The attendant driving the carriage respectfully asked, "Sir, would you like to find a place to stay first, or go and do some business?"
The retainer was a middle-aged man in his thirties, surnamed Zhou. He wore a blue shirt and a cloak of the same color, and held a jade ornament in his hand. He looked like a wealthy official out for a trip.
He opened the curtains and looked at the bustling street, and the contempt in his eyes weakened a little.
He originally thought it was a dilapidated and desolate border town, but it turned out to be much more lively than he had imagined.
He thought for a moment and said, "It's almost noon, let's find a big restaurant to eat."
The attendant agreed and told the driver to continue driving, while the two guards following behind hurriedly looked for someone to find out where there was a big restaurant.
Soon, the group arrived at the two-story restaurant at the end of the commercial street.
A young man in blue clothes and pants, with a white towel draped over his shoulders, hurried down the steps and greeted him, "Hey, sir, have you come a long way? The carriage is covered in dust! Come inside and rest. I'll call someone to feed the horses and clean the carriage!"
Mr. Zhou nodded, very satisfied with the boy's arrangement, then he walked up the stairs and followed the boy into the house.
It was lunchtime, and the hall was bustling with people. From time to time, waiters would loudly call out the names of dishes, and some, when half drunk, would chat at the top of their lungs and urge people to drink. It was quite lively.
Seeing that Mr. Zhou and his group didn't look like ordinary people, the waiter carefully suggested, "Sir, it's too noisy downstairs. There are quiet private rooms upstairs. Would you like to sit upstairs? The view is great!"
On any other day, Mr. Zhou would definitely ask for a private room and would not bother to mingle with these common people. But today was different, as he came on an errand.
So, he waved his hand and said, "Let's arrange it in the lobby. It's better to have a lively atmosphere."
"Oh, okay, okay!" The young man complained in his heart that the richer people are, the more stingy they are.
He had originally thought that by leading the customers upstairs, the restaurant would earn more money and he would get a good reward. But it looked like there was no hope for today!
Almost all the tables in the lobby were occupied, and there was a square table in the corner near the stairs.
Mr. Zhou sat down steadily, with two guards standing behind him. The attendant bent down to wipe the table again, and all the dishes, chopsticks and teacups were also boiled with hot water. The service was very attentive.
Seeing this, the young man dared not to be negligent anymore.
Mr. Zhou did not rush to order food. Instead, he signaled his attendant to give the waiter a piece of silver first.
This is like a new hope after a dark period!
The young man's eyes were about to pop out of his head with joy. After taking the silver, his waist bent another three points.
"Thank you for your reward, sir. If you have any questions, please feel free to tell me. I will do my best to help you."
Mr. Zhou picked up the teacup and took a sip slowly. This time, he raised his chin proudly and asked, "I heard that you sell some cashmere clothes in Tai'an?"
The young man thought it was a big deal, but after hearing this, he felt relieved and immediately responded, "Yes, sir, you are well-informed. You have heard of cashmere clothes and pants? They are our Tai'an specialty, light and warm! Especially now that winter has arrived and the weather is getting colder, everyone wants to buy a piece of clothing, so the cashmere business is definitely booming!"
The attendant saw Mr. Zhou continuing to drink his tea without saying anything, so he quickly took over.
"Little brother, if you say that, then that cashmere clothing workshop must be very prosperous! I'm afraid it will make a fortune every day, right?"
"Of course!" The waiter glanced at the lobby and saw that the diners were eating and several of his companions were leaning against the pillars and slacking off, so he felt at ease to chat with them.
"You don't know, this cashmere clothing workshop is in Taijia Village, south of our county town. This Tai family is really powerful. Their old man is a retired soldier. He can catch bandits and kill wolves. Everyone who mentions him gives him a thumbs up!
"I heard that these cashmere clothes and pants were the product of Tai's daughter-in-law's random idea. Coincidentally, we're close to the grasslands, and cashmere is very cheap, so this cashmere clothes and pants workshop was set up."
Mr. Zhou and the others nodded when they heard it. When his entourage wanted to ask a few more questions, a man who looked like a small vendor suddenly slammed the table and shouted at the wine table not far away.
"I don't care about others. From now on, the Tai family will be my, Zhu Laosan's, benefactor! My old mother didn't have money to buy medicine and was about to prepare for her funeral. I never thought that every family would start building cashmere clothing workshops, and the cashmere my family saved would become a hot commodity!
"Woo woo, that bastard Li Dazhu cheated me out of all those good things with a bunch of worthless cashmere, and now he's regretting it! Woo woo, I'll actually get rich one day!"
The people at the same table hurried to persuade him, fearing that he would delay others' meals.
"Okay, Brother Zhu, please sit down quickly. We all know that you have suffered before."
"Yes, yes, life is better now. Sell the silver and quickly treat my aunt's illness. Don't waste it recklessly. Use the remaining money to buy a house and some land, and then you can save up the family fortune."
The vendor also listened to the advice, wiped his tears, and nodded repeatedly, "I will listen to you and live a good life from now on! However, I still think that Mr. Tai is my benefactor. When the New Year comes, I will definitely slaughter a pig and send it to Taijia Village!"
"Haha, great, that's a good thing!" One of his friends smiled and patted his shoulder to show his support.
"Call me when the time comes, and I'll join in the fun. I've heard that Mr. Tai is a righteous and generous man. Let's go have a drink with him!"
"Yes, take me with you!"
"And me!"
Mr. Zhou frowned when he heard this, feeling something was wrong, so he asked the waiter.
"What's going on? Isn't the cashmere clothing business the Tai family's exclusive business? Why are there so many people doing it in the city?"
The clerk quickly responded, "Sir, listen to me, this happened recently. The Tai family has a little grandson who is very talented in studying. He just passed the imperial examination a few days ago. Everyone says that this scholar is likely to become a juren soon!"
"But some people were jealous, saying that the Tai family owned a cashmere workshop, meaning they were merchants, and that Young Master Tai reeked of money. Old Master Tai must have known this, and couldn't bear to see his grandson laughed at, so he approached over a dozen shop owners in the city and sold them the cashmere weaving method for a mere 100 taels.
"So, everyone in the city is thinking about new weaving methods, and the price of cashmere has naturally soared, making some people who originally stockpiled cashmere immediately revitalized!"
After the young man finished speaking, he shook his head and continued to praise, "Grandpa Tai really loves his children and is really righteous. This is equivalent to giving it away for free.
"I also heard that Grandpa Tai hopes that our Tai'an County will become famous in Wei for its cashmere clothing, so that everyone can make money and live a good life! Who wouldn't be happy about this? Even the county magistrate would treat Grandpa Tai to a drink!"
He was happy to say that, but he didn't expect Mr. Zhou's face to be as black as the bottom of a pot.
Seeing this, the attendant quickly spoke up to chase the tactless waiter away, "Alright, alright, no need to say more. Hurry and serve some of your restaurant's specialties!"
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