At 8:30 p.m., the dinner officially began.

As the real protagonist of the evening, Countess George smiled and beckoned everyone into the palatial dining room.

Portraits of Earl George's ancestors at war are hung on both sides of the dining room, making it the most special decoration, perhaps the earliest artwork that the Carnarvon family brought to Highclere.

Meticulous tableware placement is an important table etiquette for aristocratic private banquets. The splendid banquet, the glittering silver tableware, and the transparent and shiny goblets all add to the luxurious and understated decoration of the table!

When everyone had taken their seats according to the name plates, the hostess, Countess George, stood at the head of the long table and said with a big smile on her face: "Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pleasure that Earl George and I welcome you to Highclere Castle tonight.

Many of you here are old friends, but also young new friends, and I believe that such gatherings help to highlight the sincerity and warmth of our friendship.

Ladies and gentlemen, I invite you all to raise a glass and toast to our friendship!"

Everyone picked up the aperitifs on the table in front of them, and all of them raised their glasses with smiles, and after taking a sip, they put down their glasses, and Countess George smiled and motioned to the butler standing behind her to let the waiter serve the food.

Next, a group of waiters and maids with their own duties appeared, began to serve food, and the food delivery was busy.

Both Arthur and Eddie, from childhood, were well educated in table manners and learned strict dining etiquette. Although I felt restrained at the time, after so many years, aristocratic table manners have become a habit.

Otherwise, a formal dinner that takes at least two hours is really not so easy to stick to, especially when you have to sit up straight, never lean your back on the back of the chair, and don't put your elbows on the table.

However, what makes Arthur the most unbearable is all kinds of awkward chats with the two unfamiliar guests around him, you know, it is really strictly forbidden to talk about money, work and other sensitive topics at the British table, which is why the British can talk about the British weather, because in addition to the weather, the real TM can't talk nonsense.

It is wrong to even want to be polite to the host's house and praise the food, because in the eyes of the nobility, the food is made by the chef and has nothing to do with the hostess.

Boasting about dress, sorry is originally a default that the other person looks good, praise decoration, sorry if you are not used to beautiful decoration, this will expose your status。。。。。。

Originally, football was a good topic, especially since Arthur had just bought Southampton FC, but it seems that everyone may be worried about the reason for the embarrassment of Arthur, who has been constantly being ridiculed by the media recently, and this topic has also been scrapped.

So, after two hours, not to mention how uncomfortable Arthur was, fortunately there was exquisite food to make him spend time.

It was not until the end of the dinner, when the ladies had left the dining room for tea and coffee, that all the men who remained in the dining room returned to their relaxed state, and Count George began to smoke, but Arthur refused.

After that, the content of the chat was much more relaxed and casual, everyone chatted all over the world, but the topic finally came to the Southampton club, everyone was supportive of Arthur's ability to buy the Saints, and there were five people present who were senior fans of the Saints.

"Seriously, when I knew that the Saints were going to be sold, I was always worried that it would also be bought by foreigners, and over the years, the Premier League and Championship clubs have almost become hunting grounds for foreign capital, and when I learned that the Saints were bought by Your Excellency, I was really happy from the bottom of my heart. ”

Hearing the Viscount's words, Arthur could only laugh and could not make any response, however, the Viscount's words seemed to open the door for everyone to complain, and they started a discussion on this topic.

"That's right, I never thought that these international capitals, who don't understand football at all, and may even have no interest in football, will enter the UK and invest in English football to help the development of our football level, on the contrary, I think they are desecrating our football culture and poisoning our football market at the same time.

Think about it in the past few years, with the influx of international capital, Jinyuan football has become popular, it is completely more money than anyone, buying players everywhere, and how many clubs are still engaged in youth training?"

"Hehe, the youth training clubs, aren't they finally reduced to those players who play gold dollar football? Earl Arthur, I saw the interview report of the new manager of the Saints, saying that the Saints will not sell young players, and I think this is undoubtedly the biggest successful change... ”

Suddenly becoming the center of the conversation, Arthur was not stunned, although everyone present was at least a dozen years older than him, and some were even thirty or forty years older, but he didn't care about this, but said with a smile.

