Chapter 32

"Have you finished reading?"

Seeing John put down the letter in his hand, Joshua asked. John read the letter very slowly, as if he was thinking while reading, which made Joshua somewhat impatient.

"I have finished."

John placed the letter on the table, his face calm, showing no signs of what he was thinking.

"What do you think?"

Joshua lightly tapped the table and said softly, "Edison's terms are very clear. He can buy the patent for twenty thousand dollars, but he requires you to give up the right to claim it as your invention. That means you can never publicly claim that you invented the bamboo filament light bulb, and all credit will go to Edison's laboratory... This condition is rather excessive."

"Ha ha..."

Hearing Joshua's words, John laughed softly.

Although he was initially somewhat annoyed, it only took a few seconds for him to calm down. On one hand, historically, this honor belonged to Edison, and on the other hand, he had a rough idea of what the great inventor was thinking.

It was quite simple, just a matter of interest.

In terms of reputation, inventing a truly practical light bulb is an irresistible temptation for anyone, and economically, Edison needed the immense prestige to do many things, such as promoting the light bulb and the subsequent power supply.

Understanding this, John calmed down.

If he thought about it the other way, John even felt that this proposal was not entirely unacceptable. After all, he didn't need the reputation, nor could he reduce the cost of the light bulb and promote it, so as long as the price was right, there was nothing he couldn't do.

After pondering for a while, John slowly nodded and said, "I'm not saying I can't consider this condition, but in that case, the price of twenty thousand dollars is unacceptable!"

"You agree?"

Hearing John's words, Joshua suddenly widened his eyes and asked in great surprise.

"No, I said this price is unacceptable."

John shook his head and smiled.

"What I mean is..."

Joshua swallowed and said with a bitter smile, "You really agree to transfer this reputation to Edison? You know, this could secure you a place in history!"

"But can reputation be exchanged for money?"

John raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile.

"Th-this..."

Joshua's expression stiffened, and he was momentarily speechless.

With a light laugh, John leaned forward slightly and said, "To me, reputation means nothing; only dollars are real! And..."

"My face isn't thick enough yet!"

John only dared to mutter this last sentence to himself.

Selling Edison's invention back to him, John had no qualms, as he had saved Edison a lot of time and money. But the reputation...

It was of no use to him, so he might as well give it away!

Besides, it was just a patent for a bamboo filament light bulb, and John didn't feel any reluctance. He had more far-reaching plans. Let Edison work hard to reduce the cost of the light bulb and promote it across America and the world. At the right time, the tungsten filament light bulb would come out to claim the credit, and alternating current would challenge direct current before Tesla's downfall...

Having thought this through, John had no more qualms and nodded decisively, "Joshua, double the price to forty thousand dollars! Well... the bottom line is thirty thousand dollars, and the patent is his! But one point to emphasize: I won't actively claim to be the inventor, but neither can Edison. Let's have a mutual silence!"

"Th-this... Alright."

As an agent, Joshua knew his place. Although he felt some regret, he finally nodded. He now understood John's thinking: reputation meant little to him, and getting an additional twenty thousand dollars for the transfer was quite a good deal.

That's twenty thousand dollars.

Thinking about this, Joshua made up his mind to get the best deal possible from Edison, not to sell at John's bottom price. He had done his research and knew that Edison had already invested more than ten thousand dollars in the light bulb, with many investors behind him. Getting a nearly perfect patent and the reputation for forty thousand dollars, he wouldn't refuse.

"What a pity!"

Although he understood, Joshua still felt some regret and sighed, "What a pity! Both our families are merchants, not industrialists. Otherwise, it would have been worth investing in such a promising invention... John, the industrial development in New York is very rapid, with the number of companies increasing daily. Do you think it's worth trying in this field?"

Perhaps Joshua didn't realize it, but he was now treating John as an adult, at least as his peer, and asking such a question felt natural.

"Of course it is!"

John's heart stirred, and he said cheerfully, "If you're interested, once this deal is done, I can invest all the proceeds from the patent transfer. We can do it together, can't we?"

"Are you serious?"

Carefully examining the young boy in front of him, Joshua frowned and asked very seriously.

Although he studied law, being born into a merchant family and his time studying in Europe broadened his horizons. He had already noticed the decline of British industry and the immense vitality of American industry. He had long had ideas about Mr. Stone's insistence on being a pure merchant.

Yes, decades ago, merchants looked down on factory owners, but who could still think that way in this era?

Seeing Joshua's seriousness, John's expression became more serious, and he nodded, "I am serious. In fact, if I weren't so young and my grandfather wasn't so uninterested in industry, I would have considered this from the first day I came to New York."

Pausing for a moment, John smiled and continued, "In the past few weeks, I've learned a lot and understood many situations. I have an idea that for a long time to come, American industry will develop rapidly to meet its own needs. I think you can see this from the expansion of New York City, right?"

"Yes, that's true."

After a moment's thought, Joshua nodded.

As a native New Yorker, Joshua had a deep understanding of the city's rapid expansion. In just over twenty years, the city, population, and industry had grown like a newborn baby becoming an adult. It wasn't noticeable day-to-day, but looking back, it was quite shocking!

The Stone family's business had grown many times over!

Seeing Joshua thinking seriously, John's mind raced, considering the possibility of their collaboration.

As a time traveler, he knew that America in this era was full of opportunities. Just by putting some of his ideas into practice, he could generate substantial profits. However, as he had mentioned, his age was too young, and Mr. Hunterlar, like Mr. Stone, stubbornly insisted on not becoming a factory owner. If Joshua had this idea, the two could complement each other perfectly!

The only concern was Joshua's character, but so far, he seemed quite trustworthy.

"Let's both think about it."

After a long silence, Joshua exhaled and said solemnly, "This is not a small matter, John. I think you should consult Mr. Hunterlar."

Subconsciously, Joshua had already positioned himself for a major endeavor.

John also picked up on Joshua's underlying meaning, feeling pleased, and nodded, "Alright, but my grandfather once said that the money I earn is under my control. So as long as you can reach an agreement with Edison and get the money, if you find a direction I approve of, I will invest!"

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