Dear Heliga,

Your greetings have indeed been received by me and your mother.

Daxis is still the same as before, calm and peaceful, except that without you, your mother is afraid that she is a little lonely. Of course, there are worries, but I have read Victor's letter to her, and I know that you are all right, and your mother is very happy.

To be honest, I'm a little worried about whether letting you get in touch with martial arts cultivation so early will have a bad impact on you? Is it because I'm smart and I'm mistaken for being smart? Fortunately, it seems, my worries are unfounded.

This year's winter comes later, so don't be negligent in getting dressed and don't get sick.

If possible, how about returning to your hometown for a while in the winter? Although martial arts practice pays attention to learning and returning home, your mother and I miss you very much. Remember, home is always your back.

Love your father, Werus Kreuzwell

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Sitting in the carriage, I read once again the letter my father had sent me last month. There is a warm current flowing through my heart.

Hehe, will you be surprised if I suddenly go back without saying hello? The young man's heart is very much looking forward to it.

Looking at the winter rain falling outside the carriage window, the young man thought to himself.

Unconsciously, in the fog and rain, the familiar curves of the teenager have been vaguely outlined outside the car window.

Close your eyes and feel the smell of home – the feeling of being close at hand, yet very far away, is simply at its peak in this moment. "Hurry up." The boy urged the coachman.

"Okay, young master." The coachman from the Alside family raised his horsewhip......

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"Lord Viscount, this is the financial report of this month's fishing grounds......"

"Sir, road maintenance matters ......"

"Tax rate notice from the Baryahat side ......"

In the study of Viscount Mansion, Cousinsville, who listened to the reports of his subordinates one by one, frowned.

Since he rejected El Barrea's request for a tax increase last month, his economy has been affected a lot.

The Duke's family had long been at odds with the lesser lords over the tax rate and the various parts of the domain. Since the reform of the "iron-blooded prime minister" shocked the world, the forces of the aristocratic faction, which had always been extremely strong, were quickly compressed, and the traditional aristocratic forces led by the four famous families launched a series of targeted retaliations. These include increased control of the media in the territories, resistance to reformist edicts of the Imperial government, market manipulation through capital, and increased taxes to cover the military expenses of the Confederate army as a counterweight to the "iron-blooded prime minister" who was gradually gaining sight in the regular army.

The increase in taxes in this territory naturally caused a large number of local nobles to be dissatisfied. The economic system of small localities is relatively simple, and arbitrary changes to policies that violate the laws of the market are very detrimental to the development of the territory. As a result, a large number of lords refused the demands of the four famous families to increase taxes, but this soon attracted the revenge of the "four famous families".

Needless to say, the most despicable means of economic sanctions is to use his powerful voice to spread rumors in the media and even the emperor. Fortunately, the emperor is still a saint, and he has his own judgment on these gossips, but there is no big mess. After that, there were more secret methods, such as maliciously slandering certain lords, eliminating their prestige in the nobility and business circles of the empire, and forcing them to cooperate with the aristocratic faction; Or privately hire thugs, hooligan bandits, or even hunting regiments to harass local lords—

Now, the Khottwil and Alsside families, as well as the rest of the Kruchen nobility, were under pressure from the Duke's family. However, the Rygram of the Alsside family is a special case: the "Alsside Family" has a deep relationship with the "Holy Maiden of the Gun", and its genre is also well-known throughout the continent, and its family owners have been masters for generations, not to mention that the current owner also has the name of "Swordsman of Light", powerful and transcendent in the martial empire, even in the Duke's family, one of the four famous families, does not dare to use too many insidious methods, and it is still only a stalemate. However, this is not the case with my own family. The Duke's family can be said to do everything, and the sharp decline in the transaction volume and financial reports of the fishing ground is due to the fact that Baryahat unilaterally limited the transaction volume and added toll taxes, and the surge in road maintenance costs was that the Duke's family always sent people to destroy the guiding light, so that the monster appeared on the avenue (although there is no evidence, but who else could it be other than the Duke's family) - dealing with these problems made Viscount Cryotwil anxious.

However, despite the difficulties, Viscount Crotzwell refused to back down, and he worked hard to try to salvage some of the situation.

As he reviewed the papers on the table, the Viscount heard a knock on the door again—

"Come in." He said angrily, anyway, these people can't give him even a piece of good news.

“…… That, master, young master...... It's back. ”

"What?!"

The preamble is withdrawn.

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After thanking the driver who had gone to great lengths to bring him home, the boy walked through the gates of the town.

The layout of the building is completely unchanged from when he left half a year ago, but the pedestrians on the street look strange and lifeless.

In the usual winter, everyone in the town shivered with cold, but at least they seemed well nourished, and all they talked about was happy.

But when he returned, he found that the acquaintances he occasionally met on the street were also listless, and seemed to be deliberately hiding something.

Something was wrong, the boy thought.

With doubts, the boy returned to the Viscount's Mansion and returned to his home.

Following the attendant at the door to the study, the boy saw his father writing hard in the study.

Seeing his father, he looked very happy, and ordered the kitchen to cook the dishes, and asked the guards to fetch the tea. However, it seems, there is always some deliberate feeling.

"Father...... What's going on?" Helriga finally couldn't help but ask, "In previous winters, it has never been so busy. Is something strange going on in the town? ”

"......" A sense of disobedience flashed in Werners's heart, and he almost blurted out the difficulties he had encountered these days - think about it, a man who has been an imperial lord for more than ten years is actually complaining to a seven-year-old child? And this child is still his own son!

"It's not good for a child to be too precocious...... Wernas thought to himself, but what he said was: "It's just some old problems, but this year it's a little more serious, so there's no need to worry." You should go back to your room and rest early, I will let you wait, and we will have a good chat at dinner, and engage in father-son friendship. ”

“…… Okay, so be careful. The young man, who was a little worried, finally didn't continue to ask, but the doubts in his heart never dissipated.