Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Although Laurist was only the director of a small handicraft factory in his previous life, he had been influenced by the economic trends reported by the media. He knew that the four million gold coins that his family lent to the Moronte City Autonomous Committee was far from enough to start a real wave of economic development in the stagnant Moronte City.
Just as Fatty Shi had said, it was not that the millions of citizens in Moronte City were poor. It was just that the Trade Union had implemented a few years ago and the monopolization of the market by the Chamber of Commerce had caused the citizens to lose confidence in investing in the market. Instead, they began to hoard their gold coins in case of emergency. What Laurist needed to do was to cooperate with the Moronte City Autonomous Committee to rebuild the confidence of the millions of citizens in the market. They would take out their gold coins and not continue to hide them in some dark corner or underground.
Four million gold coins was indeed a huge sum of money, but it was not very practical. The two newly formed city defense corps, as well as encouraging investments for those who set up workshops, as well as maintaining the daily necessities of more than a million residents in the outer city's twenty-four communities, as well as the Autonomous Council's own administrative expenses, were estimated to be running out of funds in another two months. That was why the Autonomous Council of Moront City had requested another loan of 10,000,000 gold fords from Laurist.
To be more precise, apart from Laurist, no other tycoon in Moronte City could take out so many gold coins. Even the Temple of Serkin, which was famous for its usury, could not do anything. The Autonomous Committee that formed the new power structure of Moronte City was not lacking in talents. If not for the fact that they were all staunch liberals, Laurist would really want to poach some of them into his family.
For example, Ledos, who came from a society, was an experienced and knowledgeable gang leader, the representatives of the Temple of Serkin, and a few famous old scholars in the outer city. All of them were sly and cunning. While they held power, they were willing to cooperate with the Norton Family to establish the Freedom Alliance to break away from the control of the Chamber of Commerce. However, they were also suspicious of how much support the Norton Family had for the Freedom Alliance. Just as Laurist said, the loan request of 10 million gold coins was a test for the Norton family, so Laurist agreed without hesitation.
Lollister was soberly aware that Morent City's booming business market and economic recovery was caused by the Norton Family's investment in the livelihood of millions of citizens. Apart from a small number of adventurous residents who had taken the first step, most people were still holding onto their wallets and waiting. What Laurist needed to do now was to continue investing and make use of the incoming private ship owners from the Southern Sea Region to conduct large-scale purchases to show the residents of Morent City the beautiful commercial prospects. Only then would everyone open their wallets and take the initiative to invest in commercial activities …
What Lollister said to Spear was the truth. He did not care if the loan of 10 million gold coins could be repaid or not. As long as Morent City developed and became a dumping ground and transfer point for the goods produced in the Norton Family's territory, then they could use the private ship owners from the Southern Sea Region to transport goods to the South to compete for the market monopolized by the Trade Alliance. Then, he was confident that the 10 million gold coins he invested now could be converted into 20 million gold coins within a year or two.
On the 30th of September, the transport fleet from Cilowas Island arrived at Hidden Gold Bay under the escort of the North Sea Fleet. Because of Princess Silvia's arrival, Lollister had to go to the dock to welcome her. Then, he saw his wife, Silvia, and the Duchess of Windsor appear on the dock together. They seemed to be very close, and they even disembarked hand in hand …
What the hell? For a moment, Lollister felt like he was in a whirlwind. He could not care less about the greetings from Fatty Shi and Grand Duke Fausta, who disembarked first. He hurriedly took a few steps forward to welcome them and held onto Princess Silvia's right hand as she came down the ladder.
"Your Highness …" Silvia quickly let go of the Duchess of Windsor's left hand and bowed to Lollister.
"Why did you come here without saying a word? It's still messy here … "Lollister scolded softly.
"I missed you …" Silvia replied playfully. She grabbed Lollister's arm tightly and leaned against him.
"You …" Lollister smiled helplessly and turned to look at the Duchess of Windsor.
"Greetings, Your Highness Grand Duke Norton." The Duchess of Windsor took a step back and also did a half-squat salute. Her posture was impeccable.
