Chapter 83 Green Vein Operation 16 "That's too slow"
At some point, the situation began to turn.
When the first person reaches out and tries to pull down someone in a high position, even if he fails, it will inspire others to follow suit and try.
A single fly is nothing to be afraid of, but if you are surrounded by dozens of flies, even the most skilled person cannot guarantee that they will not be touched.
"So have you figured out what to do?"
Crawford slumped undignifiedly on the sofa in a hidden box of the St. Stephen's Tavern, shaking his cigar at the coffee table next to him.
"Brother, you're not going to act without thinking of your next move, are you? Those people you've targeted with your venomous tongue finally caught you with evidence, but they won't let you go so easily. If you're truly finished, why not just quit and start a business with me? Then my father won't scold me anymore for not following your lead and walking the right path."
Lancaster glanced at his feet resting on the armrest with disdain: "I thought you were here to help, not to curse me."
Crawford's eyes widened in disbelief. "Of course I'm here to help you! As soon as I saw today's newspaper, I dropped everything I was doing and rushed over to find you. And you actually slandered me!"
Lancaster was annoyed by his noise.
Crawford pulled the crumpled newspaper from under his hip. "Listen! Listen to what they're saying about you. The judicial system has been experiencing unprecedented turmoil lately, and it all stems from the sudden whim of the current ruler. No, perhaps it's been planned long ago. After all, the merger of the Court of Chancery and the Court of Common Pleas has left the entire judicial system with only one master, and this master will henceforth remain deeply hidden behind the scenes, waiting for an opportunity to establish his own judicial empire."
Crawford jumped up from the sofa excitedly. "Honestly, I think the article is quite well-written. It portrays you as a conspirator who is about to single-handedly join forces with Napoleon to overthrow the Hanoverian dynasty. Wow, that's a really cool portrayal."
Lancaster took a sip from his teacup, trying to stay out of the reach of the other party's spit. "Yes, it is true. It would be better if the Regent didn't summon me to Carlton House tomorrow morning and guillotine me on some random charge."
Crawford laughed. "Oh, my goodness, Robert, you're quite humorous. If he had really thought of sending you to the guillotine, I bet you'd have found a way to have him die suddenly in some girl's bed the next day."
Lancaster shrugged indifferently.
Crawford continued, "Oh, yeah! And this one too." He excitedly ran to the desk and flipped through the pages. "You absolutely must read this. The anonymous author accuses you of striking a shady deal with the wife of a former congressman, favoring her and seizing her property in exchange for her help, which ultimately led to the imprisonment of an honest and outstanding young man. An honest and outstanding young man? If Madeleine saw this, she'd probably throw the newspaper in the author's face."
Lancaster remained calm. "If they insist on using this incident to attack me, then perhaps I should correct my past mistakes and release this upright and outstanding young man."
Crawford couldn't laugh anymore. "Oh God, please don't joke like that. If you do, Madeline will definitely find a way to kill me. Seriously, I've already done a lot for you. Isn't it because of our childhood friendship that I've been drinking with those businessmen every day lately? After my earnest persuasion, most of the important figures in the Factory Owners' Union are willing to take a step back and accept the constraints of the bill. The only problem now is that a few scattered people, led by Haweden from the tannery, are jumping around. While others are not so opposed to the bill, they are unwilling to attack their own people. That's the problem. Perhaps you should talk to him to prevent him from further manipulating public opinion in the newspapers and ruining your reputation."
Lancaster lowered his eyes and stroked the empty table. "That would be too slow, Henry, do you understand? Waiting for those who have grievances against me to come forward one by one, and then dealing with them one by one, that would be too slow."
Crawford was confused. "So what do you want to do? Issue a challenge to all of them?"
Lancaster raised his eyes and raised the corners of his mouth calmly: "It seems that you have made some progress over the years."
Crawford didn't take it seriously and plopped back on the sofa. "Is that so? Did I really guess right? Then I have to ask my father for my ancestral armor to lend you, otherwise your Lancaster family will be cut off by you."
Lancaster ignored him and reached out to ring the bell on the table.
Evan scurried in.
"To all those who should be notified, I will hold a special inquiry into the recent rumors about me in the House of Lords chamber in two days. All procedures will be followed. At the same time, I sincerely welcome privileged observers, the public and journalists to apply to attend the hearing, and I will publicly respond to all questions at that time."
Evan looked up in disbelief.
Crawford yelled, "Crazy! Your boss has finally gone mad. After years of suppressing his instincts due to his family mission, he's finally gone mad. Special inquiry? Perhaps you'll become the first Lord Chancellor in English history to be questioned."
Lancaster corrected him: "If you read legal history carefully, you will know that I am not the first. The first one was the one forty years ago... Never mind, you won't understand even if I tell you."
In short, under the insistence of a certain senior official, the special inquiry went through all the procedures at the fastest speed, and the exact news spread like wildfire the next morning.
