The Shadow of Great Britain

And now that the constitution has been suspended, it means the Kingdom of Hanover has once again become the King’s private property; whatever Ernst I wants to do in Hanover is his own domestic affair, and it is hardly this former University of Gottingen Academic Director’s place to play the meddlesome dog catching rats.

Moreover, judging from his posture, suspending the constitution is only the first step; when the time is ripe, Ernst I may well go on to declare the constitution unconstitutional, thereby completely abolishing this codex he regards as a stumbling block.

As the old friend of the Hanoverian people and the old leader of the University of Gottingen, Arthur at this moment can only silently pray for his former colleagues and students, praying that they can remain as calm as possible, because if their protests become too intense, given Ernst I’s character, sending in the police to suppress them would already count as a mild and conciliatory response.

Still, the messages Arthur received upon getting up early that morning were not entirely bad news.

On the other side of the English Channel, good news arrived from London: thanks to timely countermeasures, and also to Dickens’s powerful work Oliver Twist being fervently performed in major London theatres—so that London citizens had already begun, as a matter of first impression, to sympathize with Miss Nancy, the woman in the play murdered by the robber Bill Sikes (an allusion to the Sikes incident, as in both history and this world-line)—the public opinion storm stirred up by Mrs. Sikes did not affect Disraeli’s election prospects.

This rising star of the Conservative Party, a core figure in the Conservative faction ”Young England,” swept aside the Whig Party candidate in Tower Hamlets with irresistible momentum, further consolidating his unshakable dominance in the East District.

The Times also seized the moment; following the headline about Disraeli visiting the Poorhouse and going deep into the East District to comfort impoverished citizens, they conferred on him a new epithet, calling him ”the People’s Disraeli.”

Even more gratifying, in this year’s general election, the Conservative Party, under the leadership of Party Leader Sir Robert Peel, continued to close the gap with renewed vigor.

Had Viscount Melbourne not promptly formed an alliance with O’Connell, Representative of the Ireland Radical Party, they would not even have been able to maintain the Whig Party’s advantage in the Lower House.

The serious setbacks suffered in the electoral battle also made the Whig Party all the more determined to cling tightly to the Queen’s thigh.

Shortly after the election ended, Prime Minister Viscount Melbourne immediately decided to initiate, at the Cabinet level, the preparatory work for Queen Victoria’s coronation ceremony, and aimed to ensure that the relevant Bills would pass smoothly after Parliament convenes next year.

Of course, in accordance with Her Majesty the Queen’s own request, this coronation ceremony would be kept as simple as possible; but considering the collective complaints of the Upper House Nobles when everything in King William IV’s coronation was simplified, the Cabinet, after much deliberation, still decided to set the total expenditure at the standard of 70,000 pounds.

This cost is roughly twice that of King William IV, but compared with the extravagantly luxurious 240,000 pounds coronation of George IV, it can indeed be counted as relatively frugal and plain.

Naturally, since this information has not yet been made public, most of the British populace has not yet received any relevant news.

As for why Arthur would know?

That is of course because the Home Office’s orders to draw up a security plan have already been delivered to Scotland Yard; as everyone knows, whatever Scotland Yard knows, Sir Arthur Hastings is bound to know, whereas what Scotland Yard does not know, Sir Arthur Hastings does not necessarily not know.

For even before the Home Office issued its orders, leaks had already appeared in the London Financial City.

At present, all the major railway companies are rushing to build lines leading from all parts of Britain to London; job advertisements for railway workers in the market are like a stubborn skin disease, scrape off one layer and another will sprout up the next day.

Because even by the roughest calculations, those railway company directors can see that during the weeks around the coronation, London’s demand for passenger transport will absolutely skyrocket explosively.

Bear in mind that the Derby every year can draw more than a hundred thousand visitors; for a grand event like the Queen’s coronation, having visitor numbers double should hardly be a problem, right?

The railway companies will feast on the meat, and London’s tourism sector will at least get to drink the soup.

All the major trade associations of London—whether the Goldsmiths’ Guild, the Cloth Merchants’ Guild, the Wine Merchants’ Guild, or any other guild—will by then send Representatives to march in the procession and present exquisite handicrafts such as gold and silverware, to symbolize their entire trade’s allegiance to the new monarch.

Furthermore, from the letter of Police Chief Charles Field, Chief of Police Intelligence, Arthur also learned that Scotland Yard’s informants had received word that London’s underworld is likewise thrilled about next year’s upcoming coronation; after all, such a once-in-years grand occasion is also a rare opportunity for criminals.

Many prominent figures in the underworld have already issued their directives.

They have ordered their younger brothers to practice diligently during this period and strive to improve their professional skills.

Only in this way can they ”steal with panache and rob with style” at next year’s coronation ceremony.

As for Arthur, the completion ceremony for the renovation of Buckingham Palace is the dress rehearsal for next year’s coronation.

If this affair is handled well, then at next year’s coronation he will be able to have a seat.

He does not ask to sit in the front row together with the gentlemen of the House of Lords, but at the very least they must not make him sit somewhere where he has to stand on tiptoe just to see what is going on in front.

Of course, the best outcome would be that he becomes one of the organizers and takes part in this event.