Volume 3 - CH 89

Gonzalo Desmond, head of the Desmond family, let out a sigh of disappointment in his office in his mansion.

He combed back his light brown hair and rested his stocky, petite body on the chair.

He glanced sideways at the elderly secretary who was cleaning up his desk and complained like he was talking to himself.

“Campbellina…even though you’re my daughter, you did such a stupid thing…”

His daughter did something crazy just the other day. She mistook someone in a newly opened shop and caused a commotion.

Campbellina had always been a fluffy, dreamy girl. But it was the first time such a girl had enthusiastically broached the subject of business.

Thinking that she was becoming more aware of herself as the daughter of a merchant family, he gladly lent her a helping hand. So he rented a place, set up the staff, and opened the shop she had in mind.

But, of course, it wasn’t just his daughter’s cuteness that gave him strength.

Leaving aside the vague rumors about Shirotaka, the ice cream dessert shop seemed appealing. In this year-round warm town, it looks like it would be a good business prospect.

With this in mind, he decided to go along with his daughter’s plan.

He didn’t care about the name or signage of a back alley shop, but in accordance with her strong wishes, they decided that the shop name would be honored.

After all, if you are dealing with a small, insignificant shop you can just replace it without a second thought.

Speed is the key to business.

Preparations were made quickly, and when it was time to open the shop, everything was going smoothly…

He never thought that there would be a stumbling block in such a strange way soon after starting.

Campbellina was ordered to stay under house arrest at the mansion, and the shop was temporarily closed. First, they had to wait for the nasty gossip that had spread to die down.

His daughter has been making a lot of excuses and whining, but he’s not going to let her get involved in the business anymore. In a little while, he planned to find her a suitable marriage partner…appropriately, with a lot of compromise.

It’s such a waste, even though she’s a beautiful girl. If he knew this was going to happen to her, he would have kept a strict watch on her on a regular basis.

On top of having a change of heart and unilaterally annulling her engagement with Julio Beatos, this is the result. Furthermore, the engagement itself with Julio was forced due to an illicit love affair.

He told his daughter to prepare for the fact that she will never find another good partner. It was pitiful to see her depressed, but it can’t be helped.

In this bustling city, with the passing of one season, the bad rumors will fade away on their own. At that time, he’ll be looking for the marriage partner for Campbellina this time around.

Also, the shop was set to reopen at that time. The start itself was strong, and he wanted to get it back on track successfully.

As he was thinking about this and that, the secretary, who had finished cleaning up his desk, approached him.

“I understand that you are planning to re-open the dessert shop after the upcoming Four Seasons Festival. In the meantime, is there anything that needs to be done? Any plans to rework the shop?”

“Hmmm…just add some ice cream and stuff to the menu. We’ll just have to send someone incognito to the back alley. They seem to be paying attention to us and are gaining momentum, so I think we can expect some new products from them. I’ll be grateful to stock up.”

When Gonzalo replied, the secretary gave him a complicated look.

“Trying to take it easy like that… What would you do if, while you were doing that, the other party who got on with the momentum started bidding? There are rumors of Shirotaka over there, so you should be careful So… at least change the name of the shop so that it doesn’t start a fire unnecessarily.”

“Isn’t it said that the owner of the back alley shop is about the same age as Campbellina? It’s just a young girl’s business. Don’t worry about it.”

A shop in a prime location on a main street is no match for a shop at the end of an alley. The Desmonds would lose face if they were intimidated by such a lower-ranked opponent.

Snickering at the weak-willed secretary, Gonzalo continued.

“Rather, don’t you think it’s wise to let us take advantage of their momentum? When they have grown well, we can reap the harvest. Let’s make the whole profit. If we are going to put them under our umbrella, the name of the shop should remain the same. Let’s let the other shop attract customers at its best.”

Gonzalo spoke nonchalantly and smiled.