People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

A great man once proposed a diplomatic policy that consisted of only three words, yet it was insightful and penetrating.

"One-sided."

Ernst took a deep breath and uttered those three words.

He looked up at the astonished SilverAsh, and nodded slowly but firmly:

"Please convey to the Duke of Käst that I am very sorry, but because the city of Tukarim, where the Kästä government offices are located, is undergoing a major renovation by Rhine Life of Colombia in conjunction with the Kästä government's engineering department, this visit will be postponed to avoid damaging her good impression of Kästä and to prevent any mistreatment of foreign guests. Please convey my sincere gratitude to the Duke of Käst for his concern for the people of Kästä and my deepest apologies for not being able to personally receive her."

“But…” Ensiodis pursed his lips, gave Ernst a deep look, and finally nodded.

His younger brother often does things that leave him speechless and makes decisions that he finds incomprehensible.

But the outcome often proves him right.

After several failures and lessons learned, coupled with his trust in the Snow Leopard Brothers, Enciodis finally chose to trust Ernst's judgment one last time.

"I'll pass it on."

He said, even unusually, that he acted like an older brother, reaching out to pat Ernst on the shoulder and offering words of comfort.

"Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Ernst looked up at Ensioudis, moved.

"At worst, you'll just step down and I'll take your place."

Ernst's moved expression froze.

Damn it, I thought you, you heartless snow leopard, had changed your ways!

He said to Ensiodes three times in a bad mood, "Get up, get up, get up!" but Ensiodes showed no sign of leaving.

Ernst only realized what was happening when he noticed Ensiodis's strange look in his eyes.

Well, this is the office of Kalan Trade, and I'm the one who should get out.

Rolling his eyes, Ernst stood up and walked out of the office, watched by Enciodis.

............

"Vina, do me a favor."

Having just returned to his home, which was a one-story government office building marked with a red "demolition" sign, Ernst immediately called out to Vina, who was passing by.

"Help me draft a personal letter to the Duke of Windermere."

"But shouldn't a handwritten letter be written by the writer themselves?" Vina asked, looking confused. She received a death stare from Ernst.

A moment later, Ernst, who was the first to lose his composure, explained under the gaze of Vina, who was now wearing an embarrassed and apologetic smile:

"The purpose of a handwritten letter is to show that it represents your own will; whether you wrote it yourself is not important."

He reached out and pushed Vina into the Foreign Minister's office, then said:

"The content is simple. Tell Duke Windermere that Duke Castle wanted to win over Sherag and even offered 200 million to bribe my good-for-nothing brother in order to see me, but I resolutely rejected his shameless lobbying, and Castle's conspiracy was thus thwarted. Well, that's about it. Remember to embellish it for me with the tone and rhetoric of a Victorian nobleman. Try to show my firmness and Castle's cunning."

Since it's a private email, there's no need to worry about the Duke of Caesar seeing it. Therefore, Ernst doesn't need to be too considerate of the Duke of Caesar's feelings, and there's no need to come up with a bunch of excuses like he did when he refused before. It's best to try and make the Duke of Windermere happy.

As for why Vina wrote it for him...

Of course, it's because of Vina's status as an old Victorian Union Jack holder. Putting everything else aside, her writing skills are top-notch, arguably the pinnacle of Sherag's humanities.

If she hadn't become Foreign Minister, shining as Minister of Publicity would have been a good choice.

It was definitely not because Ernst was too lazy to write, and also because his handwriting was terrible.

After explaining the details, Vina didn't immediately start writing. This made Ernst a little suspicious and quite uneasy.

Was bragging about yourself really a bit too much? Actually, I hesitated a moment ago. Damn it, I'm pretty shameless to begin with, but you're looking at me with that smug look of yours, which is like giving me half your face, making me feel pretty awkward.

Ernst composed himself, smacked his lips, and asked, "What's wrong, Vina? Is there something you don't understand?"

