Chapter 45 Cloth Shop Business
After Yuan Shen left, Yan Chaonian felt a sense of emptiness in her heart. She had not yet gotten used to the new house and felt even more uneasy. She had to let her little Xuner sleep next to her at night.

It is not so much that the child cannot live without her, but rather that she cannot live without the child.

In order to avoid her life being too boring, she bought a shop in a good location in the capital, redecorated it, and started a cloth business.

The cloth in the shop was all delivered to her from the southwest by the escort agency. In addition to Chaojinfang’s own cloth and brocade, there were also cloth from other companies. Her purchasing cost was low, so the price was naturally a little cheaper than that of other cloth shops.

It was this point that brought her a lot of business, but most of those who came to take advantage of this were ordinary people, and most of the things they bought were coarse cloth. Brocade worth hundreds or thousands of taels was rarely in demand. She was not in a hurry and waited quietly for the opportunity.

“Madam, the residence of Minister Pei of the Ministry of War has sent an invitation, inviting you to come to their house for a banquet on the 28th of this month.”

That day, Aunt Wu came in with an invitation and smiled, “It said that the lost young master in the mansion was found a few days ago, and a homecoming banquet was held. Please be sure to go.”

“This is the first invitation we received after returning to Beijing.”

Aunt Wu was very happy.

Yan Chaonian finally waited for her chance and opened the invitation to read it carefully. “In this case, let’s prepare well. I think that day will be very lively.”

She had worn the broken branch plum blossom brocade the last time she entered the palace. This time she chose a piece of bamboo green square brocade. The color was bright and elegant, refreshing and light, and she could stand out among the crowd without stealing the spotlight.

Madam Liu came with a smile on her face. The two houses were close to each other and she could reach the Yuan Mansion by just turning a corner. She was now a frequent visitor to the Yuan Mansion. “Have you received the invitation from Minister Pei’s mansion? Let’s go together then?”

“I got it. I just picked out a piece of material to make a dress.”

Yan Chaonian’s heart moved, “My family just sent some brocade, would you like to take a look, Madam Liu?”

Women of all ages love beauty and good-looking materials. Madam Liu smiled and said, “I have always thought that the material you are wearing is good. I thought it was sent by your family, so I didn’t ask. Can I take a look?”

“have a look.”

Yan Chaonian took her to his small storehouse to look at her various brocades. “They are all here. Take a look. These are all brocades from the southwest. This one is Falling Flowers and Falling Water brocade, this one is Fang Fang brocade, this one is Rain Silk brocade, and this one is Tonghai satin. Take a look and see if there is anything you like. I’ll give you one.”

Materials of various colors and gorgeous patterns were neatly piled together. Mrs. Liu thought this and that were all beautiful. “It is said that brocade from the southwest is good, delicate and gorgeous. It really lives up to its reputation.”

“In your southwest, how much silver does it cost to ship this kind of brocade from the Brocade Shop?”

Yan Chaonian stroked the piece of Tonghai satin and said, “This piece will cost the merchant between 1,500 and 1,600 taels.”

“This piece of Baoxianghua is a new one this year. It is more luxurious and vivid than the previous Baoxianghua, and also more complex. The price for the merchant is three thousand taels.”

“This kind of Badayun was two thousand taels last year.”

Madam Liu took a deep breath and said, “It’s much more expensive than other brocades.”

“But the texture and weaving are also good.”

Yan Chaonian said that although the brocades from some places are good, they have been tribute so far and only dignitaries can use them. “The brocades from the southwest can also be used by the common people. You don’t know that it takes at least three months to weave a piece of brocade like this. A skilled weaver can only produce three or four pieces of brocade a year.” “Our brocade workshop has its own mulberry garden. We grow mulberry trees, raise silkworms and reel silk ourselves. Every link is refined. The price is a bit higher, but the effort is not small.”

Madam Liu still fondled a piece of scarlet lantern-patterned brocade; the color and the texture made her unable to let it go.

Yan Chaonian directly gave her the brocade and said, “Consider it as my thanks to you for taking care of me. I am grateful to you for taking care of me during my stay in the capital.”

“Otherwise I’d be blind.”

Perhaps because she was bored, Mrs. Liu liked to come and talk to her, and would tell her about all the big and small things happening in the capital so that she would not be completely ignorant.

“This is too expensive.”

Of course she liked the two thousand taels of material. The most expensive material she had worn so far was five hundred taels, and it hurt her teeth when she bought it. Yan Chaonian said, “Aren’t you going to a banquet? It’s just right to make a new dress with it. Besides, I opened a cloth shop. All the goods are from the southwest. I will take you to have a look later. According to our relationship, as long as you like it, I will pay you 80% of the original price. Is that okay?”

“really?”

Madam Liu calculated quickly in her mind. She could save two hundred taels from a piece of material that cost one thousand taels?

What if she buys it for someone else?

Is it to make a profit from the price difference?
The other party gave nine hundred taels, and she paid eight hundred taels. She made a profit of one hundred, and the other party could pay one hundred less. How great!

There was no other way. It wasn’t that she, the wife of a minister, was so greedy for money. It was just that the Ministry of Revenue was being watched too closely by the emperor and there wasn’t much money. Her family wasn’t well-off either, and she had a whole family to support, so didn’t she have to find a way to make some money?
“Really? If Madam can bring us customers, we can give Madam a rebate, 10 taels for every 100 taels. I think Madam is a very open-minded person. Would you like to consider it?”

“Consider it.”

Mrs. Liu is even better in this respect. If you ask her to go to the cloth shop to buy everything, she will look greedy if she buys too much. The rebate is good, and she knows many rich ladies.

“Why don’t we go check out your cloth shop now?”

“it is good.”

That day, Madam Liu returned with a full load. Yan Chaonian gave her enough benefits. Madam Liu was quite satisfied and had already made a list in her mind. On the third day, she took the two ladies to Yan Chaonian’s cloth shop. The shopkeeper was also very knowledgeable. He treated it as the first time he met Madam Liu. He introduced the fabrics of the cloth shop to the ladies and said, “As long as it is brocade from the southwest, we have the most complete one here. The Empress Dowager in the palace knows that our fabrics are worn by her.”

With the joint efforts of the shopkeeper and Madam Liu, they sold twelve rolls of brocade in five days, earning 18,000 taels of silver. Madam Liu received 1,800 taels of rebate. When she was counting the silver bills at home, she was seen by Minister Liu who had just returned from duty. After asking him about it, he twitched his lips and said, “Madam, you have earned more silver than me.”

Madam Liu said, “I was embarrassed at first. After all, I am the wife of the Minister’s Mansion. Doing this would be degrading and vulgar. But firstly, only Madam Yuan knows about this matter, and she is not the kind of person who talks nonsense. Secondly, once I get the banknotes, I will no longer feel embarrassed or uneasy. This money is really easy to make.”

Minister Liu lamented the value of brocade, “In recent years, the taxes paid by the southwest have increased. It can be seen that it is right to release brocade to the people. How can a piece of cloth be so valuable?”

Two pieces of cloth were equivalent to his annual salary.

Think about it, you work hard for a year and seem to be in a high position, but you are only worth two pieces of cloth. Who can you complain to?