Subtle Advertising

The price was neither too high nor too low; it neither harmed Kang Shilin nor did it offend the Emperor, and it conveyed the Emperor's respect for Mister Kumu. No one could find fault with it. Downstairs, the messenger arrived at the group of servants offering prices, but instead of delivering a message, he stood aside and waited.

He was able to be assigned to serve in Eunuch Xie's private room, which shows he was extremely clever.

He knew that after the last bid, paddle number nine had revealed his identity, and many people were watching the paddle-holding boy's every move. If he went to talk to paddle number nine now, everyone might stop bidding. In that case, Eunuch Xie would not be able to complete the task he had entrusted to him.

So he remained still, his eyes wide and ears perked up, intently watching the bids on the field.

Fortunately, Kang Shilin's paintings had never cost more than 10,000 taels of silver before. Now that the asking price had reached 20,000, there were far fewer bidders, and the bidding slowed down. Only three people were bidding back and forth, with one person occasionally chiming in, so the servant didn't need to be too nervous.

Finally, seeing the price rise to 23,800 taels of silver, the servant quickly stepped forward and quoted a price to the servant holding up the bidding paddle.

The servant immediately raised the number nine plaque and called out, "Twenty-five thousand taels of silver."

Upon seeing that the number nine sign was being held up, the entire room fell silent.

All eyes were on Guan Wentao.

Guan Wentao had originally intended to put on a show, but now that he saw everyone's eyes were fixed on him, waiting for him to beat the drum, he felt immense pressure and dared not utter another word.

He picked up the small gavel and tapped it lightly, quickly asking, "Anyone else bidding on 25,000 taels of silver? If not, 25,000 taels once, 25,000 taels twice, 25,000 taels three times. Sold!"

With a "thud," his small hammer landed on the drum.

Hearing the sound, Kang Shilin finally reacted, frowning and saying, "What's wrong with this Eunuch Xie? I told him to quote a lower price, but why did he quote the same price as Zhiwei?"

"Master, that's perfect. Really," Zhao Ruxi said. "If my painting had fetched a higher price than yours, people would have criticized me. This is just perfect. Both of our paintings fetched the highest prices at tonight's auction; it's a wonderful story."

"Haha, I also think the same price is perfect. Eunuch Xie has done a good deed." Wu Zong laughed.

"Yes, that's good," Wu Huaisi said. "Master, you have a heart full of love for your disciple, but you must also consider the Emperor's feelings. If Eunuch Xie dares to offer you a price lower than Junior Sister's, he will surely be punished by the Emperor when he returns."

He had thought of this when Kang Shilin mentioned it. But Kang Shilin did it for his junior sister's sake, and she was there, so he couldn't say anything. Anyway, the result was good, so he didn't need to say anything more.

As Eunuch Xie had predicted, he acted just as he had expected.

Kang Shilin also thought this was a good idea.

He waved his hand. "Fine, it's already like this anyway. Consider it a mistake."

On stage, Guan Wentao had stepped down, and Xu Zhou had taken his place.

Xu Zhou gave some closing remarks, then said, "Thank you all for coming. Tonight's auction was a great success. Eighty percent of the profits from tonight's auction will be used to build an orphanage. Thank you to the guests who bid on our items; the orphanage that will soon be built will also benefit from your donations. Thank you. Well, tonight's auction is now over. Please take care. As you leave, you will all receive a small gift from our auction house."

After Xu Zhou finished speaking, the people in the seats downstairs did not leave, but remained seated.

They wanted to wait for the important people and adults upstairs to leave first.

Although the upstairs private rooms are accessed through a separate door, this is a matter of etiquette and respect.

Kang Shilin and his group remained seated in their private room until a servant entered and announced, "Gentlemen, you may now descend the stairs." Only then did they get up, go downstairs, and leave the auction house.

When they left, an old woman was handing out gifts at the door, but instead of presenting them to the masters, she summoned servants to collect them.

It was already late, and after everyone left, they said goodbye and went home.

Once seated in the carriage, Zhao Ruxi asked Qingfeng, "What gifts did they bring?"

The gifts were in a small wooden box. Just in case, the old woman would open the box first and show them what was inside before packing it up and handing it to them.

Qingfeng said, "It looks like a piece of silk."

Zhao Ruxi looked at the box with curiosity.

Ancient people wore long, loose-fitting clothes, using a lot of cloth. Therefore, when giving or buying cloth, people would calculate the price by "pi" (a unit of weight).

The box in Qingfeng's hand wasn't very big, and the silk inside was probably only good enough to make handkerchiefs.

Does Xiao Lingyan have to be so stingy?

The carriage was completely dark, with only the light from the lanterns hanging in front of it shining in. Even if one tried to see clearly, it was difficult to make out anything. Therefore, Zhao Ruxi did not ask Qingfeng to take them out.

After returning to her residence and sending someone to inform the old lady, Madam Lady Zhu, and the servants in the courtyard that she was safe, Zhao Ruxi returned to Slender Bamboo Courtyard and curiously opened the box.

It really was a piece of silk inside.

However, this silk is very thin and soft, so although it is big enough to make a skirt, it can also be folded up and put into a small box.

"Wow, it's so beautiful," Qingfeng exclaimed.

In ancient times, printing and dyeing techniques were underdeveloped, so both cloth and silk were basically plain-colored. If you wanted patterns, you had to embroider them on.

However, the silk was printed on. The colors and patterns on it were vibrant and very beautiful.

Qingfeng touched the flower pattern on the fabric and asked doubtfully, "If the flower pattern is imprinted on this fabric, won't the colors just become a mess after washing it?"

Zhao Ruxi said, "Why don't you fetch a basin of water, wash yourself, and you'll know?"

Qingfeng hesitated. "If it fades, this piece of material will be ruined."

"Don't worry about it, just follow orders."

Qingfeng had no choice but to go out and instruct Yicui to fetch water to soak the silk in it.

"Give it a massage," Zhao Ruxi instructed.

Yicui rubbed the silk like she was washing clothes.

"Girl, it won't fade!" Yicui exclaimed in delight.

Zhao Ruxi and Qingfeng also saw it.

The water in the basin was clear, without a trace of turbidity.

Zhao Ruxi said thoughtfully, "Qingfeng, look inside the box. Is there a small piece of paper?"

Qingfeng shook his head. "No."

She had looked inside the box when she took the silk out; there was nothing there except for the silk.

"That shouldn't be the case," Zhao Ruxi said, puzzled.

Why did Xiao Lingyan have to give everyone a piece of silk? The routine was so familiar; it felt like she was back in the days of modern shopping malls giving out small gifts.

Giving gifts is a pretense; advertising is their real purpose.

Surprisingly, there were no small advertisements accompanying the silk, which was quite unusual.

"Oh, there are words engraved on the box." Qingfeng checked the box again and finally found words engraved on the lid.

Upon closer inspection under the light, three large characters were written on it, "Brocade Cloud Workshop".

Yes, the advertising is quite subtle.