Yes, Madam Prime Minister

Page 231

But for high-level mages, there's nothing they can do.

High-ranking mages like Dinia, who care about their country, are few and far between.

In Seris, "Scholar" and "Warrior" are equivalent to people with titles in another world, belonging to a privileged class.

They don't adhere to the traditional Confucian hierarchy of "Heaven, Earth, Ruler, Parents, and Teacher" like the Confucian scholars of Ronan's original timeline. Instead, they follow the hierarchy of "Heaven, Earth, Teacher, Parents, and Ruler." First comes Heaven, which is the path they pursue; second comes Earth, which is the land and the surrounding society; then comes Teacher, not just a teacher but their own school; then comes Parents, wife, children, brothers, and sisters; and finally, the ruler.

Of course, this does not mean that Seris is not a highly centralized empire, because scholars and warriors can only use their privileges stably under the emperor's authority. As long as this balance can be maintained, anyone who disobeys the emperor's orders is considered to be rebelling.

They endure even moderate levels of suppression.

Although there is no concrete evidence, Ronan can boldly speculate that if the emperor really shows too little respect to these schools of thought and the scope of the crackdown is too broad, then all that can be asked is, "Why is Your Majesty plotting a rebellion?"

"Anyway, Seris has its own national conditions, while on our side, Seris is just a province, so many things are much more convenient."

Ronan said.

Zhao Yingqi couldn't help but nod.

"Alright, that's all for this lesson. I'm going to Anli's place now. You can do as you please."

Ronan immediately announced his dismissal.

Ambrina recently got some tomatoes from Venaya and made some new flavored tomato sauce to go with fries. The two of them made plans yesterday to go to the Royal Capital's open-air theater to eat fries and watch the new play.

In the blink of an eye, Ronan had already stepped onto the floating shield and flown away.

Zhao Yingqi glanced in the direction Ronan had left and was speechless for a moment. Although she had been here for two years and had seen Ronan and the Queen, this loving couple, go out to play by themselves without taking care of their child, she was still a little unaccustomed to it.

This kind of family relationship was really strange to her.

Oh, and Ina and Lucien's reactions were also quite strange.

"Aww, I'm free!" Ina cheered loudly. Although she enjoyed listening to her father's lectures, she loved freedom even more.

Lucien didn't cheer, but he couldn't hide his joy. Only a short while had passed in the afternoon, and his father mentioned that get out of class was over, which meant free time for him to play with his toys again.

Soon, the brother and sister disappeared without a trace.

"Lily, aren't you leaving?" Zhao Yingqi asked Astrid.

“My mom and godmother are busy, and I have nowhere to go.” Astrid had just responded when she suddenly smiled. “How about I take you somewhere fun?”

Zhao Yingqi instinctively shrank back, "What's fun?"

“The Magic Academy,” Astrid replied, then, seeing Zhao Yingqi’s puzzled look, she added, “To fight.”

Zhao Yingqi used both his hands and feet to indicate that it wouldn't work.

“Nothing will happen. You are strong, but I am even stronger,” Astrid said. At less than nine years old, she was already a second-tier elemental mage with special abilities. Most third-tier mages could not defeat her.

With this achievement, she is already the greatest genius among elemental mages in the kingdom's history.

The best students in the best schools are also seventeen or eighteen years old, just past the second stage.

Seeing that Zhao Yingqi wasn't interested, Astrid shook her head. "If you're not going, then forget it. I'll go alone." With that, she turned and left.

Astrid hadn't walked far when Zhao Yingqi caught up with her. She wasn't worried that Astrid would get beaten up, but rather that she was afraid Astrid would hurt someone.

Seeing Zhao Yingqi follow, a smile flashed across Astrid's face. When a fight breaks out, how can you expect to avoid getting involved? Whether you fight or not is not up to you.

We'll see what the old man has taught you these past two years.

Astrid was never clingy, and she didn't think she would be jealous of Zhao Yingqi. But in reality, she was very envious of Ronan spending so much time teaching Zhao Yingqi how to fight, like she had eaten a lemon.

"Lily, you absolutely mustn't cause any trouble," Zhao Yingqi couldn't help but say on the way.

"I promise I will never be the first to provoke or attack," Astrid said, thinking to herself that she didn't need to provoke them at all; the group would swarm around her.

Chapter 525 This guy's eight years old?! Absolutely stunning, Little Zhao's moves!

Just as Astrid had expected, as soon as she and Zhao Yingqi entered Lawrence Magic Academy, they were surrounded by people after only a short while.

In the distance, two boys, one tall and one short, were walking towards them.

"Is she eight years old?" the tall boy said, pointing at Astrid in the crowd. Astrid was 158 cm tall, taller than several girls around her. Ronan estimated that his daughter would be taller than him in the future, over 180 cm.

“He’s really eight, or maybe nine,” the short boy said.

"Is there a difference?" the tall boy asked.

