In the back hall of the Splendid Pavilion, the atmosphere was solemn.
One side is the original "Landscape Embroidered Handkerchief" designed and highly anticipated by Shen Ruoxin herself. The lake blue silk is as smooth as jade, and the landscape embroidered with silver thread has a distant and elegant artistic conception, as well as a dynamic and refined look. On the other side, it was a counterfeit that the clerk, Xiao Cui, had just bought from the Zhangji Embroidery Shop across the street.
Under the light, when the two were compared, the superiority was immediately obvious.
"Second Miss, look," Xiao Cui pointed at the counterfeit, "this material is rough and its luster is far from good." And this embroidery thread, the color is similar, but the thickness is uneven and the stitches are very messy. How could it compare to the exquisite craftsmanship of our embroiderers? Especially this silver thread, it doesn't look as bright as ours. I'm afraid it won't be long before it turns black.
Wang Bo also moved closer to take a closer look, rubbed the material of the counterfeit, and shook his head, saying, "It's not just bad?" It's simply a world of difference. This silk is at most of medium quality, but that silver thread is probably of inferior quality mixed with tin powder. It's just to deceive those outsiders who only seek bargains and have no knowledge of the business.
Shen Ruoxin picked up the counterfeit, her fingertips gliding over the rough embroidery thread, her eyes cold: "The material is poor, the embroidery is bad, but the speed of this imitation is astonishingly fast." It took no more than five or six days from the time we launched the samples to their large-scale distribution. The design patterns and the key points of the stitches, if not seen in person, would never be so lifelike.
Her gaze swept over Wang Bo and Xiao Cui, and finally settled in the void. Her voice carried a hint of coldness: "The mole is right beside us."
Wang Bo and Xiao Cui exchanged a glance, both seeing shock and worry in each other's eyes.
I've already asked Uncle Wang to separate those two embroiderers. Shen Ruoxin looked at Uncle Wang and asked, "Did you ask anything?"
Uncle Wang looked troubled and said, "Madam, I've asked you in a roundabout way." Both of them swore that they would never reveal a word. One of the Li embroiderers was a bit impatient, crying and Shouting that she was wronged. The other Zhou Xiuniang was rather composed. She only said that the clear would come to light and left it to the second young lady to verify. Temporarily... No flaws can be seen.
Shen Ruoxin nodded slightly and did not ask any further. She knew that if the other party deliberately concealed something like this, it couldn't be brought up in just a few words. Moreover, the traitor is not necessarily the embroiderer.
"Let's put this matter on hold for now. I'll find out." She threw the counterfeit aside and her tone returned to its usual calmness. "The top priority now is to deal with the impact of Zhang Ji." He uses inferior products at low prices to attract customers. We can't lower our own standards to engage in a price war. That would only ruin the reputation that Jinxiu Pavilion has painstakingly built up.
Uncle Wang agreed, "What the second young lady said is right." What we need to do is to highlight the quality and make customers understand the principle that you get what you pay for. Just...
It's just that promotion takes time and word-of-mouth needs to be accumulated. Shen Ruoxin chimed in, "And now Zhang Ji has taken the lead. With its novelty and low prices, it's drawing customers to them." We must come up with countermeasures as soon as possible.
She thought for a moment and said, "Xiao Cui, go to the 'Hengyuan Silk and Satin Store' in the east of the city again tomorrow. We don't have much lake blue Hangzhou silk in stock in our warehouse. We'll bring back another fifty bolts." In addition, the Suzhou embroidery silk thread mixed with silver was also replenished.
Although the "Landscape Embroidered Handkerchief" has suffered temporary setbacks, she has no intention of giving up. The more it is imitated, the more popular it is. What she needs to do is to completely shake off counterfeiters with better quality and subsequent design. And sufficient raw materials are the foundation for ensuring production.
"Yes, Second Miss!" Xiao Cui replied.
However, the next afternoon, Xiao Cui came back with a deathly pale face and unsteady steps.
"Two..." Second Miss... As soon as he entered the door, his voice trembled. "Heng..." Hengyuan Silk and Satin Store said... "Say out of stock!"
"Out of stock?" Shen Ruoxin was calculating the cost. Hearing this, she raised her head and said, "How could that be?" Hengyuan is one of the largest silk and satin stores in the prefectural city. Although the lake blue Hangzhou silk is not the largest quantity, it is not in short supply either. Have you asked clearly? When will the goods arrive?
"Asked!" Xiao Cui was so anxious that she was on the verge of crying. "The shopkeeper said that not only is there no stock now, but recently..." There won't be the kind of lake blue we want in the near future! Say... This year, the rainfall in Suzhou and Hangzhou has been poor, resulting in a reduction in silkworm production and a shortage of raw materials. All of these have been pre-ordered by several major merchants!
"Nonsense!" Uncle Wang frowned as he listened. "I heard a few days ago that this year, Suzhou and Hangzhou have enjoyed favorable weather and a bumper harvest of silk!" When did Liu, the shopkeeper of Hengyuan, also learn to tell lies with his eyes wide open?
Shen Ruoxin's heart gave a jolt, and an ominous premonition welled up in her heart. She pressed on, "What about the silver-blended thread?" What does "Jinji Xianfang" say?
Xiao Cui's expression became even worse: "Jin..." Jin Ji Xianfang also said... Out of stock! The reason is the same. It is said that the raw materials are insufficient and the next batch of goods will have to wait for at least two months!
"Impossible!" Shen Ruoxin suddenly stood up and said, "Hengyuan and Jinji have been our long-term suppliers for over a decade at Jinxiu Pavilion!" Such a situation has never occurred before! Lake blue Hangzhou silk and silver-blended silk thread are the two most crucial raw materials for "landscape embroidered Handkerchief". How could they be out of stock at the same time and so coincidentally? "!"
