"Let's all play together. It's not like three of us can't play together! Whoever quarrels again will get out first!"
Under Xia Lu's strong suppression, the originally out-of-control situation was finally brought under control, and Crystal and Charlotte no longer quarreled.
It's just that both of them looked angry and still angry, turning away from each other and never looking at each other again.
"Okay, let's play together." Xia Lu didn't give them any time to lose their temper and directly put the chessboard between the three of them.
Then, while explaining the rules of this kind of war chess to the two girls, she pointed to the soldier models next to them to correspond one by one.
Both of them were confused. After all, the rules were a bit complicated, but it didn't matter. Anyway, you could learn while playing.
In this way, under the leadership of Xia Lu, the three girls happily acted as the commanders of the army. The regiments were ready to go, marching between the vast wilderness and mountains. Every time they collided, they would start a battle, and then according to the
The number of troops and other conditions determine victory or defeat and battle losses.
Although their relationship was very tense as soon as they met, fortunately, Keli and Charlotte were only eight or nine years old now, so they did not keep this hatred in their hearts all the time, and their attention was quickly attracted by the novel and interesting battles.
They were attracted by chess, and they happily devoted themselves to it, experiencing this kind of game that they had never encountered before.
Because she was a skilled player, Xia Lu didn't want to bully others, so she stayed silent most of the time and watched. However, Crystal and Charlotte seemed to have vented their anger on the chessboard. From the beginning of the game, they
Attack the opponent's camp desperately.
This strong desire to attack is naturally reflected intuitively on the sand table. The infantry, cavalry and artillery troop models rush towards each other along the road in the field, and then are quickly consumed in the battle. This tragic fight
This did not arouse any sympathy from the two "commanders" and they continued to plunder their remaining troops, seemingly determined to subdue the other.
Xia Lu watched the fierce battle and was shocked by the overwhelming evil spirit between them. Because the two of them often disagreed on the calculation of battle losses and refused to give in to each other, sometimes Xia Lu took the initiative to act as a referee to help determine the winner.
Fortunately, she has some prestige in the hearts of the two young girls, so every referee is accepted.
The silent fighting continued, and it was especially brutal because the two crappy "commanders" didn't care about strategy and tactics.
However, although Charlotte was also inexperienced, her brain was still much more active than Keli, who had been isolated from the world for many years. Gradually, she gained the upper hand. Keli had fewer and fewer troops and her territory became smaller and smaller.
Small.
Charlotte sneered triumphantly and continued to march without mercy, letting her model soldiers approach Keli's last stronghold step by step, preparing to win the victory over this 'outsider'.
Keli also felt the bad situation. Although she was not obsessed with winning or losing, she just didn't want to lose to this hateful Charlotte.
But she had no choice but to watch helplessly as her opponent suppressed her, and she was so anxious that she almost shed tears.
She looked at Xia Lu eagerly, like a believer praying for a miracle in a desperate situation.
"Poor guy, prepare to accept defeat!" Finally, Charlotte issued her own declaration of victory amidst laughter.
However, her high-pitched laughter suddenly turned into a dry laugh because at this moment, a model of a strange monster suddenly rushed into her army, smashing the uniform soldier models into pieces.
"…………"
Her mind went blank for a second, then she came back to her senses and looked at Xia Lu angrily, "Xia Lu, what are you doing!"
"Ah, I forgot to mention it." Xia Lu shrugged innocently, "Kristel has fulfilled the conditions for summoning the dragon because she sacrificed enough lives...and now the dragon has arrived."
Then, she looked at the miserable state of Charlotte's army on the huge sand table, and then sighed regretfully, "Oh, it looks like it caused terrible casualties..."
"Unfair! It's too much! This is too much!" Charlotte turned pale with anger, her eyes widened, and she looked at Xia Lu with an angry face, "How can this be like this! A giant dragon was suddenly summoned on the battlefield.
What does it mean!"
"That's the rule." Xia Mianlian replied calmly, without any intention of lying. "The lives you have sacrificed have reached the level of summoning a giant dragon."
"Then why can't I?!" Charlotte yelled angrily.
