It wasn't an apple that hit Newton.

"call......"

Lavoisier breathed a long sigh of relief, thinking that he could finally sleep peacefully.

Although she still feels a little uncomfortable from listening to the noise, she didn't sleep well last night, and with all the mental exertion during the day, she's really, really tired now. It's just a normal physiological reaction; she'll fall asleep quickly as long as there's no noise...

"*——"

However, just as she closed her eyes, that disturbing noise started up again, and it only lasted for less than three minutes.

???

Lavoisier suddenly opened his eyes wide, the bloodshot whites of his eyes revealing his struggle and pain.

—You two, don't go too far!

Chapter 235 Letter of Thanks

When Li Cheng opened his eyes, Newton was no longer beside him.

It was already dawn, but he had no desire to stay in bed. He stretched, feeling refreshed, and then got up and put on his vest and trousers.

In order to distinguish itself from the trendsetters in Paris, the British style of dress developed in the opposite direction: Parisians wore all kinds of tight white stockings, garter stockings, lace-trimmed long skirts, and tiered cake skirts, as fancy and complicated as possible. It even gradually became part of aristocratic etiquette. You couldn't not wear them. Many nobles even went bankrupt in order to buy new clothes.

Britain simply modified the design of the coat, vest, and trousers to create a simple three-piece outfit for travel.

Although it was created to compete with France, it perfectly met the clothing needs of the general public, being both stylish and practical. As a result, it gradually evolved into the modern suit and spread to the world with the influence of the British Empire.

As Li Cheng dressed and his mind wandered, the feeling of forgetting he had experienced the previous night surged back into his mind.

What have I forgotten?

Although he probably wouldn't be able to recall it even if he tried to think about it, Li Cheng still pondered it carefully.

The cause seems to be that Newton secretly looked at his manuscript, which caused him to have a minor health problem. So he deliberately stayed in his room and didn't go back. Later, he even called his husband "husband" in a self-destructive way.

Driven by this title, Li Cheng was exceptionally excited last night. He was so excited that he couldn't remember how many times he had slept with Newton. He only remembered that she eventually fell into a deep sleep due to exhaustion, and he didn't take her back to her room. He just held her and slept through the night.

It seems there's nothing wrong?

Shaking his head, Li Cheng pushed open the door and entered the corridor, preparing to wash up.

However, after taking only a few steps, when a small wooden door with Lavoisier's name on the outside and tightly closed came into view, he suddenly shuddered and finally realized that he had forgotten something.

Damn it, you forgot Lavoisier was sleeping right next to my room!

A bead of cold sweat slowly formed on Li Cheng's forehead, then slid down to the ground under the influence of gravity, shattering into pieces.

What is his current situation?

Yesterday morning, Lavoisier complained that Li Cheng was disturbing the peace and preventing her from getting enough rest. He offered many solutions (although some were utter nonsense) and said he understood and would correct the situation.

As a result, he continued to disturb the peace that very night, as if it were nothing. He even escalated the situation, continuing until Newton could no longer stay awake and fell into a deep sleep—one can only imagine how Lavoisier, who had been listening in the entire time, must have felt.

Even rushing into the kitchen and grabbing a wood-chopping knife would be considered a lenient punishment.

"Since you can't control your lower body, why not just cut it off (smile)?"

!!!

The thought of Lavoisier standing before him with blood on his face, holding a machete, and saying those words immediately gave Li Cheng the urge to burst in and sincerely explain that he hadn't meant to do it, but he ultimately held back.

The two are still in a secret relationship. Putting aside the fact that this has little effect, if someone sees him walking out of Lavoisier's room early in the morning, it will be really hard to explain.

Avoid suspicion, avoid suspicion, "Bestie Project v2.1" must not be compromised.

As the saying goes, "a small act of impatience can ruin a great plan." Although it may appease Lavoisier's "small" emotions, it also leads to the failure of the originally harmonious harem ending and triggers a bad end.

So I can only make up for it in other ways later. But in the end, it was just staying up a little late, so it shouldn't be a big problem... well, I guess so?

