Guidebook for the Dark Duke Chapter 73 - The Gentlemen's Party

Chapter 73 - The Gentlemen's Party

The day of the gentleman’s party came sooner than Evan expected. Evan had just had breakfast that day when Tom walked in with a strange look on his face.
“Reverend, it’s so strange.” Tom looked at Evan with a look of doubt, “I just wanted to go out and hire a carriage for you, but there was already a carriage waiting at the door. He said, he is here to pick you up. Is this the carriage you called yourself?”
Evan’s expression froze and after thinking for a while, he knew who sent it.
“It’s probably a carriage sent by Duke Wilson. Don’t worry about it, go down first.” Evan nodded lightly.
Evan was so calm but Tom was not as calm. He showed an excited smile when he heard this and even rubbed his hands together with a smile, and said excitedly, “It turned out to be the Duke. Reverend, you are so kind and amazing, that it can make the Duke think so highly of you.”
Evan pursed his lips and felt joyful in his heart.
“No one can talk more than you can.” Evan still looked calm on the surface.
Tom stepped back with a smile, but his heart was full of ambition and he was very proud of the master he followed as a servant, who has such a high status.
Evan changed into one of his best suits, then put on the priest’s collar again and went downstairs.
The carriage was indeed sent by Duke Wilson. Evan has seen the coachman before. This carriage was Duke Wilson’s very low-key-looking carriage, and Evan had ridden in it before.
“Reverend Bruce.” The coachman hurriedly nodded and saluted when he saw Evan coming out.
Evan nodded, “Did the Duke send you here?”
“Yes.” The coachman looked a little cramped and didn’t seem to be very good at communicating, “The Duke said that I must personally deliver you to the manor.”
Evan nodded and didn’t embarrass the driver any more. Since it was Duke Wilson’s intention, he had no room to refuse, and in fact, he didn’t want to refuse.
The coachman was Duke Wilson’s coachman. The carriage was fast and steady, and Evan arrived at Cornwall Manor not long after getting into the coach.
Evan pushed the carriage door and stepped down. The courtyard of the manor has been occupied by all kinds of carriages. Because luxury is very popular in the current era, the carriages of the gentlemen are also extremely gorgeous. Rather, his carriage is the most inconspicuous one.
Butler Chris was originally instructing the servants to park the gentlemen’s carriages in the backyard, but suddenly saw Evan and hurried forward, “Reverend Bruce, you are finally here.” Butler Chris looked a little anxious .
Evan was a little surprised, “Has it started? I thought it was eleven o’clock at noon?”
Butler Chris smiled reluctantly, “It is indeed eleven o’clock, but there are a few gentlemen who came from out of town and there are a few gentlemen who came early. So it is so rude for me to be so busy now, please forgive me.”
So, Evan thought to himself, these people want to flatter the duke, naturally they won’t let this opportunity go. And since he came on time and not ahead of the time specified, he can be considered the strange one among the guests.
“You’re too polite.” Evan’s mind turned sharply, but he still had a gentle smile on his face, “You’re so busy, you’ve worked hard.”
Butler Chris showed a sincere smile at this time. Today, compared to these other people, Evan was the first to say that he was working hard.
“Reverend, you are really a tolerant person. The Duke is waiting in the hall now, please go in.”
Butler Chris was really lacking in time at this time, so he found a male servant to take Evan into the hall.
When he first entered, Evan was taken aback. The well-dressed gentlemen were all gathered in one place and this was really a grand scene. Anyway, Evan had never seen such a big scene before.
Evan frowned. Such a big scene is definitely not as simple as the normal party and chatting that Colonel Mel described. Duke Wilson must have other intentions.
Evan looked for the trail of Duke Wilson in the crowd, but it was actually not that difficult to find him. In the place where the most people gathered, Evan saw Duke Wilson standing with a polite smile on his face.
Different from what he looks like when he is with Evan, the duke at this time looked cold and arrogant. Although there was a smile on the corners of his lips, it was a kind of alienated smile that didn’t allow people to be close to him.
Evan saw Duke Wilson looking like this and his heart felt turbulent. All the gentleness of this man belongs to him. This kind of knowledge made Evan tremble with excitement.
“Reverend.” Under Evan’s slightly scorching gaze, Duke Wilson finally found Evan who had just come in, hurriedly left the crowd and walked towards Evan, “You are finally here.” He said with a relieved tone and his eyes obviously turned soft.
Evan looked at the man in front of him and pursed his lips tightly, but in the end he just raised the corners of his lips and said, “Thank you very much for your invitation, Lord Duke.”
Duke Wilson did not notice Evan’s emotions. In fact, all he was thinking about was the last time they saw each other. At that time, his performance was really bad. Just because Evan patted the back of his hand, he was so excited that he couldn’t contain himself, and then the original good timing and his performance was a mess.
“I…heard that Ford has left.” Duke Wilson asked immediately because he didn’t want them to fall into an awkward silence again.
Evan raised his eyebrows slightly, and said warmly, “Mr Ford knows what happened back then.” When he said this, Evan raised his head and looked at Duke Wilson, “Is this what you told him?”
Looking at Evan’s clear eyes, Duke Wilson suddenly had a feeling of shooting himself in the foot. He almost forgot that, although this person is tolerant and kind, his mind is sharper than anyone else’s.
“Reverend.” Duke Wilson pursed his dry lips, “Ford has deep malice towards you. If he didn’t find out the truth of that year, I’m afraid he would have done other terrible things, so I did it myself. I suggested that Ford meet the Earl’s secretary from back then, and you know what happened after that. If it made you feel unhappy, I’m really sorry.”
Duke Wilson’s words were very sincere, he knows very well that this person is stubborn. If Evan is angry with him because of this, he really doesn’t know what he’ll do.
Evan looked at him being so serious and smiled, “You don’t have to apologize to me.” His words calmed Duke Wilson’s anxiety, “The matter needed to be resolved sooner or later. You did this after considering my situation, I am not someone who doesn’t know what to do.”
Duke Wilson sighed with relief.
These two people talked for a long time and although outsiders couldn’t hear what they were saying, just looking at the atmosphere between the two of them, the eyes of the people around them went straight. They had never seen Duke Wilson with such a gentle attitude. Those who knew about some things all lamented about the firmness of the friendship between Reverend Bruce and the Duke, and those who didn’t know hurriedly inquired about who the priest was.
But this is a banquet after all and Duke Wilson’s attention can’t always revolve around Evan alone. At this time, Colonel Mel, Duke Wilson’s most loyal friend and Evan’s new friend, played a role.
“Reverend.” Colonel Mel walked over to the two of them with a glass of champagne, “I was wondering why you didn’t come, but now I finally saw you.”
Colonel Mel’s intervention made Duke Wilson frown slightly, but he also knew the situation at this time, so he didn’t say much and Evan also liked the colonel very much, and replied with a smile, “I’m late, it’s really rude.”
Duke Wilson looked at him when he said this and he thought that Evan was really apologetic, and hurriedly said, “You came at the right time, they came too early.”
Such straightforward words made Colonel Mel’s face stiffen. If there is no mistake, he could also be considered one of the ‘them’. But he behaved as if nothing had happened and still smiled and greeted Evan.
Although the three of them were standing together and talking, Colonel Mel was talking to Evan most of the time and Duke Wilson was standing aside most of the time with a very solemn expression.
The people around looked at this situation and thought that the Duke was not very happy, so they didn’t dare to talk too much.
This situation lasted for a long time, until Butler Chris finally came in and announced that lunch was ready. The guests finally breathed a sigh of relief. The meaning of the Duke on the seating arrangement of the guests on the table should be very clear and everyone’s position and ranking will be clearly reflected, along with their place in the heart of the Duke.
But unfortunately, the table rankings this year are not much different from that of last year. Except for Reverend Bruce sitting next to the Duke, there is not much difference in the positions of the other guests. But maybe others couldn’t see it, however, the careful Colonel Mel found that the viscount from London, who was originally always at the bottom of the line looking useless, sat in the middle of the table this time.
The viscount was so proud, with a smug smile on his face, but most of the people around didn’t pay attention to him, because for these people, sitting in the middle and the back didn’t make any difference, they were most concerned about the gentlemen sitting in front.
A dark light flashed in Colonel Mel’s eyes. It seemed that the Duke’s sudden large-scale gathering this time really had other plans within.
Recalling the open and secret battles between the several crown princes in London during this period, Colonel Mel only felt a chill in his heart. For him, this kind of thing is something that he can’t see even if he breaks his neck trying to look, but it is such a common thing for the Duke. Colonel Mel sighed in his heart and then immediately threw himself into a chat with an unknown gentleman sitting beside him.
Evan hadn’t attended this party last time so he was unaware of what Colonel Mel had observed, but even so, Evan could see a certain tendency, such as Duke Wilson’s attitude toward these gentlemen. Although Duke Wilson still has a cold look on his face, Evan found that when dealing with certain people, there was always a hint of caution in his eyes.
This kind of caution may not be noticed by the Duke himself, but Evan miraculously saw it and he also summed up what these people have in common – these people are all from London!