It wasn't an apple that hit Newton.

"In fact, I only noticed this because I happened to see a doctor's report. I have to say that sometimes it really is a coincidence."

Huff... huff...

Veronica put down the documents in her hand, took a few deep breaths to calm her overly agitated emotions, and asked, "So you disappeared for more than a month to investigate this matter?"

Of course, Li Cheng couldn't say that he had been stabbed and thrown into the wilderness, so he said, "Edward VII discovered that I knew this secret. I had previously asked Arnold about the cause of the blackening and erosion of the fingers, and Arnold was obviously Edward's man, or at least someone who was being coerced."

After listening, Veronica remained silent for several minutes before finally speaking: "The news you brought really scared me. I'm having a hard time accepting it right now."

"Because ever since I can remember, my older brother has always seemed to have no ambition. He spends all his time either traveling or indulging in sensual pleasures. I really can't imagine why he suddenly became like this..."

"This all happened so suddenly, so unexpectedly. I even had a feeling that you might be playing a trick on me, although I knew that was impossible; you wouldn't deliberately play tricks on someone in something this important."

Li Cheng listened quietly to this passage spoken at a rather fast pace.

Then, looking at Veronica, who was usually quite calm but was speaking at length today, he said with some emotion, "I understand. Anyone would feel bad in this situation. Try to adjust yourself."

"I'm glad you understand. With so much evidence in front of me, I'm not stubbornly denying it; I just need time to process it."

Veronica continued, "And the most crucial point is that I have absolutely no idea why he did this. If all of this is true, what is his reason for doing it? I really can't understand it."

"In fact, this is also the biggest problem that bothers me."

Li Cheng nodded and said, "The reason I didn't suspect Edward VII on the day the former king had his accident was because I couldn't understand his purpose in doing so. Wouldn't it have been difficult to wait a few more years? Why would he take such a big risk to poison the former king?"

Veronica was taken aback: "You don't know either?"

Li Cheng gave a wry smile and spread his hands, saying, "I'm not a mind reader for Edward VII, how would I know his specific thoughts? On the contrary, you are his own sister, you should know him better than I do, right?"

He had assumed that Veronica, as Edward VII's sister, would know something, but she turned out to be completely clueless.

"I don't really have much of an impression. I only remember that when I was very young, my relationship with my brother seemed to be very good, but then for some reason we suddenly became estranged."

Veronica sighed: "I don't know if this will be of any use to you. Also, regarding this matter, although I don't remember it very well, there should still be people who know what happened before. Perhaps we can ask them to find clues."

Chapter 154 Piracy is a Temporary Pleasure

Veronica knew less information than Li Cheng had expected, but she absorbed it much faster than he had anticipated.

Li Cheng smiled and said, "To be honest, I thought it would take you a while to accept the news I brought, and you might even wonder if I've gone crazy."

Veronique shook her head slightly: "Don't be so surprised. I've also had my suspicions about my father's death recently, but I never connected it to my brother—now it seems that everything he did before was an act to lull others into a false sense of security."

Li Cheng looked thoughtful: "So it seems this matter has been planned for a long time... By the way, you just mentioned that you two were quite close when you were kids?"

Veronica asked, "Yes, is there a problem?"

"It's just a guess. Although it's generally normal for siblings to drift apart as they get older."

Li Cheng casually gave an example: "For instance, I had a friend who, when they were kids, his sister used to say she wanted to marry him, but once they entered junior high, she wouldn't even speak to him."

Veronica listened quietly, feeling rather heavy-hearted and lacking the motivation to respond to the topic.

Seeing that he couldn't change the subject, Li Cheng sighed and continued, "But we don't have any breakthroughs right now. Just as you said, Edward usually pretends to be useless to lower other people's guard. So why doesn't he try to build a good relationship with you and instead starts to distance himself from you?"

He paused, then continued, "Although it's just a deduction, I suspect this might be a breakthrough. Something might have happened during the period when your relationship became strained, causing Edward to consciously distance himself from you."

