Chapter 126 Building Connections: Profits...
Du Li sent Wang Zhou to the county government office in the morning. He then went to a carriage shop to hire a donkey cart and a driver, and left Luoyang directly for Heqing County.
Meng Qing and Meng Chun stayed in Luoyang. Besides keeping an eye on the business that came to them, they spent the rest of their time traveling between various brokerage firms, asking brokers to inquire about dye houses, paper mills, and houses with convenient transportation for resale.
Three days later, a broker found out about a dye house, and Meng Qing called Meng Chun, and the two siblings went to see it together.
"The owners of this dyehouse are a husband and wife who mainly run a business dyeing linen. As you know, people who wear linen can only wear black, white, brown, and blue. They can only wear red when they get married. Because the variety of goods is limited, the business of this dyehouse is not large and they don't make much money, which is why they had the idea of selling it," the broker explained on the way.
"How much space does the workshop occupy? Are the buildings new or old?" Meng Chun asked.
"The house isn't small, but because it's so large, it's not worthwhile to use it for this low-profit business. That's why the couple plans to sell the house, take the money, move to a county down below to open a dye shop, and use the freed-up capital to do silk business. This is it. The house is a bit old; you can just repaint the door frames and beams." The broker led the people inside.
The entrance leads to the shop front, behind the counter is a cloth cabinet, beyond which is the warehouse, and across the door is a large courtyard, half of which is covered and the other half is open, with bamboo racks for drying cloths erected throughout the courtyard.
"The workshop owner demanded that whoever bought the workshop also buy all the equipment, including the bamboo racks, display cases, and the dye vats and dyes at the back, for a total price of 120 strings of cash," the broker said.
Meng Qing and Meng Chun remained silent and went to the adjacent courtyard to look at the dye vats and dyes.
There are fifty-six dye vats. Fifteen vats each contain black, brownish-yellow, and blue dyes, and eleven vats contain light red dye. The dyes look very clear.
Meng Qing and Meng Chun each took a few sheets of paper, tore them into strips, dipped them in dye, and then looked at them. The color was quite good, indicating that it was from dozens of vats of good dye.
“One hundred and twenty strings of cash is acceptable, but I require that the source of the dye be included,” Meng Qing said. “How much is this workshop worth?”
“One thousand four hundred strings of cash.”
Even though Meng Chun was somewhat prepared, he still gasped. This dilapidated house was not even as large as the inn at the foot of Beiman Mountain, not to mention the interior furnishings, yet the price had doubled.
"It's a bit expensive, let's take another look," Meng Qing said.
The broker didn't insist, saying, "This location is good. There's a river just half a mile behind the house, making it easy to get water and for boats and cars to come and go. The high price is due to the land price."
Meng Qing nodded, and she left with Meng Chun.
"Sister, what are your thoughts?" Meng Chun asked after parting ways with the broker.
"I'm not sure if this price is reasonable, I plan to ask the city magistrate," Meng Qing said.
"It's so easy to get things done if you have connections in the court," Meng Chun remarked.
Meng Qing arrived at the county government office half an hour early today to pick up Wang Zhou. When he entered the office, it was just the time when Magistrate Yin was having his afternoon tea. Madam Yin was by his side, and when she heard that Meng Qing had arrived, she asked the servants to invite him in.
“You’ve arrived early today; Wangzhou is still doing his homework,” said Madam Yin.
"I visited the dyeing workshop in Jinxiufang today, and by the time I finished, it was already quite late. It wouldn't be worthwhile to go to the charity school afterward, so I decided to come here early so I can go back earlier tonight," Meng Qing said.
"Looking at the dyehouse? Planning to buy it?" Yin Mingfu asked.
“My brother is planning to buy it. Paper-made funerary objects require a lot of paper, and the market is stable. He said that rather than letting outsiders make this money, he should make it himself. He wants to buy a dye house to specialize in the colored paper business,” Meng Qing replied.
Yin Mingfu nodded. "This is a profitable business."
"Yes, he's setting up a workshop, and the free schools in other counties near Luoyang will also be getting their supplies from here. It'll be quite a large operation, and he'll definitely need a lot of workers. I think that since he's making money from the free schools, he should also be charitable and do some good for the people. Lord Yin, the government handles many cases, and I'm sure you've encountered quite a few unfortunate people: mute and deaf girls, orphaned children, widows who have lost their husbands and have no one to rely on, as well as hooligans and beggars. These people roam around Luoyang like shadowy figures in the corners of the capital. With so many of these shadows, bad things are bound to happen. If you're interested, you can arrange for officials to send them to the dye shop to work, so they can at least make a living," Meng Qing said slowly.
Yin Mingfu sat up straight. "How many workers does the workshop need?"
"Twenty or thirty, I guess. If business gets better, we'll probably add more." Meng Qing said with a smile. "Besides the dye shop, my brother is also planning to open a bamboo workshop and hire people to split bamboo strips. That will also require twenty or thirty people."
