It was Zheng who said that. Zheng secretly felt that the rumors she had spread might have facilitated this engagement and she was indignant.
Granny Shen smiled and said nothing. What Zheng meant was that Chen Xiao Mi did not take his grandson seriously.
But Granny Shen wasn't a greedy person. It was already very decent for Chen Xiao Mi to spend so much money on the betrothal presents.
She knew that Lu Lin had spent twenty taels on the bear, but that was a bear! She didn't mind that at all.
"I'm satisfied," Granny Shen said.
Seeing that Granny Shen was smiling, Zheng rolled her eyes and decided to say something else to rile Granny Shen up, " I've asked Matchmaker Wang about the reason why Chen Xiao Cai wanted to be betrothed to Chi! Apparently, he doesn't really like Chi, he just wants Chi to work for him for free."
'Shen Chi pouted and said in his heart, 'But I enjoy working for them, I like to work instead of running my mouth all day for a living.'
Chen Xiao Mi had taught him mathematics. He knew they had high hopes on him, and he was grateful for the opportunity.
"I enjoy working," Shen Chi said.
"Ah Chi, I didn't expect you to be so capable! There are not many eligible men in the village. Good job on finding yourself a man! My daughter is too innocent compared to you." Zheng attacked Chi by innuendo, putting Shen Chi on the spot.
"Your daughter likes to square accounts in every detail, like mother like daughter! She just insisted Mi on buying her a new handkerchief when Mi picked up her handkerchief on the ground. Chi would just thank the person who did that for him!" Granny Shen couldn't be bothered to be civil with Zheng.
"Granny Shen, what do you mean?"
Granny Shen glanced at Zheng and said, "Why are you angry?"
Zheng took a look at other guests in the room who were really here to send their wishes, she knew this was a losing battle for her, so she sprang to her feet and left.
"Granny Shen, don't mind her, she is just jealous!"
Granny Shen smiled and said, "You are right."
As soon as the Chen Xiao Cai and Shen Chi got engaged, the women in the village knew that Shen Chi would be a member of the Chen family.
Now many people in the village counted on selling embroidery products to Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi. Naturally, they wanted to curry favor with Granny Shen, so someone secretly told Granny Shen that it was Zheng who had been rumors about Shen Chi and Chen Xiao Mi
Even though Granny Shen felt that Zheng was too vicious, Granny Shen didn't want to argue with Zheng anymore, because her rumors had facilitated her grandson's engagement.
…
There were a lot of guests coming and going. Granny Shen said goodbye to all of them at late night.
Apart from the bracelets, all the betrothal presents were put in Shen Chi's room.
They only got to have a close look at the gifts after the guest left.
"Granny, look at this."
"What?" Granny Shen was shocked when she saw what Shen Chi had taken out from a wooden case.
"How is it possible! " Granny Shen held the two title deeds for 2 mus of farmland and her fingers trembled slightly.
Many people talked to Granny Shen that Chen Xiao Mi and Lu Lin had earned so much money, but they didn't take his grandson seriously, they only sent some inexpensive gifts.
Granny Shen brushed them off, she knew they were just saying that out of jealousy.
Chen Xiao Mi had money, but that was Chen Xiao Mi's own business. Besides, the betrothal presents Chen Xiao Mi had offered were very decent, they couldn't ask for more.
"Gran, are they land deeds?" Shen Chi asked.
Granny Shen nodded. "They are."
Granny Shen bought two mus of farmland from the Lu family, and then she sold them to Lu Lin. However, Lu Lin and Granny Shen agreed on doing the transfer after the harvest season.
But now Chen Xiao Mi had sent the land deeds over, this meant the deeds was also part of the betrothal presents.
Granny Shen couldn't believe it. She thought that the two bracelets were the 'main event', but it turned out the 'main event' was the land deeds.
These two deeds were worth at least a dozen taels of silver. In comparison, the two silver bracelets seemed to be nothing.
"Where did you find it?" Granny Shen asked.
"In the interlayer of the wooden case of the bracelets." Shen Chi said.
Granny Shen said nervously, "Interesting, just imagine you haven't found the interlayer! Maybe Xiao Mi had forgotten that he had put the deeds in the wooden case?"
Shen Chi hesitated for a moment and said, "Actually, Cai told me about this."
Granny Shen glanced at her grandson and asked, "Did he?"
Shen Chi nodded and said, "Yeah, Cai said this box was custom made. And he told me to have a good look at it when there are just the two of us at home."
Granny Shen was sure the deeds was also a part of the betrothal presents when she heard this. Chen Xiao Cai must have said that because he knew that there were deeds in the case.
Granny Shen knew that Chen Xiao Mi and Lu Lin liked to be low-key, they didn't want to impress the villagers by showing them that they were able to offer some handsome betrothal presents. It was meaningless to show off like Lu Cheng Yu.
"Great!" Granny Shen had never been more grateful. She was happy for her grandson, she knew Chen Xiao Mi's entire family would treat Shen Chi and her nicely in the future.
Lu An Gets Fired
After a few days, Shen Chi and Granny Shen returned to the town.
Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Cai sat opposite each other while Lu Lin looked at Chen Xiao Cai and asked, "So what do you think, Cai?"
"I'll take Shen Chi to Willow Town," said Chen Xiao Cai without hesitation.
A while ago, Chen Xiao Cai came back from Willow Town because there were rumors of him being sold. But he was annoyed by the nosy aunts who visited the shop from Big Stone Village.
Chen Xiao Cai felt that it was fine to be swamped by work. But he didn't have the energy to social with the acquaintances from the village. The acquaintances in the village were simply too annoying.
It was hard to say anything harsh to them. They would just put on airs and give Cai lectures once Cai shows traces of impatience.
Lu Lin nodded and said, "Alright."
The nosy aunties from the village were becoming a serious issue now.
Many people in the village had proposed marriages to Chen Xiao Cai before, and some of them couldn't help feeling sour after Cai and Shen Chi got engaged. Therefore, Chen Xiao Cai decided to go back to Willow Town to avoid the harassment.
Chen Xiao Cai didn't bring Shen Chi last time he went to Willow Town because it was inappropriate. However, it didn't matter now that the two of them were already engaged. Shen Chi also knew how to use an abacus and make accounts. With Shen Chi's help, Cai could learn to relax a bit.
Shen Chi was also very willing to go to Willow Town. Shen Chi had heard a lot of things about Willow Town from Chen Xiao Cai.
Shen Chi was quite worried when Chen Xiao Cai went to Willow Town alone last time.
Lu Lin watched Shen Chi and Chen Xiao Cai getting on the carriage with affection in his eyes. "Uncle Qin, help me take care of them please!"
Qin Yi smiled and said, "Master Lin, don't worry. I will protect them."
As Lu Lin watched Chen Xiao Cai and Shen Chi leave, a sense of pride and accomplishment welled up in his heart.
…
Things were going on so great on Lu Lin's side, while a shocking event happened on the Lu family's side. Lu An lost his job.
"How can your boss do that to you! He cannot just sack you like that! You have worked hard for him for so long without any credit!"
As soon as Lu An lost his job, Grandma Lu felt so indignant that her head spun dizzily as soon as she sat up.
Grandpa Lu didn't say anything, he just kept puffing away on his pipe with a worrying look on his face.
They had more than 20 mus of farmland, they could support a family, but it was a little difficult to support Lu Cheng Yu who was still going to school.
Both Lin Xiu'er and Li Fang Yue were pregnant now, the family would grow in size soon, it was probably not going to be easy for them now that Lu An had lost a well-paid job.
"Little Four, your boss just dismissed you without an explanation?" Grandpa Lu asked.
Lu An said angrily, "He just wants to fire me so his concubine's brother can take my place. How could he give any explanation?"
Grandpa Lu frowned and said, "If that is the case, I will go and talk to him."
Grandma Lu said excitedly, "Yes, we have to talk about it. We can't just let it go. He married a concubine and dismissed our son. It's too unreasonable."
Lu An said, "Father, don't go. Boss Zhang's concubine is a woman of great scheming and eloquence, we are no match for her. I know you guys are friends, but I don't think Boss Zhang is willing to listen to you anymore. It's useless for you to go, they look down on us country bumpkins. Father, don't make a fool of yourself."
