There is little doubt in my mind that in these worried powerful circles the visit would have been explained as, “he went to inspect his old farm back in obvious hope of/preparation for moving back onto it.”
Me queda la pequeña duda de si en esos preocupados círculos de poder la visita haya sido explicada como "fue a inspeccionar su antigua granja con la esperanza obvia de prepararse para trasladarse a ella".