"Because she is a princess, isn't it natural for a princess to attract evil dragons?" Xia Lu smiled, as if it was natural.
"Strong words!" How could Charlotte be fooled by such rhetoric? She immediately interrupted her loudly, "You...you are favoring her! Even if she is a princess, she is also an outsider. How can you do it just to please her?"
Outsiders are happy to bully me and bully your cousin sister!?"
Normally, Charlotte is loved by all the elders at home, and she has long developed a bossy temper. Now that she is being bullied like this by Xia Lu, she is naturally angry at her cousin for doing this.
"Charlotte..." Xia Lu wanted to persuade her cousin to calm down.
"Huh, I'm not going to play anymore!" Charlotte couldn't bear this anger. She picked up the soldier model and smashed it on the sand table, causing it to turn into a mess, and then ran out angrily.
Xia Lu looked at her back helplessly, not knowing what to say for a moment.
"Xia Lu, thank you." At this moment, Kristel thanked Xia Lu in a low voice.
Although she was not familiar with the world, she was not stupid either. Of course she could see how ridiculous Xia Lu's remarks just now were.
But she didn't care at all whether it was ridiculous or not. What she cared about was the fact that she saw that Xia Lu did not hesitate to pay the price of quarreling with her cousin in order to protect her and make her happy.
And this is enough. For children whose moral concepts have not been fully developed, stance and attitude are always more important than 'correctness'.
She felt that Xia Lu valued her, that was the warmth of friendship, that was something she could never touch in this country, in this palace, and it was something she must cherish in her life.
"It's okay." Xia Lu smiled bitterly, "She has a very bad temper, but she is also very forgetful. We have had many quarrels since childhood, but she will calm down on her own after a while."
"Then... you go and find her quickly, and we can all play together." Crystal said suddenly.
"Huh?" Xia Lu didn't expect her to say such words. "Don't you hate her?"
"She is your cousin. It can be seen that you must have a good relationship. I don't want to see you fall out with her because of me..." Kristel replied seriously, "Since you are friends, then... I also
You can become friends with her. Although she is very fierce and has a bad temper, but...since she is your blood relative, she should...should be a bit cute, right?"
"Hahahaha..." Xia Lu was amused by her words, and then she looked at her friend seriously, "Cristel, you are not only a princess, you are also a good child."
"Go quickly." Keli replied with a blush. "Don't let her run away."
"She can't run far!" Xia Lu ran away and rushed out of the wide hall.
Charlotte walked down the stairs skillfully, and then walked towards the garden by the back door, because every time the two of them quarreled and got angry, Charlotte would go there, torturing the flowers and plants there and cursing herself at the same time.
Sure enough, this time was no exception. Xia Lu soon saw Charlotte beside a small flower bed.
After a brief period of venting, Charlotte still looked angry, with tears in the corners of her eyes, and the broken petals at her feet were enough to prove how much damage had been done here.
"Charlotte?" Xia Lu walked to her side on guard, "Are you still angry?"
"You bastard!" Seeing that her cousin finally chased her out, Charlotte's anger finally subsided a little, but on the surface, she still frowned and made a fierce look. "Idiot! Idiot.
!”
Charlotte cursed at Xia Lu, but it was obvious that the princess was well-educated and her curse words were very poor. She just repeated a few words.
"There's no need to be so angry..." Xia Lu sighed helplessly, "Do we have to compete for victory and defeat like this? How bad is it to make someone cry... After all, others are also guests, so why not make her happy?
?”
"You care whether she cries or not, then why don't you care whether I cry or not? I just want to win her, can't I?" Charlotte interrupted Xia Lu, "Also...I'm not crying because I lost,
I cry because of your favoritism, but also because of your humbleness, you know? The way you grovel to please her makes me look pitiful... Should the children of our Treville family do this? An illegitimate child
Is the female princess worth this?"
"It's worth doing." Xia Lu replied calmly, "She is a princess, and His Majesty has given me the responsibility to accompany her, so I must complete it. In addition, she is still my friend, a poor person, and I want to do my best.
, make her happy."
