socalfunplaces Chapter 313 The Madman
Chapter 313 The Madman
Chapter 313 The Madman
Anne recovered the nine thousand coins owed by a collateral branch of the royal family, and was therefore rewarded by the king.
Of course, Anne knew perfectly well that the King hadn't heard about it at all.
The decision was actually made by the Imperial Council.
Afterwards, Jonas also praised Anne.
Anne could sense that the chief herald valued her.
Factions are rampant within the court, and even his Heraldry has been infiltrated.
The Heraldry has seven officials in total, and Jonas probably cannot fully trust five of them.
They may have been recruited by some force, received benefits from it, or been compromised.
Only Anne, Jonas was willing to entrust with a task that was extremely important.
Not only because Annie was his direct junior colleague, but also because Annie's abilities were trustworthy.
Anne may be a little naive in her approach to things and lack experience, but Jonas must have noticed her rapid growth.
He must have discovered Anne's talent, but he certainly didn't see her diligence.
Whenever she had time, Anne would ponder the motivations and even the thought processes of the various people in the court.
It was this kind of training that allowed Annie to progress so quickly.
Jonas said that the meeting had already brought Anne to the attention of many people.
From now on, we must be more careful when interacting with other people in the palace.
Anne silently accepted Jonas's advice: learning and imitation are always the fastest ways to improve.
Right now, Anne is on her way to meet a court official, Hull McKinley, the chief squire and steward of Buckingham Palace.
If you want to find him, the kingdom's palace is the place to go.
Anne arrived at the palace gate with practiced ease. Two guard knights were standing at the door. She greeted the two knights and explained her purpose before knocking on the door.
Soon, the door was opened, and a middle-aged man with fairly handsome features opened it.
Anne bowed to him: "Hello, Steward Hull."
"Oh, Anne, what is it?"
"Lord Jonas sent me to talk to you about something."
"Come in."
Hel nodded and let Annie in.
The door was closed by the knight outside, and the two walked directly to the small round table in the center of the bedroom.
Her poured Anne a cup of black tea.
Anne quickly refused, "My lord, I wouldn't dare."
"No need to be so polite. Even the chief aide-de-camp is an aide-de-camp. You're here to discuss official business, so you can put aside any notions of status."
Anne nodded and stopped refusing.
She looked behind Hull, where there was a large bed.
Under the silk blanket on the bed slept a man, none other than the current king, Corman Sinclair.
However, the old king was too old to govern the country and spent almost all his time sleeping, which earned him the title of the Sleeping King.
In fact, more than a decade ago, some people claimed that "Sleepy King will not survive this winter."
But he is still alive now, which must have exceeded most people's expectations.
This must also include his descendants.
Anne couldn't help but think that if he had died sooner, the court wouldn't be in such a chaotic state.
Seemingly noticing Anne's gaze, Hel said:
"As you know, the previous king, Claude Sinclair, was assassinated in his own palace. Since then, the court has become even more protective of the king."
"Even when sleeping, one must be watched over, unless a lady is attending to one another. Of course, I think our hardworking king probably doesn't have this experience."
"As the chief attendant, I have to sleep in the king's room. You see, my bed is tucked away in that closet. And unless there's official business, I'll stay here."
Anne looked in the direction Hull was pointing and saw a pine cabinet painted gold, with an extremely beautiful design.
It must have been carved by an artisan from the Benson Gobi Desert; Annie would bet on that.
"Ah~ But I only heard about what happened that day. It seems that King Claude's granddaughter also went missing that day."
"I don't know the specific details. I'm only forty-one years old. I went into Platinum Castle with King Coman."
"You must be very outstanding and have earned His Majesty's trust."
"Ha, I may not be outstanding, but the trust is real. I grew up in King Koman's house since I was a child, and he treated me like a grandson. Before I was elected king, I was his attendant, responsible for taking care of his daily life."
Hearing this, Annie couldn't help but have a question:
"Aren't an attendant and a servant different?"
"I understand what you mean, Master Anne. The chief attendant needs to assist the king in handling some political affairs, not to mention that I also hold the title of steward of the palace."
"I am responsible for the expenses and personnel arrangements of the entire palace. I must also accurately know the identities of all visitors who come to the palace and treat them with the appropriate protocol."
That must have been very tough.
