The town of Vichy, not far from the port of Poitou.

About 20 kilometers southwest of the coastline lies a small town of no more than 200 households with the mountains in the background.

The scenery here is beautiful, the mountains to the north are stacked with greenery, and most of the houses in the town are painted with beige paint, the exterior walls and red roofs, and the heights are staggered, unified and harmonious. To the south, the blue sea is bordered by a flock of seagulls frolicking on the golden sand.

Having just paid the inheritance tax of 20,000 gold louis, Sean, the new viscount of the Connelly family, rode on his horse and looked at the scenery around him curiously.

20,000 louis is a large amount, and there are many wealthy people in the holy city and Gyeonggi who can afford it, but very few people have the opportunity to pay it.

From the time of the founding emperor Carlos I, in order to settle the expenses of the unification war, the imperial court openly sold some positions, at first only as a stopgap measure to improve the finances.

Later, these positions were often equated with hereditary status, and although most of those who held these positions did not undertake actual administrative affairs, they were sold at the same time as they ceded some rights to the emperor and the imperial court, which were often withdrawn so that they could be re-sold, and became a means of public enrichment for the imperial court like cutting leeks.

Sean couldn't figure out how this situation had been going on for more than 60 years, and it looked like the system would continue.

The succession of noble titles was relatively strict, as the nobility were staunch supporters of the royal family, and they renounced traditional territorial and local administrative rights in order to assert central authority. At this time, the aristocracy naturally demanded more privileges, and this privilege was directly manifested in the form of paying less or even no tax, which in turn affected the income of the imperial court, because the aristocracy often owned a huge amount of real estate.

Therefore, the inheritance of the noble title by the imperial court, on the one hand, is tightened, and it will never be indiscriminately sealed.

The existing nobles either date back to a long time ago, unless they openly rebel and are exterminated, which is generally recognized by successive emperors, and even some nobles are beheaded, but their descendants still inherit the title, or they are newly canonized military nobles with the victory of Carlos I, which you can buy because you have money.

On the other hand, the inheritance of the title is clearly marked, even if you are the eldest son, you must pay a donation of varying amounts according to the level of the title while inheriting. Some poor aristocrats had to go into debt because they couldn't afford to pay the money.

So although Sean felt pain, the 20,000 gold Louis still paid happily, although the price is twice as much as others, who called you just a lucky adopted son?

And Denzel Cleveland is also peeking at him.

Denzel Cleveland was the steward of the old Viscount Connery, a medium-sized, frost-white old man with a pleasant face, and his clothes, though somewhat old, were not harshly dressed.

After the old viscount's death, he was in charge of the viscount's few remaining possessions, including the villa in the town of Vichy, which was the last inheritance of the old viscount. If there are no heirs, the property will be auctioned off and Cleveland will be swept away under the nobility inheritance law.

"It's not far from the Robinson family's estate?" asked Sean looking back.

The Cleveland butler was a little surprised, and he pointed to the ridge that stretched out to the beach, and said, "Climb over that hill and you can see the estate of Earl Robinson's family." ”

"It looks like you can only walk. Sean asked, "Is it okay to row?"

"Of course, Lord Viscount. "The Robinson family territory belongs to the town of Gill, and is separated from us by the ridge in front of the town of Vichy, but we don't usually have much in common. The mountain is so rugged that it takes one hour to walk and half an hour to row around. ”

"Who does the mountain belong to?" Sean asked.

"My lord, it was half of the Connery family and half of the Robinson family. But ......"

Sean suddenly understood: "The old viscount lost his gambling money and sold it to Earl Robinson?"

"Yes, sir. Cleveland's expression looked very regretful, "Although this mountain has no other products other than wild beasts and wood, it is a pity to lose it." ”

With that, a master and a servant, plus Jensen, who had no sense of existence, the three of them entered Vichy Town.

The townspeople had already received the news, and they stood in front of the doors and windows, looking at the new nobles.

"They don't seem to be very friendly?" Sean said with a self-deprecation.

