Chapter 51 Chapter 51 When Richard mentions "last time we met..."
When Richard revealed the identity of "Mr. Spencer" he had met last time, Mary was also surprised. She was not a native of this era, so she did not think of the idea that Richard had initially secretly guessed, after all, it was a historical fact that the Duke of Devonshire had remained single his entire life.
It's impossible for Richard not to have any flattering thoughts towards the Duke, but at first he thought that the Duke's failure to reveal his true identity clearly showed no sincerity towards Mary, so he just wanted to leave as soon as possible.
He later discovered that the Duke didn't care about his identity being made public, and he began to harbor a sliver of hope. After all, royal marriages require the monarch's permission to be legal, but the Duke of Devonshire was not bound by this constraint. If he wanted to marry Mary one day, it would be perfectly feasible for him.
In Mary's view, what did it matter that she had attracted the attention of this art-loving duke simply because of her appreciation for ancient Greek sculpture? Unlike most British people, she had no prejudice against the aristocracy. In fact, upon learning the duke's identity, her first thought was, "No wonder he would speak up for Lord Elgin."
Mary kept her dissatisfaction to herself, but General Crawford expressed it directly. A few days later, General Crawford suddenly received an invitation from the Duke of Devonshire to discuss news from Kashmir, India.
When he left the prince's residence, he was furious and immediately invited General Maxwell to his home for a talk, demanding, "Why did the Duke of Devonshire know about that? Was it that Richard Price's doing?"
General Maxwell, setting aside other matters, asked Admiral Crawford, "Your Excellency, I wonder if you have apprehended the mastermind behind the attack on Price? If that person remains at large, and if he comes to his senses and leaks the information, the number of people who will know will only increase."
Crawford was taken aback by the question: "Edward, it's only been a few days, how could I possibly catch this person so quickly? But I've already sent people to search with all my might. What does this have to do with the Duke of Devonshire knowing about this? It's impossible for the person to be able to find the Duke, is it?"
"You may not know this, but Richard Price somehow got involved with the Duke and was treated as a friend by him. When His Highness learned that he had been attacked by thugs, he immediately sent people to investigate. As far as I know, they seem to have found the man's whereabouts. As for whether the man is now in the Duke's hands, I don't know. But from what you're saying, General, it seems that the Duke has succeeded."
General Maxwell did not lie to the admiral; he simply rearranged the sequence of events to make it seem as if the Duke of Devonshire knew the truth from the mastermind behind it all.
General Crawford had no choice; whether he believed it or not, the matter was now settled. He also had to appease his capable subordinate, General Maxwell, assuring him that he would never forget his recommendation and urging the general to persuade Richard to cooperate with them. In return, William Price would soon be promoted to captain.
Meanwhile, on the other side, the Duke soon learned the whole story from the captured mastermind. The whole affair was triggered by a nobody—one of the attendants of the wealthy merchant who had been trading wool with Richard.
When they set off together to a princely state in northern India, this man happened to see Richard haggling with a local hunter over a flint and steel, a scene that aroused the suspicion of the follower.
Because the hunter who sold the flint left quickly after receiving the money, the follower couldn't find him among the group of seemingly similar-looking local natives. Given the short stay, he had to return to Calcutta with his master.
When this man arrived in Calcutta, instead of reporting the matter to his master, he went out of his way to find out from the jeweler what Richard had suddenly acquired. Upon learning that the stone was actually a high-quality sapphire, he was even more determined not to let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make a fortune. He then traced the stone all the way from India to England.
He initially thought Richard was still a sailor, but then discovered that he had become wealthy. He suspected that Richard had made his fortune by selling sapphires, so he began to monitor who Richard was in contact with and whether any important figures already knew about this.
It's hard to say whether this follower was persistent or foolish. He was so eager to get information about the gemstones, but he never thought of selling the information before Richard did. Even if he didn't know the exact location of the gemstone mine, he could still make a profit. Now, he can only go to hell to continue dreaming of getting rich.
Since the sapphire mine did indeed exist, His Highness the Duke and General Crawford planned to jointly send someone to India to make contact with the Marquis of Hastings. Only the Marquis would be truly aware of the current state of the war between the Kingdom of Punjab and the Afghan dynasty, and would be able to decide how they should develop the sapphire mine located in Kashmir.
Even if these nobles in Great Britain sent people to places like India, it would be impossible to keep their mining activities secret from the local princes and nobles. Since Britain's influence in India wasn't yet that extensive, it was even more necessary to cooperate with the Viceroy of India and the local princely states.