"Yes, I was so busy for the first two years that I was completely overwhelmed, but I got used to it later and gradually became more proficient. Ms. Annie, you seem to have only been here for a short time. I'm sure you're also getting used to it, right?"
Anne nodded.
Hel laughed: "Then my advice to you is, persevere! Humans are incredibly adaptable; as long as you can keep going..."
You'll be able to adapt.
This is not a clever method, but:
"Thanks."
"So, Ms. Annie, what brings you here?"
"The current Holy City Lord of Sun City, John Justinian, has sent his previous messenger to the palace. He intends to visit the court and ask the Grand Steward to arrange a grand banquet in his honor."
Hearing this, Hel frowned:
"Is this the opinion of Chief Jonas, or the result of the discussion at the Imperial Council?"
"Johnnas said he would discuss it with all cabinet members at tomorrow's royal meeting, but asked that Your Excellency prepare today."
Lord John of St. John should arrive in the Royal City tomorrow night via the Sogo River.
"Preparing a grand banquet certainly requires starting at least a day in advance, but it will inevitably be a huge expense. You should know, Master Annie, that the national treasury is tight lately, and you haven't given me any formal orders."
At times like this, Anne doesn't need to say anything more.
Her job was simply to convey information, not to influence the other party's judgment.
However, since Jonas had given Anne instructions beforehand on what to say, that's a different story:
"John Justinian is an important guest. The history of Sun City is even longer than that of the kingdom. Their family has a special status even in the duchy, not to mention that they are descendants of the previous dynasty."
"Therefore, we must take this seriously and not let the Sinclair family and the Great Kingdom show weakness in front of this man."
"That's true, but—well, tell Jonas I'll make the arrangements in advance, but I won't implement it until I receive specific orders from the Council."
"Yes," Anne nodded gently.
"However, Master Annie, why would the Holy City Lord of Lieyang City choose to visit the Royal City at this time?"
Six months ago, Annie visited Sun City.
Anne did not meet John Justinian at the time, and thus saw the nautical chart of Featherfall Island.
She also felt lucky that if the Holy City Lord were here, she would never have discovered this matter, nor the truth of the historical mystery buried deep in the past.
It wasn't until later that Annie learned the reason.
John Justinian participated in and commanded the naval battle against the pirates on the Sea of Despair.
Afterwards, the coalition signed a contract with the new owners of the Clown Islands.
Those pirates were legalized and became governors!
However, Anne also understood that this was a choice forced upon decent people.
Pirates are born to plunder, but upright people are bound by morality.
Therefore, the allied forces gathered together, burning gold at all times.
This was an enormous military expenditure, and by then the coalition forces had likely been assembled for quite some time and had no more resources to sustain the conflict.
But when Anne heard about this, her first thought was that the Navigator was dead.
Henry seems to be Aaron's student. How would Aaron feel if he knew?
Anne was afraid of upsetting Aaron, so she didn't dare mention it in her letter.
She also felt it was a pity that she never met the leader and didn't know what kind of person one of the most legendary figures of this era was.
Based on the timeline, John should be on his way home after the war.
Perhaps he just happened to be passing through the capital?
In that case, John's route should be:
Starting from Shoepad Island, head east to Elbowbone Cape. Instead of crossing the Flameheart Sea to the east, head north to Silk Harbor, then west into the Sogo River, and finally to the Royal City.
However, Anne didn't need to analyze this for Hull.
She was unsure whether this person was friend or foe, and one should not trust anyone in the royal city.
If one fails to remain vigilant at all times, the storm of power will mercilessly crush any careless individual.
Anne then said, "I'm sorry, Steward Hull, Lord Jonas didn't tell me about this."
"Okay, fine."
Hull nodded slightly and did not make things difficult for Anne.
After confirming that Anne had nothing else to do, he let her leave, and he seemed to be getting busy.
Anne left the King's bedroom and returned to the House of Armor.
At this time, Jonas was still working.
Anne was surprised by how busy the chief herald was; Jonas seemed to have an endless stream of things to deal with.
That was indeed the case; otherwise, he wouldn't have sent Anne away from the palace to carry out a mission last time.
When Jonas saw Anne return, he asked:
"how?"
Anne accurately conveyed Hull's answer.
