A few days ago, the The Harper Family’s entrance hall was deserted, but now it has suddenly become bustling with activity!

However, although many people came to inquire, the price made them hesitate. All the brokers’ estimates for the Chen Building kitchen did not exceed 1,500 taels, but the The Harper Family set the price at 2,000 taels. Although the total of 5,000 taels remained unchanged, they only wanted the kitchen of the Chen Building.

It was a case of much thunder but little rain.

Even so, when George Reed heard the news, he flew into a rage and questioned Charles Bennett: “How exactly did you negotiate with them yesterday? Don’t you know that I am determined to get the kitchen of the Chen Building? Now that they are selling it separately, the kitchen might fall into someone else’s hands. Let me tell you, if you mess this up, not only will I not give you a single coin, but you can also forget about any further cooperation between me and your The Bennett Family.”

Facing George Reed’s fury, Charles Bennett remained extremely calm and smiled slightly: “Uncle Reed, please don’t be angry. This is just the The Harper Family playing tricks.”

George Reed was taken aback. “Playing tricks?”

Charles Bennett nodded with a smile and said, “May I be so bold as to ask Uncle Reed, without the kitchen, would the Chen Building still be worth that much?”

George Reed frowned slightly, then slowly sat back down and asked, “What do you mean?”

Charles Bennett said, “Anyone familiar with business would never do this. If the kitchen is sold off, the Chen Building will become worthless. Helen Brooks would never give up earning 5,000 taels just to make 2,000. I think the The Harper Family is trying to disrupt our plans and force us to offer better terms. At this moment, we should keep our cool. I believe Uncle Reed should have full confidence in the Jinyu Building. In and around the capital, who would dare oppose Uncle Reed at Liang Garden?”

George Reed nodded slightly and added, “But in any case, I don’t want any accidents.”

“Please rest assured, Uncle Reed, nothing will go wrong with this deal.”

Although he said this, as soon as he left the Jinyu Building, Charles Bennett’s expression became somewhat anxious. He thought to himself, Sarah, your move is really ruthless. It seems I still underestimated you.

“Sigh...!”

Lying under the big tree in the courtyard, Brian Grant suddenly let out a sigh, casually tossed aside the “Zuo Zhuan” in his hand, rubbed his eyes, and said with a hint of fatigue, “Books like this really aren’t for a vulgar person like me.” He picked up a preserved fruit from the side and popped it into his mouth, stood up, and stretched lazily. “Now that the waters are muddy enough, it’s time for me to fish in troubled waters.”

Early the next morning, Brian Grant left his house, went to the South Gate, and sat down in a teahouse, glancing around intentionally and unintentionally.

As the capital of the Ming Dynasty, Beijing was naturally also an economic hub and a major center of trade, with a constant stream of merchants coming and going from all over.

“No wonder it’s the capital—so prosperous!”

Samuel Scott, a merchant from Suzhou visiting the capital for the first time, couldn’t help but sigh as he stood in front of the city gate.

The servant beside him, carrying a bundle, said, “Master, shall I go and find out where the The Foster Family’s silk shop is?”

Samuel Scott nodded.

Suddenly, a childish voice called out, “Uncle, are you going to the The Foster Family’s silk shop?”

Samuel Scott looked down and saw a boy of about twelve or thirteen looking up at him and smiling, “You know where it is?”

The boy nodded, “I do, I do. I can take you there.”

Samuel Scott looked at the boy warily and asked, “How much do I have to pay you?”

He was a businessman and knew there was no such thing as a free lunch. In fact, whether in Beijing or Nanjing, there were always people who offered to show you the way for a fee.

But the boy shook his head, “No need, no need. This is homework assigned by our teacher, to help us learn the spirit of helping others.”

Hearing this, Samuel Scott smiled slightly. Seeing that the boy was so young, he nodded, “Then I’ll trouble you.”

“No trouble at all, no trouble at all.”

The boy then turned to a few other children nearby and said, “Little James, you all keep playing. I’ll take this uncle to the The Foster Family’s silk shop first.”

Samuel Scott glanced over and saw several children skipping rope on the open ground nearby. He thought, so they were just playing here, and felt even more at ease.

The boy led Samuel Scott into the city, and suddenly, he secretly exchanged a glance with Brian Grant under the wooden shed.

Brian Grant smiled. After all, he’s just a child—still can’t quite keep his composure!

Of course, this was all arranged by him. He had analyzed the problem with the Chen Building: the fatal blow was the end of its cooperation with the court, followed by the fake wine incident that ruined its reputation, and on top of that, Helen Brooks’s poor public relations skills meant it never recovered. So Brian Grant set his sights on these out-of-town merchants, who knew nothing about any of this.

Chapter 0010: Looking at Flowers Through the Mist

“Little Peter?”

After coming out of the The Foster Family’s silk shop, Samuel Scott found that the boy named Peter Clark was still sitting by the wall and asked in surprise, “Why haven’t you left yet?”

Peter Clark stood up and said, “Oh, it’s like this. I forgot to ask Uncle Scott earlier if you still remember the way back. I was a bit worried, so I waited here.”