The first day of 1831, the Year of the Rat.

On this day, Sean did his best to give the victims a relatively rich New Year, for which he paid an extra 5,000 louis. In this year of relative scarcity of materials, 5,000 gold louis can't buy too many things.

No matter how difficult life may be, the victims also wore their most decent clothes as much as possible, and both men and women wore a local flower on their collars, which was the most important in the region, even during the season, and attended a luncheon organized by the mayor of Pierre.

After the blessings of several village priests, the feast began.

At this feast, each adult man is given an extra glass of beer, which makes them delude themselves into thinking that this is the New Year and that it looks no different from previous years.

In fact, the toasted bread or fried rice they ate was no less mixed with chaff or other things that even the cook did not recognize, than they used to eat.

Sean invited 31 orphans to his rose garden, including Rose Coty.

The orphans ranged from five to eleven years old, with 18 girls and 13 boys.

Sean simply remembered how many of the children were almost steamed by the homeless, and he couldn't bear this terrible tragedy, so he could afford to raise them if he could, and even gave each of them a new set of clothes for the New Year.

The job of caring for these orphans, the truth falls to Rose Coty. The young girl was kind and patient, and soon won the orphans' dependence, leaving Emma undecided.

Due to the large number of people, the banquet was arranged under the large banyan tree in the garden, with a dozen tables put together and a whole beautiful blue tablecloth on top.

When Sean sat down, Cleveland, the butler, Nelson, the head of security, Paul Feige, the acting treasurer, and Tommy Wesley, the clerk, also sat down with Sean, and even Jensen, Rabo, and others had a seat, and Emma, Rose, and others led the orphans in preparing the dishes, serving the food, and pouring the drinks.

Seeing that it was almost over, Sean said:

"Emma, Rose, let the children stop being busy, sit down!"

Sean didn't care about the so-called aristocratic etiquette, and even Cleveland didn't bother to persuade anything now.

The orphans sat down in a restrained manner, and they sat upright, with their hands on their knees, lest they displease their masters.

Among the orphans, Sean kept an eye on Irena Fern, who had been treated as a bloodthirsty by the victims, who had not yet recovered from her fright, like a little white rabbit who had fled in a hurry under the pursuit of the hounds, and sat next to Rose with her head bowed.

The men all had wine in front of them, and the orphans had a large glass of freshly squeezed juice in front of them.

Sean raised his glass and said, "Today is the first day of the new year, worship God first! Of course, there is also Lady Liberty!"

Everyone raised their glasses: "To God!

After everyone had taken a sip of wine or juice, Cleveland raised his glass and said, "Second glass, Lord Viscount!"

"To the Viscount!" everyone toasted.

Sean smiled.

Cleveland looks back as if in a dream, and although there are tens of thousands of victims outside the rose garden, and they are spending money every day, the prosperity of the Connelly family is just around the corner.

Thinking of the old viscount who had wandered all his life and finally died of poverty, Cleveland couldn't help but shed tears, as if it were yesterday.

"Butler, do you have sand in your eyes?" Jensen's sudden words made everyone feel the urge to pull him aside and beat him up.

"Haha. Sean didn't care, "Don't wait, let's eat!"

He grabbed a roast goose leg and nibbled on it, without any aristocratic demeanor and cultivation.

Today's feast is very rich, not to mention in the town of Vichy, the provincial city of Poitou, even in the holy city. It's not that the ingredients are too rare, but that there are too many cooking tricks, all of which are "pondered" by Sean when he has nothing to do.

Not to mention that the orphans have never seen this, even Paul Feige and Tommy Wesley, who have just arrived, are secretly smacking their tongues, and they are dizzying with the dishes alone, and they are also people who have seen the world, and they still secretly swallow their saliva a long time ago.

Cleveland, Emma, Nelson and others are not surprised, this is one of the few fetishes of his own Viscount, such as the Viscount's love to eat with two silver chopsticks.

"Actually, when there are a lot of people, you have to grab the meal to be happy!" Sean joked, "Children, and my big friends, don't be so polite, hurry up and eat!"

As soon as Sean gave the order, the orphans immediately moved, and looking at the way they ate with their mouths full of oil, Sean suddenly felt a sense of sadness.

He's homesick!

But never going back!

invited the orphans to celebrate the New Year together, not because he felt too lonely in his heart.

The feast culminated in an event called "Red Envelopes", in which each orphan was given a small paper bag made of red paper paste with a few shilling copper plates inside.

Cleveland and others' red envelopes contained cheques of varying amounts, the size of which reflected the distance between relatives.

"Giving out red envelopes should be a repertoire for the Connelly family for the New Year. ”

Sean was pleased with the results.

"Thank you for your generosity!"

Tommy Wesley held the red envelope and was very moved, becoming the clerk of Lord Viscount, in fact, he was only ordered to complete the first draft of a novel, and was not responsible for anything else.

As a third-rate writer over thirty years old, he makes a living by the pen, although he has spent a lot of unjust money on women, but he has never had so much money in his hands at one time.

"Tommy, I hope to see the final draft of your magnum opus by the end of this month. Sean said.

