Opening an antique shop and getting rich through all the worlds

Chapter 113

On the other side, outside the palace.

Liu Zheng was now quite prominent in the capital. Not only had all his goods sold out, but wealthy merchants and people working for prestigious families were all coming to find him.

In previous years at this time, wealthy merchants would hoard charcoal, cotton jackets, and thick silk.

But now, those expensive items that weren’t as good as thermal clothing and down jackets couldn’t even be sold at inflated prices. They had dropped to normal prices just to clear inventory.

Some wealthy merchants were even bundling sales.

While they didn’t dare manipulate prices on the cheapest winter clothing, the better thermal clothing and down jackets were different. Bundle them with a thin cotton jacket, and you could get priority purchasing.

If Shen You were here, she would have said that even ancient times had learned the bundling sales strategy.

“Master Liu, look, there’s stock every time goods arrive. Could you allocate more to our trading house? We have more storefronts.”

“That’s exactly what we were thinking.” Another person said with a flattering smile.

Everyone had come with the same purpose, and running into each other like this, they exchanged glances, each wishing they could keep the others out and get the goods first.

“Don’t worry, everyone. As I said before, there’s enough stock. I wasn’t deceiving you. New goods will arrive tomorrow.” Liu Zheng said, playing diplomatic.

How to distribute the goods and who gets more or less couldn’t be promised casually, as it would easily offend people.

The considerations involved required weighing pros and cons.

He never expected that Master Shen’s goods could be produced so quickly. From weaving to cutting fabric to sewing, tens of thousands of sets!

Such efficiency was terrifying!

“Moreover, some new items have arrived this time. Foot coverings.” Liu Zheng said with a smile.

The fabric shop owners exchanged glancesWhat was so special about foot coverings? They weren’t difficult to make.

Common households could sew them from scraps of fabric.

Their shops already had foot coverings made from the softest, most comfortable luxury fabrics, could these items from the Western Region be even better?

However, in front of Liu Zheng, they showed none of these thoughts.

Thinking of the previous Western Region goods, some people still had expectations for the foot coverings, though most were more interested in the soon-to-arrive winter clothing.

Foot coverings had few buyers and no market.

Thermal clothing and down jackets were exactly what everyone needed most right now!

Liu Zheng could see their thoughts but wasn’t in a hurry to explain. Instead, he waited for his subordinates to see the people out, then went to Bluestone Lane in the evening.

He was there to collect goods and also to see the foot coverings Master Shen had mentioned.

When Liu Zheng arrived, Shen You had just finished her restoration work and was sitting in the rocking chair at the entrance eating taro mille-feuille.

This shop made delicious food, everything freshly made daily with real cream. They closed when sold out, and delivery required a minimum order of 300 yuan.

So Shen You had several boxes of different cakes and sweets on her table.

Seeing these beautiful-looking foods, Liu Zheng couldn’t help but swallow. They looked so delicious.

“Would you like a box?” Shen You took out a box of salted caramel cake and placed a plastic spoon on top of the box.

Liu Zheng had brought another 1,500 taels of gold this time.

Looking at the box containing the gold ingots, Shen You reluctantly shared a taro mochi with him.

She had bought this when there was only one box left in the store, just six pieces in a box.

Liu Zheng looked delightedly at the sweets before him and took a bite, his eyes widening as he nodded repeatedly.

How could there be such soft and sweet pastries!

He had never eaten sweets with such a delicate texture. It was even better than the previous mooncakes!

“What kind of pastry is this?”

Shen You answered: “In our place, it’s called cake. It might get a bit rich if you eat too much.”

Such delicious food. If you could eat it every day, how happy would that be? How could it get rich? Liu Zheng was puzzled.

“Then I’ll give you two snow mochis too.” Shen You gave him the Oreo and matcha flavored ones.

She kept the durian-filled one for herself.

“This pastry has such a beautiful name too!” Liu Zheng nodded with delight, thinking he’d have to hide them from Liu Yunyan when he got home.

Otherwise, he probably wouldn’t be able to compete with her for them.

“And some cheese crispy cookies.” This came in a bag with plenty to share.

Eating these delicious pastries, Liu Zheng could only wonder what kind of wonderful place Master Shen’s homeland must be.

He was truly envious.

While goods were being moved outside, Shen You covered the plastic box and showed Liu Zheng the newly arrived thick socks.

In ancient times, foot coverings were quite private items, so holding them and looking at them outside while sitting felt somewhat uncomfortable for Liu Zheng.

Especially since he had just been eating pastries.

Combining such refined activities with foot coverings felt wrong somehow.

But seeing Shen You’s frank expression, he suddenly felt it was reasonable.

After seeing the socks Shen You brought out, nothing about propriety or refinement mattered anymore.

The foot coverings from the Western Region were truly useful!

Like the previous thermal clothing, they could stretch and return to their original shape, and the woven patterns were unlike anything he’d seen before.

Most importantly, though he hadn’t worn them, they felt comfortable to the touch and were substantial. One pair even had soft fleece inside.

They would certainly fit snugly when worn, without wrinkling.

“These are excellent!” Liu Zheng unconsciously raised his voice.

Shen You nodded, “I prepared two hundred pairs of each type. The ones without fleece are pure cotton, the ones with fleece are slightly more expensive at one tael of silver, and these hundred pairs are cashmere at five taels of silver.”

“The ones without fleece are 30 wen each. As for the different knitting patterns, you can adjust the prices as you see fit.”

Ancient socks were generally white, so she had only prepared white, off-white, and dirt-resistant gray, colors that common people could afford.

In Great Qi, many ordinary people couldn’t afford to wear socks.

Shen You had set this price after asking Liu Zheng about market conditions. It would be slightly more expensive than the foot coverings sold in shops.

“Could we order more stock? Two hundred pairs definitely won’t be enough.”

They’d probably sell like hotcakes, Liu Zheng thought.

“Yes, but you’ll have to wait a few days.” Shen You explained, “Let’s try these out in the capital first to see how well they sell.”

If common people didn’t buy them, she could just order better pure cashmere products later to sell to Great Qi’s wealthy people.

Liu Zheng thought for a moment, “That’s fine. I’ll come back in a couple of days to tell you how sales go.”

“Alright.”

As Liu Zheng prepared to leave with his unfinished cake, two snow mochis, and several sample socks, he asked hopefully:

“Master Shen, could I buy some of this cake?”

He was making money now, so even if the cake was expensive, he should be able to afford it.

“Come by tomorrow afternoon, I can give you some.” Shen You waved generously.

“However, all the pastries except the cheese sticks need to be eaten within two days. If they taste sour, they’ve gone bad.”

“You should still charge me something. Taking food from your shop every time, and several portions at that.”

Liu Zheng felt a bit embarrassed.

Shen You: “It’s fine. These foods aren’t expensive, and with all the dividends you bring, I can certainly afford to spare some food.”

The costs for group dinners and entertaining clients at the studio were more than this.

Being able to maintain business relationships with these foods was incredibly cost-effective!

Hearing Shen You say this, Liu Zheng felt comfortable taking the items and leaving.

Unexpectedly, just as he exited the distinctive wooden door of the shop, he ran into His Highness the Crown Prince.

The shipping process was well-established by now, and under normal circumstances, His Highness didn’t need to come personally.

Liu Zheng knew His Highness wanted to see Master Shen, so naturally he didn’t dare say much.