She changed Europe

Page 13

Speaking of girlfriends, back in the day, who didn't have a "brother" in college who liked to call his girlfriend at night and chat? Those guys completely disregarded the feelings of single people, and Lin Wei was one of those who were persecuted.

As for meeting those roommates now, they probably won't start by saying things like, "Hey Lin, could you bring me some food?" but rather, "Hey bro, it smells so good!"

"Your Highness, look who's that?" Rita whispered, leaning close to Gisela. Gisela turned around and saw Rita looking so serious for the first time, which made her wary. So far, there had been very few people who had given Rita a real problem.

"Hmm?" As Rita spoke, Gisela looked into the distance, where a burly and handsome middle-aged man came into Gisela's view.

The other party was dressed in fine clothes, which made him look very noble. Perhaps because of his military background, he also had a soldier's sharpness about him.

"Who is he?" Gisela asked in a low voice, but received a surprised look in return from Rita.

"Miss Louise, are you doing this on purpose?!" Even Rania, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but ask Gisela.

"Wait a minute, let me think." Gisela racked her brains to recall information about the man.

“Count Andrassy, ​​Graf Andrassy, ​​damn it! It’s that man!” Gisela finally remembered.

Similar to the original history, this man participated in the Hungarian Uprising in 1848, was later brutally suppressed by the emperor and went into exile. In 1857, he was granted a general amnesty by the emperor and returned to Hungary to make contact with the moderate party led by Ferenc Diack. In December 1865, he was elected vice chairman of the party. In 1866, he went to Vienna to negotiate with Emperor Joseph and his wife. During the negotiations, he used his intelligence, handsome appearance and outstanding talent to win the favor of his mother, Empress Elisabeth.

As a being of magical power, she naturally possesses a greater voice than in the original history.

In his subsequent actions, his mother, Empress Elisabeth, became a staunch supporter of the count. Then, his adoptive father was advised by his empress and the then Prime Minister, Friedrich Ferdinand von Boiste, that in 1867 the Austrian Empire was transformed from a unitary empire into a dual empire, and the ancestral Hungarian double agent also gained a status equal to that of Austria.

The count, as the hero of this event, could rightfully be called the uncrowned king of Hungary.

He is currently only the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Hungary, but he will become the Prime Minister of the Empire in the future.

Chapter 45 Princess Starting from Zero: Gisela's Personal Opinion (Vote Requested)

You tell me, there's no love without a reason, nor is there hatred without a reason. Why do you think your mother is so good to this Count Andraci? Is it simply because she recognizes his talent? Or does she have some subtle affection for this handsome count?

But Gisela had met her mother and knew about the relationship between her mother and Selena.

Therefore, she could not imagine that her mother would have any scandalous relationship with this count, as was the case in history.

But when Gisela thought of her pitiful, adopted father, she felt a pang of sympathy.

"Although he holds a high position of power now, is there anything about him that is worth worrying about?" Returning to the present, Gisela still couldn't see anything about the other party that was worth being wary of. After all, no matter what, he was just an ordinary politician, and not a super combatant like a magic user, so theoretically he didn't pose any huge threat to her.

"Miss, Count Andrahi is a very charismatic man. It is said that he still maintains relatively close relationships with at least two Hungarian-born magic users..."

"Two of them!?" Upon hearing this, Gisela understood why he was so special. It turned out that he was a pretty boy who knew how to please women, and at the same time, he had the support of two powerful "harems". Thinking about it this way, this man did indeed have the confidence to walk sideways in the empire.

"It is said that Her Majesty the Queen also has a relationship with Count Andrahi..." Upon hearing Rita's words, Rita, who was standing next to her, wanted to speak with a gossipy look on her face, but she quickly shut her mouth after remembering that the person in front of her was the princess.

“Miss, you don’t need to care about those rumors. I swear to my master that you are definitely the Empress and His Majesty the Emperor’s biological daughter!”

"..." Looking at the serious and earnest maid, Gisela didn't know how to respond for a moment. After all, the ears on her head and the golden fox tail hidden in her skirt were not convincing at all.

But there's no point in thinking about these things...

"So, should we still walk over there?" Gisela looked at the two people in front of her, hoping for their advice.

“Your Highness, let’s wait until he leaves before we go in. It’s not advisable to contact this man right now; he’s not one of the people we’re planning to meet,” Rita whispered seriously to Gisela.

That's the public reason. A more selfish reason is that she doesn't want the young prince to come into contact with such a "dangerous" man. Such a man is dangerous for the prince, who is at the age of just beginning to experience romantic feelings. What's more troublesome is that the man is not married yet...

