Vol 3 Chapter 608: Code name: Sand King (Part 2)

Chapter 608 Code: Sand King (Part 2)
Thales turned his head and looked around subconsciously, but the small Ballard room was still quiet and quiet, and there was no movement.
The sunset has fallen, and the lights are faint.
Only King Kessel's cold eyes pierced far away, like a blade that forced his throat.
"that's nice."
Thales sighed and gave up his efforts to find the figure of Yodel:
"He never listened to me like this when he was outside."
Thales squinted and tried to adjust his mood, just like relaxing his bones and joints before the war:
"Just, are you sure he really left?"
But Ironfist King’s answer was simple and straightforward, cold and without procrastination:
"You have a quarter of an hour."
One quarter of an hour.
Thales was silent for a second.
Obviously, this quarter of an hour will not say anything "positive topic of father and son reunion".
He thought so and nodded with a snort:
"Not bad, you know, the Yankees only gave me two minutes back then."
Kessel V snorted coldly.
"And you have wasted half."
His tone made people urgent.
Listening to Kessel's careless words, Thales had to take a deep breath and cheer up.
After all, he has gone so far and sacrificed so much.
I came to my own windmill.
Is not it?
Thinking of this, Thales put away his expression and looked serious.
"After the banquet last night, you blackmailed Xiao Huahua-I mean, Duke Iris-for this petition, forcing him to pay tax as a substitute, and you also called on the whole country to follow suit."
Thales leaned forward slightly, holding down the letter paper on the table:
"It now appears that you did that to solve the problem of today's Imperial Conference-Lord Sodor wants to expand the standing army, and is in dire need of money and name."
King Kessel turned his gaze to the "Petition" without comment.
"That's why today, you and Sodor consultants sang and made peace in Ballard's room," Thales said with cold eyes:
"In other words, you have communicated in advance, and he is charging forward, and you are sitting on the strategizing, you should work together inside and outside, and cooperate perfectly."
But his words obviously didn't work.
"Ha, you must be a genius, you have seen through the dark scenes of the kingdom," King Kessel mocked him expressionlessly, unaffected:
"Other adults at the Imperial Conference, why didn't they think of it?"
Thales frowned slightly.
"Yes, this matter is very simple, maybe even the meteorites can see it, the ministers just don't say it."
Or, dare not say anything.
The next second, Thales' expression changed.
"But something is wrong."
I saw the boy picking up Jen's letter and leaning forward softly:
"opportunity."
King Kessel narrowed his eyes, Thales stared at him firmly, neither of them spoke.
The unquenchable light flickered, and the entire meeting room was reflected in ripples and shadows.
As in the deep seabed, withstand the surging of undercurrents.
"A temporary accident that happened last night, on the contrary, solved the problem this morning?"
Thales spoke slowly, keeping his eyes on the face of the Ironfist King:
"This is a coincidence."
King Kessel didn't respond, as if it was just a piece of nonsense to him.
Thales shook the letter paper in his hand and shook his head slightly:
"But politics is no coincidence."
"Either, you didn't know the prophet or even pre-arranged the accident at the banquet, waited for the rabbit, and waited for Jane to hit the door to offend me, so that he could take the handle and blackmail."
"Or, it was you who acted on the fly. After the accident of the banquet, you had a whim, and threatened Jen to write a petition, instructing Lord Shuoduo to make a proposal, and he made it decisively."
The Ballard room was silent for a while.
"Possessing self-righteousness, making assumptions out of thin air," King Kessel showed disdain:
"Mike's evaluation of you is indeed correct."
But Thales smiled softly and nodded.
"This is it."
"This letter, regardless of whether you have premeditated or voluntarily, I still think something is wrong."
Thales' eyes condensed:
"Until I followed your order and went to the secret department."
At that moment, the iron-fisted king frowned slightly.
Thales speeded up and hurried:
"First of all, I confirmed that Anke Bailar's banquet was not instigated-at least not you."
