The city of London was once again shrouded in heavy snow, and with the actions of King Charles I, some situations were changing below.

At this time, something small happened in London, but this small thing gradually turned into an extraordinary event and began to change the direction of history.

In a tavern in London, a slightly fat young man, Monk, sat in front of the bar, posing a large glass of ale in front of him.

If Li Jinde was here, he would have recognized Sir Greenville's relative, George Monk, whom he had met at the Charles I banquet.

But Munch, who was once full of energy, was a little lost. His stubble had not been repaired for more than a month, and it seemed a bit unkempt.

"Have you heard that? Mr. Hampton, a squire from Buckinghamshire, led the way to submit joint tax anti-tax documents, calling on the subjects of Buckinghamshire to refuse to pay ship tax. He was ordered by His Majesty the King to be summoned and will be tried in the royal tax court soon. This time, His Majesty the King personally sued Mr. Hampton, and will be held by 12 senior judges. If most judges find Mr. Hampton guilty, then Mr. Hampton will face fines and imprisonment."

"Ship tax is nothing to Mr. Hampton? According to regulations, he only needs to pay 20 shillings tax, and with his income, he cannot afford it."

"It's hard to say that the ship tax was originally intended to defend against pirates, and coastal residents had to provide temporary taxes on ships to the government. However, this system has long been abolished. Now His Majesty the King has collected ship taxes in coastal areas, and this year it has expanded to counties across the country, becoming a regular tax. No matter how rich he is, who is willing to pay more taxes?"

"Mr. Hampton has hired two well-known lawyers, St. John and Hallborn, to defend himself. I don't know what the prosecutor will ultimately make."

Londoners in the tavern were talking about it, mentioning the Hampton tax resistance incident that was about to be held in London.

A middle-aged man sat next to Monk and also ordered a glass of ale.

"Why is this gentleman looking so depressed? I came from Huntingden County to London, and came to this tavern three times, and I saw you drinking alone every time." The middle-aged man asked Monk curiously.

"Huntingden County? What are you doing here?" Munch said with a haggard face.

"It's a long story... I live in Erie Town, Huntingden County, which is an isolated island in the lake. The entire lake and swamp are public lands, and people make a living by lakes. However, His Majesty the King's adventure company fills the lake and builds fields, and plans to drain the entire lake and turn it into the private fields of His Majesty's king's king's king's king's king's king's king's field and Count Bairdford's private fields. I was commissioned by the townspeople to come to London to hire lawyers to negotiate with the royal family, hoping that they would give up the plan to drain the lake."

"For the residents of Yili Town, this is a matter of life and death. Their living resources will be sharply reduced and their lives will fall into a desperate situation. Unless the royal family can provide sufficient compensation to the townspeople, the commons cannot be easily taken away. Originally, this matter has nothing to do with my interests, but the local townspeople find me, so I cannot stand by." The middle-aged man said while drinking.

"Ely town in Huntingden County? I just returned to London from the Netherlands battlefield. I don't know what happened in Britain in recent years," said Monk.

"Are you one of the soldiers who helped the Netherlands deal with the Spanish?" asked the middle-aged man.

"Yes, we helped the Netherlands defeat the Spanish Empire's repeated attacks. However, the war has been fought since Queen Elizabeth's time until now, and we don't know what we have gained in Britain. The Spanish have recently begun to decline, but the Netherlands and the French have begun to rise." Monk said.

"The situation in China is not optimistic recently. His Majesty the King has become more and more excessive in recent years. First, he restored the long-forgotten 'Knight Identity Detention' Act, levying fines on all those who have an annual income of 40 pounds but have not applied for a knight status, and restored the long-abandoned forest law, all in order to obtain more taxes. Not long ago, His Majesty the King even signed a treaty with the Eastern Empire without convening a parliament, and sold the profitable East India Company to the other party, betraying our interests in East India in exchange for money. Recently, there was also a rumor in the palace that His Majesty the King planned to establish a standing army. If His Majesty the King really had a standing army loyal to the royal family, he might no longer need to listen to the opinions of the people in the future." The middle-aged man said.

"Orients? They took away the women I admire... Why did His Majesty the King make an alliance with them? His Majesty the King will regret his decision. We have been dealing with the East for a short time, so how can we cooperate easily for money? If they become more dangerous than the Spanish Empire in the future, we will become vassals of the other party." Monk heard what the middle-aged man said, and thought of Salina who was abducted by Li Jinde, and was furious.

He was originally neutral to Dongfang, but Li Jinde kidnapped Salina, who should have been his fiancée, which made him lose his mind recently and didn't have much affection for people from Dongfang.

"Especially, their merchants have begun to set up workshops outside the city of London and hire our workers. The goods produced in the future will definitely affect the interests of our own merchants. I think a storm will come soon and sweep us across Britain." The middle-aged man said, "In order to fight against the king's autocracy, we still have to be dangerous. Our parliament, the gentry and citizens of all over the country should unite and control the dangerous behavior of His Majesty the King, and the king should be under the parliament."

When Monk heard the middle-aged man's words, he showed a surprised expression: "Sir, don't know what your name is?"

The middle-aged man said slowly: "I am Oliver Cromwell from Huntingden County. I was a member of Congress before it was dissolved, and it was almost ten years away."

"I am George Monk of Devon. I was forced to join the army at the age of 17. I used to obey Sir Greenville. Now, under the influence of the Earl of Leicester, I served as lieutenant colonel of the infantry regiment." Monk said.

Cromwell was surprised that this man who looked in a state of dismay and was less than thirty years old was actually the hero in front of Earl Leicester, and Earl Leicester was the hero of Charles I. If Monk stood on Earl Leicester's side, then he would be the royal party.

"The Hampton tax resistance case will be held in the Supreme Court in a few days. Are you interested in attending with me?"
Chapter completed!