The short boy responded, "Yes, if you're eight years old, you're not necessarily born in the 80s. If you're nine years old, you're definitely born in the 80s. I'm also born in the 80s. It's not shameful for someone born in the 80s to be unable to beat someone born in the 80s."

“Oh, then she’s nine years old,” the tall boy said.

This advanced magic academy, named after King Lawrence from a century ago, has a relatively short history compared to other prestigious schools with histories spanning two or three hundred years, but its academic level is in no way inferior to those schools, making it one of the top in the country.

There is no fixed age for entering a magic academy. Elementary school students are generally six to eight years old, while advanced school students are thirteen to fifteen years old. Elementary magic academies are just an introduction, where you are given all the basic knowledge and that's it. However, in advanced magic schools, you need to learn all the basics to graduate. Once you have learned all the basics, you are basically guaranteed to become a full-fledged magician.

Of course, there are also more advanced courses in higher education institutions, which are designed for students who are more talented and have already reached the rank of full-fledged students before they are twenty years old. For example, Golan was in her twenties and had already reached the second rank before graduating. It wasn't that she was reluctant to leave, but that she had completed the more advanced special courses.

Astrid came to Lawrence College a few days ago, climbing over the wall to get in. She didn't do anything else but say she wanted to apply for a teaching position, which immediately made a group of students burst into laughter.

These students didn't mean any harm; they weren't mocking her. They just thought she was a child talking nonsense and even teased her a bit.

Astrid said she was serious; she genuinely wanted to come and become a teacher to improve the quality of education here.

This made everyone burst into laughter, and Astrid was angry at their behavior.

I was so angry I almost yelled, "Even my dad has never laughed at me like that!"

Astrid held back, telling them to stop laughing, or she would take action.

Another burst of wild laughter followed.

However, no one expected Astrid to actually do it, and without any regard for martial ethics, she directly slapped magic in the face.

As a result, Astrid beat up a group of students and then ran away.

Later, Elena took her to apologize, and the headmaster showed no resentment. Instead, he asked Astrid if she wanted to attend their Lawrence Magic Academy.

It wasn't because the principal gave Elena face, or because of Ronan, who was behind Elena.

Although the headmaster was only a fourth-order magician, he was a renowned scholar in the magic world for his significant achievements in magical theory research. In the past decade, only Ronan, who proposed a new method for building and learning the foundations of magic, could be compared to him, giving him a very special social status.

Besides, Astrid was the one who hit the person and was in the wrong, so he really didn't need to give her face.

He extended the invitation on the advice of the vice principal, who was in charge of academic affairs. The vice principal said it was too embarrassing for a group of students to be unable to beat a little girl, but if the little girl came to study with them, it would be fine, and it could even boost the school's reputation.

Back to reality, at this moment, a group of people surrounded Aster, but dared not move.

Among them were many nobles with well-informed families who knew that Astrid was Ronan and Elena's illegitimate daughter. Illegitimate children generally had no social status, but this was not the case. Astrid was the future king and princess's playmate.

I can't afford it.

Not only can't we afford to offend them, we can't even beat them.

The group present consisted of teenagers, who could be considered the new generation of academic prodigies in the Kingdom of Phos. Among them were some who were already at the rank of righteousness, but they were only at the first level.

Can they defeat a little monster like Astrid?

Not only can't they beat them, they also don't want to fight.

Astrid is truly beautiful, perfectly inheriting her parents' excellent looks, with long, slightly wavy blonde hair, amber eyes, and fair, delicate skin.

If she were even a little older, all those engineering students would have been simps by now.

Just then, two boys, one tall and one short, walked over, and everyone looked over at them.

"Hello, I'm Eric." The tall young man greeted Astrid. As a nobleman, he should have greeted her and then delivered his prepared remarks. However, he was stunned by Astrid's beauty upon first seeing her, and with a beautiful young woman with exotic Eastern charm standing beside her, his mind went completely blank.

Astrid didn't even bother to reply; she went straight to the question, "Are you alright? Want to fight or not?"

“Magicians are not violent,” Eric said.

Astrid laughed. "Violence is an important standard for testing a mage's skill." As soon as she finished speaking, Astrid took action.

As soon as she made her move, a group of people were forced to fight back.

Seeing that Astrid had made her move, Zhao Yingqi had no choice but to bite the bullet and follow. She was not a person who was keen on fighting, and she disliked violence even more, but she was definitely not the kind of person who would just stand by and watch when her friends had already joined in.

Zhao Yingqi's summoned creatures possess the ability to fix the flow of time for ten seconds while remaining independent of it. She herself is not fast, and her summoned creatures are also not fast, but when she uses this ability, she becomes very fast, and the other party will not have any reaction.

Those ten seconds were enough for her to use the move Ronan taught her, or more precisely, the move Dinia taught her.

By condensing, compressing, and then releasing magic power, Zhao Yingqi's move works on the same principle as the magic pistol and Dinia's ferocious slashes, capable of influencing the opponent's magic power flow.

