For the first ti since Bruno had been promoted to a general position. He had not been invited to the Kaiser's palace to receive his latest promotion. Rather, he was standing within the Headquarters of the German Army's Central Division, saluting the German Kaiser with a stern expression on his face.
The Kaiser returned Bruno's salute. He seed rather proud as he did so. And why wouldn't he be? Bruno was now only two ranks away from becoming a full fledge Field Marshal. And he was not even thirty yet.
Although, give him a year and he would be. Even so, to beco a GeneralOberst at the age of 29, it was an achievent nobody had ever succeeded in obtaining prior to now. At least not in the German Army.
Then again, the rank of GeneralOberst was less than 100 years old at this point, having been made by King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia in 1854 for his son, the Prince Regent who would eventually go on to beco the first Kaiser of the German Reich, Wilhelm I.
At the ti, mbers of the Royal Family could not hold the rank of Field Marshal, which was a rank that was only ant for the purpose of warti. Hence why GeneralOberst was created as a reward for Wilhelm I who was then the Crown Prince of Prussia.
Of course, in 1908, the Kaiser was one of many Field Marshals in the German Army, and it was a rank that could be held by any mber of the Hohenzollern dynasty, as well as those who had earned it through rit whether in a ti of peace or war.
By extension, the rank of GeneralOberst, or in English "Colonel General" was also held during both peace and war. As a result, the Kaiser handed Bruno a new tunic, one that had the shoulder and collar tabs of a proper Colonel General already ironed onto them.
Bruno slowly replaced the jacket, where a servant ca over and stripped Bruno's dals from his old waffenrock, and instead held his jacket firmly for the Kaiser to pin them on his chest in proper fashion.
After Bruno was properly adorned in his new uniform, he saluted the Kaiser, who returned his salute, before making a remark about Bruno's most recent promotion and his future in the German Army.
"At this rate you will be a Generalfeldmarschall by the ti you are 35. An achievent unparalleled in the history of the German nation. You should be proud of your accomplishnts. There are many who have tried to prevent your success, but you have continued to prove them wrong. Until now, they can no longer deny your rit.
I look forward to your progress in the years to co GeneralOberst, do not let down now! Oh, and by the way, you and your family should co to visit when you are able. I have many questions I wish to ask you in particular. But now is neither the ti nor the place to do so."
Quite frankly, Bruno was also certain that he would achieve the highest rank possible in the German Army by the ti he was thirty-five. After all, that would also be the year that the Great War broke out if everything went according to the previous tiline.
And if he not yet earned the rank of Generalfeldmarschall by the start of the war. He would most certainly do so by the ti his birthday ca around. Which was towards the end of the year, as he had no doubt he would be able to crush Serbia by the ti the leaves fell from the trees.
With all of this in mind, Bruno nodded his head and responded positively to the Kaiser's invitation. No doubt thankful for the opportunity to grow close to the Imperial Dynasty, which ruled over Germany.
"Of course, your majesty, simply send the details and I will gladly arrive when you call for ."
The Kaiser smirked and shook his head, while clicking his tongue almost as if he was scolding Bruno before outright doing so.
"No, no, no, I think I will have the details sent to your wife. She seems to have a much better mory when it cos to social affairs now, doesn't she?"
Bruno felt like the Kaiser was mocking him, as he often forgot about important social gatherings, and had to be reminded multiple tis in advance. It was a weakness of his, partially because such things were often at the bottom of his list of priorities.
But thankfully he had Heidi was always on top of such matters, and would drag him by the ear to such events if she was required to do so. And because of this, he couldn't refute the Kaiser nor his attempt at friendly banter.
"Alright, I trust your judgent."
With this said, Bruno was granted leave for the day. He would return to his new estate, whereby no surprise he found his children and his wife waiting for him. By now, Heidi was confird to be pregnant once more. It wasn't exactly shocking. She was younger than Bruno, and by all ans fertile enough to carry another child.
Even so, Heidi still tried her best to command the kitchen. Partially because she considered it her job, partially because she loved the act of cooking for her husband and children, and partially because she was deeply paranoid regarding Bruno's safety, and did not trust anyone to prepare the man's food other than herself.
Hence why the woman had beco the tyrant of the kitchen. Now that cooking was pretty much the only housework she managed, with the cleaning, repairs, et cetera being done by a host of servants who had been thoroughly vetted prior to their hiring, Heidi had all day to make lavish and delicious als for her family.
And she took great joy in doing so. And, of course, by the ti Bruno returned ho from work, food was prepared in accordance with his personal schedule. Over dinner, Heidi made a remark that did not surprise her husband in the least.
"I received an intriguing piece of news today. The Kaiser personally extended an invitation to his ho towards our family. He said, and I quote, I understand you are the more sociable of the two of you, so I trust you to drag your husband to my ho by force, if necessary. I'm surprised his majesty understands our relationship so well!"
Bruno damn nearly choked on his beer when he heard this. He couldn't help but remind the woman that the man had his eyes on the both of them since they were teenagers.
"If not for that little stunt at his daughter's second birthday, I doubt he would have been watching us so carefully all these years..."
Heid couldn't help but blush at the ntion of what happened over a decade ago when both she and Bruno were still young. It was a night she would never forget in this life. And one that had quite thoroughly cented her love and loyalty towards her husband.
Sure she had always known that the two of them would be married one day. But she was just old enough at the ti of that fateful evening to truly understand what love was and why she was so lucky to have Bruno. The gallantry which he displayed in her defense was truly the stuff
of fairy tales.
And in doing so, he had caught the eyes of very powerful people, such as the Kaiser who personally saw to it that Bruno was admitted to the Royal Prussian Main Cadet Institute, and later the Prussian War College, both of which had kick-started his military career, and allowed him to excel to such great lengths at such a young age.
In fact, Heidi was quite grateful for the graciousness which the Kaiser had shown her husband, and by extension their family. Even if it was ultimately the Tsar who elevated them to the status of Princely House, albeit only in Russia. The Kaiser had done far more for the two of them, and in many ways, more than Bruno realized.
Heidi's connections were deep. She was all too aware of the struggles the Kaiser had fought, with the Chancellor, with the Bundesrat, with his officers, all to help advance Bruno's career. Wilhlem had seen sothing in Bruno, and at such a young age that was hard to convince
others of.
He had seen the man who would win him this world. A hyperbolic statent, but not an inaccurate one. Bruno's potential was unrivaled, even if the Kaiser didn't understand the reason for this fact. He understood it, nonetheless.
Even so, Heidi did not tell Bruno the extents which the Kaiser had fought behind the scenes on
his behalf. It was not her place to do so. When the ti ca, the man would reveal this secret himself, and to deprive him of the satisfaction of this revelation was from Heidi's perspective
an act of deep disrespect.
Hence why she simply congratulated Bruno on his latest promotion, while thoroughly earned from his own rit, was no doubt aided by the Kaiser's personal favor. And she did this by preparing the man's favorite al for him and their children.
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