The opened box mainly contained some clothes made of good fabrics, with a few books tucked inside the clothes. On the side were a small silver wine bottle, a pocket watch and a few black-and-white photos. The person in the photos was Jonathan Lemaire.
This was the first time Shad had seen a photo of the dead crew members.
The lawyer introduced:
"Mr. Lemaire hopes that if he died of illness and left behind a body, then Mrs. Lemaire, who inherited his estate, will arrange his funeral. If he died in a shipwreck and left behind no body, then Mrs. Lemaire, who inherited his estate, will need to purchase a local grave and bury the photo in it to ensure that his soul will not be lost in the ocean."
This is a superstition of sailors. They believe that if there is no grave after death, the soul will be trapped forever at the bottom of the sea with the body.
"no problem."
Mrs. Lemaire's eyes were red, and Shad helped to check the remains again. He just flipped through the clothes, and to his surprise, Jonathan Lemaire had the habit of writing a diary every now and then. There were five diaries, and each page was densely packed with trivial matters at sea.
"Jonathan Lemaire is surprisingly well educated."
Xia De whispered in surprise, the handwriting in the diary was much better than his own, and it was very organized with very few misspelled words.
"Uncle Lemaire used to be an educated man, but he offended the local sheriff and went to the seaside to make a living. He was a very nice man and read us storybooks when we were young."
Mrs. Lemaire explained with some sobs.
"Yes. For this business, I have exchanged several letters with the friend of Mr. Lemaire who kept the will. According to his description, Mr. Jonathan Lemaire is a rare and well-educated person among the crew. It is also because of this that he was able to accumulate so much wealth in Coldwater Port as an outsider in just ten years. His friends think highly of him."
As the lawyer was talking, Shade had already opened the diaries. The diaries that recorded events in the last few months were buried with Mr. Lemaire, and the latest diary that appeared here was half a year old.
While reading, Shade discovered that in addition to the Dralion language, there were also words from the Carsenric language mixed in. Occasionally, there were even some more obscure languages, even ancient languages.
After translating the text written in the gap, the meaning is roughly:
Today is the third month since I became a ring wizard. I decided to rent a small house in Coldwater Harbor to hide my spellcasting materials and books...
Xia De closed the diary with a snap. His expression did not change, but the hand holding the diary subconsciously exerted force.
Flamel was a ringmaster, but he had not even told the warehouse dispatcher who was doing illegal business with him about it, and there were no items related to ringmasters in the inheritance in front of him.
The date of the diary I just saw was two years ago, that is, the autumn of the Common Calendar 1851. If the diary is not a forgery and Mr. Lemaire's safe house is still in its original place, then it means that there are relics of the ownerless ring warlock in a house in Coldwater Harbor.
The ring wizards must be organized, but the safe house where personal belongings are stored is unlikely to be revealed to others, which means...
Xia De now had another reason to go to Lengshui Port City.
“There’s no problem with these either.”
After calming himself down and putting the diary back into the box, Shad nodded to Mrs. Lemaire.
"All the inheritance that needs to be transferred is here. Please confirm it again. If there is no problem, please sign this document to confirm that you have received all the contents listed above."
The lawyer handed over another document and added:
"Of course, you can also use fingerprints."
“I can write my own name.”
The middle-aged woman said in a low voice.
Xia De helped read the documents that needed to be signed. While reading, the lawyer explained the contents that were easy to cause misunderstanding. After confirming that there was no problem, Mrs. Lemaire took the pen and signed her name with an awkward posture, confirming that the inheritance had been fully received.
She probably didn't write very often, her handwriting was uglier than Shad's.
"Finally, the lawyer's fees will be as we have agreed. You will pay part of it directly to the Tobesk Bar Association, and the other part will be paid directly to me, 1 pound 3 shillings ... ... to avoid taxes."
Lawyer Laurel nodded sheepishly, and Mrs. Lemaire took out some banknotes from the banknotes in front of her and handed them to him.
The lawyer looked at Shade again, and seeing that he was sitting there without moving, he knew that this middle-aged woman who suddenly gained a large fortune must have promised a considerable reward to make the detective so dedicated. Although he was curious about the detective's income from this business, he still grabbed the coat on the back of the chair and said goodbye with professional ethics:
"Mrs. Lemaire, you have my contact information. Detective, this is my business card. If you have any legal needs in the future, you can contact me directly. Don't go through the Bar Association. The commission those vampires take is too high... Oh, this is not a private job."
When he said the second half of the sentence, he winked at Xia De, and Xia De nodded in understanding, knowing that the local legal profession was not as free as the detective profession.
Then, Xia De also handed over his business card.
Lawyer Laurel took it, glanced at it, and looked up in surprise:
"I was just saying that when I read the newspaper last time, I thought that photo looked familiar, and there was also Hamilton's last name. So you are the one in the newspaper..."
He smiled and didn't mention the title of "Hamilton of Ryder":
"So that's it, Mrs. Lemaire. You've really found the right person. This Hamilton detective is indeed very reliable."
After speaking to the puzzled middle-aged woman, he put the business card into the chest pocket of his white shirt:
"Detective Hamilton of St. Teresa's Square. I've accepted your business card. If I encounter a client in trouble in the future, he might ask you for help. After all, there is a high possibility that detectives and lawyers can cooperate."
He shook hands with Shade, then politely said goodbye to Mrs. Lemaire, then he carried his briefcase, draped his coat over his arm, and left the place quite elegantly. This look was completely different from the Rhodes card player he had met in the tavern last time.
People may be addicted to Rhodes, but there are also many people who can reasonably control their desires. In this noisy and crazy era, Rhodes, alcohol, cigarettes, and perhaps more things are tempting people to deviate from the normal track of life, but even ordinary people can rely on good self-discipline and habits to prevent themselves from being swallowed by darkness.
Perhaps this kind of people deserve a decent and prosperous life.