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After lunch, the bookstore manager, Pan, returned to the bookstore on his own, while Shen Yu’an took Liang Hui and Feng San and Feng Si to the shop she had purchased.
“There’s a courtyard behind this shop. You three can stay here, and if you need anything, you can procure it yourselves. I’ll give you some money in a while,” Shen Yu’an said, treating them as hired workers. She also discussed their monthly wages.
Shen Yu’an didn’t plan on having them stay in the three connected courtyards that were part of the property. The rooms here were more than sufficient.
Fei Yanchen had already instructed them before they arrived to follow Shen Yu’an’s orders in all matters.
Seeing the empty shop, Liang Hui asked, “Miss, everything is ready now, but where should we get the grain from?”
Shen Yu’an handed the keys to Liang Hui and said, “I’ll take you to another courtyard later. On the 15th and the last day of each month, I’ll have someone deliver the grain there, and you can arrange for it to be brought to the shop.”
Liang Hui asked again, “Could you please let us know if the price of the grain should be based on the current market price or if you have different arrangements?”
Shen Yu’an replied calmly, “You can inquire about the market price yourselves and try to keep the pricing in line with last year’s grain prices as much as possible.”
Shen Yu’an hadn’t directly informed Liang Hui and the others about the previous grain prices. Instead, she had let them inquire and determine the pricing themselves. She believed that if they couldn’t handle even such a small matter, how could she trust them?
However, when Liang Hui heard Shen Yu’an’s words, he was greatly surprised. Keeping the price of grain on par with last year’s prices… the current grain prices were more than four times higher than they were in the first half of last year. Did Miss Shen intend to single-handedly lower the grain prices?
They weren’t afraid of other grain merchants causing trouble if they suddenly lowered the price so much; their concern was whether they could meet the demand for grain. With such low prices, it would undoubtedly attract the attention of the people, and when that happened, everyone would flock to buy grain from them. They might not have enough supply to meet the demand.
“You don’t need to worry about the grain supply. If there’s a shortage in the initial stages, go to the village and find me. I’ll arrange for my friend to deliver more,” Shen Yu’an assured them.
Liang Hui couldn’t help but marvel at the capabilities of the friend Shen Yu’an mentioned. To acquire such a large quantity of grain and sell it at low prices in today’s market, they might incur significant losses.
With his hands crossed, Liang Hui thought for a moment before speaking, “I have a plan that I’d like to share with Miss Shen.”
Shen Yu’an gestured for him to continue.
Liang Hui said, “Miss, by taking this step, you have already offended many grain merchants. Since that’s the case, it’s unlikely we can coexist harmoniously, regardless of how many or how few enemies we make. So, I was thinking, we could set a trap for them.”
Shen Yu’an became interested and asked, “Oh? How do you plan to set this trap? Tell me the details.”
Liang Hui adopted the demeanor of a cunning merchant and said, “It depends on whether your friend has enough grain to support this plan.”
Shen Yu’an signaled him to go on, assuring him not to worry about the grain supply.
Seeing her response, Liang Hui assumed she had an abundant supply of grain.
He continued, “Currently, grain prices in the market are extraordinarily high. If a seller offers grain at a lower price than their competitors, those people will undoubtedly try to buy our grain at a lower cost to hinder our business.”
“We can initially set our grain prices lower by one or two percent compared to theirs, attracting them to purchase our grain, believing we have a limited supply. After they’ve done so multiple times, we can then sell the grain to the people at the price we initially set.”
“If those grain merchants can’t keep their composure, they will undoubtedly try to sell off their stock again. At that point, we can arrange to purchase it at an even lower price, which will not only prevent grain loss but also allow us to profit from the price difference.”
Listening to Liang Hui’s plan, Shen Yu’an cleared her throat to conceal her amusement.
She could already imagine how infuriated those grain merchants would be once they fell into Liang Hui’s trap.
She chuckled and said, “Then I’ll leave this matter to you. Proceed as you’ve suggested.”