## Chapter 189: The Unfortunate Lady
After Mil departed, Roback soon rose to his feet and politely bid farewell to Arthur and Eld.
“While I don’t know what John intends to do, if he doesn’t succeed, I hope I can make some progress on my end. I have an appointment with Mr. Bentham’s secretary, Edwin Chadwick, in a while. I need to have a good talk with him about your situation and see if there’s anything we can do.”
With that, Roback smiled, picked up his hat, and left the coffee shop.
As soon as Roback left, Eld sprawled back in the coffee shop’s chair, “Look, look! Our London University students have some clout! As soon as you speak up, even the East India Company and the Westminster Review start working for you!”
Compared to Eld’s inexplicable confidence, Arthur remained unusually calm.
He took a sip of the coffee, its bitterness tempered by the milk, “I thought I could escape the world of favors by changing locations, but it seems that no matter where you go, you have to play this game. Advancement in the government is all about connections, and this is after the reforms. I can’t even imagine how corrupt and chaotic things were before the civil service reforms.”
Eld grabbed a biscuit and threw it into his mouth, “The old days? Those were wild times. My uncle told me that in the late 18th century, when he was just a regular captain, buying and selling positions in the Admiralty was almost out in the open.
The Paymaster of the Navy, Charles Middleton, made a fortune just by selling off his subordinates’ positions, earning 300 guineas annually. He didn’t even bother going to work himself, but instead, he used 500 pounds from his salary to hire someone to handle his work. He then took the rest of his salary and the money from selling positions to gamble on horses and cards, living a life of luxury.”
Arthur stroked his chin, “I’m not surprised about such things happening in the Admiralty. After all, you guys have higher salaries. If it were the Home Office, it wouldn’t be so easy to get away with it, right?”
Eld raised an eyebrow, “Yeah, the salaries of the Home Office clerks and their subordinate departments are notoriously low. Because of this, the Home Office’s chief clerk would spend 60 pounds to find someone to do his job.
On the other hand, he also took bribes to substitute for high-ranking officials in the Court of Chancery. I saw in my parliamentary report that he seemed to be able to earn 227 pounds and 3 shillings a year for this part-time job, which was much higher than his actual job salary.”
Upon hearing this, Arthur couldn’t help but widen his eyes and stare at Eld for a long time.
Eld felt uncomfortable being stared at and asked dissatisfiedly, “What are you looking at me for?”
Arthur put down his coffee cup and apologized to Eld with a feeling of guilt, “Eld, it seems I’ve been misunderstanding you all along.”
“Misunderstanding me? What do you mean?” Eld chewed his biscuit nonchalantly.
Arthur sighed, “I always thought you were just reading some erotic literature. I never imagined you’d be reading parliamentary reports.”
Eld snorted, “What do you know? Parliamentary reports are much dirtier than erotic literature. Sometimes what they write in there is worse than the sewers of the East End. Arthur, pity me, the ambitious young Eld Carter is dead. Standing before you now is just a shell filled with desires. Corruption and embezzlement are always my favorite topics.
Things like embezzling public funds to earn interest are just child’s play within the civil service. If I hadn’t read the parliamentary reports, I wouldn’t believe they could turn embezzlement into an art form.
They first record the treasury books in Arabic numerals, then translate them into formal Latin for transcription. They make their first changes when reporting to the Treasury, and the Treasury makes another change when making the budget. When the budget is distributed to the various departments, they make changes again. With so many changes and transcriptions, it’s normal for there to be errors. They take advantage of these errors to manipulate the accounts.
Just by doing this, the War Office has an unaccounted deficit of 40,000 to 50,000 pounds every year. The Land Revenue Department’s tax collectors were supposed to pay 390,000 pounds in 1780, but they actually paid a lot less.”
Arthur couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow, “While I know the financial audit offices of each department are usually useless, in 1780, just the Land Revenue Department’s revenue could be short by 390,000 pounds. Is that an exaggeration? Even if the audit office hired someone to do their job, they wouldn’t be incompetent to that extent, right?”
Eld cursed and pounded the table with his fist, “The audit office? Those bastards are the ones who’ve eaten the most! When we were fighting the American Revolutionary War against those rebels, two auditors in the War Office received 16,565 pounds and 10,331 pounds in tips alone in a year. Think about it, why would people give them so much in tips for no reason?”
Hearing this, Arthur couldn’t help but laugh and scold, “Eld, you remember too much, even down to the single digits. If you could use this memory for scientific research, even your beloved Isaac Newton wouldn’t be able to shake your position.”
Eld nodded in agreement, “To be honest, I always thought Isaac Newton’s ability to develop calculus was inseparable from his position as Master of the Mint. If I could get his position, my math skills would definitely improve greatly. I’m not interested in writing formulas on paper. But if you send me to count money, I have to overcome the Carter family’s poor mathematical aptitude passed down through generations.”
