Chapter 686: Winning Support

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

“Since Princess Sophie wants our support, you have to tell us what bargaining chips you have,” the Marshal said, stopping the discussion below.

Once the old king died, the officers’ lives would not be easy. Unless they ruthlessly overthrew the royal family, they could only wait for the next king to ascend the throne.

However, no one knew who the next king was if the crown prince ran away. They did not have anyone to serve at all, so everyone was trying to get their support.

In order to avoid choosing the wrong person to serve, the Marshal could only try his best to fool them.

As for the option of overthrowing the royal family, none of the officers had thought about it. The royal family had very high popularity among the people. Even if they really succeeded in suppressing them by force, the entire country would be in chaos. At that time, the surrounding countries would immediately take advantage of them.

The people of Country F had to take patriotic lessons since they were young. The word patriotism was engraved in their bones. They would never do such a thing.

Sophie did not hide anything. She looked at them and said, “You should know that the head of the Jiang family is in Country F. She will do her best to support me. Moreover, we don’t have to give up our country’s interests after this. We just need Country F to deepen our business ties with them.”

This condition was acceptable. After all, it did not matter who they did business with.

Compared to the requests of other countries, Jiang An’s was simply not worth mentioning. Those people wanted minerals and rare earths.

The Marshal was still a little hesitant. “But Princess Annie has been in close contact with other forces. Won’t she agree to more conditions?”

Sophie knew that they still tied her to her mother, and felt that she was doing this to help her mother ascend to the throne.

Since she had already come this far, there was no need to hide it. She stood up and looked straight into the marshal’s eyes. “Marshal, what I want is for you to support me and Princess Sophie to become queen.”

The officers’ eyes widened. They hadn’t expected Sophie to have such a plan. She wanted to pass her mother and ascend to the throne.

But thinking about it carefully, it was a good idea. Sophie had been very benevolent in the country before. Later, she gave up the royal allowance and went overseas, but she still cared about the country and always pulled strings to matchmake trade between the two countries.

Some time ago, many jobs had been created in the country, and the people’s lives were more stable.

In comparison, the other members of the royal family were either doing whatever they wanted or eating and waiting for death. They had no intention of seeking benefits for the people.

The two princes were about to fight for the throne, but they only knew how to rope in forces to support them. They did not care about the lives of the people at all.

The officers looked at each other and felt that Princess Sophie was the best candidate.

However, the Marshal was still a little worried and said, “Princess Sophie, I won’t reject you now, but the crown prince is still alive. We just don’t know where he went. If we support you directly, we’ll be letting down the old king.”

“I understand. I’ve sent someone to find the crown prince. He’ll come back and explain everything,” Sophie promised.

Hearing him say this, the Marshal nodded and said, “If you can get the crown prince to personally pass down the throne, you will be the Queen we are loyal to.”

That was exactly what Sophie wanted to hear, and she knew that the first step toward an official struggle for the throne had been taken.

The next day was the national celebration. The palace even sent a French-style gown to Jiang An so that she could wear it.

When Zou Bai received the news, he quickly told her, “The crown prince has been found. He’s on his way back to Country F.”

“Is he willing to come back?” Jiang An asked.

Zou Bai shook his head. “Of course not. He tried to escape a few times, but I got my subordinates to tell him that if he really wants to get rid of his identity as the crown prince, he has to return.”

Jiang An was very curious. “He’s been the crown prince for so many years and is about to become the king of a country. Why isn’t he willing to ascend the throne?”

“I’ve asked someone to investigate this,” Zou Bai said. “He has received the best elite education since he was young. Some of it includes agriculture. He became interested and began to study farming. After putting it into practice, he fell in love with this feeling. Now, he only wants to find a place to farm. He doesn’t want to do anything else.”

“When my men found him, he was milking cows. He really loves farm work.”

Jiang An really didn’t expect such a reason. She could only say that she respected him.

Sophie was waiting outside when they left the hotel in the morning. She was a little nervous. “An’an, when the double appears today, do you think anyone will recognize that he’s fake?”

“If you all treat him like a king, no one will suspect anything,” Jiang An said. “But it’s impossible for the two of them to be identical. His appearance today will definitely leave some evidence.”