The Understated Dragon Lord

Chapter 304 The Concubine

"I'm not telling you!" Daniel was anything but compliant.

Jessica grabbed his ear firmly, her voice sharp with threat, "Will you talk or not? If you don't, I'll twist this ear right off! I wonder if you'd be more obedient without it."

"If I didn't have ears, I’d be even less inclined to talk."

"So are you going to spill the beans?"

"Alright, alright! It's because they were stored in different places!"

"Nonsense! All of 'The Concubine' masks were stored in the company warehouse. How come they were stored in different places?"

"Even within the same warehouse, different spots can make a difference. If you don't believe me, take me to the warehouse and I'll show you!"

"Fine, let's go! I want to see what ‘differences’ you’re talking about."

Jessica was curious. She wanted to know what this idiot was up to.

TMO's warehouse was, of course, not near the office building; it was in the suburbs where the rent was cheaper. A few years ago, Jessica had purchased a 20,000-square-foot warehouse for less than ten million—a bargain at less than five hundred dollars per square foot.

Daniel zoomed down the road in his Palamela, cutting the usual half-hour drive down to fifteen minutes before arriving with Jessica at the warehouse entrance.

He pushed open the large doors and immediately, a pungent, musty smell hit them. Normally, the warehouse only had one security guard and no one to manage the environment within. Thus, the

warehouse was essentially unused, and 'The Concubine' masks that couldn't be sold were piled up there. Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

Looking at the damp spots on the ground, Jessica was surprised.

"What's with all this water?"

"You bought the warehouse. Don't you know it's damp here?"

"How would I know? There are no rivers or streams nearby, even the city's sewer line barely runs through here. How can it be so damp?"

"This warehouse sits above a hot spring, a natural one."

"There are artificial hot springs?"

"Of course! Some money-hungry people just heat up water and call it a hot spring. So, we could turn this place into a hot spring resort. Once the hotel is ready, we could soak in the hot spring here for three days and nights!"

"Get out! Stop spouting nonsense!"

"I'm not! Look at me, I’m nothing if not honest and upright, no matter which angle you view it from."

"Are you referring to this hot spring when you say 'different'?"

"Underground, the western side of this warehouse has the hot spring, the eastern side doesn't. So, some of 'The Concubine' masks stored here got soaked by the spring water, and some did not."

"What's your point?"

"The ones soaked in the spring water are the real gems. If we reprocess these masks, we could create 'The Concubine' and you could easily beat Isabella's 'The Seven White.'"

"Fine! You handle it! Since you're free anyway, I’m putting you in charge of 'The Concubine' project. I'll have Brittany assist you."

"You're putting me in charge? Why should I? That’s too much work!"

"You'll do the work because I said so! You'll get to it and no lazing around!"