Chapter 226: Let the three of us study together so he can get into Peking University on his own

Su Liyan hurried to open the door, while Lu Yuan quickly went to comfort those noble ladies.

After the door was opened, Su Liyan and Wang Yulan went to prepare hot water, snacks, and the like.

Lu Yuan naturally came to take care of those noble ladies.

Fortunately Lu Yuan came along today; otherwise, with so many people, just my wife and Sister Yulan would definitely be unable to keep up.

Lu Yuan's shop is quite large; it not only has a backyard but also a second floor, and inside the shop it doesn't look like a regular clothing store with clothes lined up in a row.

So even with this many people coming in, there won't be a lack of places to sit.

As Lu Yuan led some people upstairs, hearing their conversation, he turned back curiously and said:

"Hey, sis, you're not from the imperial city, are you? I hear your accent is from Qin Island over there."

As soon as Lu Yuan finished speaking, several ladies looked at him, raised their eyebrows, and said:

"Huh, how did you know that, kid?"

Lu Yuan grinned and said:

"Just from the accent; I've heard your side's seafood is fresh and bright, and your beer is also delicious."

Those ladies smiled, nodded, and told Lu Yuan where they came from.

After listening, Lu Yuan asked a follow‑up and then understood.

One‑third of them are from the coastal peninsula of the Great Zhou Dynasty, which is practically the easternmost part of the dynasty.

Now the railway has long been open in the north; once the railway is open, business becomes easy, right?

Three days ago, merchants from the coastal peninsula's chamber of commerce came to the imperial city to handle affairs, also bringing their wives, concubines, and so on to go out together.

At a banquet the day before, these wives from other places, seeing the noble ladies in the imperial city dressed in those clothes, naturally wanted them as well.

After inquiring, they learned that Lu Yuan's shop was opening today, so they all came to wait.

These people weren't surprised that Lu Yuan's shop was opening today; during the past three days, when Lu Yuan delivered clothes to the families of those officials, the officials' wives had asked him when the shop would reopen.

Besides the wives from Qin Island, there were also some from the imperial city and nearby cities.

They were all wives of wealthy families; when their husbands came to the imperial city on business, they came along to have fun.

And these people are definitely wealthy patrons.

This group is truly rich—who knows how many times wealthier than the high‑ranking officials in the imperial court.

Although the high‑ranking officials in the imperial court also earn a decent monthly salary.

Not to mention the ministers and vice‑ministers of the six ministries; even an attendant‑in‑ordinary earns about two hundred coins a month.

But even two hundred coins is still far behind the big merchants from all over.

Those big merchants who can come to the imperial city to discuss business—who isn't worth millions?

This group, however, has low social status and belongs to the lower class.

But when it comes to money, this group truly has plenty.

To them, a thirty‑coin garment is hardly different from a three‑ or five‑cent item.

Especially the noble ladies from Qin Island—when they speak, they don't ask for just one or two pieces; they ask for ten or eight at a time.

These nearly ten‑plus people directly ordered over a hundred pieces.

At that moment, Wang Yulan, who was serving tea and water to the guests, and Su Liyan, who was taking measurements for the customers, were both dumbfounded.

Lu Yuan, also a bit dazed, looked at the Qin Island noble ladies seated in the reception area and said:

"Sisters, we currently have only one style of clothing here; the previous two styles have run out of fabric, so we're not making them anymore.

Would you like to buy ten pieces of the same style?"

Meanwhile, those ladies raised their eyebrows and said:

"We're not buying them for ourselves; we have sisters to give them to when we go back."

Lu Yuan blinked, oh, that's true as well.

However…

Lu Yuan stood where he was, grinning, and said:

"Sisters, you might not realize that although our shop does custom work, if you pay in full up front, you can order this many……"

As soon as Lu Yuan finished speaking, those ladies gave him a sideways glance, then immediately pulled out a stack of bills from their small bags and said:

"You little brat, who do you think you're looking down on? Go ask around—who owns the third port of Qin Island!

"Don't worry, we're not short of money; we just fear you won't be able to deliver the goods. We'll stay in the imperial city for seven days, and within those seven days you had better have the clothes ready for us!"

Seeing the ladies' lavish demeanor, Lu Yuan immediately chuckled and said:

"Seven days?

"Oh dear, sisters, you don't need that long—five days will do~"

After Lu Yuan said that, the next second, not to mention the others' reactions, Su Liyan and Wang Yulan were completely stunned.

Five days??

I'm afraid…… I'm afraid it might not be possible……

After all…… last time, those few dozen pieces took over a week.

Moreover, the crucial point is that these over a hundred pieces are just what those ten‑plus people want; in this room…… there are still over thirty more people……

Lu Yuan didn't bother to explain further; he immediately turned, looked at his wife, and grinned.

"Wife, sister, keep the accounts."

Seeing that her husband had already agreed, Su Liyan knew he must have taken note of it.