"No, they just think you're a stranger. Cleveland replied, "The people here are very simple, and they have not infringed on the family property after the old master died." ”

"I dare say that the land of each of their families, if not all, at least part of it originally belonged to the Connelly family. Sean's words hit the nail on the head, "This may be the only good thing the old viscount has done." ”

Sean's evaluation of the old viscount was not what Cleveland expected.

The old viscount's villa was called the Rose Garden, and on the west side of the town, on a slightly higher ground, was a three-storey building with a terrace and more than twenty rooms, behind which was a storehouse, stables, and a wall more than two people high, surrounded by gardens, and although there was not a single rose to be seen, there was no shortage of flowers and tall trees, and it was well kept.

The sun is shining, facing the sea, and you can hear the sound of the tide crashing on the shore.

"From today onwards, I want to be a happy person, facing the sea, and the spring flowers are blooming. ”

Sean liked it from the first sight, and this kind of environment was exactly the sea-view villa he dreamed of in his previous life.

The members of the manor stood in line at the door, but there were actually only two people: Emma, the cook, and Rabo, the groom and gardener.

The old viscount could not afford more people in his old age, and it was not easy for these three people to make this rose garden look decent from the outside.

The exterior of the villa is acceptable, but the interior is very old, and some of the furniture is unusable.

But it was very clean and tidy.

"Your Excellency, you now own this rose garden, and ten acres of land, which yields 500 gold louis a year, and a piece of mountainous land, and a carriage with two horses. Cleveland said, "But there are some bills that you need to decide." ”

"Tell me about it. Sean sat in his chair and crossed his legs on the desk. Cleveland frowned and continued:

"The first lord once owed 3,000 louis for gambling losses, and he paid off this rose garden ......"

"What?" Sean's jaw almost dropped, he originally thought that the old viscount had at least left him a property, but he didn't expect that even the property was mortgaged.

"This rose garden is the ancestral property of the Connelly family, the history can be traced back to two hundred years ago, although the house is a little old, but the original value of at least 5,000 gold louis, but it is located in the middle of nowhere, it cannot be sold at a price, the old man made 3,000 gold Louis mortgaged the rose garden to Viscount Lincoln, provided that the old man can pay off the debt by the end of January 1831, otherwise Viscount Lincoln will take back the rose garden. ”

Sean quickly pulled out his checkbook and swiped a few strokes:

"Hurry up and pay it back, I like this house very much!"

"Yes!" Cleveland took the check, seeing that it was a check on sight from a large bank based in the Holy City but with a branch in Poitou, and his mind was a little reassured, "There are still a few accounts that need your decision urgently." ”

"Still owes money?" asked Sean.

"The old man was bedridden in his old age, and he owed Dr. Nolan about 100 gold louis for his consultation and expensive medicines. ”

Sean happily wrote another check, only to hear the Cleveland butler continue: "When the old man was buried, for the sake of minimum decency, I took the initiative to ask the tailor of the town to buy one for him, and it cost him three louis. Before the old man became seriously ill, he asked the Lake brothers to repair the house and furniture, and he received another 30 louis for the wages and materials......"

"Alright!" Shaun stopped Cleveland's words, almost snarling, "you tell me how much money you owe in total?"

"About 5000 gold louis. Cleveland said, pulling out a ledger, "It's all here, and I promise there won't be a single shilling coming or going." ”

5,000 is by no means a small number, but it is acceptable.

"Okay. Sean felt pain, and he wrote another check, "You pay off all the urgent debts, and don't pay the ones that are not urgent for the time being, and wait until I have sorted out the old viscount's debts."

And you tell the brother surnamed Lake that if they want to get the money and see me in three days, I need to renovate this rose garden, and I will pay the price. If they don't want to come, tell them that they don't want to get any of the money the old viscount owes. ”

Although the flesh hurts, the money that should be spent still has to be spent, and the debts that should be repaid have to be repaid.

In Sean's eyes, he really likes this rose garden.