How to Avoid Becoming a Vicious Stepmother - Chapter 93

8. The Eighth Plan. To greet the new family members warmly. (2)

As he pushed his half-cooled tea through the cup with his fingertips, the maid quickly poured some fresh tea into a new cup. The place where the children had already disappeared to was simply serene now.

“Baron Tian, thank you for coming over to celebrate my son’s birthday today.”

The man who sat at the end of the table while eating much more than anyone else for the whole time answered in a loud voice.

“Considering the relationship between the Duke of DeMancier and my Lord, Count Petrika himself, it was only natural! Ahem—”

And as Baron Tian cleared his throat, he began to ask.

“I would have to suffer a sore throat to talk from a distance. Could you please allow me to come closer?”

Count Petrika’s deputy had a rather thick face and did not seem that bad at all. Seeing that he didn’t quite have a familiar face, it appeared that he was chosen by the present Count Petrika rather than the former Count Petrika…

“I’ll allow it.”

“That would be such an honor.”

Baron Tian instantly got up and approached. He gradually passed by Viscount Desmond’s place as well as my brothers’ place before he finally asked for a seat right next to the Duchess Dowager. It had been a seat that was facing my parents and at the same time, it appeared quite close to me and Gellerhard too.

“Baron Tian.”

“Viscount Bentta. Long time no see. Ah, you are no longer the Viscount.”

My father seemed to have known him.

“Yes, it is so. How is the Count?”

My father had sent a letter to Count Petrika stating that he would return the viscounty as well as the Bentta estate and while Count Petrika accommodated him, my eldest brother and his wife, who had been protecting the territories of Bentta’s Viscounty, would soon move to the Duchess of DeMancier’s side. At the same time, my third brother, Liam, would also come along after he resigned himself of the administrator’s post for Count Petrika.

However, since my second brother was a knight, he remained there still. He said that he would eventually come over on his own after he had taken care of his things.

“You seem to be struggling quite a lot. Alas, he was suddenly turned into a Count even before he could deal with the sadness felt from the unexpected death of the previous Count.”

“It was really unfortunate.”

Dad had organized the conversation neatly. He must have only wanted to avoid the lengthy story of the deceased Count, but when my mother’s hand had gently wrapped around the back of my father’s while leaning her head softly against my father’s shoulder, a very different picture had been drawn out instead. It appeared just as if my mother was now comforting my father, who had been having a hard time grieving over the death of the Count himself.

“Thank you for congratulating Carl on his birthday, but please refrain from doing so hereafter.”

The words that were uttered without the slightest hint of courtesy instantly made Baron Tian’s expression go blank.

“Here, at north, if it is found out that Count Petrika has been fooling around with war goods and nothing else, will the issue not be raised against Carl, who had inherited the lineage of Count Petrika himself? As Carl’s mother, I am dreadfully worried about that.”

“Uh, what does that—”

I winked at Liam and my oldest brother nodded his head in response. However, an unexpected voice could be heard instead.

“You actually dare to play around with war items! Are you saying that Count Petrika had appropriated all the armaments?”

The target of the loud voice was Viscount Desmond. The loud voice that could resonate not only in the hall, where the party was held, but also throughout the whole duchy in a very clear manner.

“Viscount Desmond! Please lower your voice!”

“What? Are you really trying to intimidate me now when Count Petrika is already known to have embezzled those armaments!”

The bewildered Baron Tian’s cry was even louder than that and on top of that, it had sadly been buried under the voice of Viscount Desmond. Duchess Dowager’s elegant eyes began to furrow and Gellerhard openly wrapped his hands around my ears.

Viscount Desmond spoke loudly, regardless of Baron Tian’s shouts, without having his pronunciation twisted at all. Oh, my God—did he play as the loudspeaker on the battlefield? How could one have such a good voice like that?

Eventually, Baron Tian seemed to be already exhausted. When he rose from his seat, he kept shouting like a parrot with something like, ‘that’s why, it’s Count Petrika who had committed that military corruption!’, which made Viscount Desmond close his mouth before he proceeded to moisten his throat with a glass of water. Gellerhard’s aides, my father as well as Liam actually dug into the clue that Count Petrika himself had confessed from his suffering over the torture on the condition of having a few hours taken off. On top of that, they had already completed the behind-the-scenes work to replace the damage as well.

In recent years, the merchants, which had been under the influence of Count Petrika discreetly, monopolized a number of transactions with the Duke’s family.  Therefore, when the luck of the public bidding had finally been lifted, the other merchants were straight away welcomed and they brought along some evidence in tow.

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