Chapter 186 - 184: Soiree Blanche IV
He has a plan, and if that plan works, then things would be great. He doesn't even want to imagine the alternatives, but if things go from worse into worst, then God help him.
From this point, if Geoffrey decides to marry Serena right after she goes out of school, then he only has 2 years. However, he knew Serena was not weak willed and she may be able to delay it for about 2 years at the maximum. He knew that he can't do everything in 1 year after he graduates, but perhaps 2 years will do. So, giving himself some allowance, he has 3 years overall to make everything work.
He tried to study what's happening in the court by collecting information from different sources which sad to say, he currently doesn't have a lot of. However, what he knows for now is sufficient.
The court was divided into 3 groups. The major factions, the monarchists and the radicals, and the group of people who were still neutral. His father was part of the monarchists by default due to his mother, but he learned that his position wasn't stable because of the King. It was real news to him when he found out. That could only ever mean that going out with the open with Serena unprepared would mean not only social destruction to her, but even worse for him and his family.
He knew that his father's name has some weight and that they have their own military force. However, although he has no doubt that his father will side with him and might even do the unthinkable, he doesn't want things to go that way. First, there was no guarantee that they will win. Second, he does not want his relationship with Serena to be tainted with bloodshed. Well, if bloodshed is inevitable then the main reason should not be Serena at least.
Now, in court, even though the actual power of the monarch, their king, was dependent on his ability to consolidate the rule and various other factors, ultimately, they were still under absolute monarchy. The reason that the court was divided was precisely because of this.
After the war which his father won, there has already been talks about wanting to change the type of rulership their kingdom has. Constitutional monarchy was an idea which came from Jinjoo, the nation they were in war with before. The former king got wind of it and targeted his father who was a marquis at that time. Honestly, it was not made clear if his father was completely innocent, but based on how he knew his father, the allegations should be false.
Anyway, that was almost 3 decades ago. With his father tied to the monarchy, the political movements for the change slowly died down. It has been thought to be dead for a long time now, that was until it has been reignited 2 years ago.
With the boom in the economy, a lot of people were able to hit gold. People were suddenly able to raise their income and become richer. Now what happens when people can divert their attention elsewhere rather than just feeding their stomachs? What happens when they have more wealth and have achieved substantial improvement in their standard of living? Then they look for security. They want to protect their wealth and of course their lives. They want more rights and freedom. This 'they' includes the nobles, the merchants, and the nouveau riche who he presumes are the backbone of the radicals.
In other words, they don't want to be under the thumb of a ruler that can decide their fate with the snap of his fingers. Thus, they believe that constitutional monarchy is the answer.
Yet their desire for change is still an uphill battle. The kingdom has experienced 3 decades of peace and pushing for change in peaceful times can also be quite difficult. Other than that, both sides are on stalemate.
The information he garnered stops there, but he can somewhat theorize the reasons behind the actions of both sides. He may not be 100% correct, but he could not think of any other reason why there's friction but no substantial movement on both sides.
On the king's side, the main reason that the king has not gotten rid of those in the radical faction was because most of those expressing their opinion were merely small flies that the king could get rid of if he really wanted to. The big fishes behind it are keeping their identities in secret, or at least there are no sufficient evidence to incriminate them. This means that since these sympathizers have not revealed their face yet, if the king were to take action, they may use his action against him.
On the radical faction's side, the reason should be because they lack numbers and military power. Also, they must be waiting for the correct timing. If the king makes a grave mistake, they can then justify their actions.
The neutral group remains neutral because they don't want to get a backlash once one side wins over the other. Playing safe is a good thing, especially to those who do not have enough power. If a family has power, then sooner or later, they most likely cannot remain neutral.
Now with this information, he was able to come up with plans on how he can get Serena's hand.
Plan A is the most ideal. He consolidates power by winning over those in the neutral group, turn the group into a faction, take the lead, and then swear his fealty to the crown in exchange for Serena's hand. It's still treacherous, he won't deny, but more forgivable. This is the plan he will go with for now. Though he acknowledges that it's very fairytale like, a man can dream.
This does not mean however, that he's putting all his eggs on that one basket. The neutral group will remain a neutral faction for a reason. He must always have a back-up plan so although he's not joining the radical faction, he must still test the waters and make his presence known. Of course, he will not become a member, nor will he join their ranks, but he must at least make an impression that he can be persuaded to join them.
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TBC