She changed Europe

Page 9

"Fortunately, our reinforcements arrived in time. Our twelve magic users' overwhelming advantage held back Su Beiming. Then, the allied regular troops performed exceptionally well. With the assistance of the magic armor piloted by the magic users, the soldiers easily defeated their garrison in Guangzhou and successfully captured the city."

"The outcome of the war afterward was no longer my concern. I was seriously wounded and relinquished command. I went to the Alps to recuperate, accompanied by a letter from Victoria filled with apologies." After all, the fact that the Duke of York was sent to a new battlefield without being given time to recover, resulting in the injury of a war hero in Crimea, forced the Queen to face criticism from the public and Parliament.

"And then came my encounter with you, Sissi." One second Selena was filled with emotion, and the next she moved closer to Elizabeth, half-squatting down and gracefully raising her right hand. Then, like a dignified knight, she kissed Queen Elizabeth's right hand.

"Selena, as you know, I'm already married, so please don't say such mushy things..." Queen Elizabeth's beautiful and mature face showed a hint of shyness that ordinary people would never see.

Wouldn't that be better? Of course, Selena only dared to think that way, not say it.

"Alright! You mean little Gisela will develop into that Eastern magic user like Su Beiming?"

"We cannot rule out this possibility; to be precise, the possibility is quite high."

"Then wouldn't the Saint Stephen's Sword that we prepared for her seem superfluous?"

"How could that be? I think there might be more interesting things hidden inside little Gisela."

While Queen Elizabeth and Selena discussed Gisela's future arrangements, Gisela herself, unaware of the situation, was still thoughtfully strolling with Rita through the meticulously manicured gardens.

Although she has been in this world as Princess Gisela for almost a month, this is probably the first time she has ever wandered aimlessly in the garden like this.

However, she was surprised that the physical changes that had been causing her so much trouble were so easily dismissed by those present. Nevertheless, the recovery of her physical condition did improve Gisela's mood, since all her ambitions and aspirations were just empty talk when she was unwell.

Meanwhile, Gisela, accompanied by Rita, wore her own sun hat and carried the parasol Rita had prepared for her, walking gracefully like a "real" lady.

This seemingly proper demeanor was actually the result of being forced into it by Rita over the past month. The beautiful and responsible maid would never dare to use violence against Gisela; she would only punish her appropriately when the princess misbehaved—by gently comforting her feet with feathers and sharing a brief moment of pleasure.

When Rita did these "horrible" things, she liked to rely on the physical enhancement brought by magic to forcibly suppress her own desire to resist. At that time, she was no match for Rita, and the key was that her body had extremely low resistance to tickling. This led to her being forced to submit to Rita's repeated "education," and her dignity was trampled to pieces by Rita's high heels...

She was a demon, that was Gisela's final judgment. Thinking of these past events, Gisela couldn't help but glance at Rita, who was following behind her.

"Is there something you need, Your Highness?" Rita asked softly, elegantly and gracefully.

“No…” Gisela didn’t say much, but after thinking for a moment, she turned her gaze to the garden where she was.

The geometrically arranged grass and trees in front of me feel empty for some reason. The garden style of this building is obviously an old Baroque design left over from the 18th century, just like my own room, because everything here is directly determined by the aesthetics of the woman who admired Caravaggio.

However, modern European garden design places greater emphasis on the integration of man-made landscapes with nature. Unlike the monotonous tree wall mazes and piles of various single sculptures of the past, designers have incorporated elements such as undulating open lawns, naturally winding lake shores, and clusters of naturally growing trees. Of course, they have also added elements such as pavilions, towers, bridges, rockeries, and other exotic small buildings or imitations of ancient Roman ruins, similar to those in Chinese gardens. It is the British garden designers who have led this trend.

Of course, these are all expressions of high appreciation and love for those who understand these beautiful things, but Gisela is not an artistic youth, so he is not interested in these pretentious stitching arts.

“Rita, judging from the reactions of the Queen Mother and Master Selena, aren’t the fox ears growing on my head a bit of a hassle…” Although Gisela had already hidden her hat under her sun hat, she still chose to ask tentatively, thinking about the reactions of Queen Elizabeth and Master Selena earlier.

She certainly doesn't want to actually have a fake father and then have to go through a farcical situation like "Where Are We Going, Dad?"...

“Your Highness, as far as Rita is concerned, the situation is not as bad as you think. It may seem like a bad thing on the surface, but in reality it is a good thing.”

PS1: Su Beiming's character art will be released later.

