Chapter 439: Non-Chief Marriage

On the day of the wedding, Prince Karl, who came from Sigmaringen, took over Archduke Ferdinand's work, and Archduke Ferdinand returned to his daughter Karina.

November 3, 1873.

The wedding time is 10 am and the venue is St. Augustine's Church. St. Augustine's Church is where members of the Habsburg family are baptized and married. Historically, Queen Theresa got married here.

Because the Hechingen royal family moved to East Africa, the wedding could not be held completely according to European procedures. After all, it was impossible for the Hechingen royal family to really invite so many distinguished guests to East Africa. It was not that they did not have the reception capacity, but the word "Africa" ​​was enough to scare away a group of people.

Ernst was a little bit dissatisfied with the wedding car. It looked like the pumpkin carriage in the Grimm's fairy tale illustrations he had read in his previous life. Although Ernst knew that this was very normal in the West, his aesthetic taste naturally remained in the style of his previous life out of inertia.

"Karina!" Gentleman Ernst invited Karina to get into the wedding car, and then the wedding car started slowly.

Although she is still a little young, Karina has some opinions of her own. Overall, she is satisfied with Ernst, which is in line with the actual situation. Political marriages are not based on feelings, and if one is familiar with the marriage partner, that is also a plus. Besides, Ernst is not ugly. His appearance is just ordinary and there is nothing wrong with it.

The guard of honor was composed of East Africa and Austria. Due to the constraints of tradition, the East African soldiers were dressed particularly gaudy. The bright red dresses did not bring out the style of East African soldiers at all.

However, they will have a chance to perform individually in the afternoon, when they will all change into East African military uniforms to give the citizens of Vienna a little "Führer"-style shock. You can say that the "Führer" is not good in this or that, but the Führer's aesthetic of the military is definitely the most consistent with the public's stereotype of serious soldiers.

As the wedding car passed through the city, people were surging on both sides and cheering. This wedding really aroused the enthusiasm of the citizens.

Afterwards, the carriage arrived at the St. Augustine Church. With the arrival of all the guests, the wedding officially began with the accompaniment of elegant classical music. The newlyweds began to complete the complicated ceremony under the gaze of everyone. Although Ernst had rehearsed it many times, he was still a little nervous, so much so that he seemed a little stupid and allowed himself to be manipulated by the Catholic bishop.

Theoretically, Ernst was also a Catholic, but this was only in theory. In reality, Ernst was an atheist.

But he was getting married today, so in order to give face to "Old Man God", Ernst followed the Austrian aristocratic wedding process and made a complete set of prayer gestures (making a cross on his chest).

Princess Charlotte then handed her daughter's hand to Ernst. The 23-year-old Ernst and the 16-year-old Karina looked quite compatible standing together, at least there was not much difference in their appearance.

Ernst was not the only one who was nervous. Karina was also nervous. The two of them stumbled as they spoke their wedding vows: "I sincerely beg God not to leave you or to follow you, because wherever you go I will go, and because you stay I will stay. The one you love will become the one I love, and your Lord will become my Lord. Wherever you die, I will be buried with you. Maybe the Lord requires me to do more, but no matter what happens, you will be by my side..."

"Now, Your Highness Ernst, please put the ring on Princess Karina's hand." said the cardinal.

As a non-African, what Ernst lacks the least is low-grade gems like diamonds. When Ernst took out the "blue diamond ring", all the women in the audience focused their attention on it. It was so vulgar. The highlight of aristocratic weddings was nothing more than comparison, competition of wealth and power.

As early as the 15th century, Maximilian, the Archduke of Austria, used a diamond wedding ring to make a firm declaration of love to Mary. This was the advice given to him by his confidants at the time, and Maximilian listened to it, so this ceremony was established, which is said to have been passed down for hundreds of years.

Ernst's diamond ring is made entirely of natural diamonds. The ring face maintains its basic shape and is simply rounded, so it looks natural. It weighs 21 carats and shines a dazzling blue light under the light.

This blue diamond was found in a diamond mine in the southeastern Great Lakes region, and the designer of the diamond ring called it "Blue Heart".

Princess Charlotte said to her husband Archduke Ferdinand: “My dear, when you return to East Africa, ask Ernst if he has any more blue diamonds like this. They look so beautiful, especially the dazzling blue halo. I want one too!”

Archduke Ferdinand: “…”

…

In the afternoon, after the banquet, the military parade that the straight man Ernst had been looking forward to finally began. He said to Karina excitedly, "Karina, believe me, the East African army will definitely give people a different viewing experience."

Karina: “…”

"Brother Ernst! It seems that you like the army very much?" Karina suspected that her husband was a warmongerer.

"No, Karina, I just think it's cool."

“…”

Of course Ernst liked the army, but this was destined in his previous life when he was a child. He had almost no resistance to the disciplined army. It was a hobby, just like a businessman's love for money, and he could not extricate himself.

Soon after the float parade ended, the East African Guard of Honor appeared.

The main color of the East African military uniform is black, supplemented by gold and red as decoration. If it is pure black, it will not look refreshing enough (refer to the Soviet and German armies).

The three thousand men were divided into ten squares. The first three squares were cavalry, and the horses were rented from the Austrian Army.

"Da... Da... Da!" The cavalry horses took brisk steps and passed quickly through the narrow streets of Vienna. The infantry square followed closely behind, and their military boots hit the ground in a very rhythmic sound.

As soon as the East African army appeared, it attracted everyone's attention, not only the citizens of Vienna, but also the nobles of various European countries. Among them, Crown Prince Frederick of Prussia was particularly interested in the East African Army.

"The uniforms look completely different from those of the armies of European countries. I have seen the uniforms of the Hechingen Military Academy during the Franco-Prussian War. They are indeed somewhat different from those of Prussia. However, the uniforms of the East African Army are obviously different from those of the Hechingen Military Academy."

Everyone in Prussia knew that in order to colonize Africa, the Hechingen royal family had set up a military academy in Hechingen to train military talents, so Frederick thought that the uniforms of the East African army would be somewhat similar to those of the Hechingen Military Academy!

Alexander III said: "But this design is indeed eye-catching. You can see that their military uniforms have obvious waist design, which can make the soldiers look more upright."

As for Rudolf, he didn't say anything, but seeing the East African Army so cool, he felt a sense of honor.

Unlike the young man, Franz said to Carol I: "It's unconventional. This kind of clothing must be uncomfortable to wear, and the colors are not bright enough."

"This design is very distinctive, but I am more interested in their military steps. They are neat and uniform, as if measured with a ruler. And that rebellious head-raising movement, could it be an African characteristic?" Carol I said with a smile.

From the perspective of the citizens of Vienna, they felt a sense of oppression from the army in front of them. First, Black Instinct gave them this impression, and second, the East African Army made a heavy sound with every step on the cobblestone street, which gave people a sense of impact. The people who had cheered before were now silent because of the appearance of the East African Army, and the scene was a little depressing.

But the surprise was yet to come, as the formation passed in front of the stands where Ernst and Karina were.

The East African soldier, carrying a Dreiser rifle on his shoulder, shook the gun and the gleaming bayonet was thrust against his chest.

"One, two, three, four!"

"Long live the Crown Prince and Princess!"

"Cleaving style! This is the right feeling!" Ernst said to Karina with a smile.

Karina: “…” Now she just wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

(End of this chapter)