56 Chapter 56: Conversation After the Funeral

Around 3 o'clock in the afternoon, the hearse arrived at Windsor Castle and continued along the long path leading to the castle.

This was the last stretch of road leading into Windsor Castle, and thousands of British people had gathered on either side of the long road to wait.

Amid the tearful eyes of the British public, Queen Victoria's hearse entered the fence of Windsor Castle and disappeared from view.

The final resting place for the funeral was St. George's Chapel, located inside Windsor Castle, which is often used by the royal family for weddings, baptisms, and funerals.

The burial ceremony was presided over by the Bishop of St. George's Chapel, David Conner. As the ceremony was by invitation only, only around 400 guests attended the funeral.

The main participants in the ceremony were the royal family and current and former staff of the private estates, symbolizing the end of Queen Victoria's reign.

The royal crown, orb, and scepter, symbols of royal power, were removed from the top of the coffin by the crown's jeweler, marking Queen Victoria's final separation from her crown.

Afterward, led by King Edward VII, all members of the British royal family sang hymns in St. George's Chapel, with Arthur among them.

At the end of the final hymn, the Guard of Honour placed their flags on the coffin. They were the highest-ranking ceremonial guards responsible for royal travel.

Finally, the chapel rang with blessings and the song "God Save the King," bidding farewell to Queen Victoria as she was interred in the Royal Mausoleum beside Prince Albert.

With this, Queen Victoria's funeral was officially concluded, marking the end of her reign and the beginning of a new era under King Edward VII's rule.

As it has been decided that Edward VII will rule Britain with his title, his official title at this time should be King Edward VII of Britain and Emperor of India. More accurately, he should be referred to as King Edward VII of Britain and Emperor Edward I of India, according to tradition.

With the coffin of Queen Victoria entering the tomb, the focus of the entire event slowly shifted to Edward VII. As the current King of Britain and leader of the British Empire, Edward could wield a significant amount of influence and power in Britain with the remaining prestige of Queen Victoria.

Edward's attitude and actions will also determine the policies and actions of the British government going forward.

As the current world leader of the British Empire, all countries are waiting for Britain to take a stance on the current situation in Europe.

However, Edward VII remained extremely low-key at the funeral, maintaining a reserved demeanor and refusing all attempts at intimacy and conversation.

The crowd could only leave one by one, but they did not leave Britain because in seven days, a more grand ceremony awaited them: the coronation of Edward VII.

These people will witness the change of British power and the rotation of old and new figures today and in seven days.

Arthur was mixed in with the crowd and had just wanted to quietly leave when he was called out by a familiar voice behind him.

"Arthur, long time no see!"

Turning around, it was William II who he hadn't seen in a month since they parted on the Isle of Wight.

Today, William II remained low-key. Firstly, because the main characters of the day were Queen Victoria and the British royal family, and secondly, because he was in England and his own popularity was not as high as Edward VII's.

However, William II did not mind. On the contrary, the fewer people paid attention to him on the scene, the more relaxed he felt.

"Arthur, it's been a long time since we last met," William II responded with a smile and a bow.

As only members of the British royal family could form the farewell procession, William II, despite being the emperor, could only wait at Windsor Castle.

"Arthur, how about we have a meal together later?" There were too many foreign officials and members of the royal family around, so William II did not plan to discuss business with Arthur at the moment.

"Of course," Arthur nodded and followed William II out of Windsor Castle.

As a noble Duke who Queen Victoria had specifically protected in her will, and as the emperor of the German Empire, their departure attracted many people's attention, including Edward VII.

Edward VII watched the two leave like good friends, with a glint of depth in his eyes, before casually chatting with the guests around him.

William II's chosen restaurant was located in a private estate on the outskirts of London and was not open to the public.

This was a restaurant that only belonged to the nobility and aristocrats, and it was obvious that the owner was William II.

It has to be said that the luxury of Western monarchs and nobles could easily outclass the top restaurants of brands such as Michelin and Samsung in the future. However, this was just one of the many private restaurants, and they would only visit a few times a year.

After inquiring about Arthur's taste and preferences, the restaurant's kitchen began to bustle, preparing lunch for William II and Arthur.

As for ordering, it simply did not exist in such a restaurant.

After the guards had left, William II smiled at Arthur and said, "Arthur, I never thought that our grandmother cared so much about you. The first thing she mentioned in her final moments was to give you British New Guinea and New Zealand."

Arthur smiled and shook his head, saying, "Compared to these two territories, I would rather our grandmother had not left."

"Okay, let's not talk about such heavy topics, Arthur. Our grandmother has left, but life must go on, right? With British New Guinea and New Zealand, Australia can now claim to be the hegemon of the South Pacific and establish regional dominance," William II said, changing the subject with a smile.

"You're exaggerating, cousin William. Australia at most has some influence in places like Oceania, but there are still small colonies of the great powers surrounding it and the Dutch East Indies protected by various countries to the north. Australia can only focus on developing in Oceania and has nothing to do with the two words 'hegemony'," Arthur replied, denying the claim.

Given another ten years or more for development, Australia may have a chance to establish regional dominance in Oceania and Southeast Asia.

But for now, Australia is only a newly independent weak regime with colonies. It can only barely guarantee its own independence.

"Arthur, how did the talks with Uncle Edward go? Did Britain agree to provide Australia with a large amount of aid?" William II got to the point, curious.

In terms of blood ties, Australia is undoubtedly closer to Britain. Most Australians are British immigrants and exiled criminals, as well as the indigenous people of Australia. After Arthur's integration of the six Australian colonies, the concept of Australians has become blurred and can also refer to all Australian citizens.

If we look at it from this perspective, more than half of Australians are of British descent, and the vast majority of Australians have British bloodlines.

**1/2 chapter per day from tommorrow**