Chapter 97

The weekend is always the most anticipated part of the week.

On the day of rest ordained by God, middle-aged people can relax their tired spirits and bodies, while the young can cheerfully head to various gatherings and balls, extravagantly spending their seemingly boundless energy. Especially the balls hosted by various important figures are the focus of their pursuit. Everyone hopes to have good luck and get an invitation to experience the luxurious scenes and meet those noble and beautiful young ladies...

What if, by some stroke of luck, one of the noble young ladies takes a fancy to you?

This weekend, the ball co-hosted by Baron Cole and Mr. Brister attracted many people's attention. Although the ball was themed to welcome a few Americans who had crossed the ocean, this made the Germans, whose nationalism was on the rise, feel somewhat uncomfortable. But...

Who cares!

There's food to eat, wine to drink, and dances to dance, who cares who it's welcoming?

However, while others don't care, it doesn't mean that John and Old Hunter can also be indifferent. Although Brister and Baron Cole's main target is Joshua, they are still important guests in name, and now almost everyone involved knows that John is the major shareholder of the Pigeon Company and the inventor of the bicycle, so they can't just应付过去.

After tidying himself up, John accompanied his grandfather to Baron Cole's estate.

If we talk about titles, Mr. Cole is just a minor baron and not a significant figure in Germany, but as an entrepreneur, he has a relatively large influence. In this age of steel, owning a steel mill and a machinery factory is enough to make Baron Cole's influence surpass his title, making him a prominent figure in the eyes of the public.

So the estate in John's eyes is much more impressive than the Brister family's.

"Hey, do you like this kind of estate?"

Seeing John looking around after getting off the carriage, Old Hunter smiled and asked softly.

"Quite a bit."

John nodded honestly and smiled, "Actually, I like all European estates. A large courtyard with a big house, it must be very comfortable to live in!"

Compared to the old-established nobles and major industrialists, Old Hunter, who was already quite well-off in New York, clearly lacked the depth accumulated over several decades or even a century. For John, who in his previous life could barely afford a two-bedroom apartment in the city, such an estate is more like a beautiful dream. He might even find a regular apartment in the city more comfortable to live in...

Old Hunter smiled at John's words, about to say something, but at that moment, a male servant at the door greeted them, "Good afternoon, gentlemen, please show your invitations."

John took out two invitations and handed them over. The servant's eyes lit up immediately and he bowed again, "Good afternoon, Mr. Hunter, Baron Cole has been waiting for you two! Please come in!"

Led by the servant, accompanied by soft music, John and his grandfather walked up to a group of men chatting idly.

John is tall and has good eyesight, so he immediately spotted his good friend Joshua among the crowd. At that moment, Joshua was beaming, smiling brightly, and chatting with the men around him, occasionally bursting into laughter, seemingly blending naturally into the German world.

In fact, although Joshua had been in Berlin for over a week, he had only visited John once and left hurriedly after lunch. The influence of the bicycle in Germany clearly exceeded everyone's expectations, and his partners, Baron Cole and Mr. Brister, were urging him to get the factory up and running as soon as possible. Joshua had to work with a few engineers in the factory every day, and there was still a hint of fatigue on his face.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Hunter! Good afternoon, John!"

Seeing John and his grandfather, Joshua's eyes lit up, and he immediately smiled and came over, greeting them and introducing the people around him: "You already know Mr. Brister. This is Baron Cole, the owner of the estate... Baron Cole, this is Mr. John Hunter, one of the major shareholders of the Pigeon Company!"

"Good afternoon, Baron Cole!"

"Good afternoon, Mr. Hunter!"

Old Hunter greeted the other party warmly and politely, then shook hands firmly. John, on the other hand, was carefully observing Baron Cole, whom he had never met before.

About forty years old, around 1.8 meters tall, Baron Cole was quite outstanding in the hall. He was very robust, and from the moment John saw him, he stood straight, like a soldier with perfect posture. Standing in front of him, John even felt a subtle sense of pressure!

"Moreover, he should be considered quite handsome, right?"

After observing Baron Cole, John nodded inwardly. Baron Cole had a standard square face, thick eyebrows, large eyes, a straight nose, and broad lips, with a traditional mustache, giving a very steady impression.

"Baron, this is my grandson John."

After shaking hands, Old Hunter took the initiative to introduce John, smiling, "I believe you already know that John is the inventor of the bicycle and the patent holder, and of course, also the largest shareholder of the Pigeon Bicycle Company..."

The long list of titles from Old Hunter's mouth made John a bit surprised.

In John's memory, Old Hunter was not a showy person. In fact, he was very low-key in both business and life, often showing a bit of humility typical of Westerners. But his unexpected behavior today couldn't help but make John think differently.