The unmoving King Kessel made Thales thought he was talking to the stone statue.
But he knew that he was not.
"If I don't shout in that voice in public, no one will know that Jaen brought that murderous weapon."
"And putting the contradiction between Bailar and Doyle on the table is not conducive to the rule of the kingdom, and it is not in your interest."
Thales shook his head, affirmatively:
"At least I confirmed one thing: the accident at the banquet was not your pre-planning."
King Kessel was noncommittal.
He just added a sentence gently:
"Let you go to see the felon, Secret Section, they are still too tolerant to you."
Thales responded with a polite smile:
"Secondly, you let me go to the secret department to see my mess, so that I can beat me honestly."
The king snorted:
"Obviously you didn't learn anything."
Thales adjusted his breath and looked down at the cut on his left hand, recalling what the Black Prophet had said in the interrogation room:
[The important thing is not what you did, not what you did or not, let alone what you did right or wrong, but you were there, your position and existence. 】
[Under the power of power, your position is different from that of others, and the gap is established. Then no matter what you do in the upper reaches of power, what should happen will always happen. 】
Thales looked up:
"Yes, I sit in this seat, every move is significant and has a profound impact."
"Whether I don't like to drink alcohol or just eat lettuce, whether I accept a duel or help the Northlanders smuggle... What's good on the top, the bottom will be bad. I should see, know, and be responsible for the consequences of my actions. ."
"Very good," King Kessel hummed softly:
"Then you think about it, how are you responsible for the prince's rebellion?"
However, in the next second, Thales' expression was grim, and the conversation turned:
"but!"
What should happen will always happen.
Thales paused for a moment and said decisively:
"Someone also told me later: Do you know how many hurdles must be experienced from finance to market, from tax to budget, from administration to people's livelihood, from top to bottom, from one end to the other end of the chain?"
Thales sneered and pointed to the darkness outside the window:
"Do you think this is a puppet show, the street gangsters will start the movie when the king's finger moves?"
At that moment, the king's eyes moved slightly.
"Who said that?" he said coldly.
But Thales shook his head and did not answer.
"So, after contacting what I learned at the royal banquet, I thought of more."
Thales said so, his whole body propped up on the edge of the table, his eyes locked on the king.
"In these days, the central leaders, especially the food and agriculture, medicine, tobacco and alcohol, forging, leather, textile and other industries around the capital, have experienced rare, large, and long-term turbulence."
"And that can't be affected by Thales Canxing's behavior alone."
At that moment, King Kessel raised his chin slightly.
Although only for a moment, Thales caught this detail.
"So I began to doubt that behind the public opinion and propaganda guidance of'The prince is good lettuce, the farmer still starves to death'..."
He took a deep breath, recalling a series of encounters from the banquet to the secret branch to the Red Square Street and Xiacheng District.
Thales' eyes sharpened:
"Secret Branch, what exactly do you want to cover up?"
"Kingdom, what happened?"
Thales' voice fell.
The cold wind poured into the room, the lights were chaotic, and the lights were chaotic.
The answer was a sneer from the king.
"Catch the wind and catch the shadow, made it out of thin air."
King Kessel turned his head and buried one cheek in the darkness, seemingly dispirited:
"Have you said enough about conspiracy theories?"
An unhappiness rushed to Thales' heart, familiar and strange.
"So I saw it!"
The teenager raised the volume unconsciously, speeding up his speech:
"Whether it is a gap in the supply and demand of food and wine production, or the unprecedented shortage of various medicinal materials that has raised the price of medicines in the market, or the conflicts between private gangs surrounding the imbalance of market interests, people in the North want to come privately to buy winter food but encounter trade. Barriers, the movement of people from the frontier to the inland is not normal, but the craftsmen of the foundry industry are constantly being requisitioned by the military secretly, and there may be more...
Thales gritted his teeth unknowingly.
At that moment, he seemed to return to the Palace of Valor, facing the six grand princes of the North-and the grand female.
