"Thank me, Mr. Treville, if it weren't for me, how would you have been invited." Fran raised her head slightly to look at Charles, not realizing that her arrogant expression and beautiful face looked so cute. "Matilda must have invited me because she wanted to come, and you just came with it."

"Oh, then of course I thank you, dear sister." Charles reached out and habitually wiped his sister's head.

"It's good that you know......" Fran closed her eyes in satisfaction, suddenly thought of something, and pushed her brother away, "Don't touch my head, I'm already an adult!" ”

Mary, who had not spoken all this time, sneered.

Fran blushed slightly, and then stepped on her brother again.

Just as Fran lost her temper, the carriage finally stopped.

Mademoiselle Matilda de Dilion, who had come to visit Fran that day, did not break her promise, and when she returned, she called her servant to bring an invitation, and it was the day of the ball.

Mary had been going to Treville's house a lot lately, either to draw with Fran or to learn to play chess with Charles, so the three of them simply came by carriage together today.

After verifying the authenticity of the invitation, the servants, dressed in red and blue uniforms, let the three men in, and then led the carriage to the stables and took care of it. The three of them walked along the grassy path to the vestibule filled with poplars and large maple trees. Because the thick shade covers the outside of the mansion, it is clear that it is the height of summer, but the guests do not feel hot. The scent of flowers is complemented by the waltzes and dances of the solitudes coming from the hall downstairs, and the bright lights shining through the cracks in the shutters. , which made the visitors feel a little relaxed.

Between the front courtyard and the garden, there is a large palace-like building, which is the residence of the Lord Keeper of the Seals' family.

Matilda was already waiting at the door, still wearing her gold-rimmed glasses, smiling at the trio who had just arrived.

"Fran and Mary, it's great that you two are here." Then she turned to Charles, her eyes flickering. "And you, Mr. Treville."

"Oh, I'm honored to have your invitation too." Charles also said politely.

"It's not me, it's my sister's invitation." Matilda replied, then laughed again, "Let's stop standing outside and go in together, shall we?" ”

Then she gestured towards the mansion.

There was a sudden loud bang inside, and then Charles and the others saw a teenager rushing towards him like a fly, if it wasn't for Matilda's quick dodge, they were afraid that they would have crashed into it.

"George!" Matilda shouted angrily, "You show me something!" ”

The boy looked up, and Charles only now saw the other man's face.

He was about fourteen or fifteen years old, with short chestnut hair, brown pupils, and a somewhat thin face. He wore a silk shirt and a blue jacket, and although he tried to imagine an adult, he still had a youthful childishness between his eyebrows.

"What's the matter, sister?" He asked energetically.

Matilda reluctantly smiled at Charles, "This is my brother George, sorry, I'm too young to be sensible......"

Charles shook his head and said it was okay.

Then Matilda looked at her brother with stern eyes.

"George, this is Mr. Treville, Miss Trevier, Miss Léolang, greetings to them."

The young man greeted the three of them in a smug manner, and then, as if remembering something, looked at Charles with some surprise on his face. "Mr. Treville?"

"Huh?" Charles answered.

"You're Charles de Treville, aren't you?" The boy looked at Charles with sparkling eyes.

"Yes. What's wrong? "There's something strange about Charles.

"I have heard of you in school, and the story of you and Mr. Foa-Graj has been circulating in the school!" The boy looked at Charles excitedly, his eyes shining with adoration.

Charles understood, it turned out to be a junior in the school. It seems that the mischievous stories of himself and Albert when he was a student are still circulating in school......

When he was a teenager, Charles and Albert were each other's best friends in the public school, often playing some pranks together, and they were also one of the most popular figures on campus. I didn't expect that it has been a few years since I graduated, and the deeds can still be circulated in the school, which is really a little laughable.

Charles smiled, a mischievous thought flashing through his mind, and then he patted the boy on the shoulder, "My time is over, and the future will be handed over to you, boy, do a good job!" ”

"Yes!" As if a soldier had been ordered by a general, the young George puffed up his chest and promised.

"Stop making trouble!" Matilda interrupted the conversation and ordered her brother, "I'm going to take them in, and you're here to receive the guests in my place, understand?!" ”

"This is your important task, don't let your seniors down!" Charles added.

"Yes!" George puffed up his chest again, and his face flushed with excitement.

"Let's go inside." Matilda ignored her brother and made an inviting gesture to Charles and the others.

There were already a lot of guests in the hall, but they all looked young. The young men were dressed in the same way, while the girls were all dressed in style. Tables in every corner were lit with candles, and silver and crystal glassware were filled with delicacies, but not many people were enjoying them. People gathered in twos and threes and talked privately.

