Chapter 1397: The ins and outs and right and wrong

Uncle Grandpa?

Hearing the conversation on the other side of the pillar, Leon, who was about to leave quietly, couldn't help but pause.

Remembering that the female cleaner had mentioned her Uncle Grandpa's identity in the backstage before, so the person on the other side of this "call" was the current Bureau Chief of the Water Bottle Branch?

"Hehe, if you want to go home, just come back~"

Not knowing that someone was "eavesdropping" on the side, looking at his grandniece who was unhappy on the other side of the celestial mirror, Bureau Chief Barto of the Water Bottle Branch smiled and comforted her gently:

"You were never a person from 'that side' anyway. Although you have the title of Princess, you spent more time in my place than in the palace, and basically haven't been in contact with any government affairs. It's normal that you can't handle those things."

Hearing her Uncle Grandpa's comfort, the female cleaner, who had a frustrated face, felt a little better in her heart.

However, unfortunately, when she remembered the Leon she saw before hiding, who was standing beside the smiling Queen Veronica and "chatting happily" with the envoys of various countries, the female cleaner couldn't help but whisper with envy:

"But he hasn't been in contact with government affairs either, but he can do it very well..."

Him?

The Water Bottle Bureau Chief on the other side of the small mirror was slightly startled, then asked curiously:

"Who is the 'he' you are talking about? That future Water Bottle Director?"

"Yes, that's him."

Nodding slightly, the female cleaner sniffed and said frustratedly:

"Leon is about the same age as me, and it seems I haven't heard of him being in contact with any government affairs, but he does it very well, much better than me.

Just now I was surrounded and scolded by a group of envoys... it doesn't seem like scolding, they just roared at me with loud voices, but Leon's side was very good. The envoys on his side seem to like him very much, and they are all revolving around him, and they are smiling at him very kindly, and everyone is praising him.

Woo woo... if only I could be as good as him."

"..."

After listening to the female cleaner's envious humming, Leon, who had stayed for a while longer because he heard her mentioning his name, couldn't help but scratch the back of his head awkwardly.

Although the envoys on this side are indeed praising me, and it looks harmonious, the situation on my side is actually not what you imagine.

Those envoys are praising me one after another because they have requests for Veronica. In the face of overly huge interests, even if I farted in public, I guess someone would analyze the rhyme and meter of the fart, and then come to the conclusion that this fart is amazing.

Rather than saying they are satisfied with my "performance", it is better to say that they used me as a breakthrough, hoping to brush up on favorability with me, and strive to take away another piece of cake when dividing the legacy of the Kroke Kingdom.

"Is that so? Then he is really quite powerful."

Not knowing the real situation at the banquet scene, and extracting wrong information from the female cleaner's one-sided statement, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief on the other side of the small mirror smiled and praised:

"I have read the investigation record of that future Water Bottle Director. I remember that four months ago, he should have been just an ordinary person living in poverty, completely unexposed to things like government affairs.

I didn't expect that after just a few months of experience, he not only obtained strength comparable to a True God, but even could handle diplomatic occasions with ease... Perhaps there really are such geniuses in this world who are born with knowledge!"

"..."

Stop praising, stop praising. Things are not what you think. If you praise again, I really won't be able to carry it.

"Uncle Grandpa!"

When Leon was listening with extreme shame, the female cleaner on the other side of the pillar also couldn't help it, and accused with tearful eyes:

"Shouldn't you comfort me now, saying that I am just still young, and that I can be as powerful as Leon in the future? You... Woo woo..."

"Ahahaha, sorry sorry."

Looking at his grandniece whose mouth was pouting high, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief in the mirror smiled and apologized, then comforted her gently:

"Melly, there are actually not that many all-around geniuses in this world. People as powerful as him are very likely only him. You actually don't need to compare everything with him. Just doing yourself well is already quite good."

"I... I just feel a bit unwilling..."

The female cleaner's body slumped upon hearing this, lying on the table holding the small mirror, and muttered with resentment:

"He and I are about the same age, and we were both Level 3 Cleaners before. The talent doesn't seem to be too different. At least we are both Five Palaces selections. In the future... we should both be able to become directors, but he seems to be better than me in everything..."

"Oh, actually it's not that different!"

Hearing this, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief in the mirror waved his hand:

"He is just a little more powerful in strength, did a little more difficult tasks, finished off a few more True Gods, is a little more mature in personality, a little more seasoned in government affairs, has a little higher secret technique talent, and his future achievements are a little stronger... uh... in short, it's just a little bit different."

Looking at his grandniece whose eyes were red again in the mirror, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief hurriedly stopped the knife-supplementing inventory, and turned to comfort her:

"The difference between you might be a bit large, but not everything in it has meaning. Your identity is ultimately a cleaner. Whether you are good at handling government affairs and whether you are suitable for dealing with people are all small things for you.

The most important thing for you is whether you can stand in front of all human beings when danger comes, shelter our ethnic group from wind and rain, and ensure the stable continuation of the entire human race."

When saying this, the blue-haired old man in the mirror hesitated slightly, then looked at his grandniece whose eyes were a bit dazed, and opened his mouth gently:

"Melly, your 'battlefield' is not at the banquet, and even less at the negotiating table or in the conference room. Like your mother, the very front of the human race is where you should be."

Like mother...

After muttering twice in her heart, the female cleaner opened her mouth slightly, then pursed her lips again, and said in a voice that could barely be heard:

"But mother also finally..."

"Melly, although your mother didn't come back, her departure also allowed more people to come back alive. Her sacrifice is worth it."

The Water Bottle Bureau Chief in the mirror sighed, his expression somewhat lonely:

"I know that you and Harvey have always had some resentment about our decision. Harvey didn't even say a word to me for a full seven or eight years, but Melly, many things in this world always need to be done by someone.

In addition, it is not just you who lost family members. That future Water Bottle Director is the same as you, and also lost his parents when he was very young.

And you at least have me and your father to take care of you. He didn't even have the qualification to be sad, and had to work hard to take care of his younger brother and sister immediately. Even the reason he joined the Cleaning Bureau was because his sister was critically ill, and he had to recommend himself..."

"What?"

After listening to Leon's past life from her Uncle Grandpa's mouth, the female cleaner couldn't help but widen her eyes and said with a sigh:

"Leon... actually lived so hard? He usually looks quite happy!"

"True pain will not be hung on the lips."

The blue-haired old man in the mirror sighed.

"In short, the reason he is more mature than you is that he has to be mature. And although you also have some bad experiences, you still have the power to be innocent and even willful. If he were to choose, compared to the maturity and talent you envy, he would probably rather have a complete family... by the way."

When saying this, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief seemed to have thought of something, his expression quite serious:

"Melly, you should just know these things I told you just now yourself. Don't tell others casually, and don't mention this matter in front of that future Water Bottle Director."

"I won't." The female cleaner shook her head upon hearing this, then said with sympathy:

"Leon must have had a hard time getting rid of the pain. If I mention these in front of him, he will definitely be uncomfortable."

"It's not just uncomfortable..."

The Water Bottle Bureau Chief said helplessly:

"The reason I don't let you mention this is because of the cause of his parents' death... The investigation report wrote that his parents were both mechanics and died in that war six years ago."

The war six years ago?

Hearing the Water Bottle Bureau Chief's words, the female cleaner couldn't help but be slightly startled, then her two eyes widened suddenly.

"Six years ago? Isn't that..."

"It is the last war your father personally commanded when he could still get out of bed."

"..."

"So strictly speaking, the reason he lost his parents has a not-small connection with what your father did at the beginning."

Looking at the female cleaner who suddenly fell silent, her expression becoming incomparably complex, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief in the mirror sighed again and comforted her gently:

"Melly, you don't need to have any psychological burden. Your father is not a bad person. Especially for the entire North Kingdom, he might be the best King in the last three hundred years.

It's just that, like your brother Harvey, his goodness only has meaning for the citizens of the North Kingdom. In the eyes of the citizens of other countries, your father is the most ambitious and ruthless King in the North Kingdom."

The female cleaner couldn't help but clench her palms upon hearing this, then bit her lip and asked:

"Then my father... is he right or wrong?"

"Hard to say."

The blue-haired old man in the mirror shook his head, then asked back:

"Melly, what do you think is right? And what is wrong?"

"I..."

After thinking for a while, the female cleaner said with a slightly frustrated expression:

"The war six years ago was invading others, and then many people died on both sides, including Leon's parents, so... so father he..."

"You think your father is wrong?"

"Mm..."

"Then do you know? In that war six years ago, although he was the one who actively invaded, before that, the entire North Kingdom had also been suffering from disguised extortion."

After recalling the situation at the beginning, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief said:

"Before your father fought that battle, the other party used the mountain pass and the ice-free port to block the coal and grain of the North every few years. These are things of vital importance to the North Kingdom.

I remember the most excessive year, the coal price in Hot River City even turned nearly twenty times, and I don't know how many large and small tribes froze and starved to death. Do you still think that battle shouldn't have been fought now?"

"I..."

"In your father's words, the security of any country cannot be built on the insecurity of another country. And as the King of the North Kingdom, facing such a good opportunity, he had to solve this heart-trouble for his country no matter what."

After paraphrasing a sentence of the female cleaner's father, the blue-haired old man in the mirror continued:

"At that time, your father was overworked and ill, and he was almost unable to eat anything. As a successor with the Gluttony bloodline, you should be able to understand what this means for you.

And although your father didn't die on the battlefield that time, he chose to personally conquer when he needed rest the most, which was almost equivalent to being prepared to die on the border.

Even later he was bedridden, which also had an inseparable connection with the war six years ago. In order to make the North Kingdom no longer be strangled by others, he almost sent his life away."

After listening to the situation six years ago, the female cleaner, whose brain was a bit overloaded, couldn't help but mutter:

"Then... then it's not father who is wrong? He was also forced to be helpless. Is the real wrong one the one who strangled our neck?"

"I said, about who is right and who is wrong in the war six years ago, it is actually really hard to say."

The Water Bottle Bureau Chief shook his head:

"Your father's goal was only the mountain pass and the ice-free port, but the war situation continued to escalate later, and the large and small tribes that gained benefits also increased their investment, and finally almost smashed two counties of the other party.

And have you thought about it? Why did the other party risk the war to repeatedly restrict our North Kingdom's materials?"

"Is it because of... interests?"

"Interests are only one aspect. At the beginning, the reason why the other party blocked the mountain pass, more of it was the sanction for the atrocities of some border tribes."

The blue-haired old man in the mirror recalled:

"I remember that before the other party restricted the flow of the mountain pass too much and prevented normal winter navigation, several large tribes located on the border, dissatisfied with the material prices at that time, colluded with the privateer ships of the Saiao Kingdom several times, and carried out large-scale looting on both land and sea.

And the North Kingdom was strictly speaking just a tribal alliance, much looser in structure than the other party. The King's control over large tribes was lower. The other party warned several times to no avail, naturally only able to block the mountain pass and the port, especially in winter when it was easy to have trouble, and strictly restricted the flow of various materials.

It's just that as the time and frequency of the blockade increased, a stable interest chain was formed. Under the drive of huge interests, this defensive blockade became conscious extortion and blackmail, burying the hidden danger of war."

"So... was it because of us at the beginning?"

After listening to her Uncle Grandpa's recollection, the female cleaner, whose brain was a bit overloaded, couldn't help but be dazed:

"Is it our fault? But... but if that battle hadn't been fought, wouldn't we have frozen and starved to death many more people?"

"Yes, that's why I said, about the war six years ago, it is really hard to say who is right and who is wrong.

Your father launched the war abruptly, indeed sorry for the victims in the war, and sorry for people like Leon's parents, but he was worthy of his citizens. Even if another hundred years pass, the people of the North Kingdom will still miss him."

After giving a summary of riding the wall on both sides, looking at his grandniece whose eyes were dazed in the mirror, but who seemed to understand something, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief smiled and instructed gently:

"The topic has gone a bit far, hehe, Uncle Grandpa is old, and always likes to talk about things in the past... In short, remember well, don't mention the things about his parents and the war six years ago in front of that future Water Bottle Director.

Although that future Water Bottle Director has astonishing talent, he is always reckless in doing things, and his hands are ruthless. If he holds a grudge, when he comes to perform a task, he might just dismantle our Hot River City."

Huh?

Hearing this, the female cleaner couldn't help but be startled, and said in a panic:

"Leon... will he do that?"

"Haha, of course not."

Looking at his grandniece who was no longer sad in the mirror, the Water Bottle Bureau Chief who was swimming in the underground Hot River smiled.

"Don't worry, the emotions of that future Water Bottle Director are actually quite stable. As long as you don't mention these things in front of him, it is generally unlikely that he will deliberately retaliate...

Hmm... Melly, look to your left, is there anyone behind the pillar next to you? Why did I see a corner of clothes flutter?"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 1398 =====