"All of these, the tremors at the end of the power chain, are not normal market conditions, nor are they influenced by my'prince's fine waist', but more like a mess left after a certain power intervenes in all walks of life. : Mass production, material hoarding, population movement, goods movement, centralized deployment... but they have to be carried out in secret to conceal their eyes..."
At this moment, the king suddenly uttered and interrupted his words:
"where."
Thales was startled.
"where?"
King Kessel spoke quietly, depressed and strong.
"After leaving the secret department..."
He leaned forward on the table, revealing his face from the shadows, like a lion striding forward, looking for the best culling position.
"Where did you go, what did you do, who did you meet?"
The words of King Kessel were slower than each sentence, but each one was tighter.
Implied the danger of Ruoyuowu.
Where did you go, what did you do, who you met.
Thales paused slightly.
One night affair, Laya club, Grove pharmacy, sunset bar, abandoned house...
Cohen, Sissi, Lilian, Tinker, Grove, Morris, Leyoke...
all of these.
His past.
Thales clenched his fists.
But he took a deep breath and dispelled the faint fear of facing the king, and replaced it with a hundred times tighter caution and caution in the face of a powerful enemy.
"Let me think about... well."
He leaned back in his chair, smiling, his voice confident and relaxed:
"Red Square Street, Xiacheng."
"Hire prostitutes, fight."
"Men, women... well, there are people outside of these two."
King Kessel frowned.
Thales smiled as usual:
"If you ask the butts, or the butts who follow me secretly, they will probably tell you this."
In the next second, the king's brows slowly stretched out.
"That beggar's den, right."
King Kessel hummed softly, as if only talking about trivial things:
"After so many years, you still belong there."
Beggar's den.
"Whenever you get hurt, you still run back grievously, just like a cub returning to its mother's arms, crying loudly, and regaining courage there."
When the voice fell, King Kessel turned his head and glanced at him lightly.
Thales trembled slightly, he looked at the other person's eyes and suddenly understood.
Thales knew where the familiar and unfamiliar resentment had just come from.
The boy recognized the king's glance.
Only six years ago, he was picked up by Yordel from the abandoned house. For the first time, he saw this majestic man in Mindis Hall.
At that time, the other party's face also had this expression.
Disdain.
indifferent.
Indifferent.
Thales closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
But this time...
[A long time ago, at the moment I was taken away by my grandfather, everything changed. 】
Glover's lost words rang in his ears:
[We, Lilian, Tinker, I...]
[We can't go back. 】
【forever and always. 】
The boy suddenly opened his eyes!
"So, from the above things, I confirmed the second point!"
Thales looked cold and grabbed the iris letter:
"What this letter is about is not about your accidental intention, father."
King Kessel frowned, seemingly surprised.
Thales spoke clearly, and his logic gradually smoothed out, breaking through the layers of stagnation he had faced when facing the king:
"Long before the radical proposal of Lord Sodor, the large-scale expansion of the Royal Standing Army had been spread out in an orderly but unstoppable manner externally, throughout the central government, and in all walks of life: food, materials, and weapons. , Logistical routes, and even possible sources of conscription and stationing in the future, are already intensively operating at various levels."
"If you count the time required for the initial planning, planning, preparation, survey, coordination, mobilization, and action, it may have lasted for several months or even a year or two. It has a wide range of implications and far-reaching effects. It is almost war mobilization-just more Low-key, more sneaky, did not shout loudly, did not posture to declare war, to avoid market turmoil, so as not to be discerned from the turmoil."
Thales narrowed his eyes:
"So that the Kingdom Secret Division had to go around making up for leaks, covering up the news, and even the prince's name had to be used."
King Kessel's eyes grew sharper.
Snapped!
Thales slapped Jayne's letter on the desktop:
"It can be seen that Lord Sodor's expansion proposal is not just as simple as ventilating with you, but with your approval."
He stared at the king's cheek, and said coldly:
"You, and the Kingdom's Secret Division, you must have planned for a long time, and you are determined to win!"
