The Shadow of Great Britain

If anyone thinks that the orders dispatching all of London’s Blue Lobsters typically come from the Home Office on Whitehall or Scotland Yard, they are gravely mistaken.

Or rather, such understanding is not comprehensive.

Because for Scotland Yard, especially the Police Intelligence Department, the orders they receive are generally not only from the Home Secretary, Lord John Russell, and the Commissioner of the Greater London Police Department, Charles Rowan. In many special circumstances, the decisions of Sir Arthur Hastings are also crucial.

Before this April, Sir Arthur’s decision-making power often stemmed from his enduring prestige and influence at Scotland Yard.

And after the establishment of the Police Commissioner Committee, his decision-making power began to appear in the form of various guidance suggestions on the desk of Chief Inspector Charles Field of the Police Intelligence Department.

Of course, decisions that can appear in written suggestions are usually matters that are not urgent.

As for those extremely urgent matters that need immediate handling, Sir Arthur prefers to personally meet with the heads of various departments of the Police Intelligence Department.

Although some people suspect that Sir Arthur’s resurgence this time might be very similar to Napoleon’s Hundred Days. Don’t be fooled by his apparent turnaround now, but given his audacious character, he might get kicked out any day.

The only question now is, where is the ”Duke of Wellington” who can give Arthur Hastings his own ”Battle of Waterloo”?

For the eager ”concern” of his colleagues in Whitehall, Arthur can only ”politely” express his gratitude verbally.

However, at this critical moment, he does not have the leisure to remember the names of these colleagues one by one.

This is not because Arthur doesn’t understand manners, but because he has more important things to care about.

April 1837 is a very delicate point in time.

As a young man who cannot even remember his own birthday, Arthur naturally finds it unlikely to remember others’ birthdays.

However, as the saying goes, a good memory is not as reliable as a bad pen. Although he can’t remember others’ birthdays, he can establish a file for the people he cares about.

Right now, he has a newly updated file on his desk, belonging to a girl he thinks of day and night.

Of course, whether or not it’s truly a girl doesn’t really matter; what matters is that this girl is Alexandrina Victoria, the legitimate heir to the British throne.

Victoria was born on May 24, 1819, meaning that next month she’ll turn 18.

This means there’s just the final sprint left before her coronation as queen.

And to ensure Victoria’s safety, the police team around Kensington Palace has been changed from ”voluntary” plainclothes officers to mounted police and the Police Intelligence Department’s Ghost Team.

Although Arthur no longer serves at Kensington Palace, he still frequents the nearby Russian Cafe for a few drinks.

Those familiar with Arthur can see that as this top gentleman of London’s social circles increasingly frequents the area around Kensington Palace, something is brewing in the shadows.

After all, no one would have expected that in just one year, King William IV’s health would suddenly take a sharp decline.

A year ago, the Sailor King could still deliver long speeches after balls, but now he needs support for his daily walks.

Arthur still remembers the last time he saw the King, it was his first time being invited to ride with the King.

As the golden royal carriage slowly crossed the Thames, King William IV suddenly began talking about the parliamentary reforms from a few years ago.

King William IV told Arthur that initially, he supported the reforms and was glad to be adored for it. He enjoyed being a king liked by his subjects, wanting everyone to be happy, and he hoped that future generations would justly say that he was a good king, a king who cherished his people.

However, the later developments exceeded his basic expectations. The Whig Party and the Radical Party started becoming increasingly greedy, wanting this and that. Besides the ”Reform Bill,” they wanted to introduce a slew of upstart nobodies to the House of Lords.

This made King William IV very angry, so he decided not to approve the ”Reform Bill” anymore. He didn’t want to be seen as a weak person, and even when they threatened rebellion, he refused to change his mind. Just a few days before the parliamentary reform vote, he summoned the Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington, at St. James and told him that no matter how bad things got, as king, he would stand firm in London. He planned to raise the royal banner at the Barracks and fight to the death, to the last breath.

Even if Britain should have a Great Revolution, even if he had to face the Guillotine like Louis XVI, he would die proudly as a legitimate king.

At this point, King William IV made a small joke with Arthur.

He said he didn’t expect that Arthur nearly took that glorious opportunity from him. Also, he hoped Arthur wouldn’t resent him for that, as he didn’t want to lose a young man loyal to the country just like that.

Though King William IV spoke in jest, Arthur could sense from these words that this old king was indeed nearing the end of his days.