Thus, Xia De, who originally wanted to blend in with the crowd, was qualified to stand in front of the platform. Although it was still in the entrance inspection stage, most of the important people who were supposed to come had arrived.
People wearing hats were crowding around on the platform, looking in the direction of the railway tracks, hoping to be the first to see the arrival of the train.
Although Tobysk has not yet seen the first snow of this winter, the temperature in the morning is already very low. The elderly gentlemen are wearing woolen coats with fur collars, and the ladies' skirts are no longer as thin as in summer.
Although Priest Augustus was still dressed in the clergy robe, Shad keenly noticed that the robe was a thicker version.
Although Bishop Owen did not come, Shade knew most of the clergy sent by the Dawn Church this time. After a while of polite conversation, Shade asked Father Augustus:
"Good morning, priest. Are you here so early?"
"If you're any later, you'll be blocked outside."
The old priest lowered his voice and complained to Shade:
"Ever since I was young, I have never understood why this kind of formalistic welcoming ceremony could not be replaced with an indoor one?"
“Ahem.”
Father Nicholas on the side coughed twice and signaled to Father Augustus to speak more quietly.
"There should be a special welcome party, right?"
Shade asked again, and the priest curled his lips:
“Of course, but it will probably take a few days. Today’s banquet is a private reception for the Cavendish royal family.
But don't worry about having nothing to do. You will definitely receive a lot of invitations to parties in the next few weeks. The last time Tobesk was so lively was six years ago when the Anjou royal family sent the current king's brother, Prince Andre of Anjou, to visit. At that time, a large banquet was held in the city almost every week."
The two talked about the past, and people around them were chatting in groups of two or three about news and gossip related to the visiting delegation.
Although the church did not know what the Truth wanted from Princess Margaret, in order to protect the princess, it had already spread the news that someone was going to harm the princess, so that Delarion had a reason to cooperate and increase security measures. Therefore, the black thunder sound at the farewell dinner in Huntington City, which could be heard in almost half of the city, was now spread as someone detonating a steam bomb at that time.
This specious news spread to Tobesk and became more and more outrageous. Of course, Father Augustus didn't know that Shade was involved in this matter, and even laughed and told him those strange rumors, such as that more than half of the princess's entourage were agents sent by the Gray Gloves for protection.
Soon, Father Nicholas, who led the Dawn Church team, was called by Queen Diana to ask about the celebrations of the year-end festival this year. Queen Diana was also a Dawn believer. After Father Nicholas left, Father Augustus suddenly stopped talking and said in a low voice when he saw that no one was paying attention to them:
"Shad, I wanted to ask you just now. Why do you have a strange smell?"
“Strange taste?”
Xia De was stunned, and turned to look at Xiaomia on his shoulder:
"You mean Mia smells like cat? Oh, sorry, I'll give her a bath when I get back."
"Meow?"
Those big amber eyes stared at Shad.
"No no, your cat has no smell."
The priest shook his head. Xia De thought for a moment and then asked a little embarrassedly:
"You mean the perfume? It might have been accidentally picked up from the carriage on the way here."
"No, no, it's not perfume. It's a strange smell."
The old priest continued, and Shadrach pulled up his collar and sniffed:
"That's impossible. I took a shower this morning after getting up."
"No, no, I don't mean the actual smell."
Father Augustus continued to lower his voice and twitched his nose twice at Shad, and the old man looked even more puzzled;
"This is a very familiar smell to me, but I just can't remember what it smells like."
Shade thought for a moment, put his hands on his waist, and imitated what Mr. Bernhardt did last week, waving his palms up and down twice, imitating the movement of wings:
"Is it related to this?"
This refers to the angels. The priest understood it and hesitated for a moment:
"Not sure, and you smell very faint. Shad, did you go to any strange places over the weekend?"
"I went to Huntington City in Carsonrick. What you were discussing just now was related to me, but it wasn't a steam bomb. I was struck by lightning... This is not important. I also brought you some local snacks. I'll give them to you when I leave."
Shade said, and the priest nodded, somewhat puzzled:
"Huntington City, you've gone out of town again? I wish that city peace."
In the end, Father Augustus never figured out what the smell on Shad was, but he was sure that it was not the remains of the original angel he was looking for.
At 10:17 in the morning, when the locomotive representing a steam locomotive finally appeared in the distance in the north of the platform, the people standing near the edge of the platform immediately cheered. It was unclear whether they were welcoming the arrival of the foreign visiting delegation or were feeling lucky that they no longer had to be exposed to the wind.
The royal band, which had been waiting on the platform, immediately picked up their instruments. As the trumpet sounded as a prelude, the sound of wind instruments spread in all directions, informing everyone that the visiting delegation headed by Margaret of Anjou had officially arrived.
