The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 541 - 539 Eager

Chapter 541: Chapter 539 Eager

Shopkeeper Wu now fully understood and immediately made a stance, "The location of Riches Dye Workshop and the fabric store is indeed good. Originally, Riches Dye Workshop had a small reputation in Jing County. Since Auspicious Dye Workshop wants to expand, it naturally cannot stay cooped up in this town. I have been planning to move the dye workshop to Jing County after the New Year, so this saves me a lot of trouble and time. How about Miss Wang sells this dye workshop and the fabric store to me?"

Wang Yongzhu always liked dealing with straightforward people: "The dye workshop can be sold, but the fabric store can only be rented to Shopkeeper Wu. Don’t laugh at me, Shopkeeper Wu. Our peasant family has always relied on the soil for food, depending on the heavens for a meal. It’s hard to come by a shop space in the city, and I managed to buy one with great difficulty. I’m somewhat reluctant to sell it right away. Renting it out means a little income every year, which makes me feel more settled."

"Furthermore, Shopkeeper Wu also knows that my family is now in the business of dealing with mountain goods, and who’s to say that we won’t want to open our store in the future, so..."

Shopkeeper Wu naturally had no objections. The dye workshop was most important. Where couldn’t one buy a fabric store?

"What Miss Wang says makes sense. This is indeed the more stable choice. Like my family, we have some savings and have also bought a few stores, some land and farms, only then can one feel secure." Shopkeeper Wu spoke sincerely.

Nowadays, as long as a family wants to live a peaceful life, who wouldn’t buy stores and land when they have the money? This way, there is a steady income every month, much more reassuring than just sitting on a pile of silver.

Even more subconsciously, he didn’t know why, but he let out a sigh of relief.

Although Wang Yongzhu didn’t know Shopkeeper Wu’s thoughts, she could also sense that he seemed to have relaxed a bit when she proposed the idea.

"There’s one more thing about the batch of defective dyed fabric stored in the warehouse. I was thinking—"

Wang Yongzhu hadn’t finished speaking when Shopkeeper Wu immediately said, "Although these fabrics have been ruined by the dye, if we pull them into the fabric store and sell them cheaply, we can still get rid of them."

"Shopkeeper Wu is mistaken. This fabric isn’t really ruined. As long as I come up with a formula and re-dye them, they will be just like the fabrics from Auspicious Dye Workshop." Wang Yongzhu casually dropped a bombshell.

It left Shopkeeper Wu stunned for a long while.

After a bit, he finally asked, "You... you’re saying the fabric can still be salvaged?"

Wang Yongzhu nodded.

Shopkeeper Wu’s breathing became extremely rapid, and the look in his eyes when he saw Wang Yongzhu was also filled with a shade of wariness.

He had never imagined that the fabrics that had caused Boss Tian to lose everything and sell all his possessions at a low price before slinking back to his hometown could still be saved.

If Boss Tian knew of this news, would he be so angry he spat blood?

Or when Wang Yongzhu reverse-engineered Boss Tian’s stolen formula, had she already planned all of this?

Regardless, Shopkeeper Wu felt that he needed to treat Wang Yongzhu with even more caution and respect from now on.

However, Shopkeeper Wu’s heart also warmed up. After the spring started, it was naturally the peak season for fabric sales, and the fabrics dyed by Auspicious Dye Workshop couldn’t meet the demand.

And that batch from Riches Dye Workshop only needed to be bleached and dyed once more to be sellable, then...

Steadying his mind, Shopkeeper Wu’s voice trembled a bit, "How many bolts of this fabric are there? Are you certain that after bleaching, it would be the same as the fabric from Auspicious Dye Workshop?"

Wang Yongzhu was very confident: "As long as you follow my method, it will be absolutely the same! That batch of fabric, about three thousand bolts?"

