The Sensory Animals of Ston Hill

The summer palace became as lively as the royal palace used to be.

Both ladies and lords wore half-masks, and many slender young ladies wore men's clothing.It's all new fashion this month.

Mr. Faranelli sang a song for everyone, and his exquisite treble trembled people's heartstrings.The best musicians in the country played music continuously, and the ingenious wall structure of the banquet hall allowed the sound of instruments to fill all the rooms connected to it.Hand in hand, men and women whirled joyfully on the polished marble floor, whispering flirtations openly through their dance steps.

But tonight was much more than that.

His Majesty will present medals to representatives of the Reform Party at the banquet.This of course includes William and Allen, who will be honored by the king himself, which is what they deserve.

Grace shuttled through the crowded banquet hall, getting rid of people who wanted to please him, and finally saw a familiar figure: wearing a dress and a mask, holding a wine glass in his hand, he seemed to be the same as others, but he Tall and straight, he stands out prominently in the center of the crowd.

Allen was right, now Grace will never get the two wrong again.

Grace pushed through the crowd and rescued William from the siege of flattery.

When they came to a quiet place, Grace said to William: "You have to drink less alcohol. Your Majesty said that the busiest time is twelve o'clock, and he will wait until then to announce the promotion of you and Allen."

William held his glass and said nothing, but Grace saw that he was smiling under his mask.William's lips were a little redder than usual.

The two Stone brothers look alike, except for their lips.William's lips were thinner and more serious, and the corners of his lips were hardly raised when he smiled, and his teeth were seldom seen, although they were well protected, white and straight.But you could tell he was smiling.

Grace smiled too, took the glass from him, and asked him, "Is this your second glass?" He was glad that William didn't get tired of this kind of banquet.

The lips under the mask smiled more clearly, "How do you recognize me, Grace?" When he called Grace's name, the word seemed to be held in his mouth for a long time, and it became hot and soft , and then spit it out gently.

Grace slowly raised her hand and touched his mask lightly.

The mask was cool to the touch and hard, and Grace traced the shape of his eyes through it.Under the cover of the mask, the blue eyes were more presumptuous than usual, staring at him intently.

The smile on the corner of his lips gradually dissipated, and it all turned into tenderness and melted into his eyes.

Grace didn't notice herself tiptoeing a little, but it brought him closer to William.He drank the rest of William's glass in one gulp, raised his hand and took off the mask on William's face.

Grace could clearly see how those eyes were looking at her, as if she had fallen into a blue lake.He couldn't help asking: "Brother, can you dance with me?"

William walked onto the dance floor holding Grace's hand.

They occupy only a small space at the edge of the dance floor, and the range of movement of their feet is very small, as if they are perfunctory to the music.They don't even bother to catch the beat when it's time to cheer up and just move their feet at their own pace.

Grace hadn't been taught the steps by William, and William hadn't had a previous dance partner with Grace, so neither of them were good at social dancing.

The music gave a hint, and all the ladies leaned their backs into the arms of their male companions.Grace was guided by William's arms, and the two of them stepped forward like two petals stacked together, so light that they almost jumped up.

Grace seems to have returned to a certain winter, the wind passed by in front of her face, William was behind her to protect her, and the two rushed down the hillside together in a sled.The snow particles from the sled flew into his face, and he screamed excitedly, shouting: "Snow is in my mouth!" One shielded his face.

He remembered that it was he who wanted to slide down that very high slope and was a little scared, so William accompanied him.He also wanted to sit in the front because it was more exciting, so William was behind him to protect him.

They spin hand in hand and face each other again.

"I remember we used to go sledding every winter," said Grace.Maybe, he thought, it shouldn't be mentioned, because it was all "before".

"I remember," said William, "that you were fond of playing in the snow."

Grace smiled, "Kids like to play with snow. What about you, did you like to play with snow when you were young?"

"I don't remember much."

Grace laughed again, "Impossible, you have such a good memory, how could you forget?"

William also laughed, "When my father was around, he took me to play with sledges. He put me on the sledge, and he pulled the rope in front of him and walked slowly, just on flat ground, because I was too young. I Just remember that."

Grace was surprised, how old was William then?Even younger than Eva's youngest brother!

"Haven't you ever played with a sled after that?"

"I played with Allen, but he is a boy and loves to be brave, so he doesn't need my company."

"I mean you, what about yourself?"

William still had a slight smile on his face, "I had grown up then, so I stopped playing these games."

"So you've only ever played sledding with me," Grace said firmly.Playing on flat ground doesn't count, he added in his mind.

"Yes." William admitted.

It looks like a beautiful lamp covered with a layer of airtight terry cloth.Grace hadn't known there was light beneath the cloth.Now he knew that, although the cloth was still there, he knew that there was a lamp underneath that was always on for him and never went out.

But it could have been without this layer of cloth.

Everything is changing these days.Rules are changing, laws are changing, powers are changing, responsibilities are changing, everyone is changing, and maybe William is too.Maybe now that they were dancing face to face, William looking at him so intently, holding his hand, was already the change he was looking forward to.

If only William was as wild as those nobles!Marriage means everything to them, but there is no loyalty.

But Grace knew it was impossible, William would never be like this.

Therefore, that woman named Thea Kailins will get William's most important promise by virtue of her unhealthy body. She will do countless intimate things with William, which is far better than the social dance he danced with William.

Just because her body is not healthy.This is more unbearable to Grace than that woman is beautiful, smart, rich, and has status.

