"Alright, then you can go ahead and do it. I'll only charge you the wholesale price for each bamboo stalk, 30 wen. How many do you plan to get?" Bai Sheng could have given the bamboo from her spatial dimension for free, but she didn't want them to develop a habit of dependence or idleness, so she decided to handle it properly.
"Let's start with 50 stalks. If we need more later, we'll buy from sister-in-law again," Lu Yun couldn't hide his excitement.
Bai Sheng nodded and said with a calm expression, "Alright. I'll contact the bamboo merchants and try to get them to deliver the goods as soon as possible."
Lu Yun blushingly asked, "Sister-in-law, we don't have much capital right now. Could we buy on credit? Don't worry, I'll give you ten percent interest, and we'll repay both the principal and interest by the end of next month."
This young man was quite confident about his ability to earn money. Bai Sheng chuckled, "Fine, just make sure your accountant keeps good records."
Lu Yun joyfully exclaimed, "Xiao Yu, make a note. Today we are buying 50 bamboo stalks from sister-in-law, 30 wen each, for a total of 1500 wen. With ten percent interest, we will repay the principal and interest by the end of next month."
Xiao Yu took out paper and pen and recorded it diligently.
Bai Sheng felt a little comforted. These five children actually had an accountant; it was quite well-organized.
The next day, Lu Yun and the others saw dozens of lush, vibrant large bamboo stalks piled up in the woods behind the west courtyard.
Lu Yun rejoiced inwardly. She knew her sister-in-law was incredibly capable! She had managed to have the bamboo delivered by the merchants overnight!
When Uncle Quazi received the bamboo, he was astonished. The bamboo had excellent toughness and a rich, fragrant bamboo scent.
He had never seen such fine bamboo in his life. If he were to make a stone bow, this would be the perfect material.
"Yun Zai, where did you buy this bamboo? It's really excellent!" Uncle Quazi was quite curious.
Lu Yun proudly replied, "My sister-in-law helped us buy it. I told my sister-in-law that we wanted to make toys to sell, and she agreed."
Uncle Quazi smiled as he watched Lu Yun's animated expression, "Your sister-in-law is quite good to you."
"Of course! My sister-in-law treats us like our own mother," Lu Yun said, beaming with happiness.
Seeing that her second brother and Uncle Quazi were talking about their sister-in-law, Lu Yu, with her short legs, ran over excitedly and said, "Uncle Quazi, my sister-in-law is both capable and beautiful, and she's incredibly good to us. My sister-in-law is the most beautiful and best person in the world! I love my sister-in-law the most!"
Uncle Quazi laughed heartily at Lu Yu's excited demeanor.
He thought to himself that if a family's morals were not upright, and if family members were constantly scheming against each other and relationships were disharmonious, such sensible children could not be raised.
Tianya couldn't stay out of it either. He had a lot to say about his Shiniang, so he joined them and started talking about how wonderful his Shiniang was.
Tian Dou and Tie Zhu also wanted to express their intense affection for their eldest aunt, but seeing the three brothers chattering and vying with each other, they couldn't get a word in.
Never mind, their affection for their eldest aunt would remain in their hearts.
Bai Sheng then asked Lu Ye to buy two more people from the agency.
She would need more staff for the future women's goods shop and planned to have Lu Hua, Ga Mei, and Qing Feng replaced.
Initially, Bai Sheng had brought Lu Hua and Ga Mei to the capital to train them, allow them to see the world, and accumulate experience in business management, laying the foundation for them to manage the women's goods shop in the future.
Qing Feng was only helping out temporarily and was also there to ensure Lu Hua and Ga Mei's safety. What Qing Feng wanted to do in the future was entirely up to his own wishes.
Bai Sheng dared not make any demands on her Shixiong.
Since Qing Feng loved music, Bai Sheng bought him various musical instruments and scores.
When Qing Feng had free time, he would play the qin and the flute in the pavilion by the lotus pond, bringing romantic music to the large house.
Whenever Ga Mei had time, she would secretly hide aside and steal glances at Qing Feng.
The lotus leaves were verdant, the lotus flowers a delicate pink. Qing Feng sat in the pavilion, his robes fluttering, playing the qin with rapturous devotion, his posture as if he were an immortal.
The more Ga Mei watched, the more infatuated she became, and the more she felt the gap between herself and Qing Feng.
However, she did not lose heart. She remembered what her eldest aunt had told her: "If you bloom, butterflies will come to you."
She, Sun Ga Mei, no, Sun Ming Yue! She had to strive to improve herself and become the most radiant lotus in front of Qing Feng!
She wanted the name Sun Ming Yue to suit her perfectly!
Ga Mei marched back with determination to continue studying the《The Art of Shop Management》that had been making her head spin. She was determined to conquer it!
The two young servants Lu Ye had recently purchased were both in their teens. Bai Sheng, following her old habit of naming people, named them Lu Cai and Lu Fan respectively.
After a few days of training by Wang Da Fa and Qing Feng, Fan and Cai, along with Ding Shu's son Ding Lei, began working at the grain and fruit shops.
Ding Lei went to replace Lu Hua's position and started working at the grain shop with Wang Da Fa. Fan and Cai went to replace Ga Mei and Qing Feng.
Ding Lei was incredibly excited. He was determined to become a very capable head shopkeeper in the future!
For their first meal at the Lu family, Lu Fan and Lu Cai ate until they were stuffed, and the food they ate was unlike anything they had ever tasted before.
They both felt they had struck gold by being bought by such a good family.
To leave a good impression on their masters and never be sold a second time by their new masters, they both dedicated themselves to performing their duties diligently.
The women's goods shop would primarily be managed by Lu Hua and Ga Mei in the future. Whenever Bai Sheng went out on errands, she would bring them along so they could see and learn more, broaden their horizons, and accumulate experience and knowledge.
Additionally, Bai Sheng planned to have Ding Shu's daughter, Ding Xiang, help at the women's goods shop, so she was also cultivating her, having her learn alongside Lu Hua and Ga Mei.
Ding Xiang had already gotten along well with Lu Hua and Ga Mei. Lu Hua was steady, Ga Mei was lively, and Ding Xiang was honest. All of them were around twelve or thirteen years old, and the three of them got along exceptionally well.
Lu Hua and Ga Mei asked Ding Xiang to move her bedding to the west courtyard and sleep in the same room as them.
Ding Xiang was overjoyed and immediately ran back to ask her parents for permission. Uncle Ding and Aunt Ding were naturally delighted and readily agreed.
With a companion, the three girls had more laughter and joy. They always studied literacy and arithmetic together, learned business management, and went everywhere together, even to eat, sleep, and use the latrine.
Uncle Ding and Aunt Ding watched with great satisfaction.
The shop that Bai Sheng had asked the agency to scout finally had some promising leads.
Dou Ya Ren from "Jingye Agency" ran over breathlessly, urging Bai Sheng to go and take a look quickly. The owner had only recently released the shop, and if she went late, she might lose it to someone else.
Their competitor, "Baiye Agency," had already gotten wind of the shop as well.
Without a second thought, Bai Sheng grabbed Lu Ye and followed him immediately.
The shop was on Qingliu Street. While it wasn't in the most bustling area, its other conditions met Bai Sheng's requirements.
The entire shop front was in the style of a pailou (archway), giving it a grand presence. It had three floors, and such a tall building was rare even in the capital.
The area on each floor was also sufficiently large, and the windows, when opened, allowed bright light and excellent ventilation.