It should be noted that Count Andrássy was of noble birth, with no issues regarding his lineage. As the spiritual leader of the Hungarians and the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Hungary, his status was quite illustrious. Although he was no longer young, he was still in his prime. Such an outstanding man was rare in the entire empire, and a marriage alliance with him would be beneficial to consolidating Emperor Joseph's imperial power. Even if he had two lovers, they would not have a formal relationship as they were not married.

"That's right, then I'll listen to you." Gisela was simply taking the easy way out; she wasn't really prepared to face such a powerful future minister. The support of the Hungarian people was essential for what Gisela wanted to do. To unite this multi-ethnic nation, even for a short time, she needed to convince the people of the imperial government's determination and confidence in reform. That required a complete and feasible plan, and she also had to contend with the backlash from the imperial conservative forces. Gisela wasn't fully prepared for any of this. (The Hungarian traitor will be used first, then discarded after his usefulness is over 0v0!)

Secondly, there is the issue of Prussia. Compared to the minor matter of whether or not the Italian region should become independent, the most fatal problem is the future war with Prussia. Historically, Austria may not be able to defeat Prussia. If it cannot defeat Prussia, it will lose its hegemony in the German region, and then there will be no hope of continuing the German Confederation, let alone the ambition to establish a unified German nation-state in the future.

Of course, it's not impossible that Gisela might come up with some unconventional methods to defeat Prussia in the future, but as a qualified time traveler, he certainly wouldn't put all his eggs in one basket and wait to be smashed to pieces by Prussia.

In the worst-case scenario, North Germany could be completely handed over to Prussia, but South Germany could not. The fact that South Germany was within the sphere of influence of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was absolutely non-negotiable. The most terrifying thing about Prussia was not its army, but the man named Bismarck who used that army (Gisela doesn't know the gender of Bismarck in this world). He knew the importance of the balance between the great European powers, but he would not be swayed by this balance. Instead, he would use it against them. What Gisela needed to do in the future was to make the great powers realize the threat of Prussia and to deal with Bismarck in the opposite way.

Germany needed to maintain the status quo until the empire completed its reforms. Protecting southern Germany would not only ensure Austria-Hungary's continued influence within the German Confederation but also further strengthen the empire's power. Culturally, the southern German principalities, led by Bavaria, were clearly more compatible with Austria, given that the emperor's wife and mother both came from these principalities. This was Gisela's alternative plan. The difficulty lay not in the problems of overexpansion, but in the political maneuvering among other European powers and their attitudes towards Austria and Prussia.

To convince them that the threat posed by South Germany to Prussia was far greater than that of the Austro-Hungarian Empire maintaining the status quo, Gisela was only beginning to consider these plans. Both schemes would be discussed later when she had the power to influence the empire. However, having already acquired the power of a magic user, the obstacles on her path to power were no longer as difficult as before. Now, fulfilling the task her mother had entrusted to her was her first step from behind the scenes to the forefront.

"Your Highness, that man is gone," Rita whispered to Gisela, who was lost in thought.

"Then let's go in."

PS1: In fact, Bismarck was quite uncertain about the outcome of the Second Austro-Prussian War, also known as the Second Austro-Prussian War. His best, and most realistic, plan was simply to reclaim North Germany and establish the North German Confederation. However, Austria backed down so quickly, handing over South Germany to Prussia as well, thus giving Prussia absolute dominance among the German principalities.

Chapter 46 Princess Starting from Zero: Capter 46 The Hand of Saint Augustine (ra!)

The three of them successfully avoided Count Andrássy, who was passing by, and then entered the royal chapel near the Hofburg Palace.

Logically, the Royal Cathedral should not have allowed the three of them to enter without inspection, but the fact was that the soldiers guarding the cathedral were not on duty, and no soldiers relieved them, as if it were all done on purpose.

Gisela suspected that this might be related to her mother, but she couldn't resist the question posed by her silly senior classmate:

"That's strange, why didn't anyone stop us?"

“There’s nothing strange about it. Maybe they just went to change shifts?” Gisela chuckled, not wanting to explain too much to Rania.

Interestingly, Gisela had already mentally prepared herself for the situation where she would encounter rude soldiers who would obstruct her and verbally abuse her. At that point, she could coldly and fearlessly rebuke these soldiers to satisfy her perverse pleasure of slapping them in the face. Then, under their malice, she would reveal her identity and enjoy a spectacular Sichuan opera face-changing performance.

This tactic is cliché, but who among time travelers wouldn't want to experience the thrill of pretending to be weak while actually being strong?

Unfortunately, reality is reality, and none of these delightful scenes occurred. The three of them walked straight into the church, their high heels making a crisp sound on the marble floor, echoing the surrounding empty space like drumbeats.

