She came out of darkness and brought light to the world.

- Preamble

The English Channel (also known as the Strait of La Manche) is a strait that separates France from the United Kingdom and the European continent and connects the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea.

On a private island.

The fog was heavy.

Huge tides rise up into the sky, constantly lapping the cliff wall of the pitch-black cliff that sticks out of the mountain peak, forming a wonderful landscape of "big water hitting the cliff", many people will definitely sigh at the creation of nature if they see this scene.

But the people who lived in the huge castle at the top of the cliff did not look strange in the slightest, they were no longer surprised.

The castle is in the eerie Gothic style, and the unique pointed ribbed vaults, flying buttresses, flying buttresses, flying buttresses, rose windows, recessed pointed arches and eerie sculptures in Gothic architecture are well displayed, giving people a sense of pride, independence and lonely struggle.

It is like a king who has been exiled on a lonely island in isolation, and sooner or later this king who looks into the distance will have to reign again.

At the beginning of the new day, the woman named Lucy Bedwell woke up in her soft and comfortable court bed, and with the help of her personal maids, Lucy put on a tight corset, light stockings and soft and comfortable silk underwear, and then put on a pure white dress with leg of mutton sleeves, the ruffles spread softly and gently over the shoulders and chest of the dress, the dress was also decorated with blue dotted patterns and light blue ribbons, and then Lucy herself put on a pair of white cut-out pattern thin silk gloves and chose an exaggerated white top hat, Seemingly anxious to take part in the equestrian race, she also put on a pair of black Chelsea boots that did not conform to the etiquette, and finally put on a pure white bow on her chest in the shape of a jasmine flower in the center.

Even in the heat of summer, it must be layered, because the Bedwell family only recognizes the most powerful Britain during the "empire on which the sun never sets", and only appreciates the British dress of this period, the characteristics of women's clothing in this era are - a large number of lace, muslin, ruffles, ribbons, bows, multi-layered cake cutting, folding, shirring and other elements, as well as stand-up collars, high waists, princess sleeves, leg of mutton sleeves and other court styles, this gorgeous and subtle soft style is very refreshing.

Under a complete set of complex costumes of the Victorian era, Lucy has become a graceful aristocratic princess, and Lucy herself is charming and has peugeot facial features, so at this moment, she exudes a "noble" atmosphere all over her body.

You can only watch from a distance, and you can't play with it.

This morning, Lucy needs to attend a banquet held by her uncle Marcus in the castle, and the people who come to attend are some ancient nobles, including many celebrities, high-ranking officials and dignitaries, the influence and connections of the Bedwell family can be seen, but the Bedwell family can faintly have the current "rising" momentum, not only thanks to the painstaking management of the family patriarchs of the past generations, but also because of Marcus's strong means, shrewd, and ruthless, It is precisely because Marcus has done many important things for the family that cannot be ignored, such as coercion and temptation, or persuasion to win over outside the outside world, and buy the hearts of people outside the family, even at the expense of dirty hands and stained with blood, such as planning to assassinate those powerful people who have gained benefits but turned their faces and hindered the development of the family, such as coming forward to remove the business stumbling blocks that may endanger the family, and personally leading people to completely eliminate the London underground mafia that has been a headache for the family. So now that he sits firmly in the position of patriarch, no one dares to covet it, and no one is qualified to sit on it, everyone succumbs to Marcus's obscenity, fearing that one day he will "die of an accident", it is precisely because Marcus is too strong and powerful, so he was able to let Helen return to the family at that elders' meeting.

In the final analysis, Marcus, who is now in power and indispensable contributions, is the backbone of the entire Bedwell family, regardless of the young or scheming young or scheming of those newborn calves within the family who are not afraid of tigers, and the old immortals who have half of their bodies into the loess admit it or not, Marcus has become the real master of the family behind his back and on the surface, and he is an admirable and insurmountable giant in black, white and gray, I have to say that he does have the potential to become a king, even in troubled times, there is no doubt that he is a tyrant who dominates one side.

