While d.d was happily compiling gossip about the aristocratic circle of the royal capital, his bad luck came into play once again.
"Guard Officer Doyle."
Mallos's voice sounded from behind him at the right time, interrupting Thales's thoughts:
"What's so funny?"
Doyle's expression froze, but when he turned around and faced the watchman, D.D had become serious and decent again:
"No, sir."
"His Royal Highness asked for advice, and I introduced him to some of the nobles' worldly experiences."
Mallos looked at Mrs. Eleanor who disappeared into the banquet hall, and looked at Thales thoughtfully:
"Is it?"
Thales dismissed the image of the little iron thorn from his mind and laughed dryly:
"That's right."
Behind him, Doyle nodded solemnly, while Glover looked expressionless.
Mallos snorted lightly, as calmly as before:
"Very good, are you ready?"
In the distance of his sight, a well-painted middle-aged nobleman and his wife got out of the carriage, signed at the hall door, smiled and asked the attendant to present the gift, straightened his clothes, and walked towards Thales under the guidance.
"Of course." Thales sighed and put on his bright smile again.
But Mallos shook his head and pointed at d.d:
"No, it's not you, Your Highness, I mean...him."
Doyle turned his back to the hall door and said blankly:
"Why do I?"
At this moment, a heartbreaking cry exploded out of thin air!
"Ah ah ah ah, Your Highness, Your Highness, Your Highness Thales, ah ah!"
Thales trembled all over, almost thinking that he had encountered an innocent soul demanding his life.
Waiters, soldiers, guards, and secondary guests at the side door, countless people were attracted by the cry and turned their heads quickly in surprise.
In full view of everyone, a middle-aged nobleman with a shiny face and seemingly fat face opened his chubby hands, rushed in from the hall door, and threw himself in front of Thales!
Without waiting for the surprised Thales to react, the conscientious Glover carefully hugged the prince back and pushed Doyle forward.
The middle-aged nobleman pounced on Doyle who was caught off guard for the first time, making D.D look ugly.
But the visitor did not give up, and saw the nobleman lying on the ground shrinking his features, rolling and crawling towards Thales.
"Your Highness!"
Thales was so startled that he shivered again. Glover had to protect the prince behind him, while Marius stepped aside comfortably and watched from the sidelines.
The guest had no intention of getting up. He continued to stretch his hands forward and pounced towards Thales' legs:
"The gods have eyes, the holy sun is wise, and the setting sun blesses you! The stars, the kingdom of stars, have finally waited for their destined heirs!"
"Our seven servants of the Bright Star are so loyal, and they are finally rewarded!"
The tone is sad and poignant, making those who hear it sad and those who listen to it crying.
Thales was dumbfounded.
what's the situation?
Blocking the road to seek justice?
The Xinghu guards in the foyer frowned and pressed their swords, but Mallos raised his hand to them.
Until Doyle reached out and grabbed the middle-aged nobleman by the back of his collar, dragging him backwards with all his strength.
"Dad, you, what are you doing, get up! Get up!"
I saw D.D looking around in horror, using his hands and feet to angrily stop the middle-aged nobleman two meters away from the prince:
"This is so embarrassing, dad..."
When the middle-aged noble saw Doyle, he immediately changed his face without even wiping away his tears:
"When I saw His Highness, I was excited and couldn't control my emotions. It's none of your business!"
Hearing them address each other, Thales arched his eyebrows.
Mallos on the side said leisurely:
"Your Highness, this is Baron Doyle. He is the lord of Mirror River and also from D.D... Anyway, you can see for yourself."
Thales's eyebrows twitched.
Doyle was still struggling with his father, looking apologetic and ashamed at the same time, smiling at the people around him.
The waiters and guards who were watching the excitement left one after another, and the scattered nobles also turned around and whispered.
Until another sharp female voice sounded:
"Ah! Little Danny! How could you treat your father like this!"
