I have a long-lived pawn shop.

In the autumn of 1893, in the middle of the Dark Ages, a delegation from Brittany arrived in Jallais.

Emperor Odin received the delegation at Hampton Court Palace.

This building was built a hundred years ago and is still well maintained. Amid the white painted carved railings, several tall osmanthus trees stand upright on both sides of the gate. The red and white road extends to the end of the steps. The main body of the palace is made of scarlet marble, and the foundation is white quartzite. The walls are inlaid with rose windows decorated with colored glass. The whole mansion is immersed in a holy and romantic style. The evening bells and gardens are all romances described by poets.

It is said that a hundred years ago, the emperor was deeply in love with a beautiful nun, but the nun was a devout believer and did not want to leave God and enter the secular palace. The emperor could not bear to go against her wishes, so he ordered the construction of this palace in the suburbs as her place of practice.

The nun lived in this place far away from the hustle and bustle of the world. She wore a white robe and no makeup, reading scriptures and praying day after day. Only on the sixth full moon night would she change into a red dress and go to the garden of the palace in her best attire.

The palace was quiet and empty. A stone platform slowly rose in the middle of a clear pond in the garden. The entire stone platform was covered with red roses, like a stage covered with thick red velvet, and the water waves reflected the moonlight upwards. The red roof was full of glittering water lines, making people feel as if they were in a dream. At that time, the affectionate emperor was waiting alone by the clear pond. They embraced and danced on the stone platform. The nun spun, and her long skirt opened like a peacock's tail feathers. They danced all the way outside the garden. The huge square in front of the palace was their dance floor, and the moonlight flowed like mercury under their feet. The nun always wore a red skirt on a moonlit night, and the bright red brocade was like a blooming flower, but she never smiled at the emperor.

Until one day, the emperor found that the woman who came slowly had changed into a white dress as white as ice and snow. The white dress looked like a nun's dress, with only blue roses embroidered on the hem. The nun had a smile on her face like melting ice and snow, her skin was white and transparent, and countless silent words flowed in her eyes. She told the emperor: There was a time when her reverence for God as a believer and her love for a man were in fierce conflict in her heart. Since then, she has lost the freedom to smile at him.

The nun's smile captivated the emperor. They danced until dawn, and the woman's cheeks were as beautiful as newly blossomed peach blossoms. The emperor thought he had finally impressed her and decided to marry her as his imperial concubine. On another full-moon night, the emperor brought the ring to the garden as agreed. There was no moon that night, and the sky was full of dark clouds. The nun did not appear on the stone platform at the agreed time. The emperor suddenly burst into tears because he knew that the nun was dead. In his lonely second half of his life, no one would love him as much as he loved a god. So the emperor stopped visiting on moonlit nights and stayed away from the mansion that swallowed his love forever.

A hundred years later, this dreamlike building became increasingly deserted, with few visitors, because it was filled with the atmosphere of "commemorating a deceased person", and the imperial concubines of later generations chose to stay away from this depressing mansion. The previous emperor gave Hampton Court Palace to Odin von Carpell-Kafa, who was still the crown prince. This mansion looks luxurious, but after all, it is located near the suburbs, and the people living here are all nobles with declining families. And it used to be a haunted house, and the owner died in it. So it is hard to say whether this gift is the emperor's expression of dissatisfaction with the young crown prince... But after Odin ascended the throne, all the rumors about Hampton Court Palace were washed away, and it regained its vitality as when it was just built a hundred years ago.

The rising sun has already appeared above the clouds, like an egg yolk suspended in warm water. Maple leaves are turning and falling, cutting the warm sunlight into pieces, and the fragrance of sweet-scented osmanthus is blowing in my face, like a moist autumn mist, falling on my face.

The procedure of receiving the delegation has been completed and the credentials have been submitted. Next, the Imperial Council will discuss the details with the delegation. Emperor Odin is sitting in his private living room with a black box in front of him. It lies flat on the table. Odin is looking at it intently, as if he is looking at a person.

He knew what was in the box. The solidified psychic ritual items were usually contained in this special black box. He hesitated for a moment, and finally sighed softly, opened the box, injected psychic energy into the ritual items, and then said nothing.

At present, the radio technology of the Perpetual Motion Institute has not reached the level of free communication across continents, so the only way for the two parties to communicate is through expensive and complex psychic rituals. The name of this ritual is very straightforward, called [Exchange]. According to the records of the Dark Ages, even mountains could be replaced, but now they can only exchange light and intangible languages.

After the ceremony was activated, the empty living room was filled with the endless sound of rustling rain, making people feel as if they were standing in the rain.

Amid the rustling sound of rain, a female voice suddenly rang out: "Long time no see, Odin. This is greetings from Brittany, the southernmost part of the continent." The voice was no longer young, but still pleasant to the ear, like a blade smeared with moonlight. "Say something, let me hear your voice again, just like we sang a love song together at the Midsummer Night Celebration."

Odin's expression changed. This high-ranking, strategic old man suddenly became younger, with an additional bewitching charm. He was just like a young man in his prime in a neat military uniform, willing to draw his sword for the woman he loved.

However, the change was only fleeting, and Odin sighed softly and said, "Mary, Maria, long time no see, we have both grown old.

"No, you are not old. Oh, you are the only one who will not grow old. Neither I nor your playmates back then, we are all no longer young. Only you still have the same upright figure as when you were young, sharp and strong, as if you are ready to destroy everything at any time. You live your life like a knife. So what do you want? Oh, what do you want to be?"

