“It should be ready next month,” Jiang Liu said, and then took the opportunity to order some more fabric from Madam Ding.
It seems she needs to train more embroiderers and tailors, otherwise she won't be able to handle the workload.
Madam Ding nodded, then sighed, "Alas, now that two more cloth shops have opened in Baiyang City, business is getting tough."
"Madam Tang, my brother has just expanded his business to Huaiyuan. You grew up there, do you know anyone who could introduce you?"
Having more friends means having more opportunities. Mrs. Ding also wanted her brother to get to know more wealthy people so that he could expand his business.
“This…” Jiang Liu was a little troubled. She had never done business before and all she knew were daughters of officials.
Upon hearing this, Qiu Yan said, "Mrs. Ding, I think you and Sister Jiang could go into business together."
"How do we go into partnership?" Not only Madam Ding, but Jiang Liu also showed some interest.
Qiu Yan didn't keep them in suspense and continued:
“You sell fabrics and silks, while Sister Jiang sells ready-made clothes. I think you might as well bring some ready-made clothes from Sister Jiang to display in your fabric shop. These high-quality ready-made clothes made from your own fabrics might be of some help to your fabric shop.”
Madam Ding glanced at Qiu Yan, wondering if she was helping Jiang Liu get business or helping her out.
She smiled and said, "Excellent, killing two birds with one stone, it's worth a try."
Perhaps it was because Jiang Liu's clothes were exquisitely made and deeply loved by women; in no time, all the ready-made clothes in her shop were sold out.
Even men's clothes are no exception.
Now, since the clothing store has no clothes to sell, the shopkeeper and his assistants are busy promoting pre-orders.
Jiang Liu's anxious heart finally settled down.
After Madam Ding left, Qiu Yan suggested to Jiang Liu,
"Sister Jiang, perhaps you could open a branch store specializing in children's clothing."
In this era, there were no dedicated children's clothing stores. Qiu Yan felt that if this were implemented, the products would sell well.
"Children's clothing? That sounds pretty good." Jiang Liu's mind started to wander because of Qiu Yan's words.
The more she thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. She realized that she still had a lot of gold, silver and valuables in her dowry, which could be pawned for a considerable amount of money, enough to open a branch shop.
The thought of Tang Yi's obstruction made her eager to break off her relationship with him.
She was wondering how to get Tang Yi to agree to a divorce.
Tang Yi was inexplicably knocked unconscious yesterday, and he suspects that the person was Qiu Dafu. So today, after finishing his official business, he went to the south of the city.
He didn't ask Qiu Dafu directly, but instead went to ask the refugees first.
He looked at one of the refugees, pointed at Qiu Dafu, and said:
"When did he leave yesterday?"
When the refugee saw that the county magistrate had spoken to him, he was so excited that he knelt down and replied, "Your Honor, he left after the rain."
Upon hearing this, Tang Yi became even more certain that he had been knocked unconscious by Qiu Dafu with a single palm strike yesterday.
He walked directly up to Qiu Dafu and asked, "Qiu Dafu, do you know what the punishment is for assaulting an official of the imperial court?"
Qiu Dafu: "I don't know."
Qiu Dafu remained expressionless, but felt somewhat uneasy inside.
He knew that Tang Yi had come to confront him today to demand an explanation.
Tang Yi looked at the official behind him, who nodded and replied, "According to the laws of Dongjin, assaulting an official of the imperial court is punishable by hanging for serious offenses, and exile for two thousand li for minor offenses."
Tang Yi was satisfied with the answer. He and Qiu Dafu looked at each other, trying to see the flaw in each other's eyes. However, Qiu Dafu's eyes remained steady, without any sign of panic.
Even so, Tang Yi still believed that the person who attacked him yesterday was Qiu Dafu.
Arrest him!
The two officers bowed and said, "Yes!"
Without saying a word, the two officers walked straight into Qiu Dafu's house and began to arrest him.
This scene caused a stir among the artisans.
Qiu Dafu was not about to surrender without a fight. He took a step back and said, "Lord Tang, there must be solid evidence to arrest someone."
"I am the evidence!"
Qiu Dafu was puzzled. Could it be that Tang Yi had seen him yesterday?
"Does Lord Tang mean that you are the law, and can arrest people arbitrarily without evidence?"
Tang Yi: "You attacked me yesterday with a treacherous intent, intending to kill me! If it weren't for my two subordinates, I would already be meeting the King of Hell. My subordinates can testify to this."
The two officers nodded in agreement when they heard Tang Yi say this.
Seeing that the two officers were slow to react and did not come forward to testify immediately, Qiu Dafu guessed that they must not have seen him.
He looked at the two of them and asked, "May I ask what I was wearing yesterday?"
The two looked at each other, guessed for a while, and then looked at Qiu Dafu's clothes in unison: "Light blue."
As soon as the official said this, Wu Erhu said first: "Uncle Qiu was wearing a grayish-blue dress yesterday."
Wu Sanhu also said, "We can all testify to this."
After Wu Sanhu finished speaking, the surrounding craftsmen echoed his words in unison.
Qiu Dafu breathed a sigh of relief. "Lord Tang, these people behind me can all testify about what I wore yesterday. You can ask any one of them."
He stayed at Jiang Liu's clothing shop all night, and came to the south of the city this morning after the rain stopped, without changing his clothes.
Now he's in charge of building houses, so he doesn't have to do many things himself.
Tang Yi's face turned as black as charcoal. He thought to himself, "Could it be that Qiu Dafu really wasn't behind this?"
But who else could it be besides him?
Unable to arrest anyone, he then addressed the refugees, saying, "The border war has ended. From this day forward, go back to where you came from."
After saying this, he flicked his sleeves and strode away.
The fighting has stopped? So quickly?
Upon hearing this, some of the border refugees wept with joy, while others broke down in tears.
However, no one wanted to go back.
Because the terrain there is bad, the crops don't grow well, and their families have long since run out of food.
Even if they did have any, they were all robbed by bandits and bullies.
With winter drawing to a close, they will either starve or freeze to death once they return home.
They all wanted to stay and continue working, at least to have enough to eat and wear.
Having made up their minds, they all looked at Qiu Dafu.
"We want to stay and continue working."
"Please, please take us in..."
Qiu Dafu could accept the men, but the women and children... Usually, the women and children would also help out, but they weren't very effective.
"Second Uncle, all the men can stay and help you build the house, but a contract needs to be signed." Qiu Yan's words broke Qiu Dafu's thoughts.
As she spoke, she glanced at her second uncle's new clothes.
In fact, she had already arrived, and she had heard everything Tang Yi had said to her second uncle.
She had intended to come up and help, but seeing that her second uncle had resolved the situation himself, she realized there was nothing more for her to do.
Upon learning that the war had ended, she thought that Gu Qian must have won the battle, but she wondered how long the war could last.
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