Chapter 102: Clinging Like a Vengeful Spirit
A few days later, amid the crackling of firecrackers, the shop across the street opened for business.
Su Yaoguang and the others heard the sound of firecrackers and rushed across the street to scout out the competition.
At that moment, a crowd had already gathered, making it impossible to move. They pushed their way through for a long time before finally getting in, where they saw the sign in front of them and the mother and daughter standing at the shop entrance.
"Dear neighbors, please excuse us, please excuse us. Our shop opened in a hurry and might be a bit plain, so please don’t be too critical," Zhong Lanhua, dressed flamboyantly, waved her scented handkerchief and said with a coy smile full of charm, "Our shop is called Fenghua Pavilion, primarily selling rouge and powder, various new-style garments, shoes and socks, and women’s personal items, with a wide variety available. Today is our grand opening, everything is 50% off, you must not miss this rare opportunity."
Jiang Yihuan softly added to the side, "We have a three-day promotion for our grand opening. During these three days, everything is 50% off, and prices will return to normal afterwards. But feel free to check us out, our prices are very fair, you won’t find a cheaper shop than ours anywhere else."
The onlookers were immediately intrigued.
This new shop not only promised low prices but also a wide variety of items, offering clothes, shoes and socks, women’s personal items, and rouge all in one place, saving them a lot of trouble.
Most importantly, not only are the proprietress and her daughter beautiful, but even the young attendants they hired are good-looking girls and boys. Who doesn’t like attractive people? Men like pretty girls, women like handsome young men. Now, when buying clothes or grooming products, you’re also served by attractive people, making one even more eager to browse around a bit longer.
Zhang Zhaodi glared with bloodshot eyes at Zhong Lanhua in anger, "Damn it, this haunting witch! I clearly investigated and it wasn’t supposed to be her, so why is it her after all?"
"We are wary of her, so naturally, she will be wary of us too. If we had known in advance that the shop across the street was leased by them, we would never have let them have the chance to open. She knows this, so she deliberately kept it secret until their official opening when we can do nothing against them. Mom, you’ve suffered at her hands all these years, and it hasn’t been undeserved."
Both Zhong Lanhua and Jiang Yihuan are much more cunning than Zhang Zhaodi. Zhang Zhaodi’s courage is reckless and without strategy, unable to hurt them fundamentally.
"They’re just doing it on purpose. Whatever we sell, they sell too, leaving us no room to live." Zhang Zhaodi was about to explode with anger.
Zhong Lanhua noticed Zhang Zhaodi and her daughter and laughed sharply, "Oh my, look who it is. Isn’t this the proprietress of Taoyao Square opposite us? How do you have the time to visit our store? Could it be that you don’t have any business? We honestly didn’t mean to steal your customers; it’s just that customers know where the better goods are."
"Zhong Lanhua, don’t get complacent," Zhang Zhaodi angrily turned away to leave.
Jia Chunni glared furiously at Zhong Lanhua, "Wicked woman, your goods must be terrible. Just wait for the day you can’t keep your shop running."
Su Yaoguang did not leave nor get angry; instead, she watched Zhong Lanhua and her daughter thoughtfully.
"You’re not leaving; don’t tell me you actually want to shop here?" Jiang Yihuan raised an eyebrow and looked at her provocatively.
"You’ve followed me from the village to the city, how could I not show support for such deep affection? Since you so wish for me to take a look inside, I’ll go and have a look, just consider it an act of charity to you two," Su Yaoguang said as she headed towards the shop.
Jiang Yihuan didn’t expect her to actually try to enter, and was immediately unhappy. She blocked Su Yaoguang from taking a step into ’Fenghua Pavilion.’
"I think it’s better if you don’t go in. Who knows what you’re plotting?"
"Afraid of me going in, huh? If there’s nothing to hide, why the fear?"
"We’re open for business, what is there to be guilty about? I’m just worried you’ll use some trick to harm us. Su Yaoguang, you and I have long been like two tigers that cannot coexist on the same mountain."
"Jiang Yihuan, you really are a haunting spirit. However, I’m quite curious about what tricks you and your mother are up to," Su Yaoguang said, turning away.
Su Yaoguang and the others returned to Taoyao Square.
The usually bustling Taoyao Square for the first time in days had an empty store situation.
"I can’t understand it, I really can’t. Zhong Lanhua and that Jiang Yihuan only know how to do some needlework, and their embroidery skills are just so-so, right? I’ve never heard of them being able to make rouge and powder, so how did they open such a shop to compete with us? Did that mother and daughter learn from someone while we were not returning to the village?" Zhang Zhaodi said angrily, pacing back and forth in the room.
"They don’t need to know how to do it themselves; they can hire a craftsman to make it. They only need to manage the shop," Su Yaoguang said, "The shop across the street is very large, twice the size of ours, and they sell a wide variety, with everything complete from head to toe except for gold and silver jewelry. If you want to buy clothes, you can just take a stroll inside and not only buy clothes but other things as well. With just a couple of incidental purchases, business won’t be too bad. I must say, they do have some skills."
"I have to find out what their goods are like. If their goods can’t compare with ours, those loyal customers will return very soon," Zhang Zhaodi said.
"Ying’er has already gone out to handle this. We’ll know what their goods are like when she returns," Wang Huanzhi said from the side, "Sister, don’t let it get the best of you."
Zhang Yingdi came in from outside, carrying a basket filled with various bottles and jars.
"I bought this from a customer at twice the price," Zhang Yingdi said, "Even at double price, it only cost five taels of silver in total."
Zhang Zhaodi took the items out one by one, trying them out, and complained, "They are far inferior to what Yaoguang makes."
"They are significantly inferior, but they’re cheap! All these bottles and jars combined make up ten in total, and they only sell for two taels and five cents of silver," Su Yaoguang said, "Moreover, although these grooming products can’t match ours, they’re much better than those from other stores and much cheaper too. For the average people, this is the kind of price they’re willing to bear."
"We sell at higher prices because we use top-quality materials. Some of the face cream even contains various ingredients for scar removal and blemish reduction. If used long-term, won’t it take years off their appearance?" Zhang Zhaodi said defiantly, "Their stuff might be cheap, but it’s barely usable."
"Ordinary folks don’t care about such details. They only know where it’s cheaper, and that’s where they’ll buy from. Those willing to spend will always be in the minority," Su Yaoguang said.