"Initially, I don't know which beautiful princess insisted on dismissing her teacher, now you're blaming me!" Albert, with eyes full of love, wrapped his left arm around Victoria's waist and gently stroked her golden hair with his right hand, speaking in a doting tone.
"I don't care! It's all your fault!" 29-year-old Victoria, still like a child, pouted and teased Albert.
Even though the two had been loving each other for eight years, Victoria's feelings for Albert were like the day they first met.
In Victoria's eyes, Albert, who was the same age as her, remained as handsome as ever.
"Indeed! Meeting you was a lifelong mistake!" Prince Albert said to Queen Victoria in mock seriousness.
Victoria's eyes widened, her pale arms slightly tightened around Albert's neck with a stance as if to say 'try saying that again'.
However, Albert's next words made Victoria beam with joy.
"Merciful God, I'm fortunate to have met you! Since I've already made this mistake, may God allow us to keep making this mistake forever... I shamelessly dragged an angel into the mortal world and then dared to woo the angel..." Albert, truly a prodigy from the University of Bonn, used a series of playful sweet nothings that made Victoria smile.
The collision of lips ignited a deep love, and after the passionate kiss, the sparks of desire grew even more intense.
"Victoria, I..." Albert felt his breath becoming heated.
Not just his breath, but his entire body grew warm.
The flames in Victoria's eyes were even hotter, as if they could burn everything to ashes.
The setting sun cast long shadows on the walls of Buckingham Palace, making the originally splendid archways appear especially sacred in the sunlight. A sense of spring filled the holy room, and if you listened closely, you could hear hushed breaths mingling with suppressed moans from a room within Buckingham Palace.
...
The intense sense of spring lasted for half an hour before it finally ended.
The sun set and night fell.
John Brown, who was responsible for the daily life of the Victoria couple, tiptoed to the door and gently knocked, saying: "Your Highness, Your Majesty, the banquet will start in two hours! It's time to freshen up now!"
"Hmm!" Victoria's lazy voice came from inside the room, followed by the subtle sound of a tinder being struck, illuminating the pitch-black room.
Through the crack in the door, John Brown quickly summoned the maids responsible for the Victoria couple's daily life to await instructions from inside.
After nearly 20 more minutes, Albert's strong voice came from inside the room: "You may come in!"
The door opened, and the maids, holding toiletries and necessary cosmetics, swarmed in.
Victoria and Albert were manipulated like two dolls, with Albert dressed in a bright red military uniform and Victoria in a lavish purple lace gown.
"My dear, I feel like we are just like two dolls!" Victoria, who despised complex ceremonies and attire, complained to Albert.
"Your Majesty, you are the ruler of the whole of Britain! Complicated etiquette helps maintain the subjects' respect for you! If you were improperly dressed, I'm afraid Prime Minister Russell would criticize me behind the scenes again!" Albert responded half-jokingly and half-seriously.
"He dares!" Victoria, like a cat whose fur had been ruffled: "If he does, I'll dismiss him as Prime Minister!"
In the 19th century, when royal power was not yet weakened, the king/emperor's authority was above all secular rules.
Even in the so-called constitutional monarchy of the United Kingdom, if Queen Victoria wanted, she could easily abolish the cabinet with just a word, or even a mere suggestion that could rally opposition parties to fight for the Queen.
The later concept of "if the cabinet agrees, even executing the English Queen would only require her to sign on the paper" simply could not happen.
The maids standing by seemed not to hear Victoria's "domineering" words and continued to work diligently as always.
From their first day at Buckingham Palace, they were told that those who couldn't keep their mouths shut would be silenced permanently in Buckingham Palace; every year someone disappeared in Buckingham Palace, without exception they were the loose-tongued ones.
"Victoria, I've told you before! Power is not to be squandered recklessly, and furthermore, the power of the Kingdom of Britain is based on the Great Charter! To topple a cabinet, you don't need to act yourself..." Prince Albert rambled on as he explained the virtues of "inaction" to Queen Victoria.
It took about an hour for grooming and tidying, and once dressed, Queen Victoria and the King's Consort were led by attendants and John Brown to the side hall of Buckingham Palace, where they were to receive the Kingdom of Britain's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Palmerston, and his wife.
......
A carriage slowly made its way toward Buckingham Palace from the dark night.
Inside the carriage sat a man with an oval face, high nose bridge, and thick lips. He wore a black Flak cashmere coat, with a large medal hanging on his chest, and black silk tight stockings on his legs. Despite his graying temples and face full of wrinkles, it did not affect his wisdom; his deep and wise eyes seemed to understand the essence of all things. He was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Britain, also known as the Foreign Minister, Palmerston.
Beside him was an elderly woman far younger in appearance than her actual age. Though she seemed only in her 40s and had a charming face, the woman was actually 61 years old. Time had only left a few traces on her face, without diminishing her beauty at all, as she leaned quietly against Palmerston.
Although their ages were not too far apart, they presented a harmonious scene of an older husband and younger wife.
The lady was his wife and the widow of Earl Cooper, with whom Palmerston had been married for nine years.
In those nine years, they maintained a passion typical of young lovers.
"Henry (Palmerston's full name is Henry John Temple Palmerston), what do you think the Queen and the King's Consort invited us to Buckingham Palace for?" Madam Palmerston inquired of her husband under the shaky glow of the kerosene lamp hanging in the carriage.
"I suppose it might be about some work-related matters!" Palmerston replied vaguely.