In terms of administrative power, the British aristocracy was also greatly restricted.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, most British Prime Ministers were aristocrats, including Barron's ancestor, the fourth Duke of Devonshire, who once served as Prime Minister of England.
Another more famous British Prime Minister, Churchill, came from the Duke of Marlborough's family.
It was not until 1963 that the Peerage Act passed in Britain completely cut off the path for members of the aristocracy to serve as Prime Minister.
According to the Peerage Act, nobles have no right to vote, cannot be elected to the House of Commons, and cannot serve as Prime Minister.
If a member of the nobility wishes to become prime minister, he must first announce that he will give up his title, leave the House of Lords, and then enter the House of Commons through election.
For example, Douglas Home, the Conservative Prime Minister who came to power in 1963, was a case in point.
Overall, the era of aristocracy in Britain is a thing of the past.
British people with noble titles have neither political privileges nor necessarily substantial wealth.
In today's British society, being a lord is just a kind of "respectability".
Even the British royal family has been continuously weakened and is becoming more and more like a "mascot".
For example, at the insistence of the government, in order to save the royal family's expenses and reduce subsidies to the royal family, the "Royal Reduction Plan" was implemented last year to eliminate marginal royal members.
Barron knew that in eight years, in 2010, there would be only four members of the royal family - the Queen, the Crown Prince and two princes...
That is to say, from then on, the royal family will only have direct male members - unless the woman is the eldest daughter in the direct line.
…
"Bonnie, how are you doing, did you have a good rest?"
"Not bad, Barron. I really like the environment here. The scenery outside the window is like an oil painting."
It was not until three o'clock in the afternoon that Bonnie came to the small balcony on the second floor and had afternoon tea with Barron.
At this time, she had changed her clothes, wearing a palace-style shirt and casual pants - even these trousers could not hide the lines of her long legs.
"I'm glad you like it here. Besides, your outfit is very charming."
"Thank you for the compliment, Barron. What are our plans for the afternoon?"
"I'm going to take a look at the farm in the manor, as well as the nearby town, where some of the family's businesses are located. If you're interested, we can go together. You know, I haven't been back here much since I started high school, so now that I've taken over the family business, I need to learn more about it first."
"That must be very interesting. I am still very interested in this kind of rural life."
Barron looked at Bonnie while she was speaking. He could tell that she was excited and there was no sign of pretense.
The land near Chatsworth House is as much as 35,000 acres, but it is located in Derbyshire, so its value cannot be compared with places like London.
However, such a vast land produces a considerable number of crops and livestock. Most of the produce from the surrounding farms will be sold, except for a small portion that is supplied to the manor.
For example, there are butcher shops owned by the Devonshire family in many towns throughout Derbyshire. They are also the largest supplier of agricultural products to residents in the surrounding area. Even with other industries including tourism and hotels, the sales of the farm's output are also an important source of income for the family.
With the introduction of the farm manager, Barron got to know more about this part of his family business this afternoon - you know, his predecessor had never been interested in these things.
"Barron, now that you have taken over the family business, you will continue to run these in the future, right?"
On the way back, Bonnie sat next to Barron in the car, looking at the scenery outside the window, and suddenly asked.
"Yes, Bonnie. To be honest, I wasn't interested in this before. I was more interested in other businesses."
The endless industry outside the window now belongs to him. Barron suddenly has an inexplicable feeling:
"But since I inherited these family businesses and they have been running well for so many years, I also have the responsibility to keep them going, or even better."
"Maybe you don't believe it…"
Bonnie glanced at Barron, her lips curled up slightly, and she said,
"I quite like this kind of life. When I was young, I read some novels and watched some movies. I imagined myself as a noble lady, living in such a beautiful manor, sometimes riding a horse chasing the wind, and sometimes writing in the room while looking at the scenery outside the window. I really yearn for that kind of life."
"It's easy, actually. If you want, you can stay here for a few more days, or whenever you have a holiday, I will always welcome you..."
"Unfortunately, I'm not a real noble girl. I still have to work to support myself, and I only have a few days off."
When the car stopped at the entrance of the villa, Barron opened the door for Bonnie like a gentleman. When she put her hand in Barron's and got out of the car, he could smell the faint scent of jasmine on the girl - Floris perfume is quite popular in England. After all, the Queen is its loyal customer. Barron remembered that when he first met Bonnie, she was wearing the scent of this perfume.
"Bonnie, didn't you say before that you like writing and have written a novel before?"
What comforted Barron a little was that there was no weird "English-style Chinese food" at dinner. Uh... Dear Olivia, I hope it didn't hurt your enthusiasm for Chinese food.
"But that was a few years ago. I haven't written for a while now. You know, my work at the TV station is often quite busy."
There was some confusion in Bonnie's green eyes, wondering why Barron suddenly brought up this matter.
"I have an idea, but I don't know if it's feasible, so I want to discuss it with you..."
In fact, when Bonnie came to the manor and talked about the novel she had written, Barron's heart moved and he had some vague ideas.
Then, after he learned more about the operation of the manor and its affiliated farms today, this idea became stronger. He met Bonnie's gaze and said to her:
"In fact, I have always conceived a story about the life of aristocrats. But my writing skills... are not very good, and there are too many things to do, so I can't focus on this. So I thought about hiring someone to help me write this story into a novel through my narration..."
"So you're saying you want to hire me to do this?"
At this point, Bonnie had roughly guessed what Barron was thinking, so she asked.
"Yes, I wasn't prepared to finish it so quickly, but I met you. Your situation is very suitable, isn't it? And you work in a TV station, so you should know the salary range of those editors. I can hire you to do this at a higher price, but there is a prerequisite, that is, you can get a certain proportion of the publishing income of this novel, but the copyright of the novel and other subsequent derivative works must belong to me."
"I'm actually very interested in your story, Barron, but I'm just worried that I don't have the ability to complete your idea... You know, all the novels I submitted before were rejected, and I really don't have any confidence."
Bonnie's expression at this moment really showed some anxiety.
Seeing this, Barron reached out, held her hand, and said softly:
"Didn't you also say that the editor actually recognized your writing style and description, but you just lost in terms of storytelling. And in this novel of mine, the storytelling will be completed by me."
When Barron held her hand, she could clearly feel Bonnie's hand shrink slightly, but she didn't continue to struggle...
Her face flushed slightly, and she whispered:
"This is a bit too sudden, Barron. Can I think about it for a moment?"