Chapter 115: Leveraging the Situation

When Ye Xin Ran and Xiao Huai’an arrived at Yong Le Hall, Li Qiao was pacing circles around a persimmon tree in the backyard.

The ground beneath him bore visible marks, evidence of countless loops he had walked.

Li Mo, on the other hand, sat at a tea table under the veranda, sipping tea and watching Li Qiao pace. He seemed relaxed, almost leisurely.

Seeing Ye Xin Ran’s arrival, Li Qiao insisted on finishing one last circle before walking up to greet her.

“Madam Ye, Master Xiao, you’ve finally arrived.”

“Huai’an, Sister-in-law, come and have some tea. I just brewed the finest Biluo Chun.”

“Li Mo doesn’t seem worried at all, nothing like what your shop assistant described,” Ye Xin Ran said, winking at Xiao Huai’an.

Xiao Huai’an gestured for her to look at Li Mo’s hands.

“That’s just his way. The more unsure he feels, the more he pretends to be unfazed. Look at his hands, he’s shaking so much he can barely hold his cup steady.”

Ye Xin Ran followed his gaze.

Sure enough, tea was spilling from Li Mo’s cup, though he appeared oblivious to it.

Walking over to the table, Ye Xin Ran picked up the teapot, poured two cups of tea, and then took a seat.

Smiling, she remarked, “Boss Li, selling more goods is usually good news. Why do I get the feeling you’re not happy about it?”

“Happy?”

Li Mo’s first words betrayed his frustration. “That Huo family has no sense of fairness. They’re always trying to crush us with their wealth and influence.

They took our “Snow Beauty Ointment”, changed its appearance, and now call it “Jade Complexion Ointment”. Sister-in-law, take a look, tell me if their so-called ‘Jade Complexion Ointment’ isn’t just our “Snow Beauty Ointment” in disguise!”

Ye Xin Ran opened the small jar Li Mo handed her.

The jar was an elegant jade green, different from the ones used for the “Snow Beauty Ointment”.

Even the color of the cream inside was slightly different.

Ye Xin Ran brought the jar to her nose and sniffed. It seemed they had added angelica powder, giving it a less vibrant green hue.

But the base was undeniably her “Snow Beauty Ointment”.

“It’s definitely “Snow Beauty Ointment”. I never expected that after a makeover, they could sell it for such a high price. Have we been underpricing ours?”

Ye Xin Ran stared at the jar thoughtfully.

Li Mo looked at her in disbelief and blurted, “Sister-in-law, you’re not regretting partnering with me, are you?

Don’t tell me you’re thinking of switching to work with Shun Medical Hall and selling it at their higher price?”

When the situation first arose, Li Mo’s immediate fear had been exactly this.

After all, merchants seek profit, who wouldn’t want to make more money?

Fortunately, it was Ye Xin Ran who developed the “Snow Beauty Ointment”. Otherwise, Li Mo knew he wouldn’t even have a chance to fight back.

“Hmm.”

Ye Xin Ran admitted it openly.

“If you and my husband weren’t close, I might indeed consider switching.

As long as the quality is the same, I’d naturally choose whoever offers the highest price.”

“So now you’re not going to choose them, right?”

Li Mo reconfirmed.

Only when Ye Xin Ran nodded did he finally relax.

“Sister-in-law, we need to come up with a plan. Shun Medical Hall is stealing our formula to make money!

Huo Jiu Shan doesn’t lift a finger, but with his family’s reputation, he can turn around and make so much profit. I just can’t swallow this indignation.”

“But hasn’t their involvement made our “Snow Beauty Ointment” sell even faster?”

Ye Xin Ran’s tone was calm and indifferent, as though she didn’t care much.

Li Mo couldn’t hold it in any longer.

He stood up, paced in a couple of circles, and was about to speak when Xiao Huai’an interrupted him.

“Watch your tone. Don’t scare my wife.”

Li Mo shot him a resentful glance before reluctantly sitting back down.

Taking a deep breath, he said, “Sister-in-law, I understand your perspective.

No matter who buys the “Snow Beauty Ointment” or what they do with it, the fact remains: 100 taels of silver per jar is already in our pocket. Selling more jars means making more money, on the surface, it’s a good thing.

But you don’t understand the Huo family.

They could spend tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of taels, buying your “Snow Beauty Ointment”, but their ultimate goal isn’t just a few jars of cream. What they truly want is your formula.

Once they confirm that “Jade Complexion Ointment” can bring in huge profits, they’ll stop at nothing to obtain the formula.

And once they have it, they’ll control the price entirely.

They’ll easily recoup all the money they spent buying “Snow Beauty Ointment”.

While our ointment still has some market power, we must counteract the momentum of their “Jade Complexion Ointment”.”

Li Mo’s words weren’t just alarmist.

Ye Xin Ran had indeed heard of similar scenarios before.

In commercial competition, rivals often introduce similar products to dominate the market.

Once the original company becomes uncompetitive, they swoop in and acquire it at a low price.

Unless one is willing to exit the business and give up on making money, the stronger party will always succeed.

In such a survival of the fittest era, it’s likely impossible to leave unscathed.

However, by the time they were on their way, Ye Xin Ran had already formulated a plan in her mind.

“What you’ve said are their plans.

But what I’m thinking now is, why are we struggling to sell at 100 taels of silver, while they can easily sell for 300 taels a jar?”

“Isn’t it because of their reputation!”

Li Qiao spoke with some resentment.

“If having a reputation means making big money, then we should increase our own reputation. As long as we can reach their level, we can make more money.”

Ye Xin Ran replied.

Hearing Ye Xin Ran’s confident words, Li Mo sighed.

“It’s not that easy. The Huo family’s Shun Medical Hall has been around for three generations. Their patriarch, Huo Qi Ming, is still the royal physician in the palace. With such a background, no matter how hard we try, we can’t catch up.”

“It might have been a bit difficult at first.”

Ye Xin Ran spun the cup in her hand. “But since they’re eyeing my product, I’ve suddenly had an idea. Maybe we can use their power to climb up.”

“What’s your idea? Is it about the formula?”

Li Mo understood his own business well. No matter how hard they worked, they couldn’t surpass Shun Medical Hall right away. If they were going to scheme, it had to be with the prescription.

Ye Xin Ran nodded.

“It’s just an immature idea. I need to go back and try it. If it works, I’ll tell you how to do it.”

“Then should we still sell “Snow Beauty Ointment” to Shun Medical Hall?” Li Qiao asked.

“Yes, of course. Shun Medical Hall is now our customer, and we should treat customers politely.”

“Coincidentally, I still have 50 jars of “Snow Beauty Ointment” in the cart. Bring them in later. If Shun Medical Hall comes to buy, just act like you know nothing and sell them directly.”

“Should we raise the price?” Li Qiao suggested.

“Since they’re selling for 300 taels, we should sell for 300 taels too! If they have the guts, let them raise it to 600 taels!”

“Can you tell which customers are from Shun Medical Hall and which aren’t?” Ye Xin Ran asked.

Li Qiao shook his head.