Chapter 107: Rebirth
Jiang Jing said from the side: “Actually, the wages for door-to-door service are just small change. The real big money comes from the products we sell. Let’s take hair as an example. One bottle of haircare cream can be used at most five times, so calculating that way, each customer has to buy at least one to two bottles per month, that’s six taels of silver. Plus there’s mud mask, and various skincare and body creams. Estimating it, each customer can bring in ten taels per month. Yaoguang brought back deeds from ten customers, that’s about two hundred taels. And this is just the beginning. Once we have more customers later, just the money earned from going out will be quite a lot.”
“The things in our shop aren’t cheap. Ordinary customers buy once and can use it for a year or so, so the return on investment is slow. Therefore, our main customers are still those rich madams and misses.” Su Yaoguang said, “So we need to come up with something special to become the favorite of madams and misses, making them like our door-to-door service. Today I used the massage technique Jing’er taught me, and those madams and misses loved it. Tomorrow I’ll teach you all how to do it. If there are too many people then, you can help share the load with me.”
“Yaoguang really worked too hard today. Have an early rest, and tomorrow we’ll learn from you again.” Zhang Yingdi said, “Tonight we’re having mutton stew, and we also stewed duck meat, all things you love to eat.”
“I watched all day today, and the opposite side only served a few customers. I’m afraid even added up, they haven’t sold one tael of silver. And we’ve only just opened, still doing discounts, but business has turned out like this.” Zhang Zhaodi said gloatingly. “Zhong Lanhua deliberately opened her shop opposite us just to steal our business. Now she’s dumbfounded, right? Is our business something she can steal?”
Peach Blossom Workshop was celebrating the victory here, while the opposite side was filled with constant cursing.
“I think this Xiao Ci is our nemesis. He falls while walking, breaks his head when he falls, and now he’s using so many good medicines. Buying him was really a big loss.”
“Mom, don’t say anymore.” Jiang Yihuan said softly, “What’s done is done. Complaining won’t help. Luckily we can earn money now, so we’re not short on this bit of money.”
“You’ve only been earning money for a few days, and you’re already not treating two taels of silver like money? You haven’t really been charmed by this boy, have you?” Zhong Lanhua said discontentedly, “I think he’s not as useful as Yang Quan.”
“Mom, don’t forget whose merit it is that brother got his tuition fees waived, and whose merit it is that our shop could open.” Jiang Yihuan pulled Zhong Lanhua out, “Hurry and go decoct the medicine! If we feed Xiao Gege the medicine early, he can wake up sooner. The doctor said he hit his head this time, and if he doesn’t wake up, he’ll turn into an idiot.”
After Jiang Yihuan and Zhong Lanhua walked out the door, Xiao Yanci opened his eyes.
Some new memories appeared in his brain, memories related to Su Yaoguang. His mind was very chaotic right now, not knowing how to face Jiang Yihuan, so he closed his eyes and pretended not to have woken up.
In the memories, he and Su Yaoguang became husband and wife. Su Yaoguang supported his studies, letting him become the top scholar. He rejected the overtures from high officials to marry their daughters, and still gave Su Yaoguang the status of principal wife. In fact, the person he truly admired was Jiang Yihuan, and they even had a child. He had proposed taking Jiang Yihuan as a concubine, but she refused, saying it wouldn’t be fair to Su Yaoguang.
Those memories flooded into his mind, fusing with his current memories. His thoughts were clashing, and for a moment he couldn’t distinguish if it was a dream. Only after sorting through everything did he understand one fact: the memories were real, and the events had really happened, but they were from his previous life. And for some reason, he had returned to a few years ago.
Only, it was different from a few years ago again.
This time Su Yaoguang didn’t buy him, nor did she overwork herself supporting his studies. He came to Jiang Yihuan’s side early, without having to face that plain woman Su Yaoguang.
Perhaps Heaven was blessing him, unwilling for him to be tied to such a boring and crude woman like Su Yaoguang again, so it changed the trajectory of this life.
But what was that Zhou Wangshu about? There was no such person in his previous life.
Never mind, he must be an insignificant person who didn’t appear in his life, so he didn’t know about this minor figure.
Zhong Lanhua and Jiang Yihuan left from outside the window.
“How did you know he was awake?” Zhong Lanhua admired her daughter more and more.
“His breathing was off.” Jiang Yihuan said, “Someone in a coma wouldn’t breathe like that.”
“My daughter is so clever. Those men falling into your hands isn’t wronged at all.” Zhong Lanhua said proudly, “By the way, I saw the horse market manager today, urging us to repay the money. Isn’t his son always easy to coax? Have you not seen him lately, so he’s starting to throw a tantrum?”
“I’ll go see tomorrow! These men are really funny. He just gave me a bit of silver and thinks he can make me marry him. I’m not that stupid.”
In the middle of the night, the rain stopped. The next day at dawn, the sun slowly rose, dispelling yesterday’s dampness, turning into another sunny day.
Fenghua Pavilion’s business started picking up again. Today Peach Blossom Workshop also began having casual customers. After all, upon comparison, anyone knowledgeable knows that the products here are better.
Most importantly, this side has makeup services. The makeup styles that Su Yaoguang knows are too avant-garde for the women of this time, something they’ve never seen before, so naturally they want to change themselves up nicely.
“Are you here to make trouble?” Zhong Lanhua pushed out a fat young girl, saying impatiently, “I sell cosmetics here, clothes, shoes, women’s personal items, but not medicine. If you want to lose weight, want to become beautiful, you should go to a pharmacy. Why come to our Fenghua Pavilion? Did the opposite side pay you to come sabotage our business?”
“You’re really bullying people.” The fat young girl wailed, “When you were coaxing me to buy things before, why didn’t you say that?”
“Back then you wanted to buy rouge, so of course I had to serve you well. But now what nonsense are you talking about, wanting me to make you lose weight. Am I an immortal?”
When Xiao Yanci returned, this was the scene he saw. Zhong Lanhua was like Zhang Zhaodi, a queen among shrews. Xiao Yanci’s face was full of disgust, only softening his eyes when he saw Jiang Yihuan.
“Sister, they don’t have the ability at Fenghua Pavilion. We at Peach Blossom Workshop can help you.” Su Yaoguang stood at the doorway, saying to the fat girl, “Do you want to come in and take a look?”
Xiao Yanci turned back and saw Su Yaoguang dressed much better than in his memories, dazed for a moment.
Ever since those memories appeared, strange thoughts would always surface in his mind. For example, seeing Su Yaoguang—before he only felt unwilling, but now there was also some anger.
And unhappiness.
In this life, Su Yaoguang didn’t buy him, which he felt was a humiliation to him. He could look down on her, but she couldn’t look down on him.
