Chapter 5

"Knock! Knock!"

The low knocking sound reached John Hunter's ears, and he furrowed his brow forcefully before slowly opening his eyes.

"Sir, breakfast will be served in twenty minutes."

The voice of the butler, Hans, came from outside the door. He hesitated slightly, then lowered his voice and continued, "Mr. Hunter, you will be leaving shortly, please try to be quick."

"Alright."

As he sat up and responded, John rubbed his face vigorously. After a few seconds of daze, he got dressed and walked into the bathroom.

"Colgate?"

When John saw the small jar with the trademark on the counter, he instantly felt a surge of surprise.

"Does Colgate already exist now?"

Blinking, he eagerly opened the somewhat cumbersome jar, and a peculiar fragrance immediately wafted out. It wasn’t particularly pleasant, but it was definitely more comfortable than what John had used before. John first rinsed his mouth with a cup of water, then picked up the "clumsy and thick" toothbrush, dipped it into the jar, and carefully began brushing his teeth.

"Not too bad."

After a moment, the picky boy gave Colgate’s product a rather high evaluation.

Of course, a brush made of bristles wouldn’t be very comfortable, and the taste of the toothpaste was far from what he remembered from the future, but in this era, there weren’t many choices, right?

"Hmm, maybe I should consider investing in Colgate in the future."

After washing his hands and face with Colgate soap, John Hunter’s thoughts wandered again: "Colgate’s headquarters seems to be in New York. If things really work out, I can definitely tell them about concepts like toothpaste in tubes and calcium bicarbonate..."

After finishing his morning routine and putting on the morning suit the butler had brought yesterday, John couldn’t help but frown.

The clothes weren’t unusable, but the length was a bit short, and the width was a bit too large, making them quite uncomfortable to wear. This made John feel an urge to take them off and change into his old clothes. However, he knew that after his bath yesterday, the maid had thrown all his old clothes away, leaving him with no other options.

Shaking his head in resignation, John tidied himself up in front of the mirror and went downstairs.

"Good morning, sir."

As soon as he entered the dining room, John saw his grandfather, old Hunter, wearing glasses and reading the newspaper. He walked over and greeted him softly.

"Good morning."

Old Hunter looked up from his newspaper, glanced at his grandson, and said calmly while gesturing for him to sit down, "Did you sleep well last night?"

"Very well, thank you for your concern."

John turned and sat down at his place, speaking calmly.

Thank you, rebirth!

If he were the old man in his thirties from his previous life, it would probably take him a couple of days to recover from such a long journey. But in this life, at eleven or twelve years old, he was in the prime of his youth, with a strong recovery ability. After a good night’s sleep, his body felt completely normal, though he still felt a bit mentally fatigued.

Old Hunter nodded slightly and instructed the butler, who was waiting nearby, "Alright, let’s start."

With Hans’s assistance, the chef and maid began to serve breakfast.

John wasn’t sure if this was a regular or special meal, but he could see that his first breakfast in New York was quite rich. In no time, the table was filled with food: white bread, cream, butter, jam, honey, and a small basket of muffins. Of course, there was also the indispensable milk for breakfast, one bottle hot and one bottle cold...

The butler first poured a cup of tea for old Hunter, then walked to John’s side and asked gently, "Sir, would you like tea or coffee?"

"Coffee, thank you."

Without hesitation, the boy chose coffee.

Although tea originated from China, neither Liu Zecheng nor John Hunter had the habit of drinking tea for breakfast. Moreover, the Western way of brewing tea was something he couldn’t get used to, as he had already experienced this from his mother, Elizabeth.

"You should have a glass of milk."

At this moment, old Hunter’s calm voice came, "At your age, a glass of milk in the morning can keep you energetic all day!"

"Thank you."

After a slight hesitation, John smiled and shook his head, "But I still prefer coffee in the morning, and I’ve never really gotten used to the taste of milk."

He indeed didn’t like drinking milk and had never developed the habit. In his previous life, he was already an adult when his economic conditions allowed it, and in this life, Elizabeth didn’t have the means to provide him with a daily glass of milk.

Moreover...

In 1879 New York, was milk even safe to drink?

Pasteurization hadn’t been widely adopted, the federal Pure Food and Drug Act hadn’t been enacted, and the United States was in one of its most corrupt and dark eras. John didn’t dare to try the milk available in New York’s market. After all, just twenty years ago, in 1858, eight thousand infants in New York died mysteriously, one possible reason being the "health milk" for children concocted by unscrupulous merchants. These dark secrets were heavily covered up due to the enormous profits, and it would take until the 20th century for them to be revealed...

The people of this era were much bolder than those in the future!

Seeing John politely decline his suggestion, old Hunter frowned but didn’t say anything more, quietly eating his breakfast.

Watching the silent grandfather and grandson, Hans Alber shook his head almost imperceptibly and sighed inwardly. He could see that although old Hunter’s attitude was cold, he was actually very concerned about his grandson, a fact that even surprised someone who had served him for over a decade. As for young Hunter, he appeared independent and distant but showed great respect for his grandfather and had a subtle desire for closeness.

However, both were too attached to certain things.

Hans understood that old Hunter still found it hard to forgive his daughter’s capriciousness, making it difficult for him to let go. But as for young Hunter, he was a bit puzzled. Even now, John still addressed his grandfather as "sir," with no intention of changing it.

Regardless of the butler’s sighs, the Hunters quietly finished their breakfast.

The footman, Henry, had already prepared the carriage, and old Hunter was about to leave after breakfast. After changing, he nodded at John, who was sitting in the hall downstairs, and said in a deep voice, "I’ve instructed Hans to take you to a tailor today to have some clothes made. Also, I have a banquet tonight and will return very late, so you don’t need to wait for me for dinner."

"Alright, sir."

Slightly taken aback, John respectfully responded, and a thought flashed through his mind: "The clothes in the wardrobe are all new, it’s a pity..."

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