Grandma Lu fumed, "That's not how it works! They are rich people, I know that, but they cannot just look down on us and treat us like dispensable!"
"Mother! Unfortunately, that's the cold hard fact, they get to fire me at their will! "Lu An complained.
Lin Xiu'er touched her belly and was a little worried. It was not the harvest season yet, the expenses at home were largely dependent on Lu An's work money. Lu An lost his job and she was worried whether they could make ends meet.
Lin Xiu'er looked at Lu An and somehow she felt that Lu An wasn't telling the truth. As Lu An's wife, Lin Xiu'er felt that Lu An's mood was not quite right a while ago. She was afraid that Lu An had made a mistake at work and he was caught red-handed, maybe that was why he was fired.
Although Lu An insisted that Grandpa Lu should let it go and not look for trouble, Grandpa Lu still went to confront Boss Zhang the next day.
Grandpa Lu came back home with embarrassment.
"Old Lu, how did it go?! Did the boss promise to return the job to our son?"
"Bastard!" Grandpa Lu gnashed his teeth.
"Old Lu, what has happened?" Grandma Lu looked at Grandpa Lu's face with concern.
"This bastard has disgraced me," Grandpa Lu looked furious.
Grandma Lu found that rather baffling.
Grandpa Lu summoned Lu An later, Lu An knew that his father probably had found out what he had done, but he still braced himself and walked to his father's room, acting innocent.
"Little Four, have you accepted bribery from the workers?" Grandpa Lu was ablaze with anger.
Grandpa Lu went to confront Boss Zhang in a fit of spleen. He originally thought that he was upholding justice for his son, but in the end, Boss Zhang told him that his son forced the workers to send him money and gifts, that was the reason why he got fired. It had nothing to do with the concubine's brother.
Whoever didn't give Lu An money, he would assign the dirty work and tiring work to that person, which made the workers feel very resentful.
Lu An frowned and said, "Father! Don't listen to Boss Zhang's nonsense. He is just making up excuses to fire me."
Grandpa Lu shook his head and said, "Stop lying to your own father, I know Boss Zhang very well, he has his principles! You must have taken bribes from the workers, and you got reported! "
Lu An's face darkened, "All right, all right, I admit it! But it's not a big deal! Go ask around, all the managers in town are taking bribes!"
Lu An thought to himself, 'Boss Zhang now replaced me with his brother-in-law, hmm, I'm sure that guy is taking bribes as well, maybe he is taking more than me!"
Grandma Lu frowned and asked, "Little Four, where is the money you have taken from the workers?" Grandma Lu used to feel sorry for requiring her little son to hand in his salary every month, sometimes she would only take half of the amount, she didn't expect her son to be so shifty and force the workers to bribe him.
Lu An said with indifference, "I've spent it all."
Grandpa Lu asked excitedly, "All of it? What did you do?"
"I was working in town, it was important to mix in society."
Grandpa Lu's face darkened as he said, "Boss Zhang offered you a high salary. Why were you being so greedy?"
Grandpa Lu now felt so embarrassed for confronting his old friend.
Lu An said excitedly, "Yes, it is true that Boss Zhang offered me a handsome pay, but I had to hand in my pay every month, hadn't I? If it wasn't for the fact that Father urged me to hand in my money every month, I wouldn't have needed to force the workers to bribe me. Cheng Yu spent so much money on his tuition fee, okay, that's fair, but why did he spend such a ridiculous money on his wedding ceremony? That was all my hard-earned wage! You are so biased!"
Grandpa Lu was red-cheeked with rage, he pointed at Lu An with his hand trembling, "You, how dare you talk to me like that!"
Grandpa Lu felt that his youngest son should be grateful to him instead of complaining, the old man was furious.
…
The news of Lu An losing his job spread quickly in the village.
"Why is Lu An suddenly fired?!"
"I thought Chen Xiao Mi would be fired. Chen Xiao Mi is pregnant, you know that? Yet his boss still keeps him! How strange is that! But anyways, Lu An just got fired! He has worked that job for a really long time though, I wonder what has happened."
"I heard from Grandma Lu that Lu An's old boss has married a concubine, so he replaced Lu An with his new brother-in-law."
"Grandpa Lu and that boss are friends, but you know what, I guess the boss values his romantic relationship more than friendship! The rich bosses in town can be so cruel, right?"
"I think Chen Xiao Mi's boss is an exception."
"To be honest, no one has seen that boss."
"I heard that the boss is a mogul, so he is very busy, he doesn't care much about the store in town."
…
Grandma Lu was too embarrassed to tell anyone that Lu An had lost his job because he forced the workers to bribe him, so she used Lu An's fake excuse when she was questioned by other villagers. The villagers didn't know much about the details, they naturally believed Grandma Lu's words.
…
The news of Lu An losing his job reached Lu Lin's ears.
Lu Lin was held in high esteem by the villagers now. When people in the village came to deliver the embroidery products, they would always love to chatter with Lu Lin for a little while.
"Lu An is fired. There will be some drama going on the Lu family again," Chen Xiao Mi said.
Lu Lin nodded and said, "So true, but there's a plus side that Lu An has lost his job. Now he can still work on the farmland. Everyone else in that family have been busy slacking off on farm duty."
Lu An always tried to slack off on the farm work as well, he enjoyed working in town where he just needed to manage the casual workers and issue orders.
"Yeah! It is almost autumn now, although it's still hot, autumn is really just around the corner."
"How could Lu An suddenly be fired?"
"Grandma Lu said that because the boss has just married a concubine, the concubine's brother has replaced Lu An. However, the credibility of Grandma Lu's words is limited," Lu Lin shook his head.
Lu Lin narrowed his eyes. In the host Lu Lin's memory, the boss seemed to be more inclined to hire Lu Lin's father do the job, but Grandma Lu favored her youngest son, so she asked Lu Lin's father to give way to Lu An.
…
Some believed Grandma Lu's words, some did not.
When Lu An was the manager, the workers respected him on the surface. They were afraid that he would make things hard for them if they reasoned with him, so they were willing to do the window dressing. However, now that Lu An had been fired, the workers were in a hurry to curry favor with the new manager, they were not shy on unearthing some disturbing facts about Lu An.
At first, Lu An wouldn't force the workers to bribe him, he would do it in a subtle way, but as time went by, things got worse, he would take bribes in a flagrant way. In the past few years, he had become more and more greedy. He would be replaced by someone anyways, be it Boss Zhang's brother-in-law or someone else, he would be replaced.
Chen Xiao Mi's cousin Chen Jing didn't do well at school, but he had quite a few evil associates and he was great at gossiping.
Chen Jing found out that Lu An was fired because he squeezed the workers, so when he went back to Big Stone Village, he told his family the truth. Grandma Chen had a feud with Grandma Lu, so she spared no efforts to spread the news in the village, soon everyone knew that Lu An was fired because he forced the workers to bribe him, thus the Lu Family was ridiculed again.
The matter with Lu An had more or less affected Lu Cheng Yu. There was news that Grandma Lu had stolen money from Chen Xiao Mi befre, and now there came the news that his uncle had been taking bribes.
Lu Cheng Yu was reduced to the laughingstock at school, so he vented his anger on Lu An when he came home. He hurled all kinds of abuse to Lu An.
Lu An naturally wouldn't just sit back and take that, he directed a torrent of abuse at Lu Cheng Yu as a counterattack.
"You little good-for-nothing you, have you ever thought how you can put on airs and tell the villagers that you are going to school, it's all because of me! Me! Your Fourth Uncle! It's me who has been supporting you! But you've wasted all my money, you are merely a Tongsheng until this very day!"
Grandpa Lu had such a headache from watching his youngest son and his oldest grandson fighting like kids.
Beware of Imitations
Lu An now had no other option but to do farm work.
First Uncle Lu felt that his youngest brother had lost his job and brought disgrace on his family, so he assigned all the heavy work like cutting wood and fetching water to Lu An.
When Lu An was working in town, he managed dozens of workers.
The workers all respected him on the surface, Lu An certainly was used to that.
