He Opened A Matchmaking Agency In 18Th Century London [EN]: Chapter 138

138. A Sinister Scheme

In the carriage heading back to the company from Duke Garrett’s mansion, Tae-oh pondered.

‘Duke Garrett said he was searching for Dylan Edwards, the eldest son of the family, on behalf of his brother, the then-Duke Bentley…’

If so, he was highly likely to have discovered that Dylan had a son in Liverpool and then left for North America.

However, according to the autobiography, he didn’t tell his brother, Duke Bentley, about this.

Instead, it seemed he had said that Dylan had disappeared from England with a maid, and his destination was unknown.

He even mentioned a shipwreck due to severe storms or pirates, suggesting he might have been on one of those ships. Garrett’s actions would have further obscured Dylan’s whereabouts.

Moreover, the fire that completely destroyed the archives of the Liverpool parish, where traces of Dylan’s marriage and his son’s birth were kept, conveniently covered up Garrett’s lies.

‘The church burned down a few months before Duke Bentley’s second son died suddenly. Considering when Garrett started looking for Dylan, he didn’t intentionally set fire to the local parish archives… It seems the fire happened by chance, which gave Garrett even more confidence.’

After Bentley’s death, Garrett naturally inherited the title of Duke and decided to poison Dylan’s family living in North America, preparing for any possible future issues.

‘Garrett had to prepare for the possibility of Dylan returning to London. He wouldn’t have been at ease until he had completely eliminated Dylan’s son, Leo, to prevent any future troubles.’

He succeeded in poisoning the family and killing Dylan as planned, but he failed to kill his son, Leo.

‘Seeing his emotions waver as soon as I mentioned that Leo had survived the poisoning and was sold to Jamaica, it seems Duke Garrett still believes Leo died with Dylan.

But given Duke Garrett’s personality, he wouldn’t have just believed it. At the time, he must have obtained some definite information in various ways that the entire family had been poisoned. That’s why he has been so certain that Leo is dead.’

Reaching this point, Tae-oh understood why Duke Garrett had confidently requested him to reveal Leo’s identity.

‘He was trying to use our company’s credibility to publicly expose Leo as a fake. Confident that Leo was dead, the Duke was showing confidence to the people and trying to wrap things up quickly.

Indeed… Now I understand why he rushed to publish his autobiography more than a decade after killing Dylan’s family with poison. Garrett, who had become a Duke through illegitimate means, was always on edge. Then he heard rumors of Leo causing a stir in Jamaica. So, he tried to use the ‘public sphere’ to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances.’

Public sphere.

From the early 18th century, the ‘public sphere,’ which can be considered the public opinion of today, rapidly gained power in England and exerted a strong influence throughout society.

The main roles were played by various daily newspapers and magazines published in major cities, including London.

The first daily newspaper appeared in London in 1702, and their numbers rapidly increased. After 1760, there were four daily newspapers published every day, more than six newspapers published every other day, and magazines like the *Gentleman’s Magazine* had sales of nearly 10,000 copies.

There were also nearly 30 local newspapers, and their circulation reached 1,000 to 2,000 copies, with many people reading and exchanging opinions.

Cultural media such as printed materials, which had previously been consumed only by a small number of aristocrats, were now largely shifting to the middle class. As a result, a forum for public opinion, which had not been seen before, was expanding its influence through various clubs, coffee houses, and reading groups.

Among those who recognized this change, some solved problems by steering the public sphere in a direction favorable to themselves.

A nobleman who had been sentenced to death for forging important documents appropriately packaged his misfortune through newspapers, arousing people’s sympathy.

Thanks to this, he raised a huge amount of money from all over England and succeeded in creating public opinion that it was unreasonable and excessive to carry out the death penalty.

In the end, he not only avoided execution but was also able to be released by paying the received donations as bail.

‘Duke Garrett, always anxious about his actions, was keenly aware of the unpleasant rumors related to his family coming from Jamaica. Even though he thought it was unlikely, his cautious nature made him worry in many ways.

In particular, he was likely anxious that the contractors he had hired might cause trouble to extort money.

However, he judged that even if he found and eliminated those contractors again, it could become another excuse.

So, he created favorable public opinion through a heartfelt autobiography, preparing in advance with the idea that even if the feared event occurred, he could win through litigation with the support of public opinion.’

18th-century England emphasized fairness in property rights and court proceedings more than expected, and it had a reasonably modern legal framework.

However, jurors showed a strong tendency to follow the public opinion of the public sphere.

Therefore, unless the evidence was clear, if the evidence between the parties was insufficient and there was only circumstantial evidence, the side that overwhelmed public opinion was absolutely dominant, which was a characteristic of the jury system.

Knowing this well, Duke Garrett hired the best ghostwriter to write an autobiography about himself, succeeding in arousing sympathy.

The problem was that he made the fatal mistake of being certain that Leo Edwards, who appeared as the rightful heir to the Duke’s family, was a fake.

Duke Garrett firmly believed that Dylan’s family had all been poisoned.

So, he seemed to have judged that a child who had learned about Dylan’s family for some reason was using the name ‘Leo,’ and was lying under the instructions of his younger brother, Jeffrey.

Moreover, he solidified his suspicion that it was a lie based on the rumor that he was born and raised in Jamaica, not North America, and confidently asked Tae-oh to verify Leo’s identity.

‘If he had known that Leo had survived the poisoning and gone to Jamaica, he would never have come to me and asked me to verify Leo’s identity.’

Duke Garrett was well aware of the public’s trust in the information provided by Theo’s [Tae-oh’s] matchmaking company.

