Chapter 404 An unexpected success
However, Han Yu and Su Wenyue both showed up as guests. Although the status of merchants in the Daming Dynasty was relatively higher than that of the previous dynasty, they were only higher than the lower class. Moreover, in the upper class, business and property purchases were all done in private. Han Yu and Su Wenyue also wanted to make a fortune in a low-key manner.
There were only a few auspicious times, especially when opening a business. It was necessary to choose an auspicious time and the right time. Chen Li's department store happened to choose the same time as Su Wenyue's, and the two stores opened at the same time.
It can be said that Chen Li had done a lot of preparation before, including the banquet a few days ago, which was all prepared to make the new store famous. It was indeed effective. Although she did not win over a few ladies in the upper class, some housewives of small families in the lower class were very interested in the things in Chen Li's department store. After all, they were in a position, and most of them were not very wealthy. For example, the things in Tianya Pavilion were good, but they were a bit expensive, not as affordable as Lixiu Department Store. Although the quality of the things in Lixiu Department Store was a bit poor, they could still accept the price.
If it were any other day, Chen Li's department store would have attracted many people to come and support it. But Chen Li chose the same day as Su Wenyue, and even the opening time was the same. Even if the housewives of those small families were more willing to go to Lixiu Department Store to buy things, they went to Tianya Pavilion, just because Tianya Pavilion was of a different level. There might be many nobles coming today when it opened. It would be nice if they could take the opportunity to make friends with a few noble ladies.
Less than a street away, the firecrackers were set off and it was very lively. They could hear the sound of firecrackers from each other, but after the firecrackers, one side was bustling and prosperous, while the other side was deserted.
"Mrs. Han really came today, and Lord Han accompanied her. Mrs. Han is so lucky." Su Wenyue was beautiful and conspicuous, and with the help of the search of the attentive people, she quickly recognized the person and went up to chat. The tone of her words was full of compliments, but she was also really envious. Nowadays, how many men are willing to give up their time and face to accompany their wives shopping?
Su Wenyue smiled and nodded. Those who came today were giving her money to earn, so she naturally had to greet them with a smile. She said to Madam Li in a very kind and friendly tone: "Madam Li is also here at Tianya Pavilion today, what a coincidence!"
"Tianya Pavilion is open today, and everything you buy is half-price. I have to pick carefully. Thanks to Madam Han for introducing such a good place to us, the things here are all exquisite and unique. Not to mention our Yiyang Prefecture, even Daming Dynasty is unique. The price is too expensive. Even if it is half-price for the first few days, it is much more expensive than the things in ordinary shops. It is not affordable for ordinary people."
Madam Li is a straightforward person. She said what she thought directly. Su Wenyue was not angry. She was originally in the business of "slaughtering people". The profit is not as simple as one or two times. What she wants is the evaluation of the word "expensive". The more expensive and rare things are, the more they can become the cost of those noble ladies to show off.
Before Su Wenyue could speak, the noble lady next to her seemed to look down upon what Madam Li said, and spoke with a hint of sarcasm: "Good things are naturally expensive. Everything has different grades. Just like today, two shops opened at the same time. The people who came to Tianya Pavilion were all upper-class noble ladies, while those who went to Lixiu Department Store were some poor civilians. If you think it's too expensive, you can go to Lixiu Department Store. Although the things there are not as good as those in Tianya Pavilion, they are cheaper."
The one who spoke was Madam Li's enemy, so her words were not polite at all, and the sarcasm was full. In order to show something, she deliberately used Chen Li's department store as a negative foil.
Su Wenyue actually didn't like the aggressive tone of this woman, and her self-righteous look, but these words were just what she wanted. Many noble ladies present heard these words, which also defined Tianya Pavilion and Chen Li's Lixiu Department Store.
Mrs. Li was choked with anger, but what the other person said was not completely unreasonable. Good things are naturally worth the price. In fact, she herself thought so. She just sighed because the prices of things in Tianya Pavilion were too high. Who knew that this person heard it and said so many things.
Mrs. Li was well-mannered, and in front of Su Wenyue and so many people, she just did not look good, so she just snorted coldly, and then started to buy a lot, proving with her actions that she could afford good things.
However, Mrs. Li was a little bit painful at the beginning, but when she took a closer look at the things on the shelves, she felt that they were really worth the money, especially the ones on the shelves of Western foreign vassal states. Those were all authentic Western goods. Although they looked expensive, they would not be much cheaper if they were bought elsewhere. What’s more important is that the things here are indeed better than those in other shops. In a word, what kind of goods are worth what kind of price.
"Ah! These are goods specially supplied to the royal family and nobles in the West. Although there is no exclusive mark of the Western royal family on them, I have seen the style and material of this box. It is definitely supplied to the royal family." A lady among the noble ladies who was dressed quite gorgeously and noble said with certainty. The reason why she said so was that she had obtained things from the Western royal family by chance before, and wanted to show off in front of everyone, so she expressed her judgment.
"Really? How is this possible? How can things that are exclusively supplied to the Western royal family appear here? And I see that all the goods on the shelves are from the same batch. If this is true, the boss behind Tianya Pavilion is too powerful."
"It's probably right. I have a distant relative who specializes in overseas business. Although the system in the West is different from ours, there are still loopholes. We can also get the things that are exclusively supplied to the palace in the Daimyo Dynasty, but we just lack the reputation of being used by the emperor. These things must be the same. Although they are a batch of goods exclusively supplied to the royal family, they are not engraved with the exclusive icons of the Western royal family for convenience."
If one person says this, everyone will still be a little skeptical. If two or three people say this, it basically sounds like the truth to everyone.
Su Wenyue was ashamed. Fortunately, she was hiding behind the scenes, otherwise it would be really embarrassing. The "Western goods" made by her subordinates have now become the exclusive supply to the royal family of the Western foreign vassal. This misunderstanding is a bit big. In fact, the reason why Su Wenyue designed the style like this is that she had seen some fine products bought from Chen Li's shop before, and also checked the Western information. Now, can this be considered a blessing in disguise?