Matilda took Charles and the others to a corner, and then arranged for everyone to be seated. Then, as everyone sat down, she gently and covertly tugged at Lacial's sleeve.

Charles didn't know why, but he smiled and told Fran to eat something before leaving his seat.

"What's the matter?" He asked Matilda in a low voice.

Matilda's expression was extremely strange, and she looked a little speechless.

"You come with me." Zuihou she only said this sentence.

Charles walked with Matilda full of doubts.

Matilda then led Charles to the side of the room, where he was even more puzzled by the presence of a girl.

Charles glanced at the other party.

The girl was about twenty years old, with a facial contour similar to Matilda's, and her hair was slightly brownish, but her face was more feminine than Matilda's. She wore a blue dress, a small necklace around her neck that made her neck look more slender, and she held an ivory fan in her hand.

She was playing with the fan in her hand, but her eyes were a little hollow, and she didn't know what she was thinking.

"Sister!" Matilda called softly, then gently touched the girl.

The girl seemed to be awakened, and then realized that there were two more people in the small side hall.

"Sister," Matilda said softly, pointing at Charles, and then whispered to the girl, with the tone of a clerk showing off the goods on the shelves, "this is the Count of Treville, and I mentioned it to you......"

It seems that this is the protagonist of today's banquet, Julie, the eldest granddaughter of the Count of Dilliion, and Charles has some enlightenment in his heart. But he still didn't understand what Matilda meant? Weishenme is going to be so busy introducing herself to her sister? What the hell was she thinking?

Do you want to introduce yourself to your sister? weishenme？ Is she so anxious to want her brother-in-law?

What made Charles even more puzzled was that it was a big haode day, her face was a little pale, she didn't look very good, she felt very nervous, and she could even say that she was a little depressed.

But of course, he can only keep these doubts in his heart.

He bowed to the girl. "It's an honor to meet you, Miss Delion."

"Oh......" the girl replied, as if she had just reacted, "It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Treville." ”

Charles could see that under this superficial politeness, the other party barely paid much attention to himself, and he could even be sure that the other party didn't pay attention to what he looked like.

Embarrassed, Charles didn't know what to say.

What the hell am I here for? He asked himself, and then he couldn't come up with an answer.

"Monsieur Treville is a young talent, sister, and I think you and he have a lot to talk about......" Matilda was a little nervous, "Charles, do you like literature?" ”

"Oh, it's okay." Charles replied.

"Well, my sister likes it too......" Matilda looked at Julie. …… Is that so, sister? ”

There was no answer, and her sister was still playing with the fan.

"Sister!" Matilda raised her voice, her tone trembling with anxiety.

"Oh, yes......" Julie replied softly, coming back to her senses.

The conversation then developed in this eerie atmosphere, with Charles and Julie not talking much, except for Matilda who kept trying to connect the atmosphere and cause a conversation, and both of them politely responded with a few words from time to time.

After this strange conversation went on for a while, Matilda finally gave up, and she squeezed her sister's hand. With the help of candlelight, Charles noticed that there were tears in the corners of her eyes behind the lenses. "Sister!"

Her sister's reaction was just as strange, and she squeezed her sister's hand with a quiet smile on her face.

Matilda looked at her sister's smile, her eyebrows furrowed, and then she stretched out again. Then she let out a long sigh, then turned to look at Charles, and smiled reluctantly.

"Mr. Treville, I'm so sorry, let's go......"

Charles, who had already found it extremely boring, of course couldn't ask for it, and then followed her out of the side hall.

As soon as she went out, Matilda suddenly lowered her head, and tears rolled down her eyes.

"What's wrong with you?" Charles was taken aback.

"Nothing......" Matilda smiled reluctantly, but her words were still a little trembling. Let's go back. ”

By the time Charles returned to the hall, it was nearly nine o'clock.

"Where did you just go?" Fran was a little dissatisfied.

"Something." Charles sluttered casually.

Suddenly, something didn't feel right with him.

He felt a gaze on him, and although the owner of the gaze seemed trying to hide it, Charles sensed it with keen vigilance, and he remained silent before picking up a glass dish.

"This pattern is really beautiful...... he praised softly.

Then, with the help of the reflection of the plate, he could see clearly the owner of his gaze, it was a young man in a tuxedo, with an extremely serious facial expression, he was talking to the person next to him, but he took the opportunity to keep looking at Charles.

After admiring it for a moment, Charles put down his plate.

Then he pondered the strange things he had experienced when he came to the Earl's Court today.

Today, it's really not as boring as I originally thought. He thought to himself.

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There is also a change in the afternoon, the reward of the Xiexie Octopus Emperor...... O(∩_∩)O~