Chapter 643: Fontaine's Noble History
As the dance music ended, the party also came to an end.
Ying jokingly commented on Shao Yun's dancing movements just now.
She tilted her head slightly, with a naughty smile on her lips, and said, "Shao Yun, I really thought you would accidentally step on my foot while dancing just now!"
After saying this, she stamped her feet lightly.
Faced with Ying's teasing, Shao Yun just smiled faintly, revealing a little helplessness.
"I'll give it back to you in the same way."
……
On the other side, Navia and Clorinde were also exchanging their views on the dance performance after the music ended.
Navia excitedly gave Clorinde a thumbs up and praised her generously, "Wow, Clorinde, you are amazing! I'll give you a full score for your performance just now!"
There was a gleam in her eyes, and she was obviously impressed by Clorinde's excellent dancing.
However, Clorinde remained expressionless and did not seem particularly happy about Navia's praise.
She replied calmly: "Don't be so exaggerated, Navia. In fact, it was you who was leading me just now. I don't know what I did."
Although she said this modestly, her slightly red cheeks showed that deep down she was quite satisfied with her performance.
……
Looking at Furniture and Paimon, the situation is somewhat different.
After dancing, Paimon was now floating in the air, looking dizzy and lost.
"Wow, I feel so tired from dancing. My head is almost spinning like a top!" As he said this, he rubbed his temples with his hands to relieve the dizziness.
Seeing this, Finina, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but frowned, looked at Paimon with a slightly disgusted look, and complained mercilessly.
"Paimon, Paimon, I have to admit, you really don't have any talent for dancing..."
Hearing this, Paimon's eyes widened immediately and he retorted angrily: "Humph! No, I just ate a little too much and I'm not in good shape! I will definitely be able to dance better than you next time!"
……
The gorgeous ball came to an end, and the celebration party after the troupe's performance also ended.
The upper-class people from Fontaine who had come to attend the salon began to leave in an orderly manner.
After Shao Yun and his group said goodbye to the members of the troupe, they followed closely and prepared to leave.
When the group arrived at the door of the salon venue, Ying stopped and the scenes that took place at the salon party tonight flashed quickly through her mind.
Suddenly, she turned her head, looked at Shao Yun with clear eyes, and asked, "Shao Yun, I have a question for you. Why would the daughter of the Blanchett family take the initiative to invite you to dance?"
When Shao Yun heard Ying ask this question, he was stunned at first. When he was about to answer that he didn't know, he suddenly remembered that Villette had offended Funina because of his straight-man remarks.
When he thought of this, Shao Yun couldn't help but wonder secretly, could it be that Ying was using this to express some kind of dissatisfaction to him?
So, he responded in a heart-pounding tone: "You don't like her?"
Then he added, "Blanchet...I'll remember this last name. When I find the right opportunity, I'll pay you a visit in person."
Ying, who was originally just out of curiosity, never expected that Shao Yun would understand her words so well.
She instantly realized that Shao Yun seemed to have misunderstood her meaning, and thought that she was jealous because the rich lady invited Shao Yun, which made Shao Yun want to destroy her entire family.
Ying panicked immediately and waved her hands to dissuade him, "Don't! Shao Yun, don't be impulsive, I'm just asking casually!"
"I'm just curious. After all, there were so many choices of dance partners at that time. Why did she come straight to you and choose you?"
Just then, Furninna came closer.
She raised her chin slightly, with a barely perceptible arrogance in her eyes, and said, "It seems that you know very little about Fontaine!"
Seeing that Funina seemed to know everything, Shao Yun asked with great interest, "Oh? Then may I ask Miss Funina, what do you think about this?"
Hearing Shao Yun's question, Fu Nina first smiled gently, and then reminded him slowly: "Do you remember what I said when I led you into the meeting place just now? About the income review bill of the Fontaine nobles."
“Actually, there are many more details.”
Then, after a brief pause, Fernina began to narrate the long history of the gradual decline of the Fontaine nobility.
"With the arrival of the first flood period, the manors and lands of the Fontaine nobles that were located in the wild were submerged in the sea."
"This sudden change caused many nobles to lose their stable source of income in an instant, and the foundation of their wealth that they once took pride in disappeared just like that."
"Not only that, the noble income review bill promulgated by Villette that year cut off many of the nobles' secret black and gray income channels."
"The nobles who were able to rely on these improper means to maintain a luxurious life have either entered Melopensky or gone bankrupt." At this point, Finina couldn't help but shook her head.
"Because of this, even today, among the nobles of Fontaine, only a few who own their own businesses and run them well can still live a life of extravagance."
"Most of the other nobles only have so-called noble titles. In fact, their living standards are not much different from those of ordinary citizens."
Upon hearing that the nobles of Fontaine were so destitute, Paimon asked suspiciously, "Oh? Is this true?"
At this moment, Clorinde interrupted and confirmed in a firm tone: "It is absolutely true! Even now, I have fought many nobles in that duel field."
