As expected, when Xu Shengyi left, Qiuju had a few more bags in her hands. She even turned back and told Xiuqing, "Sister, when my clothes are ready, you must notify me as soon as possible. I will send someone to pick them up."
Huang Wanzhen waved her away and said, "Hurry up and get in the car. We can deliver the goods to your door."
Xu Shengyi thanked her gently, and then said to Huang Wanzhen considerately, "Teacher, you are so busy, go back to work quickly. I have a driver to take you there, and Qiuju is here too, so nothing will happen."
"Pooh, pooh, pooh, miss, please pooh twice quickly. Don't say anything unlucky." Qiuju said hurriedly, making Huang Wanzhen feel even more embarrassed not to see the little ancestor off.
"Go away! You know I'm busy, but you're still dawdling here."
Huang Wanzhen personally sent Xu Shengyi back to Mrs. Xu before she breathed a sigh of relief. "Mrs. Xu, thank goodness I have fulfilled my mission. I have brought Miss Xu back to you."
Mrs. Xu greeted with a smile, "Sorry to bother you, Mr. Huang. Did Sheng Yi cause you any trouble?"
Thinking of the things Xu Shengyi bought, Huang Wanzhen said in a very serious tone, "Your daughter is very well-behaved and sensible. How could she cause me trouble? Shengyi is always welcome to come over and play."
Mrs. Xu was very satisfied with Huang Wanzhen's answer, so she asked the driver to give Huang Wanzhen another ride.
Back at the studio, Huang Wanzhen couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Dealing with these wives of officials was exhausting. Finally, she could work in peace for a while. Thinking of this, Huang Wanzhen took out the latest edition of "Illustrated" and flipped through it, looking for inspiration.
“Dongdongdong——”
"Come in—"
The office door was pushed open from the outside, revealing Xiao Shitou's face. "Manager, I have something to report."
"Come in."
Little Stone opened the door, walked in, and said, "I've inquired about the Zhu family clothing store. Their best seller right now is a Western-style garment called a white shirt. It can be worn under a suit. It's perfect for wearing alone this season. I've been to see it, and it's very thin. There's not much fabric left. The cheapest one costs two dollars."
Huang Wanzhen lowered her head and quickly flipped through the "Illustrated" in her hand. After flipping through it twice and not finding it, she took out a previous issue and continued flipping through it. "Is it this one?" She pointed to a photo of a foreign female model and asked.
"Yes, this is it." Little Stone leaned over and recognized it at a glance.
"They sell it for two dollars, right?" Huang Wanzhen tapped her fingers quickly on the table.
"The cheapest one is two dollars. I heard there are some that are five dollars each. I don't know why they are still being sold." Although Xiao Shitou didn't wear any clothes, he felt suffocated when he saw the skinny clothes. He thought that they must be not as comfortable as the gown he was wearing.
"Okay, I get it. I'll give you credit for the first achievement. Let everyone know that we'll have a meeting after get off work today."
The next day, Zhang Dongqian took Xiao Shitou to Dong'an Market and bought five sewing machines. He first placed them in the backyard of Jixiang Hall, and then immediately went to find a middleman to rent a large house in Yanda Hutong in the back street. He found a horse-drawn carriage and moved the sewing machines there.
Two days later, Li Chunhua and Zhu Xiqin moved in with seven female workers.
Huang Wanzhen is a careful person. Since she wants to compete with foreign goods, she must not lose in terms of her clothes.
She worked overtime for several days, sorted out a pile of information, asked Song Wenyin to use her connections, and registered the trademark at the Trademark Office. She also found a factory to order a lot of kraft paper bags and thick paper boxes printed with the English word "Beautiful".
Everything is ready, only the east wind is missing.
"Wenyin, Wanzhen, are these skirts or jackets you're wearing?" He Lanshan looked Huang Wanzhen up and down, then at Song Wenyin. "They look pretty good."
"Looks good, doesn't it? It's very cheap, too. The short one I'm wearing is only 1.6 yuan at Jixiangtang, and the long one Wenyin is wearing is only 4.6 yuan," Huang Wanzhen said with a smile. "These are the most popular shirts in Western countries. They were sold out as soon as they were put on the shelves at Shanghai Department Store."
"Really? I just thought it looked nice, but after hearing what you, an expert, said, it makes me feel it's particularly luxurious."
After school, He Lanshan followed the two back to Jixiangtang and said, "I want to order a shirt too."
Huang Wanzhen smiled and wrote it down for her. After she left, she immediately asked Song Wenyin anxiously, "Why hasn't the trademark been approved yet?"
Song Wenyin was no longer sitting in Linglong Pavilion. She picked up her schoolbag and walked out. "No need to rush me. I'll go and urge them right away."
The Beautiful trademark was obtained in just one week with the special approval of the leadership.
As soon as Huang Wanzhen received the approval document, she immediately asked the prepared female workers to move the clothes to Jixiang Hall.
Yes, after more than ten days of hard work, seven sewing machines were running non-stop and had produced more than 500 white shirts. This was when the female employees were unskilled. The commission for each piece of clothing ranged from 6 cents to 1 cent. With more than 500 pieces, each female worker could earn an average of 60 to 70 cents a day. This income made the new female employees reluctant to sleep.
After Huang Wanzhen discovered this, she immediately arranged a lights-out policy. At 11 o'clock in the evening, team leader Zhu Xiqin turned off the lights and everyone went to sleep.
"Song An, Hai Li, go to the backyard and boil some water. These clothes need to be ironed and hung up one by one." Huang Wanzhen directed the employees to separate and act separately. "Uncle Zhang, is the shelf I asked you to order from the carpenter last time ready?"
"I have moved to the west room in the backyard of Jixiang Hall." Zhang Dongqian said in a muffled voice.
Huang Wanzhen turned around and went to look for Xiao Shitou again. "Among these shirts, there's a package of men's shirts. Find them and sell them over there next to the men's suits."
The employees living in the dormitory worked overtime with Huang Wanzhen until eleven o'clock. The shop had changed. Two large wooden racks were placed in the middle of the three shops, and they were full of white shirts hung on them according to different styles and sizes.
"Manager, we don't have enough wooden hangers. Do we need to order some tomorrow?" Little Stone ran over and asked.
Huang Wanzhen clapped her hands and looked around. "That's enough. Let's not hang the remaining shirts for now. Wait until the ones on the shelf are sold before putting them up again."
"Starting tomorrow, we're going to change our salary structure. The more we sell, the more we earn. We'll have three bookkeepers for the three shops. Xiulan will be in charge of the lobby, Zhu Xiqin will be in charge of Furongju, and Xiuqing will be in charge of Linglongge. We must keep a clear record of who sold how many items and how much they cost. At the beginning of the month, we'll calculate the previous month's wages based on what's in the account book."
Xiulan and Xiuqing looked at each other and saw excitement in each other's eyes.
"Everyone, go back and rest. Thank you for your hard work. Those who worked overtime today will be paid for two days' work."
The next day, Huang Wanzhen returned from tutoring to find the shop packed with people. A group of women, both plump and thin, were chatting like they were at a market. The noise was so intense that Song Wenyin ran away. Huang Wanzhen quickly grabbed her and said sinisterly, "Do you still want a share?"
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