Chapter 194: Chapter Hundred And Ninety Three
Allen carefully put his gold ring, his silver pocket watch, and his diamond pin back into his pockets.
Camilla walked a few slow steps closer to him. Her soft leather shoes made almost no sound on the wet ground.
"So what are you doing here, Allen?" Camilla asked. Her voice was now soft, calm, and utterly serious.
Allen slowly lifted his head. He looked at her with his honest, polite eyes. As he met her gaze, a very deep shadow of sadness covered his face. His shoulders slumped forward under his coat. He looked like a man who was carrying a massive, crushing weight of failure on his back.
He let out a long quiet sigh. He looked down at his dirty leather boots, unable to keep looking into her eyes.
"I was here to do some survey," Allen spoke softly. His voice was raspy and full of a deep, painful shame. He rubbed his hands together nervously. "My textile establishment is not doing good."
Camilla tilted her head to the side. Her eyes were observant. She noticed the raw, red skin on his fingers and the tired look in his eyes. He did not look like a lazy noble who spent his days drinking wine. He looked like a man who had been working incredibly hard but had lost everything.
"What happened?" Camilla asked gently.
Allen swallowed hard. He felt a tight, painful knot form in his throat as he prepared to speak about his failure. For a proud noble man, admitting defeat was the most difficult thing in the world.
"I lost my principal capital," Allen explained, his voice shaking slightly with genuine sadness. He looked at the dirty brick wall. "I had invested all of my money into a massive shipment of fine silk and soft wool from the southern province. I wanted to sell them in my shop. But..."
He paused, his eyes turning misty with unshed tears. He gripped his hands together tightly.
"The cargo ship sank in a terrible storm near the rocky coast," Allen whispered, his voice cracking with pure grief. "Everything was lost. All the silk, all the wool, and all of my gold went straight to the bottom of the sea. I was left with absolutely nothing. My shop has no inventory left to sell."
He let out another heavy breath, his chest rising and falling slowly.
"I came to this market today," Allen confessed, looking deeply embarrassed. "I was looking for some cheap threads and low-quality fabrics to sell. I wanted to find something cheaper just to keep my doors open. But the local traders here are very rough. They saw my expensive clothes and didn’t take me seriously, and those thugs cornered me in the alley."
Camilla listened to his story. Her mind analyzed the situation quickly. She knew the Benson family was incredibly wealthy. Damon had more gold in his private vault than some small kingdoms.
"Why don’t you want to ask your family for money?" Camilla asked, her delicate eyebrows pulling together. "Damon has more than enough gold. Your grandfather, the old Duke, would easily give you a thousand gold coins to help your business. Even your father would support you."
Allen’s face turned a very bright, hot shade of red. He shook his head side to side rapidly. He looked down at the muddy ground, his jaw clenching tightly with pride and deep shame.
"I don’t want to bother them," Allen replied softly, his voice full of stubborn determination. "My mother, Lady Adeline, is already fighting so hard to help my father gain the Duke’s favor. If she finds out my business has failed completely, she will be devastated. And my father... He would be very disappointed in me. I don’t want to look like a complete failure in front of my family. I want to stand on my own two feet."
Camilla stared at him.
She looked at his honest face, and his deep sense of responsibility. Unlike his wicked step mother and his arrogant step sister Elora, Allen was a very decent, highly moral, and hard-working person. He was trying his best to survive without cheating or begging.
Camilla thought to herself. Her internal voice was practical and very sharp.
"He looks very responsible," Camilla’s thoughts ran quickly. "He is honest, and he actually wants to work hard. Should I invest in him? I have a massive stack of paper banknotes lying completely useless in the wardrobe in the mansion. One hundred thousand gold coins worth of cash. I cannot spend all of that money on sweet pastries and fruit juice anyway. Might as well put some of it to work and make some real, clean profit."
She smiled a small warm smile.
"What if I invest in you?" Camilla spoke out loud. Her voice was smooth and full of calm authority.
Allen’s eyes widened. His mouth dropped open slightly in pure shock. He stared at her as if she had just spoken a strange language.
"Really?" Allen asked, his voice shaking with sudden, desperate hope. He took a small step toward her. "You... you would do that for me, Sister-in-law?"
Camilla nodded her head firmly, her red curly hair bouncing slightly over her shoulders.
"Yes," Camilla replied, her voice steady. "I am really serious."
Standing right beside her, Zade had been listening to the conversation in silence. When he heard Camilla offer to give her gold to Damon’s cousin, his eyes went wide with deep worry. He quickly stepped forward.
"Are you sure about this, sister?" Zade asked, looking highly skeptical.
Zade looked at Allen, and then he bent his body down. He leaned close to Camilla’s ear, whispering in a very low, worried tone so Allen would not hear him.
"Hasn’t he just proven that he is not capable of running a business?" Zade whispered frantically. "He lost all of his principal capital in a single storm. He almost got robbed and killed by common street thugs today because he walked into the deep market without guards. Giving your gold to a failing shop is a massive, highly dangerous risk. You might lose everything."
