For Helena, abdicating was very simple, but for the Nordic royal family, once she abdicated, the royal family would basically be finished.
At present, the throne had reached her and there was no one left to pass it on to. If she insisted on abdicating without an heir, there would only be two outcomes: either the royal family would end here and there would no longer be a Nordic royal family in future, or they would simply borrow a king from another constitutional monarchy in Europe.
This kind of thing was quite common before the Second World War. At that time, European royal families were virtually all related to each other. It was not unheard of for a young member of one family to inherit the throne if an uncle’s line had no successor.
But nowadays relationships are relatively distant. In addition, national consciousness among European peoples is no longer as harmonious as it was before the war. People generally view other countries with a degree of prejudice, so from the perspective of the public, it is very difficult to accept a royal member from another country coming to be their own king.
At this thought, Helena could not help recalling the key point her grandmother had always emphasised.
The point was not that she must marry Charlie wade or anything like that. The point was that she needed to have a child.
She could not help sighing inwardly, “Grandmother was still right… No matter what, the royal family must have an heir…”
Standing nearby, Lin Wan’er saw her fall silent and looking thoughtful again. She stepped forward and quietly asked, “Is Her Majesty the Queen also thinking of going to Antarctica with us?”
Helena felt the little girl had seen right through her at a glance. She was embarrassed to meet her teasing gaze and muttered awkwardly in a low voice, “I… I’m not as free as you all, able to go wherever I want. The royal family’s activities only have this short gap of a few days. Very soon I’ll have to start attending various events again and making friendly visits to different countries.”
With that, she sighed softly and said, “I’ll make another phone call to confirm and see which day would be most suitable for you to arrive in Argentina.”
Seeing her distracted appearance, Lin Wan’er gave a light laugh and did not tease her further.
Soon Helena returned from the call and said to the group, “I’ve just confirmed. The research vessel is currently at the port of Ushuaia in Argentina and plans to depart five days from now. As long as everyone can reach Ushuaia before departure, there will be no problem.”
Charlie wade nodded and said, “Then I’ll arrange the aircraft and fly directly from Northern Europe.”
At this point Grace Lowes could not help reminding him, “Mr Wade, don’t forget that the Po Qing Society’s lair is on a small island in South America close to Antarctica. Argentina is one of their springboards for operations worldwide. If we go straight to Argentina, might we be walking into a trap?”
Lin Wan’er smiled and said, “Both the young master and I have previously tracked a shipping company actually controlled by the Po Qing Society. We found they do often have flights taking off and landing in Buenos Aires, but Ushuaia has never appeared. Ushuaia is at the very southern tip of Argentina and the southernmost part of the entire South American continent. It is two or three thousand kilometres away from Buenos Aires. People who come here generally use it as a transit point before heading to Antarctica. Since the Po Qing Society has never used Ushuaia, that proves their lair is not near Ushuaia. If we bypass Buenos Aires and fly directly to Ushuaia, it should be much safer.”
Helena said seriously, “Flying from the Arctic Circle to the Antarctic Circle, this journey will probably take at least twenty-odd hours. Such a long-range flight is very rare. Aviation enthusiasts will definitely be curious about the flight’s purpose and even discuss it online. So if Mr Wade doesn’t mind, let me arrange the flight. It just so happens that the Nordic research vessel is in Ushuaia. We can announce publicly that we are urgently transporting a batch of special supplies needed for Antarctica to the research vessel in Ushuaia. That will seem more reasonable.”
Charlie wade nodded and said, “Then I’ll trouble you to arrange it.”
Helena asked, “So when shall we set off?”
Charlie wade replied, “The sooner the better.”
Helena then said, “In that case, let’s return to Osu City tomorrow morning. I’ll have them make preparations. We’ll take off tomorrow afternoon. I’ll also have someone prepare a set of Nordic identities for you, so entry into Argentina will be safer.”
…
Early the next morning, Charlie wade drove a business vehicle left by the Nordic royal family, carrying the four women on the journey back to Osu City.
Because Helena’s trip to the polar region this time was confidential, there was no royal motorcade escort on the return journey.
