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Luckily, by some miracle, the dying Chen Ming managed to survive. He was a gentle man, a kindhearted gentleman. He provided solace for the unfortunate Wang and created a poor yet warm home for the naive little Feng…
It took Chen Feng a long time to fall into a hazy sleep. When she woke up, it was already late. She found herself alone on the kang, while Chen Lu played with Qiqi and Gray in the courtyard, and the others, including Dabao, had gone to the front to sell braised skewers.
Everyone was busy and only finished their work as night fell.
Chen Shi, who had been selling braised skewers at the entrance of the Zeng School, came back and said that two other families had also started selling braised skewers at the school gate. However, the students almost exclusively bought from his, and the other two families were not doing well at all.
In the evening, after finishing their tasks, Mrs. Wang and Chen Feng returned to their room. Chen Feng linked arms with Wang, rested her head on her shoulder, and said something she had been pondering for the whole afternoon, “Mother, having you is wonderful.” She said it for herself and for the departed little Feng.
Mrs. Wang was momentarily stunned, then smiled tenderly, “This child, you’re still acting coquettish at this age.”
Chen Lu on the kang smirked, and Dabao slid down and ran over to hug Mrs. Wang’s waist, saying, “My mother is being coquettish with grandma, so I want to be coquettish with grandma too.” He spoke in such a sweet manner that his tongue almost couldn’t stretch straight.
Chen Lu on the kang laughed even more, and Mrs. Wang chuckled as well. After a bit of playful commotion, they finally settled down on the kang to rest.
Chen Feng whispered to Mrs. Wang about how much money they had made, and Mrs. Wang exclaimed, “You sold that much?”
Chen Feng nodded and whispered, “Yes, in a few days, let’s go see if there is a land for sale.”
The next day, Chen Feng and the others planned to visit the Ni Shang Embroidery Workshop. They would examine the button and, at the same time, try their luck to see if they could sell the designs of those few dolls and explore potential collaborations.
When she mentioned this yesterday evening, Chen Aman wanted to go along. With a single glare from Mrs. Zhang, she pouted and dared not speak.
Chen Feng pretended not to notice and stated that she wasn’t just going shopping, she had business to discuss.
Thinking that if this embroidery workshop was good, she would strive for long-term cooperation. This would not only give her more beautiful button designs but also a variety of doll and accessory designs. For instance, panda plush toys, Hello Kitty, Snoopy, Donald Duck, and some unique handbags, all as a series. Of course, she couldn’t present all these designs at once, after all, this era lacked intellectual property rights.
Today, she had to dress up well to leave a good impression on potential business partners.
Chen Feng put on a sky-blue fine cloth jacket with five pairs of large button sewn onto the lapel. Although they were simple button, they were relatively large. The combination of a blue ribbon button and a yellow ribbon button together, magnificent and eye-catching, looked quite distinctive. She also wore a brown-yellow satin long skirt, with Mrs. Wang embroidering a circle of lotus flowers on the hem and cuffs. She tied her hair into a single coil bun, inserted a wooden hairpin, and wore two crimson flowers.
After she was done, Dabao was amazed. He exaggeratedly widened his eyes and said, “Mother, I’ve never seen a pretty young lady like you before.”
This sweet talk will definitely make his future wife happy.
Dabao wore a knee-length bright blue long coat, slightly loose, so he could continue wearing it next year. He had on off-white trousers, with a brown-yellow sash tied around his waist, and a prominent hairstyle. He looked remarkably handsome, almost unbelievably so.
Chen Feng smiled and lifted him up, giving him two kisses, saying, “Oh my, how can my son be so handsome? When we go out, you must hold onto your mother tightly, don’t let anyone snatch you away to become their young husband.”
This made Dabao purse his lips and giggle.
Chen Lu sitting on the kang chuckled and said, “Only sister and Dabao, this mother-son pair, would praise each other so much, it’s almost sickening.”
After mentioning “young husband,” Chen Feng belatedly realized that Mrs. Wang was also present and deeply regretted it.
Mrs. Wang lowered her head, her expression concealed. She wore a brown-yellow jacket, with the collar and cuffs adorned with embroidered plum blossoms on off-white satin. She used some of Mrs. Zhang’s hair oil to tidy her temples and inserted a wooden hairpin. It was simple, accentuating her gentle and graceful nature. However, the creases at the corners of her eyes made her appear a few years older than her actual age. Even so, Chen Feng still thought Mrs. Wang looked better than Mr. Chen’s current wife.
Chen Feng smiled and said, “Mother, you look so beautiful,” causing Mrs. Wang to blush and scold her with a playful glare.
She then instructed Mrs. Wang that if she engaged in business discussions with others at the embroidery workshop, she should refrain from interjecting casually.
Mrs. Wang nodded, acknowledging her daughter’s advice.
As they left, Chen Aman, who was busy in the courtyard, noticed the buttons on Chen Feng’s attire. Her eyes widened, and she exclaimed, “What beautiful buttons! It turns out that abacus beads look good in different colors too.”
Chen Feng smiled, and the three of them went to the street to find a donkey cart.
Upon arriving at West Street, they headed straight to the Ni Shang Embroidery Workshop. Inside, they were greeted by a dazzling array of splendor, with several magnificent embroidered screens on the floor and various accessories hung on the walls.
All three of them were impeccably dressed and exuded a refined demeanor. The attendant warmly welcomed them. According to the attendant, the first floor sold embroidered products and accessories, the second floor sold fabrics, and the third floor sold ready-made clothes, as well as offering custom tailoring services.
The accessories included a variety of items such as hairpins, forehead ornaments, purses, hair accessories, bracelets, and small dolls, along with unique needle and thread kits and buttons, which were not found in other embroidery workshops.
In particular, the buttons, although only available in chrysanthemum and plum blossom designs, were exquisitely crafted and beautifully colored, with varying sizes and perfectly matched colors.
These buttons sold extremely well, with the most delicate silk and gold-thread button fetching a hefty ten taels of silver per pair, selling for a sky-high price.
Madam Lou is truly capable, turning the buttons into luxury items fit for the Dachun Dynasty.
The attendant chuckled, “These were specifically acquired from the Ziyun Embroidery Workshop in Shizhou Prefecture. It’s said that many shops in the capital and Jiangnan are buying from there. We managed to get so many because our employer has a close relationship with the Ziyun Embroidery Workshop. Some embroidery workshops are now trying to imitate these buttons, but none are as well made as the ones from Ziyun.”
Sensing that they weren’t particularly rich, the attendant added, “Even the smallest plum blossom button is inexpensive, only two hundred wen per pair. If you buy five pairs and sew them onto your clothes, they look much more unique and appealing than embroidered flowers.” Glancing at the buttons on Chen Feng’s attire, the attendant remarked, “The buttons on your dress look nice too, but they can’t compare to the ones from our workshop.”
Chen Feng suppressed a smile and said, “The owner of the Ziyun Embroidery Workshop is Madam Lou from the Lou family, or has some connection to her, right? I won’t hide it from you, I sold these buttons designs to Madam Lou back in June this year. I have some other designs on hand, and if your embroidery workshop is interested, we could discuss further.”
Upon hearing this, the attendant eagerly called out, “Manager Luo, Manager Luo, there’s a business matter to discuss here.”
A woman’s voice responded, “I’m coming.”