The Double
Chapter 251 - 105 Start_4

Chapter 251: Chapter 105 Start_4

Although the words were unpleasant, what Ye Mingxuan said was not entirely without reason.

"Alright, alright, it all comes down to my being ignorant," Ye Mingyu, attacked by the crowd, hurriedly cupped his hands in a pleading gesture, and said, "I can’t argue with you all, it’s my fault. But it’s not up to me to decide, and it seems that the business of Ancient Fragrance Satin cannot be continued, our Ye Family’s weaving mainly relies on Ancient Fragrance Satin, right?"

The members of the Ye Family were all silent.

Jiang Li asked, "Besides Ancient Fragrance Satin, doesn’t the Ye Family Weaving produce anything else?"

"It’s not that there isn’t anything else," Lady Guan explained, "In fact, besides Ancient Fragrance Satin, our Weaving Yard also produces many other types of fabric. But those fabrics can be produced by others too, and even if others can’t make them, they don’t attract much attention. Mother and father, when they were together, every once in a while, would come out with some fashionable fabrics, but the only one that stood the test of time was Ancient Fragrance Satin."

"Ancient Fragrance Satin is superior in material and has a natural fragrance. Wealthy families like to use it, and even ordinary people, if they have extra silver, are willing to buy a piece or two for making clothes during festivals, so there’s no shortage of buyers," she said.

After thinking for a moment, Jiang Li said, "So, the Ye Family rose to prominence through Ancient Fragrance Satin because people love it, not because it is irreplaceable. If we can make a fabric that is even more attractive than Ancient Fragrance Satin, we could soon revive our reputation, right?"

The room fell quiet, and Ye Jiaer said, "Cousin, it’s easy to say, but over the years, there have been countless fabric merchants in Northern Yan with so many designs. Whatever you can make, others can also make. Let’s not even talk about whether they like it or not, the words ’irreplaceable’ are not so easily achieved."

It was also true that the irreplaceability of Ancient Fragrance Satin came from the fabric’s natural fragrance - a secret recipe of the Ye Family that was not shared with outsiders. Such secret recipes are not something you can just find on the street. Sometimes it might take tens or hundreds of years to come up with one, but sometimes, one secret recipe can save an entire clan.

"Isn’t Uncle Mingyu always traveling around?" Jiang Li looked at Ye Mingyu and asked, "When it comes to fresh materials no one has ever seen, Uncle Mingyu must have seen a lot."

To find a "secret recipe", one must look for fresh "materials". The Ye Family members in Xiangyang had difficulty seeing much, but Ye Mingyu was different. He traveled all over deserts and grasslands and always came across rare things not seen by others, among which might be something that could create a new fabric.

Everyone looked at Ye Mingyu, who touched his nose and said in a somewhat embarrassed, quiet voice, "I have indeed seen many rare things, but they are unrelated to the textile business, and when I’m out having fun, who thinks about business..."

Both Ye Minghui and Ye Mingyu then gave him a disappointed look; his unreliability was well known.

But Jiang Li did not lose heart.

She said, "It doesn’t have to be a rare thing related to weaving. For example, those peacock feathers in the box that Uncle Mingyu gave me, couldn’t they also be used on fabric?"

"Peacock feathers?" Ye Mingyu was stunned.

"What peacock feathers?" Ye Mingxuan asked.

"Last time you came back, you brought a few boxes of pretty shells that look like peacock feathers, quite nice to look at, but not worth much silver," Ye Rufeng said irritably, then curiously looked at Jiang Li, "How can peacock feathers be used on fabric?"

Ye Mingyu also looked at her; although he was the one who found those shells, he was clueless about how to use them. When he bought those peacock feathers, he never thought of doing business with them; he just had the silver, thought they were nice, and bought them as curios.

"I also just thought of this suddenly," Jiang Li smiled and said, "I don’t understand anything about fabrics, it was just a wild idea. If I’m wrong, please don’t make fun of me. Peacock feathers have a subtle phosphorescence. I once read a book of wonders which mentioned Immortal Island on the Sea with fairies, wearing clothes that shone with a subtle phosphorescent sheen, like ripples on water, not embroidered with gold or silver threads, yet as lustrous as pearls. The colors were bright but not garish. I was thinking, since Ancient Fragrance Satin can give fabric a fragrant scent, perhaps peacock feathers can also give fabric the glittering wave-like light described in the book of wonders. Of course, we don’t have to use actual peacock feathers, just use materials that can shimmer like the glow of peacock feathers, and then it would make sense."

"Besides, with the book of wonders as a record, it would certainly be popular with the ladies in Yanjing City. Although we can’t continue with Ancient Fragrance Satin, the Ye Family’s reputation still stands. If we produce a new fabric that is even more popular than Ancient Fragrance Satin, gradually we would establish a new business."