Chapter 204 A woman who hasn't been to the land of gentle pleasures isn't a true woman.
The commotion Le Yunyun made was quite significant, and shopkeepers from several nearby stores had already been peering over in her direction.
Next door was a newly opened fabric shop. The owner was a woman in her thirties with a head of trendy perm hair. Right now, she was leaning against the door, cracking sunflower seeds with a loud "crack crack crack" sound.
With a "plop" of sunflower seed shells being spat on the ground, the proprietress rolled her eyes and said in a high-pitched voice, as if she was deliberately saying it for others to hear: "Oh dear, this shop has bad feng shui. This is the third time it has changed owners. The first two lost everything, and I bet this time, some ignorant young lady is just throwing her family's money down the drain."
Upon hearing this, Le Yunyun immediately became displeased. Doing business is all about good luck, and this shop hasn't even opened yet, and she's already cursing people: "Hey! How dare you talk like that? Didn't you brush your teeth this morning?!"
Jiang Wanqiu grabbed Le Yunyun, who was about to confront her.
"Getting angry with this kind of person is beneath you." Jiang Wanqiu said calmly, pulling Le Yunyun inside. "In business, harmony brings wealth. If a dog bites you, can you bite it back?"
Le Yunyun was so angry that her chest heaved, but she obeyed and glared at the proprietress before reluctantly shutting up.
The shop reeked of wood shavings from the renovation. Jiang Wanqiu, her belly protruding, circled the strange "East meets West" counter, tapping her fingertips lightly on the cool terrazzo surface.
"Yunyun, what do you plan to sell in this shop in the future?" Jiang Wanqiu asked.
“Of course it’s those…those things.” Le Yunyun winked at Jiang Wanqiu. “It’s the lace nightgowns we talked about before, which we got from overseas, and those…little things for couples.”
"Since you're selling these intimate items, do you think anyone would dare to come in if you made the storefront as bright and spacious as a department store?" Jiang Wanqiu pointed out incisively.
Le Yunyun was stunned: "Huh? Then...how can we do business if we don't open the store?"
Jiang Wanqiu shook her head, her gaze sweeping over the two huge transparent glass windows, and pondered, "What we're selling here is 'ambiance' and 'privacy.' In this day and age, women are shy; they have to hide even buying a slightly fancy piece of lingerie. If you can see right through the windows, who would dare to come in and pick and choose?"
She walked to the window and gestured: "Replace all the glass. Either put frosted paper on it or hang thick velvet curtains, leaving only a crack for people to peek through. Take down that big chandelier and replace it with one of those wall lamps with shades. The light should be warm, pink, and preferably have a slightly ambiguous feel. When people come in, it should make their faces flush, but their hearts itch with desire."
Le Yunyun's eyes widened and her mouth slightly open as she listened.
Jiang Wanqiu pointed to the wall: "This pink wall is too tacky. Hang posters, but not big stars. Find someone to paint those Western paintings of people wearing cheongsams or Western skirts, showing a little bit of their shoulders and calves. The hazy, dreamy ones are the most alluring. Only display samples on the first floor. The display cases should be exquisite. Display those nightgowns like you would jewelry."
As she spoke, she looked up at the simple stairwell on the second floor: "The second floor is the key. Divide it into several private rooms, each with a large mirror and soft sofas. Prepare fine tea and snacks, specifically for the wives of wealthy and leisurely officials. Make them feel that they are not here to buy things, but to enjoy a private time."
"My God..." Le Yunyun grabbed Jiang Wanqiu's hand, so excited she was almost incoherent. "Sister Wanqiu! You're amazing! You're a business genius, aren't you? How come I didn't think of that! I was thinking of making it bright and impressive, but now that I think about it, if we did it that way, probably no one would dare to come in!"
Just as the two were talking enthusiastically, and Yue Yunyun was itching to have the workers tear it down and rebuild it, a series of noisy footsteps suddenly came from the doorway.
"What are you doing? Stop! Stop!"
Three men wearing red armbands swaggered in. The one in the lead, with a fierce face and carrying a baton, shoved the construction worker who was about to speak, causing him to stumble.
The lady who owned the fabric shop next door had somehow appeared at the door again, cracking sunflower seeds with even more gusto, her face full of schadenfreude: "This is karma, she'll have to close down right after opening."
The leading man looked around, his gaze lingering for a moment on Jiang Wanqiu's protruding belly, before turning contemptuously to Le Yunyun: "Who's in charge? Someone reported that you're doing illegal renovations here, damaging the building structure and posing serious fire hazards! You're now ordered to stop work and rectify the situation, and you also have to pay a fine!"
Le Yunyun's temper flared up again: "Illegal? I've completed all the paperwork! Which organization are you from?"
"Stop talking nonsense! I said it's a violation, and that's it! Come with us to the station!" The man said, reaching out to grab Le Yunyun's arm.
"Wait a minute."
Jiang Wanqiu walked up and took out a pack of cigarettes from her handbag.
It was a white-covered, specially supplied pack of cigarettes, without any fancy trademarks, only two red characters—"Chunghwa" (中华).
Zhao Wenchang casually slipped this into her bag, saying that in some situations women are not good at speaking, and this thing is more useful than a business card.
Jiang Wanqiu held the cigarette case between two fingers and gracefully handed it to the leading man.
"Comrades, you've worked hard." Jiang Wanqiu smiled politely, her tone gentle but with a hidden barb. "The blueprints for this shop's renovation were filed with the housing management bureau half a month ago, and the approval stamp has been affixed. I don't know which clause or provision we've violated? If there's a real problem, we'll definitely cooperate, but isn't it a bit against the rules to just take people away for no reason?"