There was a long silence in the Ballard room.
"Humph."
A few seconds later, the grunt of the Ironfist King arrived faintly:
"That said, you are not too stupid."
"At least he's smarter than the rich-headed Joke—how could Bank promote him back then."
Seeing the king's reaction, Thales became more sure of his judgment.
He chuckled lightly, forgetting his previous depression:
"That brings up the next question."
"If the letter of Jen's support for the expansion was not that you had premeditated, but the expansion proposal was not your temporary intention..." Thales's expression was constricted, and his voice was cold:
"Then what is it that you did?"
Facing the prince’s question, King Kessel responded in silence, only his eyes became sharper.
Thales broke his fingers and said:
"From secretly preparing for the expansion, to the accident of the royal family banquet, to the letter that extorted Jane, to the debate around the expansion in the Imperial Conference, all these steps to achieve the goal step by step, some obviously have a clear plan and well prepared. Some are purely coincidental."
He sneered:
"Could it be that it's about the great affairs of the kingdom, you can still plan half random, half see calculations and half chance?"
King Kessel responded with a sneer.
"Isn't that what you are doing now," the king sighed: "Come into the palace to make a sound, kill someone to listen."
"Half of calculations, half of luck?"
Thales' words stagnated.
He paused, exhaling gently, reminding himself not to fall into the other's trap:
"Then I remembered the imperial meeting this morning."
"Today, Lord Shuoduo spoke highly of the disadvantages of conscripting troops and advocated the expansion of the standing army, but met unprecedented opposition."
"Since the Prime Minister, regardless of fiscal diplomacy or agricultural production, most people in the Imperial Conference were caught off guard and unprepared for this proposal: the Finance and Taxation Department was shy without a budget, public opinion and morality were not accounted for by the teacher, and the conditions of various departments were insufficient. Groaning."
King Kessel's eyes moved.
Thales found that although the statue-like king was still silent, he was no longer expressionless.
This discovery made him very excited, just like an invincible formation, and finally broke a hole under the continuous impact.
"The conditions and the situation are not sufficient. Even if everyone knows that this is what you mean, Shuoduo's proposal is very difficult to support. In the end, he can only lower his requirements, retreat and retreat, and limit the military system reform to Yongxing City and Can Star private soldier."
Thales changed his head:
"So, I'm even more weird: Why didn't you make plans with the Kingdom Secret Division and Lord Shuoduo for a long time, a large-scale national policy decision that has been quietly rolled out in secret, why didn't you agree with your own people in advance, and didn't fight in the Imperial Conference Ever greeted? So that when things came to the end, the kingdom was stretched out, and the subjects all opposed, lacking money, name, and people?"
Thales stared at the king, waiting for an answer:
"In the end, you have to rely on a hapless man who just hit the door yesterday, Jen, to wave the banner for you and provide initial funding?"
silence.
At that moment, King Kessel's eyes turned gloomy, as if Thales was the problem.
"why?"
He restrained his redundant expression and said in a bad tone:
"Because you know nothing."
Know nothing.
Thales smiled.
He was more sure of the guess in his heart.
"I really don't understand."
Thales sternly said:
"You have been prepared for this move, openly and secretly, and you are determined to implement it. However, because of insufficient communication and coordination and insufficient conditions, you can only retreat and seek second order, relying on accidents and good luck to check the gaps. "
The teenager's face became cold:
"In this matter, your political skills are too lame, too clumsy."
At that second, the iron-fisted king snorted softly, not knowing whether it was dissatisfaction or disdain.
Thales shook his head:
"No, it's not you, King of the Iron Fist, Kessel Star V."
"This is not in line with your always arbitrarily strong and uncompromising character, nor does it conform to the style of secret organs that are prepared and prepared-look at the'Dragon Blood'. Overnight, the Northland collapsed dragon wailed. Exter's internal chaos and decline, that is your classic example of strategizing and disturbing the situation."
