It wasn't an apple that hit Newton.

Newton was unusually found in the courtyard, and the table in front of him was empty, without any paper, quill, or even a book.

She simply sat on the tall rattan chair that Li Cheng had just bought, her expression calm and ordinary, but her two little feet, which couldn't reach the ground, were swinging back and forth lightly, and her long golden hair, which was draped over her back, swayed with the movement of her body.

Freya sat opposite her, intently sewing a blue handkerchief stitch by stitch.

—The green handkerchief number 16 from before has been sewn up. This is number 17, with a pattern of golden sunflowers.

Louise?

Without Louise, that annoying red-haired little girl said something about not wanting her father to worry anymore, and had Freya take her home that morning.

Although Li Cheng is not here either, he should be back soon, so there shouldn't be any major problems.

"Hmm~ Hmph~ Hmph~ Hmph~ Hmph~"

Thinking this way, a cheerful Newton even began to hum a tuneless little tune to celebrate that things were turning out for the better.

However, at that moment, a robust man dressed in light silver armor and with a long sword at his waist appeared outside the wooden fence of the courtyard—it was none other than Guard B, who had previously come to "invite" Li Cheng.

At this moment, Guard B had a miserable look on his face. He was a guard of the princess, who had received strict knightly training since childhood. He was a strong and muscular man who was two meters tall. Today, he was actually ordered by Li Cheng to deliver a message, saying that no one else could be trusted. It was truly a case of "a scholar can be killed but not humiliated".

What's even more infuriating is that His Highness didn't seem to have any objections, only telling him to hurry back.

So frustrating!!!

"Ms. Freya, Miss Newton—"

Composing himself, Guard B called out through the wooden gate to Newton and Freya in the courtyard, "Excuse me, I'm here on orders to deliver something."

Freya had noticed this place earlier, and upon hearing Guard B's shout, she immediately got up and went to open the door.

Newton spotted the familiar-looking man and recognized him as the princess's guard. She guessed he was related to Li Cheng and followed Freya to open the door.

As soon as the door opened, Newton asked impatiently, "What is it?"

Guard B replied, “Yes, Mr. Albert Lee, he asked me to pass on a letter to you.”

"letter?"

Newton did not accept the letter, but instead frowned deeply—usually, sending a letter meant that he would not be able to return for a while, or that something important had happened.

She asked with a hint of worry, "What happened?"

That's right.

Guard B explained, "Mr. Li is highly regarded by His Highness for his outstanding abilities and has been invited to stay at the castle for half a month. I guess he wrote this letter to explain this matter to you."

Half a month...

The worry on Newton's face disappeared, replaced by a grimace.

Freya sighed inwardly upon seeing this, and spoke up for Newton, "Mr. Li, what's the situation now?"

"pretty good."

After a moment's recollection, Guard B replied, "I heard that Mr. Li and His Highness had a very pleasant conversation last night, chatting in the room until late into the night."

We had a very pleasant conversation and chatted in the room until late at night...

Newton's face grew increasingly grim, resembling the seaweed soup she had drunk the night before, and even seemed to be spreading upwards.

...I was just a little worried about him, but this bastard has already had a long talk with the princess.

The second guard, oblivious to the fact that he couldn't see Newton's face unless he looked down, produced Li Cheng's letter with the gold pattern requesting help: "This is Mr. Li's letter, so..."

"No more."

Newton coldly uttered this sentence, then turned and walked away without looking back.

?

I went through all that trouble to deliver this letter, and you won't even accept it?

Guard B glanced at Newton, who had already walked away, and then looked at the letter he was holding in his hand, feeling a bit of a headache.

Freya sighed helplessly, "I'm very sorry, but as you said, we won't accept this letter—please take it back to Mr. Li, he will understand."

------

Soap factory.

Roy had dark circles under his eyes and looked somewhat tired.

Having decided to work with Li Cheng, he was decisive and efficient. These past few days he had been handing over his work under Stoller, preparing to devote all his energy to the soap factory, the loom, and future plans.

At that moment, the security guard came in and placed an envelope on the table: "Manager, your letter."

"understood."

Roy gave a casual reply, put it aside, and prepared to take a nap first.

But when he caught a glimpse of the signature 'Albert Lee' on the envelope out of the corner of his eye, his expression immediately turned serious. He looked up at the doorman and said, "You can go back now."

"Yes."

After the security guard left, Roy carefully opened the envelope and quickly glanced through it.

[An agreement has been reached with Princess Veronica...]

Not much, just £100,000...

Roy quickly grasped several key details, his eyes shining as if he had been injected with adrenaline, and his previous fatigue was no longer visible on his face.

'Indeed, my choice was right.'

'With such a supportive boss, I need to work even harder too.'