However, before John could think more, Baron Cole's eyes lit up, and he extended his right hand, "Welcome to Cole Estate, Mr. Hunter!"

"It's my honor, Baron Cole!"

John politely extended his right hand, shook it, and smiled.

Under the warm greetings of the others, John met the people around him one by one, including a noble German baron. Of course, John was one of the focal points of everyone's attention: so young, yet owning a large share in a rapidly growing bicycle factory and another promising building block toy factory, he was a typical example of youthful success.

After a while of small talk, when Baron Cole deliberately steered the conversation towards cooperation, the irrelevant people tactfully left.

"The progress of the factory construction is very satisfactory, Mr. Stone's work is outstanding!"

When discussing the progress of the bicycle factory, Baron Cole nodded in great satisfaction and praised Joshua, "If everything goes smoothly and there are no unexpected issues, the first bicycle can be produced in no more than half a month! By February 1885, we can even reach a production scale of five hundred bicycles!"

"So fast?!"

Hearing this, John was taken aback! It had been only a little over a week since Joshua brought a large amount of equipment to Berlin, and the construction had already progressed to this extent?

Seeing the somewhat skeptical look on his friend's face, Joshua quickly explained with a smile, "In fact, this is mainly due to the advance preparations of Baron Cole and Mr. Brister: a ready-made large factory, ample and high-quality raw materials, a sufficient number of skilled workers, and of course, everyone's cooperation... We should be very grateful that we ultimately chose Berlin and chose to cooperate with Baron Cole and Mr. Brister!"

Talking about the process of this cooperation, a look of admiration appeared on Joshua's face.

Compared to the establishment of factories in New York and London, everything in Berlin was not only satisfactory but also surprising, especially the high-quality industrial workers in Germany, which opened his eyes. He originally thought that at least a month of training would be needed, but now he found that just a few weeks were enough!

In this city, it seems that anything is possible.

Hearing Joshua's explanation, John was also inwardly amazed. Although the technology of bicycles was not high in his view, in this era, it was still considered a technical job, and it involved the training of workers, the installation and debugging of equipment, and other processes. The fact that they could start production in just a month was very surprising to him.

However, this was a good thing for him, wasn't it?

The earlier the factory starts production, the more output, and the more money John earns. Steve in New York was waiting for his large investment to build a hospital!

Just as Baron Cole smiled slightly with a hint of pride and was about to say something, a male servant quietly approached and whispered a few words in his ear.

"Excuse me, gentlemen, I need to step away for a moment."

After hearing the words, Baron Cole's expression changed slightly, and he politely nodded and turned to leave.

With the departure of the noble estate owner, the few acquaintances became more at ease. Mr. Brister was chatting with Old Hunter, while John and his friend Joshua walked to a nearby long table and casually picked up some snacks to eat.

In this era without cars, people had to travel by carriage for a considerable time to reach the estate, so they had to set out early in the afternoon, and dinner could only be solved here. The ball had not yet officially started, and they would spend a long night, so it was the wisest choice to eat something to fill their stomachs. Many people around them had the same idea, eating and chatting, and the atmosphere was already quite lively.

"When do you plan to return to New York?"

After swallowing a mouthful of food, John asked casually.

"Wait until the first bicycle is produced."

Wiping his hands with a white handkerchief, Joshua answered somewhat absentmindedly. The relatives in London didn't need much attention, but he had to be more serious about Berlin, at least to understand the initial production capacity of the factory before leaving.

Of course, it was necessary to leave a necessary auditor.

The two seemed to be chatting casually, and although they hadn't seen each other for a long time, they didn't have the same warmth and closeness as when they met last year. Perhaps they had both matured in their work and studies, and their meetings and interactions had become more calm and steady.

However, after chatting for a while, Joshua suddenly asked, "John, when do you plan to return to New York? I heard you have left the medical school classroom and are at a hospital... Do you really want to become a physician?"

Although Joshua had once suggested that John become a physician, when his friend seemed to have really made this choice, Joshua, who was already accustomed to being a leader, found it a bit hard to understand. Compared to a few years ago, the changes in Joshua's status and position were so obvious that his thoughts were also very different from the beginning.

"This..."

Furrowing his brows, John was at a loss for how to respond to his friend.

However, just as John was at a loss, a burst of joyful laughter suddenly came from not far behind them, but it quickly turned into a commotion, followed by an urgent male voice, "Maria, what's wrong? What's wrong with your neck?"

"Hmm? Another accident?"

Just as John was thinking about the reasons why Joshua had once persuaded him to become a physician, he was startled by the cry and quickly turned to look.

In his line of sight, a woman in her early thirties was tightly clutching her neck with both hands, her face filled with indescribable pain...