Veronica nodded thoughtfully after hearing this: "That makes sense."

"Right, at least we can give it a try."

Li Chengyi shrugged: "As things stand, there's no other way, is there?"

Veronica pondered for a moment: "In that case, it's not difficult. I can find a suitable opportunity to ask my mother about it, perhaps by casually bringing up the topic during afternoon tea. It won't easily arouse suspicion."

Li Cheng did not object to the plan, but said, "Can I sit in on this? I hope to participate in this matter personally. In addition, I might be able to hear some details that you have not noticed, and we can brainstorm together."

Veronica frowned and said, "This is somewhat dangerous. What if we happen to run into my brother..."

"Then we'll go when he's not in the palace. As for how, I can disguise myself as a guard."

Li Cheng recalled the tall, burly guards and rejected the suggestion, "No, let's stick with male servants. Guards are too easy to expose. As for your contact information, I'll leave you one. When you're ready, just have someone contact me. I currently have an alias: Sherlock Holmes."

Some karma comes back to bite you pretty fast. Just a couple of days ago, Li Cheng was putting Susie through some maid training, doing all sorts of fancy tricks, and now he's the one who has to pretend to be a male servant, and he even asked for it. Luckily, he doesn't have to go through any male servant training.

"If you insist."

Hearing Li Cheng's firm attitude, Veronica didn't say much: "But you have to do some disguise. This wig is not suitable. You need to dye your hair and do makeup. Your hairstyle also needs to be changed."

Li Cheng said, "Don't worry, I have a plan."

So the plan was set, and after a brief discussion, the two decided to end the conversation.

Li Cheng took a sip of water to moisten his throat.

Veronica stood up from her seat in the VIP box and straightened her slightly disheveled dress. Her previous emotional turmoil had left her little time to pay attention to such details, and she only realized the problem now.

Li Cheng felt he should say something at this point, so he said, "Be careful."

Veronica replied, "Yes, you need to be more careful."

“No, I’m different from you.” Li Cheng shook his head. “As things stand, I’ve already spread the evidence. Even if Edward finds out about me, I can escape by any means necessary, and he probably won’t bother to hunt me down. But you’re different. You… have far more influence and credibility than I do.”

If Li Cheng were to suddenly jump out and shout that the former king was killed by Edward VII, even if what he said were true, he would be considered a madman and immediately locked up. In the end, the matter would be dropped amidst various investigations and verifications, and he might even be charged with defamation.

"I will be careful."

Veronica had finished tidying herself up and had returned to her dignified appearance.

However, she did not rush to leave. Instead, she raised her head and looked at Li Cheng with bright eyes: "Also, thank you."

Li Cheng didn't react for a moment: "Huh?"

Veronica explained earnestly, "Without you, I might have been kept in the dark my whole life and never learned the truth."

After saying that, she suddenly realized something: her life had been transformed because of this person. If she hadn't had that person, her life trajectory might have been very different.

Li Cheng waved his hand and said, "No need to thank me like that. This is also to avenge myself. I was almost killed by that bastard. It would be a disgrace not to take revenge."

Veronica smiled slightly: "A gentleman doesn't hire a personal maid."

"..."

Li Cheng was immediately a little embarrassed. He explained, "That girl is not my personal maid. She used to be from the countryside. I met her by chance for some reason, and then she insisted on going out with me to broaden her horizons. She dressed up as a maid because she felt that she should be more dignified when meeting Her Highness the Princess. Although I don't know what the connection is between the two."

Veronica nodded: "Then I'll take it that way."

Li Cheng raised his voice slightly: "That's exactly how it is! If you don't believe me, go ask her yourself!"

The two argued briefly, and it seemed that the princess was in a much better mood and could even joke around.

......

The door to the private room slowly opened, and the two people waiting outside quickly stopped chatting and turned to greet their host.

"Your Highness, are you alright staying inside alone?"

