TVBDS 21

 Chapter 21

“Miss, what is this?”

“It’s preserves. They say that if you do it like this, the fruit can be kept for a long time.”

But when I looked at the finished jars, they seemed far too ordinary.

Hmm, maybe I should add a cute ribbon or something?

Ah! I just thought of a good idea.

“Antoine! Want to draw with me?”

With Antoine’s artistic touch on the apricot illustrations, the preserves finally looked special.

“Oh my, is this Époisses cheese? Just looking at it, I can smell its pungent aroma! Truly splendid work, Master Antoine.”

“…….”

Well, it’s often the case that few people can recognize the true talent of a genius.

Holding the warm jars of preserves, I headed straight to my father’s study.

He’s bound to be pleased.

But there was already someone in the study before me.

“This is an insult to the Marquis. Anyone can see this is unreasonable.”

The voice was so angry it made the heavy door tremble, and I instinctively stopped in my tracks.

“Normally, one should have checked at least once.”

What’s going on?

Instead of opening the door, I tiptoed closer and pressed my ear to the keyhole.

“Marquis, you must refund immediately. There’s nowhere to store all this fabric, and the warehouse is insufficient.”

“It is because of my own mistake that this happened; how can I blame them?”

Hmm. I roughly understood the situation.

It’s a mistaken order.

From what I heard, it seems they overordered fabric meant for sail repairs.

“Sigh… we owe them an apology. But since it’s partly our fault for not checking to the end, request that they refund at least partially, if not fully. And also see if there are merchants willing to buy the excess stock.”

Eventually, a decision about a refund was made.

At that moment, I couldn’t help but fling the study door open.

“That’s not acceptable!”

“Adele?”

Without bothering with formal greetings to the guest, I ran to my father.

“Pleased to see you, I’m Adelaide. But a refund? That’s not acceptable!”

“Adele. You shouldn’t eavesdrop on grown-up conversations.”

“I apologize, but your voices carried down the hallway, didn’t they?”

“Ahem.”

“I don’t know all the details, but if it’s sails for a big ship, the size must be enormous, right? You can’t sell that fabric little by little like clothing, can you? In that case, the contract and payment would have been made at that time.”

“Marquis, this is not the time….”

“Wait, just wait a moment. Let’s cool our heads.”

Encouraged by my father’s willingness to listen, I continued explaining.

“That money has already been spent on raw materials and employee wages. If you ask for it back now, wouldn’t the factory be in trouble?”

“Miss Adelaide, this factory has done business with the Marquis for longer than your age. So if they wanted, they could have notified you anytime, but you never contacted them first. The ones who first broke trust were them, so why should we consider their annoying excuses?”

Hmm. That’s not wrong.

But the world doesn’t always run according to fixed rules.

“That’s their role. They deliver the goods the buyer requests on time once they receive payment. They’ve kept their trust.”

“Then are you saying that my father must take on all this excess stock himself?”

That’s not it either.

“There’s a way to deal with it without a refund.”

“A way? How?”

My father, who had been silently listening, finally reacted.

“Make clothing out of the fabric.”

And very, very sturdy clothing at that.

I focused on the receipt on the desk, specifically the name Serge de Nîmes written there.

“Clothing…?”

Hearing that I meant to make clothes out of sail fabric, a question mark appeared on my father’s face.

“But Adelaide, who likes rough clothes? Everyone prefers softer, smoother garments.”

They only know half the story.

“Father, what kind of fabric is used for good sails?”

“It must resist water, be tough and durable, and also be flame-retardant for safety.”

“Wow. If it’s that kind of fabric, no matter how rough the work is, it won’t tear.”

“Rough work?”

My father furrowed his brow in puzzlement.

Then, as if he realized what I was trying to say, he gasped in admiration.

“Indeed. There’s no better fabric for workwear than this.”

No one dislikes soft clothes.

Likewise, no one enjoys tearing their precious clothes while doing tough work.

Sculptors handling hard stones, blacksmiths dealing with hot metal, and even dockworkers.

“Haha, why didn’t I think of them when going to the port tomorrow? No, no! I used to always tear my clothes as a child and got scolded for it!”

Before I knew it, my father’s gaze was fixed on the air—or rather, the countless possibilities beyond it.

“Do we still have dye in the warehouse? That deep blue one!”

“Indigo, you mean? There should still be some. Are you really going to do it like Miss Adelaide said?”

“Why, does it not seem possible?”

He was silent for a while. Perhaps he thought my reasoning was too weak.

I anxiously clutched my chest, heart racing.

Finally, he opened his mouth.

“No. It’s possible. In fact, it will certainly work.”

“Then it’s settled!”

“Then I’ll contact the factory immediately. What should we call the new fabric?”

After a moment’s thought, my father snapped his fingers.

“Serge de Nîmes! Since it’s made from Serge fabric from the Nîmes region, we can just call it de Nîmes! What a wonderful name, isn’t it?”

“De Nîmes sounds like a new silk name; people will love it.”

“Exactly! Hahaha!”

My father laughed heartily, as if drinking a cold carbonated drink in the middle of a hot summer, and lifted me into the air.

“Thank you, Adele! Thanks to you, not only will the excess stock be cleared, but we’ll also gain even greater profit!”

But that wasn’t all.

There’s something more important than money.

Something that takes time and careful effort to cultivate.

Something that even millions cannot buy.

Trust.

“Even though the factory produced more fabric than usual, they kept deadlines and maintained quality. That’s a good thing for you too, Father, right?”

“Exactly. Such a reliable place is hard to find, and they’ve probably already made contracts with others.”

“Similarly, the factory must have gained confidence that Father will continue dealing with them. At the same time, they saw that Marquis Charmez can admit his mistakes and is an honorable man.”

“Smart! Did you think that far?”

“Well… actually, there’s one more thing.”

“One more?”

I smiled gently.

“Check the numbers one last time, even at the very end. If something like this happens again, it’ll be a problem, right?”

The rest is now up to the adults.

I planned to give Emily new work clothes soon and stood up from my seat.

After walking down the corridor for some time, I suddenly remembered a very important thing.

“Oh right… the preserves!”