Chapter 13: Another Arthur
The black carriage slowly drove along the flat street of Whitehall.
The middle-aged gentleman sat in the carriage, holding a pile of documents in his hands and flipping through them.
And Mrs. Peel was sitting in the seat opposite him.
She smiled and said, “Oh! Dear, I never thought you would have time to see me in court today. Don’t you usually work in the mansion at this time?”
The middle-aged gentleman, or rather, it is better to call him Lord Peel now.
He rubbed his sore temples and smiled back at his wife.
“The paperwork in the mansion is nowhere near as good as your beautiful face. If I had the choice, I’d rather sit here and watch you all day.”
Mrs. Peel blushed, she was a little shy, but she couldn’t hide the smile in the corners of her eyes.
“Robert, we’re old married couple, you don’t have to play this game with me. You say the documents are not good-looking, so what is that thing you are holding in your hand?”
“This?” Lord Peel held up the document in his hand: “Personal information of Officer Arthur Hastings.”
Mrs. Peel also became interested when she heard this name: “You also noticed that talented young police officer?”
“His performance today was too dazzling. Unless I’m blind, it’s hard not to notice him. Have you noticed that he looks very similar to our other friend named Arthur, very similar.”
Mrs. Peel thought for a while: “I guess you’re talking about the Duke of Wellington, Arthur Wellesley? Oh, dear, you must be mistaken.
Although the Duke is also an upright and just gentleman, he can’t be as gentle and elegant as Officer Arthur.
If Officer Arthur were replaced by the Duke of Wellington today, he would give the magistrate two whips before the trial even begins.”
“Haha, dear, you just don’t know him well enough.
The Duke of Wellington is not always so irritable, he only behaves like that when he is facing His Majesty the King.
He has emphasized to me countless times his principles for making friends, he can tolerate someone being stupid, he can also tolerate someone being bad, but he cannot tolerate someone being both stupid and bad.”
Mrs. Peel almost laughed out loud when she heard this, she wanted to laugh but felt it was rude, so she could only raise her handkerchief to cover her mouth.
“Does His Majesty the King know that you cabinet members are talking about him behind his back?”
Lord Peel raised an eyebrow playfully: “The few words I just said are separate and unrelated. Lady, there is nothing to do with His Majesty the King here.”
“Robert, you’re really a bad guy.” Mrs. Peel’s shoulders trembled with laughter: “Alright, then tell me about the similarities between the Duke of Wellington and Officer Arthur.”
“Everyone knows that the Duke of Wellington is an outstanding commander, he is a natural genius of war.
When everyone in the world thought that Napoleon would sweep across Europe, it was he who told the world at the Battle of Waterloo who was more worthy of the title of conqueror.
From India to Iberia, to France and the Netherlands, he was invincible and victorious.
Look at his honors, he is not only a Field Marshal of the British Army, but also a Field Marshal of the Russian, Austrian, Prussian, Hanoverian, Spanish, Portuguese and Dutch Armies.
However, such a man born for war often complains to me that he hates war the most in his life, and every time he finishes a war, he says it’s his last time on the battlefield.
But when the country needs him, as long as he is gently pushed, he will stand up again and stand at the forefront of the war under the fire.”
Mrs. Peel thought for a while and asked, “Do you think Officer Arthur is also such a person?”
“Of course.” Lord Peel nodded with a smile: “And all I have to do is give him a little push.”
Mrs. Peel agreed with this: “I also think that Scotland Yard cannot lose such an excellent police officer, it is irresponsible to the public. But hasn’t he already decided to leave? What are you going to do to push him?”
Lord Peel opened the curtain of the carriage, he pointed to the scenery outside and said: “Dear, haven’t you noticed that this is not the way home?”
Mrs. Peel looked out, and outside was a four-story building with a scarlet exterior and a green dome.
“The Admiralty Building? What are we doing here?”
