When Claude was conferred the title of honorary baron by Stellin X for his contributions in the region, he chose to use Han as a courtesy name to commemorate his past life.
Of course, he told the public that he didn't forget Prince Hansbach's favor and chose the first character of the prince's name as a courtesy name.
From then on, Claude's full title became Baron Claude Han Ferd and he became a noble of the kingdom.
As Claude's relatives, his mother, wife, sister, and brother all shared in his glory. Because they were direct relatives, they could use the word 'Conferred' in their names as well.
As Claude's status and title continued to rise, the word became the symbol of House Ferd. Even the emblem Claude chose was a gold-edged shield with the word 'Conferred' in the middle. It looked simple and clear.
But now, Arbeit came to visit with the full title of Viscount Arbeit Sang Ferd. That surprised Claude greatly. Since when did House Ferd's courtesy name change to Sang? Why didn't he know about it?
Also, as an honorary noble of the kingdom, shouldn't he be promoted to a hereditary baron after paying the promotion fee and land selection fee?
In that case, why did Albert write the title of viscount on the name list? Was there a change in the situation?
"Haha, Claude, it's Mother's will," Arbeit said with a smile, "She said that it was Father's contribution to the kingdom's new sea route that allowed House Ferd to be where it is today. So, she asked His Majesty to change the courtesy name to Sang in memory of our father.
But His Majesty the King said that if he wanted to change the character, he must first get your permission, so Mother only changed the character for her and me … "
Claude smiled, but his expression was cold. "That's understandable. Mother probably had her own plans. Perhaps she sees it as a way for House Ferd to return to its rightful position.
After all, now that she has you as her eldest son, she can rightfully inherit the family business. I'm sure she's quite satisfied.
Tell me, what did you come to see me for? "
Arbeit looked at Claude and sincerely lowered his head. "Claude, I was too young back then and didn't fulfill my duties as an elder brother. I treated you and your siblings harshly.
After so many years, I regret it very much.
But I heard that you're all doing well now, and I'm happy for you.
I came here today to admit the mistakes I made when I was young, and my mother asked me to ask you for help … "
Claude smiled and shook his head. "Tell me, what does mother want me to do for you?
I knew she wouldn't think of us if we were fine.
As for you apologizing for what happened back then, forget it. We don't have the honor to have an elder brother like you.
You may be able to fool Mother, but you can't fool us. The three of us know very well what kind of person you are.
Actually, it's easier for us now that Mother has changed her name to Ci. We're no longer a family with you … "
Claude was right. His mother's change of name meant that in her heart, Sang Ferd was the main family and Han Ferd was the branch family.
The difference in their names meant that the Ferds were separated. Claude believed that his siblings wouldn't change their names since they were willing to follow him.
His younger brother could also take on the Han Ferd surname again. He had given up his family name and position because his mother killed Adele. Claude could ask him to come back now.
"No, no, no, Claude. People change," Arbeit hurriedly said.
"I did let you down back then, but that was because I was young and inexperienced. I treated Whitestag as my entire world.
I've been roaming Freia for many years and experienced many things. Only now do I understand that the people I rely on the most are my brothers.
Even if our names are different, we're still related by blood. Father's blood flows in our veins … "
Claude waved his index finger in front of Arbeit to stop him. "I'm very busy and don't have time to talk nonsense with you. Just tell me what Mother wants you to do."
As the person in charge of the region's military, Claude had his own authority. Coupled with the fact that he was a marshal of the kingdom and a hereditary count, Arbeit didn't dare talk about blood ties with Claude anymore.
He forced himself to maintain a smile, but his body started to shrink. He no longer had the upright posture and gentlemanly demeanor he had when he first entered.
"Yes, it's like this …" Arbeit said with a smile, "Mother wants you to pay the one million crowns you owe Her Imperial Majesty and give the family some support.
She also wrote a list for me to pass to you … "
Arbeit took out an exquisite piece of parchment and placed it in front of Claude.
Claude was so angry that he laughed. "I really want to know why Mother wants a million crowns when other people's fees are only 500,000 crowns."
"Because Mother said that Father would be made an honorary viscount, so she spent another 500,000 crowns to get Her Imperial Majesty's help to promote him from a hereditary baron to a viscount. That way, we'll be able to get more land," Arbeit explained.
You can do that?
The king and queen really do know how to make money.
Claude was quite impressed. In order to rob Shiks, he had mobilized Thundercrash and Stormwind, as well as eight Shiksan homecoming folk. Then, he plotted with Bleyotte to come up with the plan to attack Shiks. It took so much manpower and resources, as well as the cooperation of a large transport fleet and armoured fleet, just to get his hands on a few dozen million crowns.