The only difference is that the magic pistol fires at high speed, while Dinia's attack is a high-speed, wide-range slash, and her move is just a needle extending from her fingertip, with a very small range.

But that doesn't matter; she can strike a chord with people simply by using her abilities.

She poked Eric, the guy who seemed to be the strongest among them, in the spirit of capturing the king first.

Eric had no idea what was happening. His magic suddenly became disordered. It was only because he was already at the second or almost third rank that he was able to do this. If he were only at the first rank, he would have already collapsed to the ground.

Astrid, who was single-handedly dealing with everyone else, smiled; she had achieved her goal this time.

"It's time to go," Astrid called out, then grabbed Zhao Yingqi and ran away together.

Astrid is strong, but if she doesn't go all out, she can only fight a couple of times and then run away. After all, this is a group of elite young people.

The group of students didn't chase after her; if they did, it wouldn't be Astrid who would lose face, but they would.

Outside on the street, Astrid, her face beaming with excitement, ran alongside, asking, "Isn't it thrilling?"

"I will never come with you again next time, absolutely not," Zhao Yingqi said through gritted teeth as she ran. She really didn't want to come again.

Chapter 526 Plagiarist, Spy? The Situation Is Not Optimistic

“It doesn’t matter, I won’t come back,” Astrid said. “Come on, let me take you to a nice place for coffee and dessert.”

"Do you have money?" Zhao Yingqi asked.

"Why don't we just go somewhere that doesn't require payment?" Astrid retorted.

Zhao Yingqi looked puzzled. "There are places where you don't have to pay?"

“Some departments have free cafes for civil servants. Of course, the best cafes are those within the unions. They are stocked with good stuff provided by the capitalists, and the desserts are delivered by the famous bakery next door. Senior union staff can enjoy them for free,” Astrid explained.

"Oh," Zhao Yingqi simply replied, not finding anything corrupt about it at all.

Her biological father was a defense commissioner, and his men were far more corrupt than this. Give her money? You're lucky they didn't come after you for money.

Meanwhile, on the other side, in a semi-open-air public theater, a new play is being staged.

This is a musical, which is common in large theaters because the venue is large and the environment is relatively noisy, so the sound equipment is only at that level. If it's a play, many people in bad seats won't be able to see or hear what's being performed.

The script was mainly written by Ronan, and the songs and dances were mainly written by Ambrina.

The main plot is the story of Romeo and Juliet. It can only be said that since there is no Shakespeare in this world, Ronan took the opportunity to plagiarize.

Ronan's writing style is certainly not comparable to that of Shakespeare, the great writer who reshaped the English language in the original timeline.

However, Ronan had already brought in some of the best writers from the Kingdom of Phos to write the poems and dialogue, so the quality wouldn't be too bad.

As for song and dance, Ambrina was a true artist; even if she hadn't been queen, she would still have been remembered in history for her musical achievements.

Although her skill level is only considered average among first-rate, she has carved out her own style by combining solemn church music with religious undertones and free-flowing, lyrical country folk tunes, switching between grand and lighthearted moments.

Moreover, she is a king, not a queen.

In short, as a female artist of noble status, Ambrina is a goddess in the hearts of many artists.

There are so many sycophants, it's impossible to count them all.

Returning to the story, although Ronan plagiarized, the background is different. Ronan moved the setting to the Rhine region, and the families of the male and female protagonists are no longer the great nobles of Italy, but the lords of the Italian Empire, two of the three lords of the Rhine. One transports coal to the Kingdom of Phos, but is still hostile to it, and many people in his territory have begun to convert to Protestantism. The other is a Catholic, has a blood feud with the Kingdom of Phos, and resolutely opposes it.

Despite sharing the same stance, the two sides also harbored mutual hatred and confrontation.

One of the main positive characters in the series, the priest who gave the fake death drug, is, of course, a Protestant.

In the end, both the male and female protagonists died.

Although the two major lords did not put aside their prejudices, they did reflect on their actions and began to yearn for Protestantism, to align themselves with the Kingdom of Fass, and to embrace the light.

It's a case of mixing political agendas into romantic tragedies and comedies.

It must be said that the Kingdom of Fas in this world is a Protestant country. Although it has provided many obstacles, it has also brought some benefits. At least it can openly stand on the side of Protestants and promote things that oppose the old church.

As the performance ended, the actors went on stage to take their bows, and the orchestra stood up as well. Instantly, the theater erupted in thunderous applause.

Although the play involved the king, there were no shills in the audience; the applause was entirely a genuine expression of the audience's enjoyment of the play.

Later generations may only see the so-called love story in this play and think it's not that great, but in reality, the real focus of this play is its background. The same applies to Romeo and Juliet in Ronan's original timeline. It's not about love, but about the love within that context.

This is something that only people from the same era can fully understand.

It's like Thunderstorm. If Thunderstorm didn't have Lu Dahai and that cannibalistic era as its backdrop, what would be so remarkable about that chaotic and nonsensical drama?