Although he had lost his job, Lu An needed some time to adjust his mentality.
Lu An thumbed his nose at his older brother Lu Ming. The two brothers kept arguing.
However, Lu An was the one who was in the wrong and brought disgrace on the family in the first place. Therefore, Lu Ming usually was the one who gained the upper hand.
Lu An was used to being carefree in town. After he returned home, he was ordered to do heavy work all day, and he didn't take it well.
Both Grandma Lu and Grandpa Lu took Lu Ming's side, making Lu An even more upset.
Lu An lay on the bed and said in a depressed tone, "My big brother is such a jerk."
Lin Xiu'er rolled her eyes in the heart, she was mad that Lu An didn't bring her a cent from the bribes, but she knew her husband was pretty depressed at the moment, so she decided to not mention that and pour oil on the flames.
"Two days ago, Lu Tong came back and took away the 20 steamed buns from our kitchen," Lin Xiu'er said.
Lu An frowned and said, "What's going on with Big Sister-in-law and her daughter! Married daughters are like spilled water. 20 steamed buns! We are not doing well ourselves!"
Lu Tong's husband had given them 20 tales as betrothal present, but Lu An hadn't got access to even 1 tael of that money! It went directly to Lu Cheng Yu's wedding fund!
Lin Xiu'er frowned and said, "Lu Tong's husband's family is not poor! How can she take advantage of us like this!"
Lin Xiu'er didn't know that the only reason Tang indulged Lu Tong was because Lu Tong threatened to tell Grandma Lu that Li Fang Yue's sister was only a concubine.
Grandma Lu knew one thing or two that Tang had been giving Lu Tong stuff, Grandma Lu was not happy about that.
"Your big brother raised such a daughter, she used to disrespect me so much when she was at home. I don't think her husband's family like her to be honest." Lin Xiu'er complained.
…
The Lu family was in a mess, Lu Lin had also encountered some situations.
Chen Xiao Cai came back to Forest Town from Willow Town alone this day.
"What do you mean by they are not renting the store to us? Me and the owner have a deal, we've signed a contract and everything." asked Lu Lin.
Chen Xiao Cai said sullenly, "The owner said he was going to use the store soon and he changed his mind."
Lu Lin frowned. The store he rented in Willow Town was at a good location, he and the owner had a good talk and they signed a long-term contract. 'How could he regret it so soon?'
" Did he say how to compensate us? We have a contract after all." asked Lu Lin.
Chen Xiao Cai said angrily, "He said that he will deduct the rent for the past few months and compensate us with the rest of the money. Lin Gege, the owner compelled us to move out within three days. Otherwise, he would throw our things out. If it wasn't for Uncle Qin, I think the owner would have thrown our things out already."
"We owe a huge thanks to Uncle Qin," Lu Lin said.
"Yeah! My mind was in a turmoil, I really had no idea what would happen it not for Uncle Qin's help." Chen Xiao Cai let out a sigh.
Qin Yi was a great hunter, he had an imposing manner when he defended himself and people he cared about, Cai was a little scared to see the friendly Uncle Qin protecting him and Shen Chi like an angry beast.
Lu Lin nodded and said, "That owner is too unreliable."
'He still wants to charge us rent for the past few months, we have put in time money and energy in renovating the shop, now he wants us to leave all that behind with such a short notice! Plus, our customers would be so disappointed with us, we will lose so much business due to this.'
Lu Lin took a deep breath and said, "This matter should not be delayed, I'll go back to Willow Town with you."
Chen Xiao Mi came out and asked, "Is someone trying to cause disturbance? I'll go with you and I will beat them up!"
Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiao Mi and said in a doting manner, "Can you leave it to me please? You just take a deep breath and rest well, I can handle it."
Chen Xiao Mi sulked, "Okay."
Lu Lin gritted his teeth. His first impression of that shop owner was favorable, so he signed a long-term contract with the owner. Now he felt so betrayed, and he wondered what made the owner change his mind.
The more Lu Lin thought about it, the more upset he got. He had already made the shop famous, he had added fame and invisible value to the location.
…
When Lu Lin arrived at Willow Town, he talked to the owner, the owner looked very stern, there was no room for negotiation, he just wanted them to leave.
Looking at the owner's attitude, Lu Lin knew that they had most likely found a better deal, someone else offered them more money. Lu Lin and the owner had a heated argument and finally the owner returned eighteen taels of silver.
Lu Lin was indignant that the owner had perfidiously tore up their agreement and contract like this, but he was appeased when he thought that he had earned more than two hundred taels of silver in the shop.
"Lin Gege, what should we do now?" Chen Xiao Cai asked.
Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiao Cai and said, "Let's pack everything and put them in our inn first."
"Alright."
Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Cai went back to the inn after they finished packing. Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Cai wandered around in the commercial quarter in Willow Town, and Lu Lin bought a shop.
Their options were pretty limited. The shop Lu Lin bought was in a slightly remote location compared to the rental.
Although the location was not as great, the store was more spacious, and there were a few rooms and a well in the backyard. Once bitten, twice shy. Lu Lin decided to buy the store instead of renting.
This store and residence area was smaller and less exquisite than what Lu Lin had bought in Forest Town. He paid 140 tales in the end.
Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Cai got busy moving stuff in the new place after Lu Lin signed the contract.
Chen Xiao Cai asked " Lin Gege, will this shop owner kick us out?"
Lu Lin shook his head and said, "Don't worry, Cai, I guarantee you it won't happen again." This time he bought the property so no one could kick them out.
…
The new branch of Sino Commercial House in Willow Town was reopened in a new location, but the business of the new branch was not as great as they hoped. Chen Xiao Cai was very disappointed.
Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Cai walked past the old rental this day, they both couldn't help feeling angry when they saw the shop sign.
When they were kicked out of the rental, Lu Lin had already taken down the signboard, but the store was still using the sign of Sino Commercial House. They were selling fans and schoolbags as well. It was obvious that they were all fake goods and the price was much lower than theirs.
" Lin Gege, no wonder we don't have much business. There were even customers who came asked me if our commercial house had opened a second branch. The new branch's price is much cheaper than ours."
Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiao Cai and said, "You don't have to pay attention to them. We are people who create trends. The money we made in the early stages is already enough for us to launch new products…"
At this moment, the season was about to change. With the cold autumn wind blowing, no matter how cheap the fan was, no one needed it.
Chen Xiao Cai nodded. He had been managing the shop for a while now and he knew how much money they had made. Chen Xiao Cai knew about how profitable their business was. It was only natural there were copycats on the market now.
Chen Xiao Cai looked at Lu Lin and said, "Lin Gege, we really need to do something to boost our business!"
Lu Lin rubbed Chen Xiao Cai's head and said, "Don't worry, I will pay your wage on time. However, you won't have much commissions now that our business isn't great."
Chen Xiao Cai pouted and looked at Lu Lin. "I'm not worried about that."
Lu Lin rubbed Chen Xiao Cai's head and said, "In business, there are bound to be ups and downs. The most important thing is meeting changes with constancy."
Chen Xiao Cai, "…"
"The fans will be out of season soon. I have to go back and think about what we are launching next. " Lu Lin said.
Chen Xiao Cai said sullenly, "The owner of the store is so shameless. He doesn't even change the name, he actually copied our name and called his store Sino Commercial House."
Lu Lin also pouted and said, "Yeah, so shameless!" There was no trademark protection legislation in this time and space, there was nothing he could really do about this behavior.
"Lin Gege, what does Sino mean? Why is our store called Sino Commercial House?"
"Sino is a very magical place, it's got vast territory and abundant resources."
" Lin Gege, where did you hear about the name though? Why haven't I heard of it?" Chen Xiao Cai was confused.
Lu Lin, "I saw it in the book…"
The property that Lu Lin rented had a backyard, but there was no kitchen. Chen Xiao Cai and the others usually didn't cook. They only bought buns and veggies for food.
They had a kitchen in the new property, Lu Lin bought a lot of rice, noodles and oil for them. He told Shen Chi to cook more delicious food on weekdays, there was no need to save money on their diet.
…
It took Lu Lin almost half a month to be done with business matters in Willow Town.
Chen Xiao Mi sighed in relief when he saw Lu Lin coming back.
