Most of those who attended the dance party basically engaged in socializing in other cities.
Although the Lord Governor didn’t restrict the local nobles from using their own money to host any dance parties, this has led to a significant decrease in parties among the Graywhite Territory nobles. The inability to exploit the people living on their lands as before, resulting in insufficient financial resources, is one reason, but the Lord Governor’s disapproval is also a crucial factor.
The only connection these nobles have with Lind is probably through their work, which means that to establish a connection with Lind, one must at least hold a position in the administration. Hence, those who wish to connect with the upper-class noble officials through established channels find themselves struggling harder than ever.
Recently, Lind actively hosted a dance party in Graywhite Territory, causing many nobles to start feeling anxious again.
Although these nobles do not understand what a “Hongmen feast” is, they are aware that unusual occurrences are often ominous.
Some well-informed nobles, through their wives’ information networks, have learned some insider details. It turns out that rumors have been circulating in the Northern Border about discord between the Governor and the Governor’s wife, along with some slander against her. Therefore, the Governor wants to personally host a dance party to dispel these rumors.
Simultaneously, battle reports from the Copper Mountain Territory have reached Graywhite Territory. Generally, the public no longer cares about these reports; at most, some nobles are concerned about where the army has reached and whether it is nearing their own relatives, prompting them to write letters urging surrender.
However, some attentive nobles noticed that this battle report from the Copper Mountain Territory marked the first time the Graywhite Territory army crossed enemy-occupied areas to attack a territory.
Combining this with recent rumors, these nobles began to understand that the source of the rumors was indeed the Copper Mountain Territory, which allegedly fabricated these rumors to secure the marriage of a noble’s daughter.
The nobles of Graywhite Territory shook their heads and sighed at the audacity of such nobles. Those outside may not understand how strong the relationship between the Lord Governor and his wife truly is, but the surrendering nobles of Graywhite Territory certainly know how affectionate the couple is on a daily basis.
Further inquiry among these nobles reveals, regardless of the Lord Governor’s position as the head of the Lars Family, that the capital used to develop his ventures was entirely provided by the Governor’s wife. Although they may not know what an angel investor is, these nobles still understand what that means for the Governor.
Many of the surrendering nobles have beautiful daughters at home, and no one entertains the thought of marrying them off. Even if someone did bring it up, it would surely be politely declined by the Lord Governor, followed by laughter from fellow nobles, branding them as unrealistic.
As for the status of the Governor’s wife, just look at the noblewomen trying to catch up on mechanical principles, and you can see that, far from being slandered, they are trying to ingratiate themselves.
In fact, it has even developed to the point where whenever the results of the Graywhite Territory’s compulsory school examinations are released, many nobles rush down to find wives. No matter how poor or lowly the woman is, as long as she has good physical grades, she can marry into a wealthy family overnight.
Of course, whether most nobles can still be considered “wealthy families” is debatable.
This sufficiently illustrates the madness of these nobles. Anyone with a discerning eye knows how stable Lena’s position is, and she has even started planning long-term investments, to the extent that she doesn’t overlook men with good physical grades, aiming to cultivate her daughter from a young age by turning these graduates into tutors.
This is Lena’s status in Graywhite Territory. Even without the identity of Miss Lars, she remains the only channel for these nobles, aside from government officials, to communicate with Lind.
Everything is merely to have the chance to speak a few more words with Lena. In Graywhite Territory, the true socialite is not measured by noble etiquette but by physical scores, as this will directly determine whether one can converse with Lena.
At Lind’s first dance party, all the nobles and officials from Graywhite Territory were present. These nobles kept a low profile; everyone knew who the main character of the evening was.
Soon, Lind brought Lena onto the stage. This dance party was not much different from those hosted by the noble families; it mainly served as a venue for nobles to communicate and exchange information.
The nobles, having rare opportunities to communicate directly with Lind, were unsure of what to say. After all, the paperwork from the Governor’s office addressed Lind with simple pleasantries like “How are you today?” or “The weather is nice.”
Not to mention, these nobles preferred to talk to Lind about trivial news, as no matter how well-informed they were, it could never compare to Lind’s knowledge. However, seeing their good intentions, Lind didn’t mind and responded politely.
Eventually, Lind took the initiative to ask these old nobles whether they had faced any issues and how life had been, to which the nobles replied that they were doing quite well and that the Lord Governor need not worry.
This was sincere; as long as they weren’t from utterly incompetent families, there would invariably be one or two descendants who could pass the administrative examinations. At least, the educational benefits still remained for these nobles, so they weren’t starving, though their former grandeur undoubtedly pales in comparison.
Initially, these nobles were dissatisfied with Lind only providing them with a house and minimal compensation, as that was the land where their ancestors had lived. Yet, as property prices in Graythorn Territory continued to rise, their complaints lessened, and some even felt fortunate to have yielded and secured a house.
Why do nobles from the Royal Capital always look down on those from distant frontiers? Is it not because the nobility of the Royal Capital has lands closer to the king? Especially when royal authority is strong, these nobles are the king’s most loyal supporters.
Although the Graythorn nobles lack landed estates, they have observed the changes in Graythorn Territory. Now that they are closer to the Governor, aren’t they equivalent to what once were the nobles of the Royal Capital?
Most nobles in Graywhite Territory have realized that they have seized an opportunity and are on the fast track of the times. Everyone is making a significant effort to work, and unless there are fools, no one would consider abandoning ship.
Who doesn’t want to be among the first contributors of the new Northern Border?
Lind glanced over to where Lena was with the ladies, and since there had been prior notification, the entire group of ladies from Graywhite Territory had mobilized to comfort Lena.
This is an incredible opportunity; some noblewomen even expressed gratitude towards the fools from the Copper Mountain Territory, as the chances to befriend Lena are rare. Thus, these ladies pulled out all the stops, even starting to verify a physics problem on the spot.
What was supposed to be a high-class gathering turned into an academic conference. However, this atmosphere helped Lena relax, and seeing her smile return to a crescent shape, Lind finally felt relieved.
He turned and asked the surrounding nobles, “Have you seen the battle reports from the Copper Mountain Territory?”
The noble officials nodded eagerly.
“Besides the Copper Mountain Territory, some newly occupied regions have nobles who are not very compliant. I hope you do not have any connections with those nobles to avoid being implicated later. Understood?”
The noble officials promised that none of their relatives were involved in these matters, and some had already severed contacts, leaving everything to Lind’s discretion.
Lind had never engaged in large-scale purges before, so one can imagine how furious he was this time. Furthermore, now these nobles have realized that they might become the founding figures of the new Northern Border. Forget severing relations; they would proactively report, and if Lind asked them to take action themselves, they would not hesitate for a moment.
Only a fool would jump ship at this moment.
