The Shadow of Great Britain

He suddenly threw the letter onto the ebony tea table, the candlelight flickering, and the seal on the envelope reflected the imprint of A.H. in the light.

King William IV’s chest rose and fell, suddenly he felt a wave of dizziness in his head, his knees buckled, and he almost fell to the ground.

”Your Majesty!”

Herbert Taylor quickly stepped forward, swiftly supporting the King’s swaying shoulders, half-dragging and half-lifting him to the high-backed chair by the fireplace to sit down: ”Don’t get too agitated, Your Majesty. Don’t forget, you have only just barely recovered from your last illness.”

The King’s heavy breathing sounded especially harsh in the silent room. His hands, once used to clinking rum with sailors on the deck, now trembled slightly on the armrest: ”That German woman, that despicable Irishman...”

Taylor loosened the overly tight buttons of his formal attire while instructing the attendant to pour a cup of warm milk with brandy: ”No matter how serious the matter in the letter, it’s not worth jeopardizing your heart over it.”

William tightly closed his eyes, holding his forehead, his breathing heavy, as if suppressing a rage that refused to dissipate.

After a brief silence, he slowly opened his eyes: ”Herbert, go and summon the Duke of Wellington, Peel, Melbourne... and the Queen here.”

Taylor was slightly taken aback: ”Your Majesty, your current health...”

”I know what my health is like,” William wiped the fine sweat from the corner of his forehead with the back of his hand, ”Precisely because of this, I don’t have much time to waste. Tonight, they must know what is happening at Kensington Palace.”

Seeing the King’s resolute expression, Taylor said no more, bowed respectfully, and quickly walked to the door to issue the order.

A moment later, footsteps were heard outside, with the Duke of Wellington entering the room first, followed by Peel and Melbourne, and lastly the late-arriving Queen Adelaide.

The Duke of Wellington glanced at the guests here, and couldn’t help but feel that something was not quite right.

He suddenly asked, ”Your Majesty, have you summoned us?”

King William IV did not speak immediately; he merely gestured for Taylor to push the letter to the center of the table, indicating for them to see for themselves.

Several figures, capable of deciding Britain’s future, unfolded the paper, and a few lines of elegant yet sharp handwriting instantly leaped before their eyes.

”This...”

The Duke of Wellington reached out to unfold the letter, his rugged brows furrowing tighter and tighter.

Peel appeared much more cautious, staring at the letter paper for a long time before slowly raising his head, exchanging a glance with the Duke of Wellington.

The Duke of Wellington initially wanted to speak, but upon noticing Peel’s suggestion, he ultimately gave Peel, the new leader of the Conservative Party succeeding him as party leader, the opportunity to speak.

Peel closed the letter and seriously said, ”Your Majesty, I do not question Sir Arthur Hastings’ loyalty. But I worry that relying solely on a letter, a few phrases and words, may not be sufficient as evidence... I think...”

The Duke of Wellington’s eyebrows moved, giving Peel a peculiar look.

To be honest, he thought Peel would support Arthur at this time.

After all, he and Peel sent Arthur to Kensington Palace initially to pierce a hole in the Kensington System, to reduce Conroy and the Duchess of Kent’s Whig influence on Victoria.

Now that something significant has happened in Ramsgate, it is a great opportunity to use Arthur to crush Conroy with one blow, but at the critical moment, not only does Peel not help, he actually...

As the Duke of Wellington thought to this point, a spark of insight suddenly flashed through his mind.

He seemed to suddenly understand Peel’s intention.

This guy...

He isn’t hindering; on the contrary, he’s helping Arthur a great deal, and not letting the Conservative Party assume much risk, either.

After all, the words just spoken, to some extent, also distanced the Conservative Party from Arthur, proving to the King that Arthur has no connection with the Conservative Party.

Sure enough, upon hearing Peel’s words, King William IV became furious, slamming the armrest heavily: ”You think? Robert! My dear Robert! Sir Robert Peel! How can you be so muddled? Arthur Hastings, this young man, risked such danger to charge into Albion Villa, not to create a Fleet Street gossip! Would anyone tell such an obvious lie on such a crucial matter? If Delina hadn’t fallen ill, what benefit would fabricating this rumor bring him? Besides, I don’t believe a young man who always steps up at critical moments would be reckless on this matter!”

Queen Adelaide hurriedly reached out, gently pressing King William IV’s trembling arm, gently advised: ”William, stop being so agitated. You know your body can’t endure such agitation. As for Sir Arthur Hastings, his courage and loyalty, long need no further proof, everyone here, and even those not present, have already seen it. You don’t need to use anger to prove anything for him again.”

She subtly reprimanded Sir Peel: ”Whether Sir Arthur’s thoughts lean toward any party is irrelevant; I know you might have had quarrels with him recently over the merger of the University of London and King’s College. It’s true that the University of London was established by the Radical Party, and he is indeed a graduate and Dean of Academic Affairs there. But I believe, first and foremost, Sir Arthur is the guardian of Your Majesty’s niece, and secondly, he is a brave, upright, kind young man, and an elegant Natural Philosophy researcher and artist. Such a young man could disregard personal safety to confront those powers that seem unshakable to ordinary people, and that says it all.”

The previously silent Viscount Melbourne suddenly spoke: ”To verify the situation is simple; we could use the visit to the sick as a pretext and send the Imperial Physician. Windsor Castle isn’t particularly far from Ramsgate, and Sir Holland could set off tonight and we could get results by the day after tomorrow at the latest. Once he verifies the situation is true, the next step will be for Your Majesty to decide.”

King William IV’s furious mood eased somewhat upon hearing this: ”If the situation is true, you guys over there wouldn’t have any resistance in dealing with Conroy, would you? I’ve heard that many Whig Party members are quite close with Conroy?”

Viscount Melbourne, with his usual gentle tone, placed one hand on his chest and slightly bowed: ”Your Majesty, what you are concerned about is indeed what everyone loyal to the Royal Family is concerned about. Sir John Conroy does indeed frequently associate with some of our young members, but if we have solid evidence, even the most rebellious guys in the party will not oppose on such a matter of national loyalty.”

The Duke of Wellington, who had long disliked Conroy, also stated: ”Your Majesty, if someone within the Conservative Party wants to hold out on this matter, I will handle it. No matter what, the Princess must be protected. She is still young, vulnerable to being swayed by small disturbances. Allowing someone like Conroy to continue sowing discord by her side would be a harm to both her mind and body.”

King William IV’s face, in the candlelight, shifted between ashen and flushed, he slowly exhaled a murky breath, finally nodding: ”Very well. That settles it. Herbert!”

Sir Herbert Taylor stepped forward: ”Your Majesty.”

”Immediately order Sir Holland to rush to Ramsgate, regardless of day or night, to quickly give me a definitive answer!”

”Understood, Your Majesty.”

Sir Herbert Taylor was about to turn and issue the order when unexpectedly King William IV called him back again: ”Also... Arthur, Sir Arthur Hastings, have Sir Holland send him a message that I wish to summon him to learn in detail about the situation in Albion Villa, right here, at Windsor Castle, the sooner the better!”