A New Wave of Safe Buying
"I brought several guards and a carriage with me, intending to bring the goods back directly. But paying and not delivering the goods is really unsettling. Who would have thought their intentions were like this?"
Old Master Liu nodded and said, "That's the ultimate way to do business. Selling something isn't the end of the story; you have to plan for the customer's long-term future. That's how you build a lasting business. Longcheng, you should learn from this. This is their unique approach; once you grasp it, it's yours."
Liu Longcheng stood up and listened.
Old Madam Liu sighed, "The thief has been caught, but this safe doesn't seem safe at all."
"Mother, don't worry. I haven't finished speaking yet."
Liu Longcheng laughed and said, "The notice from the yamen also mentioned that Baoning Pavilion has launched two new types of locks, both of which are more secure than the old ones. The yamen runners explained that we don't need to spend money to buy new safes; we only need to buy new locks, Baoning Pavilion will have someone come and install them for us. These locks aren't sold separately; they're only sold to those who have bought safes, and they'll personally come to install them—no manual labor required."
"Oh, this is good, this is good!" Old Madam Liu exclaimed with delight.
"How much does the lock cost?" Old Master Liu asked.
"One costs one hundred taels of silver; the other costs two hundred taels of silver. The more expensive one is more durable than the cheaper one," Liu Longcheng said.
Old Master Liu nodded. "That makes sense."
Those who can afford a safe won't be short of a hundred or two taels of silver. The original lock was so sturdy that it forced thieves to sell their houses before figuring out how to pick it. This new lock must be even more secure.
So spending one or two hundred taels of silver is worthwhile; at least it gives you peace of mind.
"Let's buy the two-hundred-yuan ones. Go quickly and get someone to pack them. I can finally get a good night's sleep tonight," said Old Master Liu.
The safe contained the Liu Family's accumulated wealth over generations, and he wouldn't feel at ease leaving it unattended, so he couldn't simply store it in the storeroom. Besides, the family hadn't divided the property yet; in addition to Liu Longcheng, he had another son. That son was capable, having passed the imperial examination and become a county magistrate in another region. He had to safeguard all this wealth before the family division.
"I sent the butler over as soon as I heard the news, but there are probably too many people, so it won't be our turn for a while," Liu Longcheng said.
"Sigh, let's just wait and see," Old Master Liu sighed.
Two days later, the Liu Family's safe was fitted with a new lock, Old Master Liu finally breathed a sigh of relief and slept soundly.
The next day he instructed, "Go buy another safe, the kind with a new lock. Separating the items will reduce the risk. A thief can't possibly break into both safes in a short time, can he?"
Along with the new locks, Baoning Pavilion also launched safes equipped with the new locks, one priced at nine hundred taels and the other at one thousand taels.
This scene, Liu Family, played out in the homes of many powerful and influential people in Beijing.
Due to market saturation, the safe business had already slowed down, with most buyers being out-of-town merchants. Now, because of Lü Yi's incident, everyone is changing their locks, Baoning Pavilion has made a fortune.
In addition, the reputation of the safes became even stronger. Not only did old customers buy a new batch of safes, but people who were originally hesitant and middle-class families also decided to buy them, thus creating a new wave of safe purchases.
Everyone now feels that this safe is truly secure. Baoning Pavilion's work is so meticulous; they've eliminated petty thieves right at the sales stage. How could a thief possibly open the lock if they didn't even have the chance to touch it?
Thieves like Lü Yi, with their dedication and exceptional skills, are rare to find. Hearing about this incident, the other thieves all gave up on their plans.
Forget it, I'll just stick to a small, unassuming place.
When Shi Chao went to report on the shop's situation, he couldn't help but ask Zhao Ruxi, "When did you make the new lock, Miss?"
Zhao Ruxi said, "We produced these when safes were in high demand. Recently, business on safes has been slow, and the locksmiths have had a break, so I had them produce these new locks. So there's enough stock; you don't need to worry."
"Don't worry, don't worry," Shi Chao said repeatedly.
With such a master, what else could he possibly worry about?
Ten days later, at the beginning of the month, the safe's shareholders received a very generous dividend.
"What's going on?" Xiao Ge asked, looking up as he held the silver notes.
Eunuch Xie had already found out what had happened, and now he vividly recounted the story of Lü Yi and the others to Xiao Ge.
The story was full of twists and turns, like a fascinating tale, and Xiao Ge listened with great interest.
"Wow, this little girl is something else! She's so thoughtful. Not only did she sell the items, but she also arranged everything perfectly, leaving no room for anyone to find a loophole. What's even more remarkable is that after this incident, she not only resolved the problem immediately but also directly sold the new locks, making another profit. This child is not only good at drawing but also has such a sharp business mind; she's truly rare."
"When this servant heard about this, he also greatly admired the Layperson Zhiwei," Eunuch Xie echoed.
Xiao Ge tapped his hand on the table, pondered for a moment, and finally said, "Let's see how far she can go in the imperial examination. If she can pass and become a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examination), I will appoint her to an official position."
He had read Zhao Ruxi's essay for the prefectural examination and felt that with her level, passing the provincial examination would be no problem. As for whether she could pass the imperial examination, that was another matter. His main concern was that the young girl might not be able to endure the hardship. Perhaps after taking the provincial examination, she wouldn't want to continue taking exams.
It's perfectly normal for a woman to lack the ambition to achieve great things or the pressure to bring honor to her family, and therefore be unwilling to endure such hardship.
At that moment, Zhao Ruxi was instructing Zhou Chun: "Go and order a batch of glass bottles this big." She held up a porcelain bottle in her hand.
"When the peaches in the Little Peach Manor ripen in a while, we'll make canned fruit. If the canned fruit sells well, we can buy more fruit to make this product and expand production."
As she spoke, she handed the recipe for making canned goods to Zhou Chun.
"You should appoint someone to manage the workshop. The workshop will be located in the Little Peach Manor, and all the workers there will be employed," Zhao Ruxi said.
"Yes." Zhou Chun solemnly accepted the prescription.
The fact that the girl gave him the prescription shows how much she trusts him. He will never betray that trust and will take care of everything perfectly so that the girl won't be distracted by these trivial matters.
After Zhou Chun left, Zhao Ruxi wrote another letter to Xiao Lingyan, telling him that Zhong's second batch of leeks could be harvested.
Although she hadn't met with Xiao Lingyan during this time, they had kept in touch through letters. Xiao Lingyan was addicted to chatting; he'd send someone to deliver a letter even for the smallest things. In the end, Zhao Ruxi had to force him to limit their correspondence to once every two weeks, which finally stopped this bad habit.