Chapter 945: Estate Crisis
Dragon Bright Empire, Golden Estate.
Facing this huge estate that belonged to him, Chen Rui couldn’t help feeling a little emotional when he thought about how he struggled to survive in the Dark Moon Estate when he first crossover.
However, he didn’t have time to sigh because Samuel was rus.h.i.+ng to report with a solemn face.
In the entire Golden Estate’s treasury, not a single white crystal coin nor a grain of grain was left.
All managers in key positions left.
When Garfield was in office, he won the qualification of the human world trade fair for the Golden Estate. Now it was less than 2 months before the conference, and the construction of many venues had reached the final stage. This was originally a good thing, but how could Garfield let Chen Rui take advantage of it? He demolished several key buildings with the reason that the faulty buildings needed to be rebuilt. He took away a group of key engineers and owed the workers a large amount of wages.
Garfield also secretly instructed several families who went against him to purposely leave some evidence so that he could use it as an excuse to cause more trouble.
…
These were naturally the ‘gifts’ that the predecessor Second Prince Garfield deliberately left to his ‘brother’. If it wasn’t for the short 3-day time of ‘handover’, Chen Rui had no doubts that this guy would have torn down the entire Golden Estate into ruins.
Garfield’s reason was very high-sounding. These materials and talents were the results of his 7 years of hard work on the estate. Now that he was handing over the estate, he would naturally take away his ‘property’.
When Lex the Great learned of this, he did not intervene or offer any a.s.sistance.
From the moment ‘Arthur’ left the hall after the father-son argument that day, he was not only his most beloved son, but a real prince.
As long as it didn’t touch a certain bottom line, the ruler would not interfere in the open and secret struggle between the inheritors of the throne. This was the hidden rule of the empires or kingdoms of the past dynasties. Those who could stand out in the battle and win the final victory were the best and most suitable candidates for the throne.
Honing gives a sharp edge to a sword. Lex the Great also wanted to see the true skills of this son who had returned after 7 years, not only in terms of mechanics.
Would he be suffering from heavy losses and failing to recover? Or would he be more courageous as he solved the crisis?
This was not only a test for the Royal Highness Third Prince given by Lex, but also by those who were observing the situation.
“Your Highness, I can only take out 700 black crystal coins at most.” Samuel lowered his head embarra.s.sedly. In fact, these 700 black crystal coins were Joanna and Ina’s money. This golden knight was usually clueless about money, but now the hero was stumped for a penny. For the first time, he felt ashamed.
Joanna was originally relatively well-off, but in order to rescue Samuel, she had spent almost all the money by running around to build the network. Ina had almost lost all her money in the Nightmare Wilderness, and she was in a tight financial situation too.
700 black crystal coins were a large amount for the common people, but for the Golden Estate, it was simply a drop in the bucket, which would not have much effect.
“Money is not a problem, you don’t need to worry about it.” Chen Rui shook his head, “In terms of talent, I have some headaches.”
Chen Rui really wasn’t worried about money. In fact, the black crystal coins earned by the Demon Realm magic game were enough to cover the entire Golden Estate.
However, the management of an estate was inseparable from people. This time, Garfield took drastic measures by taking away a large number of talents in key positions. Although Chen Rui and Isabella were outstanding domestic affairs personnel, they could not replace so many foundation-level talents. It was like a pyramid. Without the foundation of the middle and lower layers, no matter how excellent the peak was, it could not take shape.
In the long run, people with money and strategy could attract talents, but now the time was very tight.
“I grew up in the Golden Estate, and I know some good talents. Some of them are not valued in the family, so Your Highness can try recruiting them. By the way, I still have a few confidants in my family…”
“Kemplot Family?” Chen Rui seemed to have thought of something, and he blurted out at the same time as Isabella. The couple smiled at each other tacitly.
This scene made Ms. Fairy Dragon on the side seemed a little jealous. Although she couldn’t figure it out, she pretended to understand, “Oh!“
Soon, the patriarch of the Kemplot Family, 1 of the 2 major families of the Golden Estate, and former financial secretary director, Carlo. Kemplot, was summoned to the lord’s mansion.
It was not the first time that Carlo came to this mansion, but his mood at this time seemed extremely complicated.
Third Prince ‘Arthur’ had a great grace to the Kemplot Family, so Carlo once swore allegiance and became the estate’s trusted treasurer.
However, after the disappearance of the third prince 7 years ago, the representative lord Second Prince Garfield carried out a major purge in the Golden Estate. Carlo was dismissed from the treasurer position while the Kemplot Family was also persecuted and suppressed by Garfield. Countless interests and money were extracted from them.
Since the Kemplot Family was a top commercial family and had set foot in various territories, it was truly wealthy, which had caused some kind of fear in Lex the Great. Garfield was a lord and had absolute full power to deal with affairs in the estate, so Lex the Great did not interfere too much and turned a blind eye to Garfield’s behaviors, which made the Kemplot Family’s situation even more miserable.
Later, Carlo’s son, Samuel, defeated top genius Paul in a duel, and got the appreciation of Lex the Great. He was canonized as the golden knight and became a member of the Dragon Knight Legion. Hence, the Kemplot Family found the opportunity to rise again, and Carlo was appointed as the financial secretary director.
