Old Sun disrupted the saltpeter business in Cangxi Town, and Master Zhao was furious but helpless.
After all, who told that guy surnamed Sun to sell saltpeter so cheaply? If he insists on going against that guy surnamed Sun, he'll only be the one who loses out.
Back at the Zhao residence, he sat in his study, feeling increasingly frustrated and resentful—no!
If we just admit defeat like this, won't we be ridden on by that Sun guy and that bitch Ganli from now on?
Master Zhao slammed his hand on the table, and an idea immediately formed in his mind.
If the people of Cangxi Town don't buy his saltpeter, he doesn't believe that no one in the neighboring town will either!
He refused to believe that the saltpeter couldn't be sold once it left Cangxi Town.
Thinking of this, he immediately summoned Steward Zhao and instructed him, "Go to the neighboring towns yourself and contact the merchants there. Tell them we have some high-quality saltpeter to sell, and the price..."
Master Zhao stroked his chin and smiled slyly: "It's still the same as we agreed before, one hundred and fifty coins per catty!"
Steward Zhao was always reliable in his work, and since the imperial court had issued the decree, saltpeter had indeed become scarce. Within a few days, he had contacted buyers in several neighboring counties who were willing to purchase the saltpeter at the price set by Master Zhao.
When Master Zhao saw that things had finally developed as he had expected, he breathed a sigh of relief and ordered his men to quickly load the saltpeter onto the carts and transport it according to the order.
The saltpeter was sent away, but in return came piles of silver. Master Zhao watched as the silver flowed into his pockets like water, and his mouth almost twisted into a grin.
"I'm so smart!"
Master Zhao sat in his armchair, sipping his tea with relish.
"That guy surnamed Sun thinks he can cut off my escape route with this move, but he doesn't know that you can make money anywhere in the world. With his fake high and mighty attitude, he'll be left far behind by me sooner or later!"
Steward Zhao had been busy running errands these past few days and had secretly received quite a few bribes, so he quickly flattered her:
"Master, how can he compare to you? Ten men with the surname Sun couldn't compare to one of you!"
Upon hearing this, Master Zhao became even more smug.
Butler Zhao then mentioned the remaining saltpeter to him: "Several shopkeepers are still chasing after me wanting to buy some!"
Upon hearing this, Master Zhao was both pleased and somewhat pained—we're all in business, how could he not know that these people wouldn't get up early for nothing?
Those people who bought goods from him made a fortune without even realizing it. Thinking about it, he felt that selling it for 150 coins per pound was too cheap, so he made the decision immediately.
"Price increase! From now on, it will be 200 coins per catty!"
Two hundred coins? Isn't that... a bit too high a price?
"Are you stupid? If someone really thinks it's too expensive and can't sell it, we can just lower the price! Anyway, we have the goods in our hands, so we won't lose money either way."
After hearing this, Steward Zhao thought it made sense, so he quickly nodded in agreement.
Master Zhao was overjoyed at the thought of another large sum of money soon coming into his account.
He waved his hand and said to Steward Zhao:
"Go and redeem all the things from the pawnshop! Juan'er was frightened because of what happened to me, so I feel bad for her. Buy her some new jewelry and some fine fabric to make her clothes."
Also, the servants have worked hard these days. Go to the storeroom and get some silver; give each of them two taels! You've worked hard too, so give you one hundred taels!
Although he had already made enough money these days, who would complain about having too much money? Upon hearing that he would also receive a reward, Butler Zhao responded loudly and happily went to do his job.
...
When Zhao Juan saw the clothes and jewelry that Butler Zhao had brought over, she was overjoyed!
As the saying goes, "When one man attains enlightenment, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven." Ever since Zhao Juan learned that her cheap father, Master Zhao, had made a fortune by buying saltpeter at a low price, she felt that her decision to spare no effort to get Master Zhao out of prison was incredibly wise and heroic!
She shook off her previous dejected look and became radiant. She couldn't wait to put on her new clothes and jewelry. Looking at her dazzling reflection in the mirror, she was overjoyed.
At that moment, she thought of her son, Chen Yaozu.
Since the Zhao family's downfall, Chen Yaozu had been ridiculed by his snobbish classmates at school and had complained about it several times. However, Zhao Juan was preoccupied with rescuing Master Zhao and had no time to care.
Now that the Zhao family has prospered again, she naturally wants her son to enjoy the glory as well.
"Hmph, a bunch of snobs!" Zhao Juan snorted at herself in the mirror, deciding to personally pick up Chen Yaozu from school today and show off her power in front of those people!
She wanted to see if those snobbish little brats would still dare to laugh at her son after seeing her current demeanor!
In the afternoon, Zhao Juan, accompanied by Cui'er and two servants, arrived at the entrance of Fengxian School in a carriage.
She deliberately chose a time when there were many people around, and had her servants stop the carriage in the most conspicuous spot in front of the school. She gracefully stepped out of the carriage, dressed in flamboyant attire and adorned with jewels, making her stand out among the group of simply dressed women.
As she absorbed the various gazes from all around her, Zhao Juan felt secretly pleased and raised her chin even higher. But then, she saw an 'old acquaintance'.
Gan Li was dressed in a simple blue dress today, her long black hair simply tied up with a wooden hairpin. Although her outfit was simple, she had a pure and refined temperament. Even though she was dressed plainly, she still stood out in the crowd.
Zhao Juan couldn't take her eyes off her. After she came to her senses, she felt jealous but also a little strange. How come she never noticed how pretty her face was when she was Gan Li?
That bitch, she really got all the benefits!
Her face darkened, and the thought of how she had humbled herself to beg the Gan family for help made her even angrier.
Now that the tables have turned, she'll see how this little bitch dares to be arrogant in front of her now!
"Oh, isn't this Manager Gan? What, here to pick up your daughter from school?"
Zhao Juan spoke in a sarcastic tone, her voice full of mockery:
"To be honest, she's just a little girl, not worth all this trouble. If you're happy, give her a few words of advice; if you're not, marry her off early. As for studying and writing, do you expect her to become a top scholar?"
Upon hearing Zhao Juan's voice, Gan Li turned her head slightly, frowned, and looked her up and down before asking curiously:
"We've met a few times already, how come I didn't know that Miss Zhao was actually Young Master Zhao?"
"What do you mean?" Zhao Juan was angry because she felt that Gan Li had become more beautiful. When she heard this, she immediately thought that Gan Li was mocking her appearance, and the smile on her face was a little hard to keep.
Seeing this, Gan Li sneered, "Otherwise, why would you keep saying things that belittle women? Anyone who didn't know better would think you're a man, which is why you're so confident!"
As she spoke, she raised her hand to fan her nose, looking disgusted: "This smell is so strong!"
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