It seemed like Yin Luna really just came to dance with Shad, and when Shad walked out of the hedge maze, the seventeen-year-old girl had disappeared.
Xia De knew that she was most likely around Lake Schluch, but he had no reason to go there and risk being discovered by the church, so he gave up the idea of looking for Yin Luna.
As the night deepened, Shade did not stay in the courtyard, but returned to the mansion, wanting to go to the lounge to get his cat back.
At this time, the snow was still falling, and most of the guests had returned to the indoors to continue the lively dance, but the topic of the first snow of this winter was still being discussed. The dance continued, and Shade walked along the edge of the hall, responding to people's greetings while moving forward, still thinking about the dance just now.
Before he even reached the corridor, he saw Princess Margaret walking towards him with her maid. Shade stopped and greeted her respectfully. The princess was looking for him.
"Yes, Mr. Hamilton, I admit that you raise a question that I cannot answer until the banquet is over."
The princess wearing the silver crown said, breathing heavily. This was certainly not because walking was very tiring, but admitting this fact made her very stressed:
"Yes, I admit that I can't figure it out. I spent several hours, locked myself in the room to think, and then discussed it with people, and finally even asked your female companion. But I still can't figure it out. Yes, it's just simple addition and subtraction, and the numbers involved are obviously no more than five, but I just can't figure it out."
Although his tone remained calm, Xia De felt that the other party seemed a little crazy. He knew this feeling very well. When he was young, when the deadline was approaching and a question with many points was not answered by the simplest first question, he would also be so crazy.
Not to mention outsiders, everyone in this world who has taken an exam has had similar feelings to a greater or lesser extent.
“So please tell me the answer.”
Margaret Anjou's pale blue eyes looked into Shade's eyes.
"this... ... "
Xia De hesitated for a moment, and for the sake of the other party's face, he made a new suggestion:
"This party will probably last a few hours. You can actually try to think about it for a while."
He pretended to take out his pocket watch and took a look:
"There's still an hour until midnight, so why not wait until midnight and I'll tell you the answer. All you need is a little inspiration, and maybe someone to talk to."
He took the other party's self-esteem into consideration, and this sentence almost explicitly suggested that Princess Margaret go to her mathematics teacher, the great witch Miss Sylvia, to ask for the answer.
Princess Margaret obviously understood this "hint". The corner of her mouth twitched, but she did not let Shade leave:
"Knight, I originally wanted to enjoy the noble banquet of the Kingdom of Delarion, but I didn't expect to spend most of the banquet time solving a simple math problem. Yes, I don't know what you did in these hours, but I really spent most of my energy on your problem."
During these few hours, Shad spent time in the room reading manuscripts with the two girls, then went to the garden to play cards with Tifa, followed by the Battle of Schluch Lake, and then dancing in the banquet hall and the garden in the snow. It can be said that his life was colorful and no time was wasted.
Princess Margaret gasped:
"So, in order to save me the trouble of wasting the whole evening, please tell me the answer now and admit that I lost the guessing game. Yes, I admit defeat."
Seeing her insistence, Shade did not refuse. He did not want to give the answer in the noisy banquet hall, but planned to let the princess and her maid follow him to a relatively quiet corridor. But Princess Margaret insisted that Shade answer the question on the spot, and even asked someone to pull a small blackboard with pulleys - this is the tool used to record the receipt of goods when the manor warehouse receives them.
The question that Xia De had just asked had already spread among the guests of Lakeview Manor. And just as Xia De had expected, the answer had not yet been fully explained.
Seeing that Shad was willing to personally solve the "missing penny", people gradually came to him. Not only Princess Margaret, but also the "guiding moon" Laikins Prisher, unexpectedly showed up.
Xia De wanted to leave a deeper impression on himself so that he could collect the other party's inspiration, so after picking up the chalk, he planned to explain it more clearly:
"Your Highness, you are really just confused by the surface of the question. In this question, the three gentlemen spent a total of 27 pence."
"Yes."
The people holding their wine glasses talked one after another, and were looking forward to what Xia De would say.
Princess Margaret nodded slightly, and Shad, holding the chalk, wrote "30" on the small blackboard, then drew a line to the lower right and wrote 27.
"Where did the 27p go?"
He circled "27", and Princess Margaret said as she pondered:
"Of course it was paid to Madam Sang-mi of the Three Cats Inn."
So far, Shade's thinking was exactly the same as hers. She realized that this was a mental trap, but she couldn't get out of it.
"No, no."
Xia De shook his head:
"Mrs. Sammy only got 25p."
The young gentleman used chalk to draw a slash under the right side of "27" and wrote "25".
