Sir Cameron finished speaking and immediately looked at the expression on Shad's face. Although Shad didn't want to show a disrespectful expression in front of his client, this matter really challenged his IQ:
"Hmm... copy the banknotes."
Xia De nodded and raised the teacup to half cover his face. Baron Cameron smiled awkwardly and leaned back slightly on the sofa:
"Every 36 hours, if you open the box lid repeatedly in a special way, you can get a coin with the same number. Of course, you need to use the button on the box to select the denomination of the coin before opening it, whether it is coins, banknotes, gold pounds, shillings, or even Carson Creek crowns. Yes, I know this must be a scam, but Jimmy is convinced. He..."
The Baron sighed again:
"He has repeatedly 'copied' the one-pound coin once and the ten-pound note three times. I think the coins stored in the box are almost used up. Detective, I would like to ask you to expose this lie and investigate which of his so-called 'friends' sold him the box."
He took out his notebook again, in which he wrote down the places where Jimmy Cameron might be today:
"If I expose this lie, it might be a blow to him. So, please do not reveal that you are hired by me. You can conduct the investigation in the name of a detective hired by another victim. If you can accept the commission, you can sign the contract now."
He paused, looked at Xia De who had put down his teacup, and asked somewhat embarrassedly:
"Besides that, I have one small request."
"What do you want?"
The baron touched his chin, revealing an embarrassed but somewhat excited expression:
"After the investigation is over, can Miss Dorothy Louisa write the case into Hamilton Detective Stories? She can use the real investigation process as the main story, or even commission me to do it. After all, according to Miss Louisa's current serialization speed and the writing progress revealed by my acquaintance at Steambird Daily, even if this story can be published, it will take until February next year."
"Um... ... "
Xia De blinked, and seemed to understand something:
"You came to me to commission an investigation. Are you simply trying to turn the story you commissioned into a detective story?"
"Of course not. I care about Jimmy, too."
Baron Cameron immediately emphasized, and then showed an embarrassed expression again:
"Of course, I am also a loyal reader of Hamilton's Detective Stories. Don't worry, Hamilton of Regede, I will not follow you in the investigation. I also promise that this matter is not something I came up with on purpose and then came to you for a commission."
After saying that, as if he was afraid that Xia De would not accept the commission, he threw out the reward:
"30 pounds. The total commission fee is 30 pounds. If there are any additional expenses in the middle, I can reimburse you for reasonable expenses with receipts. Even if I can't find out who sold the box to Jimmy, as long as I can expose it, I will not take back the 5 pounds deposit. If this story is really published in the end, I can pay an additional 30 pounds!"
This was indeed a very generous reward, and when they shook hands just now, Shade had confirmed that Baron Cameron was just an ordinary person. He did not agree immediately, and he did not expect that there would really be a reader of Dorothy who would take the initiative to come to him to commission him in order to participate in the detective investigation.
Technically, this is the business Dorothy is bringing in for Shade:
"I can take this commission."
Shade said slowly, wondering if he was a competent detective:
"But I have to make it clear that although I have a good relationship with Miss Louisa, I cannot interfere with her creation. I only accepted the detective commission to write this matter into a story. I can propose it to Miss Louisa, but whether she agrees is her business. It will not be written into the contract."
"no problem!"
The baron's face lit up with joy:
"Just mention it to Miss Louisa. We can sign the contract right now, and I'm really looking forward to seeing it in the newspaper... I mean, I mean, I think we can catch that damn guy who's selling the boxes."
Shade still believed that the Baron came to him with great enthusiasm to commission the case just to turn it into a story that could be published.
There is a standard contract in No. 6 St. Teresa's Square. Xia De only needs to modify the commission fee and time, and then add a few items for the specific commission event and it can be used directly.
Although Baron Cameron was excited, he read the contract carefully and only signed his name after modifying the details of some clauses.
The two parties agreed on a one-week commission, and within that week, Xia De had to produce at least a progress report. However, based on the nature of this commission, Xia De felt that it would not take a week at all. If he was lucky, he could solve the problem in two days.
By the time Shad sent the Baron out and returned upstairs, Dorothy and Princess Margaret had already returned to Room 1 from Room 2.
The blonde girl took the contract and looked through it without any hesitation. Although Princess Margaret was also very interested, she maintained the reserve of a royal lady and would not look at other people's private documents casually.
"You should have heard it just now, do you want to investigate together?"
Shad walked in and asked Dorothy. He knew that Dorothy would definitely agree, as the writer was very keen on getting materials from Shad.
"Of course, didn't you promise the Baron to try to convince me to write the story? A story that is personally experienced is of course easier to write. So, detective, I will be your detective assistant today."
Miss Writer said with a smile.
Xia De nodded and looked at Princess Margaret:
"Your Highness, I know almost everything about Sir Prisha. I will give you the results as soon as possible from the sorceress you commissioned to investigate."
