Good-looking, not allowed to farm

(One)

A heavy snow covered Wangcheng with a thick layer of white.

Many corpses and bloodstains on the ground were all covered up, and even the plague seemed to retreat in fear of the cold.

At this time, King Richard came back with a large group of people in high spirits.

At that time, although there were no specific statistics on the population of the whole city, after the plague, it is roughly estimated that it should have decreased by at least 20.00%.

In addition, the plague is barely over.

But winter has arrived, the temperature has dropped sharply, and many common people have not even prepared for the winter, and they ushered in a severe cold, so the days still haven't seen any improvement.

And because they often don't even have a thick piece of clothing, food is also in short supply.It is conceivable that in such weather, even if the earth is saved from the plague, nine out of ten will still die of freezing and starvation.

But this is no hindrance.

They die their own, cold and hunger are not contagious.

So, King Richard and a group of nobles happily returned to the palace.

Mrs. Lauris, who always loves to show off, is still scrambling to be the first person to hold a banquet after returning to the royal city.

She has always liked flowers.

But in winter, flowers are hard to find.

As a result, those precious fabrics were cut without hesitation, and through the skillful hands of the maids, they were all made into lifelike flowers, and then put into the garden to decorate the snow covered in silver , Artificially add a spring scene of flowers blooming to this cold winter day.

Such an extravagant scene naturally costs a lot of money.

But the lady never thinks about these things, only knows to squander and let her debts pile up.

At this time, although King Richard still had a reputation with her, he was no longer willing to pay her bills;

As for Duke Henry, that man is even more shrewd. Not only will he not pay for her, but he will try his best to get money out of her pocket...

The lady's position, therefore, was precarious.

But she never bothered about these things, and always confidently believed that when the critical moment came, she could always find a way to make up for it. If she couldn't, she went to coax a man to take advantage of her...

So, enjoy every day and never worry too much.

But when it came to the banquet, although the garden, which cost a huge amount of money, was praised, it didn't play much role. Everyone only enjoyed the scenery for a moment and a half, and then turned and went back to the house because of the cold.

In the room, King Richard was sitting in front of a card table piled high with gold, holding a deck of cards in his hand, watching intently.

Judian stood behind him to help watch the card, and from time to time, he would play some small movements to secretly remind him to help him cheat and win the card.

Kuna's status is low, and she was originally out of place on this occasion.

But there were also some women with her, chattering about clothes and tiaras, for the king's sake.

Mrs. Laureys did not join in the fun.

She's surrounded by sweet-talking playboys.

These people probably guessed that she was falling out of favor, and they flew over like bees and butterflies smelling the smell of honey, wanting to taste the mistress who had been favored by the king for many years.

Although Mrs. Laureys may not really follow their minds.

But she has always been most afraid of being neglected, and she likes being noticed and praised the most, so even if it is a crazy bee and butterfly who has no skills and has never looked down upon before, for the sake of her vanity, she tolerated it.

As for the other side of the card table, the person who gambled with the king was Earl Safire who was sitting alone.

The earl has never been close to women, and his expression has always been serious. Even when he is playing platoon, he looks at the cards as if he is dealing with official business, but if he is really the kind of strict and well-behaved person, But he was about to be fooled!

It was because although he was not as good at flattering horses with a low profile and disregarding face like Judian, but he was also very good at flattering the king in small details.

For example, now, he didn't use any cheating methods, didn't use any tricks, but cleverly lost more than ten cards to the king in a row, but he still put on a serious look to show that he had tried his best to win, and the reason why he won was No, it's all because the king's card skill is exquisite, and I can't match it!

"You don't seem to be very lucky tonight."

King Richard won several times in a row, and he said with a smile.

"My recent fortune has not been very good."

Earl Safir shrugged helplessly, and pretended to complain unintentionally: "Because of the damn disease, several of my businesses have been hit, alas, this time is really terrible. Those who were driven crazy by the disease The untouchables, because a lowly life is about to be lost sooner or later, they are not afraid of death and rioted around, smashing several of my shops... Finally, I heard that they made trouble at the poor Lord Dressel's house, where he lit a fire in front of his house, and wrote some ugly words in red chalk on the door of his house—why don’t you die!”

