Chapter 223 – Application To Stay
That day.
Maggie stayed with Mrs. Harriet and did not follow Paris. Paris even had her lunch at Mrs. Harriet"s house.
Liszt didn"t immediately go to the root of the matter and question Paris" background.
Just like fishing a big fish with a long line, the fishing line cannot be kept tight all the time, since it can be broken by the big fish. What you need to do is relax for a while, tighten up, and tremble constantly, consuming the physical strength of the big fish, and finally catch it.
A aristocrat"s life can be boresome.
Therefore, Liszt had plenty of time to enjoy the ways of manipulating the human heart. A lord that cannot manipulate someone"s heart is not qualified to be a Lord at all. Whether it is temptation by interest, confusion with honor, or even threatening imprisonment, all of which are a means of manipulation.
After lunch, he met with Old Grandet and told him, “Go and remind Mrs. Harriet that Maggie doesn"t have to leave right way, in fact, it would be much simpler to let her sister Paris also stay in Flower Town.”
Old Grandet, now a small-town official, was filled with energy. “Sir, maybe it is more appropriate that we speak to Dennis, and let Dennis remind Mrs. Harriet.”
Dennis is Mrs. Harriet"s husband.
“Yes.”
Old Grandet took the lead.
In the afternoon, Liszt thought Maggie would take the time off and stay with her sister. However, unexpectedly, Maggie followed the other little maids and came to the castle to begin their internship.
"Carter, call Maggie.”
“Yes, sir.”
When Maggie arrived, Liszt asked directly, “Maggie, why don"t you go with your sister? You can ask for leave.”
“Sir, I want to work, work, stay in Flower Town……I don"t want to leave.” Maggie is happy but troubled about her sister, who she has thought about all night before suddenly appeared, but she doesn"t want to leave the Harriet family either, and this beautiful town, and the benevolent lord.
She was still very young when she saw the lord in her hometown ride on a big horse and beat the serfs with a whip.
One time, her father was severely beaten ten times by this lord.
But in Flowertown, she had never seen Liszt beat anyone—and even when someone was beaten, it was the officials who punished civilians for making mistakes—in her simple view of the world, the benevolent lord deserve to have many followers.
“It"s okay, Maggie, if you don"t want to leave, you can stay with me or with Mrs. Harriet. Now go back to your sister and I"ll let Mr. Carter have you take half of the day off.”
“My lord, I really can stay?”
“Yes.”
“Okay!”
———-
Maggie happily enjoyed the rest of the day with her sister.
The sisters spent a whole afternoon in Flower Town. Maggie shared the peanuts she had toasted in the castle kitchen, and Paris gave her a pendant.
The pendant was not beautiful, it wasn"t a jewel or a crystal, but two leaves, one large and the other small,but both crumpled.
“Take it, Maggie, don"t lose it.”
“What kind of leaves are they, sister?”
“The large leaves with wavy edges are oak leaves while the small oblong leaves are leaves of mistletoe,” Paris explained. “Mistletoe is a plant that parasites on oak trees. It represents hope and abundance while the oak stands for strength and resilience. “
Maggie understood and put the pendant beneath her clothes.
“Sister, are you leaving?”
“Maggie, come with me, let"s go home.”
Maggie lowered her head, “But Mom and Dad were killed and our village was destroyed. What will we do if we go back?”
“This … your sister will protect you. We can find a place to start a new life.” Paris made a pose flexing her biceps, “You have to believe in your sister"s strength, although I did not become a mage, I am more powerful than one. “
“But I think Flower Town is good. Sir Lord will protect us. And, I have a new mother, Mrs. Harriet is my mother.”
—–
They had dinner at the Harriet"s.
Paris once again proposed to take Maggie away. But this time, Mrs. Harriet raised a point and quietly asked, “Paris, why do you insist on letting Maggie follow you? She is just nine. How can a young girl adapt to a nomadic life? “
“I will take care of her, Mrs. Harriet.”
“Of course I know that. You are her sister, after all. But have you considered it?”
“Consider what?”
“To stay in Flower Town.” Mrs. Harriet laughed. “You can stay in Flower Town. If you aren"t in a hurry to leave, you can stay in Flower Town, can"t you? I have lived in Flower Town for twenty years. It is quiet here. My son grew up here and got married here too. He will soon have children. Maggie can grow up here as well. “
Paris never thought about it.
She paused for a while and felt that this was indeed an interesting proposal-she had come all the way here in Coral Island to rescue her sister who was bought and sold. But her sister lives well now, so what was the point of this rescue and why is she so obsessed with taking her away?
“I"ll think about it, Mrs. Harriet. Thanks for the hospitality.”
That night, Paris stopped talking about Maggie. She still lived in the aristocratic neighborhood. Of course, Liszt was generous enough to cover the cost of her accommodation — he already knew about the progress of Paris and Maggie through Old Grandet and the others.
He knew that things were stable.
“Maybe tomorrow.. Or the day after that, Paris will ask to stay … if she leaves, she will have no reason to go back.”
But unbeknownst to Liszt, Paris visited the castle that night.
This time she did not rely on stealth to lurk in. Instead, she appeared in person and was left by Carter to wait in the lobby. Carter knocked on the door and asked to enter the study.
Liszt, who was reading a book, nodded calmly, “Invite her to the study and by the way, make two cups of tea.”
Moments later, Carter led Paris in.
After she took her seat, she skipped the nonsense and said directly, “Baron, I was a thief mercenary in the mercenary regiment in the Grand Duchy of Maple Leaf. Although I have left the league, I still retain my status as a registered mercenary. I don"t know if you need to hire a mercenary to work for you. “
The Grand Duchy of Maple Leaf, like the Grand Duchy of Sapphire, is one of the nations of the Iron and Steel Ridge Kingdom.
“You mean you"re going to stay in Flower Town and take care of Maggie? First things first, do a good introduction of yourself. You say you killed members of the aristocracy, and I"m an aristocrat. I want to make sure your stay in Flower Town will not cause any trouble.”
“You can rest a.s.sured that I have killed a lot of n.o.bles. I am still wanted in the Grand Duchy of Maple Leaf, but no one will go to much trouble to chase me to such a remote island country."
Paris touched the milk tea on the table and took a sip,”It tastes very good, it"s definitely milk from the finest cows … if you want to hear my story, there is nothing to hide. I left home when I was fifteen to avoid marriage and wanted to find a mage to learn magic from. “