Miss Princess was quite decisive in her work, and she was not shy about talking about gold pounds. Sitting in the single sorceress's apartment, Shade thought about it and felt that there was no need to save this expense:
"How about a basic salary of 5 pounds?"
He stretched out five fingers and shook them:
"I'll give you 3 pounds before you leave, and 2 pounds at the end of the night. I can increase your wages depending on the situation. As for my purpose, I just want to travel around Coldwater Harbor and get to know a few trustworthy black markets that trade special items."
Although 5 pounds seems like a lot, if the other party can really introduce Shad to places like the Black Raven Library or Old John's Pawn Shop, then this brokerage fee can only be considered low.
The blonde girl looked at Shade with her green eyes, tapped the armrest of the chair with her fingers, and shook her head gracefully:
"The price is 10 pounds. I'll give you 3 pounds first and 7 pounds in the evening. If you're not satisfied, we can discuss the balance in the evening. I've already brought you to my usual residence in this city, so you don't have to doubt me anymore."
This price is acceptable. Xia De has already planned to use the cold water port where thousands of ships gather as a regular trading location:
"no problem."
A smile appeared on Miss Princess's lips, but only for a moment.
Afterwards, Miss Princess brought out a very expensive silver-gray metal box with handles from the bathroom. The box was rectangular, with patterns of branches, leaves and flowers all over the surface. The pattern was golden, as if it was plated with gold. But according to Miss Princess's income level, Shad probably overestimated it.
He pulled the handle very slowly to open the box. As the lid rose, layers of shelves slowly unfolded inside, allowing Xia De to see the cosmetics placed in layers inside the box.
Metal screws connect different layers of metal plates, and brass nuts, springs, and bearings ensure that the shelves inside the box can be smoothly unfolded. Although this makeup box does not use any high-end steam technology, the sophisticated mechanical craftsmanship of this era can be seen in this box.
"Sit still and let me put on some makeup for you."
The young lady had already started taking bottles and jars out of her makeup box. She didn't seem to mind being stared at by a strange man while putting on makeup. This wasn't to say that Miss Princess was a casual girl. Shad felt that she seemed to have a particularly high liking for him. When she helped him put on makeup, she was also very familiar with his facial features.
It took her only ten minutes to finish dressing up Shad, and when Shad looked in the mirror in the bathroom, he could still recognize himself at a glance. But if someone who is not familiar with him sees it, this subtle adjustment of his appearance through simple makeup techniques makes it difficult for people to equate John Watson with Shad Hamilton.
"The ladies are really good at applying makeup."
He touched his face in the mirror:
"Why do I feel like she trusts me so much? Doesn't this lady have any so-called vigilance? Or does she want to gain my trust in this way?"
Why not because of other possibilities
A whispering voice sounded in my ears, and the tone was full of laughter.
"for example?"
She fell in love with your face.
"Is this the first time you've joked with me?"
The light laughter meant that she wanted to end the conversation. Although she never said hello before speaking, except for the day when Xia De just came into this world, she always spoke at the most appropriate opportunity and her words were not abrupt at all.
"I'm really getting used to her."
After that, Shad was driven out of the bathroom by Miss Princess, and the blonde sorceress wanted to put on makeup in front of the mirror.
She asked Xia De to wait for about half an hour. Xia De had no habit of rummaging through other people's things, so he sat obediently on the sofa and waited.
Still thinking about Miss Princess, he looked towards the coffee table to pour himself some tea. There were many things scattered on the coffee table, including an open notebook next to the teapot. When he entered the room just now, the coffee table was messy, but there was no such thing. It seemed that Miss Princess had flipped through it when he entered the bathroom just now.
Shade hadn't meant to look, but the notebook and the teapot were too close.
23rd of the Month of Sleep, 1852
This is the first line of words written on the right side of the notebook, and it is dated December last year, which means that what Shad saw was Miss Princess's diary from December last year.
Since he saw the date, and if his eyes were fine, Xia De would naturally see the line of words below.
Who are you
"Hmm? Of course I'm Shade."
He thought to himself, and then realized that the sentence in the diary was not written for him. This line of letters took up three lines in the horizontal line book, and was specially bolded with blue-black ink, as if the writer was expressing his strong emotions.
"Miss Princess lost control last December? What does that mean?"