Chapter 31 Princess Starting from Zero: Just Taking a Walk (Seeking votes and collections)

"A good thing?" Could the question of her own bloodline be a good thing? However, Gisela had come to trust the maid quite a bit during their time together, so she patiently waited for what she would say next.

"On the bright side, as Master Selena said, you may have already become a mage blessed by the heavens. Although your awakening is incomplete and you haven't truly reached the strength of a mage, the characteristics you've displayed don't lie. Besides, in Rita's opinion, no ruler of any country would be foolish enough to abandon a mage." Rita's words were rather tactful, clearly avoiding mentioning the more sensitive issue of identity crisis and instead guiding the discussion towards national interests.

But Master Selena's concerns were entirely justified. A daughter born to a couple with no Eastern ancestry possessed characteristics of an Eastern sorcerer—what this meant for the empire and the royal family was something no one was unaware of. If her secret were to become known, she believed it would spread throughout Vienna within a day, throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire within two days, throughout Europe within three days, and throughout the world within a week. Her birth would be etched in history as one of the greatest royal scandals of the 19th century.

How did I end up in this mess all of a sudden? I should have known better than to try to awaken my magical powers. But my pride as a man won't allow me to become just a pretty face, and I don't want to become mediocre. Sometimes, people are just such troublesome creatures.

Even if all the above speculations came true, at worst he would lose his current status, and his mother, Empress Elizabeth, might suffer a bad reputation. But given Empress Elizabeth's power, Emperor Joseph would have no choice but to forgive her. Divorce would be out of the question, and the emperor wouldn't be foolish enough to hand over the power of the Austro-Hungarian Empire to someone else.

But when she thought of her mother, Gisela felt an inexplicable urge to protect her. Perhaps this was driven by Gisela's ingrained emotions, or perhaps it was a result of her conscious reflection as a man? Only she herself probably knows the answer.

"Just as my mother said, let's keep this worry to ourselves for now." Anyway, because I'm "going to school," I don't live in Schönbrunn Palace, and I don't need to get along with my family who know me well.

“Your Highness is right. Until the cause is found, we should hide the parts that cannot be exposed to the light. This is the best option for both you and the Empress.”

"By the way, Rita, did they respond to the telegram I asked you to send to Siemens?" Gisela asked Rita as if she had just remembered something.

She is destined to become a trendsetter leading the development of human productivity in the new era, and Mr. Werner von Siemens holds just such a key: electricity will change the future landscape of human energy use.

Of course, another one is the internal combustion engine, but in terms of timing, we still have to wait a while. In 1876, German engineer Otto created the first new four-stroke internal combustion engine that used coal gas as fuel. Seven years later, Daimler's first internal combustion engine that used gasoline as fuel, based on the Otto cycle design, will also be launched. From then on, mankind will completely bid farewell to the era of using coal as the sole industrial fuel and enter a new chapter of using new energy.

This was a wonderful era full of opportunities, but also a chaotic era fraught with hidden dangers. If everything had gone smoothly, then five years later (1873), an economic crisis that would affect the world would have begun, starting in Vienna. On May 9th of that year, in Vienna's bond trading, stocks depreciated by hundreds of millions of guilders within 24 hours; what followed was a complete collapse of credit and the suspension of securities trading.

The Vienna stock exchange crisis quickly spread to other stock exchanges in Europe, leading major European countries to halt capital outflows to the United States. Banks in New York also stopped funding railroad companies and industries. Thus, on September 18 of that year, Zeikuk Financial Corporation, which held a large amount of bonds of the Northern Pacific Railroad, declared bankruptcy, and a far-reaching global economic crisis fully erupted.

Besides the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Austria-Hungary, countries affected or impacted by this crisis include Russia, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Belgium, as well as non-Western countries such as Japan, Argentina, and India, covering the entire capitalist world.

This crisis will also profoundly influence the transformation of a great man's thinking in his later years, making him more convinced of the inherent evils of capitalism and the necessity of proletarian revolution, but all of this will happen in the not-too-distant "future".

"I'm sorry, Your Highness, you were unwell yesterday, so I didn't get to show you the telegram in time. Actually, the telegram was sent over yesterday around dinner time."

“This is not your fault. Look at how Mr. Werner responded.”

"Mr. Werner would be delighted to have lunch with you, and he also said that it would be the greatest honor of her life to be able to see Her Highness the Princess's beauty." Are all European gentlemen of this era so glib? Gisela, a man of the past and not of this era, could not possibly know that such flattery in the manner of ladies was actually just basic practice.

"Did he confirm the time?" Gisela, who was listening intently to Rita's words, noticed that the time or date was not mentioned.