King Richard couldn't help being touched a little bit.

But he didn't show anything on his face. Instead, he followed Earl Safire's words: "Master Dressel must be very sad these days. I heard that his family's Susanna..."

"Oh, what a pity for that girl." Earl Safire said. .

A look of artificial sadness appeared on his face at the right time, and he said solemnly: "I thought about asking her to marry me before."

Duke Henry also came over at some point, just in time to hear such a sentence.

There was a hint of sarcasm on the corner of his lips, but he said with a smile on his mouth: "It's probably because there is no fate, and the Earl doesn't have to be too sad."

King Richard seems to have forgiven the offense of the half-brother recently, and his attitude towards him has returned to amicable.

At this time, seeing him walking over, she took the initiative to move a bit to make room for him, and motioned him to sit next to her.

Duke Henry sat down, and casually took the ivory dice on the table and fiddled with them.

While fiddling with the dice, he asked casually, "Speaking of Dressel, didn't Louis come over today?"

"He should be taking care of his father at home."

King Richard sighed slightly, and then said meaningfully: "Well, Dressel is getting old after all..."

With just this one sentence, Earl Safir has already received sufficient hints - as he gets older, he should have made way for others.

So, he and Judian who was standing behind the king looked at each other silently, immediately put on a dignified expression, and said seriously: "Your Majesty, I know that you have always been generous, especially the old ministers. But as I said just now, Germany Master Lesser is getting old, no matter his energy or physical strength, he is no longer enough to deal with those heavy political affairs. Actually, this matter has been mentioned before, but you can't bear it... But let's see the result, this epidemic, There are also some previous state affairs, this old man has handled them in a mess!"

"Yeah, the people are complaining about him."

Judian also interjected, her tone was not very intense, but it was more ruthless than what Earl Safir said, and lightly dismissed the scapegoat out of thin air: "Everyone feels that Master Dressel has done a lot. Injustice. Before, there were problems of exceeding authority and arresting people in the street; later, the workhouse was short of food and clothing, and his dignified minister of finance only allocated such a small amount of money, which aroused dissatisfaction among the people; The epidemic hospital... Alas, the management is messy, and many people died."

At this time, Earl Safir pretended to be a good man again, and put on a reasonable tone: "Your Majesty, we all know that Lord Dressel has absolutely no evil intentions. He devoted himself to serving the country in his early years and dedicated a lot to this country... ...But now that he is old and frail, and his energy is low, it is obvious that he is no longer able to handle the affairs of the country."

Judian said: "Your Majesty is merciful, and you will not blame Lord Dressel for those wrong things."

Earl Safir also said: "However, the voices of the people should not be ignored easily. At this point, His Majesty will have to make a cruel decision."

These two people used to have very different personalities and styles.

But at this moment, they seem to be in an alliance, sing together, and make all the rumors and slanders outside as true.

King Richard couldn't help bowing his head in thought.

After a while, he put on a embarrassed look, and said with emotion: "I really don't want to do such a thing, but Dressel has been confused in recent years. Since everyone said so, so did the people. I hate him so much... well, I'll go and talk to him in a while!"

Worry too much...

Earl Safir exchanged glances with Judian again, stopped speaking at the same time, stopped slandering, and only praised: "Your Majesty is wise."

At the same time, an almost irrepressible sarcasm quickly flashed across Duke Henry's face.

He tried his best to suppress the sarcasm, watched the scene with cold eyes, and knew in his heart: "The days of this old guy Dressel are coming to an end."

So, the banquet has passed for a few days.

King Richard summoned Lord Dressel to enter the palace.

Master Dressel actually expected such a day would come.

But he had just suffered the pain of losing his daughter, and his wife chose to leave him because she couldn't bear the excitement.The situation was already very bleak and miserable, so he always felt that, with King Richard's habit of putting on a show, even if he wanted to attack him, he should wait a little longer.

Unexpectedly...

But His Majesty the King couldn't wait for a day!

"If I could, I would not have said that to you."

King Richard did not speak harshly. Instead, he sighed deeply, and said in a distressed manner: "There have been some rumors recently, and I think you should know about them. At first, I didn't want to make too much of it. It bothers you all the time, but I can't bear the pressure anymore."