“This is the Basilica of Saint Augustine we’ve been looking for,” Gisela said softly, then reached out and took the scroll Rita handed her. She picked up the painting, titled “Saint Augustine at Work,” and examined it closely. The painting depicted the elderly Saint Augustine bent over his desk, holding a quill pen in his right hand and a book under his left, his index finger slightly outward. He looked deeply troubled, as if facing a difficult problem. The colors, like Caravaggio’s other works, were dark, but very realistic. Although it was a copy, the content was almost identical.

"Rita, go investigate the surrounding white walls. Rania, go observe behind the prayer platform." Girinlingqisiw?9 Sisela walked alone to the statue of Saint Augustine, carefully comparing the differences between the statue and the painting.

The statue of Augustine in the Church of St. Augustine is clearly from his prime. The statue does not have the thick beard of the painting, and he is depicted as more energetic, with his back straight, holding a book in his left hand and pointing to the sky with his right hand.

As a Catholic saint during the Roman Empire, his thought encompassed the core ideas of classical schools of thought that preceded the Christian theological system, such as the Platonic and Pythagorean schools. However, it also developed further through the fusion of the old and the new. His proposition that all beauty originates from God, as well as the beauty of morality, humanity, and art, had a profound influence on the religious reform movement that arose in the 16th century. His views became the intellectual source and theological foundation of Calvinism (Reformed Theology).

“Choosing to depict this man in the painting must not be merely to guide people to this location; there must be some related clues contained within the painting.” This speculation is not due to Gisela’s exceptional intelligence, but simply the result of Gisela’s perspective-taking.

Unfortunately, Gisela, lacking art appreciation skills, would certainly find it difficult to understand the painting. Rather than wasting time looking at the painting, she finally decided to start with what she thought was "seeing is believing," and walked around the statue again and again.

"With his right hand pointing to the sky and his left hand holding a book, is he suggesting that the Bible in his hands is the only salvation to heaven?" Gisela boldly guessed, but whether it was correct or not, only the sculptor himself probably knew.

“The Bible, is it?” Gisela focused her attention on the book held in the sculpture's arms. She then easily climbed onto the statue's pedestal and hung from its arm to examine the book closely. (This action certainly had a bit of a mischievous childish feel to it.)

“There are indeed words on it.” Gisela looked enlightened, then gently blew on it, trying to make out the letters that were unclear due to the dust covering them.

"! (The Lord is my guiding light)" Latin was a piece of cake for Gisela, a top student.

"The Lord is my guiding light? What does that mean?" Gisela jumped down from the statue, casually brushed the dust off herself, then jumped off the pedestal and reopened the painting.

“Bright lamp, illuminate, candlelight, light…” She tried to come up with various related words in her mind to gain some inspiration, but none of them seemed quite right.

"Louise, I didn't find anything." Rania was the first to run over and report, followed by Rita. It seemed the investigation had reached a stalemate.

"So, I was wrong about the direction I was considering?" Gisela couldn't help but fall into reflection.

Because she was standing next to the statue, the light shining through the stained glass behind it shone directly onto Gisela's face without any obstruction, forcing her to use her right hand to shield her eyes from the glaring sunlight.

"Miss, the sunlight is too bright at this time of day, please come over here," Rita reminded Gisela out of concern.

"Rita, what did you just say!" Gisela seemed to be inspired by Rita's words, and suddenly turned around, looking at the bewildered Rita with excitement.

“I said the sunlight is too bright, please come over here.” Rita repeated what she had just said.

"That's it! The guiding light refers to the sunlight!" Gisela, as if suddenly enlightened, jumped back onto the pedestal and spread the painting out in the direction of the sunlight. At that moment, a magical scene appeared before the three of them. In the painting, a magical object appeared on the raised finger of Saint Augustine's left hand, which looked like a part of a complete object.

"Rita, didn't I tell you to borrow a fake?!" How could this be? Although the discovery surprised her, a question arose in Gisela's mind again: such clues that could only appear in the original painting should not appear in a fake.

“I’m sorry, Miss, I lied to you. To avoid the error caused by a fake, I borrowed the genuine article directly from Belvedere Palace in your name.” Rita’s calm words stirred up ripples on the calm water, causing Gisela to widen her eyes in surprise.

Because she suddenly realized that the work in her hand might be an original from hundreds of years ago.

"Ah, this... I almost became a sinner who destroyed a treasure of human civilization."

"Rita, never mind, you did a great job..." Although Rita was wrong for not following the instructions, it was precisely because of her strategy that she unexpectedly deciphered the contents of the painting. Thinking about it this way, blaming her would seem unreasonable.

