The Buckingham Palace, beautiful and majestic.
After Queen Victoria's ascension to the throne, this place officially became the royal palace, serving as the residence of the British royal family ever since, continuing into modern times.
The queen receives and hosts foreign guests and other important events here.
Stevenson led Lu through the palace square, the statue of Victory silently gazing upon them from the lawn.
Stevenson said, "Mr. Lu, you may not understand the protocols of an audience, but that's fine. Just remember not to use the bowing etiquette from the Qing Dynasty. Also, remember not to say or do anything you shouldn't."
Lu nodded, "Sir, I have a question. How did the queen come to know about me? Is it because of 'And Then There Were None'?"
He had been pondering this question, but it didn't seem right, If the queen was inquiring about 'And Then There Were None', Cooper and Scott would have surely reminded him.
A curve appeared at the corner of Stevenson's mouth as he said, "That's a question I can't answer directly, but I can promise you, the queen has no ill intentions towards you."
As they spoke, the two arrived at a side door of Buckingham Palace.
Stevenson pushed open the door, and sunlight streamed into the room.
It seemed to be a study, with tall bookshelves lining the walls on all four sides, filled with books,
the crisp fragrance of ink wafting in the air.
In the center of the room, an elegant table sat an old lady, none other than Queen Victoria, the last king of the Hanover dynasty and the Empress of India, a living legend.
The queen looked up, squinting at the newcomers,
"Mr. Lu, is it?"
Lu walked forward slowly, his right hand supporting his left chest, slightly bowing his body while nodding, saying, "Your Majesty."
Stevenson was slightly surprised,
he hadn't expected Lu's gentlemanly gesture to be so standard.
The queen revealed a gentle smile,
"Freke, don't just stand there, fetch a comfortable armchair for our guest."
Frederick Stevenson's name was Freke, and his nickname was Freke,
In the past, the queen wouldn't have used such an informal way to address him in front of outsiders, but as the queen aged, this became more common,
Every time he heard that nickname, Stevenson felt a bit choked up,
The queen had aged.
Most ephemeral are human affairs, beauties pass and heroes fade,
It's said that the aging of a beauty and the decline of a hero are the most regrettable things in the world, and the queen was both,
She was a beauty, but also a hero of Britain.
Stevenson helped Lu move a chair, then stood beside it.
Lu sat up straight.
The queen said, "Mr. Lu, there's no need to be nervous. I summoned you here just to have a casual chat, perhaps about your novel, or maybe your views on America."
Lu hesitated for a moment, not daring to speak.
In China, being directly questioned by the emperor would be like participating in the imperial examination.
Seeing Lu's restraint, the queen continued, "Mr. Lu seems to think that America is rising."
In fact, there's no need to say 'seems to',
America is indeed rising, this is the consensus among entrepreneurs, politicians, and scholars.
Lu thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, Britain is still the most powerful country in the world."
The queen couldn't help but smile,
"You just said 'still is'? You use that word very cautiously. I must thank you, a student from the East, you didn't deliberately say flattering words to please or deceive me, you are very honest."
Lu felt a bit embarrassed to be praised like this,
He really had nothing to do with honesty.
He said, "Your Majesty, the people respect you, and the British under your rule, even more so. Today, when I rode in a carriage to Buckingham Palace, the citizens of London saw the iconic red uniform of the Queen's Guard, and they would automatically make way."
The queen also liked to be flattered,
but she calmly said, "That's not respect, that's fear, it's fear of the law."
Indeed, there was such a law,
The Queen's Guard, as the protector of the highest leader of Britain, always remained in a responsive state, and standing, walking, or obstructing their path was illegal, the guards could take emergency action without approval.
In other words, they really had the right to clear their magazines,
in the American way.
Lu shook his head, "Your Majesty, I didn't mean to flatter. Your influence is enormous, many landmarks in the world are named after Victoria, Lake Victoria in Africa, Victoria State in Australia, Victoria in Canada, and Victoria Park around the world..."
The queen's eyes lit up, bright and sharp, as if she had regained fifty years of youth.
She looked at Stevenson,
"Freke, is that true? I don't remember Canada... um... isn't it Brazil?"
Stevenson's face turned red,
"Your Majesty, I also... I'll go check immediately."
He hurriedly left the room and soon returned, panting, "Your Majesty, Mr. Lu is correct. And you didn't remember wrongly, there is Victoria in Brazil, and also in Canada."
The queen nodded slightly, then turned to Lu,
"Mr. Lu, you are very knowledgeable and broad-minded, no wonder you have such judgments about America."
The conversation circled back to this topic.
Queen Victoria's reign was the height of Britain's "Empire on which the sun never sets" period, known in history as the "Victorian Era",
During this period, Britain expanded its colonies, and free capitalism developed into monopoly capitalism, the economy and culture flourished, and constitutional monarchy was fully developed,
Victoria herself also became a symbol of Britain's prosperity.
But this peak did not last,
After the queen's death, America completed an incredible overtaking at an astonishing speed.
And the date of Queen Victoria's death was January 22, 1901, less than three months away.
Lu said, "Your Majesty, I am just a student studying abroad, and I haven't opened my eyes to the world for long. Your praise just now is really excessive, and I cannot bear it."
This statement was not humble, Lu knew very well what he was capable of.
The queen was not angry at Lu's rebuttal,
She pondered for a moment and said, "I was originally thinking of inviting Mr. Lu to work for the royal family, to tutor the princess in English writing. But now it seems that there is no chance."
Princess...
That girl named Margareta?
A figure flashed through Lu's mind, and he instantly understood why the queen would know about him.
He quickly said, "Your Majesty, according to convention, the education of the princess should be handled by titled nobles. I, as a foreigner, am simply not qualified. Moreover, tutoring in English writing, I am completely incapable. Furthermore, even if we don't consider aristocratic education, there are so many universities in London, countless scholars, why bother with the traditional way of hiring private tutors?"
The queen had also heard that the University of Paris was admitting female students,
She frowned,
"Sending the princess to university? Mr. Lu is going a step further."
Actually, it's not that radical,
According to history, the education of the British royal family would soon be reformed, and the princess would have the opportunity to enter university for further study just like the prince.
The queen lowered her head in thought, seemingly considering the feasibility of this matter.
Time passed second by second,
The room was extremely quiet, the steady breathing even made Lu feel like the queen had fallen asleep.
After an unknown amount of time,
"Mr. Lu, thank you for your visit today."
The queen finally dismissed him.
Lu couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, just about to bid farewell, but heard her say again, "I heard that Mr. Lu is going to write editorials for both The Daily Telegraph and The Manchester Guardian, I'm very much looking forward to it."
Just this sentence made Lu's heart sink again.
How did he catch the attention of the Queen?