Red Moon Returns

3 Leviv (two chapters in one)

The long-awaited dance kicked off with the joint celebration of both parties.

Lin Qi exhaled, picked up a glass of juice and drank it, then suppressed the hot blood in his chest.

Although he was just a bystander, he watched the battle that only existed in his consciousness just now with excitement.

In fact, neither Director Ole of the Archaeological Association nor President Gurman of the Arcane Research Society showed up at the dance, and Lynch believed that the enemy did not show up either.

But this is the power that a high-level person should have in his mind.

He punched to the point of physical contact and fought face to face. He was still at this level, still feeling complacent about killing a snake man. But as his strength increases, as long as he doesn't die, he will eventually reach this point.

I don’t know where I am yet, but my influence is imminent.

Just like the mountain elder Nikolai he met when he first came here, he didn't need to take action at all, just a look from afar could induce devastating results.

He was awakened by the flood of applause.

When he came to his senses, he found that Her Royal Highness the Princess's opening speech on behalf of the King had ended.

According to Miss Valente, the royal family is really generous this time, taking out 20,000 pounds directly from the royal treasury to support disease prevention work in the Rhineland.

Not only that, once the situation becomes serious, the royal family promises to mobilize professionals from all over the country to support the Rhine and win the war together.

This is how people's hearts often come about. It seems that this technology of turning bad things into good things is a must-have for politicians no matter where in the world they are.

It was indeed good news worth celebrating, but the atmosphere at the venue was a bit subtle. Not everyone was as happy as they seemed. Lynch always felt that some people's smiles at the venue were rather forced.

Lynch was thinking about the smiles of those people. The old Duke had already taken over the princess' speech, and with the blessing of the secret amplification method, the voice spread throughout the venue:

"Today, one of the most beautiful flowers in our Rand is blooming in our Rhineland. Children of the Rhine City, you are all outstanding leaders in wisdom and courage. How can you bear to see such a beautiful flower alone? The bloom?”

This old man must have been a playboy when he was young. He had a lot of tricks at the ball, and with just a few words, he completely ignited the atmosphere of the young people.

Lin Qi thought maliciously, aren't you, an old fox, afraid that you won't be able to get over it in the end?

"Now I declare that the ball has officially begun. Come on, children of the Rhine, let me see which young gentleman can touch His Highness's heart and be the first to kiss the back of His Highness's hand."

Bang bang bang.

This time it was champagne.

The golden wine sprayed into the sky, exuding dreamy colors under the lights, symbolizing the official start of the dance party. The band played excessive music in a timely manner, and the soothing melody quickly relaxed the attendees.

The flat and open bluestone floor in front of the door is the best dance floor. Under the illumination of gas lamps, the surrounding area is as bright as day.

The waiters began to hold trays and rush back and forth among the crowd. People gradually gathered in front of the door, waiting for the first warrior to appear.

However, the atmosphere fell into a stalemate for a while. Young men, you looked at me and I looked at you. No one dared to be the first to come forward.

Just as Lin Qi was looking around, the first brave man finally appeared. A tall young man in a white uniform strode towards the princess. When walking, the waist is straight and the distance between each step is very close, and the identity can be identified at a glance.

"Rand Navy, Southern Fleet, Captain of the Hope, Viscount Brad, wish your highness eternal youth. I hope to be lucky enough to be your highness's dance partner and dance the first dance with your highness."

Sure enough, he looked like a soldier at first glance.

"I haven't seen you for a long time, Your Majesty the Viscount. It turns out that you were transferred to the Rhine for garrison. No wonder I didn't see you in Nolin." Princess Sofia smiled elegantly, "But Your Excellency, this is the city of Rhine, so there is no need for you to be with friends from the Rhine." Let’s fight for it, why don’t you take a break first, and I’ll dance the second dance with you.”

"Your Highness, His Excellency the Duke was recruiting the best just now." He straightened his waist even more as he spoke.

As expected of a noble, can even a soldier know how to curse in a roundabout way? Even he said in his mind, you are nothing, the Norin people actually came to our Rhine to run wild, let alone other people.

Sure enough, the next moment, a young man in a bright red dress strode out, sparkling and lightning all the way to the princess. The momentum along the way made Lynch think that he was an assassin rather than a competitor.

Fortunately, when he arrived at Viscount Brad's side, he just bowed deeply and said loudly: "I, Jett Williams, son of the Speaker of the House of Lords, Williams, hope to dance with His Highness and pray. Thank you, Your Highness."

"Speaker of the House of Lords Williams, a representative of the Rhine aristocratic forces, and the arch-rival of Speaker of the House of Commons Grant, is smooth and has no sense of presence, but his son Jett has a good reputation in aristocratic circles and is considered a rising star in politics. Now that he has come out Well, then..."

"Didn't you hear the requirement? What is required is the best, and you don't meet the requirement at all." A young man wearing a wig, traditional aristocratic clothing and stockings appeared behind Jet at some point, bowing to the princess. "Viscount Kellyn Jackson, a distinguished professor at the Institute of Badges and the third secretary of the Governor's Palace, invites Her Royal Highness the Princess to give us a compliment so that everyone in the Rhineland can appreciate our perfect dance."

