Chapter 386 Racoon And Young Racoon
While the girls of Grandchester were struggling to socialize, Marquis Grandchester and Edward were drawing a lot of attention at the royal palace. Edward, in particular, was so captivating that many people were staring at him in surprise, some even doing double-takes or standing with their mouths open in shock.
"Edward, you're the reason we're standing out so much."
"I won't deny that we're getting attention, but the fact that many want to talk to my father has nothing to do with my looks changing."
"That's probably part of it; they want something from us."
"Good grief. We're like golems dancing to a dragon's tune."
"Well, are you and I really as capable as that golem?"
"I have no confidence that we can win at all."
Just then, Marquis Lansfield approached them.
"Hey, Will. You finally made it to the castle. Everyone was waiting for you."
"Knowing you, I bet you want me to hand over some drinks, right?"
"Haha. You got it right. Please, just let me have a little."
"Not a chance. I barely have any left myself. I told you it's a rare drink."
"Come on, help me out. We're friends, aren't we?"
"I only remember cleaning up your messes."
"Anyway, my wife and son are close with your son's couple, aren't they?"
Edward, who was standing nearby, lightly bowed his head to Marquis Lansfield and said, "I am very grateful to the Marquis's wife."
"Oh, Edward. It's useless to bow to this guy. If you get too friendly with him, you'll end up paying his tab at the brōtḥel."
"Bringing up the past, you're such a narrow-minded guy, Will."
"What do you mean by 'the past'? It was just 5 years ago. And not a single Dal has come back."
"You're stingy for a Marquis Grandchester."
"But you're the head of the Marquis family too."
"Haha. I inherited my title from my wife's father. Because of that, I can't easily pass the payments for the brōtḥel to my family. My old retainers have been really hard to deal with."
Even though it was still before noon, Marquis Lansfield, who had a vibe like a drunk man, slapped Marquis Grandchester on the shoulder.
"Gill... if you keep this up, your wife will leave you."
"I doubt she'd lower herself to being my ex-wife."
Edward, who was listening from the side, felt very complicated. He had actually heard from Elizabeth that Marquis Lansfield's wife was planning to divorce him. Since Marquis Lansfield and Marquis Grandchester were close, he expected Marquis Grandchester to side with the husband, and there were already talks about getting the Grandchester family to cooperate with the divorce if possible.
Of course, Edward wouldn't betray the trust that Marquis Lansfield's wife had in him. But as a married man himself, he thought he should at least help a little with fixing the couple's relationship.
"If the husband is the one asking for a divorce, that's one thing, but I don't think it's that dishonorable for the wife to bring it up..."
Marquis Lansfield looked at Edward and burst out laughing loudly.
"Well, Grandchester men are still all whipped by their wives. It's because they spoil them that the women get so full of themselves. If you're married, it's the husband's duty to properly train his wife."
Basically, the men of the Grandchester family are devoted to their wives, so hearing this kind of talk really gets on their nerves. But if they say something wrong, it could mess up Mrs. Marquis Lansfield's plans, so Edward could only smile weakly to cover it up.
"Stop it, Edward. It's useless to talk to him. I've warned him many times before, but he never listens. Well, he can do his job, so I guess his wife thinks she's hiring him under the name of husband to help with the Marquis family's affairs."
"What are you saying? My wife must be in love with me. After all, we've had 3 kids together, a son and a daughter."
"As far as I know, there are also about 2 illegitimate children. Who do you think took care of the adoption process? When are you going to settle down already?"
"Well, lately I haven't had much energy, maybe because of my age. By the way, Edward, haven't you gotten a lot younger? You should be in your mid-thirties, but you look like a guy in his twenties. Will is still an old man, though."
At this remark from the Marquis Lansfield, the atmosphere around them stirred. The chatter that had been heard from the crowd suddenly stopped, and all eyes focused on Edward. But then, Marquis Grandchester cut through the tension with a sharp remark.
"Who are you calling an old man? How rude!"
"It's been a long time since Mrs. Grandchester passed away, and you haven't remarried or even gone to a brōtḥel. What else could this be if not old and dried up?"
"My wife is the only one I have. That's all there is to it."
"Hmph, that's suspicious. You must be hiding a mistress somewhere. Hmm... wait, could that merchant woman named Sophia be...?"
"Don't compare me to you."
"But the Grandchester family is practically running the Sophia Merchant Guild. Hiding it is pointless. Come on, at least let me have some alcohol."
Just looking at the grinning Marquis Lansfield made Edward feel uncomfortable, so he sighed quietly and began to speak.
"I wish that were true. By chance, our family has become close to Sophia and has provided some capital. However, that is just a tiny part of the whole Sophia Merchant Guild. Since their main store is in the Grandchester territory, our family gets some favors, and we can expect to pay high taxes in the future. But the Grandchester family can't control the Sophia Merchant Guild. If we apply too much pressure, the main store could easily move to another territory. In that sense, the Grandchester family fears being disliked by the Sophia Merchant Guild and intends to offer as much convenience as possible."
"Are you saying that it's not the Grandchester family's merchant guild?!"
"I'm truly sorry, but you're right."
Seeing Edward nod, the Marquis Lansfield and the surrounding nobles were all shocked at once. Many nobles believed that the Sophia Merchant Guild was run by the Grandchester family, and even after hearing Edward's statement, they still looked like they couldn't believe it.
"Will, is that true?"