I saw an aristocratic lady with thick makeup rushing from behind yelling, hugging old Baron Doyle, and waving a handkerchief to drive away D.D., forcing the latter to let go:
"He is old and in poor health. You are still so inconsiderate. How pitiful we are as a couple..."
Old Baron Doyle gasped in response, coughed repeatedly, and fell into the arms of his lady.
The baroness cried:
"Are you worthy of our hard work and peeing in raising you?"
Old Baron and Mrs. Doyle held hands and sat in a ball on the ground, looking at their son who had a severe headache and was at a loss what to do.
Their expressions were resolute and sad, and they looked quite tragic as a couple.
Just like a bully who bullies a poor honest couple in the street.
"Raised?"
Doyle looked depressed: "You are obviously just my stepmother..."
"What's wrong with stepmother!"
The baroness stood up with her husband in her arms, her face slightly changed with tears, and she shook her handkerchief and spoke in a fierce tone:
"The stepmother is not the mother anymore!"
"Your food and clothing expenses, knight tuition, and the cost of picking up girls, all of which are not the result of our hard work..."
Doyle completely gave up the possibility of saving the family's face and could only cover his face and sigh.
This family ethics drama left Thales stunned.
Old Baron Doyle wiped his nose and finally stood firm.
But the moment he saw Thales, his face changed again, this time extremely eager:
"Ah, Your Highness! Look, you are standing here, standing in front of the portraits of the Three Kings of the Stars. It may be a coincidence, but who can say that this is not a foreshadowing: the courage and fearlessness of the Supreme Revival King, the majesty of the legendary Oath Keepers
Your appearance, your majestic wisdom and wisdom...you are simply a gift from God, where these three are combined into one!"
Quadtails couldn't bear it.
Old Doyle burst into tears as he spoke:
"The bright star has a son who has grown up, and the king has knowledge. He must be smiling at the river of hell...or the kingdom of heaven?"
Thales forced himself to put on a stiff smile and returned the greeting from afar.
But d.d doesn’t think so.
While apologizing to the young Duke with a smile, he pulled his exaggerated parents aside.
"Dad...what on earth are you doing..."
Old Doyle lowered his head and whispered dissatisfiedly: "It's not all for you!"
"I?"
"I found out from the servant that you, a careless fellow, actually offended Ms. Jini - do you know how terrifying she is? Do you still want to hang out in the royal capital!"
d.d sighed: "What does that have to do with you..."
"You are so thin-skinned that you can't even find a girlfriend. Of course, flattering can only be done by me with all my shame..."
"It sounds like your face is very useful..."
"You bastard—"
"And it's not like I can't find a girlfriend..."
"Ah? Do you want to be like the idiots of the Karabyan family? Find a boyfriend?"
"Dad, please go in and stay there!"
"Wait a minute I forgot to kiss His Highness the Prince's hand..."
"Oh, I'll kiss him for you -"
On the other side, Thales and Glover looked at each other, both helpless.
Mallos looked like he was used to it.
Finally, Doyle, who had sent away his magical parents, turned around with lingering fear, wiped his forehead, and found that the prince and others were staring at him intently as if they were watching a drama.
Thales' expression did not change, and he held out the back of his hand considerately:
"Do you want a kiss?"
d.d was stunned for a moment and said flatteringly:
"No, no, but it's not because I don't want to kiss... In fact, I kiss every day in my heart... But you know, my father and the others... hehe..."
"Well," Glover spoke for the first time, with unclear emotions:
"sweet Home."
Doyle wished he had a hole to crawl into.
"I know," he said sarcastically:
"So, I don't like to go home."
The other three people turned their heads and pretended that nothing happened.
Compared with Doyle's lively and happy family, Baron Strauss, who was also one of the seven attendants, came to visit alone without even an attendant, looking lonely and gloomy.
"After the Year of Blood, due to the limitations of the national conditions, His Majesty Kessel advocated frugality and loved simplicity," Baron Stowe was in his forties, with tall cheekbones and thin cheeks, and looked quite mean:
"Therefore, there will no longer be enough banquets in the royal capital."
