"I"ll take the lunch, please wait a moment, Henry""Not porridge again, please? And make it two, we eat together. Anyway, where are Claire and Carina?"
"They busy washing your clothes"
"If they already have done, get them to take lunch together here"
"Okay"
Clara steps down from the bed, but before that she still able to steal a peck to my cheek…SMOOCH.
Before I able to react she already run to the door while giggling, I just shake my head seeing her att.i.tude. She said I"m different, well, I"m a really different person inside, but she also different from her yesterday. It"s more like a bird that is set free from its cage.
Not waiting for long, Clara returns with the lunch. Claire and Carina also come with a tray full of food in their hands.
After arranging it on the table, we sit on each side of the table. I look at the dishes on the table, there are some brown slices of bread, a big bowl of soup, a bowl of mashed potato and some fried sausages. Since I"m already hungry, after making a pray, we start to eat the food. The brown bread is rather hard like crouton but its size is like normal bread. I watch them eat their bread, they just dip it into the soup then eat it. So I just imitate the way they eat this bread. The soup flavor also plain like the porridge, I wonder if salt is so scarce that even castle owner like my father can"t afford it. The mashed potato and the sausage also show lack of salt being used during the process. But I have no other choice than to eat what I"ve now because of my belly already empty.
After finishing our lunch, I ask them about the castle situation.
"Looks like our castle financial state is worrisome, right?"
"Yes brother Henry, your highness must cut any expenses that he can cut because our finance is not good"
"Is that including expenses for salt?"
"That"s right. The salt price being skyrocket due to increasing demand and lack supplies since no new salt mine was found lately"
So, in this world salt is not process from sea water but mined from salt mine huh? No wonder the price is rise and rise.
"What else that my father must cut?"
"Your monthly allowance, also your sister"s allowances, expenses for the oil lamp, expenses for dress and there still some more"
"Oh, that"s fine. My father didn"t raise the tax rate right?"
"Your Highness is wise and compa.s.sionate. Rather than make his people suffer, he decides to lessen his expenses"
From the memory I inherited, my father, Baron Harvard only take 50% tax from his people. Other n.o.bles take 60% or even 70% of taxes from their people. Unfortunately, the lands which Harvard family had, only suitable for the agricultural and farming purpose, there"s no valuable mines like salt, gold or silver. The water area is cliffed-sh.o.r.e which unsuitable for major fisheries, only small port available that make big merchant can"t disembark in our territory. The rest area is forest and some small hills.
What makes the situation worse is, our agricultural product can"t compete with the same product from higher n.o.bles. They get more taxes and can set the prices lower than us. It"s what called "dumping policy" in the modern world. My father becomes restless with this situation, and during this crisis, news about silver mines prospect found in our territory make father send me to inspect it. Somehow I feel this news is deliberate to lure me out of the castle and make "an accident" to kill me.
My engagement with Lady Celes, the daughter of Earl Stamford, also parts of his plan to solve the financial crisis. With make relation with higher n.o.bles, at least he can have a powerful backup. Although from what I remember, It"s Lady Celes" side that sends the engagement proposal.
"Ah right, did my accident also reported to Earl Stamford?"
"Yes brother, a messenger was directly sent to inform earl Stamford about the accident. He and your fiancée will arrive here next week"
What? Next week? I must dig Henry memory about her so I will not make mistake and make her suspicious I"m a different person like what I"ve just experienced before. Eh? Why you all look gloomy when talking about my fiancée? Is there something wrong with her?
"Clara, Claire, Carina, why you all look dejected like that?"
"We feel sorry about you, brother"
"Brother deserves a better woman for his wife"
"I"m not willing my beloved brother taken by another woman"
Although they"re already said their reason, it"s all about their feeling to me. Not a word that mentions why she can"t be my fiancée.
"Huh? Why can"t she be my fiancée? Is she so ugly? Or so fat?Or so sickly? Or so wild and rampart?"
They stare at each other like choosing who should answer that. Finally, Clara explain it to me,
"Because … because rumors say she is devil incarnation"
What? Is she a devil incarnation? What kind of bulls.h.i.t is that?