The Sensory Animals of Ston Hill

At the dinner table, the topic inevitably revolved around "farmers".The madam was finally willing to go downstairs to eat, and repeatedly confirmed to her young son that the peasants who made trouble before coming to the villa in the afternoon would not be as vicious as the mob in the capital.

"No, mom, don't worry, we have much fewer poor people here than in the capital, so we can't make trouble."

The count also reassured her: "A rebellion is not something that can be achieved by a group of people making a fuss. Someone has to take the lead. There will be no such people in the countryside, so you don't have to worry."

The madam nodded slightly to express her gratitude to the count, but she did not look at the count's face, as if she did not want to or dared to speak to the count.

Alan Stone tried to soften the mood at the table.Just at this moment, the servants started serving dishes. He found that the maid serving his mother was not the same one as before, so he asked, "Mom, have you changed to a personal maid?"

The lady looked at her son hesitant to speak.

Alan Stone really didn't expect the Earl's hand to be so long.He didn't want to embarrass Grace, but he suffered too many blows this day, so he couldn't raise enough vigilance on this trivial matter, and looked at Grace standing in the corner completely subconsciously.

Grace was originally in a mixed mood of guilt and guilt, but when he saw it like this, she put on a rebellious face, thinking, if it wasn't for her generosity, she didn't report to the earl that the two bedroom maids pushed him in the aisle , Madam, even the maid who made the bed will be replaced.

Alan Stone withdrew his gaze calmly, and said to his mother and the earl in the usual tone: "I went to the Border Province first after my vacation, and went to take a look at my brother's place."

Madam exclaimed, "You went to see William? You went to the front! Are you injured?!"

"No injuries, my brother and I are fine." Allen Ston said patiently to his mother: "The front line is not as dangerous as people imagine. Both my brother and General Weiner are the best commanders. The bravest soldiers, their weapons are also the most advanced weapons available today."

What he said later was to the Earl of Arundel, "My brother and General Weiner have pushed the blockade forward again. The enemy soldiers have shown fatigue, and their commanders have also flinched. The frequency of attack is far less than before."

"Very well, when this news spreads, those peacemakers will have no position..."

The voice of their conversation suddenly dropped, and began to revolve around the capital and the palace.Alan Stone occasionally glanced at the corner of the restaurant from the corner of his eye, and saw that the maid was still staring at his abdomen with that horrified look.

"Have you spoken to His Majesty?"

Alan Stone shook his head and said no.He met His Majesty once at the honor ceremony after suppressing the rebellion, but he only said a few routine words, "Your Majesty doesn't seem to be enthusiastic about this matter. At the subsequent ball, His Majesty finished the opening dance and sat down again. Left after a while."

The count told him that His Majesty didn't dislike them soldiers, but some old ministers, "So we have to invite His Majesty to the villa. Otherwise, Your Majesty will always be surrounded by those people, and we will never have the chance to speak to His Majesty."

He also listed many names and official positions. Alan Stone listened very carefully, matching the inside information he revealed with the masks he had seen in the capital.

"I heard that you were very popular at those balls." The Earl of Arundel said with a smile,

Having said all this, Alan Stone had no choice but to express his gratitude to the Earl, "Thanks to your introduction, I have the opportunity to receive those invitations."

The earl said: "Young people want to make a fortune, both talent and opportunity are essential. I just provided you with one of them, and the other depends on you. But since you are socializing in the capital in the name of my stepson, outside Pay attention to the name."

Alan Ston restrained himself from paying attention to that corner, "It's the same at home—" He put his hands on the table, preventing himself from clenching his fists, with a smile on his face that he had practiced for a long time. Looking into those impassive gray eyes.

"Father," he called.

The earl raised the corner of his mouth in satisfaction, and picked up his wine glass to gesture to him.Alan Stone clinked glasses with him respectfully.

The cleverness of a young man can help him quickly learn hypocrisy, but it cannot help him alleviate the subsequent pain caused by self-loathing.Especially when he found that the maid's astonished gaze had shifted from his abdomen to his face.

He finally couldn't help but said to his mother: "Mom, I saw that the formal banquets in the capital are served by male servants. His Majesty is coming to the villa to be a guest, maybe we shouldn't let the maids appear in the dining room." .”

Before the lady had time to say anything, the earl laughed: "This is the advantage of the countryside. It's free and easy, and it's much more interesting than those cumbersome rules in the capital." Direction to look: "Is that so, Grace?"

After dinner, the madam ignored the rules and called her youngest son into her bedroom.In the huge villa, only this small room still belongs to her completely.

Shocked and frightened, she told her son the great changes in the past few months: "Now everyone listens to him... those agents, the captain, Ward has been dealing with them, and now all the books are in his hands Mrs. Brown's a bitch! . . . Even the big tenants are on his side . . . Oh God! And the church has been bought by him! They were Ward's friends before!"

Alan Stone listened to his mother's words, and his heart that had been hanging in the air after returning home slowly sank to the bottom.Even the servants were different. It used to be so lively when he came home, but now they were all unfamiliar faces, and those who were familiar before had also become cold.

He has wandered around the various balls in the capital, and he already understands how fickle people's hearts are. It seems that the new male master of the villa has completely won the admiration and favor of the servants.To use the word "out of favor" to describe his position in the hearts of servants is certainly not appropriate, but it is what it is.

"We hired a fox to guard the chicken coop..." The lady covered her face in pain, "It's more vicious and greedy than a fox! He wants to swallow us pigs, cows, and sheep!...that's all Your father's blood!"

Allen held his mother's hand and wiped her tears with a handkerchief, "Mom, have you heard the story about the King of Hungary and the Teutonic Knights? Andrew II of Hungary invited the Teutonic Knights to help suppress Kumanlei The Teutonic Knights expelled the Kumanlei people and settled in the fief. Later, their ambitions swelled and they tried to split the king's power in vain. Finally, Andrew II was exasperated and expelled. go out."

"Mom, we still need him to help us keep our property and push my brother and me into the center of power, but this place will always be our base. Only the sword belt belongs to him, and the blade is in our own hands!" He tightly I held my mother's hand, saying to my mother and myself, "Mom, do you trust us? My brother and I will definitely succeed! The surname 'Ston' will be re-engraved on the outer wall." !"

Mrs. Ston's face regained her former determination, "All agreements in this world are unreliable, only blood is the most trustworthy. Ellen, you have to remember, you and your brother, the two of you Glory is always connected."

Alan Stone actually thought of Grace at this moment.

"Mom, I have something I've always wanted to ask you..." He hesitated, knowing that it was inappropriate, but he had to ask clearly, "On the night of the wedding, you asked Grace to bake my quilt in my room ?"

Madam's eyes widened in surprise: "How is it possible! It's not that I don't know that you and her are..."