Her Majesty’s Secret Service

100. Unearned income

August 15th, New Year

Jong-hyung, who had previously been distressed by saying, “Your sister-in-law might become king,” now said, “Your sister-in-law might become king,” and seeing him humming with joy, I worried that he might have lost his mind.

More than that, when will the scholar named ‘Sun’, who was supposed to come for lunch today, arrive at the mansion? I have been waiting with great anticipation for the arrival of the most outstanding scholar in England, but it is truly disappointing that there has been no news yet.

* * *

After ascending to the throne, Mary Tudor, Queen of England, kept her facial expression as normal as possible when meeting envoys from foreign countries or subjects with whom she had an ambiguous relationship.

Should we say that it is a kind of strategy to gain an upper hand in ‘politics’ by preventing the person facing one from knowing what one’s intentions are?

“… “Are you guys serious about what you say?”

But now, facing the Scottish envoys, Mary was so embarrassed that she could not think of such a ‘strategy’.

“I am sincere, Your Majesty. So, how about you be satisfied with this? We too… It’s not like I don’t know Her Majesty’s intentions… .”

Does this mean that Nox, who is talking to himself now, has finally become senile?

Your own intentions? okay. Mary herself wanted the Crown of Scotland, just as her father Henry VIII had wanted it, and just as her grandfather Henry VII had wanted it.

It was natural for any king of England to want to gain Scotland. I wonder if England is burdened by the existence of Scotland.

But what are these people who are not unaware of such facts, and who are not unaware of their own intentions, saying now?

“That’s right. We will clearly guarantee the rights of ‘Her Highness Jane’, so please refrain from interfering further. I trust that you will prevent French intervention, as you promised, and support us in the ‘conflict’ that is about to occur.”

Just like the weather in London, where raindrops suddenly pour down from a clear, sunny sky, the Scottish envoys change their minds for an unknown reason. Where does this change of heart come from?

“Hmm, hm… . I will definitely keep my promise to you. So rest assured.”

It must have been less than a week since they received a promise to guarantee the ‘autonomy’ they wanted and prevent French intervention in exchange for making Jane the owner of the crown.

However, I couldn’t figure out why they were talking about guaranteeing their ‘rights’ as the King of Scotland due to changes in the situation in that short period of time, but they said they would make concessions on their own, so why wouldn’t they accept it?

‘… Hopefully, she might be able to get Scotland before Catherine inherits her throne… . But… What on earth were they thinking by suggesting this to me? Hmm… What happened to Scotland?

or not… I don’t know. First, I’ll have to get someone to find out who they met.’

For now, Mary calmed down her expression and accepted the Scottish envoys’ proposal in a calm tone of voice, but thought it was necessary to find out why their attitude had changed.

* * *

There was one other person who was as embarrassed as Mary by the change in attitude of the Scottish envoys, the current Baroness Grinstead and Princess of Suffolk, and Jane Lee, who was destined to be crowned the new Queen of Scotland.

‘… what? ‘What happened?’

Didn’t the Scottish envoys guarantee their rights? The right to open and close the Scottish Parliament, and even the right to submit special tax collections to Parliament.

When you think about it in common sense, there was no way that the Scottish envoys who wanted to make him a puppet, or to be more precise, the Protestant forces in Scotland, including Knox, would have shown him this favor.

What they wanted was not a proper king, but a king they could easily use.

‘It’s either Logan… Is it Her Majesty? Those two Scots would be the only reason to guarantee me these rights. then… ‘Which of the two?’

Jane did not think that the rights given to her were given for no reason. There was clearly someone’s intervention, so wasn’t the Scottish envoys guaranteeing those rights?

‘Let’s think about it, why would Her Majesty the Queen bother to make noise to preserve the authority of the ‘Queen of Scotland’… There is nothing in particular. In order for England to gain Scotland, the more divided Scotland is, the better… . So, Logan came forward… ?’

Jane thought that there was no need for Mary to establish her own authority, that of the Queen of Scots. When we look back on the past, successive English kings have always wanted Scotland.

There was no reason for the queen to create an obstacle to the future annexation of Scotland by establishing the authority of the Scottish king.

If so, it would mean that her husband, Logan, had finally made a move.

‘Surely a Scottish envoy came to visit the mansion a few days ago, right? Umm… Should I have listened to that conversation, even if it meant going a little too far? ‘What happened that day?’

In the end, there was talk between Logan and the Scottish envoys that something had happened.

I don’t know if it’s about cooking or other work, but what kind of trick did Logan, who has limited ‘political sense’, do to make them recognize his authority?