She immediately nodded repeatedly.

After Lu Yuan finished speaking, he went out, got on his bicycle, and headed straight to Liu Shoucai's house.

Liu Shoucai is now quite well‑off—he directly bought a siheyuan in the imperial city.

It wasn't Lu Yuan's large three-courtyard-in-and-out Siheyuan; it was just a normally sized small Siheyuan.

Inside there were over ten rooms, a separate gate and courtyard, quite refined.

Last time I heard Liu Shoucai say, for this little courtyard, Liu Shoucai had spent nearly twenty thousand yuan.

And that's not all; Liu Shoucai also plans to buy another courtyard and bring his brothers over.

In this respect, the master and disciple are somewhat alike.

This is the saying 'when one person attains the Dao, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven.'

After Lu Yuan arrived by cart, the door was ajar; upon entering, he saw quite a few people inside.

This was Lu Yuan's first time coming to Liu Shoucai's home; last time they drank, he had only heard Liu Shoucai mention the location.

After entering, the people in the courtyard all looked curiously at Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan then spoke first with a smile:

"Is this Liu Shoucai's home?"

In the courtyard there was an elderly lady, two married women, a man, and a bunch of children.

After Lu Yuan finished speaking, the people in the courtyard kept nodding.

Just as Lu Yuan was about to say who he was, the man in the courtyard stared at him, blinked a few times, and then suddenly exclaimed:

"Oh dear, you must be Master Lu, right?"

"Huh?"

After Lu Yuan looked at the man and was momentarily stunned, he then nodded and said:

"Do we know each other?"

Upon hearing that it was really Lu Yuan, this person immediately put down what he was doing, walked toward Lu Yuan while excitedly nodding and said:

"Master Lu, you forgot—after the New Year, I came to the city with my brother-in-law,"

"At that time you threw some money at me, asking me to pick out materials, buy materials, and later to repair the Kang heating ducts for your neighbor's home."

Having said that, Lu Yuan smiled and nodded, saying:

"Oh oh~ I remember now, it's you~"

Actually, he hadn't remembered at all.

But that doesn't matter.

Immediately, Lu Yuan looked at Liu Shoucai's brother-in-law and smiled, saying:

"Where's your brother-in-law? I have something to discuss with him."

Liu Shoucai's brother-in-law came up to Lu Yuan, helping him push the cart while smiling and saying:

"My brother-in-law has gone down to Jiangnan; he should be back in about half a month."

Lu Yuan blinked, thinking Liu Shoucai had gone way too far—straight to the south?

While Lu Yuan was dazed, the brother-in-law led him into the courtyard, meanwhile telling the women there:

"Oh, don't just stand there—haven't you heard the master has arrived? Quick, serve tea!"

It's obvious that Liu Shoucai often mentions himself at home; although the Liu family women have never met Lu Yuan, they have surely heard his name.

After coming to their senses, these women hurriedly greeted Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan then waved his hand and said directly:

"If Liu Shoucai isn't home, then never mind—I'll come again when he returns."

Seeing Lu Yuan like that, Liu Shoucai's brother-in-law immediately said:

"Master, if you have any business, you can tell me; my brother-in-law has put me in charge of affairs here in Huangcheng, so I can handle it for you."

"Oh?"

If that's the case, Lu Yuan then smiled and said:

"Really? In that case, you know many people—help me ask which household's daughter-in-law knows how to use a sewing machine, or if there are any ready-made embroiderers who could come work at my shop."

"Twenty yuan a month, I need five people."

"Twenty yuan a month for an embroiderer?"

The people in the courtyard were all taken aback.

Liu Shoucai's brother-in-law stared for a moment, then quickly blinked and said:

"Master, my two older sisters know how to use a sewing machine; can they go?"

"Oh?"

Lu Yuan glanced at the two younger women in the courtyard, then slightly raised his eyebrows and said:

"Are they skilled?"

Liu Shoucai's brother-in-law immediately nodded repeatedly and said:

"Master, rest assured—my brother-in-law's first purchase after earning money was a sewing machine."

"My several older sisters all know how to use a sewing machine; they've been studying it for several months."

Having heard this, Lu Yuan nodded and then said:

"Alright, then let's look for three."

"Also, we need to find five young, good-looking, well-built girls—three to serve tea and pour water, two to take measurements."

"Not only should they have good figures, they also need to be quick-witted and articulate."

As for his own shop, Lu Yuan has thought it through completely.

Lu Yuan felt that his earlier estimate was wrong.

He had still underestimated these wealthy people.

Speaking of which, Lu Yuan is actually also a wealthy person, only...

Speaking of Lu Yuan, he's only just become a wealthy person — really, it's just been half a year.

He still hasn't cultivated the air of a wealthy person; mentally, he's still basically a small-time loser.

Sometimes, it's really impossible to figure out what these rich people are thinking.

