During the return of the imperial fleet, Liliana went to visit the king of Linhai Kingdom under the advice of all parties.
Even if the relationship between the two countries is close enough, it is a very sensitive topic for the fleet to enter the territory of another country. Liliana must go there anyway, apologize and thank the other country, in order to maintain the friendship between the two parties.
An didn't go with him. It would be too arrogant given the current situation. He took this opportunity to walk around the market and observe the impact of recent events on the people.
Corresponding to the rapid spread of the news in the imperial capital, everyone in Linhai Kingdom also seemed to know that the imperial princess and king were attacked, and everyone in the streets and alleys was talking about it.
Even if the commotion of the Imperial Fleet is indeed very loud, someone must be deliberately spreading the news on such a large scale. Needless to say, the purpose is to spread panic.
If the empire and the kingdom really had a head-on conflict, then the country caught in the middle would definitely be implicated. An saw that many shops that were still doing business when they passed by were now closed.
It can be felt that even though the situation has begun to calm down, many people are still uneasy.
An was a little surprised by the reason why the person behind the scenes spread the news.
If it is to provoke a conflict between the empire and the kingdom, why spend extra manpower to spread fear in Linhai? Isn’t this unnecessary?
If the two countries really fight, the king of Linhai Kingdom will definitely be forced to take sides because of his relationship with the imperial royal family. There is no need to spread the news in advance.
And judging from the speed and area of news dissemination, there are definitely not a few people required to spread the news. For powerful people, it can be said to be laborious.
You can't, just to show off your manpower, right?
An frowned.
There was a vague feeling of uneasiness in his heart.
After Liliana and her group returned, Leonhardt came over to tell them about the meeting.
The king of Linhai Kingdom was very happy that Liliana could return safely. He asked about the subsequent handling of the attack. In his words, he was testing Liliana's views on the kingdom. He also quietly revealed that if the empire was dissatisfied with the kingdom, he would definitely stand by the empire. Make a complaint here.
There is nothing to say about the first few points. They are normal reactions due to the superposition of interpersonal relationships and diplomatic relations, but the last point is a bit extreme.
It's almost like taking a stand in advance.
Leonhart said that the king of Linhai Kingdom looked a little uneasy.
Not only the people, panic has also spread among the upper echelons?
Or……
What did this king know?
An faintly caught something.
Putting these doubts aside for the time being, An carefully observed the conditions of the cities along the way as the imperial fleet returned.
As a result, although the situation is better than that of Linhai Country, there are an unexpectedly large number of cities with similar conditions, including several small countries of varying sizes. There are people who are using the attack on the Imperial Princess to spread war. of fear!
This is so strange. Aren’t the planners afraid that this will arouse the anti-war mentality of people everywhere and lead to consequences that are completely different from what was expected?
Moreover, as mentioned before, these behaviors are completely unnecessary!
no need?
An was sitting on the chair, his eyes extremely solemn.
What if these actions are necessary?
So, what's the purpose?
He closed his eyes, clues unfolding in his mind.
The theater troupe was attacked for the first time. The purpose of the mastermind behind the scenes was to get rid of An, who was very similar to the regent, so as to gain more power;
The attack on the princess was intended to provoke a war between the empire and the kingdom;
The third time, the purpose of the town ambush included the previous two points.
that power……
war……
With the empire's political structure of decentralized checks and balances, it is by no means easy to gain more power. If you want to get more, the simplest and most disgusting way is to expand your power through war.
For this purpose, the regent Lecco, who did not like war and was deeply popular among the people, was the first and biggest obstacle, so it must be removed.
Sending assassins to attack the princess was an attempt to start a war, but it failed.
Maybe whether this attempt is successful or not is not particularly critical, but what is important is to use it to your advantage?
What I saw along the way made people have to think so.
If the point is to use the attack on the Imperial Princess to spread panic...
Spreading rumors and causing people to panic will have the first impact on public security.
But this is half the effort with half the effort.
The relationship between the empire and the kingdom has finally calmed down due to the efforts of both parties. No matter how wild the rumors are, they are not supported by facts. As long as the local rulers don't have the brains to ignore the situation, panic will naturally gradually subside. dissipate.
Even if we want to take advantage of the unstable situation to do something, the bottom line lies with the people. The people also don't like war, and the result will only be chaos for the ruling class.
The idea of using the fear of war to cause war is a pipe dream.
What determines the occurrence of war will only be...
Ann opened her eyes and grasped the key.
It is the ruling class that decides whether a war happens or not!
He pursed his lips and rubbed his forehead.
Change your thinking.
What if the behavior that causes panic is not an attempt to jumpstart the war, but is instead a signal?
A signal to the restless elements!
Many people may have forgotten that even though there is prosperity everywhere now, not so long ago, many places, including the empire, were still shrouded in the shadow of war.
During those days, wars occurred from time to time. In the absence of an extremely strong presence to intimidate all parties, there were many careerists who started wars for their own benefit.
The legendary story of Regent Lecco does not need to be described in detail. You can get a glimpse of the people's aspirations in the empire. To say that he single-handedly ended the war-torn situation in just four years is the most remarkable thing.
However, the bad thing is that it has only been ten years, and the unification war led by the empire has only been fought for four years.
Four years is too short. Even if the people have longed for peace for a long time, it is impossible for those jackals who have seen blood and benefited from it to change their temper.
People's hearts are unpredictable, and it is difficult for Leko to eliminate all the wolves. The rebels within the Empire are the best proof of this.
It takes a lot of time to clean up the remnants and educate people's hearts. However, Leko disappeared seven years ago!
If that's all, then it's okay, the empire still has a great deterrent to these unscrupulous people. But if the empire itself has signs of launching a war, then their ambitions may be difficult to curb!
An remembered what Leonhardt said before, that behind the rebels in the empire there might be forces from neighboring countries, and then thought about the scope of the rumors that he saw along the way...
How big a war does this hidden bastard want to provoke? ! !
"Bang——" The table next to An was smashed.
There was a lot of movement, and now that it was late at night, the sound was quite noticeable.
The first person who came in to check the situation was the imperial soldier at the door. Before he could ask what was going on, he was startled by An's eyes.
"...Go out, it's okay." An managed to control her emotions, but her face was still gloomy.
The soldiers hurried out.
"What's the noise?"
The door to the inner room opened and the theater troupe came out.
"Oh my god, what's wrong with you?!" Seeing the broken table next to An, Miku ran over quickly.
An quickly let go of her tightly held hands and stood up.
"Did you smash the table?" Miku stood in front of An and asked in surprise.
An adjusted her mood before saying, "I was just thinking wildly and couldn't control my emotions."
Miku's expression changed and he grabbed An's hands. To her surprise, let alone injuries, An's hands didn't even have scratches.
As long as you don't get hurt.
Miku didn't think much. She breathed a sigh of relief, looked at An's face carefully, and said, "I understand that I can't share all the pressure for you, but you must tell me what's on your mind, okay?"
Seeing Miku's concerned eyes, An's expression softened a lot.
Immediately, the unyielding looks from his companions reminded him.
Of course An understood the meaning. The matter was of great importance, and with his previous commitment, he would not hide it from his companions.
An's expression turned solemn when he thought of what he and his companions were facing.
"The situation may be more serious than we thought..."
