Shadow of great britain

Intentionally or unintentionally, Arthur slowly told Mrs. Cowper about the departmental differences in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and from time to time he inserted a few slightly modified legendary case-handling stories.

The ups and downs of the story development, coupled with all kinds of bizarre chemical knowledge, plus some reasonable but not beyond the bounds of polishing, various originally bloody and terrifying detective stories became a revelation in Arthur's mouth. Madam’s key to understanding the new world.

She listened to Arthur's story, and every time the plot reached a critical point, the London lady couldn't help but tighten the handkerchief in her hand.

"Oh my God! So it was the hotel owner who was responsible? He assisted the murderer as an accessory to kill the two prostitutes?"

"Laughing gas is really a terrible thing. What's even more terrible is that young people today often use it as a fashionable entertainment product. Who would have thought that this thing can be used to kill people?"

"No wonder you hate body snatchers so much, it turns out it's all because of that poor little girl. Sigh... Maybe the responsible politicians in Britain should seriously consider the Anatomy Act, even if the bishops are opposed to it. It, and I also admit that it is unfair to the poor people who died in the workhouse. But things always have to be solved, and the living people have to be considered..."

"Oh! God! You actually killed that Fred with your own hands? Mr. Hastings, I think you might consider writing and publishing this high seas pursuit as a novel. This story will definitely be very popular."

In the midst of Mrs. Cowper's exclamation, time passed by minute by minute.

Perhaps it was because she was so fascinated by Arthur's detective story that she even forgot about the gramophone that she had been thinking about for a long time.

It wasn't until Arthur drank the last drop of water in the teapot that Mrs. Cowper sighed with unfinished content: "I didn't expect that you, a 20-year-old young man, have already had so many incredible personal experiences. I thought you The demonstrations of the Faraday cage and the gramophone were amazing enough, but now they are nothing compared to your experience at Scotland Yard. The newspapers cannot praise you enough, you are a Scotland Yard man. A legend, a living legend.”

Arthur heard Mrs. Cowper praise him so highly, but he still did not dare to take it lightly.

He just said modestly: "You are really flattering me. I am just doing my job. Just like what Mr. John Locke said: The only legitimate purpose of establishing a government is to protect the lives, property and liberty of the people, and to Provide security and welfare for the people.

What I do is originally the responsibility of Scotland Yard, and your gratitude to me is also included in the local parish security tax. You take the money and I do the work, everything is as it should be.

And as an added bonus, I got a promotion, and as you can see, I'm now a superintendent. The praise I have received is so generous, how dare I ask for more recognition from you. "

When Mrs. Cowper heard this, the more she looked at the young man, the more pleasing she became: "Mr. Hastings, you can be regarded as the most gentlemanly 20-year-old young man I have ever seen."

Arthur looked at the sky outside the window, stood up and excused himself and said, "Well, madam, why don't we just stay here today? Actually, I want to chat with you for a while longer, but Scotland Yard has a lot of official business, and I only have leave until today." Afternoon, lunch break should be almost over now, I have to get back to work."

When Mrs. Cowper heard this, she originally wanted to keep him, but she remembered what Arthur had just told her about the annoying rules of Scotland Yard, and she finally decided to let him go.

"I'm sorry to hear this news, but I understand you, young man. Maybe I am not right in saying this, but I sincerely hope that you can be transferred to a department with short working hours as soon as possible. The detective story of Scotland Yard is indeed wonderful. , but from the perspective of a person who has lived there and a woman, I think staying there for a long time is not conducive to a happy marriage."

Arthur just smiled and nodded: "Thank you for your blessing. See you next time, madam."

The valet on the side saw Arthur getting up and quickly fetched him the coat and hat hanging on the coat rack.

After getting dressed again, Arthur walked out of Cowper Mansion under the polite guidance of the old butler.

He took a deep breath, and his tense nerves relaxed. Perhaps it was because it rained in London today. The air after the rain did not smell of dust, nor was it mixed with any toxic industrial dust or feces. It was extremely fresh!

Breathing such high-quality air, Arthur's mood improved a lot.

A swaying carriage slowly stopped in front of Arthur. The valet sitting next to the coachman jumped out of his seat and opened the door. A yawning middle-aged man with gray sideburns walked out.

The man seemed to be afraid of the cold, and he wore extra thick clothes. There was a tuxedo hidden inside the silver-gray plush-edged coat. The tuxedo was covered with a sleeveless burgundy vest, and through his tight The navy blue scarf can also be seen with the stand-up collar of the white shirt.

When the man saw Arthur walking out of the Cowper Mansion, he raised his eyebrows curiously at first, but soon, he seemed to have thought of something, so he could only suppress his curiosity, and that look appeared on his face again. A lackluster expression due to sleeping for too long.

Just as he was about to walk into the mansion, he found Arthur standing on the roadside smiling at him.

Out of politeness, the man had no choice but to smile and nod in response.

In such a strange atmosphere, the two passed by each other, Arthur returned to Scotland Yard, and Mrs. Cowper welcomed her biological brother, William Lamb, Viscount Melbourne.

