It was not such a good bargainaf ppt

It was not such a good bargain
after all

Sitting at a corner of my favorite coffee-shop one morning,
I heard some noises behind me. On directing my view to
the opposite side of my table, I saw a crowd holding a few
expensive watches. The pieces of diamond on the
watches glittered under the sunlight. With the urge to
investigate, I dragged my lazy feet towards them.

To my amazement, there were about half a dozen Rolex
watches costing not less than three thousand dollars each.
A slim, well-at-tired man curtly interrupted me and tried to
clear my dazed mind with a whisper. “My boy, don’t be
fooled by that charlatan or you’ll get into trouble.” Saying
so, he left me without giving me a chance to reply. Being
easily tempted and influenced, I found myself standing in
front of the crowd directly facing the man who was then
the center of attraction. In spite of the unidentified man’s
warning, I inquired the seller for the price of the watches.

He was probably taken aback by the question coming from
a young schoolboy like me because he stared at me in
disbelief. However, he held out to shake hands with me.
He asked me a few questions; I guessed he was trying to
see my earnestness at owning the watch. Convinced of
my intentions, he told me that he got those watches from
his former employer, year after year for he was
hardworking and diligent. As he was then financially tight,
he had to sell all the watches. I was convinced beyond the
shadow of a doubt when the man produced copies of

certificates proving the genuineness of the watches.

After inspecting the watches thoroughly, I again inquired
about the price. To my astonishment, the man was willing
to sell the watch for a thousand dollars which was only
thirty percent of the cost price. My heart almost leapt into
my mouth when I thought of this bargain. “Well, son,
seeing that you’re still schooling and not earning yet, I’ll let
you have it for $850,” said the man. “Wow! What a
bargain! I’ll take it,” I replied without second thoughts.

I excused myself and ran to the Cash-On-Line teller
across the road. I withdrew the required amount and
turned my head towards the watch seller only to find him
being held by two police constables. A large crowd has by
then gathered in front of the coffee-shop. The police then
seized the diamond-studded Rolex watches and led the
watch dealer away in their van.

I traced my steps back towards the coffee-shop where my
coffee which had turned cold by then still patiently in the
cup, waiting to be drunk. I was disappointed at what had
happened. The young, mysterious man who had warned
me before came again and this time he said mockingly.
“You see? I told you to be careful. That man was a thief.
He stole the watches and some jewelry from a goldsmith
shop. Police have been tracking him ever since and thank
goodness, at last they found him. The nerve of him was
trying to cheat a young boy like you. It was lucky that you
didn’t buy the watch.”

Without a single word, I nodded and shook hands with the
man. I suppose that gesture was worth a thousand words.
The man stroked my hair and said, “Well son, it wasn’t
such a good bargain after all!”