Chapter 2367 - 303: Flora, Do You Have Any Other Requests?

The young Albert was visibly taken aback, as if he didn’t expect Arthur to ask such a mundane question at this moment.

He thought Arthur would ask him his opinion on the Belgian issues.

Albert hesitated and cleared his throat: "The newspaper... I haven’t really been reading much lately."

He spoke softly, as if admitting to some disgraceful fault.

Arthur smiled and asked, "Does Your Highness not like reading the news?"

"It’s not that I don’t like it; I do read the newspapers often." Albert, embarrassed, scratched the back of his head: "It’s just... since arriving in London, I’ve been busy catching up on the latest issues of ’The British’ these past few days."

When Albert said this, it was now Arthur’s turn to be stunned.

"Hmm?"

Albert blushed as he explained: "When I was at Bonn University, I would occasionally ask someone to send me a few copies from England. But the mailing process was too slow, and I could basically only read last month’s back issues each time."

Arthur wasn’t unaware of the popularity of ’The British’, nor was he ignorant of Albert’s fondness for reading novels. He just didn’t expect Albert to become such a devoted reader of ’The British’.

Arthur couldn’t help but smile knowingly: "Is reading ’The British’ some sort of shameful hobby? Why are you hiding it?"

Albert waved his hands repeatedly: "It’s certainly not a shameful hobby. ’The British’ is a rather good magazine, featuring both popular novels and quite nicely composed poetry and prose, but..."

Albert appeared somewhat dejected as he spoke: "I guess you can tell, my trip to Britain is not simply to attend the coronation ceremony. My father, as well as Uncle Leopold, have high expectations for me."

This was the topic Arthur was waiting for.

"Hmm..." Arthur looked up at the sky, taking a deep breath. He naturally sat down beside Albert: "Is there some kind of difficulty you’ve encountered?"

Albert pursed his lips: "Difficulty... not exactly, it’s just something that you might have already noticed."

Arthur remained silent, simply watching him quietly.

Albert rubbed his face and sighed deeply: "From the moment I became aware, I knew the expectations of my family weighed on my shoulders. My father hopes I can inherit the traditions of Coburg, and Uncle Leopold explicitly told me that if I could establish a close relationship with cousin Victoria, it would greatly benefit the stability of Europe."

Albert spoke these words without complaint, but rather with a sense of helplessness: "Therefore, since I realized my responsibilities, I began to diligently study languages, etiquette, and history, telling myself I must become a person my cousin can trust for life."

Arthur watched the young man sitting upright before him, unsure what to say for a moment, realizing there seemed to be no one so innocent left in his circle anymore.

Charles Dickens might have counted in the past, but ever since his first love hit a snag, his attitude towards romance has shifted entirely. Although Dickens’s current view on love still differs greatly from Eld’s, he can no longer be considered a pure-hearted boy.

As for the others...

Eld and the Great Dumas barely have room for discussion when it comes to feelings, even though they are both incredibly charming in their words. But as the saying goes, "judge by actions rather than words," and these two are the quintessential examples of saying one thing and doing another.

And Mr. Louis Bonaparte?

To be honest, Mr. Bonaparte isn’t much better in this regard either.

As Napoleon’s nephew, Louis is never short of female attention, becoming the center of the dance floor whenever he appears at a social ball. Although the women are interested in him for various reasons, there are indeed quite a few who wish to become Mrs. Bonaparte.

Compared to the aforementioned three, Disraeli seems almost like a gentleman in matters of love.

After all, our dear Diz has no other requirement beyond his fondness for older wealthy women.

Oh, perhaps we’ve forgotten Darwin and Tennyson. These two gentlemen indeed can be considered pure-hearted individuals.

Moreover, both of their girlfriends were childhood sweethearts; Darwin is engaged to his cousin Miss Emma Wetwood, while Tennyson’s girlfriend, Miss Emily Selwood, has known him since he was nine.

However, compared to Darwin and Tennyson, Albert’s situation is evidently far more complex.

At least the former two fell in love freely, whereas Albert is completely in an arranged marriage.

Upon closer thought, this Coburg prince was essentially the Saxon-Coburg-Gotha Family’s intended "child spouse" for Victoria, wasn’t he?

Albert exhaled softly: "I know, my cousin doesn’t actually like me. She occasionally writes to me, but there’s always an air of superiority in her tone. In her letters, I probably seem more like a distant younger relative to her, rather than a contemporary."

Upon hearing this, Arthur could only comfort him: "Your Highness, she is the Queen of Britain. There are naturally few people in this world more noble than her."

Albert closed his eyes in pain: "I know she is the Queen of Britain and one of the most noble people in the world. For this position, she has endured pressures unlike those on ordinary people ever since her youth. Uncle Leopold and Aunt have told me all about this. So, I have never dared to hope that she could look at me as an equal. But, but!"