Baron Stowe held Thales' hand and observed his face carefully:
"So, Your Highness, do you know what today means to us?"
Thales could only smile in return.
"It doesn't matter, because we don't know either."
The gloomy Baron leaned down and nuzzled the back of Thales' hand with his cheek:
"It's just up to you to prove it."
By the time Baron Stowe turned around and left, Thales was already a little numb.
"I remember that the leader of the logistics officer under me was named Shi Tuo..."
"Okay, whether it's my Mindis Hall or the royal guard," the prince took a deep breath:
"How many other people are related to the Seven Shining Stars?"
"A lot," Mallos replied calmly:
"But very little."
Thales was stunned.
Until another tall figure stepped out of the carriage, walked through the vestibule of Mindis Hall amidst the flattering greetings of the small nobles, signed his name, crossed the direction of the guards, and came to Thales.
"I heard that they all came early, so I have to come."
The tall nobleman had a smile on his face, but his eyes were shrewd. He saluted Thales and lowered his body, giving off a different aura:
"Lozano Glover, Viscount of Hushan County."
Doyle's slight intake of breath came from behind.
Glover.
Thales's heart moved and he resisted the urge to look back.
Duke Xinghu continued his perfect smile:
"Nice to meet you. Your Majesty once mentioned that your family is the mainstay of our rule - I heard that your grandfather once served in the royal guard and held a high position?"
Lozano is tall, but looks thin:
"He was once the most trusted guard watchman of the late King Eddie, and the swordsmanship teacher of Crown Prince Midir, until he died in the line of duty and sacrificed his life for the country."
"Live up to the mission of the Glover family."
Watchman.
Thales resisted the urge to look at Mallos, but what he thought of was another person.
Lozano smiled:
"I work in the Department of Finance and Taxation, so I live in Yongxing City for a long time. If you have leisure, Your Highness, you might as well come to the cold residence in Dongcheng District to have a chat."
Working in the Department of Finance and Taxation...
It’s no wonder that he holds an important position.
Lozano turned his head and looked at Mallos:
"Tormund, the same goes for you. The door of Glover's house is always open to you."
Mallos smiled faintly:
"It's an honor. Let me take you in?"
"Of course." But it wasn't over yet. Lozano unexpectedly turned to d.d, who was watching silently:
"And, Danny Doyle, right?"
"Please tell me, please, please stop sending money to the Department of Finance and Taxation. We cannot accept it. Even if we accept it, we cannot skip his land liquidation and tax inspection this year."
Doyle's face suddenly turned red.
Before finally leaving, Lozano looked at Thales again and said seriously:
"I hope you know, Your Highness."
"We will always be loyal to the throne and to the nine-star crown."
So, when Lozano Glover and Mallos left together, Thales and Doyle breathed a sigh of relief, feeling relieved from a certain aura.
d.d hummed softly:
"What am I talking about? Tsk tsk, he's in charge of money."
yes.
and……
Thales resisted the desire to turn his head sideways and backward.
But obviously, someone couldn't help it.
"Hey, zombie, don't you say something?"
Doyle looked at Viscount Glover's back curiously, then turned to look at his colleagues:
"That's your eldest brother, he's also a lord, and he's in charge of money. If I do it, I'll hurry up..."
Glover turned his head sharply!
His sharp eyes pierced D.D., as cold as ice.
Doyle panicked, and Thales, who was caught in the middle, also froze.
Glover stared at d.d coldly for a few seconds, then slowly spoke, word by word:
"I'm on duty."
It seemed that this was the first time Doyle saw Glover like this. He stayed for a few seconds before forcing a smile:
"Okay, okay, okay..."
Glover then turned around and nodded slightly to the prince who was watching the show in a daze.
Doyle shrank to the side, gave Thales an aggrieved look, and flattened his mouth angrily.
But Thales no longer had time to care about their interaction.
The prince took the water glass and replenished his fluids. He looked across the foyer and past the defense line formed by the guards. He looked at the crowds of people outside and the carriages coming and going. He knew that he would only get busier and busier in the future.
