Red Dead Redemption: The Great Philanthropist of the West

The next day, Henry arrived at Fellowes Estate and spent the morning talking with Senator Fellowes about co-producing a weekly magazine. The profits would be split 50/50, with Fellowes handling advertising, publishing, and sales, while Henry would provide the content. This content would include everyday news, gossip, celebrity scandals, novel Western stories, serialized novels, and stories about Chinese and Native American cultures to make people more accepting of them.

Therefore, Henry planned to give Trelawney more responsibility, having him provide the subject matter, such as a classic adventure story, the daily life of a cowboy, or a wild exploration, and then have Trelawney organize people to write it and cultivate a group of professional writers.

In the afternoon, Trelawney sent word that the Ding sisters had been spotted at the Jade Dragon Restaurant on Pollock Street in the East End, near Chinatown. When Henry and Zhang Wei arrived, the Ding sisters had just finished eating and were coming out.

The two sides met at the door, and the atmosphere immediately fell silent. Ding Xiaolan keenly sensed the extraordinary nature of Henry and his group, quietly shielding her younger sister behind her and assuming a defensive stance. If Henry hadn't looked more like a wealthy young master, she would have thought he was sent by the capitalists to abduct them.

"Don't be nervous, we're not here to arrest you." Henry raised his hands, indicating that he meant no harm. He then stepped aside to let Ding Xiaolan see Zhang Wei.

Seeing familiar faces from their former work brought the Ding sisters a slight sense of relief. At least they weren't there to arrest them.

Seeing that they had lowered their guard a little, Henry took the opportunity to say, "I have a big business deal I'd like to discuss with you. Perhaps we should find a place to sit down and talk. You can choose the location, Miss Ding. What do you think?"

Seeing that Henry meant no harm, Ding Xiaolan hesitated for a moment before deciding to talk to him to see what this big job he was talking about was. Although the two sisters had become hired assassins thanks to their alluring appearance and agile, ruthless skills, few people were willing to refer them to jobs because Westerners at that time generally looked down on people of color and women. Even when they were, the pay was very low. So the sisters' lives were actually not easy.

Finally, the Ding sisters led Henry and his two companions to a private room in a Cantonese bar next to the Chinese Labor Union. After Henry explained their purpose and offered to remove the bounty on their heads, along with a base salary of $100 per month and additional bonuses for missions, and the compensation of being free to do as they pleased (besides leading a small training team during designated hours), the two women readily agreed.

Upon learning that Henry was also recruiting Wang Zhiqiang, he readily agreed, saying he knew where Wang was and took Henry directly to find him.

The subsequent conversation went smoothly. Wang Zhiqiang had only one request: he just wanted Henry to help cure his daughter's illness. Henry learned that Wang Zhiqiang's daughter suffered from anemia due to long-term malnutrition and excessive blood loss from an accident.

Henry said it was no problem; it was actually easy to solve. All she needed was a stable environment and to increase her intake of foods rich in iron, folic acid, and vitamin B12, such as meat, eggs, leafy green vegetables, and dairy products, along with a period of rest. This was precisely what Wang Zhiqiang lacked. To afford his daughter's treatment, he had to take this path, which meant he was constantly traveling with his daughter.

Henry also stated that if the rest period is ineffective, he will take Wang Xiaoxi (Wang Zhiqiang's daughter) to a big city for treatment. If the big cities in the west are not suitable, he will take her to New York for treatment. He also mentioned that Wang Xiaoxi could attend school and study with other students.

Upon hearing Henry's assurances, Wang Zhiqiang was overjoyed and immediately declared that as long as Henry could fulfill his promises, his worthless life would be Henry's.

After the discussion, Henry gave Zhang Wei some funds and instructed him, along with Wang Zhiqiang and the Ding sisters, to find some talented orphans in the city, inquire about their willingness, and, if they agreed, take them back to the thieves' territory for training. As for Wang Xiaoxi, she was taken back to the Quaker Bay Manor to recuperate, with Dr. Jones and Jenny looking after her. If any intelligence was needed, Trelawney could be contacted for support.

After resting at his hotel for a night, Henry visited Congressman Fellowes again and asked him to help arrange meetings with Wheeler Lawson (who ran a warehousing and freight company and clothing business, with a large warehouse at the Saint Denis docks) and John Jack Pierpont Morgan, the behind-the-scenes owner of Saint Denis's largest pawnshop and the future famous J.P. Morgan's son. Henry intended to collaborate with them on the production of Coca-Cola.

After agreeing on a time, Henry and Li Yi spent their time relaxing in Saint Denis, eating and shopping around, and occasionally watching a few shows. They also visited the police station, invited Inspector Bailey from headquarters to dinner, and paid the bounty on Wang Zhiqiang and the Ding sisters, canceling their arrest warrants.

During this time, Henry was also fortunate enough to meet another Henry—Henry Ford. This Henry Ford was there to clear his head, or perhaps to seek inspiration, because his second business venture was on the verge of failure. On June 4, 1896, Henry Ford took his first automobile—a four-wheeled vehicle with a handcart frame mounted on four bicycle wheels—onto the streets of Detroit, marking his first entrepreneurial attempt. However, soon after, due to poor sales, his company went bankrupt.

Earlier this year, Henry Ford embarked on his second entrepreneurial endeavor, founding the Detroit Motor Company in Michigan. Unfortunately, his cars continued to sell poorly, and due to a lack of funds, he was unable to continue improving production, facing the same fate as his previous venture and the risk of bankruptcy.

Following the original course of history, in 1903, Henry Ford and 11 other investors established the now-famous Ford Motor Company with $2.8 in funding. It became one of the world's largest automobile companies and a regular member of the Fortune Global 100.

Since the opportunity had presented itself, and the trouble of Henry's original plan to wait a few years to invest in the north was eliminated, after a long talk between the two Henrys, Henry Allen expressed his willingness to invest $100,000 in Henry Ford, only asking for a 50% stake in the company. He also talked with him about the future of automobiles, and how, after many failures, he had continuously tried and improved manufacturing technology, increased production efficiency, and reduced production costs, finally launching the innovative Model T automobile in 1908.

The Model T, with its simplicity, practicality, and low cost, was welcomed by a wide range of consumers. It is hailed as the first car for ordinary people, marking the beginning of the global automotive industrial revolution.

When Henry Ford heard this, he was amazed by Henry Allen's genius. This was the inspiration he had been searching for all along, the ideal car model he had been pursuing. Today, Henry had finally cleared away the fog of mystery for him. With Henry's financial support and his own technical expertise, as long as he kept moving in this direction, he believed that he would soon be able to produce the car that Henry had described, which could even make him famous in history.

Henry Ford excitedly shook Allen's hand, immediately regarding him as a confidant. As for the 50% stake, that was absolutely no problem; without Henry, the company would have gone bankrupt. Ford even felt that 50% was too little, that his company wasn't worth that much, and wanted to give Allen even more shares. However, Allen refused, explaining that while the company wasn't worth much, Ford himself was; Allen was investing in him as a person, which moved Ford deeply once again.

After completing the necessary procedures and signing the documents, Henry Ford couldn't wait to take the funds back to modify his ideal car. He didn't know how much earlier he would launch this groundbreaking model compared to his previous life. Anyway, Henry had no intention of getting involved in management; he would simply enjoy the huge annual dividends.