King
Chapter 1205 - 1205 199 The Prince is Dead

1205: Chapter 199: The Prince is Dead 1205: Chapter 199: The Prince is Dead Dust had not yet settled when Hudson returned to his estate with Melissa, one step ahead.

Their trip to Moxi Duchy had already been long enough; continuing would be endless!

Disputes involving interests are never resolved in a day or two.

Whether Hudson was there or not did not affect the final outcome.

From the moment the Moxi Government declared bankruptcy, the subsequent plot was already doomed.

As long as their strategy of showing weakness did not fail, there would be no significant problems.

Old creditors couldn’t be paid back, not to mention new creditors.

To expect the Moxi Government to fulfill its debts, they first needed to have money in their pockets.

Without a doubt, this was an impossible task.

The huge financial gap of several hundred million could not be raised in a short time.

No matter whether it was possible to persuade all parties to agree on debt relief, the visible income of the Moxi Duchy was just so much, definitely not enough for everyone to share.

If someone got more, then inevitably someone else got less.

When creditors began fighting among each other, the pressure originally on the Moxi Government was reduced.

Even for the smooth fulfillment of debts, the parties could not let the Moxi Duchy fall.

Back home, Hudson’s face soon darkened.

No matter how much he dominated outdoors, dealing with his kids at home always gave him a headache.

The second child was still young, merely crawling everywhere and not causing much trouble.

The eldest was different, at the troublesome age of four or five.

Lively to an unimaginable extent, combined with an uncontrollable curiosity, he turned the Manor House upside down.

Usually, with Hudson around, Little Franz, still remembering the pain on his buttocks, dared not be too reckless.

In his father’s absence these days, the situation was completely different; it was like a wild horse without reins, running wild.

Redman, who was looking after the estate, treated his son and grandson with completely different standards.

Although not completely obedient, during Hudson’s absence, Franz’s buttocks indeed did not suffer.

Wanting to start whipping, Hudson didn’t even know what reason to use.

From the records of daily life, it was clear that Franz’s curiosity was excessive, willing to try everything.

It seemed as if the cautious cells were exhausted in Hudson, and Little Franz had inherited none; rather, he perfectly inherited his suppressed curiosity, and took it even further.

“Hudson, that’s enough.

If Franz develops a problem from the beating, you’ll have to apply medicine!”

Melissa advised tactfully.

Compared to other mischievous kids, Franz was actually not bad.

From a young age, he was polite and sweet, quite charming, with only an overwhelming curiosity and a slight penchant for courting disaster as his flaws.

However, these flaws were exactly what Hudson found most intolerable!

As a top second-generation heir, Hudson wasn’t worried about Franz’s lack of capabilities; he was worried about his penchant for creating trouble.

Curiosity killed the cat; not controlling one’s curiosity only harmed oneself and others.

When young, causing trouble was limited, and cleaning up the mess wasn’t difficult.

But as he grew older, the situation would be different.

There were many negative examples on the Continent; almost every year, there were noble children who got bored with their easy lives and organized expeditions into dangerous lands for thrills.

Generally, expeditions launched on a whim without detailed planning and sufficient intelligence gathering ended tragically.

Those lucky had heavy team losses; the unlucky ones were completely wiped out.

“No need for medicine; he’s tough enough to suffer a bit!”

Though his words were harsh, his hand involuntarily lightened its force.

For some reason, Hudson always felt the whip in his hand was not enough.

To spare himself future fury, Hudson felt it necessary to shift Franz’s perspective on life and kill his deadly curiosity.

“Melissa, Franz has so much time for mischief; I think he has too few studies.

Later, add some more academic classes for him; we can’t leave him idle.”

As soon as Hudson finished speaking, Franz started crying even more sadly.

The pain of the beating was temporary, but the misery of increased lessons was long term.

Even while being beaten, Franz couldn’t help but protest to Hudson, unfortunately to no avail.

On this issue, Melissa and Hudson quickly reached a consensus, unanimously agreeing that it was necessary to provide Franz with a complete childhood.

Adhering to the principle of nipping problems in the bud, Melissa always held the younger son to watch whenever the elder was punished.

The effect was very clear; whenever Franz was punished, the younger one was exceptionally well-behaved.

…

“Hudson, I heard that the Prince passed away prematurely.

Will this affect the political stability of the Kingdom?”

Melissa asked with concern.

Being in noble circles, they inevitably mixed with politics.

Caesar IV currently had only one son, and his sudden demise naturally attracted close attention from all circles of the Kingdom.

