Arthur consciously or unconsciously tells Mrs. Cowper about the departmental differences in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, interspersing a few slightly embellished saga stories.

The ups and downs of the story, coupled with a variety of bizarre chemical knowledge, plus some sensible but not boundary, all kinds of originally bloody and terrifying detective stories become the key to opening a new world of understanding for Mrs. Cooper.

She listened to Arthur's story, and every time the plot developed to a critical point, the London noblewoman couldn't help but tighten the handkerchief in her hand.

"O my God! So the innkeeper did it? He assisted the murderer in killing the two prostitutes as an accomplice? ”

"Laughing gas is such a scary thing, and what's even more terrifying is that young people nowadays often use it as a fashionable entertainment product. Who would have thought that this thing could be used to kill people? ”

"No wonder you hate corpse thieves, it's all because of that poor little girl. Alas...... Perhaps responsible politicians in Britain should think carefully about the Anatomy Act, and even if the bishops are against it, I admit that it is unfair to the poor who died in workhouses. But things always have to be solved, and they have to be considered for the living......"

"Oh! Oh, my God! That Fred was actually killed by your own hands? Mr. Hastings, I think you might consider writing about this high seas chase for publication, and it will certainly be a popular story. ”

At Mrs. Cowper's exclamation, the minutes ticked by.

Perhaps she was so fascinated by Arthur's detective stories that she had forgotten the gramophone she had been thinking about for a long time.

It wasn't until Arthur drank the last drop of water from the teapot that Mrs. Cowper sighed, "I really didn't expect you to have so many incredible personal experiences as a 20-year-old young man." I thought the Faraday cage and gramophone you demonstrated were amazing enough, but now they seem nothing compared to your experience at Scotland Yard. The praise in the newspapers for you is no exaggeration, you are simply a legend of Scotland Yard, a living legend. ”

Arthur heard Mrs. Cowper praise him so much, but he still didn't dare to take it lightly.

He just said modestly: "You really won the prize, I was just doing what I was doing." As Mr. John Locke has said, the only legitimate purpose of establishing a government is to protect the life, property and liberty of the people, and to provide them with guaranteed welfare.

It is the duty of Scotland Yard to do what I do, and your gratitude to me is also included in the magistrate's tax of the local parish.

And I got a promotion as an added bonus, as you can see, and I'm now a superintendent. I have received such a lot of praise, how dare I ask for more affirmation from you. ”

When Mrs. Cowper heard this, the more she looked at the young man, the more pleasing she became: "Mr. Hastings, you can be counted as the most gentlemanly young man of twenty years I have ever met. ”

Arthur glanced at the sky outside the window, got up and said goodbye, "Then madam, why don't you stop here today?" Actually, I'd like to talk to you a little longer, but Scotland Yard has a lot of official business, and I've only taken my leave until this afternoon, and now that my lunch break is almost over, I have to hurry back to work. ”

When Mrs. Cowper heard this, she wanted to keep him, but she remembered the annoying rules that Arthur had told her about Scotland Yard, and she finally decided to let him go.

"I'm sorry to hear that, but I understand you, young man, and maybe I'm not right about that, but I sincerely hope that you will be transferred to a department that hasn't been working for a long time soon. The detective story of Scotland Yard is certainly wonderful, but from the perspective of people and women, I think staying there for a long time is not conducive to a happy marriage. ”

Arthur just smiled and nodded, "Thank you for your blessings, then see you next time, ma'am." ”

The manservant on the side saw Arthur get up and hurriedly fetched him a coat and hat hanging on the coat rack.

After getting dressed again, Arthur walked out of the Cooper Mansion under the courtesy of the old butler.

He took a deep breath, and his tense nerves were relieved, perhaps because it was raining in London today, and the air after the rain did not smell of dust, nor was it mixed with any toxic industrial dust and feces, pee, and fart, it was unusually fresh!

Breathing in such high-quality air, Arthur's mood also improved a lot.

A rickety carriage slowly stopped in front of Arthur, and the manservant sitting next to the coachman jumped out of his seat and pulled the door, and out of it came a middle-aged man yawning and gray sideburns.

The man seemed to be afraid of the cold, and his clothes were extraordinarily thick, with a tuxedo hidden in his silver-gray plush coat, a sleeveless burgundy waistcoat under the tuxedo, and a white shirt with a stand-up collar visible through his tight navy blue scarf.

When the man saw Arthur walking out of the Cowper Mansion, he raised his eyebrows and was a little curious, but soon, as if he had thought of something, he could only suppress his curiosity, and the expression on his face that he had not been energetic because he had slept for too long appeared on his face.

Just as he was about to enter the mansion, he found Arthur smiling at him standing on the side of the road.

Out of politeness, the man had to smile and nod in response.

In this strange atmosphere, the two passed by, Arthur returned to Scotland Yard, and Mrs. Cooper welcomed her own brother, William Lamb, Viscount of Melbourne.

