Mary Su Stuart

In 1566, the Royal Exchange of London was established.

It was the first professional commercial building in England's history.The Bourse's exterior was inspired by similar buildings seen in Antwerp by the royal merchant Thomas Gresham, who spent a long time in the Netherlands managing the debts of the monarch of England.In recognition of his outstanding performance over the years, Elizabeth bestowed the title of "Sir" on Gresham in her second year on the throne.

As a member of Elizabeth's brain trust, he is deeply trusted by the Queen.However, Gresham does not stick to "door opinion".After Mary Stuart came to power, she tried her best to recruit him, and he took advantage of the opportunity to join the Regent's command and become a senior advisor to the new master.

Well, it's not entirely because she's more beautiful - Gresham is clearly career-focused.It’s all the fault of the Regent, Corporal Lixian, who was willing to spend a lot of time negotiating with him on import and export trade; he also actively urged him to build the London Stock Exchange for the government as soon as possible; he even took the initiative to invest and encourage him to set up a business school named after him in the future .

The latter one is especially comforting to Gresham: Mary Stuart is very open-minded, providing funds but not interfering with his work (in fact, Mary knows that her superficial knowledge is not enough, so she simply acts as a shopkeeper), giving full freedom, They even demanded that the "independent teaching" item be written into the college's constitution.

The queen is naturally very unhappy when her subordinates change jobs easily, but she is far away from the court after all.And Elizabeth's chief minister, Cecil, did not make too many accusations of his "betrayal", but only reminded Gresham that he must continue to work hard in the future to provide advice for England's economic development.

Inspired by "patriotism", Gresham became more energetic.Now that the signboard "RoyalExchange" of the Royal Exchange has been put up, will "Gresham College" be far behind?

The beautiful regent whom he praised was concerned about another more important university at this time—Mary Stuart, who visited Oxford in 1564 after visiting Cambridge in 1566.

The scene is grand, that is for sure.The Regent's language skills are quite admirable to the staff and students - she listens to Latin speeches and asks questions in Latin; she thanks the college's Greek welcome speech in fluent Greek; her French writing is beautiful, The handwriting was circulated in the college; when she said goodbye, her English words were perfect:

"... I am honored to be in this magnificent school and look at this magnificent square. It is my ideal and pride as a ruler to do my best for the academic world. I promise in the name of the regent that soon, Oxford will Add a new college... Farewell, diligent students; farewell, respected scholars! God bless Oxford, and may your research path be smooth!" [Note [-]]

Her final farewell speech won rounds of applause.The students shouted and cheered, proud that the country had such a regent—they almost forgot that in the past, they had clearly opposed foreigners like the Queen of Scots to interfere in England's internal affairs.Even Cecil, who was present, couldn't help clapping frequently.

After working with Mary for more than three years, the inherent prejudice of the Secretary of State has gradually faded.Cecil never expected that a woman could be as enthusiastic about practical affairs as she was; it was hard to imagine that she was actually a lady cultivated by a literary court like Valois.She actually cared about the improvement of knitting machines and the pattern of the European textile industry; she noticed that among the people, coal has gradually replaced wood as the main energy source, and she strongly encouraged the price reduction of this energy source, saying that it would promote the development of other industries...

Of course, she is still a woman who pays attention to details.From time to time, she reminded her ministers that the health of textile women workers is related to the next generation of the nation; she asked to supervise coal mining, improve the model as much as possible, and reduce environmental pollution; "The Poor Act" to maintain social stability and protect the working people at the bottom.

In addition, she is particularly concerned about "nutritional medicine" (it seems to be a term she created herself), hoping to provide medical assistance to the people at the bottom; Invented the term "immunity", and gathered a group of radical and bold physicians like her,

But she's far from being overly loving.Mary Stuart's kindness did not lead her to ban the nascent overseas slave trade.However, she tried to formulate norms, called for the protection of "free people", and tried to avoid some inhumane practices.Moreover, her proposal to provide sailors with fresh fruits and vegetables to prevent scurvy has just been proved to be effective.

Cough, her investment vision is as accurate as his. In September 1565, the voyage Captain John Hawkins and his cousin Drake returned to Plymouth full of wealth.They made huge profits from the triangular trade, and after handing over the proceeds in proportion, the treasury suddenly increased by tens of thousands of pounds.

