Chapter 40: Atonement
The dark sky began to turn slightly white, symbolizing the end of the long night and the dawn of the day.
Dorian Manor.
In the living room, Abel sat on the sofa, directly opposite Arno and James, father and daughter, while Meghan stood in front of the window next to him, and James was telling Abel about today's experience.
Abel looked at the James father and daughter who Yanno brought home, listened to them tell what happened today, and rubbed his brows with a headache: "So, you have encountered fairy tales and remember... Werewolves?"
James said to Abel in a respectful tone: "If someone had told me before tonight that werewolves were real, I don't think I would have believed it, and I might even think that his brain might be broken, but please believe me, Lord Abel, if it weren't for Lord Arnold tonight, I don't think we would have had a chance to walk into Dorian Manor today!"
Abel turned his head to Arno, "What do you say, Arno?"
Arno nodded affirmatively: "What they say is true. ”
Abel touched the tip of his nose and fell into a long period of contemplation......
Long
Abel raised his head and looked at Arnold: "I'm sorry, I can't believe such a ridiculous thing, even if it was my son who told me, I can't imagine that the werewolf escaped from the fairy tale and attacked you." ”
Then without waiting for Arno to reply, he turned his head to look at James: "And then you, Mr. James, I don't think I have any way to provide protection for your family, your family is now targeted by almost all the nobles of London, I can't drag the Dorian family into the water, I still have a lot of things to deal with, so I will be out of company first." ”
With that, Abel got up from the couch, turned and walked to the stairs, and said to Arno, "Then the guests will be left to your care, Arno." ”
James sighed helplessly and sat down on the sofa: "Maybe the Kenway family is destined to disappear in this era......"
Sevilla looked at her father, who had lost his fighting spirit and sat paralyzed, looking as if he was several years old, and she looked at Arno: "Please help us, we are willing to pay any price!"
Megan walked over from the window to Arno and sat down, "I'm sorry, maybe I'm more direct, but what's left of the Kenway family?
Arno stopped Meghan from speaking, looked at James, and his sharp eyes seemed to shine directly on James's soul through his body: "Perhaps, Mr. James, you can tell me why you applied for the Child Labor Protection Act, and I will decide whether I help the Kenway family based on what you said." ”
James was stunned, as if he didn't expect Arno to ask him this: "Child Labor Protection Law, Your Excellency Arnold, you should also know that the ancestor of the Kenway family was a pirate, and our ancestor used the money he burned and looted at sea to become a nobleman in London. ”
James recalled, with a slight sadness on his face: "At that time, all the powerful people in London were ostracizing him, because they didn't want to be on an equal footing with a rude, brutal, bloody pirate, and this exclusion has continued to this day, and I, since I was a child, grew up in a discriminatory and abusive environment!"
James looked at Seville: "Not only me, but my wife Mira and my three children have also grown up in this environment, and I have hated my ancestors since I was sensible! But no matter how much I hate him, he is still my ancestor, and I wonder if I can do anything to save the reputation of the Kenway family, and at the same time, atone for the sins of my ancestors!"
The more James spoke, the more agitated he became, and he even stood up, as if giving a speech: "And I soon found a way to atone for my sins, and when I was visiting my factory, a child laborer fell in front of me because of overwork, and he took his last breath before the doctor arrived, and as I watched his thin body fall on the cold ground, a thought flashed through my mind: Can I do anything for these children?"
James looked at Arnold with a twinkle in his eyes: "On that day, I was in my own factory, strictly regulating the working hours, work-related injury pay, and sick leave of child labor, although the income of the Kenway family was reduced by a small half after that, but I saw the incredible faces of the children in the factory, and the smiles afterward, I felt that I had obtained some kind of redemption!"
His eyes widened, he waved his arms, and he looked a little crazy: "Then I thought, why don't all the children of London get this right?! I went to the lawyer and told him what I thought, and he was surprised, but he was very interested, and he wrote a legal application, which was sent to the town hall in my name, to apply for the addition of this law!"
As he said this, the glint in his eyes slowly faded: "But... The whole of London, every factory! every one! is using child labor, working 14 hours a day, a meager salary, no holidays! no sick leave! no work-related injuries! And it is precisely these nobles who think they are noble who are causing all this! The childhood protection law I applied for directly affected their interests, and the application was rejected, but I did not give up, and I submitted the application again and again, and again rejected it, and finally..."
James's brows furrowed deeply, as if he didn't want to recall this incident: "My actions have aroused the hostility of the powerful, they are no longer just crowding out the Kenway family, they are attacking my factory, my factory has accidents every day, and people are injured every day!"
The corners of James's mouth were slightly hooked: "Ha! Do they think I'm going to give up like this? I didn't give up, I continued to submit the application, and what I did completely angered the elites, and they tore off their hypocritical and noble disguises!"
James' eyes were full of anger, and his fists clenched tightly: "They sent someone to attack my two children! Simon and Carl! They were scarred and left at the door, and a warning letter was found on them, warning me that if I didn't stop my actions, then next time it would be more than that! I had to temporarily stop applying until I was attacked by that monster today...... They never intended to let me go!"
Arnold looked at James who was a little hysterical, nodded in agreement, and walked in front of James: "I understand, to be honest, I admire you very much, but I don't agree with your irrational approach very much, but, or you can accompany me to a place, I think there, you can find the result you want." ”
James calmed down and bowed to Arno: "Thank you, Lord Arno!"