When Mrs. Cowper saw him coming, the two of them made a simple close salute, and then Mrs. Cowper could not help complaining, "William, didn't you say today that you would take your nephews and nieces to lunch with you?" Why is it coming so late? ”

The Viscount of Melbourne said helplessly: "I didn't expect it to be delayed until this time, it stands to reason that the Prime Minister's questioning should be over at half past twelve." But the situation is different today, the two sides are arguing over the reform of Parliament, and even the Duke of Wellington, who has always been reluctant to speak much, is at full speed. Emily, I swear to you, I have never seen His Excellency the Duke say so much in one breath in my life. ”

Mrs. Cooper heard the overtones in her brother's words: "This ...... Henry seems to have mentioned this to me a while ago, and he said that the Whigs would completely crush the Tory in the Prime Minister's Question. It seems that you have succeeded? ”

The Viscount of Melbourne tilted his head and plucked his ears: "It should be about the same." I sat in my seat and fell asleep when I heard Henry say that he was going to launch a motion of no confidence in Wellington's cabinet, and probably quarreled for a while about it. But that didn't matter, the Duke of Wellington had offended too many people with the Catholic Liberation Act and his die-hard opposition to parliamentary reform, and the end of the Tory era was inevitable. ”

"So......" Mrs. Cowper's eyes narrowed into crescents of joy, "It seems that you and Henry will soon be playing important roles in the cabinet, right?" Henry is the Foreign Secretary, and you are the Home Secretary? ”

The Viscount of Melbourne looked at his sister with a little surprise: "Your news is quite well-informed, and you know everything about the party." ”

"Of course, don't forget what the Olmark Club is for." Mrs. Cooper laughed, "News spreads much faster in the mouths of the ladies than in your party, and if I wish, I may even find out how the Tories intend to fight back against you." ”

"Not necessarily, my lovely sister. The Tories should now think not about fighting back, but about how to make sure they lose as few seats as possible in the next election. With all due respect, in the next general election, they will lose all religious and university constituencies, and the archbishops of the House of Lords will probably fall against us. ”

Mrs. Cowper just shook her head: "William, I don't want to worry about the election. But you have to promise me to make a good place for your nephew in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, preferably one who can exercise and earn money at the same time, and at the same time not be too tired. A place like Scotland Yard is resolutely not good, and although it is a place that exercises people, it is too tiring. ”

The Viscount of Melbourne was puzzled: "I will naturally arrange Mike's affairs, but why did you suddenly remember to mention Scotland Field?" ”

Mrs. Cooper said, "Didn't you meet him?" ”

"Who?"

"It's the young man who just went out, and he's Officer Arthur Hastings of Scotland Yard. You've probably heard his name, right? He's been in the newspaper several times this year. ”

"This ......" Viscount Melbourne suddenly became a little strange when he heard this, he looked around, and suddenly lowered his voice and asked, "Although I shouldn't ask about these things, can I ...... Can I confirm a little bit about your relationship with him? ”

When Mrs. Cowper heard this, she was so angry that she was not happy, and she was not happy: "William! Mr. Hastings and I respected each other, but definitely not to the extent that Henry and I did. Can't you tell his age? I can be his mother now! ”

"Ah......" When the Viscount of Melbourne heard this, he just held his forehead and chuckled helplessly: "I'm sorry, maybe my nerves are a little irritated." ”

Mrs. Cooper didn't bother with him because she was so quick to admit her mistake, but on the contrary, she felt a little sorry for what had happened to her eldest brother over the past few decades.

"William, although I shouldn't mention this matter, let the past pass. The woman of the Ponsonby family is dead, and although she did not fulfill her obligations as a wife while she was alive, she at least held the title of Lady of Melbourne at that time. Now, although you are no longer young, you are far from old! The days to come are still long, you have to think about renewing the strings for yourself, you can't let Ponsenby destroy you, the Melbourne family still has to rely on you! ”

When the Viscount of Melbourne heard this, he only felt that his heart was not good: "Emily, you don't understand my feelings. Getting married or something, for me, is more of a burden now, but it's actually good not to get married. If two people can't help each other and understand, why get married? ”

When Mrs. Cowper heard this, she couldn't help but think of her marriage to Earl Cowper, and after a short silence, she sighed: "Maybe you're right, but you can now go to a woman who can understand you." ”

"Well......" The Viscount of Melbourne groaned for a while, and under the kindness of his sister, he finally couldn't help but smile, and he revealed the biggest secret buried in his heart during this time: "Actually, I already have a female friend who can talk to her, but I don't have the kind of relationship with her you think......"

As soon as Melbourne said this, the Red Devil, who had been lying on the fireplace and did not leave with Arthur, couldn't help but nod his head again and again.

The Red Devil pushed his glasses and said to himself, "Yes, yes, yes! I believe you, there is platonic love between men and women that does not involve any physical contact. Hey, this kind of nonsense can only be said to devils like me......"

(End of chapter)