He was confident that if he used Tae-oh’s public credibility along with his autobiography, he could win in court even if the real Duke’s family son returned alive.

‘Hmm… A terrifying man who poisoned his entire family to obtain the title of Duke. If he is gripped by the fear that this fact will be revealed, it means Leo Edwards could be in danger…’

Tae-oh didn’t know what Garrett would do after hearing what he had said and sensing the crisis.

Tae-oh turned his head and shouted to the coachman.

“Noel! Don’t go to the company, head straight to Covent Garden!”

“Yes? Covent Garden?”

“Yes!”

“Yes, sir! Giddy-up!”

Tae-oh’s eyes grew anxious.

It’s more frightening to try to protect the Duke’s title that you barely grabbed than to plot to get the Duke’s title in the first place.

Besides, he is the current Duke. The power of an 18th-century Duke could not be ignored.

* * *

At the same time, in the study of Duke Garrett Edwards.

Duke Garrett was pacing around the study, deep in thought.

The Duke was still convinced that Leo from Jamaica was not real, but he was reviewing each and every detail to see if he had made any mistakes.

‘The South Carolina newspaper clearly reported that Dylan’s family had all died. The contractor also sent me the church’s funeral rites and the doctor’s autopsy records. There’s no way that Leo is Dylan’s real son!’

Rather, he was more concerned that investigating Leo Edwards’ identity might reveal what he had done.

Above all, Duke Garrett was very uneasy about Theo Sanderson’s [Tae-oh’s] involvement in this matter.

‘He’s the tenacious guy who revealed the real culprit behind Earl Burns, who was about to be hanged. I don’t know why, but he needlessly interferes in other people’s affairs and is a crazy guy who feels great joy in digging things up and being praised.’

Suddenly, Duke Garrett felt dizzy and gripped the edge of the desk tightly.

‘Am I getting old? Why am I so worried about unnecessary things?’

The current Theo Sanderson [Tae-oh] was someone even the Duke could not treat carelessly.

If he rashly messed around, it could reach the ears of King George, who was his backer.

Moreover, he boasted close friendships with prominent families in London, such as the Manners ducal family and the Kent family, which was comparable to the ducal family.

He didn’t know what kind of backlash he might face from the powerful figures in London if he tried to attack Sanderson.

‘Ha- I shouldn’t have used Sanderson… I tried to catch a rabbit easily, but I ended up calling a lion.’

Now that Sanderson [Tae-oh] was certain to have smelled something, he had to get rid of Leo Edwards quickly by any means.

‘Now, it doesn’t matter whether Leo is Dylan’s real son or not. Before things get any noisier, I have to shut that guy’s mouth somehow.’

After pondering, Duke Garrett suddenly called for the butler.

“Conrad! Conrad!”

The butler rushed into the study.

“Yes, Master!”

“Go to Jeffrey’s house in Covent Garden immediately and have someone find out if the girl who came with Leo Edwards is at that house!”

“Yes? Why is that?”

“Don’t ask why, just secretly ask the housekeepers or maids! Whether she is still staying at that house.”

“Yes, I understand!”

◈ Covent Garden, Jeffrey Edwards’ house.

Everyone seemed surprised by Tae-oh’s sudden visit.

“I apologize for visiting without notice. I had something important to tell Lord Leo, so I rushed over.”

Jeffrey waved his hand and said.

“No, it’s okay. You’re here because of our nephew’s problem. We are always welcome. Hehe.”

He looked greatly encouraged by Tae-oh’s interest in Leo.

At that moment, Tae-oh noticed the young lady standing next to Leo.

She was a beautiful young lady with light brown hair and intelligent eyes.

It seemed to be Miss Laura Robinson, who had come to London with Leo.

Tae-oh smiled and asked.

“Ah, is this the lady you mentioned before that you are going to marry?”

Laura, who had been a little nervous, brightened up at the word ‘marriage.’

She seemed quite pleased that Leo had told Tae-oh, a famous person, about her.

“Hello? I’m Laura Robinson. I’ve heard so much about Lord Sanderson’s reputation since I was in Jamaica, and it’s a great honor to meet you in person like this.”

Laura bowed slightly and greeted him politely.

She was a young lady with very bright emotional energy, and she seemed to complement Leo, who had some depression due to his unfortunate circumstances.

He could quickly understand why Leo looked so happy when he talked about her.

‘There are cases of soulmates, and looking at their emotions, it seems like just such a case.’

But now was not the time to examine the bond between the two men and women.

Since he didn’t know when Duke Garrett’s interference would begin, his priority was to move them to his safe house quickly.

“The reason I came here today is…”

Tae-oh suggested that they stay at his house for various reasons, including resolving future problems and Leo’s marriage.

Jeffrey was greatly pleased with Tae-oh’s efforts to actively protect Leo, believing that his sincerity had been conveyed.

“Of course! You must do that. As I said before, Garrett is a really scary man. He’s the kind of person who doesn’t know what he’ll do if he finds out there’s a grandson here. Of course!”

Jeffrey’s wife also subtly welcomed Tae-oh’s proposal.

She was already suffering from living together in a cramped house.

Leo Edwards, who had already opened his heart, was deeply grateful for Tae-oh’s consideration and willingly decided to follow him.

“Then, would you like to prepare now and come out? I’ll take you in my carriage.”

“Yes, thank you. Then I’ll prepare and come down.”

Since they didn’t have much luggage, the two lovers, who had finished preparing right away, left Jeffrey’s house with Tae-oh.