But he was quite tired.
On the surface, these vassals from the central government who arrived in advance were not as domineering as the nineteen nobles, but Thales felt that it was more laborious to deal with it than the state meeting six years ago.
But he can't rest.
According to Gilbert's instructions, when he was tired, he had to pay more careful attention to his appearance, etiquette, movements, smile, posture, and conversation.
"Six families."
Thales opened his fingers and pointed at the family, attracting the attention of two personal guards:
"If I've learned the history lessons correctly these days... how many families in the Central Territory seem to be comparable to these six major families in terms of reputation, history and strength?"
Thales watched with boredom as the guests outside the hall were slowly separated and guided to the appropriate entrances and locations. However, there were still many people who forgot their etiquette and demeanor when passing through the main hall and tried to stand on tiptoe to have a peek, just for the sake of
See the prince's style as soon as possible.
"It's gone."
Doyle followed Thales's words smoothly, his tone was lazy, and he was obviously quite impatient:
"Although 'seven servants' is just an insider's term... But when I first remembered, there were eight or nine hereditary nobles directly under the royal family, with actual fiefdoms, and more in the central government.
We are waiting in line to squeeze in."
Eighty-nine families...
"until……"
Doyle shrugged:
"You know, in the past twenty years, some have had empty titles but lost all their lands, some have great businesses but cannot make ends meet, some have a long history but have poor descendants, some have been destroyed by war and cannot recover, some have made mistakes and lost their titles, some have
The blood relatives are divided and weakened by internal strife..."
Thales listened quietly, and Grover frowned.
"Up to now, there are only six families that match the name and reality, and can barely qualify for the stupid title of 'Seven Shining Stars' - the quality is still uneven, as you can see, some are in the coffin, and some are in the coffin.
There are orphans and widowers, there are powerful people, there are sinister and stingy people, there are some who will cry and kneel down when they meet...ahem..."
Doyle, who was gossiping casually, realized something and ended the topic in time.
Thales remained silent for a long time.
After thinking about it clearly, he nodded thoughtfully.
In the next ten minutes, more and more guests needed to be greeted by the prince, but almost all of them were royal supporters whom Thales had been familiar with six years ago, and even upstarts in the royal council:
The current finance minister, "Money Bag" Juke Mann, asked kindly how the prince was adapting and how the math class was progressing. The minister of academic affairs took advantage of the situation and interjected to mention the funding issue for this year's central bureaucratic examination;
Military advisor "Private" Thordo Red had just slapped his chest and assured him that the kingdom's actions in the desert would ensure another ten years of peace in the Western Wasteland. The Minister of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, who had arrived behind him, told him with a serious face that he was resorting to militarism.
The disadvantages of military operations and the destruction of production by military operations demonstrate the asymmetry of benefits brought about by looting and farming with peace of mind;
Baron Garth, who manages the mint, had just warmly invited Duke Xinghu to visit the Kingdom's "source of wealth" and it would be best to hear about their currency issuance plan that was rejected by His Majesty. The supervisory minister of the Royal Bank rushed over in a hurry.
Politely interrupting the conversation, he strongly suggested that Thales open an account in his own name, as the historic third thousand distinguished aristocratic customer of Wangjia Bank...
During this period, Thales was greeted and sent away, laughing so hard that his face almost felt numb.
To be honest, he would rather go back to the Dragon Blood Night six years ago to face the menacing five Grand Dukes.
No wonder, no wonder the clan motto of a certain great noble family in my impression is "I would rather die for the sake of friends than to die for the sake of enemies"...
However, at the next moment, as a carriage approached, the nobles lined up in the front yard became silent.
A middle-aged nobleman stepped out of the carriage and walked to the Mindis Hall accompanied by an old servant.
The voices of the nobles roared again, and the soldiers and guards stood up straighter unconsciously.
"D.D., go take a look," Thales, who finally had time to breathe, sighed and raised his head:
"Who is coming again..."