"Is everything settled down over there?" asked Chen Xiao Mi.
Lu Lin nodded, "Yeah! I bought a shop, so we don't have to worry about being kicked out by the owner in the future."
Chen Xiao Mi glanced at Lu Lin and said, "You bought another property? " Chen Xiao Mi tilted his head and thought that Lu Lin was so strange. Why did he need so many properties?
Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiao Mi and said, "Buying properties is good investment! If the political situation is stable, the value of both properties will only go up."
Chen Xiao Mi thought to himself, 'I wish the political situation were stable!'
When Chen Xiao Mi heard that a copycat shop had appeared in Willow Town, he couldn't help feeling indignant, "These bastards."
Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiao Mi and said, "Don't be angry. They are late, and their cost is high. Even if they sell many things, they won't make much money."
"Who opened that fake store?!"
"It seems to be Xia Haisheng. I heard that he is the second young master of the Xia family. The Xia family has a successful fabric. Xia Haisheng is a son of a concubine, and he has an older brother, Xia Yunhe who is the legitimate son of the family. I heard that Xia Yunhe is very proficient in business."
"Xia Haisheng is different. It is said that he likes to bully men and deceive women. However, Elder Xia is very fond of his little son. He always gives Xia Haisheng money to do business, hoping that he can achieve some results. However, Xia Haisheng took a large part of the money to eat, drink, and gamble, he only uses a small part of the money to do business, and he always ends up losing every penny."
"maybe he is jealous of our success, so he opened a copycat store."
Chen Xiao Mi frowned and said, "This shameless guy deserves to lose money."
"But he seems to be pretty loaded," Lu Lin sighed. Sino Commercial House had been operating in Willow Town for a while. Some of the prestigious customers secretly told Chen Xiao Cai that Xia Haisheng had rented their old store with forty taels.
As far as Chen Xiao Mi knew, fake business was not easy to do. And the thing was Lu Lin's business' selling point was novelty, Xia Haisheng was late in the business and the market was already saturated. Take schoolbags for an example, almost every student had bought a schoolbag from Lu Lin already.
Lu Lin shook his head and said, "I don't know, but it's not our business whether he loses money or not."
Stuffed Animals
Lu Lin gently tappe the table with his fingers and said, "Next, we can store a batch of winter gloves and sell them when a cold wave hit."
However, they already sold gloves last year. The sales volume might be limited this year, so they could consider selling something else.
"How about the scarf business you mentioned?" asked Chen Xiao Mi.
"That's an idea." There were people who couldn't even afford clothes in this time and space. This scarf business might be a little extra, but there were rich people who spent money like water.
Chen Xiao Mi glanced at Lu Lin and said, "How much saving do we have now?"
"There are about three hundred taels," Lu Lin said.
Chen Xiao Mi nodded, "Quite a lot!"
Lu Lin nodded and said, "That's right, we are doing pretty well. And I think this year will be a bumper harvest year, price of grains will be cheap. We can store a batch of food."
Chen Xiao Mi nodded and said, "This sounds good."
Chen Xiao Mi was considering maybe they could go the mountain and dig a few caves to store a batch of food in case of a lean year or some natural calamities. With Lu Lin's convenience store of, it shouldn't be difficult to transport a batch of food to the hidden caves in the mountain. The price of food in lean years would increase by several times.
Chen Xiao Mi made a sigh and said, "Autumn is coming! The animals in this time are chunky, they need some fat to pass winter."
Lu Lin got so alerted, "Chen Xiao Mi, are you thinking about going hunting now? Look at your belly, I'm telling you right now, that's a big no! Stop being so nostalgic, what if you meet a bear in the mountain?"
Chen Xiao Mi said guiltily, "I didn't say I want to go hunting right now. Speaking of bear, the bears in your hometown look so adorable!"
"Bears in my hometown?"
Chen Xiao Mi took out a keychain ornament that Lu Lin gave him and said, "I'm talking about this, see, how cute!"
Lu Lin had a look at the 'bear', it was a cartoon keychain ornament, a mini stuffed bear.
…
Lu Lin smiled and fiddled the ornament in his hand, "Ah! You are talking about this, hmm, shall we make some and sell in our store? We can even make big ones, so the kids can cuddle them."
Chen Xiao Mi thought about it and said, "It's a really good idea."
There were few toys on the market for children here. And rich people in town who doted on their children and grandchildren were more than willing to pay a ridiculous amount of money to buy dolls for them.
Lu Lin threw himself into the preparation as soon as he made up his mind.
They had enough fabric in stock.
Filling the dolls required a large amount of cotton. Lu Lin bought some quilts from the market, he decided to use the quilt cotton to stuff the dolls.
The eyes of the dolls were more important. Lu Lin ordered a batch of wooden beads, he planned to dye those beads with ink once he got them.
Granny Shen and Wan Li's wife Yun Niang were asked by Lu Lin to make the first samples of the dolls.
Granny Shen and Yun Niang had no concept of dolls, neither of them had heard such a thing before. Their first samples looked a little strange to be honest. However, Mai who had never seen such a thing before fell in love with them immediately, he grabbed one and fondled it admiringly, he kept asking Lu Lin whether he could cuddle this doll when he went to bed.
Granny Shen and Yun Niang tried a few more times and it paid off, the dolls were getting better and better.
Granny Shen and Yun Niang had been putting in extra hours, so Lu Lin had to find a few people to join them.
Of course, Lu Lin wouldn't tell the workers about the complete method of making dolls. Granny Shen and Yun Niang gathered the workers together and taught them separately. Some were in charge of making ears, some were feet, some were outfits for dolls, some were the accessories and ribbons.
Because everyone only did one part of it, the workers were all rather confused about what was going on.
However, the workers were so grateful that they had work to do, it was always good to be able to make some money and support the family. The sales of the schoolbags had dropped, and the workload assigned to everyone was much less. So the workers were all so motivated and excited when Granny Shen and Yun Niang assigned new work to them.
…
In Su He's house.
"Wife, what you are making is so strange!"
Su He nodded and said, "It's a bit strange. I'm guessing that I'm only doing a small part of it. The finished products must be amazing, just like the schoolbags."
The same thing had happened when they made schoolbags before. Initially, everyone thought that what they were making was so weird and the business was doomed to fail.
However, as soon as the schoolbags hit the market, it went crazy, the business took off immediately. Unfortunately, the sales had dropped significantly recently due to the saturated market and the copycat shops.
"That's most likely to be the case, but what they are making, I'm so curious. "
Su He narrowed her eyes and shook her head. Among the female workers, only Granny Shen and Granny Shen knew what exactly they were making. And no one dared enter their rooms without permission, so Su He had no idea what this new product was.
Some days ago, Lu Lin seemed to have bought ten cotton quilts, he bought ten more last night. Su He didn't know why Lu Lin bought so many quilts. It was not that cold.
"Mom, did you bring me a bun?" Su He's son tugged at her sleeve.
Su He looked at her son with an apologetic expression and said, "I didn't buy you a steamed bun today, I'm sorry. Tomorrow, I will deliver my goods tomorrow, we will have money by then, is that okay?"
The child was a little disappointed when he heard that there was no bun. But he cheered up as Su He promised him that he would have a bun the next day.
Seeing her son being coaxed, Su He secretly let out a sigh of relief. Before this, she didn't have much work and she worried they couldn't make ends meet this month, and now she had more work to do as Lu Lin was about to launch a new product.
…
Granny Shen and Yun Niang were busy making dolls, while Chen Xiao Mi was filling the dolls with cotton. It was not easy to evenly fill the whole body of the dolls.
Chen Xiao Mi didn't like to do needlework, but he really enjoyed stuffing the dolls, he felt like he could use his strength to do the job.
Granny Shen and Yun Niang's work site had been moved to the main bedroom because it was more spacious.
There were all kinds of dolls lying on the ground, the tables, the bed of the main bedroom.
Chen Xiao Mai was mad with joy. He hugged this doll on the table then he jumped to the bed to and hug the other one.
Even though it was Granny Shen and Yun Niang who were in charge of the actual work, the dolls were all designed by Lu Lin. Lu Lin was held in higher esteem by Granny Shen and Yun Niang now.
