Leo was reluctant, but Kay never spoke carelessly and would never harm him, so Leo decided to listen to Kay.
Leo nodded reluctantly. Kay patted him on the shoulder: “Let’s go, grab something to eat and then hit the road. This trip to Sablewick is time-sensitive, and we brothers will have to work hard on the road.”
The original plan was to go from Washington to Haborfield, a familiar route. Where to load, where to unload, and which major cities to stop at were all planned. Their cargo was delivered and replenished as needed, and they hadn’t originally planned to go to Sablewick. This business was exceptionally lucrative, high profit and high risk. Kay had smoothed out the Washington-Haborfield route, but not the Sablewick one.
Leo hesitated:
“Going to Sablewick, aren’t we overstepping our boundaries?”
“If the sky falls, there will be tall people to hold it up. Sablewick has its own business opportunities. Your sister-in-law is only limited by capital and connections. Her business acumen is far superior to yours.”
Leo didn’t believe him, and Kay didn’t explain further.
Some things take time to show results. Kay thought Whitaker Scarlett was intelligent, but intelligence and shrewdness were two different things; the former inspires admiration, the latter inspires dislike.
Give a clever person a stage, and what will she become?
Kay looked forward to that day, yet felt an invisible pressure… His possessiveness towards Whitaker Scarlett, from the first moment he saw her, he decided she was his woman. A man should be stronger than his woman, so he could protect her from the wind and rain!
Whitaker Scarlett would transform, and Kay demanded that he himself become even better.
…
Whitaker Scarlett had upgraded from a hard seat to the quiet comfort of a sleeper berth, yet she still attracted attention.
The sleeper car was particularly quiet, passengers didn’t disturb each other. Opposite Whitaker Scarlett’s berth sat a middle-aged man who looked like an intellectual, wearing glasses and reading a newspaper. Even though Whitaker Scarlett was beautiful, he only glanced at her a couple of times, no one harassed her.
A peaceful night passed. She had finished the water she brought, and there was a place in the carriage to get hot water. It was there that Whitaker Scarlett was approached by a chubby middle-aged woman.
The woman had a kind face, wearing a maroon woolen coat, her face heavily made up with white and red, and delicately drawn eyebrows. She looked sleepy as she went to get water, muttering to herself. But the moment Whitaker Scarlett turned around, the woman’s eyes suddenly lit up.
Beautiful!
There were many beautiful girls in the world, but among the truly beautiful ones, some relied on clothes and makeup. Whitaker Scarlett hadn’t bothered with any of that; her beauty was completely natural and captivating. Delicate and charming features, and the chubby woman also noticed Whitaker Scarlett’s alluring figure… To encounter such a perfect specimen on this train, how had she not noticed before?
“Dear girl, didn’t you get any hot water? Why don’t we go to another carriage to get some? I felt an instant connection with you the moment I saw you. Train rides are so boring, why don’t you keep me company?”
The woman was extremely enthusiastic. Whitaker Scarlett was beautiful but dressed plainly, leading the woman to assume she was a young girl on her first long journey.
Were there others traveling with Whitaker Scarlett?
This was the woman’s first consideration.
It didn’t matter; as long as Whitaker Scarlett engaged in conversation with her, she could gradually extract this information.
Unsolicited kindness is either a trick or a crime. If a man showed such enthusiasm, it could be attributed to l**t, but a middle-aged woman?
Whitaker Scarlett decisively refused, “No need, I’ll get water later.”
“Oh! Dear girl? I mean, this young comrade…”
The woman was persistent, following her a few steps, only to find Whitaker Scarlett retreating into her sleeper berth. The woman stamped her foot in frustration. Dressed like a pauper, yet she could afford a sleeper ticket. She wouldn’t mind spending extra for a sleeper berth, but she lacked the connections to get one.
The woman squeezed back to her seat with her empty water bottle. A thin man was extremely impatient:
“Where did you go this morning? You’re going to starve me to death! Give me money to buy some breakfast!”
“Eat, eat, eat, that’s all you ever think about…”
