Xianjin half-lowered his eyes, placed his pen on the pen wash, and chuckled, "Me? How can I control the son of a salt merchant?"
Zhao Dezheng realized that he had asked a stupid question, stammered, and wanted to ask again.
Xianjin smiled and asked Nan Xiaogua, "How much do you want for Baiji's Kesi Baize?"
Nan Xiaogua had done a lot of research and said immediately, "Four taels! It's one tael more expensive than the others!"
Xianjin nodded and looked at Zhao Dezheng with a smile, "Zhen Sanlang bought that piece of carved silk Bai Ze painting paper from Fubai at the high price of thirty taels. If my guess is correct, it has already been sent to the residence of the prefect Xiong by his father."
Xianjin paused to give Zhao Dezheng some time to think, but seeing that the old man was struggling to keep up, he continued, "Think about it, the gifts that the Zhen family gave to Prefect Xiong are now everywhere on the street, and they can be had for only four taels of silver. Isn't the Zhen family angry?"
A glimmer of wisdom flashed in Zhao Dezheng's eyes, although only for a moment.
"The Zhen family runs the docks, and working at the docks relies on brute force and brawn. To put it bluntly, they have to eat a little bit of both black and white. Bai Ji is a small merchant. The Zhen family beat him up for disrupting the market and lowering the level of his gifts. Do they need to pick a time?"
Just fight, why bother choosing a time?
Xianjin smiled secretly, raised his chin slightly, and spoke in a calm and natural voice, "We are not the ones who are most anxious about the appearance of cheap imitations."
Zhao Dezheng looked at Xianjin with fear and respect, and said tremblingly, "The most anxious ones are... the group of people who spent a high price... to buy our silk-carving rice paper..."
Those who have actually invested money and time will not allow the carved rice paper in their hands to lose value!
Xianjin gave Zhao Dezheng a teachable look.
This is the very vicious luxury theory: people who buy luxury goods will not allow the luxury goods in their hands to fall in value - once the price drops, how can they use luxury goods to prove their status as rich or noble? How can they draw a clear line between themselves and ordinary paper buyers?
When Chenji's silk-engraved Classic of Mountains and Seas rice paper with interlaced painting came out, some of the local gentry who won the bid even set up a "silk-engraving banquet" at home and invited neighbors and friends to come and watch.
Once the counterfeits are allowed to appear, the Chenji Silk Mountain and Sea Classics Clip Art Paper that they have pursued, loved, and spent money and time on will lose its orthodox status and become nothing more than a joke.
Under the pressure of Xianjin, all the celebrities in Xuancheng Prefecture who were eager to make silk-cutter and painted rice paper took the initiative to stand up and safeguard Chenji's orthodox status.
Zhao Dezheng figured it out.
Xianjin lowered his head and continued to copy the account book calmly.
When businessmen do not do any production and just sit back and enjoy the fruits of their labor, aren't they playing with human nature?
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