Uncle Lai in the Red Chamber

Chapter 56 Improving added value

The next day!

Lai Shangrong got up from the bed and looked at the sleeping Second Sister You, and couldn't help feeling a little pity.

Last night, he helped Aunt Zhao take Jia Zheng back to her room. Unexpectedly, when she was crossing the threshold of the east courtyard, Aunt Zhao stumbled. In desperation, he did not hesitate to hold her hand.

Aunt Zhao did not blame her for following the urgent matter.

Just like this, she carried Jia Zheng to the back room. Aunt Zhao panted and asked the maid to fetch water, and then she and Lai Shangrong carried Jia Zheng to the bed.

Since the two of them were holding Jia Zheng, in order to make Jia Zheng lie on the bed, Aunt Zhao twisted her body and sent him to the bed. Not wanting to lose her footing, she fell back on the bed, and Jia Zheng rolled to the side.

When the incident happened suddenly, Lai Shangrong was also surrounded by Jia Zheng and lay on top of Aunt Zhao.

In desperation, they didn't care about the inelegant posture. They turned their heads immediately and looked at Jia Zheng who had rolled to the side. They found that he showed no signs of waking up and breathed a sigh of relief.

Feeling the ups and downs under his body, Lai Shangrong regained consciousness for a moment, but it happened to trigger the scene memory of his previous life, and he forgot (reluctantly) to get up for a while.

Aunt Zhao was afraid that she would make a scene and wake up Jia Zheng. She could not explain clearly, so she only dared to struggle lightly under her body to protest. It was not until the footsteps of the maid were heard that Lai Shangrong got up in a hurry, and ran away in the eyes of Aunt Zhao.

After coming back, I ignored Sister You's initial favor, but she had a submissive character, so she could not help but act a little more fiercely.

It's no wonder that he can't control himself. Aunt Zhao has a charming face and enchanting figure, and she is at the age of knowing things. Otherwise, a moral gentleman like Jia Zheng would not stay in her yard for many years.

Of course, Lai Shangrong does not deny that there is the blessing of identity and situation.

Instructing Yuchai to take good care of Second Sister You, he came to the courtyard alone and saw Qingwen with a resentful look on her face.

"Let's go back to the garden today!"

Qingwen agreed with a shy look on her face.

After breakfast, I remembered that the fan that Sanjie You asked for yesterday had not been given to her yet, so I asked Qingwen to get one and send it to her.

I went to Xikuayuan. I heard that my parents went to the Yamen to apply for denaturalization, so I went back to the hospital to do two sets of boxing.

The body is the capital of revolution, Gentle Township Heroes Tomb, secretly awakening, but still can't indulge too much.

Yesterday, I went to a banquet with the Jia family and promised to deregister my parents. Lai Shangrong also took the opportunity to hand over the school errands to Jia Zheng.

Times have changed, and now they are all registered with the emperor. I believe it will not take long for them to be appointed officials. Besides, Qin Keqing has Qin Zhong, a genuine student, so why waste energy on the Jia family.

Just as I was thinking about my future, I heard a report from the front yard saying that my uncle Guo had invited me.

Although nowadays there are people in the Jia family who are used to flattering people and calling them uncle Baoyu, but their family is not the Rong family after all. Lai Shangrong did not dare to neglect to contact the real uncle he met yesterday and hurriedly came to the front yard.

"Young man Li Zhen, my uncle has sent me to invite Young Master Lai to have a gathering at Qingzhu Yayuan."

Lai Shangrong hurriedly asked the coachman Hu Si to drive, and rushed to Qingzhu Yayuan with Li Zhen.

This Qingzhu Yayuan is extremely elegant. When you enter through a circular arch, you will find a winding path leading to the tranquility. On both sides are some yaocao flowers, green pines and green bamboos, and the sound of gurgling water can be heard from the road paved with bluestone slabs.Each fork of the trail leads to an independent courtyard, surrounded by water-marked white stones, surrounded by rockeries and dotted with small bridges and pavilions.

Lai Shangrong followed Li Zhen to the entrance of a courtyard and stepped in. He saw loud music and drums on the stage in the courtyard, and there were several vague figures on the two-story building opposite the stage.

