Chapter 56 The Actor's Self-Cultivation

  To say the least, Marquis de Glangta is a good actor. The highest standard of a good actor is that when he is fully engaged in acting, he even forgets that he is acting.

  So, in the hall of parliament, when Marquis de Glangte was sweating profusely, playing the role of a generous and charitable philanthropist, he himself was so moved that his eyes were brimming with hot tears, even thinking of sending flowers to himself...

  Until then, a little white face suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and with tears in his eyes, he rushed out to interrupt!

  Of course, although he was filled with regret and dissatisfaction in his heart, seeing the young man looking at him with admiration, Marquis de Gramont still maintained a smile and asked patiently: "Young man, I seem to have never seen you before?"

  "Yes, I just arrived in the islands." Lin Taiping grasped Grote's hand tightly like a true admirer, "But who I am is not important, what's important is, do you know my fiancée?"

  "Unmarried wife?" Marquis Ge Lang Tai was taken aback and followed Lin Taiping's line of sight.

  In an instant, his smile suddenly froze, and a venomous glint flashed in his eyes, but only for a moment. This marquis gentleman suddenly returned to normal, revealing an extremely surprised expression, trembling with excitement as he approached: "Kristin, is it you? Is it really you?"

  A perfect performance that earned a full score! Lin Taiping was deeply impressed, and the nobles and commoners nearby were even more deeply moved. They thought to themselves, "Who says that Duke Hou had done such an evil thing in the past? Just look at the crystal-like tears shining at the corners of his eyes, that's truly heartfelt excitement and emotion."

  Of course, Kristen wouldn't think so, she slightly furrowed her brow, unable to conceal the disgust as she took a few steps back: "Uncle, we meet again, you seem quite pleased?"

  "Of course, I'm delighted, my child. What could be more delightful than your return?" The Marquis de Glangté was so excited that he trembled all over and raised his head devoutly. "Thank the merciful gods for bringing you back to me again... My dear child, why did you come back without telling me? This time you've come back, don't leave again."

  "As you wish, I won't leave again." Kristen dodged his embrace once more, her voice icy. "In fact, this time I'll not only stay on Ivory Island but also inherit everything from the family and become the true mistress of the Philitt family!"

  The words were like a heavy depth charge, and the whole hall was suddenly in an uproar. Even with the Marquis de Glangté's superb acting skills, he almost lost control of his emotions at this moment, and the smile on his face stiffened. "My child, do you mean that you plan to inherit the legacy left by your father?"

  "Is there a problem?" Kristen raised her head fearlessly, calmly and firmly staring at the other person. "My father has been gone for a long time, shouldn't I, as his eldest daughter, inherit his legacy?"

  "Of course, of course." Gelongtai was still a bit flustered, but as an excellent actor, he quickly calmed down and let out a helpless sigh. "But the thing is, your father doesn't seem to have left much inheritance, so..."

  "Is that so? Not much, huh?" Kristen raised an eyebrow but quickly calmed down and said, "But I seem to recall that when my father was alive, he at least owned a manor, two shops, and over 300 acres of vineyards... Lord Glangate, can you tell me where these assets are now?"

  Almost subconsciously, everyone in the ruling hall turned their heads neatly and looked at Grote.

  Without any panic, Gloria let out a soft sigh and replied with a sympathetic face: "My dear child, I can understand your feelings, but you don't know the truth... In fact, your father had accumulated a large amount of debt due to his failed business before he passed away. After his death, I had no choice but to sell those assets and even took out some myself to help him pay off the debts."

  He spoke so calmly, as if he were talking about something of no importance. He turned to face the people in the hall again, his expression serene, and raised his right hand: "I know that there have been rumors unfavorable to me recently, but if anyone does not believe it, they can go to my place at any time, where there is also a detailed list of debts... I can swear to the gods on this point!"

  It can't be denied that his expression and tone were perfect to the extreme, so much so that hundreds of listeners present couldn't help but believe more than half of it, and there were even a few fanatical worshippers who directly shouted out: "Your Excellency, we believe in your words! A noble gentleman as kind and high-minded as you, how could you possibly do something wrong?"

  "No, I was wrong again." Grote sighed softly, with a tinge of red in his sorrowful eyes. "My biggest mistake was that I shouldn't have agreed to help my brother keep this unfortunate news a secret, just so Kristin could be happy for a little while... If only I had known it would hurt Kristin and cause misunderstandings between us uncle and nephew, I should have thought more carefully at the time."

  It was a perfect performance, with eyes that were slightly red-rimmed, sorrowful yet firm gaze, simply flawless. The hundreds of audience members present looked at each other in dismay, and suddenly believed it a bit more, even starting to sympathize with the Marquis.

  "Hypocrite!" Kristen clenched her fists tightly, her fingertips turning pale from the excessive force, staring at the insincere and disgusting old face in front of her, she really had an impulse to smash it without caring about anything.

