Chapter 44

Hearing the voice, Chen Zhi turned around and saw that the person coming was Gao Yuci, whom he met a few days ago.

"Mr. Gao, thank you for coming to support us. Come in, I have prepared good tea." Chen Zhi greeted with a smile.

Gao Yuci also bowed, "Today's opening ceremony is so lively, I think the business will be booming in the future."

The two exchanged greetings and went into the store together.

At this time, Xu Shu and Yu Guang caught a glimpse of Gao Yuci, so they handed the customers over to other people to serve and went over to greet Gao Yuci.

"Mr. Gao."

"Mrs. Chen." Gao Yuci returned the greeting. At the end, he glanced back and forth between Chen Zhi and Xu Shuhe, and said with a smile, "It's a great day today. You two are both rosy-cheeked and in high spirits. Standing together, you are a perfect match, a talented man and a beautiful woman."

Xu Shuhe Wanmei smiled, "Mr. Gao is really good at praising people. We are embarrassed. Today is the opening day. If you don't mind, you can pick a few sets of clothes and fabrics from this store and take them back. You can wear them yourself or give them to the women in your family. It will be considered a gift from my husband and wife!"

Upon hearing this, Gao Yuci waved his hands.

"I came here to show my support to you two and brought you gifts. How can I take your things back? If there is another opportunity in the future, I will bring my family to Qizhou for a visit."

"That's good. Qizhou is close to the capital. After we are done with this busy period, we plan to go to Beijing to visit our relatives." Xu Shuhe said.

After Lin Hui returned to the Zhou family, she quickly sent a message back saying that the old lady of the Zhou family was fine and that it would not be too late for them to pay their respects in Beijing after they finished their current tasks.

After hearing this, Gao Yuci hurriedly said that he would treat them well when they arrived in Beijing.

After chatting for a few words, Chen Zhi took Gao Yuci to the private room in the shop to drink tea. Xu Shuhe did not go because she wanted to stay outside to observe the sales situation in the store.

Today's passenger flow is several times that of usual days.

Firstly, the sound of firecrackers and gongs and drums attracted a lot of people, and secondly, it was the models that Xu Shuhe sent out.

These specially trained girls, wearing new clothes from Yunshang Pavilion, walked on the street and attracted a lot of people. Many women came to ask where the clothes were bought. In addition, they would deliberately mention the name of Yunshang Pavilion in their conversations, so that those who were embarrassed to ask would know where to buy them.

Then there is the so-called queuing effect.

Because the store was reopened, many regular customers were invited to come and see the new products, so the store was very lively. People outside saw it and were curious, so they all came in to have a look.

Shopkeeper Zhou, who was collecting the money, smiled so hard that his eyes were almost narrowed into slits.

Xu Shuhe was also happy. After all, this was a store she had built with her own hands after spending a lot of time and effort.

After calming himself down, he went back to entertaining customers.

At that time, in the room, Chen Zhi accompanied Gao Yuci to drink a cup of tea. When he was about to come out to help, he was stopped by Gao Yuci with a question.

"Brother Chen, I have been in Qizhou for a few days. I wonder if there are any iron ore businesses here. Do you have any news?"

"Iron ore business?" Chen Zhiben was about to stand up, but sat back down again and thought about it carefully. "As far as I know, there is no such thing. There is no iron ore in Qizhou City."

When he said this, Gao Yuci nodded slightly, but then a look of doubt appeared on his face.

"I have never heard of iron mines in Qizhou City, but I met some people doing iron mine business in Beijing. They said they had mines from Qizhou, and the price was much cheaper than other places. This is strange."

"Could it be an illegal mine?" Chen Zhi frowned.

Nowadays, most mines are controlled by the court, but the court also allows people to open mines themselves. However, these private mines need to pay very high taxes. Apart from other things, just the net income is taxed at 10% for iron and copper mines, and 20% for gold and silver mines. Moreover, 80% of the mineral products must be sold to the court, and the remaining 20% ​​can be sold to ordinary people. However, the purchase quantity per person is also limited, and written receipts must be left when buying and selling for regular inspection by the government.

