Chapter 82

"Welcome to Bristow Manor, Mr. Huntelaar."

At the door of a somewhat luxurious large house, John was warmly welcomed by Mr. Bristow. Mr. Bristow was a tall, thin white man in his early forties with a rather ordinary appearance, but John immediately understood why Anna was so beautiful. Mrs. Bristow was a beauty herself, and her husband had skin so fair it was even better than a woman's!

"Just a man looking like this seems too delicate!"

After giving Mr. Bristow a quick once-over, John silently commented.

Beside Mr. Bristow stood his family, including Mrs. Bristow and their eldest daughter, the beautiful Miss Anna Bristow. John knew the Bristows had a younger daughter, but she was only six or seven years old, so she wasn't part of the welcoming crowd.

"It is my honor, Mr. Bristow."

Without hesitation, John expressed his respect for the Bristow family. After greeting the two women, he was led by the host into the house he had been looking forward to for a week.

Sitting in the Baroque-style living room, John promptly presented the gifts he had prepared: a Gillette razor he designed for Mr. Bristow, a popular Berlin home decoration for Mrs. Bristow, a carefully selected brooch for Miss Bristow, and a complete set of LEGO blocks for the young Miss Bristow.

Actually, the best gift for Mr. Bristow would have been a bicycle, but it was not easy to buy one in Berlin, so John had to give up on that idea.

"Thank you very much for your gifts, Mr. Huntelaar."

After opening their gifts, everyone's faces were filled with smiles. Mr. Bristow, after expressing his gratitude, picked up his gift with curiosity and asked, "But what is this thing... for?"

"This is a razor, used for shaving."

With a slight smile, John patiently explained the purpose and usage of the razor to Mr. Bristow.

Because of its small size, John had brought quite a few when he left New York. One reason was to prepare for when he started growing a beard, and the other was to use them as gifts. After all, besides the value of a gift, its uniqueness was also very important. What could be more special than a gift designed by John himself? Just like the LEGO blocks for the young Miss Bristow, John had later asked Joshua to bring several sets, which were very popular among the younger siblings of friends like Luther and Funk.

Amidst the exclamations of the two ladies, Mr. Bristow immediately grasped the key point in John's words and asked in surprise, "Mr. Huntelaar, did you design this razor yourself?"

"Yes, sir."

John nodded and chuckled, "I designed it specially for my grandfather's birthday... Mrs. Bristow, Miss Bristow, please forgive me for not mentioning it earlier..."

At this point, John turned to the two beautiful ladies and said with a smile, "In fact, the bicycle was also designed by me, as well as the LEGO blocks for children!"

"Wow!..."

Upon hearing John's explanation, the three people present simultaneously drew in a sharp breath! The Bristows were purely shocked, while Anna's gaze towards John instantly became filled with admiration and curiosity.

John was very satisfied with their reactions.

Although John had a very good impression of Miss Anna, finding a business partner was the main task of the day. Under such circumstances, appropriately demonstrating his capabilities was very necessary. From the scale of this manor, the Bristows were definitely not top-tier merchants or entrepreneurs in Germany, but they were also not weak. They were the best partners Joshua had mentioned. If they were too strong, they might swallow the bicycle factory using their local advantages, and if they were too weak, it would be detrimental to the factory's construction and future promotion. A moderate size was just right.

It seemed that John's words had a very clear effect!

The host, Mr. Bristow, became even more enthusiastic, and his gaze towards John was filled with more admiration and amazement. He nodded and smiled, "A few years ago, I heard about a great American inventor, Mr. Edison, who discovered the electric light that could change the world's lighting. I didn't expect to meet another American inventor who could change the world's transportation today..."

"Edison? Electric light?"

Hearing this, John was slightly taken aback and inwardly sighed. He didn't want to say much about the great man who was more of a businessman than an inventor. Moreover, he didn't think he could change the world's transportation; at most, he could improve it. What about the cars that would appear in Germany next year?

Fortunately, Mr. Bristow didn't dwell on this topic and quickly turned to the matter of cooperation, saying seriously, "Mr. Huntelaar, I am very interested in producing bicycles. Could you tell me what kind of cooperation you are proposing?"

"May I ask what kind of products your factory produces?"

John, not blinded by Anna's beauty, paused for a moment and asked calmly.

"Our factory mainly deals with wood processing."

Mr. Bristow clearly hesitated for a moment before saying somewhat uncertainly, "But please rest assured, Germany has the best workers in the world. With a patent license, we can quickly set up the factory!"

"Ah..."

Upon hearing that the Bristows were in the wood processing business, John was immediately at a loss.

He did have a good impression of Anna and was eager to find a business partner, but letting someone in the wood processing industry produce bicycles? Perhaps in a place like Germany, money could solve many problems, but finding a partner involved more than just investment and local influence. The management skills of the partner were also crucial; otherwise, how would issues like factory management, product cost, and quality control be resolved?

Seeing John's troubled expression, Mr. Bristow became anxious.

As a successful businessman and entrepreneur, Bristow naturally understood the value and prospects of various goods. Because of his business, he frequently traveled between Hamburg and Berlin and made annual trips to Britain and France. With his extensive experience, he clearly understood the value of the Flying Pigeon bicycle. He also knew that John's appearance at the ball was likely to find a business partner, which was how his wife and daughter had met him...

Missing such a good opportunity would probably lead to regret for a lifetime!

However, Bristow couldn't think of a solution at the moment. Although the bicycle business looked very attractive, he couldn't find a convincing reason to persuade John. After all, with the popularity of bicycles, sales were not a problem, but his production capabilities were severely lacking.

In a moment of desperation, Bristow couldn't help but give his wife a meaningful look.

Bristow had built his business from nothing, thanks to his hard work and extraordinary luck. His wife, Mrs. Bristow, was his greatest support. Coming from a family of merchants, she possessed a strong business acumen and had given her husband many good ideas. Even Bristow himself had to admit that if his wife were a man, she would have achieved much greater success.

This was evident from Mrs. Bristow's behavior at the ball: John's purpose was to meet more people, but after discussing bicycles with Mrs. Bristow, he didn't meet anyone else.

However, after seeing her husband's look, Mrs. Bristow furrowed her brow in thought.

Mrs. Bristow understood her husband's meaning and also empathized with John's concerns, as their shortcomings were very obvious. But she was reluctant to let such a good opportunity slip away. After a moment's consideration, she smiled warmly and suggested, "Mr. Huntelaar, although we have no experience in producing similar products, if we could bring in an experienced gentleman, it should be fine, right?"

"Oh?"

John's gaze towards Mrs. Bristow became slightly surprised. After a moment's thought, his eyes lit up, and he nodded with a smile, "Of course, as long as our interests are protected, we don't mind more people joining! And..."

Pausing for a moment, he continued, "Mr. Bristow, Mrs. Bristow, since you are in the wood processing business, are you interested in the LEGO blocks I designed?"