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Helen wiped her nose and paused before adding, “If you can help me get it all back, I’ll give you half of it.”
“Why would I want something that’s yours? What is rightfully yours is yours. The Gilded Tower is far more profitable than a makeup shop. Not only should you get what you’re owed, but since you hold the majority stake in The Gilded Tower, you should also be the one to manage it. Those women won’t be able to swindle even a single coin from you in the future if you do that,” Sophie said.
They retreated to the side hall. Even after drinking a cup of hot coffee, Helen remained aggrieved.
“How could they have lied to me like this? They’ve gone too far! All these years, I trusted and respected them. I thought that if they made a profit, it wouldn’t matter if they took a bit more. I never expected them to be so evil! Aren’t they afraid of their reputation being ruined?”
“That’s because when they deceived you, they never thought you would leave the palace and live outside. Otherwise, why would they let you take a 70% share of such an easy business? When investing, you had to contribute 70%. When there were losses, you also had to cover 70%, Sophie said.
“This is outrageous-absolutely outrageous!”
Helen’s anger was evident, but now she seemed at a loss as she looked at Sophie.
“What should we do? Besides the initial investment of several thousand, I later added several thousand more. At this point, I don’t care if I don’t get my share of profit back. I’d be content if I just got back the money I injected into the business. At most, I just won’t have any further dealings with them.”
Helen’s final words came with a hint of a sob, her voice full of grievance.
Sophie frowned.
They had talked about reclaiming everything just a few minutes ago. Why was Helen now saying she was willing to forgo the share of profit she was entitled to?
Helen’s outward show of strength was truly despicable, but her tearful state also evoked some sympathy. Sophie understood why Helen’s own family, the late king, and Victoria had been so indulgent with her. When Helen cried, she really did look pitiful. With her delicate bone structure, her wide-open eyes gave an Innocent impression, and tears welling up in them truly made one feel their heart break for her. Sophie’s mother-in-law was so transparent with her emotions-joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness all clearly displayed on her face.
However, Helen had improved somewhat, having learned to put on a facade in front of Eleanor.
Sophie decided not to address the issue immediately. She instructed the staff to prepare a meal for Helen first.
After Helen had finished eating. Sophie said, “Let me see the contract. We need to check for any hidden traps. If there are any, we must prepare in advance.” Helen blinked through her tearful eyes. “What can we do if there are traps?”
“There are ways to deal with them. Just bring the contract to me first, Sophie replied, not meeting Helen’s gaze, especially not when she was crying.
So, Sophie turned to find Gillian and asked her to retrieve the contract.
Gillian knew exactly where the documents were kept. She quickly found the contract, and brought it to Sophie.
Sophie read through the contract three times from start to finish and found no issues with it-it was fair and impartial. As for the parties involved, Helen had used Gillian’s name, while Jessica had used Eric’s name.
Surprisingly, Eric was a household servant of the Winchester family. own name
For a lady from a prominent family engaged in business outside, it was uncommon to use her due to the numerous bureaucratic procedures and the stigma of being publicly involved.
Instead, they would use the name of a male family member or a trusted servant. Servants could hold the contracts and couldn’t really cause trouble, even if the property was registered in their names. Women typically used the latter method to manage their private property.
Helen and Jessica couldn’t conduct business under their own names. In society, while money was appealing, merchants were considered lowly. So, as long as they made money, it didn’t matter whose name was on the documents as long as they controlled the contracts.
“Is everything alright? Do you see any problems?” Helen asked anxiously as Sophie repeatedly examined the document.
Sophie looked up at her with a meaningful gaze. “There are no problems.”
“Isn’t that a good thing? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Sophie seemed to be looking at her like she was a fool, and Helen disliked such condescending looks.
Sophie was sorely tempted to say, “It seems that they didn’t even bother tampering with the contract, indicating how easily they thought they could manipulate you.”
Of course, she couldn’t say that aloud, or Helen would likely respond with anger and tears, claiming she was being unfairly treated:
“It’s a good thing!” Sophie put the contract away.
There’s no need to wait until tomorrow. I’ll visit Grand Princess Eleanor tonight. As for Eric, he should be detained tonight to prevent him from alerting anyone. Luke has already sent people to monitor The Gilded Tower, so the staff won’t be able to leave to send any messages.”
“So soon?” Helen was angry, but she seemed genuinely afraid of Eleanor and Jessica.
“We should strike while the iron is hot!” Sophie looked at Helen. Seeing Helen’s eyes well up with tears again, she unexpectedly softened her tone, “Alright, stop crying. I’ll accompany you. I’ll handle whatever comes up.”
Helen’s voice was hoarse yet frail, “Then, I’m counting on you. Please also speak to Rafael on my behalf later. Don’t let him stay angry with me.”
Helen no longer spoke in the grandiose manner she used to, nor did she exhibit her previous haughtiness. The dislike that had once shown in her eyes when she looked at Sophie was gone, replaced by a hint of a sulky demeanor.
Seeing Helen in this state, Sophie couldn’t help but shiver. It was quite unsettling to see someone who used to be so authoritative now appearing so demure.
By evening, the accounting records were delivered to Sophie for her review.
The current year’s profits were particularly impressive. After rounding off, they had made a substantial profit of seventy-three thousand silver coins. Adding the profits from previous years, The Gilded Tower had eamed over two hundred thousand silver coins. The business, based on the designs of The Golden Tower, had proven extraordinarily lucrative.
But that was also to be expected.
The cost of imitating designs was low, and the materials of the products weren’t as pure as The Golden Tower. Even though the imitations sold for less, profit was good, as using cheaper materials boosted sales and raised the brand’s visibility.
As long as rich merchants and ordinary people saw The Gilded Tower as affordable and stylish, that was enough to drive the business.
Sophie reviewed the expenditures. The costs for raw materials and finished products were quite low. In other words, the so-called pure gold might not be as pure as claimed and could even be gold-plated. If the gold jewelry tarnished in three to five years, it would provoke a major outcry.
Gillian, as the main stakeholder with a seventy percent share, would be directly accountable.
Therefore, The Gilded Tower was definitely not worth keeping.
Sophie deliberated for a moment before ordering that Eric be brought in for questioning.
In the side room, a charcoal stove was set up with a fire poker roasting over it. After a while, the fire poker was glowing red-hot halfway through. Seeing this, Eric was so frightened that he nearly wet his pants. He fell to his knees and pleaded, “Your Highness, spare me! Please spare me!” Sophie sat upright, frowning slightly. “Why would I want your life? I just need you to answer a few questions truthfully.”
Eric nodded vigorously. “I will tell you everything I know.”
Sophie held up the purchase ledger. “Is Jessica aware that you’ve been purchasing cheap, rough goods?” “Yes, of course! She was the one who instructed us to get them.”
“Did you inform her that the gold used in the jewelry is impure and might cause problems?”
Eric’s eyes shifted nervously as he replied, “I did mention it, but Lady Jessica said it didn’t matter. She said if there were problems in a few years, we’d be closed by then anyway.”
Sophie sneered. “Would the shop be closed, or would you all have shifted the blame to Lady Helen?”
Eric fell silent, unable to respond.