Chapter 300: All in vain
The furs brought back by Qingchuan are of various types.
In addition to the common ones such as sheep, rabbit, wolf, fox, raccoon dog, and mink, there are also several bear skins and tiger skins.
There were so many types of goods that Wen Yan rented a small yard to store them.
She first asked someone to sort the furs by type, color and quality.
The quality of these furs is generally good, but there are only about fifty pieces of top quality. After picking them out individually, Wen Yan found the best craftsmen in the capital to re-tan them.
She then designs the garments according to the characteristics of each piece of leather and hands them over to the best embroiderer to make.
She also plans to produce more than a dozen clothing styles for other furs according to the order.
Just thinking about the design of the clothes and drawing them would keep her busy for a month or so.
Wen Yan locked herself in a private room on the second floor of Yidianmo and began to concentrate on drawing the clothes.
She originally wanted to teach the mute girl how to paint, so she kept her by her side so that she could learn from her.
Suddenly, there was a loud sound of drumming outside the window.
The mute girl was curious and opened the window to look outside.
After a while, she ran back and pulled Wen Yan to the window.
It was a lion dance troupe, dancing and waving banners as they walked forward.
This scene seems familiar!
"It's 'Miao Bi Zhai' that's having a promotion, saying buy one get one free. So, if you buy paper, ink, or an inkstone, you get a pen or paperweight for free." Pei'er came in with some snacks and burst out laughing. "The pens and paperweights are so expensive, and they still have the nerve to say buy one get one free."
Wen Yan finally remembered, and she just found it funny.
Doesn’t Wen Ruyue have any business acumen of her own?
She started to copy the way she made money in her previous life.
The Miaobizhai that she opened in her previous life is also being sold at a discount today.
That's because the imperial examination is approaching, and many candidates from other places have gathered in the capital, waiting to take part in next year's imperial examination.
Seeing that many poor students from other places could not afford pens, ink, paper and inkstones, she took advantage of discounts to vigorously promote the book copying business in her store.
Among those students who copied books, several became famous and entered officialdom. A few years later, Wen Yan made a lot of money using those books.
Although her store was doing good business during that period, all the money she earned was actually used to support poor students by copying books.
Pei'er chuckled, "Wen Ruyue must have been squeezed dry by us, that's why she's so anxious to make money."
Wen Yan rubbed her hands while breathing hot air on them: "Of course she is short of money. After all, winter is coming soon."
She had already guessed what Wen Ruyue wanted to do.
She wanted to stock up on charcoal.
Wait until winter and then sell it.
To be honest, Wen Yan sincerely hopes that Wen Ruyue can earn more money.
This way, she can sell all that charcoal!
"Miss, warm your hands quickly." Pei'er quickly stuffed a hot water bottle into Wen Yan's hand. "I said I'd light a stove for you, why didn't you allow it? It's not like we can't afford charcoal. In Jinyang Prefecture..."
"It's better to use the charcoal sparingly. This winter will be difficult." Wen Yan murmured.
Pei'er was skeptical about Wen Yan's description of a cold winter: "Miss, will it really be a cold winter this year? The winter solstice is only half a month away. It always snowed at this time of year in previous years, but this year it's only a little cold."
After winter comes, it gets dark very early.
It was just after the You hour and there were few people on the street, not to mention the shops, some of which had already closed.
The carriage from the Marquis of Jinping's Mansion slowly stopped in front of the gate of Miaobizhai.
She came to Miaobi Zhai on purpose just to check the results of today's sales.
When the shopkeeper saw Wen Ruyue, his eyes became evasive.
However, Wen Ruyue was so focused on counting the silver that she didn't notice the shopkeeper's strange behavior at all.
She copied Wen Yan's previous life's discount method one by one.
In her previous life, Wen Yan was able to make a fortune from this promotion, so why can’t she?
"Boss, please bring the account books and the money we received today to the accounting office." Wen Ruyue walked towards the accounting office with a light and graceful gait.
The shopkeeper wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
Wen Ruyue's maid urged him and she followed him into the accounting office with the things in her arms.
A moment later, a scream of "Ah..." was heard from the accounting office.
After a series of clanging sounds, the shopkeeper's voice, suppressed in pain, begged for mercy: "Madam, it's not that we don't work hard, it's just that business is really bad, and there's nothing we can do!"
In the accounting office.
The shop box fell to the ground, and scattered silver and copper coins fell to the ground.
A bloody hole was smashed into the shopkeeper's forehead, and blood was gushing out of it.
"Excuse me! How could there be no way? We're running a promotion, and it's almost a one-to-one rubbing. If she can pull it off, why can't I?"
"I paid you to be the shopkeeper, not to just eat and wait for death.
I put so much effort into promoting the sale, but the sales volume was only fifty taels a day?
Haha, this little money is not enough for me to hire a lion dance team today."
The shopkeeper's eyes were covered with blood, but he didn't dare wipe it off. He bent over and explained timidly, "It's really because the reputation of 'A Little Ink' is too great.
It caused such a big fuss when it opened that everyone in the capital knew about it.
When people in the capital city want to buy pens, ink, paper and inkstone, this is the first thing they think of.
Not only are we unable to compete with it, but the business of many time-honored calligraphy and painting shops in the capital has also been greatly affected."
"A little ink! Another little ink! It really is haunting you!" Wen Ruyue clenched her fists tightly and yelled at the shopkeeper, "Get out of here!"
The shopkeeper left the accounting office quickly as if he had been pardoned.
She stared at the maid who hadn't left yet and said viciously, "Why don't you leave? Are you staying here to watch me laugh at you?"
The maid was so frightened that she trembled and ran out with her head down.
Wen Ruyue was the only one left in the room.
"Damn you Wen Yan, why are you haunting me?
Just wait, I won’t let you off easily!”
She was so angry that she smashed everything she could in the accounting office.
Wait until she has vented enough.
Wen Ruyue began to think again.
This year is a cold winter, and the powerful families in the capital have no place to buy charcoal even if they have money.
The prime minister's mother was frail, so he dismantled half of the wooden furniture in his house to keep her warm.
Even so, his mother's health deteriorated and she passed away within two years.
As long as you stock up enough charcoal, you can not only make a lot of money, but also gain many favors.
Unfortunately, she failed in her attempt to resell grain in Jinyang Prefecture.
Not only did she not make any money, but with all the arrangements made by various parties, she even lost several thousand taels.
With the little money left, she not only bought the "Suguan Heding", but also used part of it to honor Concubine Lan.
Now, she has less than two thousand taels of silver to live on.
She thought that she could take advantage of the promotion to make some money and stock up on coal.
Unexpectedly, her careful planning turned out to be in vain.
As the weather is getting colder, if we don’t stock up on charcoal, we will miss the opportunity.
After a fierce ideological struggle, Wen Ruyue finally called the shopkeeper in.
"Come here." Wen Ruyue called the shopkeeper to her side, whispered a few words to him, and gave him the only remaining two thousand taels of silver notes.
"If you still can't handle this matter well, you can no longer be the manager of Miaobi Zhai."
The shopkeeper quickly responded and respectfully left the room.
Two thousand taels of silver worth of charcoal was not enough for her to change her fate, but at least she could make some important connections.
However, seeing such a great opportunity to make money slip through her fingers, Wen Ruyue felt as if her heart was being cut out!
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