“Your Highness! The time should be set by the lady herself, especially since you are a noble Habsburg princess!” Rita mistakenly thought that Gisela’s inquiry was to accommodate Mr. Werner, so she reminded Gisela with a slightly serious expression.

Rita was absolutely right. Among European nobles of that era, in order to demonstrate their refinement and gentlemanly manners, men preferred to give women the choice of time. This respect for women also influenced the attitudes of some commoners towards women to some extent.

"Then let's set it for three days from now. Considering that it takes about the same amount of time to get from Berlin to Vienna by train." This was Gisela's personal consideration, but she didn't seem to have considered that sending a telegram would also take time, and there was no direct railway between Berlin and Vienna at the time. However, these were not issues that Gisela should worry about; let Mr. Siemens deal with them himself.

"Your Highness, it seems a new carriage has arrived at the gate."

"A carriage? Does the carriage have a family crest?" I hope it's not my family members who have come, otherwise the Austro-Hungarian Empire's prime time slot at 7:30 will be completely taken over by my Habsburg family drama.

"The red and white checkered single-headed crested eagle is the carriage of the Marquis of Moravia."

"What are they doing here? I don't recall telling them I moved here." Aside from the people in this estate, only Empress Elizabeth and Emperor Joseph knew that she had secretly come here to study; even her sister Sophie and brother Rudolf were unaware of it.

"By the way, Her Majesty the Queen and her entourage didn't arrive in a carriage bearing the Habsburg coat of arms, did they?" If they saw the Habsburg double-headed eagle in front of this mansion, they would be exposed.

"No, Her Majesty the Queen and Master Selena also traveled in ordinary carriages to conceal their identities."

"That's good. Let's go and meet this Moravian Marquis's family."

Chapter 32 Princess Starting from Zero: Capter 31 Rania of Moravia

The noble Lady Rania von Brno, the future heir to the glorious Principality of Moravia, lived in a place surrounded by glory, from her fiefdom to her family. They were God's favorites. Since the signing of the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, they had controlled the heart of Europe, Moravia, as the Habsburg family's representatives. The Principality of Moravia and the Kingdom of Bohemia together supported the most powerful industrial region in the entire Austro-Hungarian Empire.

This land will have a more familiar name in the future—Czechoslovakia.

Of course, in the 21st century, perhaps only short films can make people remember this war-torn land of Czechoslovakia. However, during the Habsburg family's rule in the 19th century, the world-famous Škoda military factory was born here. The artillery they produced would shine in the two world wars that followed, becoming Europe's premier military factory on par with Krupp.

Although their Moravian Marquisate status was not among the most prestigious in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, a nobility dominated by dukes, their wealth was among the highest in the empire. However, more than external wealth, the Brno family preferred to make friends widely. Their friendliness towards visitors was renowned throughout Europe; they not only befriended nobles but also never rejected the friendship of commoners.

This series of exceptional interpersonal skills allowed their family to remain standing even after the European revolutions of 1848 and the changes brought about by the transformation of the empire from a unipolar Austrian Empire to a dual Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1867.

The reason Miss Rania is visiting Gisela today is because she heard that a student with zero magical energy has appeared at the Imperial Royal Magic Academy. Although she did not see it with her own eyes and dared not easily say whether the news was true, her curiosity did not stop her, as a "pragmatist," from going to the student's residence to confirm it herself.

“My goal is not to humiliate her, but to win her friendship. (Probably)” Rania gently patted her cheeks, then took out a mirror and tidied her fiery red hair, before giving herself what she considered a very approachable smile.

"Smile OK! Her name is Louise Vanessa Hurence, isn't it?" Rania confirmed the name of the person she was about to visit. As a noblewoman, it would be very embarrassing to call the host by the wrong name during a visit.

"Miss, we've arrived. Please wait a moment while I put out the floor mats for you." A middle-aged man with a deep, hoarse voice respectfully reminded his young mistress inside the carriage, then stopped the carriage and opened the door for her.

"What time is it for Hans?" Rania asked the middle-aged man beside her, tilting her head up.

“Miss, it is 4:31 p.m. If the Hurons are hospitable, I believe they will invite you to dinner. That is why I mentioned this possibility to your mother before I left.”

“Thank you very much, Mr. Hans,” Rania replied with a smile.

"However, Mr. Hans, the Hullens family is not a noble family, so we don't need to be too strict with them about etiquette. This visit was a spur-of-the-moment decision, so if anyone was impolite, it was us first."

After speaking, Rania lifted her skirt and got off the carriage. Looking around, she focused her gaze on the other carriages parked in the open space.

She noticed that there was another carriage besides the owner's. Although the carriage looked simple, the horses on the reins were all fine horses. The experienced Rania recognized the breed of the horses at a glance. They were undoubtedly Hanoverian horses.