“The impact is definitely there, but the problem shouldn’t be too big.

His Majesty the King and the Queen are still young, even if the eldest son died prematurely, they can still have more children.

The fear is if the Prince’s premature death was abnormal; then it would be a big trouble.

But these are problems for the nobles in the Capital, not so impactful for us local Lords!”

Hudson spoke lightly, but his inner thoughts were completely different.

Aslante Continent indeed had a high infant mortality rate, but that was only among the poor.

The Crown Prince was supposed to be the future Monarch of the kingdom, surrounded by a large entourage.

There were no previous reports of ill health, how could he die so young without any mishappenings?

Other factors aside, just look at the situation in Mountain Domain.

Ever since the living standards and healthcare provisions for the domain people were improved, the infant mortality rates there have significantly declined.

How many can reach adulthood safely is still uncertain due to the prolonged time frame, and thus can’t be measured yet.

However, the probability of babies dying on their first day has plummeted from one in five to one in a hundred.

This tremendous change is multifaceted, including training of professional midwives and prenatal care.

Previously, there was no concept of maternity leave.

If it happened to be the busy farming season, children would be born while their mothers were still working in the fields.

Many children were even born directly in the fields, their delivery reliant purely on luck, with the only action people could take being prayers for divine protection.

After Hudson’s reforms, the rates of miscarriage and premature birth dramatically fell, and with the addition of professional midwives, the situation naturally reversed.

A safe birth is just the beginning; growing up safely is another challenge altogether.

There is a wide disparity in this regard; the survival rate for Noble Children to reach adulthood is generally maintained at around eighty to ninety percent.

For serfs’ sons and daughters, the survival rate fluctuates between half to two-thirds, depending primarily on the harvest.

After Hudson’s reforms, the situation in Mountain Domain significantly improved, but time was too short, and the poor population base of his own domain was not enough to affect the overall child survival rate in society.

At the level of Major Noble, unless accidents happen, child fatalities are rare.

After all, this is the Extraordinary World; even if someone is hanging by a thread, they could still be brought back.

Despite this context, an accident still befell the son of Caesar IV, and one cannot help but suspect foul play!

…

Since the Prince’s untimely death, the atmosphere in the Jade Palace has become tense.

Caesar IV’s face has become even more somber, almost screaming: I want to kill.

“How have we still not found out where the sachet came from?”

Caesar IV demanded sternly.

The clue to the Prince’s death pointed to a mysterious sachet, in which the guards found traces of poisoning.

“Your Majesty, by the time we found the owner of the sachet, it was too late.

All personnel involved in the case had been silenced.

We’ve checked all their backgrounds thoroughly; these people have been living in the kingdom for more than five generations.

…”

The Palace Minister’s response failed to satisfy Caesar IV.

His own son had died, yet the perpetrator remained undiscovered.

It should be noted that those appointed to serve near the Prince were all Noble Children closely associated with the Royal Family, and their backgrounds had been thoroughly vetted before selection.

Logically speaking, these long-time associates of the Royal Family should have been the most reliable.

Yet, current investigations pointed towards them.

Even now, Caesar IV couldn’t understand the motivations behind their actions.

Even if they were enemy spies, after so many generations, any loyalty would have been long gone.

They all had families; surely, they wouldn’t lead their entire families to doom just because of an old master’s orders?

“Continue the strict investigation; aside from the sachet, there must be other clues we’ve overlooked.

No matter who is involved, this time they must pay the price!”

Caesar IV said with murderous intent.

A vengeance for killing his son cannot coexist under the same sky!

If he does not find the murderer, he can’t rest easy.

If today they can target the Prince, tomorrow they might directly target him.

In fact, compared to killing a naive child, removing Caesar IV would prove even more beneficial.

The Kingdom of Alpha has strict succession laws; upon the King’s death, the Crown Prince succeeds.

A human cub held in arms has no capability to handle state affairs.

Without a strong Monarch to lead the nation, the best course for the Royal Family wishing to avoid the loss of great power is to do nothing and wait for the King to come of age.

The enemy hasn’t targeted him yet, certainly not out of fear of regicide.

This crime would only prevent the enemy from acting openly against him, not from uncontrolled covert operations.

Intuition told Caesar IV there was definitely something amiss behind this.

Perhaps it’s not that the enemy doesn’t want to remove him, but rather they lack an opportunity to do so.

After all, the circumstances surrounding adults and children differ; a poisoned sachet alone would not suffice.

…