"The fine print here emphasizes that the following isn't gossip." Mary read carefully from the newspaper. "Accurate news claims that the parliamentary special inquiry process was launched yesterday. The preliminary procedures have been successfully passed, and the first special inquiry of the year will be held tomorrow afternoon. The person being questioned is none other than the Chief Justice himself. Oh my God, I can't believe this is true."
Elizabeth had already forgotten to spread cheese on the other half of her toast. "I thought the recent controversy over the Supreme Court Justice wouldn't have had an impact for at least another decade. After all, those politicians are still active despite being riddled with scandals."
Mary switched to a newspaper and continued reading: "The headline in the London Morning Post is that the renowned patriotic industrialist, Mr. Haveden, has said he has applied to sit on the inquiry. He will present strong evidence at the inquiry to defend the rights of all factory owners and workers. However, he still stated that perhaps the Lord Chancellor was only deceived on the Clean Bill issue, and he remains neutral on other rumors."
Heather put down her spoon with a snap, her brow furrowed.
Mary asked worriedly, "It feels like the focus is no longer on us. It's completely turned into a struggle among the upper classes. Aunt, maybe we should just keep a low profile and wait for things to develop before continuing with our plan?"
Heather wiped the corner of her mouth and became unusually calm: "No, we can't wait any longer. At least we can do what we can. Lena, you have to do me a favor. Take Lucy to Fishmongers Road to find John Ludy, the backbone of the Workers' Mutual Aid Association we met before. He is a big shot in that area. You should be able to find him and then give him the letter I gave you. Mary, you go with them and bring more people."
Reina didn't waste a second before running to find Lucy.
Elizabeth asked hurriedly, "What about me, aunt? What do I do?"
Heather held her back and said, "Go to this address and find Mr. Darcy. Ask him to tell you about the progress of the factory and the use of the costs we have invested. I can be of use to you."
Elizabeth had heard about the mask factory, and she quickly understood the intention: "Okay, Auntie, I'll be there right away. What about you? What are you going to do alone? Is it unsafe?"
Heather told her not to worry: "I'm going to go find Caroline and meet someone I know. I'll be back soon."
On Glover Street, Mrs. Hurst went to attend an afternoon tea party hosted by a nearby neighbor. After receiving the news, Caroline claimed that she did not sleep well last night and was waiting for Heather to come home.
Heather was restless, constantly wondering if what she had done today would actually have any effect. Time passed by minute by minute, and when Caroline said "it should be soon" for the 17th time, the doorbell finally rang.
Caroline quickly jumped over to open the door, led the person who came in and Heather into the study, and carefully pulled the curtains.
Theodore didn't expect to see other people here: "Madam, so it was you who wanted to see me? What's the hurry?"
Heather didn't have time to exchange pleasantries: "Theodore, you have been in contact with Mr. Havenden of the leather factory recently, right? I want to know if you were asked to find out about him or if you were hired by Havenden."
Theodore's expression turned visibly colder, and he sneered, "Why, are you following me?"
Caroline quickly denied: "Who followed you? I just saw it accidentally, why are you so nervous?"
Theodore didn't look at her, only at Heather. "Ma'am, why should I tell you this? No matter who hired me, you should be clear about my professional ethics. I didn't reveal your business secrets at the beginning."
Heather stopped Caroline from speaking and took out a brown paper bag from her handbag. "Whatever he gave you, I'll give you double. Theodore, you do have some sources of information at the bottom, but you don't know the truly important things. Don't let others use you as a tool. I'll give you 500 pounds if you tell me what you know about Haveden."
Theodore smiled and said, "No, I'm leaving now. Don't contact me next time."
Caroline didn't know whether to be angry or guilty for a moment: "You, why are you like this? We don't mean to hurt you."
Heather stopped him and said, "I can pay you a thousand pounds, or even two thousand pounds if your information is worth. What's the matter? Why would you not even ask for money?"
Theodore obviously still loved money. He stood there hesitantly, twitching his right hand a few times, wanting to take the money.
But he finally gave up: "He gave me a lot more money than you think. If you want to bribe me, maybe two thousand pounds plus a zero will do. That's all I have to say. Goodbye."
He left quickly. Caroline couldn't help stamping her feet and looked at Hazel: "What should I do? Should I go get him back and try again?"
Heather wondered what kind of news was worth so much money. Could it be that Haveden really knew the Chief Justice's secret? But how could Theodore have such great news?
But now that things have come to this, this clue can only be abandoned.
"Caroline, just stay home. I'm leaving now. I have to go somewhere."
“Hey!”
Before Caroline could ask any more questions, Heather's back disappeared at the door.
"Madam, where are we going now?" came the driver's voice.
It was only four in the afternoon, but the sky was already dark, foreshadowing a heavy rain. People hurried along the streets, and carriages were rushing home.
"Go to Park Lane." Heather retracted her gaze and said to the butler outside: "You go back first. If you have any important news, send it to No. 12 Park Lane. I have important things to do now."
Lancaster hadn't sent any news for two days, and she had to see him.
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