All these things made Cecil wonder whether Elizabeth, who he firmly followed, was really the best choice for England?

Her Majesty the Queen who only favors Dudley, she is almost indulged in love, ignoring the political turmoil that her marriage will bring.

Yes, Cecil was basically sure that Elizabeth's so-called "result of deliberation" was still... in favor of the Earl of Leicester.

Regardless of what it will be like to let this kid regent... Is the accidental death of his wife Amy a few years ago really invulnerable and all forgotten?

Cecil clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

At the same time, on the royal carriage to Edinburgh, Mary was also discussing the marriage of the Queen of England with François.

"I have a hunch that Elizabeth is likely to be engaged soon."

"What, with whom?"

"Anyone else, Lord Leicester."

Francois was stunned: "Didn't she start negotiating with the Spanish Crown Prince again in the last year..."

"No, no, the weak Don Carlos is never welcome. This time, it's just a smoke (;) bomb for Elizabeth to fool everyone." Mary explained. "The news just came from Spain that the Crown Prince has become more and more depressed recently; everyone even said that even the slightest bump in the sea may take his life..."

"So serious." Francois was quite surprised. "No wonder... Liz mentioned him less and less in her letters."

"Carlos is the only son of Philip II after all. As the successor, she may not be able to reveal too much of these bad news."

Mary sighed: "Let's talk about Queen Elizabeth and the Earl of Leicester. She has been closed in the palace for the past few years, and she has become more and more inseparable from the flattery of others, especially Dudley. I guess, if possible, she would rather She has been hanging on him and never let go. However, her power is thin now, and what she can give him is very limited; just relying on daily relationship, she can no longer continue... to ensure that he is absolutely loyal and will never leave him. "

"For example, she suddenly proposed to talk about marriage with Spain last year. She was actually trying to test Dudley's reaction. Sure enough, he was extraordinarily attentive for a while and tried his best... But I think she still has enough sense. He talked sweetly. Temptation is not the only reason driving her to make up her mind."

Mary narrated. "I believe that Don Carlos' poor health also gave her a warning that suitable marriage options - or shields - for the Queen of England are becoming less and less. Besides, she is getting older, and it seems that there is no room for delay."

"Then, what do you plan to do?" Francois looked at the calm Mary, thinking that she should be prepared.

Mary smiled slightly. "Everyone knows that smallpox causes...there is no hope of recovery. The Privy Council has gradually got used to her absence, and it is running well. Because of my existence, and, the Gray sisters...they actually care about her marriage Even her trusted Cecil, Bacon and others are not very keen on breaking the existing balance."

"As for the Duke of Norfolk, they have been on guard in every possible way. Even if they have no good reason to prevent the Queen from getting married, they will try their best to suppress the Earl of Leicester, protect themselves, and defend their interests."

"So, for the time being, my position is not affected much.

Francois looked at his wife with a bit of worry. "England adds a 'king', really it doesn't matter? And at this important time, it doesn't matter if you don't stay in London?"

Marie put her head on François' shoulder. "It's okay. First, it doesn't have to be the 'King'. Second, well, I've talked to them and I trust them. They're so aggressive and they're good at it... Everyone knows how to compromise and it's bound to get a good result. "

them?Francois blinked.Does it mean the Duke of Norfolk, etc., or does it include the entire Privy Council?

Francois raised his hand to his wife's face.Come on, Mary said it was a good result, she must be good, others may not be good...

Mary narrowed her eyes. "In comparison, for the time being, Edinburgh is more worthy of my concern."

From the winter of 1562 to the autumn of 1566, for more than three years and nearly four years, the Queen of Scots did not set foot in her hometown, mainly relying on remote control Maitland to govern.Since the end of 1654, the King of Scotland has "taken her" care of the house for about a year (during which he occasionally went to London), and then returned to France to recuperate...Mary is lucky that there has been no major trouble for such a long time.

Well, not only did nothing go wrong, but a remarkable job was done: the initial promotion of potato planting.

This is one of the reasons why Mary is eager to come back.

