I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 402

The day after tentatively agreeing with Adelaide.

I was once again tasked with the weighty mission of running to Victoria and persuading her.

It would be fine to handle things without Victoria’s knowledge, but I couldn’t hide the truth from her, as she would be one of the direct parties involved.

If I did that, I wouldn’t be confident in dealing with the aftermath if she found out all the facts later.

Of course, as a mother who is desperately trying to marry off her daughter, she wouldn’t welcome my proposal.

“Well, that’s just great. I send you to persuade my daughter, and you conspire to have a fake engagement ceremony? Are you kidding me right now?”

“Ahem, my dear wife. Just look at what the Crown Prince of Prussia is doing. He’s plotting an evil scheme to target our imperial family, and to use that in reverse and blow up the incident, we need this much impact! Think about how much benefit we can get by growing the incident like this and then exploding it, rather than just catching him and saying, ‘Got you, you rascal!’”

“You always have something to hide when you call me ‘my dear wife’ or use extremely polite language, and it’s exactly like that this time too. Your words sound good, but the means is our daughter’s engagement.”

The reason I’m using Adelaide’s engagement as bait to lure Prussia isn’t simply because I want to respect my daughter’s wishes.

It’s to create bait that Prussia can never escape from, and to create a situation where even the citizens of both countries rise up and point fingers and curse at their Crown Prince.

That way, I can extract benefits that are incomparable to the situation of simply being caught trying to backstab me after digging into my background.

And at the same time, I can drag out and involve those who are presumed to be watching from behind Crown Prince Friedrich.

“Well, I did ask Adelaide, you know? She said she was in favor, so I don’t think there’s a problem….”

“Of course she’d say she likes it! She’s singing songs about not wanting to get married right now. Are you really thinking of letting our eldest daughter grow old as a spinster?”

“Hey, that’s not going to happen. Don’t worry. Don’t worry. She’s definitely not going to die an old maid. No matter how much I adore my daughter, would I really block her marriage prospects?”

“…Hmm? Do you have something in mind?”

“As compensation for helping me with this plan, she’s planning to expand the luxury watch and jewelry business she launched last time, and she has a knack for business the more I look at her. She’s just like me in that regard, right?”

Victoria clicked her tongue with a dumbfounded look, as if wondering what I was talking about out of the blue.

“That’s a talent that the Princess of the British Empire doesn’t need. How much could all that be worth anyway?”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s not just about fiddling with bags or dresses; it’s about to transform into a huge corporation encompassing luxury goods from all over the world, and this is a goose that lays golden eggs.”

If I decide to raise it properly from now on, it can develop into a large corporation that boasts a status comparable to, or even greater than, the current Euronext’s [a major European stock exchange] number one company in terms of market capitalization.

I remember that the company’s market capitalization easily exceeded 500 trillion won [approximately 370 billion USD] in my previous life, so how much more revenue would it bring if it grew even bigger?

“So. You’re saying that since our daughter is so talented at making money, we should just let her do whatever she wants?”

“Half right and half wrong. I’m currently calculating how to divide the assets among the children, and I’m thinking of letting Adelaide take the company she raised as is.”

“With her personality, she’ll probably consider that her natural right, don’t you think?”

“She has to think that way. And with her personality and abilities, she’ll continue to expand the business, so the assets that will be her share will continue to increase, and when she sees me dividing the assets among the children, she can’t help but think about who will be the heir to her vast fortune.”

“…Ah. That’s true. If she keeps acting up about not getting married, the fortune she worked so hard to build will eventually go to her nephew.”

It’s not uncommon for people without children to cherish their nephews and nieces like their own children, and there are many cases where they willingly bequeath their wealth.

However, that’s the story when affection has built up over time while watching the nephew or niece.

While promoting Edward’s marriage, all I have to do is casually mention it in passing.

“The more they have, the more they want to pass it on to their children, it’s human instinct. Don’t worry. I’ll take care of everything.”

Victoria still seemed dubious, but nodded, saying she understood for now.

In fact, this was closer to an impromptu excuse, but it was also somewhat true.

Unless Adelaide is advocating for non-marriage with some kind of conviction, she just likes making money and doesn’t want to go to another country.

If she marries the Crown Prince of another country, she will inevitably have to live a life subordinate to that country.

So, if I create a situation where she doesn’t have to go to another country, and just say something like, ‘The company you’ve grown will all go to your nephew,’ wouldn’t that wake her up?

“No matter how big their heads have gotten, they’re still in the palm of this father’s hand, you know? Hehehe.”

“Okay. Then I’ll agree for now, so do whatever you want. But you know that you must handle things in a way that doesn’t hurt our children, right? And the siblings’ friendship shouldn’t be damaged either.”

Even though they worry so much about their children’s problems, it’s all because they want their children to be happy.

Even in the most harmonious families, relationships often break down when power or money is involved, so if this matter is touched incorrectly, it could unnecessarily damage the relationship between the siblings.

I understand Victoria’s concerns, but this time it’s closer to a preventive measure to fix things before that happens.

So now I have to sort things out in advance.

It’s not for nothing that people say that the more you have and the more you have to pass on, the more attention you have to pay to even the smallest things.