Shopkeeper Wu quickly calculated in his mind. For three thousand bolts of fabric, considering the current market price and such a large wholesale purchase, the most ordinary white unbleached fabric is about 500 wen per bolt, while medium-quality white unbleached fabric is around 650 wen per bolt. After shipping it to the dye workshop, with the freight cost averaged out, it’s about ten wen per bolt, and after dyeing, the price can be flipped several times over.

If he took on this batch of fabric, the freight cost would be negligible, the expenses for dyeing would be reduced by more than half, and the cycle time would be greatly shortened. As long as the price was right, there was definitely a profit to be made from this batch of fabric.

With that in mind, Shopkeeper Wu made up his mind, "I’ll take it all! Miss Wang, how much do you plan to sell each bolt for?"

Wang Yongzhu smiled, "Let’s not talk about this today. In the past few days, I have only shared my thoughts with Shopkeeper Wu, and there’s no need for you to make a decision in haste! You should think it over for a few days. After all, New Year is less than a month away. I am not in the mood to discuss these matters before the New Year. How about we wait until after the New Year is over, when everyone has had time to think things through, and then find a time to have a proper discussion?"

She knew since the incident with the prescription that Shopkeeper Wu was only able to make decisions on small matters, and for such big decisions regarding the expansion of business territory, Shopkeeper Wu would have to consult with his superiors.

Furthermore, taking over her Riches Dye Workshop and the three thousand bolts of fabric was not a trivial matter. Rather than settling the deal today and potentially not coming to an agreement after the New Year due to various issues, it would be better not to rush and to give Shopkeeper Wu ample time to think and to communicate with his superiors.

Additionally, her family was about to prepare for Wang Yongping’s wedding and the New Year celebrations, so she really couldn’t spare any time.

Besides, she hadn’t yet decided how much to sell the dye workshop for and how to price the three thousand bolts of fabric; she still needed to discuss these matters with Song Chongjin.

It would be better to postpone the discussion until after the New Year, when everyone had clear thoughts and more time. Whether it would work out or not would then be a simple matter.

Shopkeeper Wu knew he had been a bit too eager, and upon hearing Wang Yongzhu’s words, he covered up by picking up his teacup to drink, "Miss Wang is right, today is for celebrating the housewarming. It’s not appropriate to discuss these matters. I was presumptuous!"

Wang Yongzhu didn’t want to embarrass Shopkeeper Wu, with whom she intended to cooperate, so she naturally let it slide and stood up with a smile. "Looking at the time, it’s time for lunch. Today, our house has prepared a simple meal, and I would be honored if Shopkeeper Wu would grace us with his presence."

Shopkeeper Wu hurried to say it was too kind of her, and the two of them left the room together.

On the other side, hearing the commotion, Song Chongjin and the others came out from the east wing room, chatting and laughing as they walked toward the Wang Family Courtyard.

Besides Shopkeeper Wu, who had specially prepared gifts and had Jinhoo deliver them in advance, Wu Zhongbao and Steward Lu simply accompanied their gifts with silver.

Wu Zhongbao gave Five Taels of Silver, and Steward Lu gave Two Taels of Silver.

A housewarming is not as significant as a wedding banquet; it’s an occasion where only close relatives and good friends attend. Moreover, since the Wang Family would be arranging a wedding for Laosi in a few days, those who came today would need to come back again soon to bring wedding gifts.

Most people were reluctant to part with too much, so those who came today were mostly just a few who were on good terms, as well as the Lizheng and Clan Leader, who were specially invited, and a few venerable elders from the Wang Family.

The gifts were simple; those whose households were not well-off brought gifts as humble as a couple of eggs or a block of tofu.

The weather was cold, and any food placed on the tables in the courtyard would soon cool, so several tables were set up in the east and west wing rooms of the first courtyard.

The guests were arranged in the front two courtyards, and although there weren’t many people, the atmosphere looked lively.

Song Chongjin and Wang Yongzhu led the three to the back and arrived at the third courtyard, where only one table was set up in the east wing room.

The kang was heated nicely, and the room was warm and cozy.

At the table in the east wing room sat the Lizheng, the Wang Family Patriarch, and two other highly respected elders.