Little William had already seen his father's figure appear at the entrance of the courtyard, accompanied by a dark and burly middle-aged man. Both were dressed in official robes, and the differences could be seen from their attire. The pattern on Edward Howard's chest was a peacock, with a court hat topped by a piece of ruby, connected above with carved coral. Charles Carter was a sixth-rank official, with an egret pattern on his chest, a court hat adorned with a small sapphire, and a top of tridacna shell.

The peacock was clearly far more prestigious and impressive than the egret. As for the gemstones on the court hats, Edward Howard's ruby was at least four times larger than Charles Carter's small sapphire. As the saying goes, comparison is the thief of joy. When a third-rank and a sixth-rank official stood side by side, the difference was immediately apparent. In terms of physique alone, Charles Carter was a man of eight chi, over 1.8 meters tall. Edward Howard was of average build, barely seven chi, but he wore official boots with thick soles of seven centimeters, which made him noticeably taller. Coupled with his natural aura of authority, even without anger, standing next to Charles Carter, he outshone him in every aspect, making Charles Carter look shabby no matter how you looked at it.

Edward Howard saw the chaotic scene before him and first found his precious son in the crowd. Seeing that he was unharmed, he immediately felt relieved, snorted coldly through his nose, and said, "Nonsense!" Though his voice was not loud, it was full of vigor, and as soon as he appeared, he drew everyone's attention.

Charles Carter was concerned about his own daughter. Seeing both his son and daughter standing there safe and sound, he also breathed a sigh of relief from the bottom of his heart and shouted, "Everyone, stop!" His shout had the desired effect. After all, those who wanted to fight on the scene were all from the The Carter Family. Seeing the old master arrive, the The Carter Family siblings immediately calmed down. Charles Carter was highly authoritative at home; now that the head of the family had arrived, no matter how big the trouble, it would be up to the father to handle it.

Grace Carter saw her father arrive, her eyes reddened, and she twisted free from Helen Morgan's embrace, called out "Father," then ran over and threw herself into his arms, bursting into tears. Normally, she was strong and tough, rarely shedding tears in front of others, but today, after being humiliated by Little William, she felt extremely wronged. Seeing her father arrive, all her grievances and sorrow surged up at once, and her tears flowed like a torrential downpour, impossible to stop.

Charles Carter saw his daughter crying so sadly, and his own eyes reddened as well. He said softly, "Don't cry, my good daughter. No matter how big the matter, your father will stand up for you!" As he spoke, he shot a cold glance at Edward Howard, making his meaning very clear: your son has done something outrageous, and today I must seek justice!

John Carter and Steven Carter also came over. To be honest, these two were not particularly clever. John Carter said gruffly, "Father, that scoundrel Little William actually tried to snatch my sister. We can't let him get away with it!"

Edward Howard heard the boy's insolent words and frowned slightly. He didn't say much, but walked slowly toward Little William.

Helen Morgan saw the Minister of Revenue approaching and hurriedly bowed her head, bent at the waist, and walked quickly to greet him—a gesture of respect. When she was about seven chi away from Edward Howard, she placed her hands before her chest, bowed slightly, moved her hands a little, and bent her knees slightly—this was the woman's salute. She was only an eighth-rank armed guard, and in front of a third-rank official, she had to observe all the proper etiquette.

Little William watched Helen Morgan's every move and realized that the etiquette of Da Kang was not much different from that of ancient China. With his extensive knowledge of classical studies, he couldn't help but compare their gestures and actions.

Helen Morgan respectfully said, "Murong Feiyan, guard under Lord Hong of Jingzhao Prefecture, greets Lord Hu!"

Edward Howard nodded slightly, his expression gentle, and said, "I didn't expect a family matter between the Hu and Tang families to alarm the Jingzhao Prefecture!" Edward Howard was a wily old fox. Although he did not rebuke the young female constable before him, his casual remark pointed out two key points: first, he defined today's conflict as a family matter, and under this premise, the involvement of Jingzhao Prefecture would be considered meddling.

Helen Morgan said, "Mr. Howard..."

Edward Howard didn't listen to her explanation at all and walked right past her, clearly not taking a lowly constable of Jingzhao Prefecture seriously. His gaze fixed on his precious son Little William, and in an instant, his tone turned harsh as he roared, "You wretch, I'll deal with you later!" An ordinary person would probably ask what had happened, but Edward Howard would never make such a mistake. Everything he saw indicated that the The Carter Family was most likely in the right, and he didn't want to expose the truth in front of so many people. If he confirmed in public that his son had tried to snatch a girl, the situation would only become more unfavorable, and if they pursued the matter, he would be put in an extremely passive and difficult position.

Chapter 10: Talking Nonsense (Part 1)

Little William stood there with a beaming smile, as if nothing had happened and the whole affair had nothing to do with him.

At this moment, someone shouted, "Take it to the authorities!" "Yes! Arrest him and bring him to the magistrate!" "So what if he's the Minister's son!"