Granny Shen and Yun Niang made a lot of small dolls. The small dolls used less fabric and cotton, and the cost was lower.
Granny Shen and Yun Niang had recently become more and more proficient, so Lu Lin designed a life-size bear doll for them to make.
Chen Xiao Mi looked at Lu Lin and said, "Is this doll too big? Who would buy it?"
Lu Lin shook his head and said, "No, this doll will be our shop's signature doll, the most-treasured doll in our shop, we will display it at the center of our shop, anyone walks past our shop will turn head."
Although Chen Xiao Mi felt that no one would buy such a large doll, he believed every word that Lu Lin said. After designing the sample of the doll, Lu Lin asked Granny Shen and Yun Niang to put down their work and make a pair of the signature dolls first.
…
Summer gradually passed and the fan business in the store gradually cooled down.
Shen Chi sat in the shop and held his chin in frustration. "We haven't made many sales recently."
Chen Xiao Cai looked like he wasn't bothered at all, "Don't worry, if we can't make many sales, those copycat stores are not doing great either."
Recently, there appeared many copycat stores selling schoolbags and fans in Willow Town. Those stores had pushed down the prices very low, which meant that no one was able to make a profit. Xia Haisheng who stole their rental wasn't doing well either. Chen Xiao Cai wasn't bothered by the current situation, he knew Lu Lin would launch new product soon, plus they were not losing money.
Shen Chi pouted.
Chen Xiao Cai said confidently, " Lin Gege sent us a letter saying he is going to launch a new product called dolls in a few days, don't worry, Chi, our business will boom soon."
Shen Chi blinked and said, "Great! But what are dolls? "
Chen Xiao Cai shook his head, "I don't know, either. Whatever they are, I'm sure we can make a big profit."
Shen Chi grinned and nodded.
…
Lu Lin's workers made more than 800 dolls in the past few days.
Lu Lin put the dolls on the racks on the day of Autumn Market. People were hurrying to and fro on the market, Lu Lin's shop was thronged with visitors. Quite a few people surrounded Lu Lin's shop to admire the dolls.
"Grandfather, I want that, I want that."
A chubby boy who was holding an old man hand pointed at the lifesize bear doll in the store and shouted loudly.
The bear doll in the shop was very tall. He wore a beautiful robe and he was even wearing some accessories on the neck. The wooden eyes were so well made, they were brimming with radiating vigor.
It was surrounded by several circles of small dolls like yellow duckies, chooks, bunny rabbits and little snakes.
Each of the dolls had different looks but they were all exquisitely made, each and every of them looked very eye-catching.
"Manager Wan, how much does the biggest doll cost?"
Wan Li shook his head and said, " I'm sorry, Councilor Li. This bear doll is not for sale, it's our most-treasured doll in the entire store."
Councilor Li nodded understandingly and said, "The most-treasured doll, of course it's not for sale."
"You heard it. It's not that Grandfather doesn't buy it for you, Manager Wan said it wasn't for sale."
When the chubby boy heard that, he threw a tantrum by sitting on the ground and crying.
The old man looked at his grandson and said helplessly, "That one is not for sale, I can buy you other ones. If you don't stand up and wipe your tears now, you won't get anything."
The chubby boy rolled his eyes and got up immediately, he pointed at several dolls in the store.
"Then I want that bunny rabbit, the smiling one," he wiped his tears and got busy picking dolls, "The chook in the blue robe, the kitty who is playing with a ball, wait, wait, I also want…"
"You said bunny rabbit first, I will buy you that bunny rabbit."
Wan Li nodded and said, "The bunny rabbit is 600 cents. Do you want to pick one more, we have a deal at the moment, one for 600 cents and two for 1 tael of silver."
The chubby boy tugged at Councilor Li's robe and begged, "Please make it two, grandpa."
Hearing this, Councilor Li nodded and bought two for his grandson.
With that the boy showed an ear-to-ear grin.
Councilor Li handed Wan Li the money and said, "Manager Wan, your Sino Commercial House is really good at making money."
Wan Li smiled and said, "We feel so flattered, Councilor Li."
A continuous stream of customers came to the store, rich people would buy one or two for the kids, the well-off ones would buy a small one for the kids.
You could see kids holding dolls on the Autumn Market everywhere.
When kids saw other kids who were holding dolls walking past, they naturally would ask their parents to buy one for them. Wan Li didn't get one break the whole day.
The Most-Treasured Doll of the Shop
"Sino Commercial House, you never cease to surprise me," a young master looked at the plush toys in the store, his eyes sparkling.
"Hey, the things in the store are not cheap! If you buy them, I'm afraid you won't have enough silver for wine." The young master's page reminded him.
The young master closed the folding fan in his hand and hit the page's head gently.
"You are such a blockhead. My grandmother and mother really like the things in this store. If I buy a doll for my Grandmother, Grandmother will be so pleased and for sure she will give me more allowance."
The page looked at his young master with admiration and said, "Master, you are so smart! "
The young master went to the counter and bought two dolls.
Lu Lin who had been observing in the store found that there were many men who came to buy dolls. 'Most of them are buying for their family,' thought Lu Lin.
Yang Heng Zhi came to the store this day and he saw people coming and going in the store.
There were quite a few people who were just there to browse and admire the dolls.
The prices of the dolls in the store were still quite high. Some parents couldn't afford them, so they banked on the idea of having a good look of the dolls in the store and making one by themselves at home.
"Lu Lin, your shop is really popular! You have the most customers on the enrite commercial street!" Yang Heng Zhi said.
Lu Lin smiled and said, "That's so flattering, Young Master Yang."
" I saw someone holding a White Bunny Rabbit doll. But why haven't I seen one in the store?" asked Yang Heng Zhi.
Lu Lin said with a smile, "That one is sold out."
Yang Heng Zhi frowned, "Already?"
Lu Lin nodded, "Yeah! There are many kinds of dolls that have been sold out."
Yang Heng Zhi sighed with emotion and said, "You always have genius ideas, looks like I'm too late for bunny rabbits."
…
Business in Forest Town was booming, so was Willow Town.
The branch in Willow Town had suffered a low tide, they could only make a handful of sales per day.
However, on this day of the Autumn Fair, Chen Xiao Cai put the dolls transported from Forest Town on the racks of the store, it had attracted the whole town's attention.
In fact, the residents of Willow Town understood that if they wanted to buy new trendy goods, they should go to the authentic Sino Commercial House branch, those copycat stores were only good for low-priced imitations.
The dolls in the store made the ladies lose their mind.
A lady in purple looked at Chen Xiao Cai and said with bright eyes, "This doll is 600 cents, two is 1 tale of silver. What if I buy ten of them? Can I get a better deal?"
Chen Xiao Cai rolled his eyes and said, "I'm afraid not. But if you buy ten, I can give you a smaller one for free."
The lady in purple nodded and said, "Alright, I will buy ten."
Chen Xiao Cai thought to himself, 'These rich people I can't believe the lady has actually bought ten useless dolls!'
Chen Xiao Cai counted the money the lady handed him while Shen Chi took out the dolls and handed them to the lady's maids one by one. It was quite spectacular that a lady and four maids each carried two dolls in hand.
The lady in purple looked at Chen Xiao Cai and Shen Chi and said curiously, "Your boss is really bold! This is such a big store, and he is letting you two children watch the store, and one of you is a Bio!"
Chen Xiao Cai looked up at the Lady and said, "We have Uncle Qin here."
The lady in purple didn't notice Qin Yi who was standing behind the counter with a serious face, 'This store is really different! The two children are managing it, the fierce guy over there looks fierce, but obviously he is only here to protect them.'
The young lady in purple said goodbye to Cai and Chi, then she marched off with her maids.
There were many people who would buy ten dolls in one go like the lady in purple.
The other guests who were just browsing suddenly felt that 'fear of loss' when they saw the lady in purple walking out of the store with ten dolls, they were afraid that they would miss the dolls they liked, so they all walked to the counter telling Chen Xiao Cai what they wanted.
"Hey, can you get that mini bear for me…"
"Hey, I want to get a bunny…"
"Hey, what kind of animal is that?"