"Your Excellency, rest assured, I will do it. Tommy Wesley replied, "Also, this should be your work, you provide a genius story, and I just write it." ”

Sean shook his head: "No, no, it's like writing an academic paper, you will be the first author, and I will only be the second author." This is so that it can be published better, and I hope you can understand that if there is copyright income for this, you will get half of it. ”

"Your Excellency, you are the most generous nobleman I have ever met!" Tommy Wess complimented with reason, "I expect this novel to be a sensation." ”

Rose-Coty asked curiously, "Mr. Wesley, what kind of novel is this, can I get a sneak peek?"

"Beautiful Miss Coty, I bet all over Europa will go crazy about it. But I'm sorry, I'm going to have to devote myself to revising and polishing it, and no one but Lord Viscount will be able to see it until it's sent to the Holy City. Tommy Wesley said with a smile, this is the pride that belongs to the cultural people.

"Alright then, I wish you success!" Rose's eyes glanced at him, her gaze actually observing Sean.

"Rose, I have a mission for you to do. Sean said at this time.

"Please, my lord. Rose curts.

"The youngest of these children is five years old, and I heard that you can read, so I want you to teach the children to read, and I don't want them to just become farmers or fruit growers in the future. Sean said.

"Actually, my lord, I've started teaching them to read. I think that by the summer, there will be at least five older children who will be able to read the newspaper because they already have some foundation. ”

"Oh!" Sean was surprised, he glanced at his butler, saw Cleveland nodded, and said happily, "You did a good job, if you need anything, just mention it to the butler." ”

"Yes, sir!"

Half a month later, a man named Thomas Daly came to the Rose Garden.

This is none other than the chief of the secret police in Poitou.

Daley is not tall, not amazing, and is definitely the most inconspicuous one in the crowd. But this man is the most talked about in Poitou and even in the upper class of Genoa in recent times.

Of course, he's going to be behind Sean.

When the Poitu people first mentioned Sean, they all said that he was a lucky man, and the title of viscount fell to him, and there was no lack of jealousy, so that Sean's various "rude and uneducated" behaviors became the talk of people after dinner.

Later, the gentlemen of the city waited to see Sean's joke that this country fool had to feed so many victims on his own.

As for now, the gentlemen are keen to discuss how much money Viscount Connelly has.

Director Daley is also famous now, and the Genoese people have even turned to the point of hearing about it, and if it weren't for the great earthquake and tsunami, I don't know how many people would have been sent to prison by him.

If they could, no one would want to meet him, and it was better never to see each other.

Because of this, Director Daley himself keeps a low profile in public, as well as in front of Sean.

Sean accompanied him to visit the place where the victims were settled, and the chief claimed to be inspecting on behalf of the Governor, and brought a batch of food, although the amount was pitiful, but the mosquitoes were small and meat, and Sean could not turn them away.

"Everyone said that the victims of the disaster under the rule of Viscount Rocky Hill were thriving, and the law and order were stable, and they really lived up to their reputation when they saw it today. It's all a credit to adults. Daley said with a smile.

In the face of Daly's compliment, Sean smiled: "The people's requirements are not high, as long as they can have a bite to eat, what I have to do more is not to let them be idle." ”

Sean's understatement made Daley slightly stunned, this truth is actually very simple, but there are very few people who are willing to do it.

"A school up ahead?" Daley heard a recitation coming from ahead.

Beyond the rows of wooden houses, in a meadow, a group of children were following Rose Coty to read.

Today is a beautiful day, spring in Genoa comes early, the warm breeze is warm, and it is about to reach the most beautiful season of the year.

Rose's pretty figure is pleasing to the eye.

She didn't wear a hat today, her soft chestnut curls were simply curled back with hairpins, and her slightly conservative dress couldn't hide her white swan-like neck. Coupled with her delicate face and lively eyes, she is as beautiful and moving as a hibiscus out of the water.

Her clothes and simple and straightforward dress always caught Sean's attention, because this was a different world from the outfit of the contemporaries, and according to Sean, she was at least a hundred years ahead.

He bet Rose wasn't wearing the kind of corset that protruded her thin waist.

As Sean knows, foot binding is a kind of the world's pathological pursuit of female beauty, and the use of this kind of harness since her girlhood can seriously deform the bones that have not yet grown, and even cause a terrible displacement of internal organs.

Although there are always people who like to point fingers at her, she is also clearly a girl with a determined personality who still goes her own way.

Daley's gaze glanced at the girl sitting closest to Rose.

Eight-year-old Irena Fern looked to have regained her innocence, and she was intently following Rose as she read the words aloud, oblivious to the changes behind her.

Sean didn't know what Daley's purpose really was, but at least not to personally deliver the poor grain of the province.

Since he didn't say it, of course Sean wouldn't ask.

To Sean's surprise, Daley didn't mention anything about Irena Fern being treated as a bloodthirsty, and he spun around and followed Sean back to the Rose Garden.

Back under the big banyan tree, Daley's expression became serious.

"Lord Viscount, the situation is terrible right now!"

(PS: Hehe, readers don't worry about why 1831 is the Year of the Rat)