Holly quickly glanced at Veronica, seemingly worried that Li Cheng might do something to her.

Veronica waved her hand: "I'm fine."

Li Cheng rolled his eyes, ignoring the little maid, and watched the two leave before turning to Susie and saying, "I have some things to do that I need you to run around for a couple more days. After that, I'll leave you some money. You can stay at that hotel and go wherever you want."

Susie was just about to follow Holly's example when she heard this and exclaimed in shock, "Am I going to lose my job so soon?"

Li Cheng glared at Susie and said, "You've never been employed before! And don't ever dress up as a maid again, you know my reputation is ruined!"

Susie felt wronged: "But you were the one who asked me to dress up in the first place!"

“That was because there was no other way at the beginning, but things are different now,” Li Cheng said. “From now on, you will go back to your original self, just a helper and a handyman, instead of being a maid all the time.”

Susie sighed deeply: "Sigh, I've gone from being a maid back to being a gofer."

"Don't make it sound so tragic."

Li Cheng smirked: "I've almost finished everything I needed you to do. I have some things to take care of and need to leave for a while. There's no point in you following me. Wouldn't it be better to give you a few days off? Okay, it's decided then. Now go and buy me some hair dye."

"Oh."

------

at the same time.

73 High Street.

Newton sat on a garden chair, basking in the warm sunshine, enjoying oranges peeled by Freya, and flipping through books, looking very relaxed.

Since learning a few days ago that Li Cheng was alright, her mood had improved considerably, and she had regained her spirits. As for the matter Li Cheng had mentioned, Newton was quite confident that he was capable of handling it himself—at worst, he could just leave, since neither of them had any relatives in London anyway.

However, she also did what she could, such as trying to learn about the daily operations of Li Cheng's soap factory from Joyce's housekeeper.

These days, butlers often wear many hats. In particular, when Li Cheng hired a butler, he chose one from the London Servants' Association who was skilled in business management. Therefore, during the time Li Cheng was missing, many of the tasks were temporarily handled by Joyce. Roy said that Joyce's job was much easier than before after she took over as butler.

There is no doubt about Miss Newton's learning ability. In just a few days, she quickly grasped the daily operation and expenses of the soap factory and used her excellent mathematical skills to solve some of the previous accounting problems.

The reason she went straight to the ledger was to see how things went. If Li Cheng couldn't show up for a long time, she would manage the business on his behalf. But if they needed to run away, she would prepare cash. As for the textile factory, Newton heard that it was using the princess's money, so he didn't dare to touch it.

As for why she was so relaxed today, it was mainly because someone had arranged to come to her door.

Half an hour passed, and with only ten minutes left until the appointed time, the guest finally arrived—a woman with black curly hair and brown eyes, led to the garden by a servant.

"Harley~"

Newton waved and greeted the man.

During the month or so that Li Cheng was missing, Newton not only lost interest in continuing his book compilation but also frequently went without food. Edmond Halley, upon learning of this, often came to inquire about Newton's condition and tried his best to comfort him.

Although the effect might not be very good, Newton kept it in mind, so as soon as the situation stabilized, she invited the other party to visit.

"haven't seen you for a long time."

Harley smiled and sat down across the table: "Have you adjusted? Have you been eating properly?"

"Ah."

Newton nodded vigorously: "Thank you for your concern. I've finished proofreading the last bit of content, and it will be published soon."

Previously, what Halley had been longing for was for Newton to publish her books, but now that it seemed likely that Newton would run away, Newton decided to resolve all these matters in one go.

"You're welcome."

Harley waved his hand, then gave a slightly bitter smile: "As for your book publishing, I probably won't be able to help you for a while."

Halley had initially promised to help Miss Newton solve all the publishing problems, even if it meant paying for it herself, which convinced Newton. But now that the book was almost finished, Halley suddenly said she couldn't help.

Although he didn't really need this little bit of help, and his relationship with Harley was fairly pleasant, Newton still felt quite awkward about this change of heart.

"Ugh--"