Miss Wang Weina, even your cousin won't do!

"Sir, don't forget our work."

Sir Wernart glanced at him, then looked away, replying nonchalantly:

"Of course I know, no need to remind me."

Colonel Kant opened his mouth, wanting to ask: "Since you know all this, why are you still watching this bizarre performance with such relish?"

But instead of getting angry at his peer, he stood up, patted Colonel Hamilton on the shoulder, and said coldly:

“Make them stop.”

Colonel Hamilton paused, then blinked somewhat awkwardly.

"what?"

"Make them stop!" Colonel Kant shouted again. Sir Wenat, standing beside him, tugged at his arm and shook his head. But Colonel Kant's expression remained unchanged. He pointed disdainfully at the soldiers on the drill ground, who were wildly dancing the so-called "Little Hillshire local dance," and the hastily assembled "folk music troupe."

"Don't make me say it a third time, this kind of thing is a desecration of the dignity of soldiers. Victorian soldiers are supposed to go to the battlefield to kill the enemy or stand on the border to protect the country. It's one thing to dance this ridiculous dance, but to dance it so badly is another."

Colonel Kant curled his lip.

“I’ve seen enough. We still have things to do. Now take me to check the garrison’s entry and exit records, as well as your records regarding the Little Hill County riots.”

Hamilton lowered his head, his lips twitching slightly as he nodded in agreement.

"Go immediately, Your Excellency."

He waved his hand, beckoning to his adjutant Hill, who was seated not far away, and said:

"Take the special envoy from Kant to the military camp."

"Understood." Adjutant Hill saluted and stepped aside to show Kant the way. "This way, Your Excellency."

Watching the two figures leave, Hamilton gritted his teeth and sat down again. The performance on stage was not affected by the sudden incident. The dancing soldiers had already left the stage, and a group of Tara people walked onto the stage with worried expressions, holding flutes, trumpets, violins, and even a large harp. The stage announcer announced that the next program was "Song of the Highlands" performed by the local Tara community.

Just as Hamilton was frowning because Kanté had left without giving him any face, Sir Wernart, who was still standing there, spoke up:

"The Song of the Highlands, also known as the Song of Dublin or the Song of the Deep Pool, is a city song composed and written by His Majesty the late King when he was still King of the North, to commemorate Dublin, the second largest city in Victoria under his rule—the Highland City. Mr. Hamilton, do you know that the reason this song is also called the Song of the Deep Pool is because Dublin, in Tara, is also called the City by the Reeds, which is the original meaning of Deep Pool?"

Hamilton was surprised that Sir Wenat would actually strike up a conversation with him, especially starting with historical anecdotes. He scratched his head in confusion.

“I’m sorry, I really don’t know this story.” He paused, then asked with some confusion, “But why did His Majesty the late Emperor use the name ‘Song of the Deep Pool’? The Tara people have always caused us a lot of trouble.”

Sir Wernart turned and patted Hamilton on the shoulder, not answering Hamilton's question immediately, but instead shaking his head in relief and explaining:

"Colonel Kant is an academic; his mentor is Marshal Ernest. With such powerful backing, he naturally acts less cautiously. Please don't take what just happened to heart."

Hamilton waved his hand, flattered: "Your Excellency is too kind. It is only natural that Mr. Kant values ​​the task entrusted to him by His Highness the Prince. I understand."

"It's good that you understand. You can tell me if there's anything. If he goes too far, I'll help you stop him. After all, we're just temporary envoys, while you, Colonel Hamilton, are the leader of the Little Hills garrison. If we help each other, we can better serve Her Majesty the Queen, can't we?"

Sir Wernart patted Hamilton on the back, and the bright smile on his face, which was already showing a few wrinkles, seemed to say, "Keep up the good work, young man, I believe in you."

After striking up a conversation, Wenat explained:

"As for why His Majesty the late Emperor chose to compose such a song while guarding the northern border, well... let me tell you a secret. This song wasn't originally written for the city of Dublin. Legend has it that the late Emperor had an adopted daughter, and this song was a birthday gift for her. As for why it later became the anthem of Dublin, and where that adopted daughter went..."

Sir Wernart paused for a moment, then pointed to the ceiling. Hamilton knew he wasn't referring to the ceiling, but to a few esteemed figures.

"That's probably only known to His Highness the Prince and Her Majesty the Empress."

Hamilton's eyes widened in disbelief as he asked, "Could it be... that the late emperor's adopted daughter was a Tara?"