No matter how great the achievements you made in your generation, it was only a matter of time before it collapsed if your children messed things up.

Still, it’s fortunate that I can focus on other things rather than the power structure, thanks to Edward’s firm position as the heir to the throne.

If Crown Prince Edward was incompetent or a weakling, I can’t even imagine how much my head would have ached.

I’m newly grateful to Edward for growing up capable and healthy.

I’ll definitely push him harder when he comes back from Asia.

* * *

Now that I have Victoria’s permission, there’s nothing to hold me back.

I immediately summoned the Prussian ambassador, Bernstoff, to Buckingham.

The union of the British Imperial Family and the Prussian Royal Family.

This was an attractive proposal that Prussia, which already had a vacant Crown Princess position, had no reason to refuse.

The British Empire and Prussia were not on bad terms, but rather a friendly alliance, so it was welcome with open arms in terms of further strengthening this friendly relationship.

As expected, Ambassador Bernstoff’s face lit up without any suspicion.

“Has the story been completely finalized within the Imperial Family? If only our side agrees, can we proceed immediately?”

“Of course. His Majesty the Emperor has also readily accepted, so there will be no problem if only the Prussian side is okay.”

“Of course we agree. Ah, of course, I don’t have the authority to decide that, so I will immediately ask His Majesty for his opinion. But His Majesty and the Royal Advisors will not refuse either. I was worried because the Crown Princess has been vacant for too long.”

Prussian Crown Prince Friedrich was already in his mid-30s.

The fact that he had not married or had an heir by this age was certainly a matter of national concern.

The Prussian side had not made any efforts to bring in a Crown Princess, but every time they tried to promote a marriage proposal, a major accident would occur and it would be aborted, and as a result, the Crown Prince was said to be in danger of becoming an old bachelor.

Adelaide is now well over twenty years old, but since the person she is going to marry is more than ten years older, they will not be in a position to be picky.

Even if she is in her twenties, it is not too young to say that she cannot have children.

“If this marriage is successful, the friendship between the two countries will deepen even further. Come to think of it, how is Chancellor Bismarck doing?”

“The Chancellor is always healthy. The Chancellor will be very happy to hear the proposal that His Majesty has made.”

“What worries me is what your Crown Prince will think of this marriage. As a father with a daughter, I can’t help but want my daughter to be loved by the man who will be her husband.”

“His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is a bright man. Of course he will cherish and love the Princess. I guarantee it. The Chancellor and the Royal Advisors will definitely tell His Highness, so don’t worry.”

“Okay. I’m not unfamiliar with Chancellor Bismarck, so please be sure to tell the Chancellor. Ask him to persuade the Crown Prince well.”

Royal marriages are usually led by the Royal Family, but the marriage of someone like the Crown Prince may require the consent of the parliament or the Chancellor.

Although it is a formality, it would be more natural for Prussia to prepare for the marriage proposal under the leadership of Bismarck, given who the other party is.

Ambassador Bernstoff boasted that he would take care of it.

“The Chancellor values the alliance with the British Empire more than anything else. Of course, we will prepare without any shortcomings, so don’t worry!”

“Okay. Then I will be preparing, expecting a positive answer.”

“Ah, but is the Princess also positive about the marriage?”

“Of course. These days, there are so many voices in the world worrying about when she will meet a good man. I talked to her, and she said that she has no complaints about the Crown Prince of Prussia.”

“Oh! You really thought well. Even if you search all of Europe, it will be difficult to find someone as outstanding as His Royal Highness the Crown Prince as the Princess’s spouse.”

Looking at the situation on the surface, this marriage was a perfect union that no one would lose out on.

If Ambassador Bernstoff packaged this important matter as if he had made it happen, it would be like adding another line to his achievements in his later years, so it’s natural for him to show such a reaction.

Bismarck would also have no reason to refuse to strengthen ties with the British Empire through marriage, ahead of the Asian expansion issue and the Austrian issue.

The Crown Prince, who is secretly plotting behind the scenes, may be feeling guilty and unable to do anything, but Bismarck doesn’t know what he’s doing right now.

If the Crown Prince hesitates, he is likely to try to promote the marriage proposal by moving Wilhelm [likely referring to Wilhelm I, the King of Prussia at the time].

If the Crown Prince sees the Chancellor, who is not on good terms with him, trying to control even his marriage, what will he think inside?

“I’m very much looking forward to the day I get to see Crown Prince Friedrich in person. I hope this discussion goes in a good direction.”

“Please trust me. I will return with good news as early as this week.”

Unintentionally… no, it was 100% intentional, but it ended up being a situation where I was using Bismarck, but if you think about it, it will work out well for him too, so let’s think positively.

Anyway, Friedrich will inevitably clash with him on every matter when he becomes king, so how much more trouble will Bismarck have?

So, if I step on the Crown Prince firmly, wouldn’t it be easier for him to do politics?

If you think about it, this is me helping Bismarck, so shouldn’t I receive a thank you?

Diplomacy of faith that diligently takes care of not only one’s own country but also the collaborators of other countries. This is the British Empire’s after-sales service.

Of course, there will be a charge for AS [After-Sales service], but there is no such thing as a free lunch in the world.