The sky grew increasingly dark, and night fell in the blink of an eye. The semi-basement tavern across the street emitted a warm yellow glow, with shadowy figures moving inside.
Soon after, Hank and Fred returned with two buckets of water, and Mary called everyone into the kitchen for dinner.
Dolly stood up, went to lock the front door, and was the last to enter the kitchen.
A gas lamp hung in the kitchen, with the table moved to the center and a few chairs or stools placed around it, making it so crowded that there was hardly any room to turn around.
This was even with Lisa unable to come downstairs to eat. Normally, the kitchen would be even more cramped during meals.
However, Dolly had endured many hardships in her previous life when she and her business partner were just starting out, so the current difficult conditions no longer stirred much emotion in her.
She lifted her skirt and squeezed into the innermost seat. As soon as she sat down, Mary served her a full plate of food and poured her a cup of warm milk.
Today’s dinner was considerably more abundant than breakfast and lunch.
On the plate were two slices of buttered bread, several strips of bacon, a fried egg, fried blood sausage, beans cooked with Tomato Cans, mashed potatoes, and cabbage.
This was an incredibly classic old London dish.
Dolly sniffed it and took a bite with her utensils. To her surprise, the food on the plate wasn’t as unpalatable as she had imagined—it tasted quite decent.
Fred, after delivering a meal upstairs, sat down and couldn’t help but remark after a glance, “Is it Christmas again today?”
It seemed that as long as she didn’t have to mind the shop and had plenty of time to work, Mary could still prepare very tasty meals.
The five of them gathered around the small table, eating heartily, passing around a small bottle of sea salt and pepper.
At the dinner table, the grandfather was the first to inquire about Dolly’s experience minding the shop that day.
Dolly pursed her lips, still cutting her bacon, and slowly recounted everything she had recorded in the ledger that day.
Instantly, everyone in the kitchen stopped what they were doing and looked up at her in bewilderment.
Mary, who had been at home all day and knew there weren’t many customers, hadn’t paid much attention to the shop’s business.
She never expected that on Dolly’s very first day minding the shop, she had sold so much.
There were only a few customers, but each had bought a considerable amount. It must have taken quite a bit of persuasion from the shopkeeper.
Everyone present had taken turns minding the shop for a month and understood this all too well.
Fred was especially surprised. He knew Dolly wasn’t particularly outgoing—in fact, she was somewhat reserved—and had never minded the shop alone before. Today, however, she had completely changed.
Hank, having witnessed Dolly’s persuasive skills when purchasing goods, explained it to himself, thinking it might also be due to her schooling.
In short, none of those present knew that their girl had been taken over by a retail brand CEO.
Dolly had anticipated their reactions. She lowered her head to continue eating, her eyes shifting as she said:
“I just wanted the business to do better, so Grandmother wouldn’t be so upset and insist on working herself.
Her health still needs a few more months of recovery. If she gets injured again during this time, it’ll be hard to treat.”
Hearing this, everyone felt somewhat ashamed and lowered their heads. When they had taken turns minding the shop, business had never been this good.
But her? She was clearly a quiet and well-behaved girl, yet she had pushed herself so hard for the sake of her grandmother’s health!
However, running a shop requires talent, and learning it takes a long process. Unless one has already mastered all the commercial skills like her, an ordinary person would need at least a full month of uninterrupted training to get started.
Seeing that she had laid enough groundwork, Dolly brought up her plan to take a leave of absence from school and focus on managing the shop full-time.
The kitchen fell silent again. This time, even Penny bit through her bacon, looking utterly confused.
With just over half a year left to graduate, taking a leave of absence now would mean having to make up half a year of classes later—it seemed unnecessarily troublesome.
“It’s fine. I’ve already learned everything I need to. Making up a few courses later is better than letting the shop fail now. If that happens, I won’t even have the money to get my diploma. With me at home focusing on the shop, maybe business can return to how it used to be.”
Dolly’s reasoning made perfect sense.
Her grandfather finally nodded. “Alright then. Tomorrow, I’ll bring some things and go with you to speak with the headmistress. As for your grandmother, you’ll have to persuade her yourself.”
Dolly hummed in agreement.
After the meal, she decisively picked up the cash box and account book and went upstairs, knocking on her grandmother’s bedroom door.
As she entered, her grandmother had just finished rinsing her mouth after dinner and was preparing to rest.
Dolly shook the cash box. “Don’t sleep yet. Help me with the accounts.”
She walked over, handed the account book to Lisa, and passed her the cash box.
Lisa took the cash box, feeling its weight, and her eyes lit up.
She opened the account book and looked it over.
“We sold so much today!”
Lisa grew more and more astonished as she examined the accounts, asking Dolly about the process.
Dolly recounted everything she had done that day in detail, including wrapping paper packages, writing notes, and creating small advertisements.
As someone who also ran a shop, Lisa’s eyes grew brighter the more she listened.
She slapped her thigh, almost aggravating her fracture. Yes! This was exactly how business should be done! Why hadn’t she thought of it before?
But how had Dolly come up with so many ideas in such a short time? Lisa couldn’t help but wonder.
Dolly knew that her personality now differed quite noticeably from the original owner’s, but she had found the perfect excuse: filial piety.
So, she tightly grasped her grandmother’s hand.
“I did all of this just so you can focus on recovering in peace! If possible, I’m willing to take over managing the shop full-time.”
Lisa was stunned again, her aged face momentarily blank.
It seemed she had never considered that Dolly was willing to do so much for the shop for the sake of her health.
Even though this child usually seemed quiet and indifferent to everything, when it really mattered, she truly stepped up!
Lisa was so moved that she burst into tears. However, she quickly realized what Dolly meant.
“But what about your studies?” she asked softly, puzzled.
Dolly repeated her plan: she intended to take a temporary leave of absence, complete her courses once her grandmother recovered, and assured her that it wouldn’t hinder her future prospects.
By that time, the business would undoubtedly depend on her, and she would have the final say in everything.
In this lifetime, she had no desire to become an office typist or secretary and marry some unattractive colleague. Nor did she consider that a promising future.
After all, it wouldn’t help her make any money.
At the family level, when social circles haven’t expanded alongside the growth of family capital to the point where resources can be exchanged through marriage to increase influence and thereby gain more benefits, she won’t consider personal matters.
Similarly, although the family before her eyes appears entirely ordinary, each member has their own merits and is worth nurturing.
She knows the original story inside out and understands the historical context even better.
She also knows that London at present is full of countless opportunities.
The system is loose, rife with corruption, and regulation is not strict, even to the extent that it somewhat favors the unchecked growth of commerce.
And she, with valuable practical experience, knows nothing but how to make money.
It’s simply a matter of retracing the successful path she took in the previous millennium, now in the nineteenth century.
What’s so difficult about that?
…
Author’s note: