Whispering Verse

Miss Princes was very resolute in her work, and she was not shy about talking about gold pounds. Shade sat in the single sorceress's apartment and thought for a while, deciding that there was no need to save this expense:

"How about a basic salary of five pounds?"

He stretched out five fingers and shook them:

"I'll give you 3 pounds before departure, and 2 pounds at the end of the night. I can increase the wages depending on the situation. As for my purpose, I just want to walk around Coldwater Port City and get to know a few trustworthy people with special deals. A black market for items.”

Although 5 pounds seems like a lot, if the other party can really introduce Shade to a place like the Black Raven Library or Old John's Pawn Shop, then the broker's fee can only be considered low.

The green-haired girl looked at Shade, tapped the armrest of the chair with her fingers, and shook her head gracefully:

"The fixed price is 10 pounds. I will give you 3 pounds first and 7 pounds in the evening. If you are not satisfied, we can discuss the final payment at night. I have already taken you to my usual residence in this city, so you don't have to doubt me. .”

This price is acceptable, and Shade has already planned to use the Cold Water Port, where thousands of ships gather, as a common trading location:

"no problem."

A smile appeared on Miss Prince's lips, but only for a moment.

Afterwards, Miss Princes took out a very expensive-looking silver-gray metal box with handles from the bathroom. The box was rectangular in shape, with patterns of branches, leaves and flowers all over the surface. The pattern appears golden, as if it has been plated with gold. But according to Miss Prince's income level, Shade probably thought too much.

Pull the handle very slowly to open the box. As the lid of the box rose, layers of shelves slowly unfolded inside, allowing Shade to see the cosmetics placed in layers in the box.

Metal screws connect different layers of metal plates, and brass-colored nuts, springs and bearings ensure that the shelves inside the box can be unfolded smoothly. Although this cosmetic box does not use any high-end steam technology, the sophisticated mechanical craftsmanship of this era can be glimpsed from this box.

"Sit still and don't move. I'll do some simple makeup on you."

The young lady was already taking out bottles and jars from her cosmetic case. And she didn't seem to mind being stared at by a strange man face to face during the makeup process. This is not to say that Miss Princes is a very casual girl. Shade feels that she seems to have a particularly good impression of him. When she helped with makeup, she was also very familiar with his facial features.

It only took her ten minutes to finish dressing up Shade. When Shade looked in the mirror in the bathroom, he could still recognize himself at a glance. But from the perspective of people who are not familiar with him, this subtle adjustment of appearance through simple makeup techniques makes it difficult for people to equate John Watson with Shad Hamilton.

“The ladies’ makeup skills are really amazing.”

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 murmuring voice rang in his ears, his tone full of laughter.

"for example?"

[She has taken a liking to your face. 】

"Is this the first time you've joked with me?"

The chuckle meant she wanted to end the conversation. Although she never said hello in advance when she spoke, except for the day when Shade first came to 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."

Afterwards, Shade was kicked out of the bathroom by Miss Princess, and the blonde sorceress had to do her makeup in front of the mirror.

She asked Shade to wait for about half an hour. Shade didn't have the habit of rummaging through other people's belongings, so he sat on the sofa and waited.

Still thinking about Miss Princes, he moved his eyes to the coffee table to pour himself tea. There were many things scattered on the coffee table, including an open notebook next to the teapot. Obviously when he came in, the coffee table was in a mess, but there was no such thing. It must have been that Miss Princes flipped through it when he entered the bathroom just now.

Shade didn't mean to look, but the notebook and the teapot were too close.

[23rd of the Sleeping Moon, 1852]

This is the first line written on the right side of the notebook. It is the date of December last year. In other words, what Shade saw was Miss Prince's diary of December last year.

Now that he saw the date, as long as his eyesight was fine, the following line of text was naturally seen by Sha De.

【Who are you? 】

"Huh? Of course I'm Shade."

He thought to himself, and then realized that the sentences in the diary were not for him. This line of letters occupies three full lines in the lined notebook, and is specially bolded with blue-black ink, as if the writer is expressing his inner strong emotions.

"Miss Princess lost control last December? What does that mean?"

Shade was a little confused and looked up in the direction of the bathroom. The bathroom in this apartment was so cramped that it wasn't even big enough for three people to stand at once. You can see the profile of a beautiful blonde girl, who is concentrating on applying makeup in front of the mirror.

"I don't want to pry into other people's privacy."

Although he thought so, Shade carefully turned the pages of the paper because he was worried that Miss Princess would lose control. He didn't turn to the second page, but turned back a full five pages.

There is still only one day's content written on a piece of paper, but the time has come to the end of December last year. It is written in beautiful cursive letters:

【don't want! Don't ask my maid weird questions! 】

Shade pursed his lips, becoming even more worried about Miss Prince's mental condition. This self-talking way of writing a diary made him think of many terrible things.

Returning the diary to normal, Shade did not continue to look through it. It took Miss Princes half an hour to put on makeup on herself. Her facial features did not change much, but it would be difficult for people who were not familiar with her to connect the two looks together.

"Then we'll have a great time working together!"

Before leaving the apartment, the young girl didn't pay attention to the open diary, and Shade stretched out his hand again. Miss Princes reached out and held her beloved's hand, but after shaking slightly, she found that he had not let go.

He looked at Xia De in surprise, and Xia De seemed to be stunned, and then let go after a few seconds:

"Oh, sorry, I just thought of something else."

[No problem, she didn't lose control. 】

This was the answer Shade got at the risk of being considered a hooligan.

Miss Princes 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 and held his naturally drooping left arm, and asked sheepishly:

"Mr. Watson, what do you think of the way I've made myself look ugly now?"

She is really a girl with a very good character.

Without staying too much in the city, they returned to the dock area by carriage. There was nothing to do on the way, and Miss Princes also talked to Shade about some political-related topics.

This is also the best topic to entertain when you are bored. Seeing Shade looking out at the street scene, the young girl asked:

"Mr. Watson, what do you think of the city of Coldwater Port?"

"Although shipping has made the city a lot of money, the current development method cannot be said to be very sound."

Shade said, looking at the children running outside. The barefoot children were chasing an iron ring:

"This city seems prosperous, but shipping trade alone as the main means of profit is still too single. 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 Cold Water Port is not irreplaceable. It has grabbed the dividends of the times, but it has just borrowed its status from the old era. If the city managers do not realize this, then what will happen to the city under this chaotic prosperity? It’s really hard to say how long it can last.”

The Coldwater Port City Hall's management of the dock area is actually very negligent. Smuggling, smuggling, and the sale of dangerous goods can be seen everywhere in the dock area. The chaotic population flow and the interference of order by nobles and wealthy businessmen made the port management of Coldwater Port extremely chaotic. This is certainly a good thing for ambitious people who want to go overseas, but it is not a good thing for the development of the city.

"Oh? This idea is quite new, so what do you think Cold Water Port should do?"

Miss Prince asked again.

Shade shook his head:

"I'm just an ordinary person, and I don't have any opinions. I probably want to develop some other industries based on convenient transportation conditions, so that the transportation, fishery and finance industries can be integrated. I mean the banking industry. Maybe Delrayon National University Banks can take advantage of the seasonal nature of fishery and commodity trade, so they don’t have any ideas for me.”

He realized that he had said a little too much and smiled sheepishly. Miss Princes also laughed, and her quiet smile without showing her teeth was very impressive:

"Mr. Watson, have you ever studied urban management or something like that before?"

"of course not."

"But you're great."

Miss Prince's voice was low.

After a short trip, the two got off the bus on a stone-paved unfinished street adjacent to the pier. The lady who seemed to be very familiar with this place took Shade into the "Seven Broomsticks Tavern" with a fresh pig's head dripping blood on the sign.

Signaling Shade not to say anything, Miss Princes wrapped her relatively neutral black coat tightly and walked in front, passing through the noisy tavern where sailors and idlers were having fun, and came to the bar. He tapped the table with his finger and threw out a crimson coin that Shade had never seen before:

"I brought new friends."

The bartender twirled the coin spinning on the counter, looked at the gas lamp, and pushed the coin back to the woman who spoke:

"The entrance fee, for you, is 1 shilling. For him, a stranger, 5 shillings."

Miss Princes shook her head at Shade behind her. Shade consciously took out his wallet from his pocket, took out a banknote and put it on the table.