"I can be unhealthy too," thought Grace.He fainted a while ago, maybe this is an omen; maybe the serious illness last year left a root cause in his body, if only he would have such a serious illness every winter in the future!He can also wear a corset, like those ladies and ladies, and stretch his waist so that he can hug it with both hands, so that he can also have difficulty breathing, flush in the afternoon, and faint when he is agitated.

If he becomes like this, William must realize that he also needs to be taken care of, and he will be reluctant to marry.

"We'll always be like this, okay?" Grace stopped dancing and held William's hand tightly, "I remember your words, I don't want more, just like this! I've got what you want my happiness, please don't take it away from me..."

William's expression quickly turned gloomy, and he wanted to take his hand out of his hand.

Grace hugged him tightly, "Don't get married..."

"Grace!" His Majesty called to him.

William's hand slipped from Grace's palm like a ship's rope that couldn't be grasped, and His Majesty gently embraced his body.

"I'm going to start now," His Majesty said to him.

"So early?" Grace glanced at the time in a daze, it was just ten o'clock.

His Majesty kissed him on the cheek and squeezed his hand, "I can't wait."

Only then did Grace notice the extraordinary joy in Chris's eyes.

He forced a smile, and asked His Majesty: "Why are you so happy? Is it because you want to award medals to the reformers?"

His Majesty's eyes were as bright as they could glow, and told him to wait patiently for a while, and he would know right away.

Grace sat in the seat closest to His Majesty, listening to the master of ceremonies recite the honors and titles to be bestowed aloud.All the beneficiaries are his allies, Grace tried to look happy and applauded hard.

Allen was promoted to colonel and William to brigadier general, a remarkable honor for a man of the common class.People cheered them on, calling them the "Ston Twins."They knelt in turn, the king's sword on their left shoulders, and uttered the motto contained in their new honors of knighthood.

Grace applauded a little more sincerely, and her palms were numb.

"Finally, there is one more important and glorious honor—" the master of ceremonies who recited for the king said again.

Grace was surprised, remembering that William should be the last to be decorated, because he received the highest honor.anyone else?

At this time the king stood up, pulled the master of ceremonies aside, and announced loudly in person: "No, it is not an honor, it is the grace of all of you! It is the best grace that will come to our country!" He looked back and pulled the grid Lace, let him stand beside her.

Due to the king's personal preference, all banquet halls have a high platform on which musicians can play, Mr. Faranelli can sing on this high platform, and actors can also perform one-act plays on this high platform.

Now Grace stood with the King in this place, facing the multitude of curious faces, half-witting that she was on a real stage.

One of his hands was held up, and Chris uttered an unexpected line: "...Amazing Grace, Miss Grace Margaret Nakoren, will replace the barren queen as your The most loving mother of all!"

Not even the craziest lines.After the silence, people applauded wisely.

"Why, what are you worried about, Grace? Tell me..." Chris asked in a low voice, holding his face, "Are you worried that someone will object? Don't be afraid, look how happy your allies are. They like this Surprise, you will fight against opponents for your status, because this is also their status...or are you afraid that the archbishop will disagree? I have thought about this a long time ago. Now that the church is in a state of disrepair, I just took the opportunity to recommend someone I like. Bishop to replace the current one...Are you still worried? Or, are you unhappy..."

Grace couldn't help but look at William's expression.

The light in Chris's eyes dimmed, "Of course, of course... I thought something had changed, but it turned out to be because of Brigadier General Ston. It would be so unpleasant when something that was expected happened. .So that's all I have to do, Grace, and you made me do it."

Grace didn't know what he was going to do, but subconsciously wanted to stop him.

But no one can stop the king.Chris gestured to the master of ceremonies, so the minister raised his voice again and announced loudly: "His Majesty the most honorable king appointed Brigadier William Ston as the deputy commander of the port garrison, report tomorrow!"

The people who had been applauding enthusiastically changed their expressions in an instant, wondering why the brigadier general who had just been promoted a few ranks was sent to the depressed navy as the deputy commander.

Grace saw Allen arguing with several "allies" in a low voice.They tried not to draw attention to themselves, but Grace knew them well enough to know that their differences had become serious.

It's just the same faction, Grace is not surprised by this.He just wondered why Chris would do this.

"You promised me..."

"I only promise you to transfer Brigadier General Ston from the front line to the capital. Geographically speaking, the camp of the port garrison still belongs to the capital."

Grace felt that Chris suddenly became a stranger.

"One more thing!" Chris suddenly spoke loudly in the tone of a king, which shocked Grace.

The hall fell silent, and the expressions of the audience were excited and novel.They took off their masks, but their faces were even more exaggerated than the masks, and prying eyes flickered over the faces of the King, William and Grace.

"Commander-General Ston has been engaged for so long, you should not keep that lady waiting too long. As a reward for your service to the country, I allow you to hold your own wedding after the coronation of the new queen, by this country The archbishop prays and blesses you and your new wife, what do you think?"

William didn't show any excitement when he was awarded the honor, and he didn't show any disappointment when he was transferred to the port navy, but at this time his facial muscles almost twitched collectively, making his expression look extremely weird.

"I..." he said, without even adding the honorific.In fact, he didn't speak to the king. He looked at Grace and said to him: "Actually, I have already completed the wedding in the church."

It turns out that this is the real change.

Grace suddenly realized that only when William completely gave up all possibilities other than "brother", would he get so close to her again.

Grace blinked a few times lightly, not letting herself cry in front of so many people.

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Note: Your Majesty said "grace" because Grace's name means "grace" in the Bible.