Wenat quickly covered Hamilton's mouth, made a shushing gesture, shook his head seriously, and warned, "Don't say anything reckless. But, Colonel Hamilton, think about why His Highness the Prince of Wales is so concerned about this matter. He is the son of the King of the North."

Hamilton nodded thoughtfully.

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

Night falls at the garrison camp, the special envoy's residence.

The delegation from Lentinium was temporarily residing in a three-story building within the camp. The security of the delegation was the responsibility of the accompanying soldiers. The garrison of Little Hill County was prohibited from approaching the area, on the grounds that "His Highness the Prince has ordered that the independence of the delegation be guaranteed."

Sir Wernard was seated early in the meeting hall. There were only two envoys, and he occupied the seat at the head of the long table in the center of the large meeting hall, waiting for his colleagues to return.

About ten minutes later, the nine o'clock hands were officially aligned. Kant entered during the calibration, his face somewhat gloomy.

"Looks like there's been little to no gain?" Wenat said calmly. "Or perhaps, too much to have gained?"

Kant glanced at him, pulled out a chair, and sat down at the lower part of the table opposite him, answering crisply:

"Many, yet not many. Falsely reporting military service, neglecting training, inadequate weapon maintenance, substandard canteen hygiene, uncleaned toilets, and the bathhouse without water for days. The problems are simply overwhelming. But!"

Colonel Kant rubbed his temples.

"These are all internal military issues. It can only be said that the long period of peace has led to a lack of management. Although it is necessary to rectify them, they do not involve the reasons why the Tara people revolted."

“I guessed it. I knew it would be like this.” Sir Wenat nodded, unsurprised. It was perfectly normal; using a bunch of trivial issues to cover up a real problem was a tactic that wasn't sophisticated, but it worked. Sir Wenat had seen many capitalists, merchants, and nobles use this method to evade national taxes.

As for the fate of those people... we have to thank Victoria's greatness and His Highness Wayne's mercy. They weren't beheaded, and several enclaves were enough to send them to labor camps or exile.

Who could lie to a prince who seemed to know everything and his queen? Those people didn't even know when they were being watched. By the time they were summoned to the tax office and met Prince Wayne and the Sarkaz queen, it was too late. When their secrets were revealed one by one, their pale faces were enough to bring tears to anyone's eyes.

“Everything you do leaves a trace. That’s His Highness Wayne’s famous saying. Don’t worry, your charade with me today was very successful. Colonel Hamilton has already fallen for it. Once I’m considered one of his own, the investigation will be much easier.”

"Is it that easy to sneak in?" Kant questioned. Wenat nodded confidently:

"Of course it won't be that easy, but with you putting pressure on him from the outside, he'll have no choice but to ask someone else who can check you for help. And that person is me. If things go smoothly, he'll try to drag me down with him. After all, I already subtly mentioned it to him today."

"What did you mention?"

Wenat shrugged: "It's just a rumor, it doesn't matter. What matters is how he'll react after he hears about it."

Chapter Three Hamilton's Plans

Victoria, North, Little Hillshire. 9:00 pm.

Although it was already night, Hamilton had no intention of falling asleep. On the contrary, he was unusually awake, sitting at his desk with a furrowed brow, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the table, and muttering to himself.

"There's definitely something wrong here. What should I do?"

Just as Sir Wernart said, Colonel Hamilton was now very uneasy, especially after Colonel Canter seemed unwilling to make any effort or establish any connections and rushed to the barracks to investigate as soon as he arrived in Little Hillshire. His anxiety had only intensified.

He knew what he had done and what he planned to do. During the garrison's stay in Little Hills, Colonel Hamilton, as the garrison leader, consistently maintained a repressive policy towards the local Tara people, a policy that remained unchanged despite repeated persuasion from the Little Hills City Council. The reason was simple: Colonel Hamilton simply looked down on the Tara people.

This is a legacy of history. Strictly speaking, the Tara people are descendants of the previous dynasty. Even though Victorian law now recognizes granting the Tara people equal citizenship with Victorians, the underlying resentment won't simply change with a written law. It wasn't just Colonel Hamilton; many former Victorian nobles and even senior military figures harbored ill will towards the Tara people. One person's negative opinion might be insignificant, but the negative opinions of a group, especially those of powerful and influential people, can shape a societal perception—a powerful and persuasive force that can create a lasting and undeniable truth.

