"Declined."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"
Wilhelm II chose a very simple way to respond — he just ignored it.
An annoying topic? Just don't listen.
However, even though Field Marshal Waldersee looked utterly stunned, Wilhelm II showed no sign of backing down at all.
"It will only take a few minutes! This concerns the dignity of the Empire and the royal family. Please do listen to the opinion of this old minister!"
"I know what you're going to say. But my answer remains: 'There's no value in listening.' So stop harboring any pointless expectations, go back and have a good rest to relieve the fatigue of the journey."
"But Your Majesty! That Chinese person...!"
"Hey, watch your words, Marshal."
Wilhelm II said with a warning expression:
"If you insult Hans in front of me again, I will regard it as an insult to myself."
"His very existence is an insult and a stain on Germany. The yellow race is just the yellow race after all!"
"Hans is different from other inferior people of the yellow race. His outstanding intelligence and his loyalty to me and the Empire are recognized even by others."
"But his relationship with that British lady is also..."
"Field Marshal Waldersee! Are you insulting my mother now?"
"What?!"
Waldersee's pupils quivered violently.
He was extremely astonished. Clearly, Wilhelm II himself usually referred to her in the same way, yet now he was suddenly turning against it?
"What on earth happened during my time in China?"
In Waldersee's perception, the relationship between Wilhelm II and Empress Dowager Victoria Adelaide had always been far from good, and could even be said to be extremely bad, with no signs of improvement at all.
At least that was the case before he left Europe.
Waldersee had never expected that they would reconcile their past grievances thanks to Hans' help.
"Don't say any more. I don't want to hear it anymore."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."
"If you continue, I will consider it an insult. If you don't want to disgrace yourself and take off that military uniform, just step down now."
Field Marshal Waldersee opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something more, but in the end, he seemed to give up and could only leave the room dejectedly.
After confirming that Waldersee had left, Wilhelm II showed a smile.
As he had said, the concerns of Bülow and Schlieffen were nothing but groundless worries.
Look at that. The stubborn Waldersee couldn't even come up with a single retort and could only slink away.
"Now the problem is solved."
Wilhelm II showed a victorious smile and indulged in his complacency.
...
"How could His Majesty the Kaiser insult me like this!"
Our Kaiser's belief that he had solved the problem was just a misunderstanding.
Waldersee's intense anger and hatred could by no means be diminished by such trivial matters.
"It's all that bastard's fault! That yellow-skinned monkey's fault!"
On the contrary, his anger only flared up even more.
"You people, what on earth have you been doing to let the situation get to this point!"
Waldersee's anger soon turned towards the military personnel around him.
A grand banquet had been specially prepared to celebrate the Marshal's return, but in return, they only received the old Marshal's scolding and accusations.
"This is really a headache."
Chief of the General Staff Schlieffen covered his forehead and said.
Ever since the Kaiser said he would handle the matter personally, he had felt uneasy.
But now that the Marshal's anger had been stirred up to such an extent, how was he going to deal with the aftermath?
"How could the proud Junkers nobles of Prussia have fallen to such a pitiful state!"
"But, Marshal, we are also very dissatisfied with this situation. But since His Majesty the Kaiser favors that kid so much, there's really nothing we can do."
An officer summoned up the courage to say, and the others nodded in agreement.
"What's more, it seems that His Majesty has been bewitched by some mysterious Eastern sorcery. Not only His Majesty, but even the entire royal family has been charmed by that kid. The Empress, the Crown Prince, and even the Princes are no exception."
"To be honest, I really want to challenge that kid to a duel directly. But no matter what, I can't send a challenge to a child, can I?"
Did they really like that a person of the yellow race not only received the Kaiser's favor but also pretended to be a noble in front of them?
If they could have gotten rid of him, they would have done it long ago.
But that child had Wilhelm II and the entire royal family standing behind him, and it was almost impossible to touch him.
"Then kill that kid!"
"What, what?!"
The Junkers nobles wore expressions of "That's going too far" and looked at Waldersee.
Assassinating a child was not only dishonorable but also hurt their pride.
"Field Marshal Waldersee, such remarks have crossed the line."
"Schlieffen! Are you speaking up for that brat?"
"I'm asking you to consider the consequences. This isn't the Middle Ages anymore. What's all this talk about assassination?!"
"Damn it. This guy and that guy, they're all a bunch of cowards..."
In the face of Schlieffen's opposition, Waldersee showed a dissatisfied look and muttered.
When he himself was the Chief of the General Staff, such things never happened. He really missed those days.
"Then use your brains! The Kaiser's favor? Hmph! Make that kid lose the Kaiser's favor, and the problem will be solved, won't it?"
Waldersee said.
Wilhelm II was essentially a capricious person.
Therefore, no matter how loyal a subordinate was, as long as he offended the Kaiser, he would be mercilessly abandoned.
Waldersee himself had experienced such a thing.
"His Majesty currently has a very high opinion of that kid. So, as long as we can prove that he's as incompetent as other people of the yellow race, the Kaiser's opinion will naturally change!"
"Oh... oh..."
The officers couldn't help but exclaim in wonder and nodded one after another.
Indeed, without the Kaiser's protection, that kid would be finished.
By then, they could drive that annoying yellow-skinned brat out of the court.
At least, compared to direct assassination, this was a much more reasonable plan.
"These idiots..."
But Schlieffen knew that all this was just their delusion.
He was well aware that Hans was by no means a brat who relied solely on luck. Thinking of this, his head began to ache faintly, and he couldn't help but shake his head.
"Coincidentally, I have a great idea!"
Someone said confidently.
Waldersee looked in the direction of the voice with interest.
"Although it's just hearsay, it's said that that Baron has been researching and developing a strange new weapon recently."
"A new weapon?"
The fact that even Schlieffen didn't know about it made his pupils shrink slightly.
"Perhaps, we can take advantage of this."
"Oh? What's your name?"
"Yes! Major Erich Ludendorff of the 9th Infantry Division!"
Snap!
Ludendorff saluted Waldersee.
His performance seemed to satisfy Waldersee, and a smile appeared on the corner of Waldersee's mouth.
The conspiracy against Hans officially kicked off.