The leader was about to retaliate, but when he caught a glimpse of the cigarette case in Jiang Wanqiu's hand out of the corner of his eye, his pupils suddenly contracted.
Having been in the Beijing business world for so long, he naturally knows his stuff.
These specially supplied cigarettes were not something that money could buy; they were only available to high-ranking officials within the compound.
The man's outstretched hand froze in mid-air, his expression shifting unpredictably. But looking at the two women in front of him—a pregnant woman and a young girl—he wondered if the cigarettes were of dubious origin.
"Don't try to scare us!" The man gritted his teeth and roared, "No matter who you are, you have to come with us today! If you don't pay this fine, this shop won't be open!"
As he spoke, he gave a wink to his two henchmen behind him, and the two men were about to step forward and use force.
Just then, Zhang, the orderly who had been standing in the shadows in the corner, made a move.
"Let's see who dares to make a move!"
A loud shout, like a thunderclap from a clear sky.
Xiao Zhang strode up to Jiang Wanqiu, his crisp military uniform with four pockets standing out conspicuously in the dimly lit shop.
His face was ashen, and his right hand instinctively rested on the bulging holster at his waist, instantly exuding a chilling aura of someone who had truly been on the battlefield.
The two henchmen were so frightened by this imposing aura that they instinctively took two steps back, almost knocking over the paint bucket next to them.
Le Yunyun finally realized what was going on. She snorted coldly, took out a business card from her expensive leather bag, and instead of handing it over, threw it directly at the leader's face.
"Open your dog eyes and look carefully!" Le Yunyun crossed her arms and held her chin high. "This is my dad's secretary's phone number. If you think you're too safe with your hat on, try and take me away right now!"
The business card floated lightly to the ground.
The leading man picked it up and his hands trembled like leaves. The names and titles on it, though just a secret technique, were still from the Ministry of Commerce!
"Oh dear...this...this is a complete misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding!"
The man's face turned deathly pale instantly, his previous arrogance vanishing without a trace. He bowed and scraped as he handed back the business card with both hands, his face plastered with a fawning smile: "Ladies, I was blind to your greatness. I'll be leaving now! I'll be the first to object to anyone in this area who dares to cause you trouble!"
After saying that, he ran away in a sorry state with his two men, as if he were being chased by wolves.
The cloth shop owner, who had been watching the commotion from the doorway, was terrified and scattered sunflower seeds all over the ground.
Seeing those usually domineering red armband-wearing thugs run faster than rabbits, she didn't dare say another word. She shrunk her neck, slammed her shop door shut, and never dared to show her face again.
The shop quieted down again.
Ping An had been standing obediently at the back, but now he ran over and grabbed Jiang Wanqiu's hand, his little face full of admiration.
Jiang Wanqiu put the cigarette case back into her bag and looked at Le Yunyun, who was still rolling her eyes: "Alright, stop being angry. It's easier to see the King of Hell than to deal with his underlings. After this ordeal, no one in this area will dare to bully you anymore."
Le Yunyun is decisive and efficient; she gets things done as soon as she says she'll do it.
With Jiang Wanqiu's "guidance" and the fact that her special pack of cigarettes deterred the thieves, the renovation team worked day and night to finish the job.
Less than half a month later, that previously unknown shop transformed into the most mysterious place on the entire street.
The storefront is unassuming, almost like a hat with its brim lowered, with only a dark rosewood plaque hanging above it, inscribed with three characters in running script by a famous calligrapher: "Gentle Homeland".
Both large glass windows were completely covered by heavy velvet curtains, leaving only a side door in the corner. To enter through this door, one had to hold that gold-embossed invitation in their hand.
Jiang Wanqiu wasn't idle either. While Zhao Wenchang was away at a meeting at the military region, she locked herself in her study and, under cover of it, transferred a batch of goods from her spatial storage.
That's something that women these days have never even seen.
A sheer black lace nightgown, an underwire bra to make her breasts look full and perky, and a shapewear to make her waist look incredibly slender. There were even a few small items with feathers and bells on them; just holding them in her hands made even Yue Yunyun blush.
"Wan... Sister Wanqiu, this is even bolder than what we sold before, is it really going to work?" Le Yunyun pinched the thin veil, "This is too... too embarrassing!"
Jiang Wanqiu leaned back in her soft chair, holding a cup of hot milk in her hand, her eyes languid: "Shameful? Behind closed doors, that's the romance between husband and wife. Believe it or not, the more dignified a wife is usually, the more she craves this deep down."
As it turns out, Jiang Wanqiu had a firm grasp on human nature.
The "gentle haven" opened quietly.
Twenty invitations were sent out; the officials' wives had only come because of Le Yunyun's father.
But as soon as they entered the dimly lit and ambiguous second floor, smelling the faint scent of rose essential oil in the air and touching the silky fabrics, their eyes widened in amazement.
In less than a week, the winds of change swept through Beijing's social circles of wealthy women.
Anyone who doesn't have a private garment for "gentle comfort" is embarrassed to say they are pampered.
Jiang Wanqiu stayed home to rest and prepare for her pregnancy, while Le Yunyun made a trip to the villa every two weeks.
"We've struck it rich! Sister Wanqiu, we've struck it rich!" Le Yunyun threw a bulging brown paper envelope onto the coffee table, her eyes shining with excitement. "You don't know, Director Li's wife almost got into a fight over that last pearl-embellished nightgown!"
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