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  But just in this eerie atmosphere, Lin Taiping suddenly clapped his hands again and revealed a devilish smile: "Wonderful, it's really a wonderful story, but I have one thing that doesn't make sense - huh, as far as I know, the estate left by Kristen's father, including 300 acres of vineyards, seems to still be managed by you."

  Yes, after hearing this question, a low murmur of discussion immediately arose in the ruling hall. That's right, maybe the shops and jewelry were sold to pay off debts, but the vineyard left by that lord seems to have been there all along. In fact, half a year ago, Marquis Glantay even sold a large batch of wine and made a handsome profit from it.

  For an instant, Galt's face changed color, but in the flash of his eyes he regained his composure: "Of course, young man, just as you said it, the vineyard on the hill of Gries has always been there."

  "So?" Lin Taiping smiled and stroked his chin, "Duke Hou, please don't tell me that even the manor has been returned to your name, perhaps even the name on the deed has been changed."

  "Of course not." Grote replied calmly, without any panic: "In fact, the manor has always been under Kirsten's name. I'm just helping Kirsten manage it. If you don't believe me, you can check the deed anytime."

  "Is that so?" Lin Taiping nodded in satisfaction, "Then what are we waiting for? Since the manor has been there all along, why don't we go take a look now and stay overnight there as well."

  As he spoke, he directly pulled up Kirsten's hand and was about to walk out the door. The Marquis of Glanthe suddenly changed color and softly called out from behind: "Wait, I haven't finished yet...Kirsten, there's something you might not know. Although that vineyard is still standing, it was forcibly occupied by someone else a few months ago."

  "Occupation?" Kristin turned her head and sneered, "I really didn't expect that on Ivory Island, someone would dare to occupy our family's assets."

  "I also find it unbelievable." Grote's face was full of helplessness as he spread his hands, with a cunning glint in his eyes. "In fact, over the past few months, I've sent people to negotiate with them several times, but those guys just wouldn't listen to reason, and they have incredibly strong power, even I am powerless against them."

  "Is it?" Kristen asked relentlessly, "I'd like to know what kind of person is so formidable."

  "Hmm..." Groteus stroked his mustache thoughtfully, and after a moment of silence, he finally hesitated before answering, "Alright, maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that name, but those guys call themselves... the Blood Fang Mercenary Group!"

  Blood Tooth Mercenary Corps? The moment the words left his mouth, everyone in the governing hall was stunned into silence. Many couldn't help but exclaim in surprise: "Damn it, it's those unreasonable bastards! No wonder, no wonder they didn't even put Lord Ge Lang Tai in their eyes."

  It's no wonder they were so surprised, after all, the Blood Fang Mercenary Corps was a famous mercenary corps in the Horned Sea region, having gone through countless battles and bloodshed over the years, with more than 200 mercenaries, all of whom had been tested on the battlefield. And as the leader of the mercenary corps, Qing Lang was a mid-tier heavy armor knight.

  In fact, the Blood Tooth Mercenary Corps appeared on Elephant Island because they accepted the invitation of the ruling official to help Elephant Island defend against pirate raids... However, this mercenary corps is obviously not easy to get along with. In the few years since arriving on Elephant Island, they have caused several conflicts. If it weren't for the backing of a certain big shot, they would probably have been expelled long ago.

  That's why, as soon as they heard the name "Blood Fang Mercenaries", everyone turned their heads in unison and looked at Kirsten with sympathetic eyes. The poor child, facing that group of unreasonable and terrifying mercenaries, wouldn't even be able to get a single grape back, let alone the entire vineyard.

  "So I can only accept this fact?" Kristen slightly lowered her head, with flames of anger burning in her eyes. Even if she used her knees to think, she knew that the damned mercenary group must have colluded with Galantida and set up this despicable trap, waiting for her to jump in helplessly.

  If the manor is not taken back, it can only be watched as Grote continues to encroach and seize, taking away his father's last legacy; and if trying to take back the manor, he will have to face those brutal mercenaries, who have long been bought by Grote, waiting for him to foolishly deliver himself, and then in the chaos, a "mistake"

  "I'm afraid that's the way it is, on one hand they are very powerful, and on the other hand we also have to rely on them to defend against pirates." Grote sighed helplessly, his expression showing heartache. "Listen, my dear child, I can understand your feelings, and I'd like to help you take back the vineyard too, but I'm really powerless, those guys' military strength is just..."

  "Force? Who said anything about using force?" A lazy voice suddenly sounded out of nowhere, also causing everyone in the entire government hall to turn their heads at the same time.

  In their astonished gaze, Lin Taiping seriously adjusted his collar, lightly cleared his throat a few times, and then solemnly raised his hand.

  "Actually, I'm a negotiation expert, what I'm best at is... winning people over with virtue!"

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