She immediately realized that this was by no means accidental!
"Uncle Wang!" She made up her mind promptly, "You go to 'Furuixiang' in the south of the city and 'Qingfeng Cloth Store' in the west in person!" Although these two companies are not as large as Hengyuan, they still supply Hangzhou silk and Suzhou thread all year round. Ask them if they have the goods!
"Yes!" Wang Bo did not dare to be negligent. He immediately withdrew the money and hurried out.
Shen Ruoxin paced back and forth in the room, her mind in a complete turmoil. Zhang Ji counterfeited her embroidered handkerchief. She could fight back with quality and design. But if we cut off the supply of raw materials at the bottom of the pot... That really choked her throat!
Without lake blue silk and silver thread, her "landscape embroidered handkerchief" simply couldn't be made! Not only that, the other high-end embroidery products of Jinxiu Pavilion also need to use these high-quality raw materials to varying degrees. Once the supply is cut off, the production of the entire store will come to a standstill!
An hour later, Uncle Wang came back, his face even worse than when Xiao Cui left.
"Second Miss..." His lips moved a little, and eventually turned into a long sigh, "Furui Xianghe Qingfeng Cloth Store..." There's no stock either. The reasons are largely the same as those of Hengyuan and Jinji, all being due to a shortage of raw materials and being taken over by major clients. The old man asked a few more questions. The shopkeeper of Furuixiang was still somewhat nostalgic and whispered half a word... It's said that someone has spoken out that anyone who dares to supply goods to the Brocade Pavilion anymore is just making things difficult for the several major cloth merchants in the prefectural city...
Several major cloth merchants in Fucheng... Several names flashed through Shen Ruoxin's mind quickly, and finally settled on the domineering face of Boss Zhou of "Deshengxiang", as well as... The chubby face of Zhang Sheng, the owner of Zhang Ji Embroidery Shop, with a fake smile.
She understood instantly!
This is not a simple coincidence. It is a carefully planned conspiracy!
Zhang Sheng! This seemingly insignificant merchant, who only knew how to follow the trend and imitate, actually had such a knack that he could unite several major silk and silk thread suppliers in the city to jointly impose a raw material blockade on the Jinxiu Pavilion!
How did he manage to do it? With Zhang Ji's strength, it was not enough to make a large silk and satin store like Hengyuan so wary. Unless... He has someone behind him to support him! Or, he paid a huge price!
"Second Miss, I have also learned one more thing..." Uncle Wang hesitated for a moment and still said, "It is said that..." Recently, Zhang Ji Embroidery Shop has been very generous. Not only did it purchase a large quantity of silk and silk threads that might have flowed to us from Hengyuan and others at a high price, but it also... A large deposit was also prepaid, which guaranteed their priority supply rights for the coming months. Some people say that Zhang Ji seems to... Suddenly, I made a fortune.
Suddenly made a fortune? Recalling the clue that Wang Bo had found out before that Shen Zhongkang had embezzled public funds to purchase another courtyard... A terrifying guess took shape in Shen Ruoxin's mind.
Could it be... Was it Shen Zhongkang and the Liu family who supported Zhang Sheng behind the scenes? Not only did they leak the style of the embroidered handkerchief, but they also secretly provided funds, allowing Zhang Sheng to join forces with other fabric merchants to strangle the Jinxiu Pavilion, which had just begun to show some improvement? !
This thought made Shen Ruoxin shiver all over. She knew that Shen Zhongkang and his son were greedy and incompetent, but she never expected that they would be so vicious! In order to suppress her, he even colluded with outsiders and ruined his family business!
"Ok..." Very good! Shen Ruoxin laughed back in anger, but a terrifying cold light flickered in her eyes.
"Second Miss, what should we do now?" Uncle Wang was deeply worried. "Without raw materials, even a skilled housewife can't cook without rice!" The remaining materials in the warehouse can last for at most ten days or half a month. Once used up...
Once used up, not only will the "landscape embroidered Handkerchief" be unable to be produced, but other embroidery products that rely on these raw materials will also be halted. By then, the Splendid Pavilion will truly become an empty shell, at the mercy of others! The inferior counterfeits of Zhang Ji will completely dominate the market, and she, Shen Ruoxin, will become the laughingstock of the entire prefectural city!
Shen Ruoxin walked to the window and gazed at the gradually darkening sky outside. On the street, the lights of Zhang Ji Embroidery House were still bright, and the noisy voices of people could still be faintly heard. However, the Jinxiu Pavilion seemed particularly desolate.
The conventional supply channels have been completely blocked. The main suppliers within the prefectural city have clearly all been managed by Zhang Sheng (or rather, by the people behind Zhang Sheng). It is extremely difficult to get the goods from them.
Go shopping in a farther place? For example, going directly to Suzhou and Hangzhou? There is no time limit and the cost will increase sharply. With the current financial situation of Jinxiu Pavilion, it is difficult to sustain.
Could it be... Are you really going to just sit and wait for your fate?
No! Never!
Shen Ruoxin's gaze moved slowly and finally settled on a map of Jiangnan hanging on the wall. Her fingers gently traced the canal transport route connecting the prefectural city with several important surrounding towns.
The roads within the prefectural city are blocked, but that doesn't mean all the roads are blocked.
There are some people who operate outside the mainstream business system, having their own channels and ways. As long as the price is right, there is nothing they can't get... However, dealing with them is extremely risky and comes at a cost... Extremely high.
Shen Ruoxin's eyes became deep and determined. She slowly withdrew her fingers and had already made an extremely risky decision in her heart.
"Uncle Wang," she turned around, her tone unusually calm but with unquestionable strength, "Get the silver ready." We... We have to think of other ways.