When Mrs. Cowper saw him coming, the two of them gave a simple kiss, and then Mrs. Cowper couldn't help complaining: "William, didn't you agree to take your nieces and nephews for lunch today? ?Why did you come so late?"

Viscount Melbourne said helplessly: "I didn't expect it to be delayed until this time. Logically speaking, the Prime Minister's Questions should end at 12:30. But the situation is different today. The two sides are quarreling over parliamentary reform. Even they have always been The Duke of Wellington, who was unwilling to speak much, was at full capacity. Emily, I swear to you, I have never seen His Excellency the Duke say so many words in one breath in my life."

Mrs. Cowper heard the overtone in her brother's words: "This... Henry seemed to have mentioned this to me a while ago. He said that the Whigs would completely defeat the Tories in the Prime Minister's Question. It seems that, Are you successful?"

Viscount Melbourne tilted his head and picked his ears: "It should be more or less the same. I fell asleep when I was sitting in my seat and heard Henry say that he was going to launch a motion of no-confidence against the Wellington cabinet. I probably had a quarrel about this matter for a while afterwards. . But that is irrelevant. The Catholic Emancipation Act and his stubborn attitude against parliamentary reform have offended too many people. The end of the Tory era is inevitable."

"In that case..." Mrs. Cowper's eyes narrowed with joy: "It seems that you and Henry will soon play important roles in the cabinet, right? Henry will be the Foreign Secretary, and you will be the Home Secretary?"

Viscount Melbourne looked at his sister in surprise: "You are quite well-informed. You know everything about the affairs within the party."

"Of course, don't forget what the Allmark Club is for." Mrs. Cowper smiled: "All kinds of news spread in the mouths of ladies much faster than in your party, as long as I am willing , I might even find out how the Tories plan to fight back against you."

"That's not necessary, my lovely sister. What the Tories should consider now is not to fight back, but how to ensure that they lose as few seats as possible in the next general election. With all due respect, in the next general election, they will All religious and university constituencies will be lost, and the Archbishops in the House of Lords may also turn to us."

Mrs. Cowper just shook her head when she heard this: "William, I don't want to worry about the election. But you have to promise me to leave a good position for your nephew in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, preferably one that can both exercise and make money. At the same time, it’s not too tiring. It’s definitely not possible in a place like Scotland Yard. Although it’s a good place to train people, it’s really too tiring.”

Viscount Melbourne wondered: "I will naturally arrange Mike's affairs, but why did you suddenly think of mentioning Scotland Yard?"

Mrs. Cowper said: "Didn't you meet him?"

"who?"

"That's the young man who just went out. He is Sergeant Arthur Hastings of Scotland Yard. You must have heard of his name, right? He has appeared in the newspapers several times this year."

"This..." Viscount Melbourne suddenly looked a little weird when he heard this. He looked around and suddenly lowered his voice and asked: "Although I shouldn't ask about these things, but... I can confirm something about you and him. Is it related to?"

When Mrs. Cowper heard this, she felt very angry. She said unhappily: "William! Mr. Hastings and I respect each other, but definitely not to the same level as Henry and I. Don't you see? Is he old enough? I can be his mother!"

"Ah..." When Viscount Melbourne heard this, he just held his forehead and chuckled helplessly: "Sorry, maybe my nerves are a little hypersensitive."

Mrs. Cowper admitted his mistake so quickly when she saw him, so she didn't care much about him. On the contrary, she felt a little sorry for what her eldest brother had experienced in the past few decades.

"William, although I shouldn't mention this matter, let the past pass. The woman from the Ponsonby family is dead. Although she did not fulfill her obligations as a wife when she was alive, at that time At least she still occupies the title of Mrs. Melbourne. Now, although you are no longer young, you are far from old! The days to come are still long, and you have to consider renewing your string. You cannot let Ponsonby take you. Even if it’s ruined, the Melbourne family still has to rely on you!”

When the Viscount of Melbourne heard this, he felt uncomfortable in his heart: "Emily, you don't understand how I feel. Getting married, for me, is more like a burden now. In fact, it's good not to get married. . If two people can’t help each other and understand each other, why get married?”

When Mrs. Cowper heard this, she couldn't help but think of her marriage to Earl Cowper. After a short moment of silence, she sighed: "Maybe you are right, but you can now find someone who can understand Your woman."

"Well..." Viscount Melbourne pondered for a while. Under his sister's kindness, he finally couldn't help but smile. He revealed the biggest secret buried in his heart during this period: "Actually, I already have a person who can talk to me. I am a female friend, but she and I are not the kind of relationship you imagined..."

As soon as Melbourne said this, the red devil, who had been lying on the fireplace and did not leave with Arthur, couldn't help but nodded.

The red devil pushed up his glasses and said to himself: "Yes, yes! I believe you. There is platonic love between men and women that does not include any physical contact. Well, this kind of nonsense can only be said to A devil like me would listen..."