Chapter 48
Shen You found the merchant on her phone and ordered another 600 raincoats, this time choosing more subdued colors.
The previous order had included random colors with shocking pink and fluorescent green, which would be inappropriate for frontline delivery.
While browsing the store’s product links, she added 20 folding umbrellas to her order since the wholesale price was only 10 yuan each. She managed to catch the last batch shipment of the evening.
After completing her business, she used the shop’s free sound system to play gentle music and returned to the second-floor kitchen to prepare dinner.
She had just pulled out the kitchen knife and started chopping ginger when the doorbell rang.
Among all the people from the Great Qi dynasty, only one person knew how to ring the doorbell.
Wen Zhi wasn’t a customer of Great Qi, so as long as the shop wasn’t set to closed and she agreed, he could enter.
“I bought seafood and crabs today. Would you like to eat together? This time it won’t cost any silver.” Shen You said with a smile on her face while maintaining her grip on the kitchen knife, looking rather like she was running a shady establishment.
Wen Zhi, who had just entered, stopped in his tracks and stepped aside slightly.
Then using his pleasant voice, he advised, “Hold that knife steady and don’t throw it.”
“Don’t worry, my knife is famously steady.” Shen You nodded confidently.
She originally intended to have him sit and wait nearby, but Wen Zhi watched her indescribable knife skills with hesitation. Then he followed her into the kitchen and took the knife from her without question.
“You were planning to just steam everything in one pot?” He was genuinely stunned.
Shen You cleared her throat. “Yes, high-end ingredients often require only the simplest cooking methods. Besides, I don’t know how to do the complicated ones.”
The last sentence was the real point.
Wen Zhi sighed deeply and resignedly took off his outer coat. Then under Shen You’s confused gaze, he handed her his clothes. “In order to have this meal, I’d better do the cooking.”
Shen You took his clothes, and her eyes caught sight of his good-quality shirt with two buttons undone, revealing a glimpse of his collarbone. Looking up, she could see his prominent Adam’s apple and smooth jawline.
Under the warm yellow light, that strange sense of distance also took on a touch of domestic warmth. When he stood in front of the stove, the kitchen space seemed to shrink around him.
She retreated and draped his clothes over the sofa while helping out as an assistant. She felt quite embarrassed that she had invited someone for dinner only to have the guest do the cooking himself.
Soon, fragrant dishes emerged from the kitchen: salt and pepper prawns, wasabi sea snails. Compared to these, her cooking skills were clearly inadequate.
Shen You treasured these delicious foods that she couldn’t make herself and kept praising the cook for having good looks and kitchen skills.
This craftsmanship and these dishes would definitely be expensive in outside restaurants. Fortunately, she had bought extra when she saw good items at the market, so there was enough for two people.
She smiled as she pushed the last large hairy crab toward Wen Zhi. Even his crab-peeling movements carried an unhurried elegance.
“You have something you want to say?” He asked.
Shen You nodded. “I want to ask about something. Do you know about Great Qi’s fire-resistant cloth?”
Wen Zhi wiped his hands clean, and the corners of his lips curved up in a lazy smile. “Yes, I know about it.”
“It’s in the old emperor’s hands. That crown prince of Great Qi definitely can’t get it before ascending the throne. Even after becoming emperor, it’s not certain, since the old emperor wants to take it into his coffin and wear it when he becomes immortal.”
“Is it asbestos cloth?”
Just after asking, Shen You noticed something off about his emotions when he said “crown prince of Great Qi.”
“You’ve also met Great Qi’s crown prince?”
“After the temple fair that day, he sent people to secretly investigate me.” Wen Zhi’s long eyelashes moved slightly as his gaze fell on her. “As for whether the fire-resistant cloth is modern asbestos cloth, I haven’t seen it myself, but I should be able to find it.”
Shen You’s eyes brightened immediately. “Name your conditions.”
“This item is more precious than gold in Great Qi.”