Lu Yuan thought, no matter how rich these people are, they'd at most buy just one piece of such clothing.

But Lu Yuan forgot that these wealthy people also have many relatives.

They also need to take it back to share with others — one, to keep in mind their relatives; two, to show off, right?

After all, merchants have a low status in the Great Zhou Dynasty, so they always need to come up with something else to show off.

Moreover, these Qin Island wives also made Lu Yuan realize something: as the railway develops.

This Huangcheng will increasingly have its own unique prosperity, especially due to its status as a political center.

By then, whatever international trade offices, whatever headquarters, will all gather in Huangcheng.

After that, it's estimated that every day wealthy merchants will come to Huangcheng to handle business, and they'll also bring their families.

So, from now on, our shop will definitely never be short-staffed!

As for wanting five young, well-built, pretty girls, that's not really what Lu Yuan has in mind.

After all, to speak frankly, the two most beautiful women in the world are right by my side, and I see them every day.

Now Lu Yuan really has no interest in other women.

It's just that the servers need to be good-looking; otherwise, if you hired a bunch of older women, it wouldn't be classy.

By then, my wife can properly take over as the shopkeeper.

After that, my wife can focus on designing new clothes.

Otherwise, she'd be measuring clothes and making them all day.

Where would my wife find the time for that?

My wife is the proprietress; a proprietress should be lounging with legs crossed, sipping tea, leisurely~

Running around like that — what kind of proprietress is that?

And after Lu Yuan finished speaking, Liu Shoucai's brother-in-law blinked, then immediately nodded and said:

"All right, boss, I'll go find them right away. You rest here; before six tonight, I'll definitely bring people back!"

Lu Yuan then nodded and said:

"Then we'll meet here before six; I have some things to do, so I won't stay here."

After Lu Yuan said that, he pushed his cart out the door.

Lu Yuan still needs to go buy a sewing machine.

……

At noon, Lu Yuan didn't go back to eat; after eating a bowl of knife-cut noodles at a roadside stall, he went straight to the department store and bought three sewing machines.

They were delivered straight to his shop.

They weren't brought in through the front door; they were taken directly in through the back door.

From now on, this partitioned area in the courtyard will be where the embroiderers stay.

……

At night, half past eight.

Finally, everything was done.

Lu Yuan and the three of them returned home together.

For dinner, they ate at the shop; his mother-in-law, waiting at home left and right for everyone who didn't come back, simply cooked a meal and took it over.

At that time, Lu Yuan was training the newly hired staff.

In the end, Lu Yuan's shop was finally settled.

Five embroiderers, monthly wage twenty coins.

Two tailors, just to help cut cloth, monthly wage fifteen coins.

Four servers, two upstairs, two downstairs, monthly wage ten coins.

Plus one who takes measurements, monthly wage ten coins.

From now on, my wife won't need to work at all.

It's not that she does nothing; it's just that after the clothes are made, she still needs to inspect each one carefully.

In short, it's basically quality control, a return to her original line of work.

As for Little Sister Yulan, we'll see where help is needed and have her fill in.

Lu Yuan's shop's monthly wage expenses alone, not counting Little Sister Yulan, come to 180 coins per month.

That's a lot, a lot.

But……

Lu Yuan's family also earns a lot!!

Today alone, they've ordered 230 pieces.

Each piece costs thirty-nine coins, and they're collecting full payment.

In Lu Yuan's household, aside from Lu Yuan being very calm, the three women at home, looking at these gray-green slips worth nearly nine thousand coins, are all faces of disbelief.

This amount of nearly nine thousand coins is naturally not all profit, but after deducting various miscellaneous costs, it's still over five thousand coins.

Five thousand per day.

The key is that this five thousand is from normal operations.

Before, that was people showing up for Lu Yuan's sake.

But this isn't; this is legitimate, relying entirely on skill.

Before this, all the women in the family couldn't believe that this clothing shop could actually earn so much money in a day.

Lu Yuan pondered……

I wonder if I can start preparing to move house!

……

At the same time.

At Yan Chonghui's doorstep, Kang Linfei and Yan Shijin, the two of them, came out.

Kang Linfei and Yan Shijin looked at Yan Chonghui, who had been sent out, and said:

"Tomorrow we'll post a notice, and wait until the day after tomorrow when Qingbei Daxue resumes classes, then the three of us will lecture together!!"

"Let Qingbei Daxue be left with not a single person!!"

Thanks to elder brother Keze 1112 for the 500 book coin reward, thank you very much~

Thanks to book friend 160202 elder brother for the 100 book coin reward, thank you very much~

……

If nothing unexpected were to happen, something unexpected happened.

Brother, I think I've caught it; these past two or three days the updates have been unstable, but I definitely won't stop updating— at least four thousand words a day.

Everyone should also be careful and take precautions; remember to wear a mask when going out.





(End of chapter)