This warmblood horse is the product of crossbreeding its original German horse bloodline with various bloodlines such as the English Thoroughbred, Arabian, and Trekner. It is not only good-looking but also has outstanding endurance and explosive power. It can be used not only as a horse to pull carriages but also as a hunting horse and a warhorse. It is for this reason that it was particularly sought after by the nobles at that time.

"It seems we already have guests," Rania confirmed in a low voice.

"Welcome, distinguished guest from the Marquisate of Moravia." A soft female voice interrupted Rania, who was trying to guess the identity of the carriage owner. She turned around and saw a stunningly beautiful maid with silver-gray hair, a beauty mark at the corner of her eye, and a tall, slender figure, and behind her a beautiful young woman with golden hair, fair skin, and captivating features.

“I’m sorry to disturb your rest at this inopportune time, Miss Hurons. My name is Rania von Brno, and as you can see, I am the daughter of the Marquis of Moravia.” Rania nodded and bowed. Her intuition told her that the blonde girl in front of her was the Miss Louise, the one she wanted to meet, who had zero magical energy.

For some reason, Rania felt a sense of familiarity when she first saw Gisela, as if she had met Gisela somewhere before, but she couldn't quite recall where.

“It’s not our way of treating guests to stand outside. Rita, so please bring Miss Rania inside for a chat.” Gisela smiled, appearing dignified and reserved, as if she were truly a well-educated young lady.

However, what she was thinking at this moment was that it would be best not to let her meet her mother, otherwise it would be awkward. Fortunately, the house was quite large. As long as it was arranged properly, Miss Rania should not meet Queen Elizabeth and Master Selena. It was understandable that a noblewoman would not recognize her, since she did not appear in social occasions often, but it would be a joke if she did not recognize the Empress of the Empire.

“Yes, Miss.” Rita bowed politely again, gesturing for Rania to follow her into the mansion. Gisela followed the two inside. As they walked, she secretly observed the suddenly arriving noble lady. Her fiery red hair exuded sunshine and vitality, and her delicate features added to her liveliness. According to her male aesthetic standards, she was a typical beauty, perhaps even quite popular at school.

"Miss Hurons likes this hat so much that she doesn't want to take it off even in her room?" Since Rania wasn't very familiar with Gisela, she decided to start a conversation with this trivial question.

But she clearly didn't notice the magical exchange of glances at that moment; the master and servant had reached some kind of consensus in an unintentional eye contact.

“That’s right! I really like this hat, so I don’t want to take it off,” Gisela explained kindly to Miss Rania. Had they found out so quickly and were trying to find out what was going on? This obviously made Gisela wary; after all, the prettier a person is, the more dangerous they might be.

"I see."

"Miss Hurons, how have you been lately? Has your health been affected by this?" Rania assumed Miss Hurons must have been severely traumatized by the Zero Magic Energy incident, so it was understandable that she might be feeling down or unwell. But these words of concern sounded increasingly off to Gisela and Rita.

PS1: Actually, Gisela looks quite similar to Navia when she grows up a bit.

PS2: Because the remake is really being rewritten with great care, there's really no way to update it quickly 0v0!

PS3: The illustration shows her a bit older; she's only a few years older than Gisela now.

Chapter 33 Princess Starting from Zero: Capter 32 Sleeping Green Tea (Seeking Votes)

"I'm fine. So what if I don't have magic power? I still have to live, don't I? Whether it's for myself, for my family, or for those who have designs on me." Gisela glanced at the red-haired girl beside her, avoiding a direct confrontation. Meanwhile, Rita, who seemed respectful, had already narrowed her wine-red eyes and gripped her skirt with her right hand.

At this moment, as long as His Highness gives the order, she will not hesitate to draw the dagger hidden inside her thigh and deliver a fatal blow to the woman in front of her.

"Full of ulterior motives?" Rania listened to Gisela's words and fell into her own thoughts. Was the girl in front of her really that insecure? Thinking of this, Rania looked at Gisela with more sympathy and became more convinced of the significance of her visit today. She absolutely could not abandon any classmate who needed help.

"I want to be your friend..."

"Become friends?" Gisela's expression froze for a moment at the words, then she stared wide-eyed incredulously, as if looking at a fool.

This vast palace was full of profit-driven people, let alone this noble young lady who had grown up in such an atmosphere. However, this also confirmed one thing for Gisela: the other party seemed not to know her, or perhaps she was being made to pretend not to know her. In any case, she felt that the former was more likely, because the girl in front of her did not seem difficult to understand.

