Zeno's Conscience

by Italo Svevo

My luck wasn’t enough for me, however: I tried to make it look like merit on my part. I told him the stock would not be sold until the next day, and, assuming a self-important manner, I tried to make him believe I had received some news I had forgotten to pass on to him, and it had led me to ignore his words. Grim and offended, he spoke without looking me in the face. “A man with a mind like yours shouldn’t go into business. And when he behaves so wickedly, he doesn’t confess it. You still have a lot to learn, young fellow.” I disliked irritating him. It was much more amusing when he was doing me harm. I told him sincerely how matters had gone. “As you see, a man with a mind like mine should absolutely go into business.” Mollified at once, he laughed with me. “What you earn from such a deal isn’t a profit: it’s a reward. That mind of yours has already cost you so much that it’s only fair for it to reimburse you for a part of your losses!”