Catherine and the Black Emperor

Chapter 125. Understanding the Queen

Jones watched Joakim leave with an extremely gloomy look in his eyes.

Joachim is getting more and more arrogant!

He acted with utmost deference in front of the King and Queen, the Hattie, the Russians, and the British.

In reality, Joachim was already trying to wrest control of the decision-making process from him. Many decisions were made by consulting him, and Joachim was slowly taking back the real decision-making power!

The fundamental reason was that the alliance between Britain and Prussia led to a confrontation between the French and Russian ambassadors, and the Hat Party fell apart.

The hat faction supports France, and the parliament receives huge subsidies from France, so of course they dare not disobey France. However, they do not show much respect to the French ambassador.

Ultimately, to put it bluntly, Sweden relies more on France, but France needs Sweden even more, given that this is Sweden.

After the case of Hats MP Matthias was settled, Joachim no longer took Jones seriously.

Joachim was now practically ready to tell Jones: if you can’t rein in your pride, I can explain the situation to King Louis and have you replaced, and send a French ambassador instead, just like Russia did!

On the other hand, Sergei also brought the topic of social structure to a close.

"Regional development imbalances and a surplus of agricultural labor—if this highly unequal situation continues, it will have a huge negative impact. Imagine Stockholm being exceptionally prosperous while other regions are extremely impoverished—can such a social structure be stable?"

"Uneven regional development and unequal wealth distribution will have unimaginable impacts on the social structure. Even if diplomacy is successful and the country seems to be developing peacefully among powerful neighbors, the country may have already collapsed internally."

Adolf regretted not having a scribe by his side, fearing he might not have remembered a single word Sergei said. Fortunately, his queen possessed an exceptionally intelligent mind.

Louisa was even more excited than Adolf at this moment.

The respect and admiration in her eyes when she looked at Sergei were almost overflowing.

Sergei's extensive knowledge, far-sighted vision, and the professional vocabulary and language she had never heard of before gave her the illusion that Sergei was not born in this era.

Panin looked at Sergei with a complex expression in his eyes.

Is this really something a young man working in the secret service would say?

The positions of Vice Chairman of the Secret Committee, Deputy Royal Steward, Senior Advisor to the Construction Department, and Deputy Commander of the Hunting Corps all seem to have absolutely nothing to do with science, philosophy, or politics.

"The Duke's words have greatly benefited the Queen and me. If time allowed, I would love to have a long talk with the Duke, but there are more important matters to attend to now," Adolf said.

"I have no objection to the Duke's proposal for banking and trade cooperation. Now I need to have detailed discussions with Earl Panin on the relevant matters of cooperation to ensure that this proposal can be passed smoothly in Parliament."

"Let my Queen continue her conversation with you, Duke, and I hope you can offer more suggestions that would benefit the common prosperity of Sweden and Russia. I will hear from the Queen later."

Sergei bowed in greeting.

Adolf went to his office, and Panin and Sergei exchanged glances before following him.

"Duke, let's go for a walk over there again."

Queen Louise pointed in another direction from the garden.

"Okay." Sergei nodded.

Louisa waved for the maids to leave: "Don't let anyone disturb me."

"Yes."

As the two walked, Sergei looked at the surroundings and the bright red roses in the flowerbeds.

"The Queen really knows how to pick a place."

Louisa looked at him: "What do you mean?"

"This place is remote and deserted, and it's full of roses that symbolize love and desire."

Looking at Sergei's meaningful smile, Louisa said bluntly, "Is the Duke implying that this is a good place for an affair?"

""

"Let's just hope we don't run into people having an affair."

Louisa was amused.

Sergei looked at the dignified and beautiful woman. Her mature and composed demeanor easily aroused an impulse to conquer her.

That would give one a tremendous sense of accomplishment.

"Your Majesty, I am very puzzled. How can His Majesty be so blind to such a beautiful and sexy wife?" Sergei decided to make a bold attempt.

Louisa's smile slowly faded: "What does the Duke mean?"

"It must have been a long time since the Queen and His Majesty the King have made love."

Louisa's voice was cold: "Does the Duke think that my interest in you during our meetings has given him the illusion that I have been conquered by you and can be taken over at any time?"

Sergei shook his head: "I'm just telling the truth. I also believe the Queen's interest in me is, for now, just my opinions or my status as the Russian ambassador."

Louisa asked with interest, "So how are you so sure of your guess?"

Sergei frankly admitted, "To be honest, I was a womanizing nobleman in St. Petersburg, so while I wouldn't say I know women very well, I can certainly handle them with a high degree of confidence."

"The Queen and His Majesty the King were both very careful in their behavior. Even their intimate and ambiguous gestures were stiff and unnatural. To put it simply, they were like actors on a stage, with obvious signs of performance."

"Of course, this is only from my perspective; others wouldn't be able to judge without enough experience in romantic relationships."

Louisa smiled wryly: "This is the first time I've ever heard someone belittle themselves like this."

"No, that's a compliment."

"So you're saying you understand women very well?"

"At least I can understand some of the Queen's thoughts, and of course, I also want to know more."

As he spoke, Sergei stepped forward and wrapped his arm around Louisa's slender waist.

Louisa's body visibly tensed.

She never expected that Sergei would be so bold as to make such a move in such an environment.

If someone comes and sees all of this, things will get serious.

"Do you know what you're doing? If anyone sees this, you'll be accused of plotting against the Queen of Sweden, and you'll be executed!" Louisa warned coldly.

Sergei smiled and said, "Is the Queen concerned for me? Didn't she just say that we shouldn't be disturbed?"

He dared to say such provocative things.

It was because he received a response from Louisa.

Louisa did not knock his hand off her waist.

This is tantamount to tacit approval.

Louisa looked coldly at Sergei, then a smile of appreciation appeared on her bright face.

"What an incredibly audacious young man."

Louisa knocked Sergei's hand away.

"If you want to know more about me, then you'll have to see if you have enough ability. Dealing with just Matthias is far from enough, especially since he's part of the Hat Faction."

Clearly, Sergei's methods did not escape Louisa's notice.

This made Sergei re-examine the woman in front of him.

Louisa is no ordinary woman!

Louisa looked at Sergei, who had suddenly fallen silent, and smiled slightly, saying, "Ingrid, the Minister of Justice, is ostensibly neutral, and indeed she is neutral between the top hat faction and the flat cap faction, because she is one of my people!"

Sergei nodded: "That makes sense then."

No wonder Ingrid had been investigating Matthias but never killed him; it turns out that Luisa was the mastermind behind it all.

Louisa intended to wait until she had used Matthias or found a suitable replacement before removing him from the Hats faction, but her actions forced the other side to act ahead of schedule.

Sergei gave a provocative smile and extended his hand.

"Your Majesty, it seems we are naturally in sync. I wish us a pleasant collaboration."

Louisa looked at the handsome young man and extended her fair hand to shake his.

I hope you won't let me down.

"certainly."

Sergei squeezed Louisa's hand.

I will certainly not disappoint the Queen.

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