paranoianovel Chapter 689 The Knight Returns from Prague
Chapter 689 The Knight Returns from Prague
Chapter 689 The Knight Returns from Prague
The afternoon sun shone on her long platinum hair.
In the garden corridor where marigolds are in full bloom, Viviana is tickled by the creepers hanging on her cheeks.
Suddenly awakened, she subconsciously stretched out her thumb to press against the sword guard, gently pushed out the sharp blade, and was on guard, but soon realized that this was clearly the Hohenzollern family's mansion in Prague.
I am...
Back again?
She was stunned for a long time, looking at her brand new combat uniform. Her previous experiences seemed like a dream, not real at all.
Thinking about it now, apart from the experience of fighting alongside the emperor against the Ottomans, the details of the following decades have become a blur.
Is it just a dream?
She couldn't help but feel depressed. It was true that how could someone like me achieve such a great achievement.
"Ms. Viviana!"
Suddenly a maid exclaimed.
She dropped the tray in her hand and shouted loudly: "The lady is back!"
There was jubilation in the mansion.
The housekeeper came hurriedly, and when he saw Viviana, he breathed a sigh of relief: "Miss, you are finally back. Where have you been for the past month?"
A month?
Viviana's brows relaxed slightly. This wasn't a dream...
I hope it’s not a dream.
The butler's tone was not without complaints: "You have always been sensible, how could you not know how important this competition is? So many nobles, merchants and commoners rushed to Prague just to see you. During your disappearance, the Elector was so worried that he dropped his government affairs and rushed here."
"If you don't show up, the Black Eagle Knights will go to Prague."
Viviana sighed softly, "I didn't know I was so important."
She raised her eyebrows slightly: "Where's my father?"
The housekeeper looked at Viviana with some confusion, and always felt that his young lady had changed a lot.
I don't know where she has been all this time. Could it be that she eloped with some poor boy who speaks sweet words to her like what is described in knight novels?
The butler was startled by the sensational idea that suddenly popped into his mind.
boom--
On the second-floor attic, a window was pushed open.
The old man with a cold expression and white hair said, "Come up to see me."
Hearing this familiar voice, Viviana's heart subconsciously tightened. She swore that she had never been so nervous even when facing the Ottoman dragon in Constantinople.
After all, she was indeed very willful this time.
"Anna, you disappoint me so much."
The cold and hard old man, with a meticulously combed hairdo and sitting upright, behaved like an old Junker officer: "As a princess of the Hohenzollern family, I allowed you to read those miscellaneous books occasionally, but now it seems that this was a wrong decision.
Anna, do you still have any regard for your own and your family's honor? You enjoy the family's resources, the identity and status of a princess, but you just walked away at this critical moment. If this behavior gets out, the whole family will be ashamed because of you!"
Viviana pursed her lips and whispered, "I'm sorry, father."
The Elector breathed a sigh of relief. After his fury subsided, his tone softened a little. "Forget it. If you miss this competition, you'll miss it. It's just some insignificant social interaction. I found an excuse for you to be sick. Don't tell anyone."
"I hope this is the last time you act so willfully. Old Franz thought highly of you. I don't want you to develop the kind of erratic and self-centered personality that Princess Sissi had, becoming a laughing stock among the princesses of the empire. The entire Wittelsbach family is ashamed of having such a woman."
When talking about Franz, the emperor above him, the Elector's face was filled with disdain.
In his opinion, this emperor who was raised by women was too weak.
He could not control his wife, his brother, his son, or his nephew. He gave in to the Hungarians and the Italians. Internally, he managed to unify Germany, but the various states under it were still a loose sand.
If Brandenburg had not been so small, the great cause of unifying Germany would never have been Franz's turn.
If Brandenburg had the Habsburg foundation, even if it was only half of it, he would have been fully confident that he could accomplish greater feats than Franz.
"Okay, let's forget about this matter. Pack your bags and I'll take you to Vienna."
Viviana's heart tightened, and she had an ominous guess: "What are you going to do in Vienna?"
"The old emperor hopes to find a woman of equal status for Ferdinand. Although I have always looked down on him, he is the emperor after all. Such a marriage is a good thing for both of our families."
"what?"
Viviana couldn't help but clench her palms.
"Franz's useless nephew had an affair with a maid from a duchess's house. The old emperor wanted you to get married to Ferdinand in order to avoid the disgrace of the Habsburg family."
The Elector's tone was full of sarcasm. The Habsburg family had huge problems with their family tradition.
As the crown prince, he was having an affair with such a lowly woman, who was more like a commoner than a declining noble. This was even more damaging to the royal dignity than when Franz's eldest son Rudolf had an affair with a baroness and both committed suicide for love.
Viviana just remained silent. In her opinion, her father had always been like this, arbitrary and will not allow anyone to change his decision once it was made.
"Franz, this weak and incompetent guy, has always valued you, right? As a princess of the Hohenzollern family, you should have expected this result."
The Elector's tone was always harsh and cold.
"You shouldn't say that about your Majesty."
Viviana said with courage.
In her eyes, the old emperor gave her the few fatherly loves she had ever felt in her life. This old man had endured countless pains. His eldest son Rudolf committed suicide, his wife Princess Sissi was assassinated by separatists from Veneto and Lombardy, and his younger brother Maximilian insisted on his own way and ran to Mexico to become emperor, but was eventually shot by the Republicans.
He shouldn't have to endure his father's baseless accusations any longer.
"You haven't even married into the Habsburg family yet, but you're already speaking for them?"
The Elector sneered, "You have made some progress. Franz is a soft-hearted person. If you please him, you will not suffer any loss when you enter the Habsburg family in the future."
"What are you still standing there for? We have to get ready to set off!"
Looking at his daughter who still didn't move, the Elector raised his eyebrows, somewhat displeased.
In his opinion, Viviana's absence from the competition without reason this time had already greatly damaged the honor of the Hohenzollern family.
"Father, I don't want to marry Ferdinand."
Viviana plucked up her courage. She was not a timid person, but she was afraid from the bottom of her heart to disobey her father, who had always been strict and had never shown any warmth since she was a child.
"Oh? Can you tell me why?"
The Elector sneered: "I don't want to hear anything like pursuing true love. That would make me feel that you haven't made any progress over the years. My daughter is still living in a fairy tale."
For nobles of their level, marriage can only be a political marriage.
In his eyes, the precedent of Franz's eldest son Rudolf committing suicide for love with a low-ranking baroness was quite similar to that of Princess Sissi, who was once known as the most beautiful woman in Germany, both weak and selfish.
Viviana's voice was somewhat weak: "The Order of the Rose is a religious order."
"Very good. From today on, you are no longer a member of the Order of the Rose."
The Elector said coldly.
After the Reformation, the church had no authority left. Even the Vatican was driven out of Rome and became a large tribe among dark creatures, a paradise for wolves. Is there anything more embarrassing than this?
"Okay, now the only problem is solved."
As he spoke, he stood up and ordered, "Come here, take the young lady to pack her luggage, and send someone to the station to charter a special train. We will try to have dinner at Schönbrunn Palace tonight."