"One hundred silver moons?! Earl, you are so generous!" Guy VI laughed angrily and patted the armrest of the throne hard.
Seeing the disdainful looks cast by the people around him, the nearest colleagues even took two steps back. The mean and stingy Earl panicked and kept wiping the sweat on his forehead with a handkerchief, loudly saying: "Add one
Queen Mary secretly tugged on her husband's sleeves, but unfortunately he didn't respond at all. The king stood up, suppressed his anger, and said in a deep voice: "I heard that the Earl has ten mansions in the city, and each one is valuable.
Thousands of gold coins?"
The earl's veins were exposed, and he almost gritted his teeth and reported a new number: "I am willing to increase it to 2,000 silver moons."
Guy VI still looked dissatisfied, but his expression was finally better than before. In addition, the queen beside him pulled hard on the hem of his clothes, and he finally sat back in his seat with a murmur, waving his hands and giving up.
Looking at Viscount Kennard, who was shaking his mustache and giving him an angry look, Todd shrugged his eyebrows and raised his head to look at the ceiling.
The king, who was less angry, suddenly remembered the main topic of the meeting. He quickly leaned his upper body forward and asked Todd kindly: "Father, I invite you here this time because I want to invite you to become the royal family of the kingdom."
Alchemist..."
"I object!"
This time it was the Earl, a fat bald man, who jumped out again. He raised his hand and pointed at Todd and said loudly: "Since the late king succeeded to the throne, in the history of Silver Ring City, there has never been a church member holding an important position in the palace.
, this is unreasonable!”
Other officials and nobles in the hall also echoed the words. Everyone knew the specific reason. There were always some conflicts and dirty things between the church and the kingdom that could not be brought to the table. Letting a priest enter the palace to serve, not only all the secular nobles, but also the
There will be grudges, and there is also concern that the power of the church will penetrate into the royal family and even influence the king's decisions.
Guy VI seemed to be trying his best to suppress the anger in his chest. He blushed and continued to explain in a strange tone: "Mr. Todd's ability and attainments in alchemy, I believe everyone has witnessed it. He already knew it when he was in the monastery.
With the improved silver refining technique and the Eye of God that can distinguish good from evil, if he can be invited to become a royal alchemist, it will be beneficial to the kingdom's finances..."
The king's words were interrupted again by the count: "Church members are not allowed to serve in the palace! This is the last instruction of the late king!"
Watching the great drama of mutual hostilities between kings and ministers unfolding in the palace hall, Todd, who was completely unaware of any of the parties involved, upheld the duty of a crowd of people who eat melons, did not participate, did not make noises, did not start a fight, and just watched quietly.
, and as he listened, he heard many interesting things.
These nobles who hold important positions in the kingdom are really powerful. Let’s not mention the dual title of father and son. Their momentum alone is staggering. Looking at the king, his temper and cultivation are really extraordinary.
As far as I'm concerned, when being contradicted by subordinates like this, I can still argue with reason.
Cutting off people's heads is a rare thing; finally, the royal family may be really short of money now. On the surface, it wants to give itself a position as a royal alchemist. In fact, from the king's words just now, it is revealed that the real meaning is,
The royal family wanted a complete set of techniques for refining silver.
Regardless of the smelting field at the foot of the monastery mountain, anyone can see it. The structure of the furnace is not complicated, but the refining process and impurity removal materials are only known by Todd, Huggins and a few key craftsmen. Silver Ring
The kingdom must have sent people to "steal the master", but in the end they found that there was no point.
While Todd was still thinking, the situation on the court changed again.
From the donation incident just now to the invitation from the Royal Alchemist, the anger in Guy VI's chest became more and more intense. In the end, he could no longer control his emotions and exploded without any scruples about the presence of outsiders.
Already...
He walked down from his seat, pointed at the nose of the earl, who was the finance minister, and shouted loudly: "People in other countries say that the Silver Ring Kingdom is a country of silver and a country of wealth! But who knows the royal family?
Our finances are deteriorating, how did you become the Minister of Finance?!"
Faced with the anger of the leader of the country, the earl seemed indifferent and just said a perfunctory sentence: "It is true that the income is high, but the expenses are also high."
The king was like a furious lion, not buying this answer at all: "Then tell me, where did the money go? Where did all the money go?!"
Queen Mary, who was sitting on the side of the throne, stood up. She understood that the time had come when she had to step forward. If the situation continued, there was no guarantee that the impulsive king would do something.
"Your Majesty, please calm down. Your Majesty the Earl is working hard for the kingdom every day, and it is not his fault."
The queen's persuasion did not have the desired effect.
On the contrary, when the count saw the queen, his face darkened and his brows furrowed deeply.
In his opinion, before this woman appeared, Guy VI had no interest in political affairs and only knew about parties and hunting every day. But since marrying this princess from an enemy country, the king's temperament has changed drastically. Not only has he begun to pay attention to the people's livelihood at home, he has even tried to cultivate
team, meddling in financial and taxation affairs. This is definitely not a good thing for the nobles who control key institutions of the kingdom.
