Dinner was especially sumptuous thanks to that young master fool.
On their old and shabby wooden table, a silk tablecloth was laid, and silver plates were filled with a variety of dishes. The main course was a large plate of roast pork, decorated with boiled cabbage soaked in gravy and sliced tomatoes. The other dishes included a whole roast chicken, mutton stuffed in a sheep's stomach, boiled minced mutton, and beef ribs. The staple food was white bread in a basket, and the dessert was an apple pie for each person.
To be fair, these dishes couldn't be called extremely delicious. Because the only seasoning was coarse salt, and many dishes even had no salt at all. Moreover, the pigs, sheep, and cattle were not carefully processed livestock, so they had a strong strange smell. But for Castina and her father, who had been living on black bread every day, this was already a first-class delicacy.
Castina was eating a few candies she picked up in the evening while staring blankly at the large and small plates of meat on the table with her coquettish eyes. The last time she ate meat was in her previous life when she ordered takeout during overtime work, which was the meal before she died suddenly. Since becoming Castina two and a half years ago, she hadn't eaten meat. At this moment, the word "greedy" was almost written on her face.
The Marquis Hall, sitting beside her, was actually as greedy as his daughter. But he had an important task at present, which was to find a way to get the betrothal gift in advance to pay off the debt.
On the round table, the candlelight of the silver candlestick flickered, making the food look more delicate and inviting. The young master fool was holding a small twig in his left hand and another in his right hand, happily playing a game of fighting with himself, and the meat on the table didn't catch his eye at all. The butler Delsson was looking at Castina and her father with a gentle smile on his face. At first, he didn't have a good impression of this down-on-their-luck noble father and daughter, and even despised them a little. But the scene of Castina playing marbles with his young master in the boudoir before completely changed his view. Being poor was nothing. As long as Miss Castina could take good care of his young master, that was enough.
He smiled and made a gesture of invitation, and then said, "Please, Marquis, Miss Castina. Although these meats were purchased in the village and town, the cooking skills of our accompanying chef are not bad. Please help yourselves."
As soon as he finished speaking, Castina, one step ahead of her old father, picked up a fork with her fair hand and forked several pieces of pork into her mouth. Her seemingly small and delicate mouth suddenly opened wide, and she chewed the several pieces of pork heartily, completely ignoring the etiquette of a noble. Hall looked rather embarrassed. He still managed to maintain his dignity with some difficulty, smiled awkwardly and nodded slightly to the butler Delsson. At the same time, he secretly kicked Castina under the table, hinting that her eating manners were too rude. Then he forked a piece of pork with his fork, cut a piece with his knife, put it into his mouth and chewed, and finally took a sip of the red wine in the glass beside him.
Hall put down the wine glass, frowned, and the butler Delsson could clearly see the embarrassed look on his face. Delsson smiled slightly and then said gently to Hall, "Marquis, if you have something on your mind, you might as well just say it."
Hall took a long breath and looked up. He decided not to play any tricks and frankly told the story of the debt of the Sare Circus. "Mr. Delsson, since our two families are about to form an alliance, I think I should be honest about some things. To tell you the truth, our family has a debt, a debt left by my grandfather. This debt is as high as two hundred gold coins. So I wonder if it's possible to pay the betrothal gift in advance..." Hall lowered his head, pursed his lips, and held the fork tightly in his hand.
The old butler Delsson didn't respond immediately after hearing this. He just picked up the red wine glass, took a sip quietly, and then picked up the napkin and wiped his mouth. After putting down the glass, he looked at Hall, who was in a difficult situation in front of him, and Castina, who was eating like a refugee beside him. After seeming to think about it in his heart, his face became rather solemn, and he said seriously, "Marquis, you know that two hundred gold coins is not a small amount."