Lord Peel smiled and said: “Just now, Officer Arthur told me that he planned to join the Royal Navy for better prospects. But I think the Royal Navy already has enough talented people, and one more wouldn’t make much difference. More importantly, as the Home Secretary in charge of Scotland Yard, I don’t intend to let my best police officer leave.
Therefore, I came here specifically to talk to a few old friends in the Admiralty. My lady, you wouldn’t mind keeping them company for a drink later, would you?”
“Oh, Robert!” Mrs. Peel looked a little angry: “You still have to work this afternoon.”
But Lord Peel already had a countermeasure for this: “I’m done with my work for today. The only one left busy in the cabinet now is the Duke of Wellington, who is on his way to Windsor Castle to meet His Majesty the King.”
“The Duke of Wellington, what is he doing at Windsor Castle?”
Lord Peel shrugged: “It shouldn’t be a duel with His Majesty. Well… probably not.”
……
At this moment, outside the audience hall of Windsor Castle.
The Duke of Wellington, Arthur Wellesley, walked down the steps quickly, with no intention of turning back.
Behind him, a furious old man chased after him.
His upper body clothes were luxuriously noble, a deep red cloak with gold trim, paired with a silver-gray jacket decorated with wheat ear tassels, all at a glance one could tell it was valuable.
But strangely, the old man only wore a pair of shorts that reached his thighs.
It was clear that the old man must have been chasing him in such a hurry that he didn’t even have time to change into a full set of formal wear.
He roared at the Duke of Wellington: “Wellington! Stop for me!”
The Duke of Wellington stopped obediently, but he still didn’t turn around.
His cold voice was like the north wind in December: “Your Majesty, is there anything else?”
The old man was none other than the fourth king of the British Hanoverian dynasty – George IV.
George IV widened his eyes, stretched out his trembling hand, and roared: “What do you mean by those things you just handed me?!”
The Duke of Wellington said: “It’s the literal meaning. If you don’t understand, I can summarize it for you.”
He turned around and stood on the steps below, facing the king and said: “Parliament and the cabinet have been arguing about Catholic emancipation for more than a decade. Now that a consensus has finally been reached, this is the ‘Catholic Emancipation Act’ that all parties have agreed to.
This is a hard-won thing, and I don’t intend to go back to Parliament or the cabinet to redraft it, because that would surely lead to endless wrangling again.
So, you have two options now.
Either, you accept the draft of the ‘Catholic Emancipation Act’ that I just submitted before the court session. And guarantee to the House of Commons and the cabinet that you will not use your influence in the House of Lords to obstruct the passage of the bill.
Or, you can also choose to accept the collective resignation of me and the other fourteen cabinet members, and choose another majority party member you trust to come up power.
Or, if you like, you can hold a new election again. Anyway, whoever wants to clean up this mess can clean it up, I will never touch it again.”
George IV trembled with anger when he heard this: “Wellington, you, you!”
But Wellington obviously didn’t care about the king’s attitude, he said: “If you still consider yourself the legitimate monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, then approve the passage of the bill.
I must tell you here, although I am a devout Protestant like you, the emancipation of other denominations of Catholicism can no longer be delayed.
The kingdom is on the verge of civil war, and I have received reliable information that if the bill is rejected, there will be a large-scale rebellion in Ireland.
Therefore, I must also remind you again that if Ireland rebels, I will not accept your invitation to serve as the Commander-in-Chief of the Army.
As for how to choose, it is your power, you decide for yourself!”
With that, the Duke of Wellington flicked his sleeve and walked away.
George IV roared at his back: “Wellington, you! You! You! How dare you be so disrespectful to me!!!”
The attendants hurried forward to support the old king who was about to fall down the steps. They couldn’t stop comforting him.
“Your Majesty, forget it, since he wasn’t afraid of Napoleon, don’t expect him to be afraid of you.”
“I… I… Ah!!!” George IV’s eyes turned black and he fell to the ground.
“Your Majesty? Your Majesty!” The attendants …shook the king’s body and, finding no response, panicked. “Quick, go get the doctor!”