This actually means seeing off the guest. Shad plans to go out with Dorothy, and Princess Margaret will definitely not stay here alone.
But the princess of the southern country thought about it and did not say goodbye. Instead, she asked softly:
"Can I join you in this investigation?"
"Sorry, what?"
"One of my teachers is also very interested in Hamilton's Detective Stories. I think she would be very happy if I could tell her about the stories that have not yet been published. Besides, I don't have many opportunities to walk around this city alone. Since I'm already out today, I might as well find something to kill time."
She also knew that this request was a bit abrupt, so she added:
"I can disguise my face and act as Miss Louisa's assistant, helping her record texts. If you run into any trouble, I can also help you, yes, any kind of trouble. Don't worry, I won't reveal any secrets I've seen."
Shad did not agree immediately, but looked at Dorothy.
The blonde thought for a moment and nodded slightly:
"It's certainly nice to have someone to help me remember things, but your highness, maybe detective investigations aren't as fun as you think."
"It doesn't matter."
The girl with long blond hair smiled:
"I just want to see this city from a different perspective. I was busy with my promotion ceremony a few days ago, and I didn't have time to take a closer look even when I was in the city. The Pearl of the North, the City of Steam, and the Diamond of Draerion, it's enough for you to walk through this fog and see the lives of the lower-class civilians."
(Little Mia is running...)
Although Mr. Boris Cameron holds the title of baron, Tobesk is not a remote countryside place. The last thing this city lacks is aristocrats.
Of course, Baron Cameron was one of the nobles with a better standard of living. He not only inherited the hereditary title of the family, but also inherited a large inheritance from his ancestors. The baron's younger brother, Mr. Jimmy Cameron, 35 years old this year, although he did not inherit the title and the ancestral house, he also got a large amount of property and a wool textile factory with a fixed output every year, which was at least much more comfortable than the outsiders who inherited the dirty house.
Jimmy Cameron in the black and white photo is a little bloated, but he looks in good spirits. According to information provided by his brother Baron Cameron, on Monday morning, the idle factory owner was most likely sleeping in his own house because of last night's hangover, or going to the factory to inspect his own property - he could only do this on Mondays.
Jimmy Cameron's house is located in the factory area in the west of the city. It is a three-story building with a garden. Although the location is a bit off, the land price and house price are not cheap at all. Unfortunately, when the detective, writer and writer's assistant who came by carriage tried to visit here, the owner of the house had already gone out.
So the three of them walked through two blocks to the western part of the city, where the real industrial area of Tobysk was.
The heavy snow last week still showed no signs of melting. Even though the main roads in the city had been cleared to allow carriages to pass, walking on the streets still required stepping on the half-melted snow.
Not long after the three of them set out on their walk, snowflakes began to fall from the sky again. Princess Margaret, who was walking side by side with Dorothy, reached out to try to catch the snow, but the snowflakes melted immediately as they landed on her gloves.
“Does Tobysk snow a lot in the winter?”
She asked the blonde girl who was wearing winter clothes and a scarf. Shade was walking in front of them, so the girls just had to follow Shade. While asking questions, the foreign princess looked at the winter street scene in the misty gray. The street where the three of them were currently located was called "Blacksmith Street" on the map. Before the steam age, almost one-third of the city's blacksmiths gathered here. It is said that the eventual unified construction of steam factories in the west of the city was also related to this street.
The princess was a little overwhelmed by the exotic street scene, and she looked out over the city as she spoke: the low stone brick walls on the street, the gray stone shops on the corners, the shoe-shining boys waiting for customers in the corners, and the carriages passing by with bells ringing.
An unknown bird flew overhead, and the movement of the bird cast a moving shadow on the gray brick floor. The shadow was soon stepped on by the boots of a passing woman holding a child and a bag of bread, while a newspaper boy huddled on the side of the street in a patched cotton coat was looking at the child in shiny leather shoes with envy.
A gentleman passing by stopped the boy and bought him a newspaper. As he walked forward and unfolded the newspaper, a close-up photo of Princess Margaret taken when she visited the steam factory appeared on the outside of the newspaper. A policeman passing by stared at the photo of the princess on the newspaper and complained to his patrol companion that he had a lot more work recently.
And the real princess was looking at them at this moment.
The light and shadow left strange marks on the snow-covered roof. The slightly melted snow water fell to the ground along the icicles at the edge of the roof, leaving shallow circular marks.
Xia De's shoes stepped over the water stains and continued forward. The two ladies' brown cloth boots and black lace-up leather boots also stepped on the withered yellow grass in the cracks of the stone bricks.
Living in the same era, somewhat similar to Carsenrick, but completely different, Tobesk in winter looks quite leisurely and quiet. Originally, she chose to sneak out on Monday just to relax for a day in her busy life. Looking at this street scene, the princess thought she should be able to get a short and perfect holiday.