Seeing her conflicted expression, Wen Zhi chuckled softly. “If it’s truly what you want, give me fixed access rights. Your shop shouldn’t be permanently located here.”
“Deal!”
The shop indeed had this function. With permissions, one could find that door outside even when not at a fixed location. She had never mentioned this feature to customers, but Wen Zhi probably guessed it from the random entrance.
However even with fixed permissions, he still wouldn’t be able to enter when the shop was closed, so it wasn’t a big deal.
“However, you’ll have to wait. I need to complete a few more transactions before I can arrange it. I’m not defaulting on the agreement.”
She couldn’t unlock this function without upgrading, which required 100 points.
“Fine.” Wen Zhi leaned back lazily against his chair. “I haven’t brought the item over yet anyway.”
The matter was decided happily.
After Wen Zhi left, Shen You used the cleaning function to tidy up the dining table and shop. Then after finishing work, she went upstairs to rest.
The purchased raincoats and umbrellas arrived after just one day. A small delivery truck stopped at the door and unloaded several large cardboard boxes. Then shen You carried them inside in several trips.
A passing neighbor saw her buying so many things and greeted her, “Boss Shen, buying big items again? Do you need help?”
“No need, thank you. The store had a discount, so I stocked up on some daily necessities.” Shen You replied with a smile.
After moving the last package across the threshold and closing the shop door, she used a folding delivery cart to pull everything under the eaves. Then after counting the quantities and checking that the quality was fine, she waited for the customers to come pick up their orders.
The next morning, just as the [Great Qi] antique shop opened, two lightning bolts streaked across the sky, and it was raining.
Zhong Jing, wearing a blue raincoat watched the water droplets falling on it excitedly.
He was among the first to wear this type of raincoat. In the past, during such heavy rain, going out always meant wet sleeves and collars. Wearing the raincoat made all the difference – it even had a hood, and wind and rain from behind couldn’t blow in.
They planned to send a batch to General Lu while keeping the rest for themselves. This had already become a fashionable item in the residence, a symbol of status.
Sure enough, when it started raining today, those who had received raincoats happily wore them out to test their effectiveness. Wealthy officials and nobles who didn’t lack money were inquiring about how to purchase these items.
His Highness had sent several pieces to the palace, and those who received them were delighted, especially the palace veterans who received them privately – they all owed His Highness a favor.
That large piece of waterproof transparent material was treated as a treasure from the Western Regions. The Emperor specifically had it cut and decorated onto the sedan chair, so on rainy days, looking up revealed the sky and clear raindrops. It was quite a poetic scene.
Others could only use the finished narrow-sleeved raincoats. Today, Zhong Jing still couldn’t compete with Liu Zheng for the quota to enter the shop because Liu Zheng claimed he needed to discuss business with Shopkeeper Shen.
Since Zhong Jing was a scholar and strategist who didn’t understand business, he could only wait outside.
**
Watching the person who walked through the shop door – carrying an oil-paper umbrella, wearing a modern raincoat, and dressed in ancient clothing underneath, Shen You was stunned for a moment.
The key point was that Liu Zheng wore the raincoat hood with one hand gripping the collar, creating an overly suspicious appearance.
Li Heng carried an exquisite food box in his hand, while Liu Zheng very perceptively went outside first to count the goods.
“These are pastries made by the palace’s imperial chef, as my holiday return gift.” Li Heng gently placed the multi-layered food box on the table. “Although they don’t match the exquisite pastries the young lady gave that day, please accept them. Try Great Qi’s pastries paired with tribute tea – nothing could be more suitable.”
Even though he knew in his heart that she had no romantic interest in him, Li Heng always felt that the more she understood about Great Qi, the closer the distance between them would become.
“I’ll accept the pastries, but the food box…” Shen You’s gaze fell on the food box. Looking at the wood grain, it was huanghuali wood carved with peonies. The carving was lifelike, beautiful, and practical. Ancient food boxes didn’t shake easily when carried.