The Tara people of Little Hillshire live in settlements. Although they are not infected, they lead lives not much different from those who are. They are also restricted from entering certain areas, engaging in certain jobs, and even intermarrying with the local Victorians. When Tara and Victorian students attend the same primary school, even if they receive the same number of votes, the principal will give priority to the Victorian child.

And all of this, strictly speaking, is related to him, the garrison leader who has consistently maintained a high-pressure policy and a hostile attitude towards the Tara people. Once Colonel Kant investigates these matters, he himself will find it impossible to explain himself clearly, no matter how many mouths he has.

Not to mention, given that rigid, stubborn, and utterly insensitive envoy, he might very well go to the Tara people's settlement to investigate the riot firsthand! Given his attitude towards those Tara people, once Colonel Kant reveals his identity and purpose, who can guarantee they won't report him to Colonel Kant?

Yes, the Tara people have indeed lost trust in the Victorians under their policies, but every group has its outliers. Like that honor guard soldier who recently joined their army—a graduate of the Victorian Royal Academy of Ceremonies…I think his name is Jane Willow. He's an outlier in Victoria. Despite being the glorious flag bearer of the Victorian Empire's honor guard, wielding the supreme honor of waving the Victorian flag, he spends his days mingling with the Tara people. Who can guarantee that there won't be a few Tara outliers who want to take this opportunity to gamble and tell the Kant envoy what's going on?

Hamilton dared not gamble. The Tara were descendants of the Drak, citizens of the Drak, and destabilizing forces threatening the great Victorian Aslan dynasty. But undeniably, Her Majesty the Merciful Queen had recognized them as subjects of Victoria, and any oppression and exploitation she had inflicted upon them would be a heinous crime if it reached Londinium's ears!

"We need to find a way to shut the Tara people up."

"Hamilton said in a deep voice. But who can shut up? Offering incentives will only embolden them, while increasing oppression could incite a second uprising and leave evidence. Neither will silence the Tara people."

Hamilton's eyes narrowed, revealing a fierce glint.

"Either do nothing, or do it thoroughly! Only the dead can shut up!"

Colonel Kant was Londinium's special envoy, and he couldn't do anything to him. But the Tara people were just a group of unarmed civilians; if he acted swiftly, no one would notice. Yes, no one would notice.

To prevent Ambassador Kant from causing trouble, I could also ask Envoy Werner to keep Ambassador Kant calm. And to keep him out of the way while I'm doing my job.

Hamilton felt a sudden clarity in his mind. Wasn't this the right way? Envoy Kanter was clueless about social niceties, but Ambassador Wenat was a shrewd businessman. He was recommended by Mayor Arthur, and might have even received instructions from the mayor, knowing about his father's relationship with the mayor. He could simply ask him for help. Hadn't he even prepared a reason for him today?

"The late emperor's adopted daughter may have been a Tara, which is why His Highness the Prince is so concerned about the uprising in Xiaoqiu County. He wants to find his sister."

"I led my troops into the city to track down the whereabouts of the princess, but unfortunately I discovered that the reason for the Tara people's riot was that they had taken the princess hostage and wanted to use her identity to rebel. The garrison then engaged in battle with them! After a fierce battle, we finally suppressed the riot and maintained peace and stability in the Little Hills region, but the princess was kidnapped by the remaining Tara rioters in the chaos and her whereabouts are unknown!"

Hamilton found the plan increasingly feasible as he read it aloud. He even imagined that if the Kant envoy discovered anything amiss, he could use that as a pretext to eliminate him as well, thus preventing future trouble: "Tara riots, envoy's sudden death! How pleasing to the ear! Moreover, if this matter were to reach the Lentinium, His Highness the Prince and Her Majesty the Queen would be furious. Then, Victoria would show no mercy to these Tara rioters! What I'm doing would be seen as a righteous act in accordance with public opinion!"

As for whether the garrison would lose, Hamilton hadn't even considered that question. How could they possibly lose? The enemy was the unarmed Tara people, who were struggling to even get enough to eat and wear, while his men were all professional soldiers from Victoria. Although they hadn't fought in a long time and couldn't even fire a gun accurately, they had still received professional training. Coupled with the difference in weaponry, the Tara people couldn't possibly be a match for them.

Moreover, even if these garrison troops were so weak that they couldn't even be defeated by a mob, he still had a last resort—to eliminate these Tara people and their secret societies, he had already secretly transported a batch of Originium industrial products to the garrison's artillery battalion to secretly manufacture dirty bombs. Once the situation got out of control and they were at a disadvantage, that would be the time when these dirty bombs would come in handy.

With this layer of protection, Hamilton was immediately fearless!

