Chapter 44 Chapter Forty-Two

Esther pushed Shane's door open, and he and several high officials were happily tasting grilled steak with spicy gravy. "When Egypt is at stake, why are you still in the mood to eat and drink!" Those high officials were frightened.The king's eldest son stood up, apologized to the guests present, and dragged Iser outside the restaurant. "What do you mean by trespassing like this?" "let me go!" "You will ruin your reputation. Don't you know that my guests are important people?" "I don't care!" "Why are you so excited?"

"Don't you know that Seti and Ramses disappeared in the eastern part of the desert?" "This is not the queen's original intention..." Esther suddenly calmed down. "The queen's original intention..." "My mother was sure that Pharaoh was in no danger." "But no one has any news at all!" "It would be an unforgivable mistake to disobey my mother's will." "Where did she get such news?" "Her intuition." Esther's eyes widened in surprise. "It's a nasty joke, isn't it?"

"It's true, my dear, it's true." "What is the meaning of this ambiguity?" "When the pharaoh is away, the queen is in power, we just obey." Xie Na was not unhappy: Esther was excited and worried, and would inevitably spread the worst rumors about Queen Duya; the big meeting would definitely ask Duya to explain, her reputation would plummet, and people would naturally ask him to come out to host state affairs. Ramesses was at the head of the expedition, and they returned from the Eastern Desert after building a temple and a few houses in which gold diggers could work comfortably; For years, and the donkeys carried bags full of fine gold nuggets on their backs.

No one was killed, and the pharaoh and regent were thankful that all the troops were brought back safely.Several sick soldiers dragged their feet, hoping to have a few weeks of vacation after returning home; a quarry worker who was bitten by a black poisonous scorpion was carried on a stretcher. His high fever and chest pain made the military doctor very sick. Worry. Ramses crossed a small hill and saw a small green dot in the distance. That was the first cultivated land close to the desert!The regent turned back to the army and announced the good news, and cheers resounded through the sky.

A sharp-eyed security officer pointed his index finger at a pile of stone mounds. "There's a small desert caravan coming our way." Ramses concentrated.At first, he saw only some stationary blocks; later, he made out a few donkeys and two knights. "Extraordinary," said the guard with a strong intuition, "I must be thieves on the run. Stop them." Part of the army went into action. Soon after, they brought the two prisoners before the regent: Sai Dawu was yelling curses, and Yameni was on the verge of death. "I knew I would find you." When Sai Dawu was busy taking care of the quarry miner who was bitten by the poisonous scorpion, he murmured in Ramses' ear.

Shane was the first to congratulate his father and brother on a real expedition worthy of the memorabilia.The king's eldest son offered himself as recorder, but Seti gave the job to Ramesses.Ramesses will do this with the help of Amene, who is extremely critical of his choice of words and style.Members of the expedition scrambled to tell the people the legend of the pharaoh who rescued them from a terrible death. Only Amene was unhappy.Ramesses guessed that his weak constitution was the cause of his melancholy, but Yamenes knew better. "where are you not feeling well?" The young clerk was ready to accept the blame, and only telling the truth would wash away his guilt.

"I was suspicious of your mother, and I thought she was trying to seize power." Ramses laughed out loud. "Overwork is bad for your health, my friend. I order you to go for a walk or get some exercise." "Because she refused to send a rescue army..." "Don't you know that there is a tacit understanding between the pharaoh and the great queen that is invisible to the naked eye?" "I still remember, trust me." "One thing astonishes me: Why is gentle Esther so slow to express her concern to me?" Amene lowered her head. "She's...as guilty as I am."

"What's wrong with her?" "She also believed your mother was premeditated and spread vitriol and accusations of breach of trust." "Send someone to find her." "The appearance of things leads us astray, and we..." "Send someone to find her!" Esther forgot to dress up, and hastily knelt down at the feet of Ramses. "Forgive me, please." Her hair was disheveled, and she wrapped her trembling hands around the regent's ankles. "I'm so worried, so troubled..." "Is this a reason to doubt my mother in such a despicable way, and even slander her reputation?"

