Chapter 86

Originally, according to Tang En's instructions, Hilton and Thomas were supposed to take out a bottle of Crescent Moon Wine to host a party and invite the nobles to share it together. However, upon hearing that Lord Douglas was going to host a birthday banquet, they discussed it and decided to change their original plan.

They decided to take out a bottle of Crescent Moon Wine as a gift to gain entry to Lord Douglas's banquet. If they wanted to meet the noble community of a place, there was no quicker way than attending the lord's banquet.

Under normal circumstances, it was almost impossible for merchants to enter the noble circle's banquets. Nobles were very proud, and even a fallen noble would not mingle with merchants. This was why the Golden Rose family, which originated from merchants, had ended up in their current situation.

Hilton chose a very opportune moment, right before the auction ended when everyone was still excited. She seized this opportunity to gain a direct conversation with the lord. If she hadn't reacted quickly, it would have been much harder to get another chance to talk to the lord.

She was confident that Tang En would not blame them for changing their initial decision.

"Oh?"

As expected, Douglas indeed became interested: "Since the Great Tang Trade Association has spoken, I can't refuse your kindness. I'll make an exception and give you an invitation."

"Thank you, my lord!"

Hilton's heart leaped with joy, and she clenched her fists in secret: It was the right bet!

Seeing the joy on Hilton's face, Douglas chuckled and shook his head. This woman had indeed chosen a good moment...

As a lord, how could he not see what Hilton wanted? For Douglas, this invitation was not a big deal. If the Great Tang Trade Association could really bring another bottle of Crescent Moon Wine as a gift, it would certainly add a lot of luster to tomorrow's party, and the Great Tang Trade Association would also get the opportunity to meet the nobles. It was a win-win situation.

Seeing Hilton, who was flushed with excitement, walk down from the stage, the other merchants in the auction house looked at her with envy.

These merchants also wanted to boldly offer gifts to get a ticket to the noble banquet, but the problem was they couldn't produce something as rare as Crescent Moon Wine, so they could only look on with envy.

However, after witnessing the allure of Crescent Moon Wine to the nobles, they were determined that if the Great Tang Trade Association auctioned Crescent Moon Wine again, they would do everything in their power to buy a bottle!

At the same time, many people were secretly speculating. They all knew that the Great Tang Trade Association came from Ellington. Could it be that Ellington had successfully made contact with the elves and started trading?

Apart from this reason, what else could explain their ability to produce so much Crescent Moon Wine?

Ellington... that remote place, could it be rising?

They couldn't miss this business opportunity!

Many people immediately made up their minds to go to Ellington and see if they could seize a good opportunity to get rich!

The next evening, Hilton and Thomas, dressed in formal attire, brought a carefully packaged bottle of Crescent Moon Wine and arrived at the lord's residence in Bayne City.

At this moment, many nobles had already arrived early and were whispering to each other in the courtyard, discussing the recent situation in the empire and various interesting events. The noble ladies were all dressed up beautifully, their eyes constantly scanning the surroundings, trying to spot that charming figure.

Yes, they were waiting to catch a glimpse of Karl.

Karl was already twenty-six years old. In Plandar, noble men of his age had long been married, and some even had children around five or six years old. However, Karl had remained single, which on one hand led to many nobles privately speculating if he had some hidden ailment, and on the other hand, gave many unmarried noble women a chance.

Unfortunately, so far, Karl had shown no interest in this aspect.

At this moment, inside the lord's residence.

"You little brat! I knew you were trying to run away! Get back here!"

Baron Douglas blocked Karl's escape route with his sword, forcing Karl to escape from the window.

"Father! I'm already twenty-six! Can't I choose the life I want!?"

"You can! But first, you need to get married, have children, and then inherit the title and land!"

"Damn it—If I get married and have children, how will I have any freedom!?"

"That's how your father did it! You can't expect to live a carefree life! Get dressed properly! Those people downstairs are here to celebrate your birthday, waiting for you to appear! And those noble girls, dressed so beautifully, even I can't resist them. Can't you choose one properly!?"

"If I can't resist them, I'll choose one! I'm sure they wouldn't mind becoming my stepmother!"

"You, you brat! Why can't you chat and get to know those girls!? Do you like men!?"

Karl's face changed: "You like men! Your whole family likes men!"

Douglas's face turned red: "You brat! If I liked men, would I have a brat like you!?"

Wait! Why does this feel like he's trying to cover something up!?

Karl was stunned, standing there, and the two of them stared at each other, the atmosphere in the room becoming incredibly awkward.

"Alright, alright, I give up! I can't beat you now!"

Karl threw down his weapon, looking dejected.

"That's the right attitude!"