…
Several guests rushed over and Chen Xiao Cai was overwhelmed.
Qin Yi took a step forward and said, "Everyone, please stand in a line so we can serve you."
…
Chen Xiao Cai's commercial house was flooded with people on the day of Autumn Fair, and that copycat shop had no such luck.
Some children appeared on the street holding dolls in hand, naturally the dolls had attracted the attention of others.
Other children would pester their parents for a doll, soon people started asking around which shop was selling those dolls, the children who held dolls would reply proudly, 'the Sino Commercial House of course!'
Compared to Chen Xiao Cai's new Sino Commercial House, people were more familiar with his old rental shop.
Some people who knew the truth knew that the owner of the rental Sino Commercial House had changed. However, for people who had no idea about that just thought the rental one was the origin branch.
A large number of people rushed to the fake Sino Commercial House and asked if there were any dolls in the store.
Lu Lin has always used confidential measures to make the dolls. People in this time and space had no idea about cartoon dolls, so it was hard for them to copy the idea so fast.
Although the boss had been observing Lu Lin's movements, he just couldn't figure out what Lu Lin was doing. Naturally, he didn't have dolls in his store.
Those who couldn't get dolls were greatly disappointed, they confronted the boss and asked him why the other Sino Commercial House were selling dolls and he wasn't. Some short-tempered customers just made a scene and shout abuse at the boss.
Faced with the crowd's questioning, the boss felt so badly battered.
…
Lu Lin's shop in Forest Town had gained considerable fame thanks to the dolls, a continuous stream of visitors came to his shop from dawn and dusk.
Lu Lin had tried his best to stock up, but he had underestimated the purchasing power of the people. Many young people had become returned customers because the dolls they bought were 'confiscated' by the elders at home, so they had to come back and get more.
Many styles were sold out.
"Manager Wan, how much is that giant doll?" A young man stood at the door of the store and asked.
"This is the most-treasured doll in our entire store, it's for display, not for sale. I'm sorry."
"The most-treasured doll! How about 20 taels? I really love it." The man played with the folding fan on his hand and asked with a smile.
Wan Li smiled stiffly and repeated, "I'm sorry, young master. This is for display only. We can't sell it."
"Manager, you're so resolute! How about thirty taels?! Thirty taels of silver should be enough to match the value of the most-treasured piece," the man smiled radiantly.
Wan Li hesitated for a moment and said, "Young master, please excuse me for a moment, I will go ask for instructions."
Lu Lin was not in the store. Wan Li asked Chen Xiao Mi's opinion, Chen Xiao Mi agreed immediately when he heard that someone was willing to offer 30 taels for a doll.
Chen Xiao Mi liked the lifesize doll very much, but he liked 30 taels of silver more.
Lu Lin had anticipated there would be persistent free-spenders who insisted on buying the lifesize doll, so he made a few of them in reserve. But he didn't make too many, because 'the rarer a thing is, the more it is worth'.
When the offer was generous enough, the most-treasured doll could be for sale. That was 30 taels of silver the young master had offered! A real bear was merely 20 taels.
The most-treasured doll only cost more fabric and cotton, it was not that hard to make.
The young master who had spent thirty taels of silver on the doll couldn't help but feel self-satisfied when he left the store.
"What a big doll!"
"Yeah! This bear looks so adorable!"
"Didn't the manager say that the lifesize doll isn't for sale? How come he has sold it to this young master?!"
"Thirty taels of silver? It's too wasteful to buy such a doll with thirty taels of silver!"
…
The young master who carried the big doll on his shoulder had attracts so many head turnings, he enjoyed the attention so much that he had deliberately walked back and forth on the streets for several times.
…
Lu Lin didn't expect his treasure would be sold off while he was away for a little while. Knowing that it was sold for 30 taels, Lu Lin smiled and suddenly it wasn't hard to departure with his favorite doll.
"I didn't expect to use the spare giant doll so soon."
Lu Lin placed a giant cat doll in the store after the bear was sold.
Lu Lin felt that the 'most-treasured piece in the store' served as a great attraction, people in town would talk about it, and it would attract more customers to the store to admire it and that would help them to make more sales on the small dolls.
People who came to the store to admire the bear this day were shocked to find the bear was gone.
"Manager Wan, where is the bear? "
"Manager Wan, where's the original most-treasure piece? It used to be a bear, isn't it?"
Wan Li showed a meaningful smile and said, "The bear met its owner in destiny, so now it has left the store with him."
"Manager Wan, how do you tell who the bear's owner in destiny is?" A teenager asked.
Wan Li smiled and said, "It all depends on how sincere you are." Wan Li had sugarcoated that, what he was really trying to say was it all depends on how much money you offer, the higher the offer, the more sincere you are.
"How do you judge whether someone is sincere or not?"
"Heaven will guide us."
Chen Xiao Mi rubbed his nose awkwardly as he listened to Wan Li's speech.
…
At dusk, Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi counted their turnover.
They had sold more than 100 dolls in one day and earned more than 90 taels. Among them, 30 taels were earned by selling the lifesize bear alone. Chen Xiao Mi got so excited, he didn't mind selling more 'the most-treasured piece in the store'.
Chen Xiao Mi looked at the silver in his hand and said, "Someone came to ask about the giant cat today. Actually quite a few people have made enquiries, but they all thought 30 taels a bit too much. I definitely think we will have them if we lower the price to 20 taels."
Lu Lin thought to himself, 'When the fruit is scarcest, its taste is sweetest. If I lower the price, it won't create as much hype and people would be less interested. However, if we keep a high price, people will keep coming to the store and they will stay intrigued. No way will I lower the price.'
On Chen Xiao Cai's side, his branch had earned more than 70 taels a day. There were more rich people in Willow Town, but Forest Town's branch had beaten him because they had sold the bear.
Chen Xiao Cai's branch had been suffering a bit since they moved to the new location. However, the dolls had helped the store gain a firmer footing in Willow Town.
It had been a long time since Chen Xiao Cai saw so many customers in one day, everything felt so hectic. Fortunately, Shen Chi knew mathematics and account keeping, he had helped Chen Xiao Cai a lot.
Booming Doll Business
Chen Xiao Cai and Shen Chi were calculating the accounts. Shen Chi looked at the number on the account book and he couldn't help but have a moment of panic.
Shen Chi, a young child who had never seen much of the world, was dazed by the number on the account book.
Shen Chi knew that the things in the store were expensive and had high profits, but he didn't know exactly how high it was.
Chen Xiao Cai was also a little shocked, but Chen Xiao Cai had more experience in managing the store than Shen Chi and he handled it better than Shen Chi.
There came the sound of footsteps from the hallway. Chen Xiao Cai looked up and saw Qin Yi walking in.
"Uncle Qin, thank you for your hard work today. If you didn't help maintain order, I'm afraid I'd make a few mistakes," Chen Xiao Cai was so grateful.
Qin Yi smiled and said, "That's the least I can do, Cai. And just by the way, I saw the owner of the fake store in our store today."
The fake shop Qin Yi mentioned was Xia Haisheng who had imitated their name and kicked them out from their rental shop. In fact, there were a lot of stores copied the things in Sino Commercial House. However, Xia Haisheng was the only one who did it in such a flagrant way.
Chen Xiao Cai looked at Qin Yi in surprise, "The owner of the fake store? Did he come to buy dolls?"
There were too many guests in this shop during the day. Chen Xiao Cai was swamped with work and he didn't pay attention to anything else.
Qin Yi shook his head, "I didn't see him buying anything. He just browsed all the dolls."
Chen Xiao Cai frowned and said, "This bastard must be harboring evil designs."
Shen Chi smiled and said, "Most likely he wants to steal ideas from us again." The fake store mainly sold bags and fans. It was autumn already of course they wouldn't make many sales on the fans. There were already many stores selling schoolbags, and the quality of Xia Haisheng's fake bags was not that great, so his profit should not be much.
"This doll business shouldn't be easy to copy," Qin Yi said.
Chen Xiao Cai nodded and said, "Yeah! Even if they want to copy, it would take a lot of time. And we will make a lot of sales during this period of time."
Xia Haisheng returned from Chen Xiao Cai's shop and he hid in his store, sulking.