"That's enough," Jonas said. "The attitude of the Imperial Council will be surprisingly unified when dealing with a foreign dignitary; they will certainly agree to my arrangements."
Anne nodded, offering no comment.
Jonas chuckled and said, "However, John is young, but he's shrewd. He didn't send a formal letter directly to the royal family..."
Instead, they sent someone to tell me first.
"What's the deeper meaning behind this?" Anne asked, puzzled.
"This was clearly a last-minute visit. The royal family didn't want to lose face in front of John, and the Holy City Lord of Lieyang City was also afraid of not receiving a proper reception."
“I’ve dealt with him once, and he knows what kind of person I am,” Jonas stood up, “so he knows what I’ll do.”
It's much simpler to scheme against me than to manipulate the entire Imperial Council.
Anne still doesn't quite agree with these nobles' way of thinking, so she's always unable to guess their thoughts and motives in time.
This is Anne's weakness, and she must specifically work on improving it.
"Anyway, well done, Anne," Jonas said with a smile as he walked toward Anne.
"You flatter me, Lord Jonas," Anne said with a slight bow. "Is there any other work I need to do?"
"Speaking of which, there is indeed something that requires a herald to handle."
"Please give your orders, sir!"
"I didn't really want to assign you this task, but unfortunately, everyone else in the Herald Garden is unavailable, so I have no choice but to send you."
Anne frowned slightly; she didn't want to be treated differently because of her status as a woman.
She didn't want to experience prejudice against women, and naturally she wouldn't grovel for special treatment from women.
Anne immediately said, "Sir, leave it to me."
"Well—okay, but Anne, the reason I say women aren't suited for this job is because gender does indeed cause more problems in this matter."
Upon hearing this, Anne couldn't help but ask:
"Sir, what is it?"
"I'm going to the dungeon to help a madman who's been imprisoned regain his senses."
"madman?"
"Yes," Jonas said gravely, "she was a poor woman, and now, in this palace, she is the only one I still care about."
Why?
"I had a good relationship with her husband, so I couldn't bear to see her continue to go crazy like this. For more than ten years, I have been trying to bring her back to her senses, but I have failed."
"She calls any woman she sees 'daughter,' so I don't want women to see her. But right now, you're the only one in the Heraldry who has the time to do this."
"who is she?"
Anne left the Heraldry and headed towards the castle dungeon.
There is also a deep underground space in Platinum Castle, but it is extremely dark and filled with the smell of excrement and urine.
Anne walked past the guards and came to a cell.
The light on the stone pillars flickered, far less bright than the lamp in Annie's hand.
Inside the cell ahead, there was a woman with disheveled hair.
The description is of someone withered and haggard appearance.
Anne's task was to tell her about her past, common sense about the world, and some recent major events.
While trying to keep this person connected to the world's information, we attempted to bring her back to her senses.
Frankly, Anne felt that this was purely out of Jonas's personal motives.
But this also undoubtedly proves that her senior brother was not a heartless person.
Anne went up and stood outside the wooden gate.
She held the lantern forward, illuminating the woman's face.
Jonas told Anne that this was Yolanda Hughes, the former king's daughter-in-law and the former prince's wife.
Her daughter disappeared on the night the king was assassinated, so she would call any woman she met her daughter.
At this moment, her bloodshot eyes were fixed on Annie.
The moment she saw Anne, her eyes suddenly bulged out.
She suddenly lunged forward like a madwoman, reaching her hand over the wooden fence:
"Daughter! Daughter! My daughter! Hahaha! It's you, I've finally seen you, my daughter!"
Anne was startled, dropped the lantern in her hand, and stumbled backward.
What a terrifying woman! No wonder Jonas wasn't keen on having Anne come in the first place.
Just then, the woman suddenly burst into laughter, but tears streamed down her face from her swollen eyes.
"Ahhh! Haha! My daughter, my daughter, Caroline, it's you, you've finally come! I can't mistake you! It really is you this time! Ahhh! Hahaha! Come here, let me hug you, let Mommy hug you!"
Yolanda was clearly a pitiful woman, and her plight evoked Anne's sympathy.
At that moment, Anne actually heard a deep and sincere emotion in Yolanda's tone.
But Anne wouldn't fall for it; she knew that the woman claiming to be her mother was simply going mad.