Hearing "Dragon Blood", but Kessel V was expressionless.
Thales raised his head and straightened his clothes:
"There is only one explanation."
"First of all, you have indeed planned the expansion of the standing army for a long time."
Thales said coldly:
"The standing army of the royal family, this kingdom chariot is destined to roll forward under your will, irresistible."
King Kessel did not speak.
But sometimes, silence is the greatest response.
Thales continued in a deep voice:
"However, this letter you blackmailed is indeed a temporary motive."
The prince smiled and said softly:
"Because in your original plan, the horse that was pulling the kingdom chariot for you unexpectedly got out of control and stumbled before the battle."
At that moment, King Kessel's fingers moved imperceptibly.
"So you can only retreat and ask for the second time. You are simple because you are hungry. You don't have to choose food. What you have to use—Xiaohuahua and his Nanan collar are like this. They are just a dumb, lost pony. They walked into the stables in a daze, and immediately When you were upset by the horse, you put on a bit and nailed a horseshoe, and hurriedly pulled the cart on the road."
Thales looked at his father steadily, and pushed Jane's "Petition" to the middle of the table, so that the coat of arms of the iris faced the king:
"Recharge it in shoddy, and reserve the number."
When the voice fell, Thales waited for several seconds.
Until King Kessel's face finally had some unusual changes.
"Warhorse, pull the cart," the king snorted and reached out to pick up Jen's letter:
"interesting."
Thales had a full view of his expression.
The teenager smiled slightly.
"But as I said, Xiaohuahua is not a lamb to be slaughtered."
The prince narrowed his smile and said solemnly:
"It is foreseeable that this new fake horse is sluggish and unsteady. The boss is unwilling to pull up the cart and babble."
"At most, it can only be considered inferior."
Thales’ voice changed:
"As for the original, that authentic horse..."
At that moment, King Kessel looked like a sword.
The teenager cocked his mouth:
"I guess, compared to Xiaohuahua who makes up the number..."
"It must have a lot of defects. It is strong and strong. It is hardworking and conscientious."
"It must be first class."
The King of Iron Fist did not speak, he just put down the letter paper and waited quietly for Thales' answer.
The prince’s tone slowly rose, as if a story was slowly unfolding:
"For example, when you expand the standing army, you don’t have to worry about the shortage of money and food budget, and you don’t need to avoid the pressure of public opinion. You don’t even have to worry about knowing the ministers of the Imperial Council, and you don’t have to talk to the old fritters’ kingdom department. Go and wag."
Thales spoke slowly, but saw King Kessel's brows deepening.
"As long as there are three people: you, Suduo, and Black Prophet, you only need the three giants of the King, the Department of Military Affairs, and the Kingdom's Secret Section to solve the problem."
"Safe, smooth, successful, low-key, without leaving troubles, expand the royal standing army."
Thales exhaled and narrowed his eyes:
"or more."
The King of Iron Fist heard the boy's words, but he did not immediately respond.
The Ballard room fell into a deep dead silence.
It seems that even the lights are frozen.
But Thales was patient.
He is familiar with the battlefield he is in.
The King of Iron Fist was silent for a long time before he spoke in a deep voice.
"So, how did you find that genuine horse?"
Thales stared at him for a long, long time before nodding slightly.
"I have learned the general situation of the west from many sources."
West.
King Kessel did not speak.
Thales slowly said:
"I know that since the years, the western front has been maintained for so many years. The group of princes in the western wilderness headed by Falkenhause has long been so cunning and cunning that you are so soft and soothing, or beating warnings, or even talking. Hit the head, there is no egg to use."
"But you also can't risk the world's bad faith, and you can't let go of the collar of the legendary wing of the vicious dog, let him go to slaughter, and treat the imperial nobles in the same way as the orc prisoners of war. That will make the whole star boil out of control."
Thales became serious:
"So, you spent a lot of money and food a few months ago and sent the royal standing army to the quagmire of the Western Wilderness.