After figuring it out, Li Cheng silently withdrew his gaze and headed downstairs without looking to the side.

Wash up and eat breakfast.

After the entire process was completed, Lavoisier still did not come out of the room. Newton, however, glared at him somewhat resentfully, and then silently ate his breakfast.

Li Cheng went too far last night. When she woke up this morning, she felt like her whole body was about to fall apart, and even a certain part of her body was aching. Usually, because Newton's breasts were so delicate and small, people couldn't help but worry that they would break if they used too much force, so Li Cheng always restrained himself. Last night's fierce behavior was a first for him.

Li Cheng didn't notice this. Instead, while munching on the Nth-hand recipe for steamed buns that Freya had learned from the chef at the London villa and then passed on to the castle chef, he pondered Lavoisier's current mental state and his reasons for not getting up for breakfast.

"He's definitely angry."

He thought this was reasonable.

It's not that it's incomprehensible. Putting aside the fact that it's normal to feel a little emotional when encountering such a thing, the fact that one needs extra time to catch up on sleep due to lack of sleep is also understandable.

So Li Cheng wasn't too worried, and even casually instructed the maid not to wake Lavoisier.

After giving this small instruction, he didn't have time to check whether Lavoisier had gotten up or not, but instead had to deal with the many affairs piling up in the territory.

First, there's the problem of the influx of migrants. After hearing that there were well-paid jobs here and that someone had tasted the first crab, many migrants from the surrounding area who couldn't find work, were starving, or were homeless flocked here.

The problem is that these migrants are not only a source of labor, but also a source of instability. Compared to the original residents who have lived in the territory for generations and know each other well, some migrants have no family or housing in the area. While some are honest and law-abiding, many others are fearless and extremely good at causing trouble.

Unable to investigate everyone's background, Li Cheng could only designate an additional area for migrant workers, divide the workers into two groups for management, and build temporary accommodations for them to live in, severing contact between the two groups until they had settled into stable work for a period of time.

Secondly, there is the financial aspect.

Although Chairman Smith made an advance payment, Li Cheng's expenses were still considerable. He had to hire people, build houses, and prepare funds to acquire graphite, iron ore, clay, and other materials. Newton was also negotiating the acquisition of a coal mine, which also required money.

If we don't get some money out of somewhere, the territory's development plans will likely have to be put on hold for a while.

I'm short of money...

Li Cheng was having a bit of a headache. Although he could proceed slowly and no one was urging him, the feeling of being restricted by funding rather than being unable to do something was very unpleasant. It was like playing a mobile game and having to wait for stamina to recover before you could farm artifacts.

Thinking of this, Li Cheng suddenly noticed an unopened letter on the side of his desk. It seemed to be a letter that Principal David had sent overnight after the female knight returned home, but he was discussing issues with Lavoisier at the time and was too lazy to read it, so he just left it aside.

Most of them were thank-you notes or something, thanking them for taking care of his niece, blah blah blah...

But after dealing with all sorts of trivial matters in the territory, it was already close to noon. With lunchtime approaching, and in a nonchalant mood to kill time, Li Cheng opened the thing that looked like a thank-you letter.

Dear Mr. Banana

Before explaining everything, I must express my sincere admiration for your wisdom. Under your guidance, our plan was successfully and swiftly realized, turning our initial predicament into a turning point...

Chapter 236: A passage that precedes Chapter 23

The contents of the letter were far more important than expected. Principal David and his two colleagues quickly pushed forward with the plan to further reduce the number of voters and hold the mayoral election as soon as possible, and it went incredibly smoothly. The Garcia family was completely unaware of anything amiss.

With the election just around the corner, Principal David took the opportunity to send a letter to deliver some information and, incidentally, to see if he had any guidance...

Absolutely not!

Li Cheng's lips twitched, and he put down the letter in his hand.

His feelings were complicated at this moment. To be honest, the suggestion he made at Lincoln University was just a wild idea. Although it was described perfectly, it would require too many details to actually achieve. If there was a loophole in any link, it would be easy for the Garcia family to find out and fix it in time.

