Chapter 5 The Jade-Faced Young Man
Early next morning.
The birds are chirping in the breeze, and the faint fragrance is coming.
"Da da da..." There was a knock on the door.
"Wenjun, have you gotten up?" Zhou Yumei's greeting sounded outside the door.
Song Che and Shen Wenjun sat up in shock at the same time. They came to check the ward early in the morning. What could they have in mind?
Song Che picked up the pillow and quilt and put it on the bed. Shen Wenjun also helped to cover it: "I'm up, I'm up, I'm getting dressed!"
Song Che found a pair of scissors from the dressing table, made a cut on his fingertips, and wiped a trace of blood on the sheets.
Shen Wenjun was surprised for a moment, then his face turned red when he thought about it.
Song Che sucked his fingers and smiled: "Details determine success or failure."
Shen Wenjun stepped forward to open the door. Zhou Yumei smiled brightly and went straight to the bed quilt. She opened the quilt and saw the blood stains on the bed sheet. Her smile became even brighter, "The sun is shining brightly today. It's time to take out the wedding quilt and wash it..."
Zhou Yumei packed up the sheets and was about to leave. Unexpectedly, there was a "clang" and the rolling pin fell to the ground.
The atmosphere suddenly became awkward.
Zhou Yumei picked up the rolling pin, her complex eyes wandered back and forth between the two of them, she sighed softly, and said sincerely: "Although I won't go into details about the joy of the boudoir, you must know how to measure it... I confiscated this pestle."
The mother-in-law put the rolling pin in her arms and sighed as she walked: "No wonder ghosts cried and wolves howled last night. Young people nowadays, alas..."
"Mom!" Shen Wenjun's face turned red and he stomped his feet in embarrassment, "No, no! It's not what you think..."
Song Che looked at Shen Wenjun and laughed without saying anything.
Shen Wenjun stared: "Why are you laughing at me? You are so cheap!"
Song Che raised his eyebrows and asked, "Have you really used it?"
"Ah... I want a beating!"
Before Shen Wenjun could clench his fists, Song Che greased the soles of his feet and disappeared in a flash.
…
After hastily finishing their breakfast, the two headed straight to Shuiyunfang with the momentum of reform.
The courtyard is deserted and he is alone.
The shop assistants all looked listless, and the number of people seemed to be smaller than yesterday.
The enthusiasm that Shen Wenjun finally aroused was extinguished by the "ruined" scene before him.
"Come on, come on! Guys, all gather in the lobby. Let's have a brief morning meeting!" Song Che clapped his hands and greeted him with great enthusiasm.
There were about twenty people, including men who helped in the dyeing workshop and women who worked in textile and embroidery, lazily and carelessly, and it took a full half-quarter of an hour to gather together.
"You must be a little unfamiliar with me, so why don't I introduce myself first——"
"We know who you are. Boss Shen has hired a son-in-law!" A tall, rough-looking young man said first, his words laced with thorns.
Song Che smiled secretly, "I also know who you are. Your name is Li Tian, and you are the steward of the dyeing shop. You joined the Shen family at the age of eight. You are strong, your techniques are delicate, and the fabrics you dye are of the highest quality."
Use praise to respond to ridicule, and the pattern will appear immediately, right?
Li Tian blushed and snorted softly.
"And you, your name is Lu Gu, and you are the female steward of the weaving workshop. The quality of the cloth you make is absolutely top-notch!" Song Che gave a thumbs up and praised a frail young woman without hesitation.
Lu Gu nodded and smiled, modest and restrained.
"Today, I have gathered everyone together to inform you of two main things," Song Che paused and recounted:
"First of all, everyone must have felt this. The business has not been very good in recent days. Last night, my wife and I discussed for a long time and decided to reduce the brocade business at hand and focus on selling cloth."
As soon as the words fell, the embroiderers could no longer hold back:
"According to what you say, we embroidery workers will have no more work to do in the future?"
"Yunshui Fang is most famous for Jinxiu. If we don't do this business, doesn't it mean we are ruining our own brand?"
Song Che explained patiently: "I made it very clear, it is slowing down but not not doing anything. There are too many pieces of cloth pressed in the warehouse. If they are not disposed of, the workshop will have difficulty turning over."
At this point, he changed the topic and said: "Business is not good, I have no money to make, and I can't support the family. I can understand these thoughts. If you have a better place to go, I won't deliberately try to keep you. After all, people go there." If you go higher, the water will flow lower."
"Haha...this uncle is so awesome! He only showed up twice and he wants to quit us!"
"Let's go! In my opinion, with such an uncle, it won't be long before the workshop comes!"
"That's right, that's right, let's go to Chen's Trading Company to make a living!"
The embroiderer girl took the lead first, followed by the weaver girl. The dyehouse worker hesitated and finally followed.
"Hey, Wu Niang, Aunt Li, don't..." Qin Ruoji almost stepped forward to persuade her to stay, but Song Che reached out to stop her and shook his head to indicate that it was not necessary.
There were only four people left out of the twenty or so people, not counting the stewards.
"Song Che, what kind of medicine are you selling? Even if you want to change your business, you must at least have manpower, right?" Shen Wenjun frowned.
"Can't you see that their hearts have already flown to other homes? Madam, don't worry, all this is within my expectation."
Song Che looked calm, and first told Qin Ruo: "Shopkeeper Qin, could you please rent three courtyards near the workshop, not too big, not too small, just moderate."
Then, he looked at Lu Gu and said, "Manager Lu, go and prepare forty sets of store clerk clothes for me, ten sets of men's clothes and thirty sets of women's clothes, both old and new."
Then, he called Li Tian: "Manager Li, you have to be a little tired. Move all the splendid things in the lobby to the right, with the middle door as the boundary. There is no need for exquisite decorations, just leave the left side empty."
Finally, he smiled at Shen Wenjun and said, "You go get a set of pens and ink, a set of brochures, and a gong. I'll prepare the carriage. We'll go out for a walk in the city later."
The three stewards all looked at Shen Wenjun.
Shen Wenjun thought about it, relaxed his brows, and nodded again: "Just do as he said..."
…
Since he was going out of the city, Shen Wenjun deliberately changed into a man's attire, wearing white clothes, with his hair tied up to his crown. He was feminine yet heroic, dainty yet upright, and looked like a "young man with a jade face".
Shen Wenjun boarded the carriage, but did not enter the carriage. Instead, he sat on the shaft with Song Che.
Song Che secretly glanced at the young man's chest, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart: How tight must it be tightened to make the magnificent waves become smooth and smooth?
"Madam, do you know why we are going outside the city?" Song Che asked while driving.
"Is it related to the refugees outside the city?"
"Madam is indeed smart."
Let me ask: Where can I find cheap and easy-to-use cheap labor?
Must answer: none other than the refugees outside the city.
As long as they have enough to eat, they will work hard without any complaints.
A steamed bun can cure the hunger at that time, but a skill can be used for a lifetime. It is better to teach people to fish than to teach them how to fish - Song Che is doing a good deed, not engaging in capital exploitation!