"You are not going to beat the princes, because it's useless."
"It's not to destroy the family, because I dare not."
"Not to go to Qianli Yingzi..."
Thales' eyes flashed:
"Because in your eyes, I am not that important yet."
It was getting colder and colder in Ballard's room.
King Kessel's eyes slowly changed, he unknowingly left the back of his chair and leaned forward.
"That's right, Lord Suduo's proposal this morning, how to reduce the private soldiers of Canstar, and how to pilot the expansion of the standing army in the center, are just the tip of the iceberg."
"As for the secret preliminary preparations that lasted for months or even years, it is not just for expansion."
Thales' voice grew colder:
"The Western Wilderness collar a few months ago, on the eve of my return to the kingdom..."
"You will send the three main forces of the Royal Standing Army, regardless of the waste of the western expedition, nothing else..."
Following the prince's words, King Kessel's pupils slowly tightened.
Thales spoke softly, using the calmest tone to tell the most thrilling facts:
"Just to expand your royal standing army on a considerable scale in the most urgent and tragic invasion of Orcs and Bonemen after the desert war."
"You have to seize the golden opportunity that the princes of the Western Famine have gathered together for a thousand years to plunder their wealth and absorb their nutrients to replenish their military resources."
"Then, taking advantage of the heavy losses of the Lord Lords' suspicious defeat, they worked hard to disband their bloated and incompetent enlisted army without opposition."
The cold wind howled darkly, and the shadow of the lamp was shaking.
Thales' eyes condensed and his heart was heavy:
"Leveraging on the advantages of the western frontline in military control over a long period of time, we will implement military system reforms on the spot, reform border defense, and re-establish rules and regulations."
"In the end, just like the gift town that has lost its autonomy, you must fundamentally, from the root cause, depose the autonomous military obligations and rights of vassals in the Western Famine."
King Kessel lowered his head slightly, and the lights flickered, reflecting a shadow under his eyes.
Thales gritted his teeth:
"Power comes from violence."
"It took more than 100 years for Mindis III to be able to weaken their economic, political, cultural, diplomatic and status privileges..."
"You, King of Iron Fist, King Kessel V, you want to use the power of thousands of troops, the might of thunder, the speed of the wind, the momentum of the wave..."
"On this land of the Western Wilderness, the natural military rights of the vassals, lords, princes and nobles since the founding of the country have been completely swept into the garbage dump of history."
Thales stared at the silent King Kessel, but couldn't help thinking of Charman Rumba who had faced him in the Palace of Valor.
"Once the accomplishment is successful, the illustrious family of the Falkenhaus, and the Western Wilderness family of the Weimer Jobelar will completely become a wealthy man who has empty titles and properties, leaving his family tree and history, but no longer able to resist the king's power. , The big landlord."
"It will eventually expand to the whole country, creating a new normal of star rule."
Thales faintly said:
"The ultimate step to complete Xianjun's game."
King Kessel did not speak.
He just stared deeply at the second prince.
"All of this," Finally, after a while, King Kessel's voice came softly, "Did you think of it yourself?"
Thales' eyes moved.
"of course not."
"Someone told me."
King Kessel's eyes moved:
"Who?"
Thales raised his head, accepting it calmly:
"Everyone."
King Kessel was puzzled.
I saw Thales smiling:
"Up to princes and nobles, down to Li people."
"Even you."
"Your Majesty."
King Kessel frowned fiercely.
But Thales snorted softly:
"Remember, the first time you saw you after returning home, what you said to me."
"That sword."
"And, because of that sword, I will become the Duke of Xinghu."
King Kessel narrowed his eyes.
The Duke of Xinghu raised his head, his eyes radiant:
"The reason why you are extremely dissatisfied with the sword that I received Falkenhausen..."
Thales said coldly:
"Not because of what has already happened."
"It's because of what you planned, things that should have happened in the Western Wilderness, but didn't happen in the end."