Lucy walked on the road to the banquet hall on the first floor, and had a cursory view of the castle structure, with a large area of stained glass on all sides (due to the reason that the flying buttresses and flying buttresses are used to support the force, so you don't have to worry about the walls being too thin to bear, you can open windows on the wall to make the lighting and ventilation better), the columns are all leaning together to present the form of "bunches", and finally spread out to form a star shape overhead, especially the pointed rib vault structure above the head, there is a hint of "upward", which makes the interior of the castle more towering and bright, The sense of sacredness naturally comes out, and I have to say that the guy who invented the "Gothic" architectural structure is really a genius, and the aesthetic level is quite high.

Along the way, Lucy also saw many maids and servants, all dressed in neat and simple clothes, with uniform movements and respectful expressions, because they were all very jealous of the master of the family, Marcus, and they all went through harsh and torturous teaching and training before entering the castle to serve the castle, and because the money given by the castle was so tempting, they all signed deeds of sale for a period ranging from ten to thirty years, and some even signed a term for life.

In fact, Lucy didn't have the heart to carry out these so-called high-class gatherings that would undoubtedly be of great benefit to her future in the development of human society, otherwise she would not have worn Chelsea boots that were convenient for equestrian activities, and refused the warm invitations of several young handsome people from other powerful families who coveted her beauty during the court ballroom dance, and one of the handsome men even wanted to kiss the back of her hand without authorization, Lucy shrewd her hand, but the handsome man still did not give up, In the end, Lucy directly threw over and slapped the world around, leaving a shadow in his heart, and he didn't dare to make an inch. Lucy had been sitting alone in her position throughout the ballroom ballroom, looking down at the black boots on her feet, thinking about when she would end this boring party and meet the "Pegasus" friend she met at the racecourse, in fact, it was indeed a horse, and the hair was white and pure, not mixed with a trace of variegation, not like a horse in the world, and the blood was equally noble, so she was rejected by the other horses in the stable, and there was no owner, so Lucy chose it, Lucy thought it had the same sorrow as herself, The place where you are is not actually your true home, but you have to stay because of many intertwined and intricate reasons.

After the ballroom ball, it was time for a staggered meal, and Marcus raised his glass and spoke loudly, causing the ancient nobles and modern dignitaries and celebrities to nod and applaud softly.

Lucy thinks that all this is too hypocritical, it is only because the family is now in the limelight, these guys who see the wind and steer the rudder, seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, will climb over, and in the end they just use each other, when the wall is pushed down and the trees are scattered, they will never hesitate, adding fuel to the fire and falling into the well is just the daily means of the upper class people with a weak human touch.

Marcus, who sits on the throne, naturally knows this, but he thinks further, not only does he want to use these guys present to contribute money and efforts to help his grand hegemony, but in the end, he wants them to be ruined and fall into the abyss, pave a road to heaven for himself with blood and bones, and become the soul of his own king, knowing that none of the relevant people in his plan can be left.

Marcus, dressed in a black swallowtail and white-bellied suit in front of the rose window, held the scepter inlaid with thirteen small crystals in one hand, and drank the blood-red wine in one gulp, like a vampire of ancient times, in the colorful light, he wiped the wine stains left on the corner of his mouth, revealing a breathtaking evil smile.

The banquet soon came to an end, the guests and hosts enjoyed themselves, during which all the characters who were in the outside world came to Marcus's side to toast, and negotiated some so-called "business" dealings with this partner, but in fact they were not even equivalent transactions, some of them were for the sake of long-term fishing for big fish, and they were not in a hurry for temporary interests, and decided to increase their investment funding for the Bedwell family, and some were to help deal with some things with the strength that the Bedwell family had shown. At the same time, he is willing to give a very generous reward that exceeds the matter itself, so that the family will have a good impression of him and promote more ambitious cooperation in the future, while Marcus is not willing to refuse to come, and he copes with ease, and in the final analysis, everyone is just deliberately using each other.

