Although Hu Wan's fiancée had an embroidery shop as her dowry, it was limited in scale and sold only ornaments worth less than two hundred taels of silver. Since she had brought the items from home to the provincial capital to sell, she must have hoped to get a good price, and she did.
Hu Wan smiled again and said, "The largest embroidery workshop in Ningzhou Prefecture is Lanxin Embroidery Workshop. I also know the owner of the embroidery workshop. I will accompany you there tomorrow. It's a good opportunity to show you and my sister the prosperity of Ningzhou Prefecture."
Everyone is willing to do so.
The next morning after breakfast, Xu Lanyin went to the guest room to see Xu Lanting. The little boy had been tired from the car ride for the past two days, and the weather was getting hotter, so he was not feeling well. He lay listlessly in bed. He definitely couldn't be taken out to play today.
Because Xu Lanyin had to accompany Hu Yi, Xu Lanzhou had to stay at home with Xu Lanting.
Xu Lanzhou repeatedly told Xu Lanyin that the embroidered screen must be sold at a good price and he would not sell it for less than three hundred taels.
Xu Lanyin smiled and said, "I'm not stupid, of course I know I have to sell it at a good price."
Seeing the deep reluctance in Xu Lanting's eyes, Xu Lanyin pinched his little face and made a wish, "I will try to sell the embroidery for a good price today, and buy you some delicious food. Tomorrow I will take you to the clinic, have lunch at the restaurant, and then go to the study and ink studio to buy you books, brushes, inkstones, paper, and inkstones..."
The little boy would never act willfully when he shouldn't, so he whispered, "Okay."
Zhao Wu also asked Xu Lanzhou to help him take over Ma Zi.
He had already released Ma Zi this morning, with a small bamboo tube tied to his leg. Inside, a piece of paper contained a few words written on it: "Auntie, when Ma Zi gets home, you can release him."
Xiaozao Village is only more than 200 miles away from Ningzhou Prefecture. If Mazi flies directly home without taking any detours, he can fly back in less than an hour.
There were also carrier pigeons in this era, but they had a high risk of error and couldn't be sent anywhere you wanted, so important intelligence was still delivered by humans. However, Zhao Wu didn't have that many resources, and Ma Zi happened to be very smart, so he hoped to train Ma Zi well so that he could help him with his work in the future.
If Xu Lanzhou hadn't wanted to stay and accompany Xu Lanting, he would have stayed and waited for news from Ma Zi.
Xu Lanzhou nodded excitedly, he was also looking forward to it.
When the few of them went out, there were still two carriages, one for Hu Yi, Xu Lanyin and Meng'er, and one for Zhao Wu and Hu Wan.
Ningzhou Prefecture is more than ten times larger than Nanping County. The streets are wide, crowded with people, and shouts are heard one after another.
Lanxin Embroidery Workshop was located on Huangshi Street, the busiest street in Ningzhou Prefecture. The road was paved with bluestone slabs, wide enough for ten carriages to pass simultaneously. On either side, small buildings lined the streets, all adorned with colorful silks and lanterns, creating a bustling atmosphere.
When they reached the intersection, several people got off the car and walked.
Hu Wan pointed to a three-story building with gray walls, black tiles, and deep red doors and windows and said, "That Xu's Tea Shop is owned by my wife's family."
Xu Lanyin had heard that the Xu family's tea was tribute tea, and that they were one of the four largest tea merchants in Daming. The Xu family was a true imperial merchant. The Xu family's direct branch managed tea plantations and tea production in Fujian, and the head of the family also held a minor official position under the Ministry of Revenue. Hu Wan's father-in-law was a minor branch, responsible for the sales of Xu's tea in several central provinces.
Even though he is a concubine's family, he is much richer than the Hu family.
The Hu family had many businesses, but none of them were large-scale, so Hu Wan's marriage to the Xu family girl was considered too high. This was mainly because Xu's father was attracted to Hu Wan, thinking that he was smart yet steady, well-educated, and would have a bright future if he was guided well.
