Chapter 187 Can help in times of need
Frederick comforted Belle Burke and asked her to wait for lunch in the servants’ dining room. When she was full, she continued to work on the sewing machine. She could not have dinner without smoke.
He would not blindly believe in Belle Burke's words. He didn't know much about Cologne City, but there were people in Weissenburg City who were familiar with the situation there.
Christian has been in Cologne for many years and is familiar with the situation there. Frederick asked Vanessa to inform him to come to the castle to meet him in the afternoon.
“Niels of the Hegel family?” Christian became nervous immediately after hearing the person Frederick asked, “Sir, do you know anyone who was captured by him?”
Frederick shook his head and said: "No. So you know what he did?"
Christian sighed and said: "The patriarch of the Hegel family is also a sword master, and the old lady is His Majesty William's first woman, so their family will be protected no matter what they do in Cologne and the surrounding areas."
Frederick understood these words as soon as he heard it, first love. I know how much it weighs in a person's heart.
His hometown in his previous life built a scenic spot. One year when he went back, he saw a tourist hit and killed a pig with his car. The villagers surrounded him and refused to let him go. When he went over, he saw that the driver was actually Chu Lian and her family helped them out without saying a word, and even helped them buy tickets to go home.
Christian continued to sigh and said: "That Niels... alas... after all the bad things he has done, the God of Light will punish him one day."
"To tell you the truth, my Zhuangzi's steward's daughter was kidnapped by him. When I went to ask for her, he slapped me until my teeth became loose."
"That girl...well...now It should still be buried in his garden.”
He kept sighing and explained in detail what Niels had done, which was basically the same as what Belle Burke said.
Frederick asked again: "What about the Shakespeare family in the House of Arms? How much do you know?"
Christian suddenly became serious and asked: "Is it possible that Belle Miss Burke Shakespeare here?"
Frederick did not answer, but just said: "Tell me about this family."
Christian said seriously: "The Shakespeare family is a family that cannot be underestimated. They were just members of the royal palace more than a hundred years ago. Actors first rose to power by pleasing the queen at the time, and later relied on their excellent acting skills to work among the nobles for the king to protect the interests of the royal family."
"I have had many dealings with them. They can behave very much in line with my temperament and hobbies, which makes me feel that I can become good friends with them, so even if there is an argument, there will be no falling out."
After hearing this, Frederick said with a smile. It sounds like they are more suitable to be diplomats than you."
"Yes." Christian agreed, "So they have been in charge of the Heraldry Court in recent decades, mediating between the royal family and the nobility. Relations between nobles and nobles ”
Frederick nodded and asked again: "So they are all performing, so how credible are what they say?"
Christian answered definitely: "They won't lie. , they can only use their acting and speaking skills to make people feel sympathetic and favorable, and then follow their steps step by step."
Frederick sighed: "They are really talented people."
Christian asked him doubtfully: "Sir, is Miss Shakespeare really here with you? She has a grudge against Niels, and I was also present when she kicked Niels that day."< br>
Frederick replied: "This is the first time I heard about Miss Shakespeare from you."
"By the way, I heard that the Shakespeare family is short of money recently?"
Christian thought for a while and replied: "At the beginning of last year, I heard that they had made a deal with the Aveiro family in the Kingdom of Madeira to the west. In order to do business, those followers of the Earth God Sect would sell the hippogriffs to them, so they bought a lot of goods and formed a fleet to sell them. "
"If something goes wrong with this batch of goods, we will deal with them. It seems like it's all broken." After hearing this, Frederick mentally recalled the map of the west, calculated the distance, and said: "With a sea route of more than 3,000 kilometers, it's not surprising that something happened."
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Christian agreed.
Frederick asked him again: "So, do you think it is necessary for us to make good friends with the Shakespeare family?"
Christian answered with certainty without even thinking: "It is very necessary."< br>
“The Shakespeare family are dogs raised by the royal family. They bite whoever the royal family tells them to bite, and wag their tails to whomever they wag.”
“They are extremely well-informed. , so he also acts as an information dealer."
Frederick thought for a while and said: "You send the thousand florins sent by the Shakespeare family yesterday and the letter written by Mrs. Shakespeare. Go back and tell them that no one among the prisoners claims to be 'Miss Shakespeare'"
"Tell them again that if the business with the Kingdom of Madeira can still be done, I can give them goods worth fifty thousand florins on credit."
Now that he is rich, he can buy goods worth tens of thousands of gold coins on credit. It's on credit, but that's just the wholesale price, not that much based on the ex-factory price.
If the Shakespeare family can't pay it back, he plans to ask the church to be the guarantor anyway. For such a large sum of money, the church should either ask them for it or sell the house. I heard that their house It's very big, in a good location, not far from the palace, and the surrounding area is rich and expensive. The garden area ranks among the top five in Cologne. You might be able to make money by buying it and converting it into a greenhouse.
Then, Frederick solemnly said to Christian: "This time you go to Cologne to inquire about a piece of news."
"Many places west of the Elbe River were looted this spring. , the king will send troops to reinforce and organize defense, and we will definitely send troops to fight when the time comes.”
"I received a message that a force is planning something. The target is us. The purpose is unknown. You go and find out as much as you can."
Christian agreed without changing his face, feeling a little shocked.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has an intelligence collection business. It has some intelligence dealer business and has related funds. This part of the funds has been specially approved by the Duke and will not be audited.
He knew about the king's reinforcements on the west bank of the Elbe River and reported it. However, he had no information about the fact that a certain force wanted to target Weissensee. Even the intelligence dealer with channels in the palace did not mention it. Pass.
Now that the Duke directly mentioned this matter, it means that he has another intelligence organization. This is normal, but it is not simple that this intelligence organization can actually find out deeper intelligence in the palace.
Frederick thought for a moment and asked Christian to leave the study for five minutes before coming back.
After Christian returned, Frederick gave him a map of the Rhine League. Important cities such as Cologne and the territories of many important nobles were clearly marked.
“You still have a task.” Frederick said, “Purchase real estate in these places in my name, whether it is a house in the city or a manor outside the city. The reason is that I want to build a chamber of commerce in the local area. "
"The specific requirement is that these places must be high, the higher the better."
Christian didn't quite understand the last requirement, but seeing how cautious the leader was just now, he didn't. Don’t ask what you should ask.
Frederick let him take the map and leave. Seeing that it was still early outside, he decided to go find Heinrich to see how the telegraph research based on broadcasting was going.
(End of this chapter)