strictlysupreme Chapter 186: Open a new store
Chapter 186: Open a new store
The old man was dressed in coarse linen clothes, his face was full of wrinkles, and his skin was dark. At a glance, you could tell that he was just an ordinary farmer.
"Yes, my lady, my granddaughter is Nai Nai, who was injured by the villain yesterday."
Fang Xiaoxiao spoke a few more words to the old man and asked Zhou Wenjian to give him more money.
The old man repeatedly declined their offer of money.
Left with no other option, Fang Xiaoxiao claimed that she needed to find some workers and asked the old man if he would be willing to come and work.
The old man looked incredulous.
He's so old, and although he still has some strength and lifting heavy objects isn't a problem for him, what makes him worthy of this job?
"No, no, no, although I can still move, I'm worried that if I don't do it well, wouldn't I be letting down my wife's good intentions?"
Looking at the kind-hearted and angelic-looking Fang Niangzi, the old man longed to work under her.
But he also understood that if he didn't do it well, wouldn't that put Madam Fang in a difficult position?
After much deliberation, he chose to refuse.
Fang Xiaoxiao knew that further persuasion would be futile, so she decided to change her approach.
"Since you've said so, sir, I won't say anything more."
"However, I need some help to build a factory here. I saw that I have quite a few relatives here yesterday. Why don't you ask them for me and see if anyone is willing to work here?"
At this moment, the old man had no words to express his feelings other than gratitude.
"Thank you, madam. I will definitely convey your message to them. As long as you don't mind that we illiterate people don't know how to read, they will all agree to come and work here."
The two exchanged a few more pleasantries.
Fang Xiaoxiao then rode her tall black horse toward the long street.
……
Time flies, and it's already mid-December in the blink of an eye.
The group of people who had previously traveled by boat to Jiangnan Province to purchase goods have all returned.
Everyone had a joyful expression on their face.
Li Renyi, in particular, got to know many raw material wholesalers through this trip to Jiangnan Province to purchase medicinal herbs and other items.
However, when these bosses heard that he was working for Madam Fang of Lingxi Pavilion, they all fawned over him and became his sworn brothers.
"My wife, I miss you so much!"
Fang Xiaoxiao, who was directing the workers to move raw materials, turned to look at the person who spoke.
Li Renyi, dressed in a dark blue robe, strode towards her.
This guy has only been gone for less than half a month, but he looks like he hasn't been seen for years; he's gotten so much rounder.
Fang Xiaoxiao frowned slightly and reached out to stop him.
"Alright, alright, it's not like we haven't seen each other for years. Go back to your room and rest."
Li Renyi pouted and reluctantly walked into the store.
After watching him leave, Fang Xiaoxiao walked towards He Jinnian, who was checking the goods with Zhou Wenjian.
He Jinnian looked exactly the same as when he left half a month ago, with little change in appearance.
"Jin Nian, you did a good job on your trip to Jiangnan Province."
"By the way, have you found the address for the new store I asked you to find?"
The reason they were sent to Jiangnan Province this time was not only to purchase raw materials for making new products such as lipsticks, but also to find a house in Jiangnan Province.
The house wasn't just for them to live in; it was also primarily for opening new shops.
It should be noted that Jiangnan Province is one of the major provinces of the Great Yu Dynasty. Although it cannot compare with Kyoto Province, it is the most prosperous place compared with the other three provinces.
It's often said that there's heaven above and Suzhou and Hangzhou below.
Based on factors such as the geographical location of Jiangnan Province, it is almost identical to Suzhou and Hangzhou in the previous life.
With its well-developed canals, dense population, and numerous wealthy individuals, Jiangnan was arguably the best place for development.
He Jinnian took out a map of cities in Jiangnan Province.
“My wife, look, South Hang Road and North Hang Road are the most complicated areas in Jiangnan Province.”
He spread the map on the ground and pointed to two long streets on it.
"However, there's one downside to both places."
"Oh, what's wrong with it?"
Fang Xiaoxiao and he squatted on the ground, looking at the map in front of them.
Jiangnan Province is huge; the map alone is about a meter long.
The buildings on the map were incredibly diverse and complex; a single long street was comparable in size to the entire Changle County, not to mention the entire Jiangnan Province.
Jiangnan Province is comparable to seven or eight Changle Counties.
He Jinnian said slowly.
"The downside is that the land prices on these two long streets are just too high."
"It costs three hundred taels of silver just to buy an ordinary house on the southbound road, not to mention the shops along the main street, which are practically robberies, with the minimum cost being three thousand taels of silver!"
Three thousand taels is indeed a bit outrageous.
Fang Xiaoxiao was secretly astonished when she heard the price.
But then I thought about it again, and the price was actually quite normal. You know, back in my previous life, not to mention anything else, just settling down in Suzhou or Hangzhou would easily cost several million for a house.
She touched her chin and took the folding stool that Old Zhang handed her.
"Three thousand taels is indeed a bit much, but if we want to develop, we have to invest a lot."
"What about the route north?"
He glanced at Nanhang Road and then pointed to Beihang Road.
The northbound route shown on the map is closer to the dock and port, making transportation more convenient.
He Jinnian shook his head directly, his tone becoming much harsher than before.
"North Hang Road is even more expensive, a full thousand taels of silver more expensive than South Hang Road. It's closer to the dock and has a larger flow of people!"
Fang Xiaoxiao pursed her lips and pondered for a moment.
"Snapped!"
"It's decided then and there. We'll move our flagship store to Beihang Road."
She suddenly slapped the map with one hand towards the location of Beihang Road.
This action attracted several people to stop and watch.
Murong Changqing happened to finish his business and saw this scene.
However, he didn't care much about these things. After all, as long as there was a place for him to cook noodles, he didn't need to care about anything else.
As soon as Li Renyi came out of the store, upon hearing that a new store was going to be opened on Beihang Road, an indescribable smile immediately spread across his face.
He rushed towards them as fast as he could.
"My wife, is everything you said true? We're going to open a new store in Jiangnan Province, and it's going to be on Beihang Road!"
He knew that Beihang Road was not only the most important and bustling street in Jiangnan Province, but also a famous place for flower boats.
Flower boat shops were places only high-ranking officials and nobles could visit, completely different from ordinary brothels.
Brothels were places frequented by ordinary people, while flower boat parlors housed many daughters of officials.
They were all originally daughters of wealthy families, but later, due to family matters, the men were sent to the frontier to perform corvée labor, while the women were either imprisoned in the brothel or became prostitutes.
Li Renyi became more and more excited as he thought about it, rubbing his hands together incessantly, his eyes filled with anticipation.