As he said that, he turned his head and winked at Jeter: "He is Viscount Jackson, not someone else's son."

The son of Viscount Williams, who was wearing a bright red dress, snorted a sneer from his nose: "It turns out that even if my father died long ago, he could still show it off. Then I am indeed not as good as you."

"you……"

"If you don't kill the other person with your hands, I wouldn't be able to bear it. I bite his ears, step on his toes, poke his eyes, oh..."

Natalie, you crazy bitch, why are you stepping on my toes?

"You are really saying such ungraceful things." Miss Valente seemed to have not seen the scene of violence, and said with a snicker, "That's about it, the military, the government, the Governor's Mansion, that's what I'm talking about, old man The Duke and Princess don’t want to see trouble. Whichever you choose may give the other two ideas, it’s up to you..."

The usually calm noble lady's eyes narrowed. Under her gaze, someone else walked out from a slightly fat man weighing 200 kilograms, and that fat man was one of the people who showed an unhappy look just now.

"That was Anthony, Howard's deputy during his lifetime. He is almost certainly the next mayor."

"Huh? Aren't you going to elect the mayor?"

"Haha... This person who came out is his eldest son James. It is said that he has studied abroad in Friedman for several years and has just returned to China for more than a year. However, his status is already very important in the circle of descendants of Rhine businessmen. What is he doing here? On this occasion, for Her Royal Highness Sofia’s status, unless there are special circumstances, no one without a noble title is qualified to invite guests to the first dance.”

"On behalf of all the members of the House of Commons and all the citizens of the Rhine City, I invite Her Royal Highness to dance the first dance."

Lynch frowned: "Am I being represented again?"

Officer Natalie sneered from the side: "There are always some people who think they can represent everyone, but in fact they can only represent those with relevant interests."

Miss Valente didn't say anything, but quickly scanned the whole place with a solemn face, as if she was waiting for something. Sure enough, another one came out soon.

This man came from beside Speaker Grant. Next to the Speaker was a man who was always bent over. The stooped man looked ordinary, even his clothes were simple, but the one who came out had waxy hair, was covered in jewels, and was dressed like a proud peacock. Before anyone arrived, the man had already said loudly with a smile:

"Someone represents all the common people. Then I will represent all the ordinary young gentlemen in the Rhine and show His Highness the passion of the Rhine people."

As he spoke, he even took out a fiery red rose.

"Sure enough... the one bending over is Beric of the Shipping Association. He owns five fleets and has a large business. He can be regarded as the richest man in the Rhine. He has close relations with Friedman and several countries in the New World. . He is not a member of the Parliament, but he has a close relationship with the Parliament. A few days ago, it was said that Speaker Grant borrowed a large sum of money from him for some unknown reason, which seemed to be tens of thousands of pounds, so they have been very close recently. "

Yeah, I don’t know, why would you borrow so much money? Lynch sighed subtly.

"The one who came out was his son Beric Jr. I don't know about it. It is said that he is a standard playboy and very unpleasant. But because Beric values ​​this son very much, his status is also very high. It represents a big The voice of some business people. Phew, I get it.”

"Huh?" Lynch and the police officer both looked at her with eyes that said, "You understand, what do you understand now?"

"It's very troublesome to explain. In short, Howard is dead and Prince William's future is worrying. The parliamentarians may think they have been hit, so they use this method to force the other heir to express his position. If the princess is willing to compromise, go against the custom and jump to the first line with a non-noble Dance, it means that the royal family has given in. The conflict between the parliamentary faction and the royal family may temporarily ease for a period of time, but the royal family will make the nobles feel cold. But if the princess chooses the nobles, then the parliamentary faction is likely to cause trouble, and not only It’s the Rhine parliamentary faction, and I’m afraid there will be an uproar throughout the country.”

Miss Valente sighed, shook her head and said:

"It turns out that the parliamentarians have this kind of mentality. I thought too superficially before and thought it was just a dispute within the nobles. I didn't expect the trouble to be bigger. Mr. Lynch, have you thought about it? The first dance and Who jumps?"

"Um?"

Miss Valente covered her face with a fan and whispered beside Lynch: "The situation is more complicated than imagined. If you come forward now, if you are not careful, you will offend all the forces in the Rhine. It will be very troublesome. And Her Royal Highness the Princess is the target of the attack tonight. , it might be dangerous during the first dance.”

"Will the other party take action at such an obvious time?"

"This kind of assassination must be done in a public place. The more attention-grabbing the better. The assassination in a deserted place cannot be said to be meaningless, but it also has little effect."

Lin Qi nodded, no wonder the other party tried to take action during the princess' condolences and the opening of the ball.

