Chapter 17
After waiting for some time, it was finally Clayton's turn to weigh his harvest. Still anxious and unsure, he followed the staff's instructions like a machine. With their help, he unloaded the sacks of wheat from his cart.
Once the sacks were down, one of the staff tore one open to inspect the grain's quality. Belly and the others looked visibly surprised—the wheat was of remarkably high quality, far above expectations.
This was shocking, considering the region had been hit by a prolonged drought that season, which had severely reduced most farmers' yields. Yet Clayton's crop not only maintained its quality—it was slightly above average, even compared to a normal year.
But Clayton couldn't bring himself to feel proud. The impressed stares from the staff only deepened his unease, especially with Manager Belly now smiling even wider... and more suspiciously.
Moments later, after confirming that all of Clayton's sacks were consistent in quality, the staff began weighing them one by one. As Clayton feared, the numbers were off: sacks that should have weighed 100 kilograms were being recorded as only 93 or 94.
"Excuse me, sir. There must be something wrong with the scale," Clayton said, trying to stay calm. "I made sure each sack weighs 100 kilos."
"Maybe you remembered wrong? It clearly says 93," the staffer snapped.
"I'm absolutely sure. Please double-check the scale—maybe it's faulty."
"What, are you trying to cause trouble?"
"But sir—"
"Enough! Don't waste my time—there are others waiting!"