"My son has no reason to lie. We, the Grandchester family, are desperate to ensure that Sophia does not leave the Grandchester territory."
"But if that's the case, then the Grandchester family should just create a new merchant guild and have them make a new Elma liquor."
Excitedly, the Marquis Lansfield spoke quickly.
"Elma brandy is made from Elma liquor, as the name suggests, but only the Sophia Merchant Guild knows the exact method of production."
"Then just order them to reveal the production method."
"Try doing that, and Sophia will easily abandon the Grandchester territory. If things go badly, she might even leave this country. According to Sophia, Elma brandy is the 'beginning.'"
"The beginning of what?"
"She says it's a new liquor that hasn't been seen yet. She claims, 'Because there was Elma in Grandchester, we made Elma brandy.' She probably made different liquors in other territories."
Marquis Grandchester smirked.
"W-What? So, does that mean they might be able to make a new liquor in our territory too?"
"Only Sophia knows that."
Once again, a restless energy spread around them. Until just now, there had only been glances peeking in their direction, but now everyone had stopped to surround Marquis Grandchester and wait for the conversation to continue.
"Hey, Will. Let me meet Sophia."
"Just request a meeting normally."
"I did, but I got a polite reply saying I'd have to wait over a month to see her."
"Hmm... So, she puts the Marquis Lansfield family on hold. You might be disliked by Sophia. If not, then maybe the finances of the Lansfield territory are in trouble. Or you probably said something rude to her at the hunting tournament."
"Well, if she's that beautiful, it's only natural to want to see her blush a little. Besides, our territory's finances are not in trouble. Even if we were, a mere merchant wouldn't notice."
"So you really did say something bad to Sophia. Just so you know, if she wanted to, she could figure out exactly how many hairs are on your backside."
"Oh, if Sophia wants to, I wouldn't mind her counting my hairs."
"I'm sorry for making such a crude joke. You really are like a brat from the Academy who just turned into an old man."
"Not losing my youthful spirit is my charm, after all."
"More like you're just crude and lack maturity."
Marquis Grandchester sighed as he looked at his old friend from the Academy. Meanwhile, Sedrick's followers, who were nearby, were outraged, thinking, 'I definitely don't want to count that,' but they didn't make a fuss about it.
"Will, if the Grandchester family is not running the Sophia Merchant Guild, then it's not smart for the Grandchester family to monopolize it. People will get jealous."
At the words of the Marquis Lansfield, the surrounding nobles nodded lightly in agreement.
"I understand. I think I will report this to His Majesty as well, but Sophia has been staying in the royal capital since a few days ago. It seems she plans to open a store there. Also, she wants to have stores outside of the Grandchester territory, and I believe she has already scheduled meetings with several lords... but the fact that you are being put off means she probably doesn't intend to open a store in the Lansfield territory."
With that one remark, the smile completely vanished from the Marquis Lansfield's face.
"Hey, Will. Please, let me meet Sophia quickly."
"I refuse. It would be a problem if the Grandchester family became disliked because I introduced you."
"I will send a formal letter of apology to Lady Sophia. If needed, I don't mind giving her a mansion in a prime location in the Lansfield territory. She can use it as a branch or a warehouse, whatever she likes. Also, we brew ale in our territory. Don't you think Sophia would be interested in that?"
"I'm just saying, they also make ale at my wife's family estate, the Amesbury territory. Plus, the Sophia Merchant Guild's products aren't just alcohol. They have Spieluhr, herbal tea, and apparently a lot of beauty products like cosmetics. Well, I don't really understand beauty stuff, but at least if you look at Edward now, I think everyone would agree."
This time, a low, rumbling sound rose up from various places, and that sound turned into a loud buzz that shook the venue.
"Father, we promised not to speak too loudly about that."
"Now that you mention it, yes. Getting old isn't great."
It seemed like Marquis Grandchester and Edward appeared to accidentally reveal a secret, but they were intentionally sharing information about the beauty department. Meanwhile, the wheat market was beginning to rise. They needed to quickly establish branches of the Sophia Merchant Guild in various regions or find a trustworthy merchant guild to manage business for them.
"Hmph, you old raccoon. What do you mean 'getting old isn't great'? That's so obvious. Are you two acting like servants of the Sophia Merchant Guild? Seriously, with all this attention, it's going to be hard for me to jump in."
"I don't want to hear that from a crappy old man like you. Besides, you're already disliked by Sophia, so just give up."
"I won't give up on a woman I have my sights set on."
"Speaking of which, I can't forget the time you made my sister angry. You got kicked in the back and ended up with 2 front teeth broken, crying with blood pouring from your nose."
"Isn't that a story from 40 years ago?!"
"You haven't changed at all."
"That's true. Mrs. Harrington, the former Countess, is still beautiful. She's the very image of youthful dreams."
"That just means you haven't grown up. Fool."
Thus, the argument between the two continued until Marquis Grandchester met with the king. Normally, the nobles who wanted to get close and gather information about Sophia had no choice but to stand there, unable to approach because of the old man's and the other old man's quarrel.
However, in reality, this argument was just a show put on intentionally by Marquis Grandchester and his friend, Marquis Lansfield. From the start, Marquis Lansfield had approached on purpose and warned his friend. Marquis Grandchester also took advantage of Marquis Lansfield's actions to spread only the information that suited him, shutting out the troublesome noble families.
Meanwhile, Edward couldn't realize that the argument between the two was intentional until he got home. To these two, Edward still seemed like a young raccoon.
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