Chapter 300 (1): Be at the Dinner Table or Be the Dinner

September eighteenth.

Study, Lando Estate.

Trash Sr. had called Trash Jr. in to talk business. Grasping his antique silver coin, Auston had an irritated look on his face.

In comparison, Trash Jr. was practically glowing.

He had been delegating his work to his secretary and doing his secretary when there wasn’t any work, eating well and having the most perverse fun. His life couldn’t be any better.

That displeased Auston further and put a frown on his face. “Much has happened to the family lately, but you do not care as the heir.”

“Compared to trivial family affairs, I’m more focused on the major international events.”

Wayne swung his arm, claiming to be busy making insightful comments on the major events lately. Without him, Earth would even stop rotating. Auston could more than deal with the trivial matters at home on his own with his mediocre intelligence.

Conversely, if they had had to debate on what to do together, the trivial matters would only escalate into serious problems.

Auston didn’t bother arguing against Wayne’s illogical claims. He had tried and ended up being dragged to Wayne’s level, making it seem like he was the one being unreasonable because his methods didn’t fit the context.

“Much has happened lately. Prussia launched a surprise attack against Pollonia and conquered her capital. The Rus Federation also invaded Pollonia yesterday. The country is done for,” Auston said regretfully.

It was too quick, quick like a fleeting lightning strike!

Wayne nodded, expressing his high expectations for Prussia. Then he mocked, “Windsor and Franc declared war against Prussia at the start of the month, but did nothing after the declaration, not even deploying a single footsoldier. All the aid Pollonia received was distinctly unhelpful. What an international joke.”

Yes, things were happening quickly. Not even the jokes in Hell got updated so frequently.

“No, we did provide aid, but Pollonia would not listen. She only had herself to blame.”

Auston defended Windsor. Pollonia had asked for punishment from the two major powers. They had advised Pollonia to negotiate, but she just had to recklessly meet the enemy head-on.

The Rus Federation’s invasion was a kick to someone who was already down, but it was also related to the existing bad blood. Given their history, of course the Rus Federation would seize the chance to go after Pollonia[1].

“Whatever the case, Pollonia no longer exists on the map.”

Wayne shrugged. In every war, the small nations were always the first to take the fall—well, even without a war, the small map of the vast world could not fit more than a few chess players.

Be at the dinner table, or be the dinner!

Auston shook his head slightly. “Perhaps it’s a good thing. Windsor and Franc can wait a while and observe what Prussia and the Rus Federation are going to do.”

Better that they start fighting!

Auston represented Windsor’s strategic interest. From Windsor’s point of view, a powerful but not so powerful Prussia was ideal. She could keep Franc busy by advancing and contain the Rus Federation by pulling back. Windsor didn’t have to do anything but sell firearms and humanitarian values from across the sea, lauding justice and world peace.

Wayne could tell from Auston’s tone that the leadership of Windsor still had full confidence in Franc, believing that the world’s best army would stop Prussia’s lightning assaults. It was understandable. In this era, the undefeatable top army of the world was still a widely believed myth.

Were the Chosen Land a family, Franc would be the father.

But Prussia would be the grandfather!

Wayne emphasized once more that Franc’s line of defense could not be trusted, hoping that Auston could convince the Queen to adjust Windsor’s international policies, actually making moves rather than simply spectating. It would be too late to cry out in pain when fighter jets were dropping bombs across Windsor.

Even so, Wayne knew that his words would fall on deaf ears. The geographical location of Windsor made it impossible for Windsor to lead the charge, and the Queen hoped that the war would break out along the border between Franc and Prussia.

Ideally, the two would bring about mutual destruction after a prolonged struggle before the Rus Federation stepped in and took advantage of their weakened states. Then the three nations would have a brawl, ending in their collective defeat.

Only then would Windsor, having profited from their conflicts substantially, intervene and stop the fight, getting them to the negotiation table to draft another agreement that would reinstate order in the world.

That would be the perfect scenario!

Every time they talked about the international landscape, Wayne and Auston could never agree on anything or convince each other. From Auston’s point of view, Wayne knew little about the current power dynamic on the continent, yet held an unexplainable confidence in Prussia. He seemed like a Prussian spy at heart.

From Wayne’s point of view... Fine, he couldn’t be certain if Franc might just refuse to surrender with the overall buff they enjoyed in this meta.

Wayne wavered, but ultimately chose to stand with his stereotypes for Prussia. Auston couldn’t be bothered with wasting more of his breath and just pointed out bluntly, “Her Majesty has been making major moves to gather her power, recollecting the authority she delegated before in preparation for the coming war.”

Auston put it objectively, but for the other Tulip Families, the Queen was taking away their power in the name of the war, significantly undermining each family’s core interests.

That was why the Tulip Families existed in the first place. They were the royal family’s piggy bank, human resources, and enforcers, and the family was entitled to take everything back at any time, but...