"I'm sorry..." Esther began to cry. Ramses lifted her up and held her by his side, she leaned on his shoulder and continued to confide in her heart. "Who did you tell?" he asked, his face serious. "To some people... I forgot... I was going crazy with worry, and I want them to send someone for you." "Criticisms that are unsubstantiated could land you in the prime minister's court. Once proven guilty of blasphemy against His Majesty, you will be sentenced to hard labor or exile." Esther couldn't hold it any longer, and sobbed.She hugged Ramses tightly in despair.

"I will defend you, because you are truly in pain." After returning to the country, Pharaoh took the scepter from Duya.The central government trusts the queen so much that she does more routine work while dealing with the politician's game that drives many senior officials out of their minds.When Seti had to temporarily leave the position of national leader, he could leave peacefully, knowing that Duya would not betray him, and that the country would be controlled by wisdom and sobriety. Of course, he could have given Ramses the real power of a regent, but the king would rather lead by example, passing on his experience in magical ways, than throw his son into the embattled, pitfall-filled battleground of power.

Ramses was a tough guy, a man of courage.He is capable of riding and fighting adversity of any kind, but can he stand up to the heavy loneliness of being a pharaoh?To prepare him beforehand, Seti left him alone to do the mental and physical journey, though there were still some plans to be done. Duya introduced Nefertari to the king. The young woman was so nervous that she couldn't speak a word, she just bowed and saluted.Seti observed her for a few minutes, and told her to do her best to do her job well, and to manage the Queen's family affairs requires dignity and prudence.Nefertari did not even dare to look up at the king as she left. "You are too strict." Du Ya said. "She's still young." "Is it possible for me to employ a mediocrity?" "She has extraordinary talent." "Her wish was to enter the temple to work and never come out again." "As I understand it! So you're putting her through a dreadful ordeal?" "Indeed." "For what purpose?" "I don't know either. As soon as I met Nefertari, I thought she was someone special. She was at home in the closed temple, but my instinct told me that she had another task to complete .If I'm wrong, she'll choose her own way." Ramses introduces his mother to the night watchman, a yellow-haired dog, and the executioner, a Nubian lion, which is beginning to grow frighteningly large.The two companions of the regent, knowing the honor that was done to them, behaved with the utmost propriety; the queen's private cook prepared them food, and they ate head to toe, and then fell blissfully asleep in the shadow of the palms. take a nap. "It was a nice meeting," Duja said, "but what's your real motivation?" "Esther." "Is your engagement over?" "She made a serious mistake." "so serious?" "She slandered the Queen of Egypt." "In what way?" "Criticize you for plotting the disappearance of the king in order to usurp the throne." Seeing Ramses' astonished expression, his mother found it funny. "Almost all court officials and noble ladies thought the same as her. They blamed me for not dispatching a rescue army, but I know that Seti and you are safe and sound. Although we have temples and sacrifices, few people I know that I can use my mind and time to communicate with the underworld beyond space." "Will she...be prosecuted?" "Her reaction was normal." "Do you not mind this ingratitude and injustice?" "This is the law of man, and what matters is that it alone does not rule the country." A young woman left quietly after putting some letters on the low table to the left of the Queen.Her fleeting presence was much like a ray of sunlight shooting through a leaf. "Who is she?" Ramses asked. "Nifertari, my new housekeeper." "I met her once, how did she get such an important job?" "A simple test competition. She was conscripted to Memphis to be a priestess at the temple of Hathor, and I fell in love with her." "But...you gave her something against her will!" "Apse prepares our girls for diverse jobs." "Such a responsibility for such a young man!" "You yourself are only seventeen years old. In the eyes of the king and me, only the unity of heart and action is the most important." Ramses looked embarrassed, and Nefertari's beauty seemed to come from another world.Her brief appearance has been deeply seared on his heart. "Reassure Iser," Duya instructed, "I have no complaints against her. But I hope she learns to distinguish right from wrong, good from evil. If she can't, at least tell her to shut up."