Chapter 91

Mary heard the news on her way to France.

The messenger, who had been riding a horse all the way, rushed to the Queen's caravan to deliver the news. He knelt on one knee on the muddy ground and spoke the news with a face full of grief.

The Queen of England, mounted on her horse, listened to this completely unexpected news with a somewhat sluggish and dazed expression, as if she had no idea what was happening.

Then Mary said, "...What did you say? Say it again?"

So the messenger repeated the message again.

But Mary did not listen attentively to the messenger's words.

The kneeling messenger seemed to use many euphemistic words, saying that with the merits of the Duke of Somerset, even after death, he would surely be led by angels to guard Heaven... But these voices were too noisy, like endless noise ringing in her ears, making her feel dizzy.

Mary stared at the messenger for a while, trying to concentrate, but then she felt that the clothes he was wearing had turned into large patches of blurred blue-green. The color was too dazzling, making everything in front of her blurry. So she had to look away and look at the plane trees planted by someone on the side of the road.

The autumn weather has already turned a bit cool. The trunk of this sycamore tree is still tall, but the leaves have lost their summer green and turned a withered yellow.

When Mary looked up at the tree, she saw a completely yellowed leaf fall from the branch and flutter down into the mud.

It was going too smoothly... The successive victories numbed her spirit, making her believe that Albert would always return safely from the battlefield in triumph.

She forgot how cruel war was, forgot that every war was a life-or-death struggle, and could not imagine that the seemingly ordinary meeting and conversation on the ship would be the last time she saw Albert.

...

The unexpected death of the Duke of Somerset forced the British army to withdraw from Paris again, giving France, which had been suffering repeated defeats, a chance to catch its breath.

Queen Catherine the Queen Mother, who had made numerous blunders on religious issues, finally did something wise.

Instead of attempting to restore the former French territories and fighting on two fronts, which strained the French army's logistics and caused the soldiers to suffer repeated defeats on the battlefield, she resigned herself to the situation and began to preserve the remaining Valois territories.

Faced with the republics formed in the former southern and western France, Queen Mother Catherine abandoned the idea of ​​completely eradicating the Huguenots and instead issued the Edict of Nantes.

This amnesty decree generously declared that all hatred from the previous war was wiped clean, recognized the Huguenots' freedom of religion, allowing them to build their own churches and religious communities, and that they would no longer be subject to any discrimination, enjoying all the same rights as other French citizens. If a Huguenot broke the law, the religious judges in the court should be both Protestant and Catholic, and Huguenots would also have the right to enter the court and serve as ministers of defense...

This amnesty, which granted leniency to Protestants, was twenty-eight years ahead of the original historical record. As soon as it came out, it drew a lot of criticism. Huguenots sneered that previous hatred could not be erased, and Catholics were also furious that Queen Mother Catherine had forgiven those heretics. But in any case, it did bring peace and prevented the newly formed republic in the south from fighting with France.

On the northern battlefield, even without the Duke of Somerset, Britain had other capable and outstanding generals.

Queen Elizabeth II promptly dispatched Admiral Boswell and Lord Chamberlain Arthur Erskine to quell the situation, and after a brief period of wavering morale, England regained its dominance over France.

Boswell, who had been transferred there, offered a brief moment of condolence to his colleague of over a decade, and then immediately became eager to continue fighting the French.

"Your Majesty, I swear to you that I will bring you unparalleled victory, just as Albert did before, and expand your territory once again!" Boswell said excitedly.

"We can't continue fighting. The Valois dynasty has ruled France for quite some time and still has a lot of support in this land. Even if we occupy the whole of France, I won't be able to govern properly and will only be able to face uprisings and rebellions one after another..." said the Queen of England.

Therefore, it's best to stop while you're ahead; taking away large swathes of French territory is enough.

Queen Mother Catherine sent envoys to negotiate a ceasefire agreement, which Mary has already agreed to.

Boswell wanted to say something to persuade the Queen, but when he looked up, he saw that the Queen of England was pale and pressing her forehead lightly with her fingers, as if she was enduring a slight fatigue and headache.

Boswell knew he shouldn't have said anything when his boss was feeling unwell, so he reluctantly swallowed his words and tried to reassure himself.

Well, there will be plenty of opportunities to distinguish myself on the battlefield in the future, so this one won't make a difference...

The Queen of England has been wearing a black gown these days, without any exquisite jewelry, just like when she was in mourning for the King of France many years ago.

Some say this is to mourn the Queen of England's beloved former King Francis II of France. Others say it's a subtle mockery, as the Queen of England was humiliated by Queen Catherine the Queen Mother years ago shortly after her husband's death, and now, as she returns to France in the same attire, Queen Catherine is seen groveling before her, trying to beg for peace.

The negotiations were held at the Louvre Museum in France. The Queen of England personally went there, revisiting the place once again. The French side did not send any members of the royal family, but instead sent the Duke of Montmorency as the negotiating ambassador.

That's good.

She didn't want to see any acquaintances right now, whether it was her uncle, Duke Guise, or the entire Valois royal family.

With the British army holding a significant advantage in terms of troop presence, the negotiations proceeded smoothly. As Mary had hoped, she obtained Calais, Picardy, Upper and Lower Normandy, and the Champagne region of France, extending British power fully onto the European continent.

With Spain and France defeated one after another, England's rise has become unstoppable. Although it is not obvious now, if Britain develops steadily according to the previously established plan, it will become the most powerful country in Europe in the next few decades.

On the sea, on land, in religion...

She finally defeated one opponent after another, forging ahead relentlessly, achieving feats far surpassing those of Elizabeth I, and placing herself at the pinnacle of glory.

It is a glory that will be remembered for eternity, envied by countless later monarchs, and eagerly recorded in opera books.

(End of text)