February 1, 1868.
Ernst moved through Schönbrunn Palace as easily as if it were his own home. The servants had long since grown accustomed to the sight, and no one stopped him or led the way.
Since last year, Ernst had basically been traveling back and forth between Hechingen, Berlin, and Vienna. His family had its own castles and estates in both Hechingen and Berlin, and Prussia was the Hohenzollern family's territory anyway, so it did not matter where he stayed.
As the Hohenzollern Conglomerate's most important market after the German territories, the Austro-Hungarian Empire naturally deserved Ernst's personal attention.
Unlike in Hechingen and Berlin, Ernst had only bought a small property in Vienna, not far from Schönbrunn Palace.
Whenever he was in Vienna, Ernst would visit the Austrian imperial palace whenever he had nothing to do. During the day, he was either away on business or at Schönbrunn Palace, only returning to his residence at night to rest.
"Ernst, Ferdinand and Maximilian I haven't caused you any trouble, have they?" Empress Dowager Sophie asked kindly.
"Empress Dowager, rest assured. My father-in-law and mother-in-law are doing very well in East Africa. Their movements are sent to Europe by telegram every day, and I have arranged guards to protect them. East Africa merely has poorer conditions than Europe and lacks entertainment venues, but the scenery is quite lovely," Ernst replied respectfully.
"Is that so? There are telegraph lines from Europe to East Africa? I truly did not know that." Empress Dowager Sophie was surprised.
"Empress Dowager, perhaps you were too worried about my father-in-law's safety, so you did not notice. The last time I wrote to you by telegram, I mentioned receiving telegrams from East Africa," Ernst explained.
"So that was it! I only knew Africa was a rather barren