"No...no." Vina quickly shook her head, paused for a moment, and then asked, "Ernst, were you rejecting the Duke of Kester?"

“Yes, what’s wrong? I don’t have this much of a headache when it comes to other people.” Ernst nodded in affirmation.

What's wrong? Nothing. I was just secretly pleased to see my aunt get the short end of the stick.

Vina lied.

She was not only happy, but also deeply moved.

To be honest, from the day she arrived in Shelag and became the Foreign Minister, Vina had been worried about this day coming.

Especially after Ernst began to establish relationships with the great nobles of Victoria, she had a premonition that she might eventually have to confront her aunt, the infamous Duke of Caesar, who was also the culprit who hanged her father.

What will happen then?

Would he be tempted to grab a hammer and hoe and smash Kester's head open? Or would he better behave himself and beg Kester not to recognize him?

Or, what should she do if her identity is exposed by Kester?

These are questions she has never dared to think about thoroughly. But she also knows that these are things she has to face.

Now, Ernst's "rejection" has given her a much-needed boost.

Although this only delayed the arrival of that day, what Vina needed most was time.

She desperately needs time to figure herself out and everything about herself.

precipitation!

Filled with remorse for keeping the matter from Ernst until now, and with heartfelt gratitude and emotion, Vina picked up her pen and completed this beautifully worded "handwritten letter" with absolutely perfect writing and diction.

She put down her pen and stood up.

Ernst stepped forward, wanting to take the letter and admire his Foreign Minister's literary achievement.

Before he could react, he was already enveloped in a thick down jacket and fluffy blond hair.

"Thank you, you've worked hard."

Vina's voice rang in his ears. Even through his down jacket, the overwhelming warmth of human connection made Ernst's heart race.

"Vina?"

He tried to call out, his voice trembling slightly.

But Vina didn't seem to let go immediately; she even tightened her grip on Ernst's chest.

Ernst could only sigh softly, silently lamenting in his heart:

"You're testing my weakness."

"There are bad people among the masses!"

Chapter 138 Windermere: Enjoying While Thinking

Duchy of Windermere, Liincarden, Command Post.

Waving the envelope in his hand, Defiance entered the Duke of Windermere's office, calling out:

"Mom, there's a letter from you!"

Anferis, who was reviewing the border friction report in her hand, turned around, a kind smile immediately spreading across her face. She patted Defiance's head and took the letter from her hand:

"Who sent it?"

"It came from Scherrag; it's said to be a letter from Ernst in his own handwriting."

"A handwritten letter?" Amphilis Windermere hesitated for a moment, then muttered to herself, "Should I find a translator?"

Of course, this is just a joke. Although Ernst's Victorian English was indeed not very good, if you can't speak it, can't you write it? As a student who has gone through the college entrance examination, being able to speak English fluently is one of the essential basic skills.

Duke Windermere clearly understood this as well, knowing that a handwritten letter wasn't necessarily written by the person in question. With a descendant of Aslan by Ernst's side, it was impossible for him to write anything incomprehensible or abstract.

What she was more curious about was why that kid would suddenly write her a letter?

The Duke of Windermere had already seen his speech at the Duchy of Wellington. From a purely personal perspective, it was well-delivered. But objectively speaking, the speech did put pressure on all the Grand Dukes, including her.

Now he's written himself a personal letter? What? Does he want me to go to Lentinium and try to get some people out of there too?

It's not that it's impossible. It's just that she has other plans.

In her view, simply rescuing people was only a temporary solution. As long as the Sarkaz occupied the city, the citizens of Narentinium would never have a good life. And no matter how the Grand Dukes tried to rescue people, they couldn't possibly evacuate all the citizens.

If only a small portion of the population is evacuated, like the Duke of Caesar, the Sarkaz might give him face and not stop him due to manpower shortages and difficulty finding passageways. But if more people are rescued, even a fool would be wary.

Therefore, the only solution to the Lentinium problem is to eliminate it completely!

She has begun contacting other grand dukes, intending to lead a joint campaign by the grand dukes to march on Londinium and drive the Sarkaz out of the city once and for all.

It's not that we can't afford to rescue them directly, but it's more cost-effective to expel every single Sarkaz member!

As she thought about it, Anferis picked up the letter opener on the table, peeled off the sealing wax from the envelope, and took out the letter inside. Defien also came over and read it with Anferis.

[Your Excellency Duke Windermere, your friend Ernst Shivaish greets you.]

The letter contained very little information.

Ernst first angrily denounced the powerful and arrogant Kester for taking advantage of the small and weak country of Sherag and for trying to test the cadres with a huge sum of two million, thus corrupting the strong father-son and mother-son relationship between him and Duke Windermere, which was as solid as that of a general.

He then explained that he had firmly resisted the enemy's shameless temptations, defeated his own greed, and resolutely refused the Duke of Caesar's request for a visit.

Finally, I inquired about the health of Amphilis Windermere and Daphne Windermere, as well as Mr. Kent's recovery.

The content appears quite comprehensive, and the writing is fluent and the diction is elegant. If we disregard the two people, Ernst and the Duke of Kester, Amphilis thinks that with some expansion, it could even be used to write a short story.

But to be honest, it seems like nothing was said?

Dai Feien was completely confused. Although she was in a good mood because her long-lost friend showed concern for her, she didn't see what she wanted to see.

For example, Ernst could invite her to visit Sherag.

As for Amphilis, she hesitated for a moment, then seemed to realize something and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

They were all seasoned veterans who had been navigating the Victorian political scene for decades; how could she not know what Ernst was implying?

"For the sake of our friendship, I even refused the 200 million gold pounds that the Duke of Caesar offered me!" This was Ernst showing his loyalty to her... well, in a proper diplomatic setting of equality, it should be considered a gesture of goodwill.

You can question the Duke of Castells' character, and you can question her intentions, but you cannot deny that the Duke of Castells is rich!

The Duke of Wellington's advantage is his reputation, the Duke of Windermere's advantage is his military strength, and the Duke of Castle's advantage is his wealth!

Ernst's refusal to accept the rich woman's money was enough to make Windermere happy.

Yes, that's exactly how it should be! I knew you were right! I love seeing the Duke of Custer get his comeuppance!

However, if you're ever short of money next time, you can just ask. As a border duchy with huge military needs, the Duchy of Windermere could easily switch some of its old channels and purchase metal ore from Kjerag instead. That would save me the trouble of having to think about it while I'm having a good laugh.

"Mom?" Dai Feien looked at her mother, whose face was a mixture of laughter and tears, with some curiosity.

Anferis unfolded the letter, looked at Defiance, and knowing what she wanted to ask, explained directly:

“Defiance, you’re going to be a duke someday. I don’t want to put too much pressure on you, but since the time is right, I’ll teach you a little trick first.”

She pointed to the letter on the desk.

"In the future, if you come across this kind of document, and it has a high literary quality, then you should focus on the numbers mentioned in it."

She shrugged.

"If it's the other way around, and it lists a bunch of numbers that make you want to fall asleep at first glance, then you should focus on the text in front of the numbers."

Dai Feien nodded as if she understood, then immediately asked, drawing inferences from the example:

"What if it's not very good in terms of literary merit, and the numbers aren't many?"

Amphilis chuckled and patted her head, then opened a drawer with her other hand, took out a replica gun, and handed it to Defiance.

"If that's the case, then you should put a gun to the head of the person who wrote the letter and make him go back and rewrite it. Since when can reports submitted to a duke be handled so carelessly? Your subordinates should be taught a lesson, otherwise how can you establish your authority?"

Defiance looked at the gun in his hand and nodded thoughtfully.

Amphilis nodded in satisfaction, not in a hurry, but after reading the letter Ernst had sent again, she murmured:

"It's definitely not a handwritten letter; it was most likely written by that Miss Vina."

She pondered for a moment and said: