Catherine and the Black Emperor

063. Golden Desert Eagle

11 month.

"The Queen was furious today and ordered all unmarried maids, servants, and courtiers to shave their heads and wear black wigs until their new hair grows out. Married women escaped this fate."

Anastasia lay in Sergei's arms, telling him about the worst things that had happened that day.

"I've heard about that too. What's the problem?"

Sergei knew this because Peter approached him, looking regretful that he hadn't seen Catherine's head shaved and Elizabeth pardoning her. This was probably the reason why Peter gave the order.

"After the celebration the day before yesterday, Kira and Nika (the servants) were unable to comb out the thick layer of perfumed powder from the Queen's hair. The powder had clumped into a sticky gray clump, so shaving her head was the only solution..."

Sergei stroked her long, soft hair: "God has blessed you."

"Without hair, I can't even imagine how I'd face you. I'd probably hide somewhere." Anastasia hugged him tightly.

"Even without hair, you are still beautiful in my heart," Sergei said tenderly.

Anastasia looked up: "Am I the most beautiful?"

Sergei looked away from her: "I don't want to lie to you."

Anastasia lowered her head in disappointment: "Sometimes I wish you could lie to me, so I could feel more happiness. I crave your love. I don't ask for everything, but I hope for the most."

Sergei did not speak.

Anastasia smiled again: "It's alright. Many women would envy it if the Duke liked me, and now, only I can stay by his side."

Sergei cupped her cheeks: "You're such a fool."

Anastasia smiled innocently: "He's a beautiful fool too."

Sergei kissed her cheek, kissed her red lips, and pulled the blanket over her head; he was about to start teasing her.

12 month.

Sergei arrived at the secluded blacksmith shop in the Sitney market.

"I've come to pick up that thing."

Sergei looked at the dozen or so Desert Eagles that still gleamed silver in the candlelight, and the small box of gleaming bullets, and was quite satisfied.

Victor brought out a small box.

"Your Highness, you should have come to claim this priceless treasure long ago. It's just a waste of time for me to keep it here."

The moment Sergei opened the box, a golden light flashed through the crack.

Inside was a Desert Eagle made of pure gold.

"Many parts are not suitable to be made of gold, but you insisted on making them all of them, so in terms of performance, to be honest, it's very poor," Victor said with a regretful expression.

If some parts were allowed to be made of other metals, then this gun would have both a gorgeous appearance and terrifying lethality.

Sergei smiled after hearing this.

"That's good. After all, it represents status and power. You don't need it to do the work of killing people yourself. It's like the Imperial Seal of the State in the East."

Victor scratched his head; he didn't understand any of this.

But one thing he was very clear about was that this gun would be the command flag for those terrible weapons; wherever the gun pointed, there would be a hail of bullets and a bloodbath.

After putting away the Golden Desert Eagle, Sergei gave a few more instructions and then left the blacksmith shop.

This batch of Desert Eagles was the third batch ever made, and it would be more than enough for the short term. However, he still left Viktor money to continue production, including bullets, the more the better.

After leaving the Sitney bazaar, Sergei arrived at the secret council.

"The conflict between the Grand Duchess and Duchess and Madame Brueze (Peter and Catherine's housekeeper) continues to escalate. Last night, Madame Brueze used Her Majesty the Empress to pressure the Grand Duchess and Duchess, ordering them to go to sleep immediately..." a secret policeman reported to Sergei.

"What about that matter?" Sergei asked.

Compared to Catherine, who had keen insight and knew when to advance and retreat in front of Elizabeth, Peter was the complete opposite. He was not a submissive person and had no interest in pleasing his aunt.

This leads the other party to often do foolish things due to their combative and rebellious nature.

For example, there's something that's still being done in secret—spying on Elizabeth.

The incident first occurred during Easter in the first half of the year, when Peter was rehearsing a puppet show in his dormitory, a corner of which led directly to the dining room in Elizabeth's dormitory.

One day, driven by curiosity, Peter drilled several peepholes with a wood drill and then witnessed Elizabeth enjoying lunch with more than a dozen nobles.

Since then, Peter has been doing his "voyeuristic work".

Initially, the secret police didn't discover it, but as Peter became increasingly audacious, Sergei learned of the secret.

"I only told the Grand Duchess before, but after she went too far with her spying the first time, she never joined in on such things again. The Grand Duchess started calling people over and over again, and in the past month, she has become even more unscrupulous, calling more and more people..."

After hearing this, Sergei realized that the truth would soon be exposed.

He concealed the truth not to help Peter, but because the longer this went on, the angrier Elizabeth would become upon learning of it. But now, Peter's actions were no different from "turning himself in."

After a brief silence, he asked again, "What about Andrei?"

Andrei Chernyshev was Zakhhar Chernyshev's cousin and Peter's good friend. After his cousin left, Andrei also fell in love with Catherine.

No longer believing that "Peter could fall in love with her," Catherine enriched herself with knowledge and gradually demonstrated wisdom, composure, and confidence. Coupled with her stunning beauty, any man who saw her would be unconsciously attracted to her.

But most men would be in awe and stop in their tracks because of her status as Grand Duchess.

Like his cousin, Andrei was an impulsive man. He harbored feelings for Catherine and began to seek various opportunities to get close to her.

"As always, Lady Bruzer is a heavy drinker, and Andrei can easily get her drunk. The Grand Duchess enjoys some leisure and freedom at this time, and occasionally goes out for a stroll, with Andrei always accompanying her..."

Sergei's gaze held no jealousy, but rather a sense of satisfaction.

Catherine has learned to make friends, which will gradually make her a socially adept woman, allowing her to gain more experience in human relationships and transform into a qualified politician.

As for Andrei...

Sergei wasn't jealous, but that didn't mean he wasn't hostile. It was time to teach this guy a lesson.

"When the Grand Duke calls Andrei to spy on us together, report this to the Chairman. Don't say anything more than that; just say it was just discovered."

"Yes."

Sergei left the secret committee.