The Shadow of Great Britain

122: Chapter 82: Pie in the Sky 122: Chapter 82: Pie in the Sky In the hall of the Greenwich police station, Arthur and Great Dumas sat to the left and to the right on a podium temporarily assembled from two office desks, while a carefully selected group of journalists sat below.

As for the definition of regular and irregular, Arthur adopted the consistent standards of the Home Office and Scotland Yard, which considered newspapers that legally and regularly paid stamp duty and had a fixed office address as regular newspapers.

In terms of selecting which newspapers’ journalists to accept questions from, Arthur had another set of standards, namely that only the media whose headquarters were within the jurisdiction of Scotland Yard, or more specifically, only those based on London’s Fleet Street could conduct the interviews.

It wasn’t that Arthur had disdain for the various small papers of London’s streets; he genuinely believed that those small papers were the soul of London’s newspaper industry, but he also clearly recognized the embarrassing questions that small paper journalists would raise for the sake of circulation.

In such a diplomatic event, only inviting journalists from large-circulation newspapers with long-term operational goals would prevent any unwanted trouble for Scotland Yard and the Home Office.

Seeing that everything was ready, Arthur smiled and said, “It seems the gentlemen of the press can hardly wait.

I know that for the news industry, time is life.

So now, let’s begin.”

His gaze swept over the journalists below.

He glanced at every reporter present.

Eventually, his gaze came to rest alongside the steps of Officer Tom, and he pointed to the reporter next to Tom with a smile, “Please ask your question, sir.”

The reporter, upon being called, stood up eagerly and said, “Good morning, Superintendent Hastings, Mr.

Dumas, I’m a special correspondent from The Times.

As we all know, the kidnapping of Mr.

Dumas in London has attracted widespread attention from all walks of British life.

The public is shocked and outraged by the French Government’s blatant disregard for other countries’ sovereignty and hiring criminals on foreign soil to infringe upon individual safety and life.

I would like to know, what does Mr.

Dumas think of the differences between the British and French governments?

Is the new King of France, Louis Philippe, truly as he boasts, a monarch who upholds constitutionalism and can represent the interests of the French people?”

Arthur, upon hearing this, tapped on the table seemingly nonchalantly twice.

Great Dumas instantly understood the meaning, having previously agreed upon this signal with Arthur.

Two taps on the table meant to say something favorable about the British; if he did not mind, it would be best to even flatter the Tory Cabinet a little.

Of course, asking Great Dumas to praise the Duke of Wellington, the vanquisher of Napoleon, would likely be very difficult for him.

However, if it was just a matter of praising Scotland Yard, he could still grudgingly tolerate that.

Great Dumas spoke, almost as if holding his nose, “First, I must thank the British police for their efforts and the British public for their concern about me.

It is because of the enduring sense of justice in the hearts of the vast public that my resolve to resist the usurper Louis Philippe of France has been bolstered.

Whether it is the French people or the British people, we are all fighting for our rights, no matter the cost that must be paid for these rights…”

Arthur heard enough to sense something was amiss.

It wasn’t that there was an issue with Great Dumas’ impassioned words, but such remarks could not be made at that moment.

Sir Peel agreed to let him rescue Great Dumas to use this ‘diplomatic victory over France’ to distract the British public from the ‘parliamentary reform movement.’

If Great Dumas spoke so bluntly, not only would it fail to distract attention, but it might also evoke the British public’s sympathy with France’s July Revolution.

In that case, wouldn’t the intended distraction be wasted?

Arthur quickly coughed to interrupt, saying, “Mr.

Dumas, we’re pressed for time, let’s move on to the next topic quickly, shall we?”

Having finished speaking, his gaze fell once again on Officer Tony.

Tony approached a reporter, sneakily glanced at his notebook for a moment, and then nodded slightly.

Arthur promptly named the individual, “Please, sir, go ahead and ask your question.”

“Hello, I am a reporter from The Observer, and my question is…”

As the minutes of the press conference ticked by, with the protection of Arthur, Tom, Tony, and the others, Great Dumas somehow safely passed the test without incident.

Arthur looked down at the speaking notes he had taken: flattery to please the British public, affirmations to boost the Tory Party’s approval rating, and on top of that some repetitive, meaningless blather about the democratic differences between France and Britain.

Arthur closed his notebook, satisfied; for him, it was a perfectly executed press conference.

However, Great Dumas beside him was clearly dissatisfied.

After sending off the journalists, who left feeling fulfilled, the irked Frenchman spoke up, “I really can’t understand you British folks.

You boast of having the most advanced, democratic, and free system in the world.

Yet when you lift up your head, you still find a King above you.

Don’t you find that ironic?”

While sorting out the documents on the table, Arthur replied, “Mr.

Dumas, I have told you many times.

Constitutional monarchy and absolute monarchy are two different things.”

“But wouldn’t it be possible to create an even more perfect constitutional state without a monarch?”

Upon hearing this, Arthur set down his documents and waved his finger at Great Dumas, “Sir, if Britain had no King, what we would have wouldn’t be one constitutional state, but four!

They would be England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales.

I know the French have always had their eyes on splitting up Great Britain, but you could just say that outright.

There’s no need to beat around the bush.

And we certainly wouldn’t arrest you for that reason, as such thoughts are quite common even among the British themselves.

Many English, and even Scottish, wish to kick Ireland out, while the Irish themselves aren’t keen on staying within the system of Great Britain.

If it weren’t for the efforts of important figures like Duke Wellington, we would likely have separated long ago.”

Upon hearing this, Great Dumas also took a deep breath and shook his head, “Honestly, sometimes I really don’t understand you British.

When you get down to it, you were the first place in Europe to achieve religious tolerance and the first to abolish the slave trade.

At times, you truly could be considered the star of Europe.

But on some inexplicably petty issues, such as your attitude toward Ireland, you are very typical.”

Arthur, raising an eyebrow, responded, “As I said before, this is the difference between Britain and France.

Britain has always revered individualism.

Even if you put a father and son together, they will delineate their property very clearly.

You may not know it, but the most comprehensive and ancient law in Britain is about inheritance and the division of property amongst fathers, sons, and brothers—the ‘Law of Property’ system.

There are so many regulations in it that they could drive you insane.

Britons treat their children and siblings that way; how could you expect them to swiftly accept the Irish?

Even after all the years that Scotland and England have been united, only a slight reduction in hostilities has occurred.

Thus, even though some outstanding politicians can see the value of Ireland, reversing public entrenched perceptions is not something that can be changed overnight.”

As he spoke, Arthur suddenly paused.

He saw Eld grinning outside the police station, waving a cheque at him between two fingers.

Arthur frowned and was about to go and ask him about it, but before he could step out, Eld had already come in first.

Eld glanced around the room to make sure no one was paying attention to them, then quickly stuffed the cheque into Arthur’s pocket.

“Take this, a small token of gratitude from Colonel Fitzroy.”