"Without us, Donglai Street is nothing!"
"If you ask me, young mistress, you shouldn't just rent it out. You should just sell it to us directly. The price is negotiable."
In a private room on the second floor of a restaurant on Dongfu Street, a table full of abalone and sea cucumber sat untouched, while several business representatives were busy venting their anger.
Seeing how they had joined forces, Jiang Shuwan quietly twirled her teacup. When these merchants first heard of her identity, they were all very respectful, but when it came to real money, their eyes were full of calculation.
Brother Nai was furious when he heard this.
"Sell it to you? If we sell it to you, who will be in charge of Donglai Street?"
"Of course, it's still the young mistress."
"Ha, you've even sold your shop, how can you still be in charge? At most, it's just an empty title! You guys are really cunning. The contract hasn't even been signed yet, and you're already thinking of taking advantage of us. Do you really think we're stupid?"
Song Yi also sided entirely with Jiang Shuwan. When Brother Nai's words were harsh, he immediately got up, opened the door, and saw the guest out.
"If you don't want to cooperate, you are welcome to leave now. Our young mistress will not force you."
"The green hills remain unchanged, the clear waters flow on forever, we'll meet again!"
"Please calm down, both of you!"
Seeing their firm and unyielding attitude, the representatives immediately softened their tone and shamelessly pulled Song Yi to sit down.
"Brother Song, let's talk this out. Why get angry?"
"Brother Qin, business is all about negotiation. Let's talk it over properly."
They kept urging him to drink and drink tea, their attitude was extremely attentive.
“Miss, what’s wrong with these merchants? It’s clearly a mutually beneficial deal, but they’re trying to undermine you right from the start. They’re shameless. If we sell the shop to them, we won’t have any control over them. Do you think they’ll help us during the general election? It’s ridiculous.”
Qingxing also whispered complaints in Jiang Shuwan's ear.
"They're so corrupt, they deserved to not be able to set up shop in Beijing before."
The little girl was quite disdainful. Jiang Shuwan smiled but didn't say anything. The representatives kept glancing at Jiang Shuwan's face.
While they smiled obsequiously at Brother Nai and Song Yi, they observed Jiang Shuwan's expression. Seeing that the young mistress remained calm and composed throughout, they immediately felt uneasy.
The purchase of the shop was originally a private plan they devised to test Jiang Shuwan. Whether she foolishly sold it to them or was angry that they were taking advantage of them, as long as Jiang Shuwan made a move, they could at least see through her true nature.
Her current calm and composed demeanor is truly unfathomable.
To remain calm in the face of adversity is truly extraordinary!
It seems that the success of the four food streets and the lavish business on Donglai Street were not just due to the young mistress's good luck or a lucky break; she is truly remarkable!
No wonder even Song Yi, the business genius of the Song family, follows her lead.
The representatives abandoned any further attempts to probe and raised their glasses to apologize to Jiang Shuwan.
"Please forgive us, young mistress. It's not that we're trying to cheat you, but your rent is a bit too expensive."
“Even if we have some money, it was all saved up penny by penny. We also have a large family to support. Please lower the rent a bit, young mistress.”
"Of course, we won't let the young mistress down either. Right now, the rent is the most expensive on Zhuque Street in the capital. How about we compare the rent of all the shops on Donglai Street to that of Zhuque Street?"
“That won’t work. The contract states that I will be responsible for the renovation and repair of all the windows and doors of the shops on Donglai Street. The rent you are offering is too low, and I will lose money.”
Upon hearing Jiang Shuwan's words, the representatives immediately burst into laughter.
"That's ridiculous. How much can a few windows be worth?"
"I can fix ten windows with just one cup of tea."
"Young mistress's excuse is too funny."
The delegates were laughing so hard they were practically falling over.
The windows and such are just an excuse the young mistress came up with to charge a high rent.
She doesn't even bother to come up with a proper excuse.
How much does a broken window cost?
“Young Madam, we believe in integrity in business. Donglin Street is in dire need of rebuilding right now. We need to stock up on goods and hire people to manage it. All of that costs money.”
"Paying rent at the rate for Zhuque Street is already our greatest sincerity. Young Madam, please don't go too far."
As the representatives spoke, their anger flared, feeling that Jiang Shuwan was treating them like suckers.
They can afford the high rent, but why should they?
Just because Jiang Shuwan renovated a few windows for them?
"It's just a few windows, we can install them ourselves."
"It's just a window, how could it possibly draw crowds and make our Donglai Street an instant sensation..."
Just then, a servant came to report.
"Miss, Manager Fang is back."
Manager Fang?
Brother Nai paused for a moment before remembering that Manager Fang was Fang Pozi's son, Fang Xiaozi, who had been sent by Jiang Shuwan to trade in the north.
"Let him in."
Hearing Jiang Shuwan say this, Song Yi, who was sitting to her left, frowned slightly.
He didn't know who Fang was, but upon hearing that he was just a mere manager, he didn't think he was any important person.
There are over a hundred shops on Donglai Street, including the courtyards behind them. According to the rent set by Jiang Shuwan, the rent alone will amount to more than 100,000 to 200,000 taels a year. Moreover, this matter is related to Jiang Shuwan's future position as the head of the general association.
—They're discussing such important matters, how can they let insignificant people come in and disturb them?
The young mistress is wise, but she doesn't quite know how to prioritize.
They're still too young.
Song Yi was pondering to himself when he saw a steward, tanned as black as charcoal by the northern sun, push open the door and walk in.
"Young Master Fang greets the young mistress. I have successfully carried the glass back to you from the north!"
"..."
"…………"
The room fell silent, and everyone looked at each other in bewilderment, even Brother Nai looked puzzled.
Glass?
What kind of glass?
Their young lady is so poor that she can't even afford tea costing ten taels of silver, let alone buy glass.
"Okay, thank you for your hard work." Jiang Shuwan stood up from the most respected seat at the table and smiled as she looked around at the representatives, each of whom was worth no less than a million.
"The window materials I ordered for everyone have arrived. Since everyone's here, why don't we go take a look together?"
“Miss, I’ll lead the way. As you instructed, I’ll transport the glass directly to Donglai Street. We’re unloading it now.”
Fang Xiaozi led Jiang Shuwan forward, while several representatives, along with Song Yi and Brother Nai, followed behind, all looking completely bewildered.
What window material?
Window materials are just wood and paper pasted together, how does it have anything to do with glass?
Can glass really be used to make windows?
It's ridiculous that a glass cup the size of an egg is worth the same as a piece of jade. And how big is a window? Who is so rich as to make a window out of glass?
Moreover, judging from the tone of his voice, it was transported from the north.
funny.
With such a large piece of glass, how was it possible to transport it here?
The bandits on the road must be robbing it like crazy!
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