This is normal. Iron ore is related to weapons manufacturing, so the imperial court naturally has strict control over it.

Gao Yuci was surprised after hearing what Chen Zhi said. "This is no joke. If it is mined privately, both the buyer and the seller will be guilty and will be beheaded."

"Of course I know that. But if it is really a mine from Qizhou, then there must be something fishy. I have never heard of any mine in Qizhou City. If Brother Gao wants to buy a mine, you'd better be careful and don't get involved in a lawsuit." Chen Zhi's face was serious.

After he said this, Gao Yuci nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

Chen Zhi also excused himself and went out to entertain other guests.

Gao Yuci sat for another stick of incense and bought some cloth before leaving. Xu Shuhe wanted to send him off, but he refused to accept the money, so he had no choice but to take it.

"What did Mr. Gao talk to you about?" Xu Shuhe asked Chen Zhi quietly after everyone left.

Chen Zhi frowned, "Nothing else matters, except that he mentioned the iron ore business. But strangely enough, I haven't heard of any mines in Qizhou City. I even advised him to be careful and not to buy private mines that have not been approved by the government and get into trouble."

"He is involved in the iron ore business. It seems that Mr. Gao's family background is indeed good." Xu Shuhe pondered, and finally patted Chen Zhi on the shoulder, "I think he is quite well-educated, not like those people who are arrogant and look down on others. If we can make friends, it will definitely be beneficial. You can also help pay more attention to his affairs."

In fact, Xu Shuhe didn't need to remind him of this. After spending some time with Gao Yuci today, Chen Zhi also felt that this was a good person and worth making friends with.

So at this moment, he nodded and said, "Don't worry."

"Well, I'm a little tired. I'll go to the back to rest. You take care of the front. We're opening today, and nothing can go wrong." Xu Shuhe moved his shoulders and neck.

Serving customers is also very tiring and my face becomes stiff from smiling.

Upon hearing this, Chen Zhi immediately said, "Go and have a rest. Manager Zhou and I are here, so nothing will happen."

Xu Shuhe nodded, gave a few more instructions and went to the back.

After she left, Chen Zhi thought about it and called Zhang Ping over.

"Go outside and buy some cakes and food and bring them to the young lady."

"Is the young lady hungry?" Zhang Ping asked casually.

Chen Zhi raised his eyes and looked at him, "Talk less and do more."

"Yes!" Zhang Ping felt something tight on his back, and he quickly responded and ran out.

Soon, the small round table in front of Xu Shuhe was filled with food.

I got up early today and was busy the whole morning, so I was a little hungry.

Xu Shuhe praised while eating, "Zhang Ping, you are so thoughtful."

"No, no, the young master told me to buy these." Zhang Ping scratched his head embarrassedly.

"Oh, then thank the young master for me."

I’m enjoying the meal, Xu Shuhe blurted out.

Zhang Ping responded, walked out of the room and told Chen Zhi.

Chen Zhi just laughed after hearing this, thinking that between husband and wife, they were quite polite to each other.

After a busy day, when the store closed at night, everyone looked at the abacus in Manager Zhou's hand with anticipation and nervousness.

When the last bead was moved to the correct position, Shopkeeper Zhou was surprised and delighted.

"Three times, today's profit is three times more than usual!"

"Is it really three times?" Xu Shuhe's eyes were full of surprise.

Shopkeeper Zhou nodded repeatedly, "No doubt about it, it's three times!"

After getting this definite answer, Xu Shuhe was so happy that he turned around, grabbed Chen Zhi's arm and shook it excitedly.

"We succeeded, we did it, good luck with the opening!"

“Yes, we did.”

Chen Zhi responded with a smile, looking at the woman in front of him, a soft light unconsciously appeared in his eyes.

(End of this chapter)