novelAbuy Chapter 3 Family and Initial Public Offering Shares
Chapter 3 Family and Initial Public Offering Shares
"Dividing the spoils?" Fiona clearly didn't understand the exact meaning of the word, but she could sense that it was definitely not the same as the "sharing" that the priest in the church talked about.
Li Wei offered no explanation. He walked back to the box of tea and used a crowbar to completely open the lid.
A full box of black, strip-shaped tea leaves seemed to gleam with an ebony sheen in the dimly lit warehouse.
"Three hundred and forty pounds, that's our capital."
Li Wei plunged his palm into the tea leaves, feeling their dry and rough texture, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"What happened last night will be known throughout Boston today. Governor Gage will definitely blockade the port, and the British army will surround the area completely. At that time, tea will be more valuable than gold."
Fiona only partially understood, but she grasped the key point: "Is this thing very valuable?"
"It's very valuable," Li Wei nodded. "But we can't just sell it like that. Selling the raw tea directly would be too conspicuous, and the price would be easily driven down. We need to turn it into... well, something everyone needs, but something inconspicuous."
As he spoke, he pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket; it was a prescription for syphilis that he had taken from a dead ship's doctor.
He unfolded the prescription in front of Fiona.
"Look, many of the herbs on this, such as licorice and juniper berries, have their own flavor. We can grind tea leaves into powder, mix them with these herbs, repackage them, and sell them under different names."
"Who will they be sold to?"
"Two kinds of people." Li Wei held up two fingers.
"The first type is the wealthy men in the city. They must be feeling restless because they have nowhere to drink tea now. We can take the best tea leaves, package them in small packets, and disguise them as 'Oriental miracle drugs' or 'health powders to refresh the mind,' and sell them to them at high prices. Remember, the more mysterious it is, the more they will believe it."
Fiona's eyes lit up; she seemed to understand the Easterner's line of thinking.
"And what about the second type of person?"
"The second type," Levi's lips curled into a sly smile, "is sold to ordinary people on the street, or even to those British lobster soldiers."
"Sell it to them?" Fiona exclaimed in surprise. "They're the enemy!"
"They are customers," Li Wei corrected.
"The soldiers' lives are tough; it's just bread, salted meat, and rum every day. We can take those broken tea leaves, mix them with some cheap spices and sugar, and make something like... well, let's call it 'instant energy tea bags.' Just a small packet, throw it in water, and you can drink it. It's cheap, and you can still taste the tea. They'll like it."
Fiona was completely stunned by Levi's line of thinking.
What's going on in this Eastern man's head?
He actually wanted to sell a box of tea to both the "patriots" who were trying to gain independence and the British soldiers who came to suppress them.
"This...this is insane."
“That’s business,” Levi said, looking at her. “And you, Miss Fiona Cahill, are now my partner. This case of tea includes a portion for you.”
"My share?" Fiona pointed to herself, somewhat incredulous.
She was just a runaway maid, penniless.
"Yes." Li Wei nodded, his expression serious.
"I saved your life, and you helped me move my things. We were equals last night. So, for this shipment, I get 70%, and you get 30%."
"You'll handle the errands and sales, especially selling to our fellow Irishmen and 'Sons of Liberty.' I'll handle production, supply, and dealing with the 'big shots.' What do you think?"
Fiona's heart was pounding.
Thirty percent! She never imagined in her life that she could own thirty percent of a fortune.
She looked at Li Wei, the man who had not only given her a new life, but was now also going to give her a career.
She knew perfectly well that he could treat her like an ordinary servant, or even like that bastard from last night.
But he didn't. He gave her a choice and respect.
"Why?" she couldn't help but ask, "You could have... taken it all for yourself."
Li Wei gave her a deep look, his eyes seeming to hold something Fiona couldn't understand.
"Because one person cannot accomplish anything."
"In this land, we are all outsiders. Yellow-skinned, Irish, we are all the same. If we don't want to be bullied, to be treated like dogs, we have to stick together. You are my first 'family,' and my first 'share'. I need you, Fiona."
Fiona didn't understand the term "original shares" again.
But the word "family" was like a warm current, slowly flowing into the softest part of her heart.
Her eyes welled up, and she almost cried again. But she forced herself to hold back and simply nodded vigorously.
She straightened her chest, making her breasts, wrapped in coarse cloth maid's clothing, appear exceptionally prominent, forming a breathtaking curve. "However, I don't want 30%."
"Hmm?" Li Wei was somewhat surprised. Could it be that 30% was not enough?
"I want 20%. The remaining 10% is me buying you outright. After that, you'll continue to protect me."
Li Wei was stunned.
He looked at the girl in front of him, who had just been like a frightened deer, but now she was bargaining with him like a shrewd businesswoman.
She wasn't rejecting them; rather, she was using a smarter way to bind their relationship even tighter.
What she wanted was not simply a distribution of profits, but a long-term, reliable commitment.
This woman is no ordinary person.
Li Wei suddenly burst into laughter, laughing at himself for saving a clever man.
"Okay! Deal!" He held out his hand.
Fiona reached out and took his hand.
His hands were large and strong, covered with thick calluses, yet unusually warm.
"Alright, Ms. Shareholder." Li Wei released his grip, reverting to his businesslike demeanor.
"Now, let's talk about our first deal. The owner of Parker's Grocery Store in the north of town is a real penny-pincher, but he's got some connections. I need you to go there and buy some things. Licorice, mint, juniper berries, a small sack, and..."
He paused, then pulled out several dozen pennies from his pocket, stuffed them into Fiona's hand, and lowered his voice.
"...Also, go to the black market and ask if anyone sells gunpowder and lead bullets. Ask how many they have. We need something to protect ourselves."
Fiona took the penny, feeling its cold touch, and nodded heavily.
"Leave it to me."
She turned around and walked out of the warehouse without any hesitation, like a gust of wind.
Li Wei watched her figure disappear into the light at the doorway, and the smile on his face slowly faded.
He walked to the deepest part of the warehouse, moved aside a pile of miscellaneous items, and revealed a huge stone slab underneath.
He struggled to lift the stone slab, revealing a shallow cellar underneath.
The cellar contained the only "legacy" he had when he came into this world.
A long, narrow object tightly wrapped in tarpaulin.
He untied the oilcloth, revealing a rifled flintlock musket, meticulously maintained and gleaming, made in the small Belgian town of Liège.
Beside it was a leather bag containing dozens of specially made Minié bullets and a small canister of the purest gunpowder.
This was a bet he "won" from a drunken British officer at the Thirteen Factories in Guangzhou.
This is his biggest secret, and also his deepest trump card.
"Family..." Levi murmured, stroking the cold barrel of the gun. "I hope... you won't let me down, Fiona."