This was clearly something only noble families could afford.
“The young lady’s gift box was exquisite, so naturally I couldn’t be discourteous. The food box is a standard size commonly used in the residence, not a precious item.”
Li Heng couldn’t help feeling disappointed. Miss Shen was probably worried that the food box was too valuable and didn’t want to accept precious items beyond their transaction.
He had anticipated this, so he hadn’t asked anyone to find a food box made of precious materials.
“Then I thank you for the return gift.” Shen You nodded. Huanghuali wood was indeed not rare among wealthy families in ancient times. This food box’s value lay in its craftsmanship.
After Shen You placed the food box properly at the counter, she went outside to demonstrate how to use the folding umbrellas. This shocked both Liu Zheng and Li Heng.
Such amazing craftsmanship was unheard of. If given to skilled artisans for study, it might even help improve weapons.
“With such excellent umbrellas, were the items brought that day really enough?” Liu Zheng asked incredulously.
“They were enough. There are only twenty of these umbrellas.” Shen You replied.
She could certainly cooperate with Liu Zheng to sell in large quantities at reduced prices. Even selling for just one or two taels of silver, she would still profit. However, there was no need to compete in the common people’s market or disrupt the development of Great Qi’s traditional handicrafts.
Her positioning was clear: earn money from noble families while maintaining limited quantities.
After counting the goods, Shen You began discussing cooperation with Liu Zheng. Liu Zheng first brought a portion of tea leaves, claiming they were the best batch from Beijing tea merchants. He would settle accounts together after selling her items.
“I have three different colors of rouge, five boxes of each, and the same for lip balm.” Shen You said while picking up an eyebrow pencil. “There are also ten of these for drawing eyebrows, ten bottles of perfume – five large bottles selling for 300 taels each, and small ones for 100 taels each.”
Selling everything here would total 6,000 taels, equivalent to 9 million in modern currency. After deducting Liu Zheng’s 40% share and purchasing costs, she would still earn quite a bit.
Liu Zheng spoke up: “Shopkeeper Shen, could you get more of those mooncakes you gave that day for me to sell? I can prepare the gift boxes on my end and sell them for 200 taels per box.”
After all, Shopkeeper Shen’s gift boxes were too unique to sell directly.
Shen You thought it over and found it feasible. “I’ll prepare 20 boxes for you. Adding this batch of business makes it 10,000 taels total. You two sit here for a while – I’ll have them delivered now.”
After speaking, Shen You found two delivery services on her phone and sent them to two different pastry shops.
Soon, phone calls came in. Shen You went to the door to collect the items. The two delivery guys wearing vests first looked at her, then at each other with puzzled expressions.
Why was one person buying so much???
Facing the delivery guys’ curious inquiries, Shen You explained: “Mid-Autumn Festival is coming soon. Buying them to package into gift boxes myself is more economical.”
The delivery guy had a sudden realization. “You really know how to save money. These days, the boxes cost more than the mooncakes.”
After the two delivery guys rode away, Shen You returned to the shop and handed the simple paper bags to Liu Zheng.
“I bought extra as backup. Whether you eat them yourselves or give them as gifts is up to you. After Great Qi enters autumn, the weather gets cold, so the shelf life is 30 days. Don’t eat them after that time, or you might get sick.”
“I won’t be in the shop for the next three days. The outside door will appear every morning at dawn for half the time. If you need anything, stand outside the door and speak – I’ll know.”
“Understood.” Liu Zheng held the paper bag carefully, afraid of crushing the contents and making them unsellable.
He first took the pastries out to place them in the carriage, then returned for the other items. The rain was still falling. Before getting into the carriage, Li Heng looked back deeply at the closed wooden door.
Miss Shen still had business to conduct in Great Qi, so she wouldn’t leave at this time. He would wait a bit longer, until he sat in that position. Then he could openly cooperate with Miss Shen, earning money from noble families to strengthen Great Qi’s national power.