What was eaten and digested couldn’t be vomited back out. Asking them to relinquish their interests was worse than death.

The same thing had happened twenty years ago, but the royal family hadn’t been as aggressive.

“Aggressive?” Wayne raised an eyebrow. “What has the Queen done to make the loyal Tulip Families criticize her for being aggressive?”

“Her Majesty has summoned a few distant relatives of the Tulip Families back to Windsor, mainly to target the families in the financial sector such as Boswell, Bedford, Cavendish, and Spencer.”

Auston glanced at Wayne. “The Lando family, too. A distant uncle of mine came back with his family. He even invited me to dinner tonight!”

Wayne frowned deeply. “Seriously? The family has been shrinking with me as the only man in this generation. Where did the beggars come from?”

“They settled down in a city in northern Windsor. They were kicked out of Londan as losers in the fight to take over the family, so they have serious problems with me.” Auston looked at Wayne meaningfully. “You’re smart enough to figure out the rest on your own.”

The Queen had a death wish!

Wayne’s expression hardened. He had heard the unspoken words. “What did the heads of the other Tulip Families say? Have you gotten in contact? Are there traitors and troublemakers around the Queen?”

The Queen had taken the words of the sycophants and disrupted the existing orders, thus losing the support of her loyal officials. The aggrieved officials thus gathered and planned a revolution to eliminate the traitors surrounding the sovereign.

Wonderful! Should’ve done that long ago!

Wayne nodded approvingly. His original world had a longer history, and it was recorded that the wise officials should choose the right sovereigns to follow. Indecisiveness would only lead to doom and divine punishment. The historical texts had to be accurate. It was time to rush into Buckingham Palace with swords to express their loyalty to the Queen.

Auston rolled his eyes. His heir had gone further and further astray. While he hadn’t gotten more flesh on his skeleton, his treacherous bone had grown thicker. He kept talking about evolutions whenever the royal family was mentioned. Anyone else would assume that he was a spy from the Rus Federation.

Ridiculous. No capitalists will revolutionize themselves out of power.

“The heads of the other Tulip Families agreed with me,” Auston said. “Our riches were granted by Her Majesty, so she could take everything back at any time. As for the distant relatives...”

“Unlike the rural areas, Londan is a metropolitan with terrible air quality. Unable to adapt to the hostile environment, they are likely to meet a sudden death in the next few days.”

“That is also Her Majesty’s wish.” Auston glanced at Wayne. “What you’re picturing will not happen. I can say that with confidence.”

The Queen had not brought her sickle down on all Tulip Families, but only the richest few. The other families didn’t see the potential future they would suffer, but only the immediate interests they would gain. Moreover, the fourteen Tulip Families had always been in conflict. They would not and could not band together. It would be the best-case scenario that the other families didn’t make opportunistic moves, much less support a revolution.

“Short-sighted fools, only shoveling the snow at their door,” Wayne grumbled. “The Queen is bleeding us today, and she will be bleeding them tomorrow. How could they call themselves politicians when they can’t even see that? The Great Windsor will fall sooner or later with vermin like them!”

Yes, the Queen granted the Tulip Families power, but that was all she did. Each family had to earn their wealth on their own merits. The wealth they had accumulated wasn’t the spoils of theft or robbery, but merely the gains from fraudulent businesses and lies, as well as exploitation of the general public. It was honest money they had earned with blood and sweat. Why did they have to hand it over?

It was difficult for capitalists to make a profit, too!

Take Auston as an example. To sustain the family business, he had been making donations left and right, giving his secretary lessons during the day and sucking up to his superior during nighttime, causing his wife to walk away in a fit.

ε=(′д`*)))

“You’ve had it hard, Auston!”

...You seem to be thinking something offensive!

Auston didn’t ask what nonsensical thoughts Wayne had in his head. Instead, he made his stance clear: “Don’t assume it’s a bad thing to focus on the immediate interests. No one knows what the future holds. Things can change every three to five years. I only managed to earn this much because I focus on the present.”

“The Lando family will stand behind all decisions the Queen makes in exchange for my uncle’s tragic, fatal illness in Londan. Do you understand?”

“I do understand, but that doesn’t mean I’m satisfied. If you give the Queen what she wants today, what will happen when she makes another demand tomorrow? What if she comes to me after your death?”

Wayne huffed. He didn’t care how Auston had made his fortune. He only knew that Auston was managing the money temporarily for Wayne, and everything belonged to Wayne.

It didn’t make sense for anyone to take money out of his pocket with such entitlement!

1. Likely referring to the Polish–Soviet War from 1919 to 1921, following the First World War, during which the Soviet Union was initially successful, but suffered an unexpected defeat in what’s later known as the Miracle on the Vistula. The war ultimately ended in a ceasefire and division of the disputed territory. ☜