Chapter 118 The True Purpose of the Garden Eatery
The carriage soon arrived at the commercial street. After Henry got off, he looked around in a daze, feeling as if he had stepped into a scene from a 1980s or 1990s movie.
The straight cement road led to the entrance of the Garden Eatery, with workers on both sides.
Rows of wooden scaffolding filled the area, bustling with workers busy with renovations. They were applying cement mortar and pebbles to the walls, creating a decorative effect.
The restaurant Willow mentioned was the one Henry stood in front of. It was grand, with a quarto door and a wooden sign that wrote 'The Garden Eatery.'
The restaurant had three floors. The first floor was for commoners, the second for merchants and nobles, and the third for accommodation.
It was a big restaurant for gastronomy and accommodations, and its enormity lied in length and width. The ground floor was spacious, with enough room for over a hundred tables, resembling a large cafeteria.
The operation of the ground floor was similar to that of a cafeteria, focusing on quick, affordable, and filling meals.
Henry was more interested in the second and third floors. The ground floor was just a bonus.
"Let's go in and take a look!" Henry led the way, followed by the three women.
Inside, they saw people cleaning up. The ground floor was empty, with only tables and chairs.
"Wow, Henry, this place is like a military camp," Ellie exclaimed.
"Yes," Henry nodded, pointing to the platform ahead. "That's where you place your order. A large bowl of oatmeal porridge costs two steel coins, a vegetarian dish costs three steel coins, a dish with meat costs five steel coins, and a whole meat dish costs eight steel coins."
"Wow, with such low prices, there will be a lot of people coming to eat!" Ellie exclaimed.
"That's the idea," Henry chuckled.
The ground floor aimed for quantity. A commoner could have a bowl of porridge and some vegetarian dish for a meal with four steel coins which was called small profits but quick turnover.
"I'll come and try it," Ellie said excitedly. "Mila, you should come, and Willow too."
"Sure," Mila nodded, curious about the food here.
"It's worth a try," Willow said softly, though she hadn't a concrete concept in her mind.
Henry hoped the three women wouldn't expect too much from the cafeteria food. It was just a casual experience.
"Let's go to the second floor. That's where the important things are."
The staircase to the second floor was wide, with four separate staircases to prevent crowding and accidents.
"Wow, there are so many private rooms!" Ellie marveled at the neatly arranged rooms on the second floor.
"There are sixty private dining rooms," Henry corrected, emphasizing the importance of these private rooms.
The sixty private rooms varied in size. Thirty were small, accommodating four to six people. Twenty were medium-sized, for eight to twelve people. And the ten were large, for sixteen people.
The dishes were stir-fried, with the cheapest vegetarian dish costs five copper coins, tasting better than those downstairs.
Henry pushed open the door to private room number six, revealing a set of tables and chairs, as well as several black hollows on the walls.
"Henry, what should we do with these hollows?" Willow asked softly.
Henry thought for a moment and said, "Find some thick paper, draw or write something on it, frame it with wood, and hang it over the hollows. Keep it simple."
"Why didn't I think of that?" Willow doubted her intelligence. It was just a simple decoration.
"I wonder if the sound can be heard clearly from below," Henry said, approaching the small openings.
"Henry, why don't you check it?" Willow suggested, "We'll stay up here and talk, and you can listen downstairs."
"Sure, Mila, let's go downstairs," Henry said, leading Mila out of the private room towards the kitchen on the second floor.
In the kitchen, they opened a storage area, moved a few bags of wheat, and revealed a hidden staircase on the floor. They went down.
After about a minute, they reached the bottom. This was already the underground floor, the core of the Garden Eatery.
The air underground was heavy and quiet, with only the sound of their breathing and footsteps.
In the darkness, a candle was lit, and a familiar voice followed, causing Mila to relax her grip on the dagger.
"Henry, you're here," Wyatt emerged from the darkness.
"Wyatt, how's it going? Can you hear the sound from above?" Henry asked.
Henry didn't find Wyatt's presence strange at all, as Wyatt was in charge here.
"Yes, the bamboo tubes transmit sound very clearly," Wyatt said, leading them to a small room with the number six on it. "Henry, you can hear Willow's voice inside."
"Okay." Henry replied.
Henry took Mila into the small room. There was a set of tables and chairs, a candle, a stack of paper, and several quill pens. In the center of the room, a bamboo tube hung from above, perfectly aligned with the table.
"Let's give it a try, Mila."
Henry sat down and removed the stopper from the bamboo tube, revealing a thumb-sized hole. He pressed his ear against it and could immediately hear the voices from upstairs.
"Willow, have Henry and the others come down?" Ellie's clear voice was distinct.
"They should have. I wonder if they can hear us," Willow's worried voice was soft.
The test results were clearly, and Henry was very satisfied. If anyone had any plans against Eldoria or Henry, as long as they were in the Garden Eatery, he would be able to eavesdrop.
Moreover, Henry believed that the second floor of the Garden Eatery would attract many merchants and nobles. Any casual conversations or plans would be overheard and recorded.
Gathering intelligence was the true purpose of the Garden Eatery.