Master Dressel listened quietly.

The king continued without raising his head: "...Although I know very well in my heart that most of the faults they accuse you of are untenable. However, under such a situation where the crowd is so angry, no matter what kind of argument you make, No one will listen to you. Instead, in the end, all the refutations will become self-inflicted humiliation. Therefore, after thinking about it, it is better for me to take the initiative instead of letting you be attacked and insulted in the court. Persuasion, take a step back, resign from your position first, and temporarily avoid the limelight, so that you can keep a useful body for another day... What do you think?"

This is said very earnestly and touchingly.

If Lord Dressel didn't know that His Majesty the King wanted to get rid of him long ago, he must still be grateful to him even if he was asked to resign.

But now, the monarch and his subjects looked at each other silently.

Needless to say, both of them knew what was going on.

So, Lady Dressel stepped back without saying a word, bowed to the king, then turned and walked out.

King Richard watched him stagger away slowly, but he actually had some regrets in his heart.

Because starting from today, in his court, although there is no old stubborn who likes to sing a different tune, but at the same time, there is no longer a loyal and selfless courtier.

(two)

Here, Lord Dressel complied with the king's wishes and left voluntarily with several scapegoats on his back.

Over there, the sinister and vengeful Judian didn't let him go easily. In private, he smeared the old man and sent people to spread the money allocated to the poorhouse. The chancellor gave rumors of corruption.

The people believed it, and celebrated jubilantly when they learned that the Chancellor of the Exchequer had been removed from office.

They also had an extravagant hope, thinking: "Since the corrupt minister has been dismissed, does this mean that the embezzled money will come back? Maybe not a lot, but maybe there is a little bit for Hurry up, life will get better, and then, everyone will be able to survive this cold winter!"

However, King Richard, who really embezzled the money, obviously didn't intend to package it for sale.

He pretended to be deaf and dumb about this, allowing the poor old minister who dedicated his life to the royal family to bear the stigma, and allowing the helpless people to continue to suffer from hunger and cold...

Therefore, Master Dressel's reputation was ruined, so he had no choice but to choose to stay behind closed doors.

Jamie wanted to care about this cheap father, but he didn't want to encounter a round of sarcastic remarks.

On that day, the adult actually said bluntly: "You are not some illegitimate child of mine, you also know about this, right?"

Jamie was silent and didn't say anything. In fact, he didn't know what to say.

Master Dressel continued coldly: "So, I don't expect anything from you, and you don't have to do extra things."

Jamie sighed and said tongue twister: "But I don't expect you to count on me. I just care about you for Susanna."

Perhaps because of the mention of Susanna, Master Dressel couldn't help showing a dazed look.

But in the next moment, his old face was distorted by sadness, anger and pain into another ugly look.

Jamie was pitiful and sympathetic to him.

But after seeing such a terrifying expression, he couldn't help but took a step back in fear.

"Oh... Suzanne?"

After a while, Master Dressel tried his best to suppress his intense emotions, and said suspiciously: "You have a very good relationship with her."

Jamie looked at him cautiously, and carefully explained without irritating the other party: "I treat her as my younger sister."

Then, he paused, and added a sincere sentence: "She always asks me to go out with her...My lord, I really, really regret not taking her out more."

After hearing these words, Master Dressel's face slowly regained his composure.

As Suzanne's biological father, he knew how playful his daughter was, so he finally stopped doubting Jamie's words.

So, the two of them stayed silent for a while without speaking.

Master Dressel suddenly said exhaustedly: "Louis, you are a good boy, it's just... you can move out in a few days."

Jamie was a little taken aback.

Although he would prefer to live with Mrs. Helena, but now the old man is the only one left in Dressel's house.No matter how hard-hearted a person is, he shouldn't leave in such a hurry, leaving an old man behind, right?

But Master Dressel seemed to have made up his mind, and said in a trance: "Although I know you are a good boy, but I can't control myself from venting my anger..."

Jamie looked at him suspiciously, and asked inexplicably, "My lord?"

Lord Dressel coughed a few more times, and with a weak and disillusioned look on his face, he said in a low voice: "About your life experience, you should have guessed some of it these days... I used to be that Even if my reputation is slightly damaged because of it, I will not hesitate to cover up their scandals. But until today, I have lost everything, but I have been abandoned by people like trash. I... I don’t know What's the point of my insistence?"

Jamie was still guessing, if Louis himself was here and heard about this, what kind of reaction would he have?

However, after seeing Lord Dressel's emaciated posture, and every word of his complaints, he was in no mood to act, and gently persuaded: "No matter what, my lord... you agree You should take care of your health, otherwise, Suzanne will worry about you day and night."

But Dressel-sama has become extremely decadent.

He fixed his eyes on Jamie's face, and after confirming that his words were sincere, he slowly said again: "Louis, I originally planned not to tell you, and I didn't want to control you, just let you live in such a muddleheaded way. But now, I have lost power, but you still have to mess around in the court, if you don't know anything, it will be difficult to deal with things..."

In fact, Jamie was not so curious about the life experience of this fake identity, and immediately wanted to shirk: "If it's troublesome, don't tell me..."

But Lord Dressel suddenly grabbed his wrist, pulled him closer to him, stared at him firmly again, lowered his voice, and said softly: "Your mother is the most honorable woman in this country, She is the biological mother of King Richard, the Queen Mother... Yes, you are actually a pair of half-brothers... When you were born, His Majesty carried you to me and let me take you away... "

— This is not so surprising.

Jamie had made a similar guess before, but now that he heard it, it was just to verify the guess, but he still pretended to be a little surprised, and then pretended to show a little joy, and stammered: "My lord... Is it true? Me and Your Majesty, I and Your Majesty are brothers?"

Master Dressel has been examining him, and after seeing the surprise and joy, an extremely complicated expression appeared on his face.

Then there are some unspeakable thoughts. At this time, due to his own tragedies, his mind is no longer as sharp as before. On the one hand, he is moved by the care and care of this cheap son before and after, and wants to give him more information as a thank you. On the other hand, but with a hidden intention of revenge, he can't wait to add some troubles to the royal family.

Two completely different thoughts saw each other in his mind, causing him to be extremely confused, so that his face was twisted into a weird look where one half seemed to be laughing, and the other half was convulsed with pain.

Jamie watched this scene in horror, fearing that the grown-up might suffer from a stroke or something, he quickly reached out to help him, and then called the servant to call for a doctor.

Fortunately, Master Dressel quickly recovered. Because of the struggle just now, he inevitably lost interest in continuing to tell Jamie about his life experience.

He took a deep breath, turned his head away, and didn't want to see Jamie, the existence that made him feel so conflicted and struggling. He just waved his hands and drove away cruelly: "Go, go! Don't let me see it anymore. your turn!"

The next day, Jamie left Dressel's mansion. Before leaving, he repeatedly said that if something happened, he could send someone to look for him at any time.

But Master Dressel didn't look at him, he just waved his hand, signaling him to leave as soon as possible.

Such a scene was quickly seen by some people...

In the afternoon, the news that Jamie was kicked out of the house by Lord Dressel was widely known, and it was very likely that it was exaggerated a lot.

In the palace, Judian refused to change after repeated admonitions.

He has always liked to gossip behind people's backs and spread some gossip, so he told King Richard about this as a joke, and asked very puzzled: "Your Majesty, what do you think this is?" Really? I don't understand the truth! What does it matter to the son when the daughter dies? Why should the son be kicked out after the death of the daughter? Well, it seems that we did the right thing before , Master Dressel's mind is really confused."

King Richard smiled slightly, but in fact there was no smile in his eyes. He just said casually: "Maybe he has his own ideas! But Louis is really unlucky..."

It didn't take long to finish saying this.

He summoned "unlucky Louis" to the palace.

This is not very suspicious.

After all, the king did not like Lord Dressel, but he has always loved Louis who bears Dressel's surname.

But let's not talk about Jamie and the king here...

It is only said that at the same time, a rare distinguished guest came to the Dressel Mansion——Duke Henry.

Master Dressel had to come out to greet him in person.

He looked over suspiciously, and then said vigilantly: "I don't know what the duke wants me for? Now, I'm out of work at home, and I can't help you much if I think about it."