Lollister nodded slightly to return the salute. It had been almost 20 years. Time passed so quickly. No one would have thought that the next time they met would be like this. Her eyes were still as big as before, but there was a hint of sophistication in her gaze. Her figure had also become more voluptuous. At this moment, she had already become a graceful and luxurious lady standing before Laurist. She was no longer the same as the elf-like girl who danced under the silver moonlight in his memory …
As time passed, things remained the same, but people changed. Everyone had changed. Lollister secretly sighed in his heart. He smiled and said, "Welcome, noble and beautiful Duchess of Windsor. This must be your visit."
"Yes. This beautiful city once left behind the most memorable people and things in my memory. They are the most precious memories of my life. I am very happy to be able to come to this great city again and meet old friends from my youth, "the Duchess of Windsor said as she looked into Lollister's eyes.
Lollister tilted his head slightly to avoid the Duchess of Windsor's passionate gaze. "Is that so? Then I hope that you will have a good time here. By the way, I have ordered for a comfortable residence to be prepared for the Grand Duke and Duchess. I believe that the Grand Duke and Duchess of Windsor must be tired after a few days at sea. Please get in the carriage. Grand Duke Fausta and Duchess of Windsor, Baron Shredder will accompany you to your residence. Also, I will be hosting a welcome banquet in two days. Please come. "
"We are honored to accept Your Highness's invitation. We will be there on time, "Grand Duke Fausta said as he stepped forward.
Lollister nodded. "Then, farewell. I look forward to your arrival."
After Grand Duke Fausta and the Duchess of Windsor got in the carriage with Fatty Shi, the two ladies in waiting, Fina, Carrie, and Daisy, came up to greet Lollister.
"You guys … I really don't know what to say. Where's Sylvia and Anderberg?"
Lollister was a little confused. Why didn't Sylvia bring her precious son, Anderberg? She usually kept a close eye on him.
"My dear, I didn't bring Anderberg. Maria went back to her family to wait for labor, and Anna went back to Baron Dinah to wait for labor. Anderberg insisted on going. He has been sticking to his little brother all this time. Master Swordsman Sandy went with him too. I wanted to go to the capital because I received a letter from Sissy. I didn't expect that something would happen to Sissy while we were still on the road … "Princess Sylvia's eyes turned red.
Anderberg was already more than five years old. It was the age where he was lively and active. His little brother was Lollister and his concubine, Anna's son, Shroffinck. He was three years older than Anderberg. Princess Sylvia usually asked Anna to take care of Anderberg when she was busy. The two brothers got along very well.
But who was Sissy? Lollister was confused. It took him a while to remember that the queen who died of a sudden illness was called Sissy. She seemed to be Princess Sylvia's cousin. But what puzzled Lollister was that the relationship between the two sisters was very tense. He remembered that Princess Sylvia had slapped the queen, Sissy, when they went to the capital. Lollister had to hand over fifty catapults to the second prince to settle the matter.
"Erm, aren't you two on bad terms? Why did you leave your family's territory to go to the capital for her? "Lollister asked in confusion.
Princess Sylvia rolled her eyes at him. "No matter how bad she is, she is still my cousin. I received a letter asking for help from her, and I couldn't just ignore it. But … I didn't expect her to die just like that … She has a baby in her belly … "
Princess Silvia's tears began to trickle down her cheeks. Lollister used all his strength to get Sylvia into the carriage. Everything would have to wait until they returned to Breen Manor.
There were two letters on the desk in front of Lollister. One was the letter that Princess Sylvia had said Queen Sissi had sent to her, and the other was the reply from his cousin, Kristya. In the carriage, Princess Sylvia told Lollister that when she received Queen Sissy's letter asking for help, she was about to depart. Coincidentally, she met Christie's messenger, so she brought the letter to Lollister.
In the letter, Queen Sissy wrote about her relationship with Knight Wyxus and her pregnancy. This matter also had something to do with Lollister. Three years ago, Lollister was seriously injured in a battle with the Storm Sword Sage and was sent to the capital for treatment. The swordmaster sent by the Commerce Alliance thought that Lollister was recovering in the palace and attacked it. In the letter, Queen Sissi said that it was that night, there were sounds of killing and fire everywhere, and there were dead people everywhere. She was terrified, and it was the Knight of Wykus who saved her. He took her to hide in a remote storeroom to avoid the assassins' attack. It was also that night that she fell in love with the Knight of Wykus and gave herself to him …
From the letter, it could be seen that Queen Sissi did not know the true identity of Knight Wyksas. She only thought that he was an ordinary guard knight. When she was pregnant, she still looked forward to eloping with Knight Wyksas after she gave birth to the child. Then, they would find an unknown place to form a happy family with the child and live a happy and peaceful life. For this reason, she would rather abandon her identity as a queen and be a happy little woman accompanying her lover.