The colonel sprang up from his chair and paced back and forth in his office several times, perfecting the plan to perfection before taking a deep breath.

The plan was not flawless until one last loophole appeared: Sir Wenat, one of the two envoys, had to cooperate with him and coordinate their testimonies in order to perfectly deceive everyone.

However, Hamilton was not worried that Sir Wenat would not help him. Sir Wenat had made it clear enough at the welcoming ceremony today that he would stand by Hamilton's side if the Kant envoy went too far.

Moreover, as Wenat said, they were merely temporary envoys from Londinium; the affairs of Little Hillshire were actually none of their concern. They were only forced to travel this far due to pressure from the royal family and would return sooner or later. Colonel Hamilton, on the other hand, was the permanent garrison commander of Little Hillshire. Rather than bringing down this local tyrant, offending the mayor and his father, and jeopardizing his future, it was better to stand on his side and deal with those unruly Tara rioters. If the problem couldn't be solved, then the problem-makers would be dealt with.

With that thought, Hamilton let out a sigh of relief.

That's good. Tomorrow, when I'm alone with Envoy Wenat, I'll probe and tell him about the plan.

Chapter Four: Qinliu's Mourning

Victoria, Little Hillshire, is a Tara settlement.

Whatever Hamilton's thoughts were, Kant was going to do what he had to do. As planned, he had arrived today at the largest Tara settlement in Hillshire.

Hillshire is a medium-sized mobile city. Victoria has forty or fifty similar mobile cities, and even larger mobile cities, such as Londinium, have advanced to the level of mobile city-states. The larger the city, the larger the population. Hillshire has a population of over one million, and more than a third of these people are Tara.

The Tara were once subjects of the Gaelic lineage, a branch of the Drak royal family. The Drak royal family was divided into two branches: the Atrias lineage, which once ruled Lontinem, and the Gaelic lineage. After the first Aslan King led his army on a campaign against Victoria with Sargon, the Drak kings of the Atrias lineage relinquished power and divided it with Aslan. The Gaelic lineage then signed a peace treaty. However, compared to the Lontinem Atrias lineage, which was the main force against Aslan, the war between the Gaelic lineage and the Aslan King was not so fierce as to result in mutual destruction. In the end, they chose a dignified ceasefire and submission rather than unconditional surrender.

This means that the Tara people still possess a complete heritage, passing down their written language, history, and traditions from generation to generation, maintaining their independence from the rest of Victoria. Just as the Victorians of Little Hill County do not acknowledge the Tara people as their compatriots, the Tara people similarly view the Victorians as enemies. In fact, in their language, "You are a filthy Victorian" is used as a vulgar insult, much like how the Ursus people often include "Kazimir" in their insults.

Hamilton repeatedly warned Envoy Kant not to enter the Tara territory, and even more so, not to have any contact with those Tara scum. But Kant was not only a high-ranking envoy, but also held a higher military rank than him. Hamilton had no choice but to dissuade him. He could only increase patrols in the district and provide Kant with a large number of accompanying guards.

"How am I supposed to conduct an investigation with so many soldiers under my command? What Tara person would dare to approach me?"

Kant was unhappy and wanted to refuse the guards' escort. But Hamilton already had a plan in mind, and at this point, he hardened his stance and directly refused:

"The investigation is secondary; your safety is the most important thing. If your investigation misses something and ultimately yields no results, you will be the only one to suffer when you return to Londinium. But if you are assassinated by those Tara scum in Little Hills, whether you are injured or killed, I will be the one who suffers in the end. Therefore, you have to bring this guard with you, whether you like it or not. I hope you can understand."

Kanté's forehead vein throbbed; what a hope that I could understand.

You soldiers are probably not here to protect me, but to stop those Tara people who want to seek justice from me, right?

But Kant had no choice but to agree. Although Colonel Hamilton's words were extremely harsh, the logic was sound. Hamilton didn't want to get himself into trouble, so he had no choice but to do it, regardless of Kant's agreement.

So, accompanied by a group of guards, Kant, contrary to expectations, marched into the Tara settlement in a grand procession.

Along the way, the Tara people either stood by and watched, immediately shut their doors and windows, or hurriedly fled in panic. Kant watched them, several times trying to stop one of them, but before he could act, his guards scattered them. Kant clearly anticipated that this trip would likely yield no results, and had to abandon his plan to find a Tara person to inquire about the cause of the recent commotion. He entrusted the important task to Sir Wenat, who remained at the camp.