But Thales' words stopped abruptly.
Outside the hall, I saw the middle-aged nobleman with an elegant manner, but an easy-going temperament, and an occasional majesty in his gaze.
Every step he took, he would patiently nod and return greetings to the lower-ranking nobles who greeted him. He had no airs but his own demeanor, which made people convinced.
Thales was stunned.
"Ha, I know, that's a big shot. He often stays in the capital for short periods of time, so his status is..."
Doyle was about to continue, but Thales suddenly raised his hand and stopped him.
Thales looked at him with a complicated expression and looked at the family emblem on the other man's sleeve.
The flowers have three petals with different colors.
Visitors stepped onto the steps and showed their iconic smiles between the pillars:
"The Mindis Hall is truly worthy of its reputation. It has countless treasures and is priceless."
While signing, he smiled and said to the old servant beside him:
"I really wish I could have come here six or seven years earlier."
Several gleams of profound meaning flashed across the noble's eyes.
"That's good."
The old servant just nodded quietly.
The next moment, the middle-aged noble raised his head, and after the guards made way, he came face to face with Thales.
No warning, no cover-up.
Thales and the other party's eyes interacted in the air.
Doyle, who was originally numb and idle, suddenly felt as if there was a cold wind passing by.
he's changed.
Thales looked calm. He looked at the guests silently and thought to himself.
His demeanor is more mature, more natural, more...
The prince rubbed his gloves gently.
he's changed.
The guest's expression did not change. He looked at Thales quietly and became convinced.
His eyes are sharper, firmer, and...
The guests narrowed their eyes slightly.
At that moment, it seemed like they were the only ones left in the huge and bustling Mindis Hall.
but……
Thales and the guests released friendly smiles at the same time, and moved at the same time to greet each other as if they had a tacit understanding.
So what?
So, under the gaze of countless eyes, the owner and the guest of the Mindis Hall, like old friends who have not seen each other for a long time but care about each other with sincerity, walked towards each other enthusiastically and freely, and their two palms met fiercely in the air!
"Welcome, Your Majesty the Duke!"
"Long time no see, Your Highness!"
Thales felt the opponent's unbridled strength, and he also let go of the sin of the prison river without mercy, using his muscles to exert force!
The two palms trembled slightly in the air, and the wind and clouds appeared calm on the surface.
Mallos, who came after hearing the news, frowned slightly when he saw this scene.
The eyes of Thales and the guest once again met in the air for a round, and then they both broke into friendly smiles.
The Duke chuckled:
"Just call me Zhan."
The prince is equally considerate:
"Tiles."
The next moment, the two of them looked at each other and laughed in tacit understanding again, hugging each other with the held arms as the center, and clasping each other's back shoulders with the other hand.
Thales suddenly realized that he was only half a head shorter than him.
I don't know when, but the opponent's once unreachable height is no longer an obstacle.
In the eyes of outsiders, Prince Thales and Duke Zhan were inseparable. They had not seen each other for years, but they still loved each other. While running towards each other, they wanted to light up the lamps and talk together all night long.
However, only Thales and Zhan, who hugged each other tightly with their heads and necks touching each other, knew how sincere their feelings were at that moment.
"I knew there was nothing the Northlanders could do against you."
Zhan En whispered in his ear with a strange tone.
"Yes," Thales responded slowly, also with profound meaning:
"Just like the vampires.
From an invisible angle, the two people turned their heads and glanced sideways at each other at an almost kissing distance.
Zhan En's eyes were as cold as frost.
Thales' eyes were sharp, piercing his heart.
"Welcome back." The Duke of South Shore, Jenn Kelvindill, spoke softly.
Nine-pointed star.
"Excuse me for waiting." Duke of Star Lake, Thales Canxing, sneered lightly.
iris.
In the next second, the two most important people in the country broke up and let go of each other.
A perfect and warm smile was restored.
It shows that in this era, what people in the kingdom are most proud of - unity and harmony.