PS1: It's Halloween today! Trick or treat! 0v0

Chapter 47 Princess Starting from Zero: The Eye of St. Peter (1)

"Thank you for the compliment, Miss," Rita nodded, her beautiful face seemingly genuinely enjoying Gisela's praise. Little did Gisela know that this wretched maid would soon be involved in many more acts of subservience, both in public and private...

“Left index finger, right?” Gisela stood on tiptoe and gently pried open the statue’s left index finger with her hand.

After the ground shook, a floorboard suddenly rose from the ground directly opposite the statue, revealing a small golden box in front of them.

"Rita, could you please go and take another look..." Gisela gave Rita a wink before speaking. After all, Rita was still the strongest among those present, and that's what the saying "the capable should do more" meant.

“Yes, Miss.” Rita lifted her skirt again, and under Gisela’s somewhat subtle gaze, pulled out the dagger she always used that day from between her legs. She then slowly approached the golden box. As for the trap Gisela had anticipated, it was not triggered, and Gisela watched as Rita smoothly brought the box to her.

“Open it, there shouldn’t be any danger.” Gisela took the box from Rita and easily knocked open the lid, then saw a fragment inside that resembled the one in the painting.

“This should be a fragment from a complete object. There are four churches, so there should be four fragments. Let’s hurry and find the rest.” Gisela said as she put the fragment into her pocket.

Now that we've found the first piece, finding the remaining fragments shouldn't be too difficult. (Approximately)

Taking advantage of the opportunity to unravel the secrets of the Church of St. Augustine, Gisela and her two companions traveled by carriage to the Basilica of St. Peter in order to quickly solve the secrets of the remaining three churches.

Although the distance from St. Augustine's Church to St. Peter's Church wasn't too far, the three of them ate and drank at a roadside restaurant, which delayed them by nearly an hour. During this time, a small incident occurred: all three of them tacitly agreed that they had no money with them.

The boss was relatively merciful to the beautiful lady and didn't resort to violence. However, being a law-abiding citizen, he ultimately decided to call the police to handle the immediate trouble. Fortunately, Gisela had a flash of inspiration and pulled out the amethyst-like object that Master Selena had used to save her life from under her skirt as collateral.

This prevented a public outcry from taking place regarding a princess of the empire, the daughter of the Brno family, one of the wealthiest noble families in the empire, being arrested by the police for not being able to afford a meal.

The hotel owner, unable to distinguish between the real and fake items, accepted the item as collateral. After all, he didn't really want to call the police, as that would affect his business, and the shiny purple thing looked quite valuable.

"Is Your Highness still thinking about what just happened?" Rita noticed that Gisela's brows were furrowed as if she had something on her mind, so she asked her with concern.

"Rita, you know I went to the school archives today, right?"

“Of course, Your Highness, when you asked me to get the painting, you instructed me to go to the archives to check the register, and I would go to Belvedere Palace to get the painting.” As she said this, Rita glanced thoughtfully at Rania beside her.

"My file was torn up, of course, it was my file from school, the one supposedly identifying Louise." Gisela had been holding a grudge about this, feeling as if she had been laid bare before her opponent, a feeling that made her extremely uncomfortable.

"It's been torn off?!" The first to exclaim was Rania. Perhaps due to having eaten too much, her normally tight belly was now slightly bulging, and her pretty face was shiny with oil. The stress had greatly increased her appetite, and she looked like a husky after eating so much.

"Miss Rania, please keep your voice down. Your voice, which sounds like a duck with its throat choked, will disturb the young lady." After all, Rita wasn't Rania's maid, so she was still somewhat sarcastic towards her.

As for Rita's "unfriendly" attitude towards Rania, it was sown from their first meeting. Her somewhat sarcastic words towards Rania at this time were actually proof that they had become familiar with each other (after all, there would never have been any ridicule before). However, this was just Gisela's conclusion from a male perspective.

"Alright, Rita, that's not right of you. Miss Rania's actions were out of concern for me, so please don't blame her."

“Miss is right,” Rita nodded obediently in agreement with Gisela.

“Miss, it seems to me that they are the ones who did this, after all, no one else would care so much about your information.” Rita didn’t say it explicitly, but the “they” she was referring to were undoubtedly the man who tried to kill Gisela that night and his accomplices.

“I think so too. Do you think we should put the school investigation on hold?” Gisela glanced at Rita and Rania beside her.

"Your Highness's actions should be decided by Your Highness yourself, and we should obey Your Highness regardless of your considerations."

“Obedience, is that it?” Gisela murmured thoughtfully in a voice only she could hear.