Xia Haisheng was the son of a concubine. He had been outshined by his older brother, the legitimate son, since he was a child. He had been losing money in all of his businesses. As time went by, his family started to lose faith in him, they said that he had no talent and skills for business.
The thing Xia Haisheng hated the most was that he was not as great as his older brother. Even though his father loved him, he knew his father felt that he was a good-for-nothing as well.
Xia Haisheng had always wanted to show his old man that he had got it, but… he had not done one thing successfully.
Lu Lin's Sino Commercial House branch in Willow Town had attracted quite a lot of attention since day one. Xia Haisheng took a great interested in the store, he opened a similar store and set the price lower, hoping to make good money. However, the reality was not as beautiful as Xia Haisheng thought.
The store had its moment when it first opened, but they didn't make much because the prices of the items were low. Later on, the fans in the shop became unsellable due to the weather. He had too many stocks in the warehouse. The rent of the store was not cheap, he just didn't end up making much money.
Xia Haisheng felt that the stuff in his store didn't sell well, the real Sino Commercial House must be suffering the same problem as well. But they launched a new product called 'dolls' and thei business was booming. The Sino Commercial House had been busy all day today, but his shop was the opposite. Customers who visited his store thinking about buying dolls were all left disappointed.
…
Lu Lin made a calculation and said, "Things are looking great, let's make one more batch of dolls."
Chen Xiao Mi nodded and said, "good."
On the first day of the doll's launching, they had captured everyone's attention. The next few days, everyone calmed down a bit, but there were still many customers. Then the business remained at a stable level.
The dolls were expensive, most people would only buy one or two. There were also people who couldn't afford to buy one, they would just keep coming to the store to browse.
Lu Lin was so surprised to hear one thing from the customers, there was a new trend among the ladies in town now, which was to sew outfits for the dolls.
Most of the dolls that Lu Lin sold had no outfits on. The dolls in outfits were more exquisite and expensive.
Many people decided to make clothes for the dolls.
Some rich ladies would gather together to share thoughts about outfits for the dolls.
Lu Lin was amazed by the rich person in this world. They had nothing to do all day, so they were dying to create new trends and find themselves something to do.
Lu Lin found the two stores had made almost 300 taels combined in just a few days, which made him very excited.
…
In the Yang family, there were several women sitting together and sewing for the dolls.
"Grandmother, I really like the tiger you are holding!"
"Yeah! Mother, you tiger looks so imposing."
"Grandmother, there aren't many tiger dolls in the store. Most of them are rabbits, bear, you have a rare one here, is it limited edition?"
…
The old lady enjoyed the sweet talks from her kids and grandkids. "I heard that there are few tigers, and they were sold out soon. Heng Zhi, the kid is so filial, he asked the manager to make this tige for me."
"Grandmother, I heard that the most rare thing in the store is the lifesize doll, which is also called the most-treasured piece. I will buy you that one day."
Old Madam Yang glanced at her grandson and said, "Don't waste your energy. Those lifesize dolls are not for sale I heard."
"There are exceptions. Someone has just bought a lifesize bear from them with 30 taels of silver."
The old lady looked at her grandson in surprise and said, "30 taels is a large amount of money, let's not spend wisely."
The old lady had heard about the lifesize dolls of Sino Commercial House. Even though the Yang family had money, the old lady still felt 30 taels for a doll was not a wise decision.
"I wonder who bought the lifesize bear," the old lady sounded so curious.
The Yang family was one of the wealthiest families in town, so the old madam wondered who could afford to be more extravagant than them.
" It's a fresh face. I don't think he is from our town."
"The Sino Commercial House is very popular. I'm afraid not surprised that there are people from other town support their business."
"Sino Commercial House's reputation is getting better and better!"
…
As soon as Yang Heng Zhi came back, he saw his mother making clothes. Looking at the size of the clothes, he knew that they were for the dolls.
Yang Heng Zhi couldn't help but feel a little sad. His mother hadn't made clothes for him for a long time, and she had made a pile of clothes for the dolls within a few days. Yang Heng Zhi didn't see the point of making clothes for the dolls who couldn't even feel cold.
"Son, check out these new clothes I just made for the dolls!" Mrs. Yang asked happily when she saw her son coming back.
Yang Heng Zhi smiled, "Mom, your skills are getting better."
Mrs. Yang smiled and said, "Your grandma likes the tiger doll you bought for her. However, your younger brother insists on buying the old lady a lifesize piece."
Yang Heng Zhi lowered his head. Even though the grandma liked him, his younger brother was very good at pleasing the old lady.
"Mom, do you think I should buy the lifesize piece for the old lady as well?"
Mrs. Yang sighed and said, "Your grandmother's thoughts aren't easy to guess! She must like them a lot, but on the other hand, it's so expensive, maybe she will get upset if you really spend that much money on a doll. I really don't know what you should do."
"I see, mom, how about this, I'll go see if there are any new dolls for sale," Yang Heng Zhi said.
Mrs. Yang nodded and said, "Okay."
…
Many women in Big Stone Village were working for the Sino Commercial House. There was a period of time when the business in the commercial house went downhill, many people thought maybe commercial house was going to be out of business soon.
Human nature was so funny. On the one hand, everyone felt that the Sino Commercial House didn't deserve success because the products didn't cost much, but they were sold with such a high price. So they were kind of looking forward to the day when they close down.
On the one hand, there were many villagers who were relying on the Sino Commercial House to make a living, and they hoped the Sino Commercial House could stay afloat for as long as they could. They really needed this income to better support their family.
Lu Lin had been in a great moon recently.
Chen Xiao Mai's favorite doll was a big tiger doll, he held it everywhere he went, refusing to let go of it.
Lu Lin suspected that the reason why Chen Xiao Mai liked the big tiger doll so much was because Chen Xiao Mi had hunted a tiger before, and they got to buy a house and move out from the cave after they sold the tiger.
Tiger dolls were more complicated to make, Lu Lin didn't make many. Most dolls in the store were bears, and all kinds of bears were selling pretty well.
Lu Lin held a mouse doll and said, "This mouse doll is so cute. Why isn't there anyone buy it?"
Chen Xiao Mi blinked and said, "Isn't that normal? Who would like to buy a mouse doll?"
Lu Lin was rendered speechless.
In the modern society, hamsters which were a kind of mice were very popular and let alone Mickey Mouse who was popular all over the world. However, the aesthetics of the people in this time and space were still very traditional.
"I really don't understand why you don't get it, mouse is annoying, they steal grains from us!" Chen Xiao Mi said with some confusion.
Lu Lin smiled and said nothing. 'Fortunately, I didn't make many, otherwise I will end up losing money.'
"Young Master Yang came over and asked me if we could make some deer dolls," Chen Xiao Mi said.
"Deer?"
Chen Xiao Mi nodded, "Yeah! Deer is a sign of longevity. Many old people want to live for a few more years love deer, it's an auspicious sign."
Lu Lin said, "I see!"
Lu Lin thought to himself, 'Filial piety prevails in this time and space. A lot of the children would love to get more allowance money from their grandparents. There are a lot of rich old people, so it seems very necessary for them to please the old people!"
The dolls were getting more popular as it got colder and colder.
They had made more sales on dolls than schoolbags. Many people in other towns were attracted to buy dolls from them by their reputation.
In contrast, the sales of the schoolbags in the store had stagnated, but the bags were well stock in the store.
Lu Lin came up with several ideas to promote the sales of schoolbags, such as adding some doll pendants on the bags and giving away bags for free if you buy a certain number of dolls.
…
Chen Xiao Mi counted the silver in the jar and said excitedly, "It's close to six hundred taels."
Lu Lin nodded, "Yeah!"
Chen Xiao Mi stroked the jar, he couldn't believe they had six hundred taels of silver in hand. On top of the ix hundred taels of silver, they had two commercial properties and a property in the village, that must be close to 1000 taels in total.
Chen Xiao Mi felt like he was on cloud nine, everything felt too good to be true.
When Chen Xiao Mi was hunting in the mountains, he never thought that he could make money without venturing into the mountain or leaving the house.
"It's getting colder and colder every day!" Lu Lin said.
