Chapter 75: Suspicions
While Su Yaoguang was booking a table for Zhou Wangshu, Jiang Jing hurriedly drove an ox cart to the Clothing Shop to pick up Boss Lady Chun’e. By the time they arrived, the dishes ordered had already been served.
Today, after receiving the remaining payment, everyone was happy, and Su Yaoguang ordered a lot of good dishes to celebrate. He initially wanted to order wine, but then remembered they had to drive the ox cart back to the village, and Zhang Zhaodi thought the wine at the restaurant was several times more expensive than buying elsewhere, so it wasn’t worth it. They planned to buy wine from the winery later and enjoy it at home that night.
Before parting, Chun’e suddenly said, "Oh, right, a little beggar came looking for you just now. He said he’s found the information you wanted and is waiting for you at the abandoned temple."
"Thanks, Sister Chun’e, I know," said Su Yaoguang, taking out a pouch and handing it over. "We still need you to help sell the rest of our goods."
"You don’t have to be so formal with me. It’s no trouble at all. To be honest, when customers come to buy your goods, we also sell quite a few clothes from our shop."
After Chun’e left, Zhang Zhaodi asked, "Daughter, who is that little beggar Chun’e mentioned?"
"I asked a little beggar on the roadside to gather some information for me. Mother, you go shopping first, I’ll head to the abandoned temple," Su Yaoguang said.
"It’s not very safe for you to go to such a place alone. Let Chunni go with you," Zhang Pandi suggested. "Chunni is strong and can give you a hand if needed."
Jia Chunni might be strong, but she’s not stronger than Su Yaoguang. However, sometimes an extra pair of hands is needed, so having someone accompany her is not a bad idea.
The sisters arrived at the abandoned temple, where the little beggar named Feng Chaoyang was waiting by the door. Seeing them, he eagerly approached, "Sister, you’re here."
"You said you found the information I wanted. Tell me about it."
"Sister instructed me to watch for that fat uncle at the gate. He soon came out with people but didn’t leave the city. Instead, he went to a Rouge Shop."
"That Rouge Shop is the largest in the city, Jinle Square," the little beggar added.
"Cousin, is that Boss Li a fraud?" Jia Chunni, who understood what was happening, asked. "Why would Jinle Square buy our cosmetics?"
"Is that fat uncle the owner of Jinle Square?" Su Yaoguang asked the little beggar.
"No, he is not. The owner of Jinle Square is a young man," the little beggar replied. "That fat uncle is just an errand runner."
Su Yaoguang took out a string of Copper Coins and handed it to Feng Chaoyang, "Take it and share it with your people."
"Sister, if you need us for errands in the future, just let us know." Feng Chaoyang gladly accepted the Copper Coins.
"I really do have more errands for you to run..."
After leaving the abandoned temple, Jia Chunni still couldn’t understand why the largest Rouge Shop would want to buy their goods. Su Yaoguang led her to the entrance of Jinle Square.
Standing in front of the largest Rouge Shop, they looked at the customers coming and going, then at the disdainful expressions. They took Jia Chunni to a nearby Clothing Shop, where they each bought a decent dress, changed their shoes and socks, and used the changing area to apply exquisite makeup. They then donned veil hats and returned to the shop entrance.
At this moment, Feng Chaoyang arrived out of breath, holding a box.
"Sister, I’ve brought you the things you needed."
Su Yaoguang handed him a pancake she bought earlier from a stall, "Thank you. I’ll properly thank you another day. I have important matters to attend to today."
With that, she asked Jia Chunni to hold the box and led her towards the entrance of Jinle Square.
Feng Chaoyang watched as Su Yaoguang’s figure disappeared into the shop. Several little beggars ran over and asked Feng Chaoyang, "Boss, what did the kind sister say?"
"She bought us pancakes. Guys, let’s split them. She also gave me a hundred cents so we each get five cents," Feng Chaoyang said.
The little beggars cheered.
Five cents might be small change for ordinary people, but for them, it could last ten days or half a month.
"Honored guests, please come inside. We have a new product launched with discounts today. Don’t miss this great opportunity!" A boy at the door greeted them with a smile.
"Wow..." Jia Chunni exclaimed, looking at the luxurious decoration, then at the crowded shop. "With so many customers, they must be making a lot of money!"
"Honored guests, I wonder what you need, so I can better introduce it to you," a female clerk greeted them with a smile.
"I heard you have a new product. Since there’s an event today, I’d like to see how the goods are," Su Yaoguang said.
"Of course, it’s excellent. You see over there, that’s where the crowd is. They’re all customers buying the new product," the female clerk pointed out.
"There are so many people, huh? I don’t like waiting in line. Why don’t you bring it to me to try? If I find it good, I don’t mind paying extra."
"Alright, please wait a moment."
The female clerk brought over a large wooden box, and when opened, it was filled with an assortment of items, ranging from skincare to makeup essentials—everything one could need.
"This is our new product today. Sold separately, it originally costs 80 taels, but now it’s only 50 taels for the whole set."
Su Yaoguang opened a porcelain bottle, brought it to her nose to smell it—it was a familiar scent.
She opened several porcelain bottles in succession. All had familiar scents and familiar formulas. However, the porcelain bottles were different from hers; Jinle Square’s bottles had their logo and were clearly more refined.
In fact, she also left a unique mark in her own porcelain bottles. The inside of the bottle had the word ’Su,’ and the bottle’s surface had the words ’Taoyao.’
She had already thought of the name of the shop she was planning to open. It would be called ’Taoyao Square.’
Jia Chunni tugged at Su Yaoguang’s sleeve, "Cousin, what’s wrong?"
Suppressing her anger, Su Yaoguang loudly said, "Oh, this is great stuff, but isn’t the price a bit off? I bought the same set of goods from another place, and it only cost 25 taels. Why is it so expensive here?"
Jinle Square had already invited their regular customers to do some publicity, hoping to make a big profit. With Su Yaoguang speaking so loudly, everyone turned to look.
The female clerk sensed something was wrong and wanted to stop Su Yaoguang from speaking, but before she could, Jia Chunni blocked her from getting close to Su Yaoguang.
"You’re talking nonsense! How could it be the same but half the price?"
Su Yaoguang took the box from Jia Chunni’s hand and opened it. Inside, there were 25 bottles of various sizes, ranging from different face cream scents to various fragrances, and even the eyebrow powder, rouge, lipstick, and shampoo were of the same material and scent.
Everyone realized that from the boxed set Su Yaoguang held to Jinle Square’s boxed set, although the porcelain bottles inside were different, the materials were identical, clearly the same goods.
"This ’Taoyao’ is a new product promoted by a newly opened ’Su’s,’ made according to traditional formulas. Jinle Square must be making theirs based on traditional formulas too, which is why it’s identical to Taoyao Square’s goods. But Taoyao is a new shop, trying to attract customers, so they are selling it at cost for only 25 taels a set!"