Wearing British clothes as a second-generation aristocrat

89. Do you want to remind the royal family and parliament?

At the camp gate, a British officer in his forties with a long, narrow face stood arrogantly.

"Germans, listen up! Yesterday you engaged in a brawl and injured British soldiers! I order you to immediately hand over the perpetrators, or I will report you to the War Ministry and you will be charged with treason!"

He was Colonel Albert, the highest-ranking British officer in Bexhill.

His stern rebuke, coupled with the fully armed soldiers behind him, created an imposing presence.

Colonel Albert's ultimate goal was certainly not to report it to the War Office. After all, given the nature of the British War Office, such a brawl between soldiers would most likely prevent either officer from getting promoted in the short term.

However, the German Legion was different; they were outsiders!

Therefore, Colonel Albert felt he could control them.

A short while later, the camp gate opened.

Dugan swaggered out, with Gris and Ken flanking him like two seraphim.

Although these two clowns lacked the spirit of soldiers, they were, after all, sons of London's elite, and their aura was still quite strong.

They subconsciously straightened their backs, and their arrogant demeanor was quite intimidating.

Colonel Decken, Major Halkert, and a group of German Army officers immediately followed on both sides, with dozens of elite guards lined up behind them.

The other German soldiers in the camp instantly formed a neat and solemn human wall, surrounding them as they walked out of the camp gate.

On one side was the aggressive British home army, and on the other side was the united foreign legion.

The two armies faced each other at the camp gate, the air so tense it was almost frozen.

Colonel Albert spotted Dugan walking at the front immediately. His young face, coupled with the general's tassels on his shoulders, stung Albert's eyes.

Colonel Albert is a civilian officer who rose through the ranks amidst death and gunfire. He is 46 years old this year and has finally earned the rank of colonel, but this is his limit.

Upon seeing the young brigadier general before him, Colonel Albert could easily guess that the man was a wealthy and powerful young master.

A hint of disdain flashed in his eyes as he raised his voice and questioned, "Brigadier General Dugan! I ask you this! My soldiers were attacked and beaten by a mob of foreign mercenaries without provocation, and many were injured. Previously, they used the excuse that their commander was not present and they couldn't hand over the perpetrators. Now that you have taken office, please hand over the perpetrators immediately."

Dugan didn't reply, but simply turned slightly to the side and looked at Albert with a contemptuous gaze.

Ken stepped forward and said, "Colonel Albert." Ken could emphasize the word "Colonel."

"I am Major Ken Rivers, staff officer of the German Army Corps," Ken said in a perfect Oxford accent. "If you are reporting to a brigadier general as an army colonel, I can relay your message. However, according to the principle of rank parity, if you are representing your 18th Fusiliers Battalion in discussing official business with our German Army Corps, then your brigadier general-level officer needs to be present."

Colonel Albert was rendered speechless by Ken's retort.

The principle of rank parity in this era mainly includes four aspects:

Command parity: Officers of the same rank can command friendly units of the same rank. In cross-service/national cooperation, command authority is determined by rank rather than nationality.

Equivalence of etiquette: In formal occasions, officers of the same rank enjoy equal treatment, including saluting, seating arrangements, and banquet seating.

Judicial equality: In military court trials, the judge's rank must be higher than the defendant's, and officers of the same rank can serve as jurors for each other.

Prisoner of War Exchange: When exchanging prisoners of war, the principle of "same rank for same rank" is followed, and senior officers can be exchanged for multiple junior officers.

Ken suddenly straightened his face and said seriously, "So, Colonel Albert, firstly, are you reporting to our Brigadier General Dugan on official business? Secondly, as a British Army colonel, you have not used honorifics or saluted General Dugan when you meet a British Army brigadier general."

Dugan secretly gave him a thumbs up. The fat guy usually seemed as stupid as a pig, but he actually had a knack for it when it mattered.

Colonel Albert was furious, but everything Ken said was a set of established rules that could be put on the table and would stand up to scrutiny no matter where he was talking.

Colonel Albert had no choice but to salute Dugan. "Colonel Albert, 18th Flintlock Battalion."

The moment you start bowing, your imposing presence is halved.

When the British soldiers in Bexhill saw that their commander was almost half a head shorter than the other soldiers' commander, their arrogance immediately diminished by more than half.

Ken continued, "Since the highest-ranking officer of the British garrison in Bexhill is a colonel, then I, a major staff officer of the German Army Corps, will be in charge of this matter with you."

Colonel Albert looked at the equally young major in front of him, who was still a fat, bloated pig, and then thought back to the efforts he had made to be promoted to major. He almost ground his back teeth to powder.

Ken could tell from Colonel Albert's expression that he was probably furious, but Ken didn't care.

"Colonel Albert, yesterday's brawl started because your soldiers were drunk and provoked us by publicly insulting and assaulting my soldiers. My soldiers had been tolerating this situation repeatedly, and only acted in self-defense when they had no other choice."

"Nonsense, it was the Germans...it was your soldiers who started the conflict," Colonel Albert shouted.

Ken said unhurriedly, "Your drunken soldiers are still safe and sound. Instead of investigating the unit's lax discipline, the colonel comes to our door demanding that we hand them over?"

Colonel Albert continued to argue, "Nonsense, none of my soldiers are alcoholics."

Ken smiled and said, "The residents of Bexhill probably know your soldiers better than you do."

Albert gritted his teeth and coldly retorted, "Even if our soldiers were at fault, they're just foreign mercenaries, yet they dared to beat British soldiers in Britain. What is this if not a mutiny?"

At this moment, Griss entered and said to Colonel Albert, "I am Major Griss Abraham, Staff Officer of the German Army. Colonel Albert, were you serious?"

Colonel Albert was already furious when this unexpected appearance of a major who looked like a rich kid made him even angrier.

"Of course it's true," Colonel Albert asked without hesitation.

Gris nodded and said to a clerk beside him, "Write this down: May 8, 1804, Colonel Albert of the 18th Flintlock Battalion of the British Garrison in Bexhill, accusing the King of treason."

"..." Colonel Albert was taken aback, then roared, "What nonsense are you spouting?"

Accusing the king of treason—who has the head to wear such a huge hat?

Dugan was taken aback by these words. This kid Gris was throwing such a big accusation at someone right off the bat.

Gris, however, said in a serious tone: "The German Legion comes from Hanover, which is the private domain of His Majesty King George III. Therefore, the German Legion is a private armed force directly under the royal family, and even its funding comes from royal appropriations."

The old man in the Griss family was in charge of finances, so Griss knew this business inside and out.

"You accuse the king's private army of attacking the parliamentary forces, and you even call their actions a mutiny and a rebellion. So who is behind this, and what is their purpose?"

Gris bombarded the audience with questions.

Colonel Albert's temples began to sweat.

During the English bourgeois revolution, the Parliamentarian army and the Royalist army fought a bloody battle.

First, Parliament representative Cromwell executed King Charles I.

After the restoration of the monarchy, Charles II, the son of Charles I, ascended the throne and exhumed Cromwell's body, desecrating it and nailing his head to the roof of Westminster Hall for long-term public display.

Although the UK is now a constitutional monarchy, the relationship between the King and Parliament is still quite delicate.

Many things that happened during the British Civil War are being ignored or avoided being discussed.

Especially since the current British royal family is of German descent, if the royal family knew that someone was using the German Legion incident to make a big deal out of it, they would probably order a thorough investigation.

Colonel Albert could guess the outcome: the young men in front of him could simply move on to another post, but he himself might not be able to escape unscathed.

"No, that's not what I meant. I was just saying that if these Germans aren't properly disciplined..." Colonel Albert tried to justify himself.

Gris interrupted Albert, saying, "Are you trying to remind His Majesty King George of the fate of King Charles I? Military mutinies only cause turmoil, and turmoil will ultimately topple the crown and the nation?"

"No, no, no..." Colonel Albert panicked.

"So, you want to remind Parliament that we should use this incident to disband the German Legion to avoid a political purge like Cromwell's in the future? For example, I could write in my report to the War Ministry and Parliament: Colonel Albert of the 18th Fusiliers Battalion said: Don't forget Cromwell and his gang of traitors? Chaos in the army is the beginning of rebellion. We must not tolerate soldiers fighting each other, and we must not let turmoil descend upon the kingdom again."

"No, no, no..." Colonel Albert panicked completely. He couldn't understand how Gris had managed to pin such a huge label on him step by step. He, a mere infantry colonel, had become the enemy of both the royal family and the parliament.

"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant." Dugan couldn't help but secretly give a thumbs up. Going to such extremes and making grand pronouncements, Griss is quite a talent.

Seeing that Colonel Albert was completely flustered, Gris calmly said, "Or, for a few soldiers to get drunk and fight, a few days of solitary confinement would suffice, without needing any written report?"

"...Yes, that's what I meant." Colonel Albert realized his back was soaked with sweat.

Dealing with these rich kids from London is full of traps!