"It's something that can't be helped, as one of the most watched football leagues in the world and one of the most successful, it's a sure thing.

The motivation of these foreign capitalists lies somewhere between the success of the competitive football game and the success of the economic benefits, and the two cannot be separated from each other. From the Glazer family behind Manchester United to the desert tycoons behind Manchester City, many have seen how the value of a club can be increased by helping it improve, or simply enjoying the crazy rise in income that comes with televising.

In the future, more and more foreign investors will choose to enter the Premier League, and the Premier League will become more and more international. There's not much I can do, at least to make sure that the team in my hometown belongs to me. ”

Arthur didn't expect that their rejection of foreign capital would be so big, so disgusted, Arthur had to pay attention to this psychology, don't look at the few people present, but the influence of each of them together should not be underestimated.

So he had an idea, and couldn't help but wrap himself in a coat of local guardians, although this will seem a bit xenophobic, but it can get the support of the locals, after all, the people who will often come to the scene to watch the game are locals.

And these people present are very good propaganda team big lamas, Arthur believes that they will not be stingy to help with this kind of small favor of waving flags and shouting.

Sure enough, Arthur's rhetoric was appreciated by everyone, all kinds of praise, and Arthur was a little floating, but Arthur also understood that these people present were very good at playing tricks, and if they were really looking for a business cooperation or something, it would be another matter.

THEREFORE, THIS KIND OF SO-CALLED UPPER-CLASS BANQUET IS SAID TO EXPAND CONTACTS, BUT ONCE OR TWICE CAN NOT ESTABLISH ANY FRIENDSHIP AT ALL, ESPECIALLY THE BRITISH ARE VERY CAUTIOUS ABOUT DEVELOPING FRIENDSHIP, SO, ON THE OTHER HAND, THIS KIND OF DINNER PARTY CAN ALSO BE CONSIDERED USELESS. Because everyone is very secretive about money, work, and personal privacy, and they don't want to know the real thing.

Just like now, after the dinner, on the car back to Boleyn Manor, Arthur has to ask the butler Paul, what some of the nobles who attended the dinner do, and some of the butler Paul doesn't know, and he has to look for it on the Internet.

"It's a boring banquet, there will never be a next time, I hate those hypocritical, outdated middle-aged women!" In the car, Eddie, who had already taken off his high heels, was barefoot, and untied the belt of the dress skirt complained very unhappily.

"Hehe, what did they say, or what did they do, to make you so angry. Arthur interrupted the conversation with Paul, the butler in the co-pilot, and looked back at his cheap sister with a smile and asked.

"They asked me about my profession, and when I said I was an actor, you couldn't imagine how embarrassed their expressions became, they acted like they were asking some questions that shouldn't be asked, as if they had made some big mistake, as if the profession of an actor was embarrassing me, damn it, who did they think they were, and they looked down on the profession of an actor so much!"

Hearing Eddie's disbelief and complaining, Arthur couldn't help but shake his head and laugh, he could fully understand the thoughts of that group of aristocratic women, even if their previous background or occupation was not high, but after becoming a noble lady, they thought that they had capital that could be superior to others, and they really thought that they were members of the upper class.

Doesn't it feel ridiculous?

However, this is the person Xing, with the change of environment and status, and suddenly one day I found that I had become the kind of person I used to hate the most.

"The reason why they despise the profession of actors is because they think that actors have lost their dignity, and in their eyes, actors are a group of superficial people who chase fame and fortune, and think that you have condescended to fade away from the aura of nobility and show your head outside.

However, if one day, you can prove yourself with your strength, interpret art with your acting skills, become an artist, and truly have a place in Vanity Fair, then they will also take off their hats, show smiling faces, and praise you. Arthur looked at Eddie with a smile and relief.