"I'll hand this over to the clerks in a bit. Have the clerk lead the constables to count the number of people and their backgrounds. Once everyone's gathered, your brother can come and choose," Yin Mingfu said cheerfully. "Is your private school short of people? You can come and choose too."
“If there are people who know bamboo weaving, the free school can take in another 10 or 20,” Meng Qing replied.
“Okay, I’ll keep an eye out for you,” Yin Mingfu said eagerly, as this was all part of his political achievements.
"Madam Meng, have some tea." Madam Yin handed over a cup of hot tea. "You are truly doing good deeds. Helping those in distress is saving lives."
“We came from poverty and know how hard life is. Now that we have the ability and resources, we should lend a helping hand to those in need. Besides, if the dyeing workshop and bamboo workshop grow and expand to the point where they need two or three hundred workers, taking in all the suffering people in Luoyang, it will be the icing on the cake for Lord Yin’s achievements. It’s a win-win situation, so why not?” Meng Qing looked at Lord Yin, thinking that instead of relying on Du Min’s influence, it would be better to build connections based on her own value.
Yin Mingfu stroked his beard. "If that day ever comes, it will be more than just adding flowers to brocade."
“Then I’ll leave the recruitment to you. I’ll urge my brother to finalize the workshop as soon as possible, and once it’s settled, he can come and select the workers,” Meng Qing said.
"Where is the workshop? Jinxiufang?" Yin Mingfu recalled Meng Qing's words and asked, "You went to see it today, right? Didn't you make a decision? What problems did you encounter? I remember that place was in a good location."
"The broker quoted 1,400 strings of cash, with the tools and dyes priced at an additional 120 strings. We thought the price was quite high and were unsure if it was reasonable. Moreover, the workshop owner wasn't there; only the broker negotiated with us. I suspect he secretly quoted a higher price without the workshop owner's knowledge," Meng Qing said.
Madam Yin's eyes flickered slightly. She said to Prefect Yin, "Have the magistrate of the city inquire about it. He can get a fair price if he intervenes."
Yin Mingfu nodded, then looked at Meng Qing and said, "I'll tell the city magistrate later that if you buy any more shops in the future, just go directly to him. If you encounter any problems in your business, also ask him to help you. If he can't solve them, then come and talk to me."
"With you saying that, I won't hold back from now on." Meng Qing had achieved her goal.
Yin Mingfu smiled and said, "No need to be so polite. It's my duty to take care of you, both publicly and privately."
*
Two days later, the city magistrate slipped a letter to Wangzhou, who took it back and gave it to Mengqing. Mengqing opened the letter, and it stated that the dye house of Jinxiufang, including the house, equipment, and dyes, was priced at a total of 1,030 guan.
Meng Qing relayed to Meng Chun, "Save nearly five hundred strings of cash. After you get the property deed, you can personally invite the city magistrate to a tavern for drinks and give him another thirty or fifty strings as a tip."
Meng Chun nodded and tentatively said, "After I give him the money, I'll ask him to help me find a suitable house and convert it into a workshop. Once it's done, I'll treat him to drinks and give him extra money for his trouble."
Meng Qing gave him an approving look. "Yes, make him part of your network. You have Du Min behind you, so learn to use his name to make connections with people who can be useful to you."
"Mother, the water's boiled," Wangzhou called from the courtyard.
Upon hearing Wang Zhou's voice, Meng Qing immediately shut his mouth to avoid letting him hear that they were using his third uncle, which would upset him again.
*
Two days later, Du Li and the yamen runners from Heqing County delivered 10,000 strings of cash in fifteen carriages. Meng Chun immediately took the money to buy the dye house and transferred ownership of a house worth 700 strings of cash two days later.
Du Li and Meng Qing were responsible for hiring workers to repair the house, while the other was responsible for purchasing dyes, paper, charcoal basins, charcoal, shovels, and bamboo on a large scale.
Two weeks later, all the workers and goods were in place, and the dyeing workshop and bamboo workshop were put into operation. Meng Chun was in charge of both workshops, while Meng Qing had some free time to look for a paper mill. That day, she ran into Chen Mingzhang's two sons on the street, and they were the ones who saw her first and called out to her.
"Madam Meng, what are you doing in Luoyang? I thought I had mistaken you for someone else." Chen Erlang was overjoyed. He had been looking for Meng Qing and the Meng family. He wrote a letter back to Wu County at the end of May, but had not received a reply until now. Fortunately, he met them in Luoyang.
"My father is being sued by the Gu family for attending a mourning banquet. Can you testify that he wasn't present that day?" Chen Erlang asked impatiently.
Meng Qing looked at him strangely, "Didn't you receive the letter from the Prefect of Luoyang sent to Chang'an?"
"We received it. We rushed over after receiving the letter. You know about my father's burns?" Chen Erlang realized. "It's been a month already, has his injury healed?"
"You only received one letter? Let me take you to the yamen," Meng Qing said.
Chen Dalang sensed something was wrong. "There's a second letter? What are we going to the yamen for? What happened to my father?"
Meng Qing said nothing, "Come with me to the yamen."
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Author's note: See you tomorrow night at 8 PM.
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