‘What on earth did you say…? ? I don’t know if Logan is swayed by them, but it’s a bit… ‘Isn’t it strange?’

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t imagine that Logan had tried to placate them. As soon as he returned from trading in the East, didn’t he say something ridiculous like ‘I’m going to retire’?

Without even thinking about what kind of status he would have, he simply said ‘I want to spend time with my family.’

In a way, it was truly amazing to declare that you would give up the things you could get your hands on with such naive thoughts.

The problem was that it was a foolish act for someone who had already married a member of the royal family and entered deep into English politics to give up all power to protect herself.

‘okay. Without having to think about it, the fastest thing would be to ask directly.’

No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t guess what had happened between Logan and the Scottish envoys, and Jane, who thought that Logan might be being used by the Scottish envoys, decided to ask directly what was exchanged that day.

Other nobles might not know this, but if it were her husband, Logan, he would trust her as his wife and tell her honestly what happened that day.

In any case, Logan was a man who cared for his family enough to say that he would give up everything ‘for his family’, and Jane herself was his only wife.

* * *

Monday last week. A week has passed since the Scottish envoys visited me and promised to secure Jane’s authority.

From what I heard, they would discuss little things like how many days a year Jane would stay in Scotland until next month, and how the Stone of Destiny would be used for the coronation, and then return to Edinburgh.

Ah, in the end, the Queen of Scotland was confirmed to be Jane. In parliament, discussion began on a special tax to organize Jane’s bodyguard, and it seemed likely that the size would be decided soon.

As time passed by day by day, a ‘welcome guest’ who brought me benefits for the first time in a long time visited the mansion.

“Ah, I finally get to see you in person. It is truly an honor to meet the renowned Baron Grinstead. My name is William Soon, and I am teaching students at Cambridge. by the way… I am truly sorry. The carriage wheel came off in the middle… .”

When the professor said that he was sorry for not being able to keep his appointment, I deliberately smiled and responded as if nothing had happened.

“Haha, don’t worry about such trivial things. Today is a very happy day. I got to meet a renowned jurist personally guaranteed by the royal family. “Now, during your stay in London, please consider this as your home and make yourself at home.”

“this… Because the hospitality is overflowing… .”

“He says all kinds of things. Jack, please show the professor to his room.”

The professor thanked me again and followed Jack to the room assigned to him. Watching the back of the professor moving around like that makes me feel full.

The first guest at the soon-to-open restaurant ‘Idea’ had to be someone so famous that gentry full of intellectual vanity would open their wallets just by hearing his name.

Wouldn’t a law professor at Cambridge be a good fit for someone like that? Also, is he an ordinary law professor or a royal civil law professor appointed directly by the royal family? Having such an eminent person as a ‘guest’, the vain rich people living in London will not be able to resist opening their wallets.

“Thank you again for your hospitality, Baron.”

As time passed, the professor, who had left his luggage in his room under Jack’s guidance, returned to the living room where I was and thanked me once again. In response to the professor’s gratitude, I waved my hand, saying it was nothing special, and continued talking with the professor.

“Ah, professor. “Are you ready for dinner yet?”

“yes. On the way to the Baron’s mansion, a wheel of the carriage fell off and there was a delay… .”

“It went well. “I haven’t eaten yet. Would you like to join us?”

“Oh, of course. “You can’t miss the opportunity to taste the cooking of the Baron who serves at Her Majesty’s table.”

“haha. Unfortunately, I didn’t make dinner tonight… “You can look forward to it because it is cooked by someone who used to cook in the palace kitchen.”

“Where is that? “I’m really looking forward to a meal prepared by Her Majesty the Queen’s chef.”

“What… “Aren’t you going to get sick of it soon?”

“Haha, is he like that too? I’m really looking forward to it. “At a place called ‘Idea,’ the Baron cooks himself.”

“I don’t do all the cooking…” A simple snack, that is. “I plan to make snacks to accompany my conversation with the professor.”

“Still, I’m really looking forward to it. “Isn’t this an opportunity to taste sweets that only Her Majesty the Queen can eat?”

The reaction I want from the gentry who will be my guests is exactly the reaction the professor shows. The perception that it is ‘a dish that cannot be tasted anywhere else and that only the king could taste’ will make them think that the price of 10 pounds is a small amount of money.

“It’s a little burdensome to have such expectations. You will have to eat today to your tastes too. Now, please follow me. “This way.”

With a satisfied smile on my face, I guided the professor to the cafeteria.

To have a meal with the professor and discuss the work to be done at ‘Idea’.