"Some of them were involved in those shady gray industries. After being exposed, they chose to duel with me in order to defend themselves and exonerate themselves... The result... I don't need to tell you, you should understand."
Then, Funina continued her history class.
"That's why, if they can establish a relationship with the rich, these fallen nobles can continue their living standards through marriage."
"And for those rich people, having a noble title on their heads naturally gives them more capital to show off and brag to others."
Having said that, Fu Nina paused for a moment, then pointed at the clothes Shao Yun was wearing and continued.
"Coincidentally, the clothes Shao Yun is wearing today make him look like a nouveau riche."
"It must be for this reason that the daughter of the Blanchett family is wondering if she can get in touch with him."
After listening to Funina's explanation of the cause and effect logic, Paimon suddenly realized and said, "Oh, so that's how it is! I understand. It seems that not all Fontaine nobles are as rich as described in the Fontaine detective novels?"
Furninna nodded in agreement and spoke earnestly about a very realistic truth.
"That's right. Only rich nobles are qualified to be called nobles. A noble without money may live worse than a beggar."
Upon hearing the words "worse than a beggar", Paimon couldn't help but widen his eyes, feeling indescribable surprise and confusion in his heart.
She really couldn't imagine that a once prominent and fallen noble would fall to the level of being compared with a beggar living on the streets.
No matter how poor you are, you can't compare yourself to a beggar! This is completely beyond her understanding of the life of the nobility.
"What does 'worse than a beggar' mean?" Paimon asked impatiently.
Furninna began to explain slowly.
"Some nobles, deep down in their hearts, always believe that they are naturally superior to others. Even if they are so poor that they can only rely on cheap bread to fill their stomachs, they still pretend to be superior."
"They would borrow money to wear gorgeous clothes to cover up their poor living conditions."
"Even when eating, they had to use silver knives and forks to smear expired butter bought from the market, and then strictly follow the cumbersome dining etiquette to enjoy the bland, tasteless meal."
"What's even more ridiculous is that in such a difficult and harsh situation, they are still immersed in the glorious memories of the past and have unrealistic fantasies all day long."
At this point, Finina paused and continued, "Moreover, even if their families are already heavily in debt, these nobles still want to save face and have to hire maids and housekeepers to maintain their superficial glory."
"But in reality, the seemingly magnificent house they lived in had already been completely emptied out!"
Listening to Funina talking endlessly about the ugly behaviors of the Fontaine nobles, Paimon couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
The image of the nobles of Mondstadt involuntarily emerged in her mind, especially the Lawrence family.
The Lawrence family once had endless glory and wealth, but as time went on, they gradually lost themselves in power and desire, and eventually fell into decline and destruction...
Now that I think about it, perhaps those nobles of Mondstadt are similar in some ways to the nobles of Fontaine that Funina mentioned...
Paimon put his mouth close to Ying's ear and whispered in a voice that only the two of them could hear.
"So, this is why the Lawrence family is so crazy. The pride in their bones does not allow them to be on an equal footing with ordinary people..."
Ying said with mixed feelings: "Almost... Well, let's not mention this last name. Everything ended that night."
Paimon sighed, sighing helplessly at the reality, and said: "Ah... It feels so complicated..."
……
After Funina told some interesting gossip about the old nobles of Fontaine.
She suddenly turned her gaze to Shao Yun and teased with a sly smile: "Mr. Shao Yun, you have to be mentally prepared in advance. Maybe soon a large number of love letters will fly in front of you like a flood!"
When Shao Yun heard this, his face instantly turned gloomy, and he said in a bad tone: "Is this the so-called benefit you mentioned before?
"Well, you actually dared to plot against me! Humph, it seems that if I don't give you a good beating today, you won't know your own limitations!"
As he spoke, Shao Yun clenched his fists tightly, and there was a crackling sound from the joints.
Seeing that Shao Yun was really angry, and his aggressive look was really scary, Fu Ningna thought to herself that something was wrong, and quickly dodged and hid behind Ying.
Then she stuck half of her head out, with a playful smile on her face, and begged for mercy: "Oh, Mr. Shao Yun, I'm just joking with you, don't take it seriously!"
"Besides, when you dance with Ying at the ball, those noble ladies will naturally retreat when they see such a talented and beautiful couple!"
Then, perhaps because she felt that she would be safe hiding behind Ying, Funina became bolder.
She reached out her hand and gently pinched Ying's white and tender cheek, and continued with a smile: "Besides, look at how beautiful your Ying is!"
"The delicate facial features, fair skin, and big, lively eyes... are simply flawless! Among all the noble ladies present, who can compare to Ying's beauty?"
"If they really want to compete with Ying without knowing their own limitations, wouldn't that just be asking for trouble and suffering?"
Shao Yun listened to Fu Ningna's generous praise, and his originally tense expression gradually relaxed.
He looked at Ying and found that she was indeed as bright and beautiful as Funina said, and a sense of pride surged in his heart.
But then he coughed again and said in a serious tone, "Well, you are so sweet..."
……