Lucy finally returned to her room on the second floor of the castle, and couldn't wait to change into an equestrian decoration, ready to meet her new "Pegasus" friend, and stripped off the layers of intricate costumes everywhere, especially the chest-wrenching corset, which Lucy threw directly to the ground, and it can be said that she hated this anti-human invention. Lucy didn't take off her Chelsea boots, but put on a camel-colored traditional old-fashioned breeches and put on an equestrian outfit that conformed to the modern British style.

At this time, there was a knock on the door, and Lucy turned her head to see a male attendant wearing a beret walking in, looking only thirteen or fourteen years old, but about the same size as Lucy, which reminded Lucy of a little girl named Mu Nianci. According to Aunt Elizabeth, the squire named George was abandoned by his poor family, his alcoholic-drug-drug father and his mother, who was prostituted and plagiarized, and he entered the castle to serve in order to subsidize the family.

"What's the matter?" Lucy asked, looking at the little boy with blue eyes.

"Here is your fruit, lady." The little boy walked slowly past Lucy, and did not look at Lucy, not even out of the corner of his eye, because he was afraid that he would be stunned by the beauty of the other party again, and then the owner of the castle, Marcus, found out and reprimanded and whipped again, and severely punished.

In fact, it is human nature to appreciate beautiful things, such as beautiful women, and yearn for them, let alone just a little boy who may be in love?

But inside the castle, Marcus seems to have done so for the purpose of protection, so it is forbidden for the people who serve the castle for money to have too much conversation and contact with their nieces, let alone love them? He is like a god, controlling all the rules and punishments, no one dares to cross the rules, otherwise it will be the "bloody" end of those predecessors, on this island, even if Marcus deprives others of their lives, he is just using some black, white and gray connections to deal with it properly, and even the news of the person who was killed will be completely blocked, and the relatives and friends of that person will not have the courage to stir up trouble afterwards, otherwise it will be the end of a family reunion and friends meeting, Maybe it will be the destruction of the entire family and all the people involved, after all, what is not lacking in this world is people.

The little boy respectfully put a plate of heat-relieving fruits on the dresser, with sliced chilled watermelon and peeled tender lychees, and then lowered his head and slowly poured it out.

"Thank you." Lucy looked at the little beret boy who slowly retreated, not looking at her from beginning to end, and felt a little funny, and picked up two fresh lychees and ate them.

Lucy went out of the room and downstairs, and passed the lobby where the banquet was held, and saw only her uncle Marcus sitting on the throne, smoking a pipe with a serious look on his face.

Marcus's favorite thing is to smoke and drink, even to a state of madness, except for the time when he went to pick up Lucy back to the family, in order to give a good impression to the other party, so he endured the cigarette addiction for a few days, and the rest of the time he never left his hand or wine, so he was ridiculed by his sister Elizabeth that the fog over this island was all smoked by him, and he later added that the blood in his body was vodka, whiskey, and other spirits.

"Uncle?" Lucy walked over, seemingly a little worried about the other person's body, "Are you not feeling well?" ”

Marcus came back to his senses from his thoughts, his expression changed, he smiled and waved his hand, and glanced at Lucy's vigorous equestrian attire, "Nothing. Are you going to the horse farm? ”

Lucy nodded, then said, "Thank you for all you have done for me."

Marcus smiled and shook his head, "No need. You are my niece, and I have an obligation to take good care of you since my eldest brother died early."

"In a word, big brother took care of me a lot." Marcus's thoughts seemed to drift into the memories, revealing a look of shame and self-reproach, feeling that he owed too much to his eldest brother.

Marcus choked on the strong tobacco in his pipe and suddenly coughed twice.

"Smoke less, watch your body, uncle." Lucy looked worried, and out of concern for her loved ones, she kindly reminded.

Marcus was stunned for a moment, then smiled with relief, "Well."

Lucy smiled back with a gentle smile and walked out of the castle gates to another island, the Bedwell family-invested horse farm.

Marcus waited until Lucy's back disappeared from sight, and smiled meaningfully again.