Chapter 93 – If You Trust Me
Whether he was aware of Bianca’s feelings or not, William calmly continued talking.
“But then, Josef gave them permission to break off the engagement, and the plan didn’t happen. We wanted to push that b*tch to the end and completely get rid of her, but Caitlyn suddenly objected.”
Hannes felt his heart trembling again in front of the rather harsh expressions such as ‘that b*tch’ and ‘completely get rid of her.’ He didn’t want to look any more callous in front of his lovely daughter.
“Well, that was your idea. I wasn’t planning on going that far,” Hannes said, as if making an excuse for himself. “Weren’t you the one who was being stubborn? In a way, it was no different than Duke Meyer interfering with a matter he could have handled on his own just fine. Weren’t you the one who dug up things about her and meddled in her affairs?”
“I won’t deny it,” William admitted with a smile. “Well, Caitlyn must have felt the same way. She must have thought that only her family should take on the dangerous and burdensome tasks, of course, including breaking off the engagement.”
Bianca silently nodded her head.
“But I doubt that’s something serious enough to keep me at a distance.”
“I also have the same opinion. I don’t think Madam Meyer kept you at a distance over a merely trivial matter.”
There was silence. After thinking about something deeply, Bianca spoke again.
“I will meet Madam Meyer and listen to her thoughts now that I know how you feel. Again, I would like the three of you to attend Duke Meyer’s graduation ceremony which will be held soon. Nothing like this could be more positive to show to the investors.”
William raised his arms toward Bianca as if agreeing with her thoughts. Then he added, “Entrusting such a difficult burden to the Grand Princess… can I ask you for one more thing?”
“Yes, anything.”
“To be honest, I am more curious about what Duke Meyer is up to than Caitlyn.”
Bianca’s bright eyes slightly dimmed.
“I have no idea what the Duke is thinking. Lately, I’ve even thought of hiring someone to follow the Duke, but I can’t really do that. As you said, we are close allies. There’s nothing good about having a sprout of distrust between us.”
“Are you… doubtful of something?”
William suddenly laughed despondently again.
“Well, actually… I am doubtful of anything in particular. Duke Meyer has complied with our requests and done his part up to this point. I just need a little bit of assurance. How confident is he in our joint venture or whatever alliance there is, what he plans to do with Meyer Steel, his intended wedding date, and other trivial things. You also know that Duke Meyer is known for being difficult to understand. Even Caitlyn, his mother, appears perplexed at times.”
Caitlyn Meyer was an easy opponent for Bianca, but it was different when it came to Hadius. The fact that the person who liked more had more to lose was like an unwritten law between them. Above all, she didn’t want to use such a cowardly method to win that man’s heart.
William Richard, however, didn’t stop tempting her like a serpent extending the tree of knowledge of good and evil in its mouth.
“You are to wed him soon. Therefore, there’s nothing wrong with trying to become close to him or having a meaningful conversation to learn about his true intentions. Anyway, you will be married so there wouldn’t be too much of a big problem with that, don’t you agree?”
Charlotte never told her. The little girl kept her mouth shut and secretly laughed even when she persisted asking her how she had the courage to go to the festival and what in the world Young Master Meyer told her.
“You’ll find out when you go that day.”
Emilia glanced at her little sister and couldn’t help but smile. Hadius and Charlotte’s relationship was no longer in Emilia’s hands.
She’s going to the festival after all. Let’s just forget everything and let her enjoy everything.
Without realizing it, there was a thin smile on Emilia’s lips. Someone then stood in front of her.
“Hey, Elaine.”
It was the chef, Helock. He stared at Emilia’s face and then asked, “Are you feeling better now?”
Although her unexplained fatigue, nausea and dizziness did not completely leave, they subsided quickly and didn’t prevent her from performing her everyday activities.
Emilia responded by raising the corners of her mouth.
“Then that’s a relief. Then could you help Tilly with her work in the afternoon? The goods I ordered from the Waldorf General Store are supposed to arrive, but I am a little short of hands.”
“Yes, I can.”
Just as Chef Helock said, the cart from the general store arrived that afternoon and filled the back door of the restaurant. Emilia diligently carried the meat, fruit and sacks of wheat with the help of the kitchen staff.
While Emilia was emptying the cart and in a frenzy to finish the work, she noticed something. Not far from her, she saw Ingrit bowing her head to an elderly gray-haired gentleman. With a furious expression, the old man angrily opened the account book and pointed his finger at Ingrit. Not knowing what to do, Ingrit could only vigorously rub the back of her neck.
Emilia approached Helock with a worried look.
“Did something happen with Ingrit?”
Turning his head to the direction Emilia pointed, a sigh escaped from Helock’s lips.
“Ingrit’s being scolded.”
“Sco… scolded?”
“Yes, that man over there is her father, Mr. Angel.”
Emilia was so startled that her mouth was left open. Come to think of it, the skinny woman sort of resembled the gray-haired old man. Helock told her more surprising things.
“Although Mr. Angel is a commoner like us, he is so wealthy that everyone in Reinsburgh knows who he is. He is also a very successful businessman, buying wholesale spices.”
Emilia looked at Ingrit with nothing more than a surprised expression.
“Then why is he scolding his daughter?”
“Ingrit set up this shop despite her father’s objections. She told him that she didn’t want to get married and that she wanted to start a business.”