The king and queen, on the other hand, were able to get an extra 500,000 crowns from his mother just by touching their lips in the palace.
If news of that got out, more barons would be willing to pay 500,000 crowns to be promoted to viscount.
That was because a viscount's fief included a town and two villages. A baron's fief, on the other hand, would only be given a village if they were unlucky, just like Squirrel Village.
"I won't pay that much. My entire fortune isn't even worth a million crowns," Claude rejected his mother's request straightforwardly.
"Since you're going to inherit the title of Viscount San Ferd, you should be the one to bear the debt. It has nothing to do with us!"
How could a mother cheat her son?
Claude wanted to look up at the heavens and let out a long sigh. His mother only thought of him when it came to spending money.
Did she not consider the fact that if he hadn't fought so hard and gained his current status, who would care about his father's contribution in opening up a new trade route for the kingdom?
Perhaps he had been too tolerant of his mother's misdeeds. She had already become the laughing stock of the kingdom without knowing it.
No one would feel good with a debt of a million crowns on their head. Claude even suspected that the viscount's annual output wouldn't be enough to pay off the interest.
As expected, Arbeit grew anxious. "Why don't you have any? Mother said that you can easily get two to three million crowns by mortgaging the shares of the tobacco factory. Isn't that tobacco factory family business?
Mother is only paying off the debt of the fief. "
"Hehe …" Claude snickered. "What does the tobacco factory have to do with Mother? Did she even do anything?
Also, the tobacco factory belongs to House Hanferd, not House Sang Ferd. I hope Mother understands that. "
Claude grabbed the parchment on the table and glanced at it. He laughed angrily again. "She even wants three thousand new rifles? What for? Is she going to rob us?
Ten thousand sheep, a thousand cows, two luxurious carriages, eight sets of exquisite tableware and two carriages full of luxurious decorations. And she wants me to give her ten thousand crowns a month as pocket money? What does she take me for?
A national bank? "
"Yes. The nobles who returned from Shiks said that you've struck it rich this time. You've taken over the royal capital and Saint Cyprian, unlike them who can only struggle in the impoverished western prefectures.
They said that you'll get at least ten million crowns, so Mother is only asking for a small share of the profits, "Arbeit hurriedly explained in fear of Claude's anger.
"A small share of the profits?" Claude slapped the parchment with a bang. "You're asking for too much, understand?
Do you think that all the spoils belong to me alone?
Let me tell you, if I dare give Mother these things, I'll be court-martialed tomorrow! "
"But, but aren't you the marshal of the kingdom and the highest commander of the region's military?"
Poor Arbeit didn't understand the rules and regulations of the region. From his point of view, since Claude was the highest commander, he had the final say. Asking for spoils of war was only a matter of a word.
If that was really the case, Bolonik wouldn't have been forced to step down after agreeing to the arms deal with the kingdom.
"Forget it. It's not like I can explain it to you. You wouldn't understand anyway."
Claude ignored the red-faced Arbeit. "Tell me, what do you want three thousand new rifles for?"
He could understand that Mother wanted to show off the items at the end of the list, but the request for three thousand rifles at the beginning was rather strange. It couldn't have been Mother's idea. It could only be Arbeit's.
Claude really wanted to know the reason why he wanted the new rifles.
"Well, well …" Arbeit stammered, "I just want to form a family guard so that I can earn some money from the battlefield like the nobles."
"Hehe …" Claude sneered again. Forget it. It's pointless. I'll just get rid of Arbeit as soon as possible. "Do you know how much it costs to raise an army?
Three thousand rifles? You're trying to rebel, aren't you?
A viscount's territory can't even handle two hundred people. Do you want to raise a few thousand soldiers to wage war?
Do you think a citizen with a gun is a qualified warrior?
Aren't you worried that your mistreatment of them will make them hate you and shoot you in the back?
Wishful thinking … "
Claude pulled on Ling, who was by the desk. Soon, Fachselin pushed the door open and entered. "Lord Marshal, what are your orders?"
"Captain, my salary is with you, right? How much do I have in total?" Claude asked.
"From last year until now, your salary, benefits, and year-end bonus are all with me. It's a total of 13,528 crowns. I have detailed records here," Fachselin replied.
"Go get ten drafts for 1,000 crowns."
"Yes."
Fachselin went out for a while and soon returned with ten bills of exchange worth a thousand crowns.
"Arbeit, this is the last time I'll give Mother," Claude said as he rubbed his temples.
"Since Mother has decided to split the family, I won't say anything else. You can inherit everything from the Sang Ferd family. You'll have nothing to do with me in the future.
As for this list, I'll give you some compensation so that you can explain yourself when you return. "
"Captain Fachselin, take him to the logistics department. Pick one of the royal carriages we seized and get two sets of exquisite court utensils and utensils.
