Black Han entered the courtyard and bowed respectfully to Wang Yang. "Young Master."
"Has the folding fan business run into trouble?"
Wang Yang had previously sent Black Han to work with Shopkeeper Luo of the fan shop on the folding fan business. He had heard things were going smoothly, but since Black Han had sought out Chen Qing Shan today, something must have gone wrong.
Black Han replied, "Yes, but nothing too serious. That fellow Luo secretly joined forces with several workshops to stir up trouble and raise the price. I figured I'd still have to work with him afterward, so I couldn't openly fall out with him. You hadn't returned yet, Young Master, so I asked Miss Chen to go keep them in line. Thanks to her, it's already settled!"
"Did you use force?"
Black Han hastily said, "No, no! How could we use force without your orders? Miss Chen just went to show them where you stood. She barely had to say anything-just put on a cold face and scare them a little. Then I smoothed things over..."
Wang Yang understood at once and smiled. "You've even learned to play red face and white face. Not bad."
"Huh?" Black Han looked bewildered.
Although theatrical performances existed at the time, Peking opera had yet to emerge, so there were no expressions about "playing red face" or "playing white face."
"I'm praising you. Thirty coins per fan is written into the contract, and that can't change. Keep an eye on the deliveries, and tell Shopkeeper Luo we won't accept any fans that fail to meet our standards."
"Yes. We've already agreed there'll be no price increase. It's just... Shopkeeper Luo says he wants another payment to cover renting a warehouse to store the fans. Young Master, what do you think..."