“Rita…” Gisela spoke up, and Rita, understanding, loosened her grip on her skirt and smiled at the two of them, saying, “So, ladies, what would you like to drink?”

“I’ll just have green tea as usual.” Gisela spoke first, a privilege reserved for the hostess.

"Miss Hurence, so you also enjoy green tea from the East? I like green tea too; the refreshing aroma of the leaves is surprisingly pleasant. However, our Imperial Royal Magic Academy's headmistress, like those British gentlemen, prefers black tea. But that's not surprising, since she was formerly the Duke of York." Perhaps unsure how to start a conversation, Rania could only use this as a pretext to begin talking about the headmistress whom all the students at the school respected.

What was said in jest was taken seriously by the listener. She had only learned today that the headmistress, Selena, was from Britain and loved drinking black tea.

Considering the agreement between Britain and Austria, the news that the original Erza Augustus, also known as Selena, had joined the Austrian Empire did not spread widely. After all, handing over a magic user was not a glorious thing. The official statement was that the former Duchess of York was still recuperating in the Swiss Alps and no longer involved in political activities.

Therefore, theoretically even the Marquis of Moravia's daughter shouldn't know the inside story of this matter, so the answer is clear: her motives must be impure.

"So Dean Selena likes black tea." Gisela chuckled, then gestured again to Rita, who was preparing the drinks. Rita nodded slightly, then took a small bottle of strange liquid from the pocket of her maid outfit and poured it into Rania's cup. Don't ask me why Rita would have something like that in her pocket.

"Miss, here's the green tea you ordered." Rita skillfully handed two cups of brewed tea to the two of them.

“Miss Hurence, would you like to be my friend?” Rania asked after taking a small sip of tea.

"Hmm! It tastes very good. May I ask what kind of tea you used?" Although Rania didn't know much about tea, she could still distinguish the basic flavors.

"It's Longjing tea from West Lake in the Chinese Empire. If you look closely, you'll notice that the tea leaves are flat, smooth, and straight, with a tender green and glossy color, a fresh and delicate aroma, a refreshing and mellow taste, and tender, bud-like leaves. Gisela loved drinking tea in her previous life, though she couldn't afford the finest Longjing, but she did understand Longjing, which is why she can speak so eloquently about it."

Of course, she wouldn't admit that her expertise in tea was simply a "knowledge point" she had diligently memorized in order to woo her senior from the university's tea club. After all, catering to a girl's tastes is the best way to win her heart.

Of course, reality is harsh. His act of being a wolf in sheep's clothing (or a fox?) was easily exposed, and his senior naturally saw through it. The outcome was predictable, but this knowledge should be enough to fool the girl in front of him without any problem.

"Become my friend? What's the point?" Gisela asked with a smile, her gaze landing on the girl with a hint of amusement.

It must be admitted that Rania is indeed one of the better-developed types.

“Because…because I want to be with…you…” Rania quickly felt her eyelids getting heavier and heavier, and before she could finish speaking, she completely lost consciousness and slumped into her chair.

“The drug is working faster than I expected. Did you increase the dosage a little?” Gisela first went to Rania’s side to check her breathing, then turned back to look at Rita with a reproachful expression.

"That's not true, Your Highness. This is just my normal dosage when I administer the drug." Rita smiled, licked her index finger, and looked at him with a hint of amusement.

Don't think I don't know, she only took a tiny sip, okay? How much would you have to put in to have such a good effect? ​​I don't know why Gisela always feels that it's strange that her maid carries this kind of thing with her!

About half an hour later—

Could the lovely and kind Miss Rania von Brno have imagined such a day would come? She faced the world with such goodwill, only to suffer, for the first time in her 14 years, a return filled with malice. How devastating would this be for someone who lived by the motto, "Those who do good will be blessed by God"?

At this moment, Rania's brows were furrowed, her expression furious, and she glared at the master and servant duo before her, seemingly wanting to devour Gisela and Rita alive. But what Rania considered a terrifying expression was more of amusement to Gisela; to Gisela, this reaction was like that of a small animal whose behavior remained comical even in anger.

"Why are you treating me like this? I don't remember offending you in any way! And don't you know I'm a member of the Brno family?!" This was the only thing Rania could still say at this moment, because her identity as a member of the Brno family had become her biggest trump card for self-preservation.

"Guess." Gisela sat across from Rania, crossed her legs, and looked at the red-haired girl in front of her with a strange urge to bully her, so the corners of her mouth turned up in a dangerous smile.

PS1: It's the weekend!

Chapter 34 The Princess Starting from Zero: Capter 33 The Red-Hot Iron Rod