost the initiative; after all, although the Whitehall Street police were numerous enough, they were of the same level as the regular army and had been beaten. Fact checked.

Also in a panic is the Imperial Ambassador Brandley Herred... He is the only one in Clovis City who knows what the assassination incident is right now, and he also knows very well that as long as it is exposed, even if he has a good relationship with Her Majesty the Queen Mother in private, Don't even think about leaving Clovis City alive.

At this time, there were already more than twenty Whitehall Street policemen standing guard outside the Imperial Embassy. In name, they were to ensure that the safety of the Imperial envoys would not be endangered by the chaos in Clovis City. In fact, it was simply surveillance and house arrest.

What he didn't know was that Ludwig was not suspicious, but was 100% convinced that the assassination was related to the empire; not only the embassy, ​​but also the Roland family's Northern Chamber of Commerce had been under the strictest surveillance. You can go out, but you must first report to the Privy Council and the Prime Minister's Office to ensure personal safety.

Ludwig is now eager to get rid of the blame, so even if there is no evidence, he will do his best to make the angry public representatives believe that it is the vicious imperial people who want to assassinate Anson Bach because he caused the emperor to lose his new life. All the colonies in the world have nothing to do with his administration anyway.

But this plausible explanation requires a prerequisite, that is, someone can prove it to him.

So...who can prove it?

……………………

"I'm sorry, please forgive me for refusing."

In the corridor outside the Privy Council Hall, a serious-looking Fabian said sternly: "It is absolutely impossible for the Storm Legion to make such a promise for you before confirming the whereabouts of Commander-in-Chief Anson Bach - after all, we don't know the truth. , it is impossible to make such a decision rashly.”

"You...?!" Ludwig's mouth twitched, but he still managed to stay calm:

"Stop pretending, you and I both know that Anson Bach is not dead. He is in his apartment on Bremen Street, but is under house arrest by the inquisitors. I am not the one who assassinated him, there is someone else!"

Well, so the Commander-in-Chief is on Boleman Avenue... Fabian, who was stunned in his heart, still did not show any strange emotions, and at the same time he still did not intend to let go: "Even if it is true, unless you can produce evidence, otherwise I personally may not be able to convince the entire legion, as well as the 300,000 militiamen outside."

"Major General Ludwig...please allow me to still call you this. As your former subordinate, we all want to believe that you will never harm the commander-in-chief, but please also understand that the anger of a group often cannot be explained in one or two sentences. It can be calmed down, especially when their anger has completely exploded."

"The most important thing is that we must give a reason or result that is convincing to everyone in order to calm everyone's anger."

With calm words, Sophia came from the other end of the corridor with an extremely serious expression: "Three hundred thousand militia, Storm Legion, Privy Council... Such a huge commotion, if a result cannot be given, it is likely to evolve into the second Clovis City riot!"

"My respected brother, this is definitely not an exaggeration or a joke. There are indeed many conflicts between you and me, but we probably don't want to see the city completely turned into ruins. Only Clovis' enemies will benefit from that. .”

"So...you want me to compromise, right?" Ludwig sneered: "Put the fault on me that is not mine, and then use it to threaten me?"

"No, we cooperate."

Sophia's voice was very calm: "Don't you really want to get involved in the New World Company's shares and use that money to expand your Prime Minister's Office?"

"That's good, I... no, we should fulfill your wish and allow the Prime Minister's Office to invest in the Railway Technical Assistance Company of the Free Confederation. The dividends can go to the Railway Commission's account - so that even the royal family can't check your account. , you don’t have to pay a penny, and you can get the dividends steadily.”

While speaking, the girl glanced at the door of the Privy Council. Lady Caterina "happened" to come out from behind the door and waved to the three people.

"You don't have to pay a penny, it's really an enviable price." Ludwig snorted lightly, but did not agree immediately: "Let me guess, in exchange, do you need me to approve the citizens' assembly? OK?"

"No."

A sly smile appeared on Sophia's lips: "If you want to get this, you have to convince the royal family to agree to the bill of the National Assembly."

"country……"

Ludwig, who almost shouted, his face flickered: "Don't go too far!"

He almost said this through gritted teeth... The National Assembly, that is tantamount to completely letting go of the bottom line and allowing local forces to interfere in central politics - what Anson and Sophia want to do is tantamount to changing the government.

Of course, Ludwig was actually doing similar things, but with different methods.

"Excessive?" Mrs. Caterina curled her lips disdainfully: "My little Ludwig, if today's things go smoothly, you will soon become Clovis's second most powerful person after the king... Corresponding to this result Than, what can be considered too much?”

Ludwig was speechless.

"Of course, we don't need to be so anxious. After all, the real culprit behind the scenes has not been caught yet. Clovis City is still full of dangers, and it is difficult to ensure the safety of the royal family." Sophia changed the subject:,

"In view of the unclear situation, we can first ask His Majesty to personally announce to the people the establishment of a Citizens' Assembly to stabilize people's hearts, and then gradually pass the National Assembly's bill."

"Of course, the Storm Legion will not leave the Osteria Palace until the murderer is arrested, and they will be ready to fight to defend the royal family at any time." Fabian immediately took over the topic:

"In addition, we also need to ensure the personal safety of the Commander-in-Chief. This is something that representatives of various communities were very concerned about when we came here; for them, the Legion must also show a minimum gesture."

Fabian kept glancing at Sophia aside from the corner of his eye. The information he had now was actually quite scarce. As the deputy commander of the legion, it was impossible for him to express his position for Anson, so he could only try his best to cooperate with the Minister of War and fight for the legion. Maximum benefit.

"This matter... I need to discuss this matter with other congressmen." Ludwig's face looked a little ugly, and he was still a little entangled: "The National Assembly... this will become the biggest change in Clovis in a century. It will not be done by just a few of us. It can be decided.”

"No, dear brother, the era... is created by a few people."

The corners of Sophia's mouth raised slightly: "We live in the 103rd year of the Saints' Calendar, not because Clovis was powerful enough to force the church to canonize the dead Isaac Rand, but because Saint Isaac... even if he died , the power of this name still transcends the times.”

"Those parliamentarians, nobles, representatives... they are outcasts from the old era. The shackles of identity cannot restrain the truly strong - if you want to become a real ruler, and if you want the king to never interfere in politics again, then you can You must prove yourself that you are the strong one."

"The strong man... really spoke unabashedly." Ludwig's expression became increasingly ugly: "With these words alone, I can put you, the treasonous Minister of War, in jail on the charge of disloyalty."

"If Carlos II were still alive, yes, but he is dead."

Faced with this level of threat, Sophia just laughed: "Now is no longer the era when the king and the nobles can decide everything. The king... no longer has the opportunity to define what is a loyal minister and what is a rebellion."

"Okay, okay, you brothers and sisters, stop bickering there. It really makes people have a headache for that old Luther Franz." Mrs. Caterina smiled and smoothed things over:

"All in all, Your Majesty and the royal family are in great danger now. In order to deal with this unexpected situation, we should join forces. How can we start fighting among ourselves?"

After saying this, Ludwig's expression suddenly became very exciting.

"Yes, let's join forces again, just like we did with the Army Department, my beloved brother..." Sophia took the initiative to step forward and held Ludwig's hands affectionately:

"A loyal minister of the Kingdom of Clovis!"