Chapter 329: Chapter 283: Who Approves, Who Objects? (4000)
Dawn.
The meeting hall of the Governor’s Mansion had been urgently transformed into a mourning hall, allowing the ceremonial garments of the Newman brothers to be displayed for mourners to pay their respects. Combined, all that could be found of the two brothers were a few articles of clothing. Their flesh, souls, transcendent abilities, and family wealth had long been devoured by someone; even these garments for their burial were the simplest and least valuable. It made the guests think how frugal and self-disciplined they must have been.
"Governor, General, I have failed you. I returned too late!"
Mr. Byron, The Sea Hunter, who had displayed such might last night saving the entirety of Royal Port, now stood by the coffin, teary-eyed and full of self-reproach. He seemed even more grief-stricken than the orphan Tilly, who, having adopted a more humble and plain appearance again, was respectfully bowing to each guest.
Those who saw him felt heartache; those who heard him shed tears.
Upon hearing his uncontrollable sobs, every passerby who walked past the Governor’s Mansion couldn’t help but shake their heads and sigh.
"What happened yesterday in the Governor’s Mansion has spread throughout the city."
"A friend of my next-door neighbor’s aunt’s son’s cousin is a servant in the Governor’s Mansion, and he heard everything clearly from outside the meeting room."
"It was all because the Governor and General forcibly ordered The Sea Hunter to lead the troops into battle, giving the bandits who had already laid an ambush at the port a window of opportunity."
"If it weren’t for their eagerness to achieve merit, they wouldn’t have died so tragically. I heard they were struck by lightning, with nothing left of them."
A well-informed busybody added, "I heard it was due to political struggles. They offended the local figure, The Kingmaker, and were killed as a warning to others. Their entire family is gone."
"Only Miss Tilly, the orphan who accompanied the Fleet, remains. How truly tragic."
More people felt it was unfair to their lifesaver.
"The Sea Hunter was at the beck and call of the Newman Family, ordered to risk an attack by the May Wind to fight the rebels."
"Yet he held no resentment towards the Newman Family and was the first to rush back to aid Royal Port."
"Newman didn’t deserve to be his superior!"
"Yes, yes! I think only His Majesty the King is a fitting superior. Isn’t he a natural confidant and key minister?"
"Being just a Pirate General is truly beneath his talent."
The persona Byron had repeatedly reinforced for himself since his debut was about to leave an indelible mark on the minds of others. Now, if anyone dared to criticize him or unmask his hypocritically benevolent facade, they would likely be attacked by the masses before he could even offer a rebuttal.
They didn’t want to hear it!
At this moment, in the mourning hall where influential officials from Royal Port and representatives from the colonies had gathered:
"The Supreme Commander of the Anti-Bandit Campaign" and "the Rebel Leader," Mr. Byron, continued his performance, swearing with red eyes to the clothes of the Newman brothers,
"Governor, General, go to Heaven in peace.
"As the Bayfolk proverb says: Avenge all wrongs.
"I will surely take revenge for you, making all traitors pay a painful price!
"Every blade of grass, every tree, every flower, and every stone in the Governor’s Mansion will be preserved as it is.
"On the Blue Mountain range in the Earldom, the spice trees I personally supervised the planting of will also be well tended. They will repay your efforts with a bountiful harvest next year.
"The estates, lands, plantations, taverns, and the Song of the Nightingale chain stores of the Newman Family... I guarantee none of them will close. Whoever dares touch these assets, I will chop off his hands.
"Oh, and Miss Tilly, the last remaining orphan of the Newman Family, I... My good brother Bill will definitely take good care of her.
"They will soon be married.
"The family assets will also be handed over to her, intact..."
"Wait a moment! The Sea Hunter, I disagree."
Amid the mourners, a portly figure stood out from the crowd.
Neither Tilly nor Byron had expected this interruption, and the powerful figures of Royal Port also furrowed their brows in unison.
Judging by his attire, he appeared to be a nobleman, perhaps a minor lord, standing with the sparsely gathered relatives of the Newman Family. Many had already recognized him. He was from the family of the wife of Milton, Earl Newman’s eldest son and heir; a seemingly insignificant man surnamed Lawrence.
Byron glanced at him, recognizing him as being from the maternal family of the "lucky one" Uncle Andrew had mentioned. He had luckily escaped the fate of others because he lacked the power to claim a share of the Newman estate, yet now he suddenly appeared. If Milton, Newman’s eldest son, had successfully inherited the Earldom, the Lawrence family would have produced a Countess who could bear male heirs. But now, all their careful scheming had come to nothing.
Thinking of that descendant who lacked Newman blood, the look Byron gave him became instantly profound.
Visibly aggrieved, Lord Lawrence then said,
"The primary heirs in the Direct Lineage of Earl Newman were my brother-in-law and my sister, then my nephew, and only then others.
"I certainly acknowledge Miss Tilly’s right to a share of the inheritance.
"However, although my sister, brother-in-law, and nephew are all deceased, the assets that belonged to them still exist.
"A considerable portion of the initial capital for these assets was borrowed from our Lawrence family back when the Newman Family was just establishing itself.
"Therefore, I propose that the esteemed officials of the Governor’s Mansion conduct a liquidation of the Newman Family’s assets!
"The Sea Hunter, you are now the protector of Royal Port. You have always been renowned for your fairness and loyalty, enjoying an excellent reputation among the common folk, and you are known to uphold the rules.
"Surely, you would be willing to see justice done for me, wouldn’t you?"