He then went to the armoury to get him a thousand Shiksan muskets from the captured Shiksan muskets and gave them ammunition.
Deduct all the expenses from my salary. I believe that the three thousand crowns should be enough to cover the cost … "
Arbeit wanted to say something else, but Claude didn't give him the chance and told him to scram.
Colonel Borkal pushed the door open and went to the liquor cabinet. "What's wrong with you? You look tired."
"Tired …" Claude closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair. "You bastard, you're stealing wine again. Haven't you noticed that you've gotten fatter?"
Colonel Borkal poured himself a glass of fruit wine. "Was that Arbeit? I thought he looked like him from afar."
As Claude's childhood friend, it was only natural that he knew Arbeit, the elder brother who didn't get along with Claude.
Claude nodded and told him the reason for Arbeit's visit.
"Your mother … Sigh …" Colonel Borkal shook his head. "I don't know what to say, but it's good that they split up. They won't bother you anymore.
But, Claude, I have to warn you that Arbeit might cause you trouble.
I remember that Simirock County had issued a warrant for his arrest before, and it should still be there … "
Claude was stunned and opened his eyes. "What did you say?
Arbeit is a wanted criminal? What did he do? Why is Simirock looking for him? "
Simirock was one of the three prefectures in the southwest. It was separated from Whitestag by Pallevia. It was a remote and conservative place.
Claude remembered that Borkal's aunt had married into that prefecture. His uncle's family was quite prestigious in Simirock and could be considered one of the wealthiest families there.
"Didn't I join the Bangilia garrison in Simirock back then?
When the first war broke out in the east, we were the second batch to be deployed to the frontlines.
Just a few days before they set off, there was a marriage fraud case in the county capital, Bangilia City. Baroness Audrey, who had been single for many years, had more than half of her assets taken away by a swindler. This caused a huge uproar and became a well-known case in the area.
It was said that the swindler was called Captain Gerard, a logistics officer from the ministry of the army. He came to Simirock to investigate the quality of the supplies supplied to the frontlines.
He met the 34-year-old Baroness Audrey and fell in love with her. A month later, the two decided to get married. However, they had to wait for Captain Gerard's parents and relatives to arrive for the wedding.
At that time, due to the lack of funds for the military supplies, Baroness Audrey took out most of her assets to pay for the wedding.
But two days before the wedding, Captain Gerard suddenly disappeared.
Back then, Baroness Audrey thought that he had urgent military matters to attend to and hurriedly contacted the ministry of the army, but the reply she received was that there was no such person.
Only then did everyone realize that something was wrong. Upon closer inspection, they realized that they had all been scammed. Captain Gerard was a swindler who took away most of Baroness Audrey's assets.
So, the swindler's portrait appeared on the wanted list. I went to take a look and found out that he was Arbeit.
After that, I went to the frontlines. After the first war, I returned to Simirock and became the battalion commander of the Bangilia garrison.
Once, I heard about the marriage scam again at a banquet. It was said that Baroness Audrey felt that it was embarrassing and withdrew the wanted order after three months. However, she was still secretly looking for Captain Gerard, "Borkal recounted something that happened more than ten years ago.
"Are you sure that Captain Gerard is Arbeit?" Claude asked with furrowed brows.
"You should know that I have an eye for people," Borkal said.
Borkal said, "I have a good eye for people and things. There's no way I'd be wrong.
I've known Arbeit for so many years, so how could I not know what he looks like?
Even though the portrait of Captain Gerard on the wanted list is a little off and he's still wearing his military uniform, I can tell that he's Arbeit right away.
"Arbeit had already left Whitestag for two years at that time. You even mentioned it in your letter back then. He abandoned you and disappeared without a trace. It was your mother who asked someone to look for him.
"Not many people paid attention to him in Whitestag. He also became Sir Foy something's personal secretary and spent most of his time in the manor. Most merchants don't remember him, so no one in Simirock knows anything about him even when he's wanted.
"However, Baroness Audrey is still around. If the two of them meet, she'll definitely recognize Arbeit.
"I heard that Baroness Audrey doesn't have any plans to inherit her family's land from His Majesty. She's been staying in her manor outside Bangilia and will probably spend the rest of her life there.
"As for the others who have seen Captain Gerard, they might have forgotten about it. So, Arbeit is fine for now, but we still have to be careful."
Claude nodded. He understood what Borkal was trying to say. If the matter were to be exposed, it would still be a scandal that the eldest brother of the Lord Marshal was a wanted criminal for marriage scam even though they had already separated from the family.
"Let's not talk about that," Claude said, changing the topic, "You didn't come here just to drink, did you?"
"Oh, I almost forgot something important."
"I've just received news from the north, so I came to report to you right away," said Borkal.