"So if you don't want to be involved in trouble, just don't go up and disturb the situation. Your Highness the Princess may not be able to solve it by yourself. You don't have to worry about your first dance. Anyway, someone will go on inspection later, so you probably won't have a chance to dance. , then wait until the princess finishes dancing, and dance with her before that person goes on patrol. "

"I didn't go on patrol so early, and it's not like I went to Dreamland. I could come back. There's no need to use me as an excuse. On the contrary, some people attract so much attention. If they don't even have their first dance, If you don't get it, you won't necessarily be laughed at behind your back. You'll probably be humiliated for a long time. That person should mind his own business." Officer Natalie turned her head and sneered, "I'm going on patrol soon, so I won't be able to catch up. , it has nothing to do with me whether he dances or not, I don’t care who he dances with.”

Um? What's going on with these two? Although they were quite touched, their attitude was not very good.

The key is that two glances, one on the left and one on the right, make Lynch sweat. Moreover, there are two more hidden in some corner behind him. Lynch always feels that a certain senior is smiling and waving to him on the boat.

"Ahem, I have accepted all the benefits given by others. I have to show my sincerity, but from the looks of it, I am under great pressure from competition."

With that said, Lynch put on his bowler hat, straightened his bow tie, straightened his collar, dusted off his pants, smiled at the two ladies around him, and put the wine glass into Officer Natalie's hand:

"It's performance time now, hold it for me, woman, and drink it when I triumph. Hold it well and don't let it get cold."

The police officer looked at the red wine in her hand, tested the temperature with her finger, and then showed concern for the mentally retarded.

Lynch pouted, "Woman, you are not allowed to discriminate against people with disabilities, even if they are mentally retarded."

Then he coughed lightly, wagging his cane and walked up the stairs.

Oh, for a moment, Lin Qi felt that the eyes of thousands of people around him were focused on him. In addition to the observation, there were countless invisible eyes focused on him in various strange ways. Even the princess and the duke showed rare expressions of surprise and looked at each other, with surprise that was difficult to conceal in their eyes.

At this time, Lin Qi felt extremely nervous, but also felt excited. He took a deep breath, raised his head and smiled at the sky.

What are you looking at? Get out.

After laughing, Lynch strode to the steps with his head held high.

Five young people were gathering at the foot of the steps, waiting for the princess's decision. They were still arguing with each other. At this time, they felt that the atmosphere around them was different, and they all turned around subconsciously. Then they saw Lin Qi, who was dressed in a full dress. Standing proudly behind them, when he saw them turning back, he smiled brightly at them, raised his cane and called the two in the middle:

"Excuse me, give way."

The two subconsciously took two steps back to make way for the passage in the middle. Lin Qi put his hands behind his back, nodded to them reservedly, thanked them politely, and then leisurely stepped up a few stairs.

"Stop, who are you and what do you want to do?"

Lin Qi paused and turned around slowly: "What do you think? Of course I invite Her Highness the Princess to dance the first dance. Do you have any objections?"

"Why, who are you?"

"Private detective, Lynch Leviv, as for why." Lynch turned to the two non-aristocratic people and pointed at his nose, "I am also a commoner, but I hate being represented casually by others. Both of you are Lynch is very angry on my behalf, and the consequences will be serious, so I will jump out now to make you remember. Don’t you want to hold it back until you can fight against me?”

After saying that, he turned to the three nobles and pointed to his nose: "I am a commoner, but I devote my life and blood to Rand day and night. Just by virtue of my dedication, I am qualified to stand here. Your Highness has always You like to be close to the people whom Rand values ​​most. Do you want to destroy His Highness’s opportunity to show his people-friendly image? If not, just let me watch from below.”

After quarreling all five people, Lynch took another step up. He still pointed at his nose and said to all five people: "Why? Why? I am Lynch Leviev, and the day before yesterday I was in the presence of His Highness. I was stabbed in front of me, and I shed blood for His Highness. The blood-stained clothes are still hidden in the cabinet at home. So, all you brave, noble, glorious and wealthy gentlemen, now face the piece that is not here. He touched his chest and told me, facing a brave man who saved the princess, who of you thinks you are more qualified than me to invite His Highness to the first dance? "

His eyes swept across the faces of the five people one by one. The aura he had developed during this period made him calm and confident. The five young people were speechless when asked. No matter how unwilling they were, they could only lower their heads with nothing to say.

"The most important thing is..." Lin Qi showed a bright smile again, "Inviting Her Highness the Princess to dance is based on whether Her Highness the Princess is happy, this person is happy, and those five people are unhappy."

With that said, Lynch turned back to the direction of the princess, quickly walked up the stairs, knelt down on one knee in front of Her Royal Highness Sophia, and raised his right hand upward:

"I, Lynch Leviev, on my own behalf, invite Her Highness Sofia to dance the first dance with me."

Her Royal Highness the Princess stood upright in front of Lin Qi, staring at Lin Qi's face with lake-like eyes. After staring for a long time in the breathless silence of everyone in the audience, she suddenly burst out with a dignified smile, raised her hand and put it on Lin Qi's face. Qi's palm.

"boom!"

The fireworks lit up and the whole audience cheered.