Arthur replied with a smile, “But instead of becoming a Lord Chancellor, you should shamelessly borrow some money from your uncle to study at the Inns of Court. As long as you can get a lawyer’s license, if you join the Court of Chancery in the future, I guarantee you’ll make a fortune.
You know, since the Long Parliament was established in 1640 after the overthrow of Charles I, judges’ income has always been high. Back then, their salaries were fixed at 1000 pounds a year, and this money was directly allocated from customs revenue, not even affected by the Treasury’s budget.
After the Act of Settlement was passed in 1701, they received many legal extra incomes besides their fixed salaries, such as the appointment fees of court clerks under their jurisdiction, judgment fees, settlement lawsuit fees, office supply fees, and a whole bunch of other subsidies that I can’t even name. These miscellaneous incomes add up to at least five or six hundred pounds.
Of course, some judges might have acquired wealth through illegal channels that we don’t know about. For example, when the Beer Bill didn’t pass recently, the issuance of tavern licenses also required permission from local magistrates.”
According to Eld’s personality, he would have been ecstatic when he heard these things, but Mr. Carter, who had just been talking about corruption and embezzlement, was now silent.
He stirred his coffee with a spoon, his brow furrowed as if he were listening to something.
Seeing his expression, Arthur was about to ask him what was wrong.
Unexpectedly, Eld raised his hand and interrupted him, his ears twitching, “Shush! Don’t make a sound, I think I hear a beautiful lady crying.”
“A lady crying?”
Arthur looked around the coffee shop. Early in the morning, there were only a few customers. He quickly found the person Eld was referring to.
On the seat in the east corner of the hall, he saw a lady wearing a beige wide-brimmed hat.
The Red Devil, who had been leaning against the window, saw her and couldn’t help but press his hands to his chest and start reciting poetry praising her appearance.
“Black hair, simply and elegantly combed back into a bow.
Underneath two delicate eyebrows, a pair of black eyes filled with sorrow. That proud, straight nose complements the curve of her lips.
Her quiet, serene lips are tightly closed. A bleak life has stolen your smile. Your broad forehead cannot change the narrowness in his heart.
Oh, my girl, why do you entrust your destiny to others?
Think hard with your determined, wide forehead, who is the Messiah who can save your fate?”
The Red Devil was in a poetic mood. As the first literary critic in Britain, Arthur couldn’t help but glance at him and comment, “Fate? And Messiah? Quite a mystical vibe!”
Eld thought Arthur was mocking him and couldn’t help but glare at him, “Arthur, what are you saying?”
“Nothing.” Arthur raised his chin and slightly gestured towards the lady who was silently wiping away tears in the corner, “That lady crying, I think we know her.”
“You know her?”
Eld’s eyes widened in disbelief, he lowered his voice and cursed, “Arthur, damn it, how do you know every woman? You’ve become the Paganini of Scotland Yard? A charming musical master?
Playing the violin is just to make a living? European tours are just a side hustle? Paganini’s hands that grasp the wings of music, one reaches into dirty casinos, the other into the stinky tents of courtesans.
And you, your hands that can perform exquisite Fiore di Battaglia swordsmanship, one reaches into the dirty East End of London, where are you planning to reach with the other?”
Arthur pressed his hands down, signaling him to calm down, “Don’t get excited, Eld. I have one hand in the East End of London, and the other is dedicated to the field of electromagnetic research. Of course, I can’t guarantee that the plot will continue this way. Because if I get fired this time, the hand I pulled out of the East End of London might consider reaching for another place.”
Eld pointed a finger at him as a warning, “My problem isn’t solved yet. Alexander, that pompous ass, already has a son. Charles is secretly hooking up with some mysterious girl. If you get ahead of me, how can I face living in Lancaster Gate?”
Arthur apologized, “You can move out if you don’t want to live there. I’ve always advocated for freedom of movement, so I wouldn’t force you to stay.”
“Ah…” Eld covered his face, looking heartbroken, “Arthur, I didn’t expect you to value our friendship so little. Are you forcing me to sleep on the streets?”
“Sleep on the streets? You’re my friend, how could I watch you sleep on the streets?”
Hearing this, Eld snorted and folded his arms, “You still have some conscience.”
Seeing his expression, Arthur smiled and said, “Eld, have you forgotten my profession? I’m a policeman. If I catch you sleeping on the streets, I’ll definitely send you to jail. You know, especially in an area like next to Hyde Park.”
Eld was about to argue with Arthur when the coffee shop’s bell rang and a gentleman in a black top hat walked in.
Arthur glanced at the man and suddenly lowered his hat slightly, covering his eyes.
Eld was taken aback, “What are you doing? We were just joking, no need to be so guilty.”
Arthur didn’t say anything more about Eld’s thickheadedness, he just mumbled, “Viscount Melbourne? What is he doing here?”
(End of Chapter)