The fat bald man's face faced the king, but his eyes looked at the queen: "Your Majesty, I heard that you bought a famous painting by Hertris a few days ago?"
Guy VI paused and remained silent.
The count continued: "I heard that you spent 5,500 silver moons on that painting?!"
As soon as this statement came out, everyone in the hall was shocked.
Todd quickly counted on his fingers. 5,500 silver months, equivalent to the purchasing power in his previous life, is almost 2.75 million yuan! Just to buy a painting, the world of rich people is really difficult to understand...
Queen Mary covered her mouth with her hands, her face full of surprise. She thought that the painting might be expensive, but she didn't expect it to be so expensive.
The Count's words were not over yet: "For Her Majesty the Queen, you built a painting gallery, which contains famous paintings purchased from all over the world, almost more than a hundred pieces? I also heard that you built a gallery for Her Majesty the Queen's 20th birthday next year.
Birthday, are you secretly building a beautiful garden called "Eden"? And..."
The king shouted angrily in a low voice: "That's enough!"
This scene was really climaxing, and Todd was very excited to watch it. The only thing that made him a little unhappy was that he didn't bring a handful of fried beans, and no one gave him a small chair.
A familiar cough came from the end of the hall, attracting his attention.
Todd looked back and saw the armored Baron Cumberland standing at the door, staring at him with two eyes, which made people shudder.
This damn old man.
Turning his head back, Todd sighed deeply.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me for being rude, but I must refuse the invitation of the Royal Alchemist..."
The priest's sudden speech stopped the tense atmosphere in the temple.
Todd continued: "Alchemy has always been regarded as a taboo art in the church. If I openly accept the kingdom's invitation like this, it will not only be detrimental to myself, but also cause unnecessary trouble to Silver Ring City."
Everyone in the hall listened to these words and thought about it carefully. What the priest said was completely correct, and it was indeed true.
Guy VI looked pale and held his wife's hand as he walked back to the throne. Seeing Todd's face that still contained "three parts nostalgia and seven parts regret", he sat down helplessly.
With an expression full of frustration and shame, the king nodded: "That's all we have to do."
"But..." Todd changed the subject: "In order to help the Silver Ring Kingdom, I am willing to teach the royal family the technology of refining silver."
As soon as he said this, the palace was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
Everyone couldn't believe their ears.
The priest is willing to pass on the silver refining technology to us for free?
Guy VI's whole body trembled with excitement. He stood up and said deeply moved: "Father, your character and kindness! You are the savior of the entire kingdom!"
The silver refining technology is no longer of any use to Todd. He transfers it for free, and he doesn't feel any heartache at all. Firstly, that technology is not only useless to him, but will only bring disaster; secondly, the monastery's
The monks already have a mountain of waste slag that can be refined, so I don't have to worry about the source of their raw materials.
Todd said slowly: "We are all lambs under the rule of Heavenly Father. Love and mutual help are the virtues that every believer should have. Moreover, there have been some misunderstandings between the church and Silver Ring City that have not been resolved. I am willing to use
My goodwill restored the relationship between the two to normal; what's more, as soon as I arrived in the city this time, I received "kind hospitality" from Her Majesty the Queen, which can be regarded as a thank you gift."
Everyone understands the first two sentences, but not many people understand the last sentence.
Todd is still brooding about that banquet. If it hadn't been for that deliberately arranged bet, there wouldn't have been so much trouble. He dragged himself into this political whirlpool without consulting Queen Mary.
, extremely dissatisfied.
Looking up, his and Mary's eyes met head-on. The annoyance in the other's eyes made Todd clearly understand that the queen must have understood the last sentence.
——————————————
"Aiden! What's with the scratches on your face?"
On the streets of Muxi Town, the old craftsman looked at the acquaintance walking towards him and quickly covered the scars on his face with his hands. Unfortunately, he was still a little slower.
"Haha, there is a cat at home, and his temper is not very good. He was scratched a few times accidentally." Aiden Kom said with a forced smile.
The acquaintance blinked and said jokingly: "Is that cat in your house a female? The one that barks in the middle of the night?"
The old craftsman cursed a few words angrily and ran away amidst the ridicule of his acquaintances.
Aiden, who was sitting on the beach by the sea, scratched his white beard and hammered his aching waist, feeling his heart sink to the bottom.
The workshop, tools, and materials were all mortgaged and replaced with eight bones.
The children ridiculed him, and the old wife kicked him out of the house.
Is it worth it?
…
"Mr. Aiden, Mr. Aiden!"
The old craftsman squinted his eyes, looked at the person running in front of him on the beach, and said doubtfully: "I remember... you are the owner of the dye shop that sold my holy bones the day before yesterday..."
The visitor was panting, with a face full of urgency: "Mr. Aiden, can you sell it to me again for the sacred bone I sold you? I can pay three times the price!"