"Your Highness, we have arrived at the church." A frail and aged voice came from outside. After the last incident, Gisela's coachman no longer hired from outside but instead had Queen Elizabeth send someone directly. This old coachman who spoke had been serving the Habsburg family for almost fifty years, and his loyalty was absolutely guaranteed.

“Rita, paint it for me.” Gisela raised his right hand and took the second painting from Gisela’s hand, “The Passion of Saint Peter.” This painting was different from the previous one, “Saint Augustine at Work.” This painting was one of Caravaggio’s representative works, and Saint Peter was one of the most revered saints in the Christian world.

Peter, as one of the twelve apostles of Jesus, is far more famous than the other saints. He himself is a wise man who stands as a bridge between God and man, and he is often regarded by the Catholic Church as the first pope in history. In the Vatican in Rome, the church of the Pope is named after him, which shows his outstanding status.

St. Peter's Cathedral in Vienna, though not as large as the Pope's cathedral, remains a renowned holy site in the Catholic world. Locally, it has an interesting nickname: "The New Palace of the Empire." This refers to the cathedral's opulence, which rivals, if not surpasses, that of the nearby Hofburg Palace.

PS1: New month, new tickets! 0v0!

Chapter 48 Princess Starting from Zero: The Eye of St. Peter (2)

This building, distinctly Baroque in style, was constructed between 1701 and 1733, taking 32 years to build. It measures approximately 50 meters long, 20 meters wide, and 56.8 meters high, and can accommodate 400 worshippers simultaneously. Its exterior differs significantly from traditional churches, creating a striking visual impact. The green dome features a convex curved surface above, while the two lower walls are concave curved, resulting in a striking contrast. (While it appears small on the surface, the interior is actually quite luxurious.)

Looking at the scenery before her, Gisela couldn't help but marvel at the extravagance of the European magnates of the past six hundred years. After all, this was all part of their family's wealth. In the future, she must find a way to get more money from her relatives and friends. Otherwise, given her current lifespan as a magic user, she might really see the day the empire collapses. And if she really becomes the last empress then, she should go to the open space outside Schönbrunn Palace and find a crooked tree to solve her problems.

Returning to the present scene, unlike the "seclusion" of the Church of St. Augustine, this place is bustling with people. There are well-dressed gentlemen and elegantly dressed ladies, and of course, some ragged beggars, all lingering around the church or going inside to pray. The beggars are not allowed inside the church due to their clothing, but they can receive alms and relief from the church, which is why they like to linger around it.

“Your Highness, in the proper way, one should remove one’s hat before entering a public church like this. However, your situation is rather special, and there are too many people around. Therefore, we will not choose to enter through the main entrance. The bishop here should be able to let you in through a special passage if he knows that you are a member of the royal family.” Rita told Gisela about her considerations. Gisela was also well aware of what it meant for the fox ears to become known among the people.

“Okay, that’s settled then.” Gisela, led by Rita, entered the room through a side door. They were greeted by a kind-faced, simply dressed priest.

"Your Highness, my esteemed princess." The priest bowed slightly, as if to acknowledge Gisela.

"You too." Gisela didn't really need to return the greeting to a clergyman of relatively low status. After all, the power of the Roman Catholic Church and churches in various regions was no longer comparable to that of the Middle Ages. Even the survival of the Papal States depended entirely on the attitude of European monarchs towards the Pope.

"Does Your Highness need us to do anything for you?"

"Do you have a statue of St. Peter here?" Gisela asked bluntly. Based on her previous experience, Gisela had reason to believe that the secret was also hidden in the statue.

"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand what you mean. We do have statues here, but we don't have one of St. Peter." Not every church named after a patron saint has a statue of that saint. This unwritten rule is not something that Gisela, this "pseudo-believer," knows. Moreover, it's not a secret that this church in Vienna doesn't have a statue of St. Peter; most citizens know this too. For this distinguished guest to ask such a common-sense question seems very strange to the priest, as if there's an underlying meaning.

However, given his current status, he couldn't presume to guess the princess's thoughts. Moreover, the bishop had already received a letter from the palace instructing him to "cooperate" properly and to inform them immediately if anything happened.

"No, right? Then take me to your main hall." Gisela seemed to have no choice but to find another way.

“Your Highness, please come this way.” The priest made way for Gisela in the center, while he himself stood aside to lead the way.

"Although our church's history isn't particularly long, it's quite famous throughout Europe because in the more than 100 years from 1733 to 1868, our church produced 34 saints, nearly 10 of whom were canonized by the Vatican." While I don't know the rules for canonization in Rome, it sounds like a very proud achievement.