But before he could continue racking his brains to extract more inside information from James Gold, suddenly there was a loud bang, and the next moment, the door was flung open. It was that unforgettable, fiery-tempered girl, Second Lady Warren, who stormed in.

　　"Brother, why did they send another one over!"

　　Frank Warren, who got a face full of spit from Second Lady Warren, was momentarily stunned. "What do you mean, another one?"

　　"You’re asking me? Fine, I’ll show you! James Gold, what are you standing there for? Put shoes on your father!"

　　Frank Warren was yanked off the bed by Second Lady before he could react, and James Gold, quick on his feet, knelt down and swiftly put shoes on Frank Warren. By the time Frank Warren was half-dragged, stumbling out the door, he saw both his eldest and youngest sisters in the courtyard. The younger one just looked curious, but the eldest had a rather complicated expression.

　　Standing before them was a middle-aged woman with a thick layer of makeup, and beside her was a boy about two or three years older than James Gold, with rosy lips and white teeth, delicate and refined. At the moment, he stood with his head lowered, looking obedient, but his lips were pressed tightly together, his face betraying a mix of nervousness and fear.

　　"Is young master feeling much better now?"

　　The middle-aged woman was clearly quite sociable. She immediately left the boy and stepped forward, placing her hands on her left hip and giving a deep curtsy, then straightened up and smiled obsequiously as she spoke in a low voice, "Young master has always been closest with Mr. Carter during your trips to the city for exams. When Mr. Carter heard that you were harmed by two reckless sedan bearers on your way back from the county, he felt terribly guilty, thinking it was because he kept you for lunch and delayed your departure. So, when he heard you bought a young servant from a clansman, he had me pick out a good child as well, and sent him here as an apology."

　　The middle-aged woman, skilled in both speech and performance, noticed Frank Warren's confused expression, so she beamed and pulled out a contract from her bosom, presenting it with both hands. Lowering her voice, she added, "Mr. Carter gave special instructions, so I went to more than a dozen families willing to sell their sons, and picked out the most delicate and fair-skinned, slender and well-proportioned one. With a bit of training, he’ll be absolutely obedient."

　　Before Frank Warren could respond, she glanced back at the boy, who looked to be about eleven or twelve, her eyes flashing with a sharp glint. "Autumn Ford, aren’t you going to come greet your father?"

　　Although he retained little memory of the past, Frank Warren now inhabited the body of the fourteen-year-old scholar Frank Warren, but deep down, he was still the Frank Warren who had struggled and fought for years in the vast world. From the middle-aged woman’s deliberate hints, he vaguely sensed that this so-called apology gift from Mr. Carter was not as simple as it seemed.

　　If it was just about sending a servant, it would be enough to emphasize the boy’s skills and talents—why stress how delicate and slender he was?

　　Damn it, did the previous owner of this body start down the wrong path at such a young age? If that’s the case, he’d rather slit his throat and die again right now!

　　Under the woman’s stern gaze, Autumn Ford finally shuffled forward, knelt before Frank Warren, and kowtowed, saying softly, "Autumn Ford greets father."

　　"Don’t forget, your real father took twelve taels of silver from Mr. Carter for your price. If the young master says a single bad word about you, you know what’ll happen!"

　　The middle-aged woman barked at Autumn Ford, and seeing that Frank Warren showed no emotion—neither telling the boy to rise nor accepting the contract—she looked a bit awkward. Suddenly, she slapped her forehead, pulled out a letter from her bosom, and said with a beaming smile, "Look at my memory! Mr. Carter also asked me to bring this letter for the young master."

　　Frank Warren still didn’t take the contract, but snatched the letter instead, tore open the seal, and scanned the contents at a glance. The letter began with some pleasantries, then subtly mentioned that the gift was not only to apologize for his injury on the way back from the city, but also for the unfinished enjoyment at their last banquet. At the end, there was a rather ambiguous line.

　　"The ink fragrance was a gift from grandmother; without your command, I dare not let him serve you. So I have the matchmaker find a fine boy as a substitute."

　　Although Frank Warren had only gotten a few scraps of information from James Gold, one crucial point was that the original Frank Warren had studied at Songming Mountain since childhood, and only went to the county for exams.

　　So, in an instant, he pieced together a likely scenario for that so-called banquet. First time in the big world, a greenhorn at a social gathering, saw Mr. Carter showing off a handsome page boy, and was immediately tempted! But since the letter said "dare not let him serve you," probably… maybe… should… definitely didn’t do anything truly out of line!

　　He prayed to all the gods and buddhas that he hadn’t guessed wrong!

　　While pondering these relationships, Frank Warren absentmindedly accepted the contract from the middle-aged woman. Having already seen James Gold's indenture, he noticed this one was in the same format—also a contract for a fostered boy, with only the matchmaker and seller changed. The space for himself as one of the parties was left blank, so he couldn’t help but glance up at the woman.

　　"This was specially handled at the yamen by Clerk Liu from the household office, for which I paid four qian of bright red silver."