Grudges

"Is there any grudge between you and the boss Eric from earlier?" Jake asked.

The fact that the boss Eric from earlier, even at a high price, wanted to snatch this batch of rosewood from Amy's hands, combined with his attitude towards Amy, made Jake feel that there must be some story behind it.

Amy hesitated for a moment and said, "Indeed, there is some grudge." Perhaps Amy felt that Jake's previous actions made him trustworthy, so she didn't hide it from him.

"Well, he has known my father for many years, and they used to be good friends. At least, my father always considered him a good friend," Amy said. "This store originally belonged to my father, and the adjacent storefront was his. The two of them entered this business together and both had furniture stores. In recent years, my father's business has been mediocre, while his business has been thriving. However, instead of helping my father, he wanted to take over my father's storefront, including this place and the furniture store, and expand his own business." Amy's face was filled with anger as she spoke.

"My father refused to sell, so he came up with a sinister plan," Amy continued. "He found a customer and introduced them to my father, saying that the customer needed to order a batch of furniture and that he was too busy to handle it, so he introduced it to my father. My father was naturally happy at the time. Little did he know that Eric colluded with that customer and tampered with the contract.

Eric was present when the contract was signed, making jokes on the side. Out of trust in him, my father didn't carefully read the contract and fell into the trap. Initially, it was stated that the furniture would be made with ordinary wood, but in the contract, it demanded the use of precious woods like rosewood and nanmu. The customer paid a deposit, and if they breach the contract, they would have to pay tens of millions of yuan in compensation. After my father found out about this, he fell ill with anger. That's when I took over. It took me some time and various connections to purchase some wood materials. Now, we only lack the rosewood. Of course, during this period, our funds have been completely depleted in order to buy these precious woods. So, Jake, your payment can only be made in two months. However, rest assured, we absolutely won't default on your payment."

So that's the story. Through Amy's narration, Jake finally understood the grudge between them. No wonder the other party was willing to pay a high price to snatch this batch of rosewood from his hands. Such precious wood is not easy to come by. If Jake missed out on this batch, Amy might not be able to find another one in a short time. By then, it would exceed the time limit of the contract, and Amy would not only have to pay the compensation of tens of millions but also be left with the furniture made from the wood she bought earlier, resulting in even greater losses.

"If that's the case, even if you fulfill the contract, the loss this time would be quite significant," Jake said. When the customer paid the deposit, it must have been based on the deposit required for making furniture with ordinary wood, so it wouldn't be much. The remaining payment would be the same. Moreover, Amy had already invested all the liquid funds in their store to fulfill this contract. Even if they complete the contract and receive the remaining payment, it wouldn't be much since it was based on the contract for using ordinary wood.

"Right." Amy's expression was somewhat resigned and angry. "But we won't let Eric succeed. Even if we can't hold on in the end, we won't transfer the store to him!"

It was clear that Amy harbored a deep hatred towards Eric, which was completely understandable. If Jake were in her shoes, he would undoubtedly have the same attitude as Amy.

However, Jake was somewhat concerned about whether Amy would be able to repay the payment on time in two months. After all, the current situation of Amy's family was evidently not good, and they could collapse at any moment.

With this in mind, Jake said to Amy, "I sympathize with the predicament your family is facing. I can sell the wood to you, but I also have to consider my own situation and leave myself a way out. How about this? If you can't pay my payment on time, you can mortgage the store to me. Of course, at that time, we can hire professionals to assess the value of the store and conduct the transaction based on the evaluated price. What do you think?"

Jake's proposal made Amy hesitate. It was apparent that she had a strong attachment to her family's store, and she wouldn't sell it unless absolutely necessary. Additionally, because of Jake's suggestion, Amy had some doubts about whether Jake was colluding with Eric, trying to obtain her family's store.

However, upon further consideration, it seemed unlikely. If Jake and Eric were in cahoots, Jake could simply refuse to sell the wood to her. It would be extremely difficult for her to find another batch of rosewood in a short time. If the contract were breached, the store would still end up in Eric's hands. Jake had no reason to go through the extra trouble.

Moreover, now that Jake knew the true situation on their side, it was normal for him to want to secure a way out, and Amy understood that. The most important thing was that Jake's batch of wood was the only hope to save herself and her family's store. Amy had no other choice.

"Okay, I agree," Amy nodded in agreement with Jake.

With both parties reaching an agreement, the next step was to sign the contract. The batch of wood had already been weighed, totaling 6.5 tons, with a price of $1.4 million per ton, amounting to a total of $9.1 million.

After signing the contract, Jake still had a surreal feeling. He didn't expect to become a multimillionaire so quickly. Just a while ago, he was troubled by finding a regular job, and now he had made such a significant leap. It all felt like a dream.

"Unfortunately, it will still take some time to receive this money, and there may be variables in between," Jake thought to himself. After signing the contract, Amy expressed her gratitude to Jake repeatedly. Although she didn't know how things would turn out in the end, at present, Jake had indeed helped her. His assistance was as precious as a lifeline, which filled Amy's heart with immense gratitude. She even considered that if they really couldn't hold on, she could accept transferring the store to Jake.