The sharp words tore off the mask of tenderness. The people having the conversation were no longer a pair of old lovers, but monarchs of two countries, two beings who had been infused with "divinity" since the day of their coronation.

"We are essentially the same, Mary, but we have chosen different paths. You reformed the complicated parliament, improved the treatment of civilians, and passed the Port Act and the Navigation Act through parliamentary legislation to unshakably determine the construction, repair and maintenance of the port. Some people think that you are on the road to destruction and have fallen from the nobility of the monarch, because civilians are always ignorant and rude. If one day, you and the royal family can no longer afford the cost of civilians, they will never be willing to return yesterday's treatment. And by that time, they will not remember to praise your virtues today, but will only protest with violence."

"I know, Odin. Everything I do for their happiness and safety could become the rope they use to hang me in the future riot. But, Odin, do you think the root of the fault lies with them?"

"In fact, ignorance, poverty, rudeness, meanness... these sins are not theirs, but mine." The queen's voice was soft and slow. "I am the monarch of this country. They handed the power to me, so I should take responsibility for them. Whether it is ignorance or poverty, I should do my best to change it. How can I stop because of the risks behind the change?"

"The relationship between the monarch and the people is more like a contract. The people give the monarch the power to rule the country, and the monarch should fulfill the responsibility of making the country stable and prosperous."

"Mary, maybe you are right. But people cannot betray their desires and ambitions. Those who betray their desires and ambitions have no value in living in this world. This world will not leave too much time for the elderly." Odin said softly: "After so many years, I have been looking for the way to the throne of the world. Since my mother's death, the desire for power and strength has permeated my blood. As long as the reward is big enough, I can pay any price! I am the emperor of the empire, not the slave of the empire. The era of competition has arrived. A thousand years ago or a thousand years later, there will never be such a moment again. You can't get the throne of the world by tenderness. That thing is too luxurious. You can only get it with gritted teeth."

"Although I hate the Silver Moon Church and do not believe in its doctrine, I think they are right about one thing: since the monarch was anointed, he is no longer a mortal, but an incarnation of divinity. In fact, the monarch is no longer a 'human' but a 'demigod' in the theological sense. God sees humans as a group of white lambs that please Him."

"But the gods are dead. Sacrificing so many lives just to sit on the throne for a few years and be ready to quell any rebellion on the continent, is that too high a price to pay? You married two wives, but you don't love them; you have six children, but you have no feelings for them; you never drink at banquets because you're worried about being poisoned, but you actually like fine wine... You've put in a lot of effort for the throne, but are your six children qualified to be successors?"

"That's my desire, not theirs. Why should I care whether my children are comfortable sitting on the throne I built? If they are not comfortable, they can only die, or be replaced by someone who can sit comfortably."

"Does that mean you have a successor?"

"I'm not sure about being a successor, but there's a look in that child's eyes that I really like."

"Oh, what kind of look?"

"Greedy and ambitious. When he made up his mind, his eyes were so hard that it seemed he could grab the throat of the God of Destiny and force Him to change the future."

"Really? That's really exciting." Queen Mary chuckled.

They fell into a suitable silence, as if they finally had nothing to say, but also as if they had finally said everything. The world was ethereal, the rustling sound of rain and the fragrance of osmanthus were so clear. Odin watched the patterns on the surface of the ritual object gradually become blurred, which was a sign of exhaustion of power. He said lightly: "Next time we meet, we will be enemies. Shouldn't we say some tender farewell words?"

There was a sound of silk rubbing from Queen Mary's side. It seemed that the queen left her seat and walked to the window. The sound of rain became clearer. In this endless rain, her calm voice came: "Oh, you know, tenderness only belongs to us when we were sixteen. We were so young back then. We thought we would never grow old. We acted recklessly and boldly. We did a lot of ridiculous things. We always felt that there was endless time to squander. When we opened our eyes tomorrow, it would be a new day full of fun and interest. We never stayed in one place for too long. We always wanted to leave. We kept moving forward. We would stop where we died. That was enough."

"Unfortunately, everyone grows old. No one can stay young forever. We have become unrecognizable. Now, say goodbye to me, say goodbye to our past selves."

Odin was silent for a moment, and then he slowed down his voice, as if he was still the lonely crown prince: "Goodbye, Maria, the golden-haired princess of Brittany."

The words exchanged in the ceremony were equally gentle: "Goodbye, O, the little golden-haired prince of Kafa."

The sound of rain stopped. Odin sat alone in the living room, his hands on his knees, as if he was exhausted. After a long time, he stood up and walked into a dark room. There were always countless secret rooms and secret doors in the royal palace. This small room only had three things - a dressing table and two paintings.

The dressing table belonged to Odin's mother, who died young, and the paintings, one of which is of his mother and the other of the young Princess Mary.

Odin turned on the gas lamp and looked at the painting carefully in the dim light:

The green lawn, the dark blue picnic blanket, the princess holding a red rose in one hand, and herself, with blonde hair, blue eyes, snow-white skin and red lips...all the colors are so vivid.

The portrait shows a tired princess who has just finished a picnic on a summer afternoon, with her eyes lowered and not speaking, as if she has fallen into a deep sleep. But if you look closely, you will find that her eyes are wide open and she is lost in thought - one cannot help but wonder what she is thinking about.

In the painting, the strong sunlight shines through the dense leaves, and there are still scattered spots of light. The princess's face, neck, and shoulders are covered with a silk veil. This is a kind of silk fabric, very thin and transparent. Under the sunlight, the silk gauze emits a glittering light, like rippling lake water. The princess's face seems to be covered in a layer of water vapor, or shrouded in a cloud of smoke, and it is impossible to see clearly.