When Isabel and Mrs. Walton arrived under the tree with a swing, her nephew Wolf Walton, the future Baron II Walton (provided that Wolf's father, Sir Ernest, who had the title of heir, died in battle), had returned to the place where they had rested and eaten fruit, accompanied by a maid.

This was what his mother, Mrs. Walton, had told him, and his mother needed to talk to his aunt Isabel. They are not allowed to disturb their conversation without their mother's permission. Wolf sat down on his bench and glanced over to the small table on the right, picked up a pickled European plum from his plate and ate it with relish.

Isabel sat on the swing and swung in small increments. While swinging, she had the intention to joke with her sister-in-law, "Caroline, you said before that you wouldn't use my money to buy the manor and land for you. Now, why are you asking me to buy your and Ernest's territory again? ”

Caroline walked to the left side of the swing and gently grabbed a thick linen rope that bound the swing, and said in a reprimanding tone, "You little fool, you can get eight to ninety percent of your income from my territory and your brother's territory after you buy it." Wolf is only 6 years old this year, and you still have 15 years to buy. ”

Isabel deliberately looked at her with a surprised expression and pouted, "Eight to ninety percent of the income, 15 years of time?" Even if you only have an income of 160 pounds a year, 15 years is... 2400 pounds?! ”

"Pretty much. Maybe it's not as much money as you make in the South, but you can take it as interest. ”

"Okay, I got it."

Isabel got up and left the swing, glanced up at the sky, and smiled at Mrs. Walton again, "Carolyn, it's almost dinner time." Now, I have something to discuss with the gentleman. ”

With Isabel's help, Caroline no longer fears what life will be like after her husband's death, and at least she and her two sons will not be reduced to the poorest civilians. The smile also became comfortable, and he looked at the other party and nodded, "You go, I'll wait for you." ”

The question of money discussed with her brother's wife reminded Isabel of the purpose of inviting Beard Smith, a gentleman, to her father's domain for dinner today. After saying goodbye to Caroline and her nephew Wolfe, she hurried back to her parents' house with her personal maid, Anne.

Soon, the manservant on duty in the corridor asked for the butler's whereabouts. He then led Anne towards the kitchen on the north side of the house. As soon as she walked through the kitchen door, she suddenly noticed that in addition to the two chefs she knew, a baker, a butcher, a food buyer and a few kitchen maids, there were several more unfamiliar faces in the kitchen. At this time, everyone in the kitchen was busy with the lord's dinner tonight, and no one seemed to notice the appearance of the lord's daughter for a while.

Isabel stood quietly at the door, frowned and asked the maid behind her, "Anne, who are these strange servants?" ”

Anne raised her eyes and glanced quickly at the few strange servants busy in the kitchen, and whispered to her, "Miss, these people are winemakers, sommeliers, and caterers. ”

It just so happened that a kitchen maid saw the two of them as she turned around, and was about to salute and greet when she heard the lord's daughter whisper, "Where is the butler?" ”

"Miss, the housekeeper is in the dining room." When the maid finished speaking, she found that the lord's daughter had already left the dining room with her personal maid.

Isabel glanced at the maid as she walked towards the dining room on the side of the hall with the maid, "Anne, do you think the family needs to hire so many servants?" ”

Anne only said what she had seen and heard in the past two years, "Miss, I have heard that noble families usually employ many servants. My lord, your father, is a nobleman, and his dealings with other nobles and banquets are indispensable, so many servants will be needed to do the housework. ”

Having a large number of attendants and servants was a means of expressing the power and prestige of the nobility, and lavish pomp and superior hospitality were the status signs of the nobility. Moreover, the nobility not only strengthened their social relations with each other, but also served as a means of pursuing status and prestige. In addition, when the nobles were touring their territories and visiting guests, they needed to make a lot of preparations for the servants along the way, such as arranging food and lodging along the way, and dealing with various unexpected situations.

Now that her parents have become hereditary nobles, Isabel can only acquiesce to the fact that a large number of attendants and servants reflect the noble status and status of her parents. If they continued to live according to the knightly family model of a few years ago, their parents, who were hereditary nobles, would inevitably be neglected by other nobles, leading to a decline in social status. Although Isabel herself wants to be ignored by others, she does not want her family to be ignored.

Because there were not many people attending the dinner today, the dinner was arranged to be held in a smaller restaurant. Bruce Hard, the butler, was directing several servants of the dining room to set up the dining room and set up all kinds of utensils, when he saw the lord's daughter walking in with the maid, and immediately saluted and greeted her solemnly.

"Bruce, are all the things I brought back in the storeroom?" Isabel walked up to the butler and asked.

"Yes, miss. And, all the seals were affixed according to your request. ”

"Well, my parents, Lord and Mrs. Skrop, are the gentlemen still in the hall?"

"Yes, miss."

After a moment's thought, Isabel gave the order of the lord's daughter, "Bruce, you send someone to take the gentleman to my father's armory at once, and tell him that I have urgent matters to discuss with him. Also, let two more servants follow me to the storeroom. ”

Later, Gentleman Beard Smith was invited by the servants to Baron Walton's armory. As Beard stroked his beard and looked at the various cold weapons in the cupboard, he thought to himself, "Before dinner, what is the matter with your Excellency sending someone to me?" ”

"Well, yes, it must be an investment business."

"Exactly 400 pounds!! My God, I almost thought I couldn't get it back. ”

Isabel had wanted to give him the gentleman and the eldest son's two investments and earnings after dinner. It's just that there were two aristocratic guests in the house who were not valued by Henry VIII, and she could only give the money to the gentleman in private. Soon, she arrived in the armory room with the maids, two men carrying a treasure chest.

When Beard saw the treasure chest placed on the ground, he looked a little surprised, "Miss, my eldest son and I need this kind of money box for our investment?" ”

Isabel turned to look at the closed door, then turned her head and smiled at the gentleman, "Of course, gentleman, it's 12,400 pounds." ”