"... Maitland reported that a quarter of the territory directly under the royal family has been planted. Near Edinburgh, this season's harvest is not bad...mainly as fodder; after persuasion, some poor farmers have gradually begun to try new foods. "

Francois listened and nodded. "If you want to quickly expand your influence and benefit more civilians, the monarch will also contribute."

There are examples in this history that we can learn from, and it will not hurt to copy them at that time.Marie snapped her fingers and said, "Maitland is already planning. I'm looking forward to the other one going well."

François moved to make her more comfortable. "It's the 'vaccination' program."

"That's right. This year's medical exchange meeting was moved to the summer. I hope that Dr. Flood will make the test results he obtained on death row inmates public earlier, and inoculate another batch before winter comes. Fry Miss Ming, no, Mrs. Maitland has received him..."

The advance of the medical exchange meeting was also due to another happy event.At the beginning of the year a certain physician returned from the small Spanish island (Haiti) with some records of treatment "on orange juice and scurvy" and wrote a paper with his colleagues; Mary couldn't wait for them to publicize it.

Of course, not all attempts at "nutritional medicine" have been successful.When the case reports of night blindness gradually became more and more detailed, the "beriberi" and "rickets" trials, which have been unable to see the curative effect for a long time, have been stranded.Mary was not discouraged, she comforted herself that as long as the seeds were planted, there would always be a day for them to sprout.

However, at this rate of development, in this life, I'm afraid I don't expect to see "antibiotics", "a panacea that is more expensive than gold".

Tsk, there are many people named Fleming in Scotland. Whose descendants invented penicillin...

The carriage shook and swayed, and Mary felt joyful and depressed for a while, and sleepiness slowly came to her.Just then, the four-wheeled carriage stopped.

"Your Majesty, we have arrived at the station."

The chief guard opened the car door respectfully, and asked the two to rest on the ground.

Now go to Scotland, take the overland route.Mary couldn't help feeling that compared with Fasu, England's public transportation is really good.Look at this station, it is solid and reliable, and the decoration is acceptable, even if the monarch of a country lives there, it should not be too bad.

Oh, she remembered that Elizabeth advocated increasing investment a few years ago.

Today, is she in the light of her?

The maid went to make the bed in the house, and Mary stood by the fence and looked around.At this time, Francois proposed:

"Just now, a little ahead, there is an orchard. Do you want to see it?"

Mary glanced at the red glow in the sky. "Let's send someone there."

She glanced over and saw that Francois seemed a little disappointed—probably, he wanted to invite her to go for a walk.

Go to a private orchard.

She suddenly remembered a "joke"——

Once upon a time, there was a queen who visited a private manor with her husband in incognito clothes, wandered to a certain private manor, picked and ate fruits on the tree without authorization, but was discovered by the owner and locked in the cellar for a whole night.

She and her husband yelled "I am Maria Theresa, Queen of Austria/Franz, Holy Roman Emperor" to no avail.

This unlucky couple did not convict the manor later.The owner was also very proud. After this, he simply put up a sign: "The wind can enter, the rain can enter, and the king cannot enter."

Mary thought about it, and couldn't help laughing.

Francois was a little confused, and always felt that she was smiling inexplicably.He walked around the station by himself, came back to Mary, and whispered to her.

"Here... the soundproofing of the room is not very good."

So, what to watch out for?

"It's okay, I won't..." Mary tiptoed and exhaled lightly. "I only use my hands."

Heh, it shouldn't be too boring to rest here tonight.

The author has something to say: [Note 1564] quoted some original texts of Elizabeth’s visit to Cambridge (1566) and Oxford (1571).In fact, Elizabeth promised to build a new college in Cambridge, but actually built Jesus College in Oxford in [-]-maybe it has something to do with some Puritans in Cambridge attacking her too hard?

For Gresham's personal history, please refer to Du Niang Encyclopedia. Gresham is actually better transliterated as "Gresham", but "Gresham's law" is too famous, so...

Royal Exchange, London - I'd rather write "Royal".After all, European monarchs are basically royal families rather than royal families.

Many of Mary's ruling actions in the past few years were originally the "merits" of Elizabeth and the Privy Council in those years, refer to "General History of England".