Chen Xiao Mi nodded, "Yeah!"
Recently, the price of the fans had hit bottom low, but the dolls had become more and more popular. Many people wanted to imitate their dolls. However, they had no clue how to do it.
" The autumn harvest is about to start." Chen Xiao Mi said.
Lu Lin thought for a moment and said, "Yeah!" Their family had no farm land and the autumn harvest didn't matter to them. However, Granny Shen's family was different. In addition to the two mus he gave them as part of the betrothal presents, Granny Shen needed to take care of five mus of farm land.
It wan't going to be a daunting task to take care of five mus of land for a big family. However, for the older Granny Shen, it was a bit troublesome.
Shen Chi followed Chen Xiao Cai to Willow Town, and he wouldn't be able to help out either.
Lu Lin thought about it and decided to talk to Granny Shen about the autumn harvest. Granny Shen was getting older and older. If she tripped on the ground at this age, she might not be able to get up.
Autumn Harvest
"Granny, I'll find some casual workers to help you with he autumn harvest."
There were always people who worked odd jobs for a living in town. In autumn harvest season, they usually would charge more, but generally speaking, it wasn't a large amount of money for Lu Lin.
Granny Shen nodded and said, "Lin, thank you so much, that is very thoughtful of you. But I've got this, I want to ask around in the village, I will hire casual workers in town if no one is available in town, don't worry, you are paying me good wages now, I can afford to hire some help."
Lu Lin thought about it and nodded. It would be a little disrespectful if he hired casual workers in town directly without inquiring the villagers first.
Lu Li n couldn't help but recall when he and Chen Xiao Mi built a new room, he asked the Village Head to ask the villagers whether were available to help out, the Village Head just turned him down without hesitation.
Shen Chi and Chen Xiao Cai were now engaged but Granny Shen didn't want to take advantage of Lu Lin.
Granny Shen thought that she didn't really live in the village any more. She thought she might will transport all the grains to the warehouse in the commercial house after she paid taxes in grain.
Granny Shen had observed some things recently. Chen Xiao Mi and Lu Lin said that they were working for the Big Boss who now was out on a business trip, but it was so weird that the Big Boss had never showed up.
Wan Li and his family's indentures were all in Chen Xiao Mi's hand. It baffled Granny Shen, she didn't think there would be a boss who trusted someone to such extent.
Granny Shen secretly suspected that this store belonged to Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi. However, she didn't dare say that to anyone. If this store really belonged to Chen Xiao Mi, Grandma Chen would probably kick everyone out and take forcible possession of it.
Granny Shen thought to herself, 'If the shop was really Chen Xiao Mi's, then it would be a huge deal. The villagers were so keen to be betrothed with Chen Xiao Cai when they heard that Chen Xiao Mi made two taels of silver per month. If they knew that Chen Xiao Mi was the owner of the shop, then even if Chen Xiao Cai and his grandson were engaged, there still would be people who wanted to replace Shen Chi.
There were so many girls trying so hard to marry those rich masters in town, even as a concubine.
Granny Shen gasped on that thought, she was so worried for her grandson.
…
Granny Shen counted the days and autumn harvest season was just around the corner. She asked for a few days leave and went straight to the village to check on the farm land.
Lu Lin asked Qin Lang to accompany Granny Shen. Qin Lang was so happy about this task, he guaranteed Lu Lin that he would protect Granny Shen no matter what.
Qin Ming's leg had recovered, and he had been asking more work from Lu Lin as well.
Lu Lin would ask Qin Ming to run errands or look after Chen Xiao Mai.
Qin Lang became more and more mature, Lu Lin appreciated this young man.
Although he was a little young, he was already quite imposing. Recently, he had been helping delivering goods to Willow Town. He had made his father proud.
It was still early August in lunar calendar, but the grains in the field were already ripe. However, most villagers decided to give it a few more days.
Granny Shen walked around the field and decided to start early to avoid any undue delay.
After making up her mind, Granny Shen directly hired some people from the village and offered them 30 cents per day.
Quite a few villagers had a big family, they could afford to work for Granny Shen without delaying their own autumn harvest.
"Granny Shen, the crops in your field can use a few more days!"
Granny Shen nodded and said, "Yes, I know what you mean! However, if there is a heavy rain, it will ruin everything."
"Yeah! It will be ideal to harvest them in a few days, but as you said just now, the weather is a bit unpredictable, it makes more sense to just get on top of it."
Granny Shen smiled. She also wanted to wait for a few days, but the villagers would get busy by then, it would be hard for her to hire help or borrow tools.
The people hired by Granny Shen were hardworking and honest. No one slacked off.
They all thought that Granny Shen was different from before. The Shen family used to be poor, and Granny Shen would just go to work in the field before dawn and come home after dark with her little grandson, she had never hired anyone, but now she hired several workers.
They did some rough calculation, and they all thought Granny Shen might not be able to earn much money from this harvest, she needed to pay their wages and agricultural tax in grain.
Many villagers knew that many dolls in the commercial house were made by Granny Shen. The villagers guessed that Granny Shen had made a lot of money, so they didn't care about the cost of hiring help. Some people thought that Granny Shen just became less stingy after Chen Xiao Cai and Shen Chi were engaged, because she didn't need to worry about her grandson in the future.
"Granny Shen, where is Shen Chi? I haven't seen him for a while!"
Granny Shen worked in the field for a while, then she came back home to prepare lunch. Some workers' wives offered to help her.
Granny Shen smiled and said, "Chi? Chi and some coworkers travelled to some other town to do business."
The women gazed at each other in surprise. "Travelled to some other town? Shen Chi is so young, but he is already travelling and going for business trips!"
Granny Shen smiled and said, "He's just messing around."
Willow Town was a long journey from them. Granny Shen had once followed the delivery team to visit the branch there. Although it was a little smaller, it was also perfect and well-organized. Granny Shen felt relieved immediately after she visited the store, she knew her grandson was in good hands.
"You are so modest! Shen Chi soon will become a big shot. Granny, you just need to enjoy your blessings in the future."
Granny Shen smiled and said, " Enjoy my blessings? You are so sweet."
"I'm just saying the truth, Chi will definitely take good care of you in the future!"
"Granny Shen, you have five mus of land now. You're now living in town, it's not easy for you to take care of your field!"
Granny Shen nodded and said, "Yeah, I've been thinking the same thing! So, I want to rent some land out."
Granny Shen was also worried recently. She had always been in the town. She always thought what if some bad people pulled out her seedlings while she was away, she wouldn't be able to find out in time.
She couldn't weed, fertilize or water the crops in time now that she lived in town.
It was Lu Lin's idea to rent out some field, Granny Shen initially was reluctant to part with her land. However, it didn't take her a long time to think it through, Lu Lin had a point.
When the women heard Granny Shen say that she wanted to rent some field out, they were all excited. They all wanted to have more field.
Granny Shen transported all the grains to Lu Lin's shop in town after the autumn harvest.
Lu Lin was a little surprised by Granny Shen's gesture. However, he insisted on paying Granny Shen. Granny Shen didn't want to take the money, but Lu Lin was quite persistent, so they met each other halfway, Granny Shen took half the money.
…
"This Granny Shen really is rich now! She has hired several workers in autumn harvest, you know that? And she paid every worker 30 cents per day."
"I heard that Granny Shen planned to rent out her field."
"Really? To rent out all of her field or just some? "
…
As soon as Zhang Jin returned home, he saw a few villagers gathering in his house.
"Father, why do we have so many guests today?" asked Zhang Jin.
Zhang Cheng glanced at Zhang Jin and said, "Granny Shen said that she is old and she wants to rent out all of her field, she asked me to witness it."
Zhang Jin nodded and said, "I see, how is Granny Shen going to do this?"
"She wants forty percent of the harvest, she and the tenants will discuss the details."
Zhang Cheng nodded and said, "Forty percent is not much. Many landlords collect fifty percent of the harvest. In this way, the tenants won't have much left in hand. Granny Shen is a nice person."
"Did Granny Shen rent out all of her field?" asked Zhang Jin.
Zhang Cheng nodded, "Yeah! Five mus, all rented out."
…