Manager Wan knew the purpose of the handbag the moment Song Liyun took it out.

During the Wu Dynasty, clothing was loose-fitting, and both men and women could carry items in the sleeves, lapels, and waist pouches.

Made of fabric, these bags, whether embroidered or simple, served as decorations while also holding everyday items such as flint, needles, thread, and knives.

When filled too much, it bulges; when filled too little, it's dry and shriveled. As things change, even the exquisite embroidery loses its shape.

This handbag has a sheepskin exterior, a soft velvet lining, and cardboard padding in the middle. It has a smooth surface and ample space, so the contents won't be crushed.

Seeing Manager Wan furrowing his brow and fidgeting, Song Liyun simply smiled slightly.

When he finally put his hand down, Song Liyun said, "Uncle Wan, we sell leather in winter and make bags in summer. We can make bags in all sizes, lengths, and styles. There is no distinction between peak and off-peak seasons."

Manager Wan said nothing. He thought of all the different kinds of cardboard boxes in Suijin Town, and his eyes gleamed: "Seven-thirds split. You provide the blueprints, and you get three."

"good!"

Song Liyun breathed a sigh of relief. Although selling leather was a quick way to make money, it was risky. It was more sustainable to pursue a more refined processing industry.

Especially once you gain fame, the wealth becomes boundless.

Think about those bags with letters on them before the apocalypse; any one of them was worth money.

In just a few words, Song Liyun finalized another business deal.

Manager Wan hadn't even finished his meal when he personally carried a cardboard box and left in a hurry with his staff.

He needed to hurry back to the prefectural city to make the handbags and crossbody bags that Song Liyun had mentioned.

In addition, blueprints for zippers made of gold and silver also need to be sent to a silversmith to have them made.

In the private room, Song Liyun sighed. All she really wanted to make was a handbag, but she never expected that when Manager Wan saw her personal shoulder bag, he would empty it and take it away as a sample.

Outside Tianxianglou Restaurant, long queues of people wanting to sample the food for free are forming, causing traffic congestion for two consecutive days and sparking discontent among city residents.

In the group, a man in his thirties, wearing a short-sleeved shirt, was carrying a package. Next to him stood a ten-year-old boy and a seven- or eight-year-old girl, while in front of the three of them was a young woman holding a little girl.

The man looked at the long line of people with envy on his face. After a moment, he leaned over and whispered to the woman, "I tried it yesterday. The numbing and spicy flavor was very authentic. Besides cornelian cherry and Sichuan pepper, there were other ingredients as well."

Yesterday, he went out to look for work and saw people queuing up to get food at Tianxianglou, so he came over.

The woman's expression was complicated: "Brother Zhu, let's go back! We've lost our livelihood in the city, but we can still go back to town and set up a stall. We can sell some wontons and noodles. Our whole family is waiting for us to bring money back to support them."

The man's previously excited face suddenly darkened, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "I'm not reconciled!"

The woman sighed and buried her face in her daughter's clothes.

As the queue moved forward, the aroma of the grilled meat grew stronger, and everyone became excited, turning their attention to the long grill and watching the oily skewers sizzle on the charcoal fire, unable to help but swallow hard.

Behind the man, a man wearing a blue cloth gown muttered in dissatisfaction, "If you want to open for business, you're only given that little bit of food. Just wait and see how I deal with you."

Someone whispered, "Shut up! Be careful you don't mess things up and then see how you explain it to Master Huang."

The man in the blue cloth gown immediately shut his mouth and said nothing.

The husband in front had clearly heard what was said behind him; he tightened his grip on his son's hand but did not turn around.

Gradually, they walked to the place where tasting boxes were distributed. Holding the two pieces of meat and a small amount of vegetables in the cardboard box, the husband excitedly said to his wife, who had also received a cardboard box, "Juanmei, try it, does it taste like Sichuan peppercorns?"

The woman held the cardboard box to her nose, smelled it, and nodded: "It smells like my hometown. Brother Zhu..."

Before she could finish speaking, she heard someone next to her shout, "Oh my god, is this poisonous or what? My mouth... it feels numb! Help! Someone call a doctor for me, this food is poisoned!"

His shout immediately caused chaos among the people in line: "What? Even eating just a little bit of food is poisonous?"

"What kind of poison!"

"Look at that person's mouth, it's crooked, it really is poisonous. No wonder people say you can't take advantage of others, they're using us as guinea pigs to test the waters."

People pushed forward, trying to see what was happening.

Someone else shouted, "Everyone, lend a hand! Quickly call the doctor over!"

The waiter who was distributing the food boxes panicked and ran inside, shouting, "Miss Song, there's trouble outside!"

Another guy, however, was more experienced. He stood on a high stool and banged on a copper basin, shouting, "Don't panic, everyone! Don't talk nonsense! Our food has a numbing taste. It will make your tongue feel numb after eating it, but it's not poisoning! It's not poisoning!"

The man in the short-sleeved shirt, holding the child's hand, stepped forward and said loudly, "The seasoning in this has a numbing flavor, it's not poison. If you don't believe me, watch how I eat it."

As he spoke, he shoveled the roasted meat from the cardboard box in his hand into his mouth and chewed it heartily: "This flavor is spicy, savory, and the meat is crispy on the outside and tender on the inside..."

He ate a bit too much; the barbecue tasted good, but his technique was lacking—either the meat was overcooked or undercooked.

Others were drawn in by the stimulating taste and couldn't detect the mistake, but he could taste it.

This is just a technical issue; it has nothing to do with whether it's toxic or not.

When some people started eating on the spot, the diners who had been somewhat panicked calmed down again.

The man in blue wailed loudly, "It's poisoned! I have no strength left. My poor wife is going to be a widow at such a young age. Don't you dare cheat on me!"

Seeing that the man in the short shirt was still talking nonsense, the man in the short shirt couldn't help but point at him and angrily curse: "Even if it was poisoned, you put it in yourself, folks. He just said he was here to extort money, he's lying to us."

The onlookers grew increasingly vocal, expressing skepticism about the poisoning theory.

Everyone ate it, and the taste was indeed spicy and stimulating. Some people couldn't stand the spiciness and their faces turned red, but there were no other signs of poisoning.

"Who are you calling a liar! You're one of them too."

"Look, this guy is spitting blood!"

Someone jumped out to support them, and three or four more people started pointing at the waiters of Tianxianglou and cursing them, looking indignant.

"You heartless merchants, you'd eat any kind of dog shit."

Someone grabbed the man in the short-sleeved shirt by the collar and started cursing.

The man wasn't one to back down easily. While pulling and tugging at the other person, he shouted, "You thugs won't get away with this! I'm going to expose your tricks!"

The entrance was already in chaos. Sun Wencheng and the other eight people were still standing behind the grill, constantly flipping the iron skewers in their hands, but they looked eager to try it.

However, without the orders of the squad leaders, they could not act rashly.

Just as the man in the short-sleeved shirt was about to start a fight, a loud shout rang out: "Stop! Who's causing trouble here?"

Zhou Xiang led his men out of Tianxiang Tower.