At this time, Castina also raised her head. She first looked at her father in surprise. She wondered in her heart how such a thing could be said so easily. Moreover, how did the amount change from one hundred and fifty gold coins to two hundred gold coins?! Then she looked at Delsson's solemn face and thought that things were going to be bad. Hall was also under great psychological pressure at this time. His daughter didn't want to cause anyone's death, and it seemed that the only way to get the money to pay off the debt without signing the marriage contract was to be honest. At this moment, seeing Delsson's face, he also thought that things were probably going to fail.
However, the solemnity on Delsson's face disappeared instantly. He looked at Castina and her father with a gentle smile and said, "I agree to pay the betrothal gift in advance. Two hundred and fifty gold coins!" His words made Castina and her father stunned and astonished. Delsson still had a smile on his face. While signaling the guards beside him to pour wine, he said to Castina and her father, "Two hundred gold coins to pay off the foreign debt. Fifty gold coins. Tomorrow we will go to the big town in the north together to buy Miss Castina a few decent dresses and some jewelry." After taking a sip of red wine and taking a breath, the old butler Delsson said unhurriedly, "Our family comes from an earl family in the imperial capital. The eldest son inherited the title, and my young master was made an adventurer knight and left home. The lady entrusted my young master to me before she died. But I will die one day. I think with a gentle and caring woman like Miss Castina as his wife to take care of my young master's later life, my young master will be very happy. For this, even two hundred and fifty gold coins is worth it."
Delsson's sincere words made Castina feel both ashamed and embarrassed. To be honest, this master and servant were also unfortunate people. Even if they didn't meet their father and daughter, after the old butler died, the young master fool would probably end up being cheated out of all his money and dying of cold and hunger. The old butler knew that his time was running out. In his eyes, Castina's behavior of playing marbles to cheat the young master fool of money became an act of kindness. He seemed to regard her as the hope of his young master. In this way, Castina couldn't bear to cheat by taking advantage of an old man's last wish. But if not, how could the debt be paid?
Compared with the tangled Castina, Hall was much more relieved. He was full of relief, thanked repeatedly, and stood up quickly to offer a toast to the butler Delsson. "Mr. Butler, I really don't know how to express my gratitude. Really. After my daughter and I pay off the debt, we will sign the marriage contract and hold the wedding! I toast to you."
Delsson smiled and quickly stood up, raising his glass in response. "Oh, Marquis, you don't have to be like this. It's all what should be done!" Then they clinked glasses and drank up in one gulp.
Castina looked at her father sideways. At this time, he obviously had made up his mind. Anyway, after the marriage contract was signed, the young master fool would surely die accidentally, and it couldn't be blamed on them. The old butler would surely be extremely sad, and the others would naturally disperse. Then there would be nothing to do with their father and daughter. He was extremely relieved at this moment, chatting happily about some unimportant things with the butler Delsson.
Castina was drinking red wine silently, tasting the bitterness and sweetness in it, and looking at Hall. She knew that her father had grown up in a cruel environment, surrounded by persecution and deception. Such a life experience made him abandon excessive and meaningless kindness long ago. In his eyes, the life and death of others were not important. What was important was that his daughter Castina could live a healthy life.
Castina remembered clearly that when she first became Castina, she was dragged into a dark alley by a few hooligans in the city. At that time, Hall didn't hesitate at all. He rushed up with the ancestral sword in his hand, roaring. The old and weak him rushed up before she was insulted by the hooligans and fought with them. Naturally, the result was that he was beaten after his sword was taken away. Fortunately, the sword was very valuable, and the hooligans left because of the problem of dividing the spoils. Hall didn't care about the sword at all. He just quickly dragged his bruised body, took off his clothes and covered Castina with them, and asked her with worried eyes if she was injured and kept comforting her not to be afraid.
In the past two and a half years, as Castina, a woman without power and wealth but with beauty, she had naturally encountered many dangers. If it weren't for Hall's desperate protection every time, she would probably have died somewhere long ago. Castina always felt that Hall was very similar to her father in her previous life. Although one was a Han and the other was a white, she always felt that these two people were the same. Maybe fathers are the same all over the world. Hall was such a person. He was willing to do anything for his daughter to live a good life.