Alright, it was the detestable Lollister who had interrupted Queen Sissi's beautiful dream. If the Norton Family did not send out their troops, then the second prince would have to fight in the Mana Hill Plains for at least another year. This way, Queen Sissi would have enough time to give birth and try to convince the Knight of Wykus to elope with her. In the past, the Knight of Wykus had rejected Queen Sissi's request to elope, but this time, Queen Sissi believed that her lover would agree to elope with her for the sake of the child that was the crystallization of their love.
In the end, Lollister led the family fleet to defeat the North Sea Fleet of the Commerce Alliance, landed in Hidden Gold Bay, captured Moronte City, and forced the Commerce Alliance to retreat to the Mawei Fulin Province. This ended the standoff with the Andenac Kingdom's noble coalition army on the Mana Hill Plains. With the Norton Family's armed forces on the Mana Hill Plains, the second prince led his army back to the capital.
Queen Sissi was now in a difficult situation. She knew very well what the return of the second prince meant to her, and at this time, she was seven months pregnant and could not leave the palace. She could not endure the bumpy road. After thinking about it, in the end, Queen Sissi realized that the only one who could save her from this disaster was Princess Silvia, her cousin who did not have a good relationship with her. The reason was very simple. Princess Silvia was the wife of the Guardian Sword Saint, Lollister. If she was willing to speak up for her, then whether it was the second prince or Duke Fisablon, they would have to treat this matter seriously for Lollister's sake. As long as she could delay until the birth of the child, then Queen Sissi could die without complaint.
In the letter, Queen Sissi mainly expressed this meaning. Letting her give birth to the child would punish her for her sins. The child was innocent. She no longer complained about the heartlessness of the Knight of Wykus. Instead, she pinned everything on the child that was about to be born. If she could renounce her status as queen and leave with the child, even living in the slums would be heaven for her.
Queen Sissi handed this letter to the messenger three days before the second prince arrived at the capital. Then, this loyal messenger rushed non-stop on the road for twenty-one days before arriving at the Northern Raging Bear City to deliver the letter to Princess Silvia. Princess Silvia was touched by Queen Sissi's overflowing motherly love in the letter. She decided to immediately set off for the capital to save Queen Sissi's life. Because she had to hurry, Princess Silvia handed her beloved son, Andrew, to her godmother, Swordmaster Sandy, and had them follow Anna to Baron Dena's territory.
In order to save time, Princess Silvia chose to board a ship from the North Sea City to Cirrovas Island, then go ashore from the Qilin Port to the capital. This way, it would save at least seven days of travel compared to the route the messenger took. Princess Silvia did not expect that when she arrived at Cirrovas Island, she would receive news that Queen Sissi had died of a sudden illness. If not for the Duchess of Windsor on the island, Princess Silvia would have cried uncontrollably.
Now that she was by Lollister's side, Princess Silvia relaxed and revealed her true feelings. She began to cry over Queen Sissi's tragic fate until she was tired of crying and Lollister carried her to bed to sleep.
Lollister shook his head and sighed. This Queen Sissi had fought for love and freedom once, but she was unlucky and had a tragic ending. It seemed that her love was a little too blind. She did not even understand the true identity of the person she loved.
Lollister opened the letter from his cousin Christie. In the letter, Christie was very certain that the knight Wyksas was the second prince's illegitimate son. When the second prince was still young, his mother passed away. The second prince grew up under the care of his mother's little maid. Although she was his mother's little maid, she was ten years older than the second prince. The second prince had sex with this little maid, who was like a foster mother, on his birthday when he was sixteen. The next year, he gave birth to the child Wyksas.
The problem was that this little maid had already been taken in as a concubine by his father, Prince Andinak. After the incident, Prince Andinak was furious and ordered the little maid to die. He gave the child to a Silver-tier knight to raise. This was also the main reason why the second prince was not liked by his father when he grew up. Christie had followed the second prince for nearly twenty years and even became his lover. She knew the second prince very well. In the depths of his heart, he still loved the little maid who had died. This was also one of the reasons why she left the second prince and returned to the Northern Lands.
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