When I came upstairs, the two people sitting there were the same people I had just met yesterday, Uncle Tian Guo and King Zhongshun.

Lai Shangrong stepped forward and saluted: "I have met Prince Zhongshun! Uncle Guo!"

King Zhongshun gave him a false compliment, indicating that he would be excused from the ceremony.Uncle Tian Guo laughed and said, "Master Lai, don't be restrained. You are very knowledgeable at a young age. I'm afraid you will have a lot to do in the future!"

Then he said to Li Zhen: "When Mr. Lai comes over in the future, remember to say hello!"

Looking at the posture, Lai Shangrong estimated that Qingzhu Yayuan was Tian Guojiu's property, so he quickly said a few words of humility and took a seat at Tian Guojiu's signal.

"I learned a lot from Mr. Lai's words yesterday! My lord and I invited you over to ask for advice!"

"Uncle Guo is too polite, but I don't dare to ask for advice. Why don't you ask students to help me with the details?"

Judging from yesterday's situation, both King Zhongshun and Tian Guojiu were close associates of the emperor, and they would certainly not miss the opportunity to show their kindness.

King Zhongshun said: "In recent years, the demand for silk in Western Yi has increased significantly. I am thinking that if your share-sharing model is implemented in the Weaving Bureau, wouldn't it be possible to earn more money from the Western Yi people? But the Weaving Bureau is an internal affairs after all. The government's property cannot be divided into profit shares, so I called you because I hope you can come up with a compromise."

"This……"

Lai Shangrong was in a dilemma. Silk production could not be expanded simply by expanding its production. Raw materials were the biggest problem.

Raising silkworms requires a large amount of mulberry leaves. In his previous life, he had watched a TV series in which people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang were forced to switch from rice to mulberry in order to produce more silk. This would inevitably lead to local food shortages.

In ancient times, transportation was not as convenient as modern society, and the weather was smooth. However, if there was a natural disaster, people would be in dire straits.

Moreover, the concept of fertilizers was vague in ancient times. Even farmland was divided into three categories: upper, middle, and lower. The farmland that was truly suitable for growing rice and wheat was not actually abundant.

If he had to disregard the life and death of the people in order to meet King Zhongshun, he would not be able to overcome the hurdle in his heart.

But there is no need to offend, we can only resort to roundabout tactics.

"Actually, the prince wants to increase silk production just to make more money. In fact, there is no need to spend so much effort."

"Oh? What do you say?"

"There are many gold shops in the capital, but the jewelry made by Deyutang is much more expensive than others. Has the prince ever thought about the reason behind this?"

"Of course, the workmanship and style are good, and it is an old shop with a long history, so its reputation is guaranteed!"

"Then why can't we make a fuss about this and raise the price of silk?"

Although Lai Shangrong also wants to engage in hunger marketing, it will inevitably increase the price of Daxia Silk. If the operation is not done well, he is afraid of backlash, which can only lead to King Zhongshun to develop a brand concept.

"We just need to give the silk produced by the Weaving Bureau a nice name, and then give it a name exclusive to the royal nobles. Then we will tell those Western merchants that this is produced by our Daxia Royal Imperial Workshop, and we want to raise the price by [-]%. It shouldn’t be difficult!”

After thinking for a while, he continued: "Well! It's best to publish an article introducing the Weaving Bureau in the Di Bao. It's best to be easy to understand. Send it to those Western merchants and take it back to promote the sale!"

The ancients were not without brand awareness, but those time-honored brands were spread by word of mouth and had unique workmanship. Hype gimmicks were their blind spot.

However, as a modern person, Lai Shangrong does not lack this understanding. In that time and space, the West purchased silk and porcelain in large quantities, and even regarded them as status symbols. This is no different from what you can imagine in this time and space.

Although silk is already a luxury product, luxury goods also have different grades. Anyone with a high status in Daxia silk products can wear them. The Western Yi people don't understand the difference, but they do understand the privileges of the royal family and the nobility.

King Zhongshun was doubtful and looked at Uncle Tian Guo.

"Wonderful! Your Majesty, I don't know. I have had a lot of dealings with the Western Yi people in recent years. They are very concerned about the names of the royal family and nobles. Maybe you can give it a try!"

(End of this chapter)