Douglas took the weapon and said earnestly, "Now, the most important thing for you is to get married, have children, and then inherit the title. Once you have the power, you can do whatever you want. Even if you have some quirks, no one will dare to say anything, just like me. In Bayne City, who dares to speak ill of me?"

Karl always felt like his father was hinting at something...

After Karl gave up, he quickly changed his clothes and went downstairs under Douglas's urging, and at that moment, the banquet officially began.

After a brief speech, Douglas, pulling the dejected Karl, began to accept the gifts from the guests.

Soon, it was Hilton and Thomas's turn.

Hilton presented the gift: "Congratulations, Master Karl. This is Crescent Moon Wine from the elves. I hope you like it."

"From the elves!?"

Karl's eyes lit up: "This is the legendary Crescent Moon Wine, isn't it!? I thought the elves had withdrawn from the world. How did you get Crescent Moon Wine?"

Hilton was at a loss: "Of course, this is Crescent Moon Wine. I don't know how we got it, but I know it was given to us by our lord."

"Our lord?"

"Yes, we come from the Great Tang Trade Association in Ellington. This Crescent Moon Wine is one of the goods given to us by our lord, Tang En."

"Ellington? Isn't that the town in the west? Wait, Ellington is close to the Emerald Forest. Could it be that you've made contact with the elves!?"

Karl became excited: "What do the elves look like? Are the men as beautiful as the women? Is it really as hard to approach them as the rumors say?"

"Uh..."

Hilton was taken aback. Why was Karl focusing on such an odd point?

"Cough!"

Douglas glared: "If you like Crescent Moon Wine, I spent 20,000 gold coins to buy a bottle for you yesterday. You can taste it later!"

"20,000 gold coins!"

Karl was shocked, his eyes darting: "Where is the Crescent Moon Wine you bought? I want to keep it as a collection!"

20,000 gold coins! With that much gold, where couldn't you go on this continent!?

"Thinking of selling the wine to get gold and run away? Don't even think about it!"

Douglas sneered, having been on guard against this. He snatched the Crescent Moon Wine from Karl's arms: "We'll open these two bottles tonight and share them with everyone!"

This cunning old man!

Karl was in a panic: "That's my gift! I should be the one to handle it!"

Douglas smiled proudly: "You're not married yet, so you have to listen to me! Don't want to be controlled by me? Fine, get married, and I won't interfere. There are so many girls here, choose one."

All the guests were paying attention, and when they heard Douglas's words, the nobles and a few lucky merchants' eyes widened, and they immediately urged their daughters to come forward.

The girls, who had been watching Karl all along, were so excited they could hardly stand still, and they flocked to Karl like love-struck fans.

"Stop! Stop, stop!"

Karl was horrified: "No talk of romance today! Only talk of state affairs!"

Hilton couldn't help but laugh. This guy was interesting. Others at banquets usually avoided state affairs and only talked about romance, but he did the opposite.

However...

Hilton carefully observed Karl. Although he was quite handsome and seemed to have some skills, why was he so popular with girls?

Hilton subconsciously compared him to Tang En and shook her head.

Although Lord Tang En wasn't as handsome, there was something about him...

When meeting Lord Tang En, there was always a feeling of being in a gentle breeze, making him seem different from other high-ranking nobles. He didn't have that inherent arrogance, making people feel very comfortable.

Moreover, Lord Tang En had created so many incredible things. Compared to this noble heir who was still struggling with his father, Lord Tang En was far superior.

In the end, Hilton found that in every aspect, Lord Tang En was the clear winner, and she couldn't help but smile.

No wonder Miss Fiona likes Lord Tang En...

After accepting the gifts, in front of everyone, Douglas opened the two bottles of Crescent Moon Wine and shared them with the guests. Although each person only got a small cup, the pure flavor of the elven wine conquered everyone, even making Karl's eyes sparkle with excitement and increasing his desire to meet the elves.

After the banquet, Hilton and Thomas, who had successfully entered the noble circle of Bayne City, left contentedly, and the lord's residence became quiet again.

However...

"Master!"

A scream broke the silence of the lord's residence.

"What is it?"

"The young master left a letter and ran away again!"

"What!? Didn't he realize he should escort those noble girls home!?"

He had been tricked!

Douglas's vision went black: "This brat!!!"

Outside Bayne City, a sneaky man made a dismissive gesture towards the mountain: "Trying to outsmart me, you're not good enough! I need to get going. Ellington, elves, I'm coming! Karl Bollet is here!"

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PS: It seems that not many people are enthusiastic about voting for the Three Rivers. How about some rewards? Currently, there are 71 votes. For every additional 50 votes, I'll add one more chapter, with no upper limit. If I get the top spot in the weekend rankings, I'll add five more chapters. I'll keep my word.

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