1885, I came to save Greece

The greenhouse garden of the new palace is as warm as spring.

The enormous glass dome shuts out the chill and desolation of December. Beneath the dome, exotic flowers and plants collected from all over the world bloom in profusion, filling the air with the scent of damp earth and rich floral fragrance.

This is the safe haven of Crown Princess Victoria.

A soft dream, far removed from the cold, rigid, and war-torn political atmosphere of the Prussian court.

When Constantine entered the greenhouse, Princess Victoria was personally pruning a rose from England with a small pair of silver scissors.

She wore a deep purple dress, her figure elegant. Time hadn't left many marks on her face; instead, it had imbued her with a sense of wisdom and grace. But in her eyes, which resembled those of Queen Victoria of England, there was a lingering trace of melancholy and wariness.

As the eldest princess of England, she was married into this emerging empire, brimming with military adventure. Her mind was freer than anyone around her, her speech more elegant than any Prussian noblewoman, and her fluent English more melodious than her German.

All of this made her an "outcast" in this conservative court.

"Welcome, Your Highness Constantine."

Victoria put down the scissors and spoke in perfect Oxford English. She didn't use Constantine's formal title, but addressed him by his first name, her tone both intimate and authoritative.

"It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness." Constantine bowed impeccably.

The tea party was held at a small white rattan table in the center of the greenhouse.

There were no cumbersome formalities, and no superfluous servants.

Victoria did not discuss any topics related to marriage, country, or politics.

She chatted casually with Constantine like a kind elder.

She talked about Shakespeare's sonnets, Monet's Impressionist paintings, and Byron's Romanticism in advocating for the Greek War of Independence.

Each of her questions seemed casual, and she talked about nothing more than romance and nature.

But each question was like a precise scalpel, dissecting Constantine's knowledge, taste, vision, and even the depths of his soul.

She wanted to know whether the young man before her was a Balkan warlord with a mind full of muscle and intrigue, or a future monarch with a true core of civilization.

Constantine answered fluently.

He discusses the philosophical dilemma of "to be or not to be" in Hamlet, connecting it to the self-awareness of the modern nation.

He analyzed that behind the changes in light and shadow in Impressionism was the urbanization process and entirely new visual experience brought about by the Second Industrial Revolution.

He even corrected a minor error by Victoria regarding Byron's death in Greece, pointing out that Byron did not die on the battlefield, but rather from swamp fever in Messolangión—a detail that many British scholars had overlooked.

His profound historical knowledge, his grand perspective and unique insights that transcended his time, began to quietly melt away the thin layer of politeness and distance in Victoria's eyes.

A hint of genuine surprise appeared in her melancholy eyes.

Just then, a light footstep sound came from behind.

A young girl dressed in an elegant white dress, accompanied by a female official, entered the greenhouse.

The girl possessed the Hohenzollern family's signature brilliant blonde hair and a pair of clear blue eyes. Her features were as exquisite as an ancient Greek sculpture, and her demeanor was noble and dignified. However, her beautiful face was filled with a coldness that seemed completely out of place in this warm, flower-filled room.

Princess Sophia of Prussia.

She walked to the table and gave Constantine a flawless curtsy.

"Your Highness." The voice was clear, yet cold.

Those clear eyes held an undisguised aloofness and scrutiny, even a hint of resistance.

It was as if Constantine was not a prince who came to propose, but a robber who was about to steal her future.

Constantine rose to return the greeting, his face still bearing a gentle smile.

He knew that this marriage was no different from a political transaction for this princess who had grown up under the influence of enlightened ideas. Her resistance was perfectly understandable.

Victoria looked at her daughter, then at Constantine, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes.

She suddenly asked in English, her voice not loud, but it instantly made the atmosphere in the greenhouse heavy:

"Your Highness, I heard that you persuaded even the most stubborn generals in Athens with a brand-new budget proposal?"

The problem is coming.

This question is sharper than any of the previous questions about romance and nature.

It appears to be a compliment, but it is actually a test.

Testing Constantine's political skills.

To test whether he was, as the rumors suggested, a ruthless and autocratic tyrant.

Princess Sofia's gaze also fell on Constantine's face, her beautiful blue eyes filled with even deeper wariness. What she disliked most was the unreasonable, warlike style of the Prussian court.

Constantine picked up the teacup and gently blew on the floating tea leaves.

He did not answer directly.

He smiled, looking at Crown Princess Victoria and Princess Sofia.

"Your Highness, I have not been able to persuade them."

His voice was calm and clear.

"I was just showing them what future warfare would look like. When they saw cavalry charges like cattle and sheep running into a meat grinder in front of a barrage of rapid-fire cannons; when they saw old fortresses crumbling like sandcastles under the bombardment of grenades."

"When they see the future with their own eyes, they will understand that clinging to the past will only lead to being ruthlessly crushed along with it."

"So, it wasn't me who changed them, it was the times that changed them. They simply made the right choice that a soldier, a patriot, should make."

His words cleverly transformed a brutal internal power struggle into a shared understanding of future trends and proactive leadership.

He did not use power to subdue, but rather used truth to enlighten.

The political wisdom displayed in this dispelled the last vestige of doubt in Victoria's eyes.

Princess Sofia was also stunned.

The image of the brutal and tyrannical Balkan warlord she had imagined was nowhere to be found in the calm and wise young man before her.

The tea party has ended.

As Constantine was about to take his leave, Princess Victoria had a lady-in-waiting bring her a folder.

It was the document Constantine had sent in advance: the "Plan for Universal Basic Education in Greece" and the "Plan for the Improvement of Public Health and Sewerage Systems in Athens".

Victoria handed it back to Constantine.

Constantine opened it and was slightly taken aback.

The thick plan was filled with dense annotations and suggestions for revision.

The handwriting is elegant yet powerful.

From the details of teacher training to the ratio of male to female students, from the choice of materials for sewer pipes to the filtration process for sewage treatment.

Every suggestion for revision was precise, pragmatic, and full of humanistic care.

"Your Highness, your idea is interesting, but too idealistic."

Victoria spoke calmly.

"However, I am pleased to see that the future king of Greece is concerned with the health and wisdom of his people, rather than just warships and cannons."

This revised plan is worth more than a thousand words.

This was an olive branch extended to Constantine by her, an idealist who was isolated in the Prussian court.

It was she, as a mother, who gave her initial approval to her daughter's future husband.

Constantine carefully put the folder away.

He knew that he had already broken the first crack in the solid ice of the Hohenzollern family.