"Humph, friend! In the final analysis, it is for your own ambition... You just want to climb up like your grandfather and mother, and you will not hesitate to cling to the Bonaparte family, even if you lose your dignity!" Charlotte
He accused her mercilessly.
"Even if this is the case, is there anything shameful?" Xia Lu asked in a low voice, "If it is shameful to cling to the Bonaparte family, then would it be shameful for your and my ancestors to cling to the king? If they had not knelt down to the kings, we would
Now we are still in that ghost place in the south where we don’t know the name, and we are being laughed at as small landowners. How could we be where we are today?”
This kind of dialogue does not match their age, but the two Treville sisters are somewhat precocious in their thinking, so they often have similar arguments. This is also the reason for the close relationship between them, because after these continuous quarrels
, they only understand each other’s thoughts best.
"That's different. The king is a legitimate monarch and a servant of God. We should be loyal to him." Charlotte retorted. "And Bonaparte... everyone remembers what they used to be!"
"Orthodox? To me, whoever is on stage is orthodox... Since Emperor Bonaparte has given our family everything, is there anything wrong with us flattering him?" Xia Lu replied matter-of-factly, "Of course.
Considering that history is always changing, it is a safe choice to have a branch of our family on the side of the king, but at least now, the rule of the Bonaparte family is stable, and my grandfather's position is also stable, why should I change my position?"
"Stable? No way..." Charlotte smiled disdainfully, "The rule of the Bonaparte family will never be stable! In the end, all their capital is their name. As long as their prestige is shaken, they will be finished. And
That day will come soon."
"No! Like my grandfather and mother, I will keep the empire and everything we have gained!" Xia Lu looked at Charlotte proudly. "With His Majesty here, we can do it!"
"Then I will overturn everything and show you!" Charlotte shouted back.
"Hey, why do you want to get along with me so much?" Xia Lu was not angry at this childish declaration, but just a little confused, "Are you happy to see my family in such decline?"
"Because..." Charlotte frowned slightly and hesitated for a moment.
Then she broke out desperately, "Because I want you to admit that you were wrong. No shabby emperor can do anything. Only I can protect this family and you!"
"Pfft..." Xia Lu couldn't help laughing. "Childish."
Although it was a bit strange to call her childish to her cousin who was a few months older than her, Xia Lu seemed to take it for granted.
"Okay, I agree with this reason!"
Then, she nodded slightly to her cousin.
"Oh, you can play whatever you want. Who made you lucky? It's my cousin? Don't worry, you will never go to jail, because I am here and I will protect you."
Looking at her cousin's sincere and clear eyes, Charlotte suddenly understood that she was indeed serious.
"You will never go to jail or be exiled." She also looked at her cousin seriously and answered word by word, "I will also protect you."
Just like that, the anger and conflict between the two people disappeared like dew in the sun. The playmates, who had quarreled many times, hugged each other gently like they had reconciled many times.
In the spacious hall, Kristel was playing with various toys while quietly waiting for Xia Lu to come back. She believed that Xia Lu would be able to do it and bring Charlotte back with her.
Sure enough, after a long time, two girls walked in together.
Keli looked at Charlotte. Although there were still tears on her face, there were no traces of anger or arrogance.
Under her gaze, Charlotte walked up to Kelly, then bowed slightly to salute her.
"Your Highness Crystal, I'm sorry... I was the one who offended you just now. You are Xia Lu's friend, and I should have due respect for you."
Although she was apologizing, she was still reserved, and there was a sense of reluctantly bowing her head for Xia Lu in every word.
But Keli didn't care. Anyway, for her, Charlotte's apology was dispensable. It was enough for her and Xia Lu to be happy.
"It's okay. I was also rude. Please forgive me."
Then, the three of them put aside their old grudges and started playing with various toys in the room.
It was not until sunset that they stopped, exhausted and unfinished.
Xia Lu had a great time, but not because of the toys, but because of the innocent family and friendship, which were precious things that she rarely experienced.
"You two ladies, how about we take a bath together?" After wiping the sweat from her forehead, she suggested with a smile, "The bath here is quite big."