King Kessel's eyes slowly enlarged.
"Yes, your actions in the Western Wilderness failed. You failed to complete your military system reform in the Western Wilderness under rare conditions as originally planned."
"And the horse smashed and fell short, nothing else."
"just because……"
Thales raised a finger and lightly nodded himself:
"I."
The prince's voice fell.
There was dead silence in Ballard's room.
For ten seconds, the Ironfist King did not respond at all.
But his gaze at Thales slowly changed.
Disdain and indifference from before.
became……
"Now I know," Finally, Kessel V said softly:
"How did you survive in the north."
"Polaris."
Polaris.
Under the table, Thales clenched his fists severely.
He did not admit his mistake.
At that moment, what the king's eyes revealed was deep dignity.
strange.
And fear.
Thales smiled slightly and spoke lightly:
"Now, am I growing fast enough?"
King Kessel frowned.
"Is it enough to bear the weight of the Star Kingdom?"
Thales squinted at the king:
"Enough for me to participate in this game?"
Thales's tone was relaxed and ridiculous.
But at that moment, the King of Iron Fist suddenly raised his eyes and his momentum changed suddenly!
"From just now," Kessel's words were extremely cold, his eyes sharp:
"Can these things you said make up for the stupid consequences of your brazenly breaking into the palace?"
Thales was taken aback:
"Maybe these are two things..."
But King Kessel disdainfully snorted, unceremoniously:
"Then you say these are a fart."
"Bear a few weights."
Hearing this vulgar response, Thales was startled.
"I admit, your performance is pretty good."
"But unfortunately, a quarter of an hour ran out."
"Tell Marico Pioneer Officer, I grant him permission to execute the punishment of the prince-because of his guilt of forcibly breaking into the imperial imprisonment and rebellious."
After saying this, the iron-fisted king turned his head and ended the conversation coldly and rudely.
Thales frowned tightly.
really.
His father was not someone who would be easily shaken by accidents.
Even if facing...
Is his son.
But only a second later, Thales' expression relaxed.
"do you want it?"
King Kessel frowned.
In the narrow, dark, and cold Ballard room, Thales rubbed his arms and did not look across the long table:
"Do you still want it?"
The King of Iron Fist did not look up, but there was a trace of doubt in his eyes.
Thales took a deep breath, pointed to the letter on the table, and said lightly:
"As I said, Jen won't let you take advantage of it easily. This inferior horse will only go into the pit and it's not easy to ride."
"But, do you still want it?"
At that moment, Thales recalled the tone of Yaozi when bewitching others in the tavern:
"Do you still want to complete it, and also want to complete the entire Star Kingdom, or even the entire Errol world, an unprecedented change in history..."
King Kessel's expression changed slightly.
The prince's voice became quieter and more intriguing:
"Reform the military system, reverse the legal system, accept the soldiers of the princes, and promote the division of the king."
"From then on, let the standing army of the royal family become the only, orthodox, legal and powerful violent armed force in the Western Wasteland?"
Silence was restored in Ballard's room.
Until a few seconds later, the king's voice also sounded, hoarse, cold, and every word.
"What, mean?"
Thales clenched his fists.
At that moment, he suddenly felt that the pressure that the king had brought to him, which made him breathe heavily, was completely gone.
"If the answer is'yes'," Thales said calmly:
"So..."
His eyes and King Kessel's eyes met in the air:
"I can help you."
I can help you.
At that moment, the gaze of the iron-fisted king became dangerous, grim, and subtle.
He turned his head and faced Thales again:
"you……"
"Remember, father," Thales interrupted him, feeling that the air had never been so light, "When I said,'I'll save you'..."
He smiled slightly, with a spirit in his eyes:
"I was serious."
"In you, the highest iron-clad king in the Kingdom of Stars, he can only grievance Barra to ride on this inferior horse, wearing a rusty copper armor, stepping on the uneven bumps along the way. When you pretend to be full of domineering, you are going to pursue your star dream."