Several people went directly to Lanxin Embroidery Workshop.
Hu Wan bowed and exchanged a few polite words to a man in his thirties, then introduced Hu Yi and the others. He then said with a smile, "They brought a beautiful embroidery. Shopkeeper Zhao, please see if you are interested."
Manager Zhao quickly invited the few people into the hut.
After they sat down and the waiter served tea, Zhao Wu placed the small embroidered screen on the ground and took off the plain silk wrapping it.
A gleam of light flashed in Shopkeeper Zhao's eyes. He stood up and walked to the embroidered screen to look at it carefully.
Hu Wan laughed and said, "I'm young and inexperienced. This is the first time I've seen flower bear embroidery, and it's so exquisite."
After looking at the front, Shopkeeper Zhao turned to the back, and the back was the same as the front.
Shopkeeper Zhao's eyes flashed again, and he smiled while pinching his beard. "Not bad, and it's double-sided embroidery. This is the first time I've seen a flower bear embroidery. As for whether it's the first embroidery of a flower bear, I'm not sure... This embroidery is very well done, highlighting the flower bear's naivety and playfulness. Such a big and fierce creature is as cute as a puppy or a kitten..." He looked at Zhao Wudao, "How much silver do you want to sell it for?"
Zhao Wu looked at Xu Lanyin.
Shopkeeper Zhao's legs would occasionally rest on the chair next to him, and Xu Lanyin would lean over to the other side. He could hear Shopkeeper Zhao's praise for the embroidered screen, even more pronounced, and he was certain it was the first bear embroidered in Daming. He figured that even though it was just a kang screen, since no one had ever embroidered a bear before, and the layout and embroidery were so well done, if it sold well, it would fetch no less than six hundred taels of silver.
She thought to herself that merchants also need to make money, so she should sell it for at least five hundred taels to be worthwhile.
She smiled and said, "Brother Hu told me that Lanxin Embroidery Workshop is the largest in our province. To have achieved this scale, Shopkeeper Zhao not only has a good business acumen, but also a discerning eye. He must be able to recognize a good piece of embroidery. I'll give you a fair price of six hundred taels of silver."
Shopkeeper Zhao smiled. Since Hu Wan had brought it, he couldn't bargain too hard, but he definitely wouldn't give 600 taels. He said, "Young lady, you're very good at talking. If this embroidered screen were a large one, it would certainly sell for 600 taels, but it's a kang screen. How about this? I'll offer 400 taels. That's fair."
Xu Lanyin praised the embroidered screen a few more times and said with a smile, "One price, five hundred taels. It can't be any lower. This much silver is what my mother asked me to give you."
Hu Yi was already getting impatient with their trembling. She pouted and said, "Sister Xu wouldn't randomly quote a price. She said five hundred taels, so it must be worth that."
Hu Wan was of course biased towards Xu Lanyin, and said with a smile, "To be fair, this embroidery is indeed worth the price. Shopkeeper Zhao will definitely make a lot of money once he resells it."
Shopkeeper Zhao pointed at Hu Wan and said with a smile, "You said you were impartial, but you've already sided with your sister. Well, this is the price."
You can make hundreds of taels of silver by reselling it, this deal is not bad.
After they happily left the embroidery workshop, Hu Yi pouted and said, "I also want to buy some beautiful silk threads and satin embroidery..."
Xu Lanyin smiled and said, "Go to Miss Xu's embroidery workshop and buy it."
Hu Yi also laughed and said, "Yes, let's go take care of my sister-in-law's business."
Hu Wan's face flushed a little, but he still agreed, "Okay. Her embroidery workshop is on another street. Let's go there in the afternoon. Let's walk around this street first."
They visited the silver shops, cloth shops, and ink studios along this street. Hu Wan paid for anything Hu Yi liked, and Zhao Wu paid for anything Xu Lanyin liked. Xu Lanyin thought the things here were too expensive, so she bought very little.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com