After all, the Garcia family still calls the shots in Lincoln City.

But who knew that the Garcia family was so incompetent, so slow and unresponsive, that they didn't notice a single trace, allowing David and his two companions to exploit a huge loophole.

Even if the Garcia family denies it afterward, he can still contact Veronica without much trouble, even if it's a serious matter. He figured she wouldn't care too much about such a small personal issue...

After figuring things out, Li Cheng simply took a blank sheet of paper and began writing a reply.

[Dear Principal David]

First of all, congratulations on the rapid progress of our project. This process would not have been possible without your... (the following is a list of humble words omitted)

Secondly, I have a small suggestion, perhaps... (omitting the following irrelevant details)

Finally, I wish us... (the following wishes for development are omitted)

After finishing this letter full of nonsense, it was lunchtime, so Li Cheng left the study and went to the dining room.

Nowadays, the castle's food standards have been increasing with the growth of income, and the tastes have also changed significantly because of Li Cheng. First of all, bizarre dishes such as stewed apples and stewed pears have been directly rejected. Secondly, some new dishes and cooking methods have been introduced and received positive reviews.

The most typical example is potato chips. Simply slice fresh potatoes into thin slices, dry them, add a little salt, and fry them in oil to make a crispy and delicious snack. They quickly became popular with people like Newton who tasted them and soon became a staple in the castle. Lavoisier also praised them highly after tasting them.

We've gone off-topic...

However, this isn't exactly off-topic, because the reason I've talked so much is to prove that the food at the castle is good and won't make you lose your appetite.

Because at this very moment, the table that had finally managed to gather four people again had become three people again—Lavoisier's seat was empty, and no one was seen even as the food was served.

None of the three were blind, and they immediately noticed this unusual situation.

What about Lavoisier?

Newton asked, puzzled.

“Reporting to the lord, I knocked on Professor Lavoisier’s door earlier,” the maid replied, “but she said she wasn’t feeling well and needed to rest a little longer, so I didn’t disturb her.”

Are you feeling unwell?

Knowing a little about the inside story, Li Cheng rested his chin on his hand and began to think.

Is this how he expresses his dissatisfaction? That doesn't seem right. Even if Lavoisier was angry, he wouldn't protest by going on a hunger strike. Newton would be more likely to do it... But if he needed to catch up on sleep, why would he stay up all day for lunch?

He was lost in thought, but Susie, unaware of the situation, didn't have as many ideas and casually asked, "Could it be that she's sick?"

The reason she made this connection was because not long ago a female knight was killed by Gu, which caused her to catch a cold and stay in the guest room for several days.

"sick?"

Newton, who had been somewhat idle, suddenly had a glint in his eyes, thinking that this was a good opportunity to express his master's concern and show his magnanimity.

“How can a guest fall ill in my house? It would make me look like I haven’t been hospitable enough.” Newton said sternly, his little face serious. “Let’s put lunch aside for now and go visit Professor Lavoisier.”

Do you still remember Knight Dideri by Daming Lake? She was crying!

Li Cheng inwardly scoffed, then nodded in agreement: "Professor Lavoisier fell ill after only two days; it's really not good if word gets out."

"Now?"

Susie wanted to suggest finishing the meal first, since the food wouldn't taste good if it got cold, but the two who had already reached a consensus ignored her... Damn it, she has such a low status in the family!

The three of them headed to Lavoisier's room in a large group. After knocking on the door without getting any response, they simply pushed open the unlocked door.

Then they saw Lavoisier, who was still lying in bed with his eyes closed, even though it was already noon.

Her long, flowing silver hair looked incredibly disheveled, and her face was paler than usual, yet a sickly blush would often appear on her cheeks, and she would occasionally furrow her brows, revealing a look of pain.

Although the scene before him almost unmistakably indicated that the girl was ill, out of a rigorous desire to verify, Newton went to the bedside first and gently placed his hand on Lavoisier's forehead.

"The temperature is too high."

Then she quickly pulled it back and confirmed, "It seems to be a fever."