King Kessel's eyes were suddenly cold.
Thales chuckled and spread his hands:
"Why, do you really think that I am scared of your tattered crown?"
In Ballard's room, the two faced each other far away, with the lights and the cold wind being their only audience.
The King of Iron Fist was silent for a while, but shook his head resolutely:
"It can't make up for the consequences of your folly today. The star prince conspired to force the palace, and you cannot escape your sins."
Thales' emotions sank.
"I know, but that's another matter."
Thales looked back at him:
"What do you say, father?"
King Kessel did not speak, but stared at him steadily, without turning his eyes.
Thales was the first to lose in the confrontation.
"Well, I know, it's not the Western Wilderness, but also the South Bank. Anyway, you have a way..."
He sighed, left his seat, and walked to the door.
"Then I will leave."
Thales beckoned back indifferently: "Put me under house arrest in Mindith Hall. The flogging or the gallows, Xi Ting Zun-wait, let's forget the gallows. I don't like the feeling of being choked."
Just now.
"Sand King."
Thales paused, and his fingers stopped on the doorknob.
Duke Xinghu raised his head, didn't turn around, just stared at the dark and cold stone gate:
"what?"
The king's thunderous voice came from behind, as cold as before, and he couldn't tell whether he agreed or refused:
"This is a plan of action that King Midil, together with the Department of Military Affairs, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Kingdom's Secret Service, made a long time ago."
"Action code: Sand King."
Midil.
Secret branch.
Sand king.
Thales grasped the most crucial words.
He took a deep breath, released the doorknob, and turned to face Kessel V again.
"Sand King, Sand King?"
Thales squinted his eyes and searched for the royal family pedigree that Gilbert explained to him.
"What you said, shouldn't it be the grandson of the'Xianjun'. In the 552 year of the end calendar, he was so happy to expedition to the desert, but he suffered a fiasco and suffered a blood transfusion and stained the yellow sand. With fear, he left his vassals and subordinates, digging sand and drilling pits in shame and fleeing. Proclaiming that'invisibility is equal to invincibility', completely ruined the golden age of four generations of kings, and became the'sand king' who was the laughingstock of Xilu through the ages. The one with the same name as you—"
Thales paused and hummed softly:
"Kaiser IV?"
The Ironfist King was silent for a while.
"Do not."
He undeniably denies:
"What I'm talking about is that in 553, after being betrayed by a powerful vassal and suffered a fiasco, he relied on a small mercenary corps to survive from the desert. The mercenary corps that saw the money stayed in the royal capital, paid high salaries and provided expensive supplies, and eventually achieved a professional army that was not governed by any princes, territories, blood, or service, that is, the predecessor of the royal standing army. The'Sand King'—"
King Kessel sharpened his eyes:
"Kaiser IV."
Betrayed by a powerful vassal...
Keep the mercenary regiment in the capital...
To become the predecessor of the standing army of the royal family...
Hearing this different biography, Thales was thoughtful.
"Now, you sit down."
King Kessel said coldly, beyond doubt:
"let's talk."
Talk.
From an invisible angle, Thales exhaled deeply and cocked the corners of his mouth.
He turned back slowly.
"I thought it was a quarter of an hour?"
King Kessel gave a cold snort and glanced at him from a distance:
"Yes."
"For you."
Thales stabilized his expression, took a deep breath, then pulled the chair away and sat down again.
"of course."
"By the way, Mariko Pioneer Officer is very promising and worthy of trust," the prince said gently, as if suddenly remembering something:
"But I think, let him take over as the chief penal officer and take charge of the royal family members' punishment, should he consider it carefully?"
He smiled slightly and stared at King Kessel's expression:
"What do you think, Your Majesty?"
But at the end of the long table, King Kessel just looked at him faintly.
"Boy."
"Before I let Marico drag you out and hang you."
The iron-fisted king has dangerous eyes and a bad tone:
"Put away your smug face."
(End of this chapter)