CH 23.1

Grace heard the sound of women’s conversation from behind.

“I haven’t heard any recent stories about the Duchess of Felton.”

“That’s true. Is it because of the embarrassing incident last time?!”

“That could be a possibility.”

Following that, there were some unpleasant rumors about the Duchess of Felton. Even though they didn’t circulate for a long time, they received a lot of attention.

Although the attention was not in a positive direction.

‘Anyway, even if it’s true, it’s not something I did.’

Moreover, since the majority of the rumors were false, there was no reason for her to be shaken.

Grace repeated this to herself and chose one person to go outside with.

⋆★⋆

The person Grace decided to accompany was named Lily. She seemed to be good at calculations and disliked losing. However, it was evident that she didn’t place people beneath money, which made her a suitable candidate for building trust in the workshop.

It was too early to judge her hastily since they had just met, but Lily seemed like that kind of person based on what Grace had seen so far.

The originally recommended person was Marian, but Grace felt uncomfortable talking to her, as she was an avid reader of Chatters magazine. So, she chose Lily, who was recommended by another person.

‘My mind is clear.’

Grace suddenly realized that her words were coming out well and her mind was clear today.

Perhaps it was indeed the mansion that was the problem. Whenever she came here, her mind became clear.

Her thoughts were organized, and her words came out clearly. However, it didn’t mean that the previous Grace had disappeared. The memories of the previous Grace were still vividly present.

Although there was still a slight feeling of melancholy, she could still face people with a clear mind.

⋆★⋆

After visiting three small workshops, they decided to make a deal with the fourth and final small, shabby fabric workshop. Lily looked at Grace with a doubtful expression, as if asking, “Is this place really okay?!”

However, Grace looked around the interior, examined the muslin sample shown to her, and carefully reviewed the contract before taking it with her to review it with her colleagues.

“It was faster and easier than I thought.”

Lily, who held a piece of muslin in her arms, said as they left the store.

“Really?!”

“Yes, I thought there would be something more. Even small shops have their own pride and honor, you know. Like, what kind of deal are these women making! or something like that.”

Grace didn’t deny her words. She had heard of such incidents often happens in larger stores from conversations among orphanage mothers.

Watching Grace not respond, Lily hesitated before asking, 

“By the way, Mrs. Linden, may I ask why we chose to make a deal with this workshop in particular?!”

“Yes?”

“Well… honestly, the second workshop we visited looked the cleanest and nicest among the ones we’ve been to.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Grace recalled what had happened at the workshop.

Whenever she visited a workshop, she acted as if she were just looking around without doing anything, but she observed her surroundings and the condition of the fabrics they created and imported.

‘Grace’s eye for detail is quite high, even though it may not seem like it.’

Although she didn’t exactly know what made them good, she could compare them to what she usually saw.

And the condition of the fabrics in the last workshop they visited was quite ordinary for those imported from outside, but the ones they made themselves were intricate.

It was hard to believe that such skill could come from a small-scale shop.

Secondly, she wore a cloak and a cape made of Rehton’s leather every time she went out.

Of course, ordinary people wouldn’t know if it was Rehton’s leather or not, but the fabric makers could recognize that it was a fabric that even the finest dress shops couldn’t afford to buy.

‘However, she couldn’t recognize the same level of talent or skill in the previous three workshops she visited.’

She had only recognized the one she intended to form a contract with, which turned out to be a place with hidden potential and genuine skill.

However, Grace couldn’t explain all of this to Lily, so she tapped the muslin she was holding.

“They make muslin finely and what we need is muslin, so that’s why.”

“Oh, I see.”

Lily sent a slightly suspicious glance at Grace, even though she understood.

‘Well, it can’t be helped.’

Grace tilted her head, avoiding eye contact. It was advantageous to trade with small workshops and build trust now.

‘And it would be even better if we could increase the size of the workshop.’

If Grace’s memory is correct, the fabric workshop has a very well-established system of apprenticeship.

And the problem was that it was too well-established.

‘A rigid one…that’s what it is.’

The textile industry was dominated by two huge workshops, leaving the rest of the smaller ones struggling to build connections even if they had good skills. It was a terrible system where if an apprentice left a workshop to start their own, they were branded as traitors and doomed to fail.