Shade was a little confused and looked towards the bathroom. The bathroom in this apartment was very narrow, not even enough for three people to stand at the same time. He could see the silhouette of a beautiful blonde girl, who was concentrating on putting on makeup in front of the mirror.
"I don't want to pry into other people's privacy."
Although he thought so, because he was worried that Miss Princess would lose control, Shad still turned the pages carefully. He did not turn to the second page, but turned back five pages.
It was still a piece of paper with only one day's content written on it. The time had come to the end of December last year. It was written in beautiful cursive letters:
No! Don't ask my maid strange questions!
Shade pursed his lips and became even more worried about Miss Princess's mental state. This way of writing a diary in which she talked to herself made him think of many terrible things.
After restoring the diary to normal, Shade did not continue reading it. It took Miss Princess half an hour to put on her makeup. Although her facial features did not change much, it would be difficult for an unfamiliar person to connect the two appearances.
"Then we have a happy cooperation!"
Before leaving the apartment, the young girl paid no attention to the open diary, and Shade reached out his hand again. Miss Princess stretched out her hand and held it with her beloved, but after shaking it slightly, she found that he did not let go.
He looked at Xia De in surprise, but Xia De seemed to be stunned and let go after several seconds:
"Oh, sorry, I just thought of something else."
No problem, she didn't lose control.
This was the answer Shad got at the risk of being considered a hooligan.
Miss Princess was not angry, but reminded:
"Don't do this to strange ladies in the future. I have a good temper, but if you meet someone with a bad temper, you will get into trouble."
Then he raised his right hand to hold his naturally drooping left arm, and asked embarrassedly:
"Mr. Watson, what do you think of the way I look now after I've made myself look ugly?"
She is a really nice girl.
Without staying in the city for too long, they took a carriage back to the dock area. On the way, Miss Princess and Shade talked about some political topics.
This is also the best topic for entertainment when you are bored. Seeing Xia De looking at the street view outside, the young girl asked:
"Mr. Watson, what do you think of the city of Coldwater Harbor?"
“Although the city has made a lot of money from shipping, the current mode of development cannot be said to be very sound.”
Shade said, looking at the children running outside, the barefoot children chasing an iron ring:
"This city seems prosperous, but it is too simple to rely on maritime trade as the main means of profit. The current prosperity is based on the development of the New World. I know that the development of the New World may last for hundreds of years, but the status of Coldwater Port is not irreplaceable. It has grabbed the dividends of the times, but it is just borrowing the status of the old era. If the city's managers do not realize this, then under this chaotic prosperity, it is really hard to say how long the city can prosper."
The management of the dock area by the City Hall of Lengshui Port is actually very lax. Smuggling, illegal immigration, and the sale of dangerous goods can be seen everywhere in the dock area. The chaotic population flow and the interference of nobles and wealthy businessmen in order have made the port management of Lengshui Port extremely chaotic. This is of course a good thing for those who are ambitious to go to sea, but it is not a good thing for the development of the city.
"Oh? This is a very fresh idea. So what do you think Coldwater Harbor should do?"
Miss Princess asked again.
Shade shook his head:
"I'm just an ordinary person, I don't have any opinions. It's probably about relying on convenient transportation conditions to develop some other industries, so that the transportation industry, fisheries and finance... ahem, I mean the banking industry can be integrated. Maybe the De La Rio National Bank can take advantage of the seasonality of fish and commodity trade and target... I don't have any ideas either."
He realized that he had said too much and smiled embarrassedly. Miss Princess also smiled, and her quiet smile without showing her teeth was very impressive:
"Mr. Watson, have you ever studied urban management or something like that?"
"Of course not."
“But you’re great.”
Miss Princess's voice was low.
After a short trip, the two got off at the cobblestoned street next to the pier. The lady, who seemed familiar with the place, took Shade into the Seven Broomsticks Tavern, which had a freshly dripping pig's head on its sign.
Signaling Shad not to talk too much, Miss Princess wrapped herself tightly in a relatively neutral black coat and walked in front, passing through the noisy tavern where sailors and idlers were having fun and came to the bar. She tapped the table with her fingers and threw out a red coin that Shad had never seen before:
"I brought new friends."
The bartender picked up the coin spinning on the counter, looked at it against the gas light, and pushed the coin back to the woman who was speaking:
"The admission fee is one shilling for you. Five shillings for him, a stranger."
Miss Princess nodded to Shad behind her, and Shad took out his wallet from his pocket, took out a banknote and put it on the table.