After reading the text on these gold bars, Leonard Ethan fell into deep contemplation. He originally thought he could claim this gold, silver, and jewels for himself, but the text on the gold bars forced him to change his mind.
He picked up his mobile phone and logged onto a website called ANF to inquire about the Earl mentioned by Jack De Brian.
ANF stands for L'Association d'entraide de la noblesse française, a private organization established by French noble descendants to handle identity authentication and deal with the misuse of titles.
Leonard Ethan logged onto the website now to verify whether the Earl with the last name Doris had been truly inherited. If so, he would return these gold and jewels to their rightful owner.
As for why he didn't search for the title itself, the reason is simple. Changes of dynasties may lead to a change of title. Thus, searching for the title directly would most likely not lead to the target.
However, judging from the information left on the gold nuggets, the Earl at that time most likely only severed ties with the United Kingdom to avoid losing their fortune in any investigation. It shouldn't have led to the loss of his title.
After all, there were too many nobles from the Bourbon Dynasty who had compromised with Napoleon back then. When Charles X came to power, he would not have gone too hard on those nobles who naturally supported him.
Of course, that didn't mean Charles X completely let them off the hook. After taking over the mess, he must have sought funds from these nobles, which was why the Earl severed ties with the UK at that time.
Leonard Ethan stared at his phone screen, contemplating the possible story behind it, and after about a minute, the ANF webpage finally refreshed.
The internet speed in Ireland is unsatisfactory. Though theoretically, 99% of the area should be covered, living in the country for a long time would make you realize the so-called 1% seems to span a wide area.
The word "Doris" in French means "lily," but as a surname, it is not very common. Therefore, after entering the surname and waiting for about a minute and a half, the screen displayed only one answer: Count Bosit.
However, due to privacy concerns, the website only shows the name of the current owner of the title and the family badge. There is no specific information about the person's whereabouts.
"It seems I have to give this treasure to someone else." Staring at the content displayed on the screen, Leonard Ethan showed a relieved expression on his face.
Indeed, this treasure excited him, as the gold alone was worth around 4.5 million pounds at the current market price. With the addition of the jewels, it could easily exceed 7 million pounds. Even in the United Kingdom, that is a significant amount of money.
However, the final words written by Jack De Brian on the gold bars moved Leonard Ethan. In the end, Jack stated that protecting this wealth was his duty and that there was no need to pass on such a heavy responsibility to others.
Therefore, according to Jack, if the person who finds the treasure can locate Count Bosit or his descendants, they should return the wealth to them. He believed that the honor of nobles would warrant satisfactory compensation for the return of these treasures.
However, if every possibility is exhausted and neither the Count nor his descendants can be found, it would be considered the will of the deity, and the person who found the treasures could claim the gold and jewels for themselves.
That is why, after confirming that the title and family emblem on the gold bars matched the ones provided, Leonard Ethan decided to return these items to their rightful owners.
After all, Jack could resist the temptation of so many treasures and remain faithful to his commitment, so Leonard Ethan felt he should not fall short in this regard either.
More importantly, the education he received from a young age made it impossible for him to swallow these assets knowing they have an owner. Even if the owner didn't know about their existence, from a more practical perspective, selling hundreds of kilograms of gold was beyond his current abilities. Openly selling the gold would potentially attract unnecessary attention, secretly selling it would most likely result in more loss than profit.,
After all, legally speaking, these items count as lost property with an owner. It might feel good to take it now, but there are no secrets in this world. If someone were to find out in the future, the loss would far outweigh the gain.
Most importantly, with Golden Finger, there is a high probability that he would become a renowned historian and treasure hunting master in the future. So, for a bright future, it is best to avoid some things as much as possible.
Yes, there is 7 million pounds worth of wealth here, but compared to his future, these treasures are just a small fraction of it.
When lunchtime came, Leonard Ethan told his parents about the matter at the dining table. As expected, they fully supported his decision.
On the one hand, it was a matter of the family's values, and on the other hand, it was out of caution. For instance, both parents felt that it was not a good thing to take such a vast amount of unjust wealth and that it might bring disaster to their family.
"Also, I think that even if you return the treasures, it won't be a complete waste." After discussing the ownership of the wealth, Leonard Ethan's father added, as if recalling something.
"I remember reading a similar case in the newspaper a while back. The owner of the treasure offered one-fifth of its value to the person who found it. So, if the other party is indeed a noble, they'd have to pay you a decent compensation for the sake of their reputation."
"That's right." Leonard Ethan's mother put his favorite braised pork in front of him and said, "Compared to the current wealth, I think it feels safer to accept a smaller sum with a clear conscience."
After lunch, Leonard Ethan called Pierce to find out how to contact Count Bosit. Although Pierce was not sure why he was asking, he still promised to use his connections to help him inquire.
It wasn't until the evening that Leonard Ethan received a text message from Pierce. Fortunately, the European noble circle is not that large, so Pierce was able to find Count Bosit's contact information.
After replying to Pierce with a thank you message, Leonard Ethan called the number of Count Bosit's mansion.
Perhaps because the call was from an unknown number, no one answered the first two attempts.
It was not until the third attempt that someone on the other end of the phone picked up. "This is Count Bosit's residence," said a middle-aged man's voice. "May I ask why you are calling?"
"I have been entrusted by Mr. Jack De Brian to return some of your lost items," Leonard Ethan said, while sitting in his room and looking at the pile of gold on the ground.
"Uh, I'm sorry, but I don't recall leaving any items with Mr. Jack De Brian. Are you sure you didn't get the wrong person?"
"I don't think I've got the wrong person," Leonard Ethan said firmly, "It's just that the items Mr. Jack De Brian was supposed to give to you 100 years ago weren't delivered due to various reasons of that time."
"And I happened to find these items by accident and followed the clues left in them to find you."