The morning after the commercial screening, the Pathak Haveli felt different. Raghunath was no longer dressed in his usual loose kurta; he wore a crisp, starched shirt. He was a man who had seen his future on a white wall, and he was ready to fight for it.
The family's black Ambassador car was loaded with crates of the new "Red-Gold" packaged masalas. In the passenger seat sat Ashutosh, his small frame almost swallowed by the seat, his Bolex H16 tucked safely in his lap.
"He isn't going as a child, Savitri," Raghunath said to his worried wife as he started the engine. "He's going as my eyes and ears."
As the car wound through the narrow, chaotic streets of Varanasi toward the main wholesale hub, Ashutosh opened his system.
'System, allocate 500 points to upgrade Business Negotiation to Lv 2.'
[DING! Business Negotiation leveled up to Lv 2!]
[NEW PERK: 'THE SILENT TELL' – You can now spot subtle hesitations in a person's body language during a deal.]
The main city market was a hive of activity. Bull carts and porters carrying massive sacks of grain filled the air with dust and noise. They pulled up in front of the shop of Seth Girdharilal, the most powerful spice wholesaler in the district.
Girdharilal was a man who grew fat on the "loose spice" trade. He bought cheap, mixed it with sawdust or rice husks, and sold it to the masses. To him, the Pathaks were just another small supplier to be squeezed.
"Raghunath-ji!" Girdharilal called out, leaning back on his white cushions, surrounded by open sacks of dull-looking spices. "I heard you've been wasting time with little plastic bags. Why bother? People want cheap, not pretty. I'll take your stock, but at half the usual price since I have to 'educate' the customers."
Raghunath stepped forward, his "Hesitant" trait flickering. The psychological pressure of the market was heavy.
Ashutosh stepped out of the car. He didn't wait. He walked straight to a sack of Girdharilal's turmeric and peered at it. Through his Business Negotiation (Lv 2), he saw Girdharilal's eyes twitch toward a hidden door in the back—where the adulteration likely happened.
"Half price for pure gold, Seth-ji?" Ashutosh's voice was high-pitched but had a strange, ringing authority. "That sounds like a bad deal for a man of your reputation."
Girdharilal's laughter died. He looked down at the tiny boy. "What do you know, kid? Go play with your toys."
"I am playing with a toy," Ashutosh said, lifting the Bolex camera. "I am recording this market for my family's records. We've already filmed our factory's purity tests. If I turn this camera toward your open sacks, Seth-ji, will the customers see turmeric... or will they see the dust from the street?"
Girdharilal's face paled. "You little..."
"Papa," Ashutosh said, turning to Raghunath with a calm smile. "Don't sell here. Seth Girdharilal is living in the past. He doesn't realize that in five years, the 'loose spice' market will be for beggars. We are building an empire."
Just then, a sleek, modern car pulled up—a rare sight in the old market. Out stepped a middle-aged man in an expensive suit—Mr. Khanna, a major distributor who supplied the Northern Railways and high-end hotels. He had been standing nearby, listening to the five-year-old dismantle the market kingpin.
"An empire, you say?" Khanna asked, looking at Ashutosh with deep curiosity. "And you have 'visual proof' of this purity?"
Ashutosh saw the "Tell" in Khanna's eyes—he was desperate for a reliable, clean supplier because his current ones were failing quality checks.
"Yes, sir," Ashutosh said, stepping toward the businessman with a level of confidence that made the surrounding merchants stop their work. "We don't just have spices. We have a vision. My father has the product, and I have the proof. Would you like to see the future of Indian kitchens?"
[DING! NEW QUEST: THE DISTRIBUTOR'S CHOICE]
Objective: Convince Mr. Khanna to sign an exclusive distribution contract for the "Red-Gold" line.
Reward: 1,000 Skill Points + [Item: Company Registration Documents].