Darkstone Code

"Father, was everything smooth?"

Simon, who had just returned home, was greeted by his second son's inquiry. Mr. Simon had two sons, one was born to his legal wife back in his own country, and he was also his eldest son.

In this era, people always referred to some merchants who liked to venture abroad as "adventurous speculators," and some merchants even called themselves "descendants of adventurers," but only they truly knew themselves.

Aside from a few who aimed to elevate their careers to greater heights, most merchants "wandering" abroad did not originally intend to venture outside.

This world is not yet safe enough, and transportation is inconvenient. This is not the era where one can reach most corners of the world in a day or two; things are still quite backward here.

If it weren't necessary, no one would willingly risk leaving an environment they are extremely familiar with and venture into an entirely unfamiliar environment, gambling their lives.

But they have no choice but to do so, because they are all failures, Mr. Simon included.

He was such a failure too. He previously ran a factory but went bankrupt due to poor management. After bankruptcy, he took what little he had left and ventured outside.

Precisely because of these dangers, his wife and children remained in their home country, and he went alone.

Until now, he has struggled outside for more than twenty years, traveled through many countries, and finally found an opportunity in Nagariel.

To better integrate into local society, he married a local woman and was fortunate to have a son. Establishing a local family allowed him to be accepted by the locals, which also aided his career.

His original wife and child were also aware of these matters. Though they occasionally harbored some resentment, most of the time they were indifferent.

The long separation was one issue; secondly, their lives depended entirely on the remittances Mr. Simon sent them every month. Even if they felt Mr. Simon was unfair, they wouldn't voice it.

His wife and child in Nagariel also knew he had another wife, and they had no objections either. The local culture was such that a capable man wanting to take care of more women and have several outstanding offspring was considered normal.

Everyone knew about each other, and apart from a few interactions, there was basically no contact in daily life.

Mr. Simon glanced at his son standing by the door to greet him. His expression didn't show much improvement. He casually handed his briefcase to his second son without saying anything, changed his shoes, and walked straight into the study.

His second son followed closely. When they entered the study, Mr. Simon shook his head, "You don't need to know about these things. How are your studies going?"

His second son's jaw worked slightly, and he smiled, slightly lowering his head. "My teacher told me, I should be able to go to Nagariel National University!" His tone carried a hint of pride.

Nagariel National University is the top-ranked university in Nagariel. Many children of the local ruling class study there. To provide these children with the best education, many of the teachers are from abroad.

The locals, including the ruling class, were wary of foreign affairs on one hand, yet envied some aspects of foreign countries on the other, creating a contradiction, especially regarding education.

Foreign teachers are definitely better than local ones… Well, that indeed makes sense, which in turn gives the national university a revered status in people's minds.

Mr. Simon's second son was excellent academically, worked hard, and with a wealthy family, the teachers treated him more patiently than others, sometimes giving him extra attention, making his studies far superior to his peers.

All these years, he always wanted to prove his excellence to Mr. Simon through some achievements because of his father's expectations regarding his studies. He had been trying and studying diligently.

Due to his father's somewhat disparaging tone when discussing those overweight, even though he himself was overweight, he maintained a healthy physique.

He didn't date prematurely, didn't drink alcohol, didn't smoke, and was barely influenced by religion. He only wanted to prove he was his father's most outstanding child, that's all.

But unfortunately, sometimes, despite much effort, some things remain hard to change because effort can't overcome prejudice.

Mr. Simon frowned, "In my eyes, the national university is only a third-rate school. If getting into a third-rate university is enough to make you this happy, your future is limited to this!"

He paused for a moment, speaking impatiently, "Alright, go on and do your things. I have work to do!"

His second son forced a smile, placed the briefcase on the table, bowed, then left the room.

In fact, Simon had always noticed his second son's efforts. However, calling him a "bastard" might sound self-deprecating, but it accurately described some issues—he was a mixed-blood, a bastard.

No matter how hard his second son tried, he couldn't change the fact that his birth and existence were a sign, a show of goodwill from Mr. Simon to Nagariel's local forces.

He was not a natural product or a result of love, merely a tool. Therefore, no matter how hard he worked, he couldn't change these things. From the beginning, Mr. Simon never truly regarded him as his son.

His skin was a shade darker than Mr. Simon's, darker than Mr. Simon's eldest son, his features were different, the way he moved when he spoke, his…

When someone fundamentally negates another person, even a trivial matter becomes magnified and detestable.

As the door quietly closed, the son who was bent over clenched his fist, and the negative emotions on his face turned into a smile the moment he raised his head. He would keep working hard, believing one day his father would acknowledge him.

Inside the room, Mr. Simon was unaware of the emotional changes his son was going through, as he was uninterested in them. His concern was Lynch's stance.

Lynch's attitude was giving him a headache. Frankly, if Lynch reached an agreement with the Provincial Governor, it wouldn't just mean no business for him; he'd likely face more trouble.

International merchants weren't as easily fooled as Nagariel's locals, who hadn't seen the world, resulting in loose contract terms.

In some international trades, the delivery time was often precise to the minute, and exceeding by even one minute could lead to claims as per the contract. If Lynch cut off his product source, he would not only lose profit but also face claims.

He couldn't sit and wait for death.

He picked up the phone and dialed Mr. Preton's number. Nagariel already had a rudimentary communication network but no international lines.

The phone was quickly connected, and Mr. Preton's magnetic voice soon echoed in the receiver. He asked the same question Simon's son had just asked, "Was the communication with Lynch smooth?"

In Mr. Preton's view, there wasn't much to be smooth about. Lynch had limited options, so his tone was relaxed.

"Sorry, Mr. Preton, Mr. Lynch said he needs to think about it…," Mr. Simon wiped the sweat off his forehead, slightly squinting his eyes, and with a resolute heart added a subjective touch, "He seems indifferent to our proposal."

"Indifferent?" Mr. Preton's tone changed slightly, and just when Mr. Simon thought it was a good sign, he was ultimately disappointed.

Mr. Preton actually laughed at this moment, even audibly, "He's an interesting young man, you know. He's only twenty-one. You can't communicate with him the way we do; we're not on the same 'frequency.'

"But don't worry, Simon, young people are unwilling to abide by the rules and like to challenge authority, which is their characteristic. After hitting a wall a few times, he'll know how to choose."

"Let me know if there are any new developments..."

Mr. Preton was a very busy person; he didn't have time to talk endlessly with a province parts goods agent; he had a lot to do.

Looking at the now mute phone in his hand, Mr. Simon dazed for a while before placing it back on the holder. Perhaps Mr. Preton was right; things would eventually resolve themselves.

Sitting behind the desk, Mr. Simon's mind became chaotic. He thought of the envy and jealousy in his friends' eyes during his occasional visits home.

He thought of the indifferent relationship between him and his eldest son, seeming to only show a smile when seeing a check, looking so much like him when he was young.

He thought of his private detective reporting that his wife back home seemed to have a lover, a matter he chose to ignore.

He thought of the young wife here and the son, who neither resembled him nor did he have much patience for.

In a daze, he didn't even realize he'd fallen asleep...

Since Lynch's return the next day, local merchants have been visiting him daily to showcase their products.

The conversation between Mikhail and Lynch not only alerted big figures like Mr. Preton but also gave local merchants a glimpse of "hope."

Each year, the Pretton Trading Company sets a standard acquisition price, buying large quantities of goods from local merchants at low prices they can barely afford, then selling them at high prices worldwide.

Even though local merchants knew this low-buy, high-sell strategy, they were helpless against it. Whether it was the Pretton Trading Company or other big merchants, they agreed on this pricing strategy for more profit.

But this also made local merchants miserable, watching helplessly as their goods were sold several times or even dozens of times higher.

Until now, it seemed they had new hope!