Under such favorable circ.u.mstances, new ideas inevitably emerged in Carlo’s mind. Since ‘Arthur’ had been missing for many years, the Kemplot Family must find new support in order to maintain stability and grow further. Therefore, Carlo considered again and again before he accepted the olive branch thrown by Fourth Prince Luke to counter Garfield who had been persecuting the family.
However, there were unforeseen circ.u.mstances. Carlo unexpectedly encountered the ‘joint complaint’. He was dismissed and imprisoned while Samuel also became a prisoner for ‘a.s.sa.s.sinating’ Garfield. Despite being pardoned by Lex the Great, Samuel was labeled ‘the fallen one’ and his life was at stake. Fortunately, the appearance of the Third Prince ‘Arthur’, who had been missing for many years, miraculously reversed the situation and cleared Samuel’s reputation.
Now, after ‘Arthur’ regained control of the Golden Estate, Carlo was immediately summoned. Is it to probe my disloyalty? Or is it solicitation? Or both? How should I deal with it? Should I continue to follow the current Fourth Prince Luke? Or serve under my former master, Prince ‘Arthur’, again?
For a time, Carlo was caught in a dilemma.
“Sir Carlo.” Chen Rui’s voice woke Carlo out of his thoughts.
“How dare Carlo call himself ‘sir’ in front of Your Highness?” Carlo bowed deeply, “Carlo pleads guilty to Your Highness first.”
“I told Samuel that neither you nor him need to apologize to me.” Chen Rui saw the dilemma in Carlo’s heart and smiled slightly, “Don’t mention the past, just look at this first. “
Carlo took a magic leather scroll that Chen Rui handed over. When he saw the words ‘Financial Officer Appointment Letter’ on it, he was secretly uneasy. No doubt…
“Don’t rush to refuse or worry. Listen to me first.” Chen Rui saw through Carlo’s thoughts, “I used to be His Majesty Lex’s favorite prince. Of course, I’m not sure if the same is true now. However, what is certain is that now I’m the third prince of the empire, the lord of the Golden Estate, and… 1 of the 3 mechanic grand masters of the human world.”
Carlo nodded. The return of Prince ‘Arthur’ was indeed eye-catching, and the mechanic grand master’s t.i.tle alone was enough to shake the world.
“You used to be the estate’s financial officer, and you have excellent talents. I have always valued you. This time, upon my return, I of course have to use the old staff whom I trust. This appointment letter is not for you personally, but for the Kemplot Family. The specific candidates are up to you to decide; I want real talents. The Kemplot Family is 1 of the 2 major families of the Golden Estate, and it is also my confidant family, so it is reasonable to accept this position. You do not need to decline, and you can’t. Otherwise… I don’t mind following Garfield’s methods.”
“Yes, Your Highness.” Since he had already spoken to this point, Carlo certainly couldn’t refuse, unless the Kemplot Family no longer wanted to stay in the Golden Estate.
This was definitely unrealistic, because this was the foundation of the family, which had a history of dozens of generations. They had never left even in the most difficult times, let alone now.
“1 more thing, Samuel is not going back to the Kemplot Family.”
“I know, Your Highness.” Carlo showed a dejected expression. He had persuaded Samuel but to no avail. He knew very well the character of this son. Once he made a real decision, he would not change no matter what.
“Samuel following me is not a bad thing for the Kemplot Family or him personally.” Chen Rui noticed Carlo’s expression and smiled, “It’s like, you can’t put eggs in the same basket. As the controller of the big family, you should know this truth better than me…”
Carlo used to be 1 of the directors of the 3 divisions, so he had a rich experience. He had tasted the true meaning of these words, and a strange expression flashed in his eyes. Is this still the Royal Highness ‘Arthur’ from 7 years ago?
“I understand.” Carlo nodded, “Your Highness, please let Samuel go home as soon as possible, and I will officially announce his expulsion from the family.”
“Good, Sir Carlo no doubt is smart, but unfortunately… In some respects, you are misled sometimes and chose the wrong side, which is why he was in prison before.”
Carlo bowed his head with a wry smile without any excuse.
“It seems that you don’t really understand now.” Chen Rui shook his head, “You and the Kemplot Family have only 1 person of allegiance, and that is His Majesty. No matter what price you have to pay, how many benefits you give up, and no matter what benefits or promises Luke gives you… This is the only way for the Kemplot Family to survive and develop. If you are willing to give up, you will get what you want. Although the Kemplot Family is currently experiencing a downturn, it may be a chance to seek real ‘refuge’ from His Majesty. For Samuel’s sake, I’ll give you a better chance. The Golden Estate is about to undergo great changes that will shake the entire empire and even the human world. As the prince and mechanic grand master, His Majesty will pay attention to me again. There is a saying called ‘destruction pursues the great’. Even if we are a father and son relations.h.i.+p, a ruler cannot ignore a potential threat. Therefore, I need a pair of eyes by my side that can observe the movement of His Majesty at any time – I think the financial officer is the most suitable person.”
Carlo was shocked as he watched Chen Rui with an unbelievable gaze.
At the end of the summoning and leaving the lord’s mansion, the biggest thought in Carlo’s mind was: Samuel’s choice may really reverse the fate of the entire Kemplot Family…
TL: Finally decide to ‘fight back’?