News of the situation in India couldn't get back to India anytime soon, but General Maxwell and Richard had already received the promises they wanted.
At the end of this year, around the same time as William's promotion, General Maxwell will have a very high chance of being knighted, which has been the general's long-standing pursuit. This time, thanks to the Duke's connections, he finally has a chance to achieve his goal.
With the end of the war, General Maxwell had gradually realized over the past two years that, being of advanced age, he would no longer have the opportunity to distinguish himself on the battlefield, and he increasingly hoped that his past achievements would be recognized by the world.
As a pure soldier, he was not adept at political maneuvering, which is why he obeyed the general despite knowing that General Crawford was not entirely sincere. Now, apart from receiving a knighthood, General Maxwell had no other ambitions in the political arena.
For Richard, the Duke of Devonshire's arrival ensured that General Crawford would have to fulfill his promise to promote William as soon as possible.
Richard also had the Duke's support, allowing him to act in the Duke's name. He would also receive a share when the sapphire mine was finally completed, a provision specifically added by the Duke of Devonshire. General Crawford assumed Richard was the Duke's proxy, trying to gain an advantage, and did not make things difficult for the young man further.
Richard's troubles were resolved, but Mary had a new one. The trouble was brought on by Anne. Shortly after William went to sea, Mr. MacDonald was still a frequent visitor to General Maxwell's house, and at a time he felt was appropriate, he proposed to Anne, who flatly refused him.
Mr. McDonald always cultivated an image of a well-mannered gentleman. Even when rejected by Miss Maxwell, he did not get angry. Instead, he comforted her. Even Anne later wondered if she had been too cold-hearted and hurt a gentleman's feelings.
Afterwards, he continued to visit the mansion frequently, but he always appeared melancholy from time to time, which made the general's wife (the general had not yet been knighted at this time) feel more and more sorry for him. If Anne's feelings for William had not been so firm, Mary thought that his trick might have worked.
Perhaps finding no opening with Anne, this gentleman, whose pride had been wounded, secretly began pursuing Mary. Mary never imagined that such a melodramatic thing would happen to her.
Mary was still not yet a socialite at this time, and it would have been impossible for her to have frequent contact with Mr. McDonald. However, the general's wife already considered him a friend, and he often visited the general's house. As the general's goddaughter, Mary would often run into him.
Mary is involved in running her own business and doesn't care about these rules. Her desire to enter the social scene later isn't due to traditional constraints, but rather because she feels that these kinds of arranged marriages should wait until she's eighteen.
During this time, Mr. McDonald would often inadvertently take care of Mary's small needs, such as sharpening her quill pen when she was about to write a letter, or fetching her small items, etc., as gentlemen were expected to take care of ladies at this time. Mary did not notice this at first.
As for the small gifts he would sometimes give to Mrs. Maxwell, Anne, and her, the gifts he gave her were particularly pleasing to Mary, who regarded them as a gift of social skill.
Until one day she "accidentally" bumped into this gentleman who always carried a book with him, a book that was "accidentally" left on the chair Mary always sat in every day.
This was a love novel at the time, describing how lovers overcame numerous misunderstandings to be together. Mary had just picked up the book when a note fell out of it, with a bold message from Mr. McDonald on it.
“Miss Price, so kind and beautiful, you are my Olivia (the heroine in the book), I am completely captivated by you. My family and my responsibilities seem to be driving me to continue pursuing Miss Marswell, but my soul has already fallen for you. When I casually proposed to that lady and heard her rejection, my heart seemed to come alive again. But how can I clear up the misunderstanding between us? I hope that one day I can confess my heart to you like Charlie (the male protagonist in the book) did…”
This message completely baffled Mary. For Mary, who was used to normal interactions between men and women in later generations, Mr. McDonald's subtle hints had no effect at all. She was not yet an adult, so how could Mr. McDonald have such deep feelings for her for no reason?
This man had been pursuing Anne all along, but now he claims it's out of "responsibility," which is absurd. She doesn't see any "responsibility" that a man needs to fulfill by pursuing a woman.
Shortly after she finished reading the note, she encountered Mr. McDonald, who had returned in a "flustered" manner to look for the book. Having seen too much of the clichés of later generations, Mary instinctively became wary. Forget about being grateful for the gentleman's deep affection, she immediately suspected that McDonald was plotting against not only her but also Anne.
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