Inspired by the news in the letter, Roy abandoned his plan to go back to sleep and rallied his spirits.

He planned to immediately hire suitable people to rush the production of the loom, then apply for a patent as soon as possible, and finally investigate the background of the merchants in the Merchants' Guild, noting which ones were suitable for cooperation and which were not, and then report back to Li Cheng.

Chapter Ninety-Six: The Little Boy

Shakespeare Theatre.

Although named after Shakespeare, it was actually just a family theater with a sturdy stone stage with a roof, a corridor of wooden seats around the stage, and several well-trained resident theater companies.

Similar theaters are not ubiquitous in London, but they are countless.

This story begins in the Elizabethan era, when England was a powerful nation with a thriving economy, leading to increased trade and more frequent population and trade exchanges. This large-scale population movement resulted in the establishment of numerous hotels, with 600-700 in London alone.

These businessmen staying in the hotel were unfamiliar with the area and had nothing to do besides making a living. What could they do?

Watch the show!

Aside from doing business, businessmen with nothing to do usually spend their leisure time watching plays.

As more and more businessmen gathered to watch the show, something quite unexpected happened: these businessmen, who never missed an opportunity to make money, actually saw a business opportunity in the merchants' viewing of the show...

They rented several large hotels in London and converted them into theaters, building permanent stages in the courtyards and tiered seating in the cloisters so that audiences could watch the play from three sides.

This is how the theater came about.

This led to a period of great development for drama, which not only promoted the development of theaters but also became an internal driving force, directly promoting the creation of dramas.

At its peak, London, with a population of less than 20, had more than 20 professional theater companies performing, not including children's theater companies, as well as various theatrical performances in the court and schools.

At that time, there were many playwrights, including the most famous William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, Thomas Kidd, Thomas Middleton, and so on. In addition, the aristocracy protected actors and playwrights, and London theater flourished like never before.

all in all.

In the UK today, being a playwright or dramatist is a highly respected profession.

Being adapted into a play and performed on stage is a great honor for all literary creators. Therefore, Veronica was completely unaware of Li Cheng's resistance and instead thought that he should cheer up and work hard to write a sequel.

......

Because she didn't want to make a big fuss, Veronica only brought two guards, Li Cheng, and Holly with her to the Shakespeare Theatre, making a total of five people excluding the groom.

But given her status as a princess and her good relationship with that mysterious playwright, the Shakespeare Theatre is closing its doors to the public today, indicating that we are not accepting guests...

The carriage drove into the Shakespeare Theatre. After the three of them got off, Holly led the way with practiced ease, suggesting that Veronica often sneaked into this place.

In private, Veronica seemed quite easy to talk to. Not only was her expression much gentler, but she even told Li Cheng not to be too reserved and to just act as usual.

Since the playwright hadn't arrived yet, Li Cheng said goodbye and wandered around the theater, casually asking Holly to lead the way.

Holly looked very reluctant, but had no choice but to follow.

"You must be very happy that your work has been adapted into a play, right?"

Holly couldn't help but ask a question halfway through.

Although she was quite angry with Li Cheng, she felt no pressure talking to him and dared to say almost anything she thought of.

"It was my friend's work that was adapted..."

Li Cheng was in a bad mood and only made a casual correction.

His letter to Newton pleading for help was returned unopened, along with a cryptic "you know what I mean" reply from Guard B. It was utterly baffling—know what? Do you think you're some kind of know-it-all?

However, this was Li Cheng's first time at the theater, and the novelty quickly overcame his gloom; he wandered around quite happily.

Because the business is closed today, actors can be seen rehearsing everywhere.

A young actor dressed as a nobleman, looking distressed, is being reprimanded by another man who appears to be a screenwriter.

"This won't work."

The male scriptwriter said seriously, "Raise your head lower and look more afraid. You have to show that feeling of fear."

Li Cheng stood to the side observing for a while, and realized that they seemed to be playing a supporting character in "Domineering Love." He couldn't help but interject, "Actually, when he lowers his head here, his eyes shouldn't show fear, because this person's character is set up as a seemingly cowardly but actually arrogant and ambitious man..."

"Who are you? Which theater troupe are you from?"

The male screenwriter turned his head, feeling his authority challenged, and looked at Li Cheng: "I've studied this scene for a whole week. Do you understand it better than me?"

You know, you know...

Li Cheng's lips twitched, too lazy to refute.

As a result, this silence was taken as admitting defeat, and the male scriptwriter revealed a victorious smile.

"He's right, the gazes here should be calmer."

However, at that moment, a woman's voice broke in.

The male scriptwriter first frowned, then exclaimed in surprise after seeing the person's appearance: "Ah, Ms. Therese."