The Shadow of Great Britain

Fiona held the silver tray, standing a short distance behind Arthur.

The firelight gleamed on her face, her expression serene, as if she were just a dutiful hostess.

Her gaze lingered for a moment among the police officers at the table, then fell back on Arthur.

Everyone in the room sensed that subtle tension and grievance, but no one dared to speak a word.

The officers either buried their heads in documents like ostriches or smiled awkwardly while fanning themselves with their tall helmets, exclaiming how strong the fire in the room was burning.

Seeing that they did not intend to stand up for her, Fiona gently placed the tray down, curtsied gracefully, and excused herself, ”The tea and snacks for the officers are ready, and I will not disturb the ensuing meeting.”

Though her words were courteous, her steps were quicker than usual as she left, leaving the atmosphere in the room suffocating.

Tom wanted to say something, but before he could speak, Tony stepped on his shoe.

Tony raised his eyebrows and whispered, ”Don’t speak out of turn.”

The flames in the fireplace danced, reflecting off the copper kettle and causing the droplets on the window to trickle down as if even the rain outside was forced to speed up.

Arthur leisurely removed his gloves, and then casually tossed several documents from his leather bag onto the table.

He did not sit down immediately but first picked up the schedule and addressed the officers, ”Gentlemen, Her Highness the Princess’s birthday event is not some small tea party. Over the past few days, I am sure you have seen parts of the schedule leaked in the newspapers, and I am certain that on the Princess’s birthday, the major newspapers on Fleet Street will follow the event closely, and the guest list will be scrutinized word by word by the Foreign Office. If there is any oversight, it would not only be an embarrassment for Kensington Palace but would also bring shame to His Majesty the King and the government. Therefore, I expect the Police Intelligence Department to be fully committed to this agenda.”

Arthur’s words were neither a scolding nor particularly polite, and his tone was no different from when he usually chatted with the officers, yet the lightness of his words instinctively made the officers sit up straight.

Arthur glanced around the room and finally took a seat, ”Now, let’s start with the most uninteresting part. But please note, uninteresting does not mean without risk. Precisely because it’s mundane, these are the areas most susceptible to carelessness.”

Arthur paused, then gestured for Charles Field to start the meeting, lighting a cigarette for himself: ”Charles, report on the birthday event schedule.”

Compared to the pressure from Fiona, Field found reporting the documents much easier.

He tapped a few lines on the document with a pencil tip and reported loudly, ”At six in the morning, the Royal Artillery will fire salutes in Hyde Park to celebrate. Then a small prayer ceremony inside Kensington Palace, attended only by the Duchess of Kent, maids, attendants, and the Bishop. From ten in the morning until noon, Her Highness the Princess will travel by carriage to St. James’s Palace to receive formal congratulations from officials; it is expected that envoys from Prussia, France, Austria, and Russia will attend. A concert is arranged for the afternoon, with a ball and dinner to begin at eight in the evening.”

Arthur, flipping through the documents in hand, exhaled a smoke ring and said, ”The guest list for the birthday event should have been transferred to Scotland Yard from the Foreign Office. Have you all completed the background checks on the visiting guests?”

Upon hearing this, Ledley quickly pulled out the background report that had just been completed before the end of the day and slid it across the table to Arthur: ”Sir, all the information you need is here. You will be particularly interested in the report on the Russian Envoy, Count Bozo Di Borgo. Previously, when he sought an audience with the Foreign Secretary, Viscount Palmerston had him wait in the Foreign Office for two hours.”

Originally, Arthur intended to take these documents home to review, but upon hearing Ledley’s words, he immediately changed his mind.

He opened the leather envelope, took out the documents, and the first one on top was the report on Count Bozo Di Borgo.

Actually, just by the name, one could tell that Di Borgo is not a Russian surname.

Much like how Disraeli’s original surname was Di Israel, those with ”Di” in their name are typically of Italian descent.

The same principle applies to Bozo Di Borgo.

However, despite his Italian heritage, there is much debate about whether his birthplace should be considered part of Italy or France.

Because if traced back through history and lineage, he should be considered an Italian.

But from a contemporary administrative perspective and his cultural affiliation, he belongs to France.

Indeed, he is a Corsican, both a compatriot and an old adversary of Napoleon.

As for why this Italian-born Frenchman became a Russian Envoy to the UK, that’s a very long story.

But ultimately, it’s all due to the French Revolution.

In his early years, Count Bozo Di Borgo was closely associated with Napoleon and Napoleon’s brother Joseph Bonaparte because at that time, the Di Borgo and Bonaparte families were two influential families on the island of Corsica, and thus the two families maintained a close political alliance.