When [Emilia] first met her, she was a little surprised that her boss was a woman.
“But is business something that could be done with a penny or two? Because the boss was a woman, it was difficult for her to borrow money, and she had no choice but to go to her father and kneel down to beg. She thought that it would be the last time, so she asked him to invest in her. Mr. Angel lent her the money on the condition that she would show him some results in any form within a month.”
“A month?”
“That’s right. No matter how much of an old maid is his daughter that he couldn’t trust her, it was too much of him. To ask her to give him results within a month after opening a business….”
(T/N: Old maid refers to women who had not married and were way past marriageable age. in the late 1800s, women marry around 18 to 23, and one is considered an old maid once she is past that age.)
Only then did Emilia understand many things. They weren’t simply out of business. Ingrit couldn’t help but to sign almost every time she looked at the account book because of the promise she made with her father.
“But what can she do? Her banker told her to do that.”
Emilia turned her head away from Helock, who was clicking his tongue, and turned back to Ingrit.
In the meantime, as the old man left the restaurant, Ingrit was sighing heavily again as she looked down at the account book with a dark face.
That day as Emilia was about to leave when she finished her work, Ingrit called her back again just as she said goodbye.
“You were right. Those teacups were just imitations. My father learned about it and yelled at me again.”
Emilia didn’t know what to say when she heard the frustration in her voice.
“Today was the worst day ever. I had to listen to the words like stupid woman who doesn’t even understand ‘capital’ in business. It was even from the man called my father.”
“…”
“You know what? I am not really a person who doesn’t know about the capital of business, but it was that old man, who is overly narrow-minded. Although I was tricked into buying those counterfeit items, the finest tableware, silver candlesticks and chandeliers were never purchased out of vanity. I want my guests to feel as if they’ve been invited to the house of a nobleman. Like the luxurious dining rooms inside the mansions lined up in Nowak.”
Emilia looked around the hall. She hadn’t paid attention to it at normal times as she was stuck inside the scullery, but she realized now that it was quite good. Even if it was a little shabby compared to the Basilion House of the Meyer House, it was at least the size of the dining room inside the Cavendish Mansion.
“But shouldn’t you say that to your father? To me, it sounds pretty persuasive.”
Ingrit’s eyes twinkled as if she was touched, but her feeling was fleeting. She sighed deeply again and shook her head.
“I can’t communicate with my father. He thinks that the food business would be over if there was only quantity.” Her face, dark with displeasure, suddenly turned to the ledger. “He has no sense of aesthetics and doesn’t care an ounce about the interior design. He just threatens me to show him the ledger every day. What is so important about this account book though?”
Emilia’s eyes went straight to the chaotically written letters and numbers. Just as Ingrit was naïve enough to be fooled into buying counterfeits last time, the account book was seriously in disarray. Emilia seemed to understand why the old man was angry with her.
Even though she thought that she shouldn’t rashly interfere, Emilia’s mouth moved on its own again.
“By any chance, did your father tell you that you spent too much money?”
“What?” Ingrit raised her head instantly. “… How did you know?”
“It would be difficult for you to earn your father’s trust with an account book like this. As you said, what your father thinks is the most important in business is the account book.”
Her round eyes widened even more.
“From his point of view, he couldn’t help but be angry with you. Since the cost of your expenditure wasn’t clear, he must have thought that you were spending money recklessly.”
Ingrit’s mouth slowly opened. What [Emilia] said was exactly the same as what her father said for her to hear.
“How did you know?”
“I’ve done some bookkeeping,” Emilia replied quietly.
Ingrit scanned her from head to toe. Who on earth are you, really? It was confusing, but one thing was at last clear to her now. That it was just a waste for her to be a dishwasher.
As Ingrit quietly considered that, Emilia raised her head.
“Fathers are human, too, and they sometimes make wrong decisions. But even if it was the wrong way, it must be from their love for their daughter.” Emilia’s eyes suddenly became sad. “If someone asks me what I regret the most in my life, it would be the quarrel with my father. Just like Miss Ingrit, my father decided my life and future at his own disposal. I was very resentful of him at that time, but I regret it a little now.”
“Why?”
“He died. It was all too sudden.”
“Heavens, that’s too… unfortunate.”
The atmosphere became somber. She didn’t mean to make her boss’ heart blacken anymore, so Emilia smiled brightly.
“I hope that boss will reconcile with your father before you regret it like I did.” Emilia said, “Then I will get going.”
At that moment she turned her body around from the counter saying goodbye, “Wait!” Ingrit stopped Emilia. “Didn’t you say earlier you did some bookkeeping?”
“… A little.”
“Then, could you take a look at this account book? I have no idea what the problem is. Just fix it so that my father won’t get angry at the very least.”
The dishwasher’s eyes immediately became complex. Ingrit knew that the woman in front of her was a bit timid and wary.
“I can’t afford to pay a bookkeeper. I feel like grabbing on the last straw now. I will give you extra pay. I can’t give you that much because I don’t know your skills yet, but I will give you more than what you get working inside the scullery.”
It was Emilia’s turn now for her eyes to widen. To show her accounting book to someone she didn’t even know that well, Ingrit must really be a novice in doing business. Of course, Emilia had no reason to refuse.
“Yes, if you trust and leave it to me, I will give it a try.”
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