"Manager Sun, everything has been ordered and is waiting for you to take a look." Liu'er was diligent and started arranging things as soon as she arrived at her post.
Because he was originally a shop assistant, he was easy to get started with. The helper brought from the Wang family was not familiar with the warehouse, and after working for most of the day, he didn't manage to organize much.
It wasn't long before Liu'er arrived, and within two hours, the backyard was piled high with goods.
Sun Miao'er walked into the courtyard and was surprised to find that the Xie family had a lot of stockpiled goods. It was just a pity that the money was not spent wisely, as many of the materials were difficult to sell.
"Xue Ru, come and see. If it were you, which one would you choose?" Sun Miao'er pulled Wang Xue Ru over. According to the Wang family's status and position, they were the most representative of the wealthy class in Pingnan City.
Therefore, using Wang Xueru's perspective as a reference is very valuable.
Wang Xueru circled the pile of fabrics several times before finally selecting three types. "These diamond patterns are very fashionable now, but those cloud patterns won't do. My mother said they'll make young girls look ten years older!"
"Pick out the ones with cloud patterns first and put them aside." Sun Miao'er put one hand on her hip. Because she hadn't stopped all morning, she was covered in sweat despite the cool weather.
Sun Miao'er looked at the cloud pattern and thought it wasn't ugly. However, beauty or ugliness is never the basis for whether something sells well or not; only customer preference matters.
"Oh, what kind of things does Madam Wang usually like?" Sun Miao'er asked, seizing the opportunity.
Wang Xueru rolled her eyes and thought for a while, "My mother, my mother likes many things. Silk is her favorite, but sometimes she will wear some brocade. She likes all colors that are simple and clean."
"But what she likes best is the plum blossom patterned fabric. I heard that the ladies of Pingnan City are all vying for it."
Sun Miao'er glanced around but couldn't see any plum blossom patterns. "Liu'er, do we have any plum blossom patterns in our shop?"
Liu'er smiled awkwardly and said embarrassedly, "Manager, the plum blossom pattern is unique to Yunmiao Manor; you can't find it anywhere else."
Sun Miao'er had heard of Yunmiao Manor. It was the largest cloth shop in Pingnan City and was said to be very powerful. The shopkeeper's surname was Ji, and he had expanded rapidly in just ten years, destroying dozens of shops in Pingnan City. Now Yunmiao Manor was the only dominant shop in the east of the city.
No one dared to open a cloth shop within a five-mile radius. The small cloth shops could only unite and crowd together on the cloth shop street, hoping to share some customers.
"After the street was built, Yunmiao Manor and those cloth shops had been living in peace for several years, until Yunmiao Manor launched the plum blossom pattern, which completely stole away all the distinguished customers in our city."
Liu'er is a native of Pingnan City and has been in this industry for several years, so she knows a lot.
Sun Miao'er thought about these cunning old foxes in business, each one more shrewd than the last, and wondered, "And then what?"
"Shopkeeper, you have no idea how expensive plum blossom patterned brocade is. I heard it costs seven or eight taels of silver per foot. But looking at the material, it's no different from ordinary brocade. It's just that they play with some fancy tricks." Liu'er was unconvinced. "Those rich people are just buying gimmicks."
Wang Xueru disagreed and retorted, "What you said is wrong. My mother once made a dress with plum blossom patterns. The plum blossoms from their family were indeed beautiful. When I wore it, they looked so lifelike and realistic!"
"Is it really that miraculous?" Sun Miao'er was skeptical, but she still needed to make a trip to Yunmiao Manor to find out.
Ordinary materials only yield small profits and have a limited customer base. Small shops like hers are also easily suppressed by large stores like Yunmiaozhuang.
She had to make sure that every single one of the five hundred taels in her hands was used effectively; losing even a single tael would be a waste.
The sun was slightly off-center when the two of them arrived at Yunmiao Manor together.
There were five or six waiters outside Yunmiao Manor, and even servants came to lead the horses. Putting everything else aside, the sheer scale of the scene alone showed Manager Ji's grandeur.
"Ladies, what would you like to pick out?"
They were greeted by a young man who was very polite.
Sun Miao'er said directly, "I want to see the material with the plum blossom pattern."
The shopkeeper laughed and said, "Hey! Miss, you've come to the right place. Only we have plum blossom patterns. Here, I'll go get them for you right away!"
When Sun Miao'er held the plum blossom patterned fabric in her hands, she examined it closely. The weaving technique was acceptable, but the material itself wasn't very good.
Having previously spent some time learning about weaving and spinning at the Wei family's residence and having read many of the Wei family's collections, Sun Miao'er could roughly tell the quality of this piece of fabric.
Upon closer inspection, the beauty of the plum blossom pattern lies in the weaver's ability to create the plum blossom texture. Although it is not as exaggerated as a lifelike depiction, the plum blossoms and the fabric appear as one from afar, yet are quite striking up close.
However, the fact that people were scrambling to buy it was probably due in no small part to the shopkeeper's persuasive skills.
When Sun Miao'er came in, she went up to the second floor first. Before she could see the people in the shop clearly, when she went downstairs, there was a gray-haired accountant sitting in the accounting room, and the rest were all the waiters who were trying to attract customers.
I didn't see the shopkeeper.
While they were looking at the goods, many wealthy women sent their maids to pick up their orders, each ordering several feet at a time, and they left carrying large stacks of goods.
"Oh, Miss Sun?"
When Magistrate Sun Miao'er heard someone calling her, she turned around abruptly and saw that it was Zhang's wife.
They had met briefly at the Wang family's banquet that day, and she remembered that Xue Ru had teased her about it.
"What a coincidence to meet Madam Zhang."
Madam Zhang happened to pass by the door and saw the two of them. She had no intention of buying cloth, but she came in because she saw Sun Miao'er.
She told the maid to wait outside, then came in and stood in front of Sun Miao'er. "Miss Sun, my husband talked about the Shandong cuisine you made last time for ages. It was truly a wonderful dish!"
Sun Miao'er's heart skipped a beat. Could Madam Zhang's words really mean that she wanted her to become Lord Zhang's concubine? But Madam Zhang seemed intelligent, kind, and gentle, not like that kind of person at all.
"I left in a hurry at the Wang family's house last time. If you have the chance, come to my residence next time and teach me," Madam Zhang said softly.
Sun Miao'er's heart sank. "Oh, so that's what it was about. Madam, it was no trouble at all. I'll definitely visit the Zhang residence when I have some free time!"
Madam Zhang nodded with satisfaction. When Zhang Shengmin was first demoted to this place, he suffered greatly from the change in environment. After eating southern food for so many years, his spleen and stomach were not in good condition, his appetite was poor, and he gradually became thinner.
The Zhang couple were deeply in love, so Mrs. Zhang always wanted to find a chef who could properly cook Lubei cuisine to teach her properly.
Skilled chefs are all men, so how could a woman confined to her home follow them around every day? That's why she was so excited when she learned that Sun Miao'er could cook Lubei cuisine.
"There's no time like the present, Miss Sun. Do you have some free time right now?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