Queen Diana, surrounded by princesses and princes, led the royal family, the foreign minister and the ambassador of the Carsenrick Embassy along the red carpet towards the front of the platform, while reporters from large newspapers such as the Tobesk Morning News and the Delarion Kingdom Newspaper, who were allowed to take photos, excitedly fiddled with their equipment with their assistants. There were even bold guys who dared to jump directly onto the tracks to face the locomotive, wanting to take the risk of taking a photo of the locomotive smoking before the train arrived, as a front-page photo for tomorrow's newspaper.
Of course, as soon as they jumped down, they were thrown up by the Royal Army soldiers who were guarding around the railway tracks. The crowd nearby laughed, making the atmosphere even more lively.
The city was still foggy today, and there was a canopy above the platform, so the sun was not strong, and he could see the train in the distance without squinting. There were actually two rows of people in front of Shade and Father Augustus, but this did not prevent him from directly seeing Queen Diana whispering with Miss Carina, while Resia, in a golden dress, was looking at the approaching black train.
Perhaps she felt Shad's gaze, the princess wearing the crown turned her head, glanced at Shad, and blinked her left eye. Her playful look made Shad suspect that it was not Leicia but Dorothy.
“Here it comes!”
At this moment, even Father Augustus seemed very happy. He put his hand on Shad's shoulder, then stood on tiptoe and looked forward. Because Shad was very tall, he only needed to raise his head to see the platform assistant waving a flag to command the train to stop.
"Meow!"
The sounds of music, noise and trains were intertwined. Mia looked at the people around her blankly, then climbed down from Shad's shoulder with some fear, and was held in one hand by him, huddled against his chest.
Clank, clank, clank, clank~
The huge black front of the train, with steam billowing out of it, finally came into view, and the noise almost completely drowned out the music. As the trains whizzed by, the cheers of the crowd reached a climax again.
The train was slowly slowing down, and amid the teeth-grinding sound of metal twisting caused by the steam engine braking, white steam mist was sprayed from under the wheels, which made the crowded platform look a little hazy for a moment. The special train had a total of seven carriages, and the exit of the fourth carriage happened to be parked in front of the red carpet.
After the train stopped, Queen Diana, accompanied by Miss Carina, moved forward again, and amid cheers, the pneumatic carriage door slowly opened.
First, a young attendant in a red shirt, black pants and a sailing cap jumped out and laid the wooden planks across the narrow gap between the train and the platform.
Then, Carsenrick's royal guards came out and stood on both sides of the train door.
Queen Diana, dressed elegantly and wearing a golden crown, came to the door of the car under the flashing lights. Princess Margaret of Anjou, who was dressed in an intricate and gorgeous blue dress, a silver crown, and had her long light golden hair braided and hanging behind her head, finally walked out of the car, raising her right hand and being supported by her maid.
The crowd seemed to be about to rush forward, but was stopped by a human wall of police and royal guards who had been prepared. The calls and loud shouts, at this moment, were like steam bombs being detonated inside the station.
Chad and Father Augustus were also pushed forward by the crowd and took two steps. They could see Princess Margaret of Anjou bowing to Queen Diana. Then the two of them held hands together in white lace gloves. After a few intimate words, Queen Diana introduced the other people around her to the princess.
The first person to be introduced was of course Miss Carina. The witch showed the elegance and maturity of a duchess, and Princess Margaret saluted her to express her greetings. The status of a real duke is higher than that of a princess.
After a brief greeting, more people from Carsenrick's visiting group walked out of the carriage. The accompanying nobles stayed here. An area was cleared in front of the platform where Princess Margaret was going to give a very short speech.
During this time, Shade did not pay much attention to the queen and the princess, but looked at the entrance of the carriage, but did not see Miss Sylvia coming out. But he was sure that the great witch of the thirteenth seat of the parliament should be in another carriage nearby, because the badge on his chest was so hot that it seemed to be on fire. Just now, when only Miss Carina was present, the badge was not so hot.
“It’s really lively.”
Father Augustus spoke to Shade in a loud voice, and the old man had to raise his voice so that his voice could reach Shade's ears:
"I hope that this time the two countries can reach a new agreement and keep the peace longer. Oh, Shade, I really hope that the peace between Carsenrick and Dlarion can last forever."
As a local priest, Augustus, like most people in this city, regarded the mutual visit of the princesses of the two countries as an important symbol of the peaceful relationship between the two countries. Although the foreigner had been in this world for half a year, he did not have the same feeling.
He was just thinking that since the welcome ceremony would be over in the morning, he could try his luck in Huntington in the afternoon.
