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Under Margot's driving, the car quickly returned to downtown Chicago.
Along the way, due to Josh's deliberate flattery and the insight he possessed as a transmigrator, Margot found the conversation with him quite enjoyable.
Because of this, Josh gained a certain level of trust from this beautiful woman, and through their conversation, he was able to roughly understand her family situation.
Just like Margot had said earlier, she really wasn't a movie star—just a housewife but this housewife, just as Josh had guessed, was far from ordinary.
Her husband was a tennis star, frequently active on courts across the U.S. and rarely home but that wasn't the main point.
The key was Margot herself.
Her father had been a well-known jeweler and real estate developer in Chicago, and she was his only daughter.
Two years ago, after her father passed away, all the wealth naturally fell into her hands.
So, whether it was the luxury car, the diamond ring, or other extravagant items, they were all purchased with her own money.
In comparison, although her husband was a tennis star, in this era, athletes' income was nowhere near what it would be in later generations. He couldn't support such a luxurious lifestyle on his own. Instead, he even relied on Margot's financial support to maintain appearances.
So, Margot was undoubtedly a genuine rich woman.
Faced with this, Josh couldn't help but marvel at his dog-like luck—he randomly hitched a ride and ended up meeting such a top-tier woman.
However, from their conversation along the way, Josh could also sense that this lady was relatively simple-minded and not satisfied with her current life, especially complaining quite a bit about her husband who was always away.
Although this didn't make Josh develop any special feelings for Margot, one thing was certain: getting to know a woman from the upper class of Chicago society wasn't a bad thing.
Especially since her late father had been a jeweler. That meant if Josh could maintain a good relationship with Margot, he might have a safe channel to offload gold in the future—after all, for the jewelry industry, dealing with hundreds or thousands of kilograms of gold was no big deal.
And it would be a win-win.
Because for jewelers, gaining an extra source of supply was also beneficial. Due to the Roosevelt administration's control over private gold, it wasn't easy for the jewelry industry to obtain enough gold either.
Of course, while extracting personal information from Margot, Josh also casually revealed some of his own.
For instance, the death of his parents and how he, now alone, was looking for a new place to live.
This somewhat aroused Margot's sympathy, and she even proactively began offering help.
"Speaking of housing, my father once developed a neighborhood in Evanston. While it's not the best, it's a very safe community. Most of the houses have already been sold, but I still have a few. You can go check them out," Margot recommended.
"Oh? I wonder how much they cost? If they're too expensive, I might not be able to afford it," Josh asked with interest upon hearing this.
Evanston is considered a satellite city of Chicago but that didn't mean Evanston was bad—on the contrary, it was excellent because it's located in the northern part of Chicago.
What's in the north of Chicago? It's a bona fide wealthy district.
Even though Evanston was just a satellite city, its environment wasn't much worse than that of the North Side. The renowned Northwestern University is located there.
Josh's previous residence was in the Near North Side. Though it also had "North" in the name, the addition of "Near" meant that the environment was drastically different from the real North Side.
Of course, it was still much better than the Black communities in the South, the Little Italy and Chinatown in the Southwest, or the Irish communities in the West.
What? You ask why there's no East Side?
Of course, there can't be one—because to the east lies Lake Michigan…
So there isn't an East Side in the strict sense, only a Lakeshore District.
"Buy? No need to buy—just go and live there. They're sitting empty anyway," Margot shook her head. "You're still just a child. Wait until you grow up and start working—we can talk about it then."
She was genuinely thinking for Josh's sake. Right now, Josh was alone and not yet sixteen, so it would be hard for him to find a good job.
"That won't do, ma'am. Rest assured, before my parents passed, they left behind some assets. While not a lot, it should be enough to buy an average house and support me until adulthood." However, Josh rejected Margot's goodwill without hesitation.
Though he did intend to make use of Margot, he wouldn't stoop to taking advantage of this kind of small benefit.
The property prices in Evanston might not be low, but they wouldn't be sky-high either.
"Well then, no rush on the pricing. Let's take a look first. Do you have anything else to do? If not, why don't I take you to see it now?" Margot asked.
"Uh, I don't have anything urgent… but I haven't had lunch yet. You just came back from outside the city too, so I imagine you haven't had a chance to eat either?" Josh hadn't expected this lady to be so concerned about his affairs, so he didn't want to refuse. But first, he wanted to fill his stomach.
After all, Josh was at the age of rapid growth—skipping a meal made him very hungry.
And Margot had gone horseback riding that morning at a racetrack in western Chicago—yes, that racetrack was also her private property—so based on the time she got back, she probably hadn't eaten lunch either.
"I had some light refreshments at the racetrack, but now that you mention it, I am starting to feel hungry," Margot nodded.
"Then may I have the honor of inviting the beautiful madam to lunch? As a token of my gratitude," Josh immediately offered.
"Of course! I just happen to know a good restaurant nearby." Margot agreed happily, then turned the steering wheel and headed toward the lakefront.
About ten minutes later, they arrived at a restaurant that looked quite upscale.
However, to Josh's surprise, the place Margot described as "very good" wasn't the French restaurant he had imagined—it was a Turkish restaurant.
Alright then, it is one of the world's top three cuisines, after all.
Honestly, whether in his past life or this one, Josh hadn't really eaten Turkish food before.
Of course, in this era, there was no such saying as "the world's three major cuisines," especially since Chinese cuisine—later hailed as the top of the big three—wasn't popular yet.
Nothing could be done about that—it was a limitation of the era.
After all, food culture is still culture, and whether it becomes popular is closely tied to a nation's strength.
Chinese cuisine only began to gain popularity worldwide after Nixon's 1972 visit to China was broadcast in the U.S.
But Turkish cuisine was different. Turkey's geographic position at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa meant it had more contact with Europe and was heavily influenced by Mediterranean culture. In terms of cooking methods, serving order, and dining etiquette, it was closer to Western cuisine, making it more well-known in Europe.
So, in this era, Turkish cuisine was far more recognized in Western countries than Chinese cuisine.