The princess frowned slightly:
"Yes."
She felt as if she understood something, but she didn't understand it.
"So, of the 27pence, 25pence was taken by Mrs. Sammy, and 2pence was withheld by the little boy."
A slash was drawn from the lower left under "27" to write "2". Princess Margaret opened her mouth slightly, and the onlookers began to discuss in a low voice. They also noticed the clue.
"so... ... "
Below the original "30", Xia De drew a diagonal line to the lower left and wrote "3":
"You should not add 2p to 27p, because 2p is included in the 27p. You should add 3p to 27p. You spend 27p, and the three gentlemen keep 3p, making 30p in total."
He said simply, already somewhat missing his cat. Leaving Mia with Miss Carina, Shade was always worried that the witch would harm his cat:
"Yes, that's it."
He nodded slightly, and finally wrote "25+2+3=30" on the bottom of the blackboard, and then put the chalk in the small slot below. Just as he was about to clap his hands, the servant immediately handed him a wet towel.
Xia De took another look at the small blackboard. It was really an overreaction to bring a blackboard specifically to solve such a problem.
"Mr. Hamilton, it's wonderful!"
"Ray Jed's Hamilton is really good!"
The crowd applauded, which made Xia De a little embarrassed. This kind of elementary school math problem was nothing to him, and he thought he didn't deserve the applause.
"That's it."
Princess Margaret bit her lip and looked at the blackboard. After she figured it out, she felt that the problem was so simple.
"This is actually just a mental trap, using the question to confuse the problem solver, and has nothing to do with wisdom."
Shade defended the princess for not being able to give an answer, but Princess Margaret shook her head:
"I fell into the trap, and I admit that I lost this time."
"When it comes to wisdom, there is no winning or losing. I just read more books."
Xia De sighed softly, and the princess let out a long sigh and looked at him with strange eyes:
"I now have a rough idea of what kind of students teachers are looking for. If you are not a man..."
She took out the handkerchief from her pocket and handed it to Xia De:
"Knight, I acknowledge your wisdom. I hope I'll have another chance to discuss mathematical problems with you during the weeks I stay in Tobesk."
She almost forcefully stuffed the handkerchief into Xia De's hand:
"Princess Leicia invites me to a reading salon next week, and I hope you can be there. In addition, if you have time, you can always visit the manor where I am staying. Hamilton, I admit your wisdom, but I won't lose next time."
She took a deep breath, turned around and left with her maids. The people around were very interested in this scene, but because the topic might be sensitive, they dispersed and talked about it in a low voice.
Shad could already guess what news would appear in tomorrow's tabloids. He could even guess that more outrageous rumors would be circulating among citizens in a few weeks.
Stranger, you have successfully proved your wisdom at the banquet.
"So simple? It turns out it's just a brain teaser? What's the reason this time? Is Margaret of Anjou the chosen one?"
Because the topic would spread from the party and become a story known to most people in the city within a few weeks.
Xia De slapped his forehead with his right hand:
"Ha~ I can prove my intelligence with a famous brain teaser. If I had known this, why would I have gone through so much trouble?"
He stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket, together with the first two scarves, and then, after saying goodbye politely to the people at the blackboard, he prepared to go upstairs to look for Mia.
But on the stairs, he met another person waiting for him:
"Well done, Shade."
Mr. Dark Anros, the director of MI6, stood at the top of the stairs, holding a glass in his hand.
Xia De looked around hurriedly. Mr. Anros walked down with a smile and patted him on the shoulder:
"Don't be so nervous. This is a wedding banquet. You might run into anyone. You performed very well, Shade. I didn't expect that you could establish a relationship with Margaret of Anjou so successfully at just a banquet."
"I am not..."
"No need to explain, you are indeed excellent. That lady introduced you to me in the summer, and I thought you were just holding the position to get paid. Very good, keep up the hard work, that lady and His Majesty both think highly of you."
The moment the two of them crossed on the stairs, a bulging little envelope slipped out of Director Anros's hand and fell into Shade's palm:
"The reimbursement of the gemstone expenses you requested has been approved. Enjoy this evening and don't stress yourself too much about the mission. Margaret Anjou will stay in Tobesk for a long time, and we will have many opportunities in the future."
After saying that, he continued walking down without looking back.
Xia De continued to walk up, put the envelope containing 280 pounds into his pocket, and then patted his pocket:
"Have I ever been too stressed out about the mission tonight?"
He climbed the stairs and turned to look downstairs, but he could no longer see Director Anros:
"In the future... next time, should I use the excuse of learning a foreign language to get in touch with Princess Margaret?"
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