While calming the cat that was not used to such a noisy environment, she was thinking about other things. At this time, Princess Margaret's brief speech on "coming with peace" had also ended, and reporters from Tobysk and the accompanying reporters of the delegation were setting up their cameras to take pictures.
Everything went according to procedure. Princess Margaret smiled and waved to people, then selected three people from the crowd to ask questions.
"Salute to the great Anjou family! Your Highness, are you here with a new wine trade agreement? The people of Tobesk love the southern vineyard red wine produced in Carsenrick!"
The first person to be picked out was a middle-aged gentleman standing in the third row, wearing an old-fashioned suit. If Shade remembered correctly, it was Count Orlan.
"Yes, my father gave me some tasks. I hope that Tobesk can also taste the sweet wine tomorrow summer."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Count Orlan said loudly, then waved his hand and took out a book and handed it forward:
"Your Highness, this is a gift for you!"
After checking the book, it was handed to the princess, who thanked him softly. The flash kept flashing, recording Princess Margaret holding "Northern Pearl: Forever Tobesk".
"Your Highness, I greet you and hope you enjoy this city. Will you visit the Tobysk City Art Museum during your visit?"
There was laughter from the crowd. The old man who was chosen was Mr. Leonardo, the director of the local art gallery.
"Yes, I really like the Delarion style of oil painting."
the princess said again, accepting a beautiful brooch as a gift from the director of the art gallery.
The flash lights kept flashing. The princess had a lot of things to do next, so she could only choose one last person to ask a question. Margaret Anjou looked around at the crowd and finally saw Shade.
Both of them were startled, but it was obvious that the princess did not recognize this "Mr. Holmes" but was surprised by the unique temperament of the young gentleman.
"That's Rejade's Hamilton."
Queen Diana reminded softly, so Princess Margaret smiled and gestured to Shad to ask the question, and Leisia on the side also looked at Shad.
However, Shad didn't even think about asking any questions, and he didn't even wave his hat.
But since he had been chosen, everyone in the crowd on the platform looked at him. Even Father Augustus was curious about what Shade would say. So, Shade calmed down and said loudly:
"Your Highness, I wish you to enjoy the winter in Tobesk. Peace and friendship are the bonds of human civilization and the cornerstone of the development of our times. Do you believe that Delarion and Carsenrick will always be peaceful and friendly?"
Shade's question was not out of place, as it was the subject of her speech at the estate banquet when she left Huntington.
"Yes, I firmly believe it!"
The princess with light blonde hair said, causing the crowd on the platform to applaud and cheer.
Xia De had finished his questioning. Suddenly, an inspiration struck him. He reached into his pocket and took out the shield-shaped jewelry box that he had taken out of the gift box that morning:
"To Her Royal Highness Margaret of Anjou, may you come in peace and leave in beauty!"
Amid the laughter of the people, Shad's jewelry box was delivered to the princess. She thanked him and opened it. When she saw the flawless oval emerald inside, she was as surprised as Queen Diana and Miss Carina.
The gem is not very large, so its value is not particularly high, but the gem itself is indeed extremely beautiful.
Flashes of light flashed one after another, and the ladies returned to their normal expressions, smiling at the camera. And Shade also knew that his first step towards Princess Margaret of Anjou had been successful, and "Hamilton of Rejade" had been remembered by her.
He just wanted to know if MI6 could reimburse him for the gem.
"You actually prepared the gift in advance, that's really nice."
Father Augustus in his ear praised with a smile. While responding, Shad looked in a daze at the royal nobles standing in front of the black steam locomotive under the flashing spotlights, with their jewelry shining.
"The age of steam, the age of change..."
Although the scene before him was rare for the people of this world, it was not unprecedented. However, the stranger had a vague feeling that today's scene might become an illustration in history books, and he had witnessed this scene in history.
“Is this civilization?”
Yes, it is enlightenment.
The sound rang in his ears, and it seemed as if a warm wind gently brushed over Xia De's ears. In this noisy, but exceptionally bright and beautiful scene, Xia De felt as if he saw the street lights of Silver Cross Avenue light up one by one in the evening. In the strong sense of reality that made his scalp tingle, he once again felt that he had a new understanding of the civilization of this world and this era.
Being in the middle of it, yet watching it all from the perspective of a bystander, I couldn't help but smile, cheering along with the people around me.
Just at this moment, white doves symbolizing peace were released by people. They flapped their wings and flew in flocks over people's heads, past the eyes of the heirs of the Cavendish and Anjou families, over the noisy platform, and into the gloomy sky above the city.
No one knows whether the white doves can bring lasting peace. Just like the righteous God and the Father of Peace, peace and war have always been inseparable.