Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 319 Marketing (asking for monthly ticket)

The next day, Zhang Luan followed his son's suggestion and went to the residence of Wang Yuan, the Earl of Ruian, the younger brother of Queen Wang, to sell yellow coral.

It was quite grand when we went there, but it didn't cause much noise.

But Zhang Yanling intended to add fuel to the fire behind the scenes and specially found Qin Zhao to promote this matter.

In the teahouse, Qin Zhao looked at Zhang Yanling curiously: "Second Master, even if you want to find a buyer now, you would not do it like this, right? Do you want us merchants to pay for it?"

"This is impossible."

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "You merchants buy things either because they have market prospects and can make a profit, or because they can bring wealth... as a stepping stone to pay tribute. Why buy yellow coral? Most people don't want this."

Qin Zhao asked doubtfully: "So what are you doing now..."

Zhang Yanling said: "I just want to create some public opinion to let people know that my Zhang family has yellow coral for sale."

“That’s really…”

Qin Zhao didn't know how to comment on this matter.

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "Master Qin can ask someone to spread the news in the market. It would be best if everyone in the capital knows about it within a few days. It would be great if someone could publicly laugh at our Zhang family for overestimating our capabilities. Anyway, whether the yellow coral can be sold or not has no substantial impact on our Zhang family."

Qin Zhao asked: "Then... where did Huang Shanhu come from?"

"Master Qin, if you know the truth, don't pretend to be confused."

Zhang Yanling shook his head and said, "You know what our family situation is like. We were really poor before. Where can we find such a good thing?"

Qin Zhao smiled and asked, "Do you want people to speculate on the origin of this thing?"

Zhang Yanling said: "Other people have their own opinions. How can I know how they will comment on this matter? But it is always right to spread the news as much as possible."

"it is good."

Qin Zhao nodded and said, "Then I will find someone to spread the news. I think this matter will soon become a topic of conversation, but it may have a certain impact on your family. It would be good for the second young master to know the connection behind it."

……

……

After receiving the task, Qin Zhao immediately went to find Li Wuwei.

When Li Wuwei saw Qin Zhao, he felt like he had seen a living ancestor and almost knelt down and kowtowed to Qin Zhao.

"Master Qin, you are very busy, and your presence today is truly... a great honor to our humble home."

Li Wuwei said, "It has been two months since we last met. Are you in good health? Seeing you look so healthy, I guess..."

"Okay, okay..."

Qin Zhao looked impatient and stretched out his hand to stop him, saying, "Master Li should have made a fortune recently, right? I heard that he is doing the glass business?"

"Ugh!"

Li Wuyi looked embarrassed, and after a sigh, he said: "It was all Zheng who secretly instigated... I was so confused at the time that I really believed his lies.

"The Zheng family has now fallen apart. I heard that no one knows where the Zheng family members are now. Or they were killed and thrown into some desolate mountain or wilderness to be eaten by wild beasts. There is really no trace of their bodies left!"

Qin Zhao said: "It's a pity indeed... Mr. Zheng was very popular in recent years, but he disappeared in the blink of an eye..."

"No matter how famous I am, I can't compare to you."

Li Wuwei flattered, "I heard that you bought a lot of his properties. You have a noble helper, and you are not a nouveau riche like Zheng. You really know how to do business."

Qin Zhao waved his hand and said, "Okay, no need to compliment me. I asked you to come here today because I want you to do something."

"Please tell me, I am so lucky to be able to serve you."

Li Wuwei is like an obedient servant. In order to get Qin Zhao's care, he is now obedient and doesn't even care about his dignity.

Qin Zhao then continued to tell the story, and Li Wuwei's expression became more and more expressive the more he listened.

"You mean... Zhang Luan, the Crown Princess's father, wants to sell off the yellow coral? Then... what is that?"

Li Wuwei almost wanted to hold his purse tightly, and asked hesitantly: "Does the Zhang family want us to pay for it?"

Qin Zhao pouted and said, "A few thousand taels of silver each, can you afford it?"

Li Wuwei smiled bitterly and said, "Even if we can afford it, what's the point of buying that thing? If we buy it together, I wonder... what's the reason behind it?"

"From what Mr. Li said, can he really afford that much money?" Qin Zhao asked with a smile.

"This one……"

Li Wuwei said hesitantly, "If I can gain the favor of Mr. Zhang, and then the Crown Prince, I can spend a few thousand taels of silver... It's not impossible."

Qin Zhao smiled and shook his head: "Don't even think about such a good thing. It's just a yellow coral. It won't make the prince look at you with new eyes. This time it's not our business to pay the money... Even if you have money and want to buy it, they won't sell it to you."

"what?"

Li Wuwei was shocked.

I didn't want to pay in the first place, but they don't want to sell it?

So what are you coming here for?
"It's actually very simple. Just publicize the matter and let everyone know about it. You don't have to worry about the rest."

Qin Zhao looked at Li Wuwei meaningfully and asked, "Mr. Li has connections in the capital. It shouldn't be difficult to spread the news, right?"

Li Wuwei smiled and said, "It's not difficult, but it's just..."

"Are you concerned?"

Qin Zhao asked.

"I want to ask, where does the yellow coral come from? Such a good thing is almost never seen on the market. Could it be some rare thing like Huangshan mica? The previous telescope caused a stir among our Huizhou merchants, making people panic." After saying this, Li Wuyi had a frightened expression.

Qin Zhao smiled and said, "Naturally, good things don't come from the common people. If someone has them and wants to sell them, don't ask for details. You're not helping to sell them, and no one is asking you to buy them. You just need to leak the news."

Li Wuwei sighed: "If that's the case, then that thing must have come from the palace, right? It's a reward from the palace, but it can also be sold. It's really..."

Qin Zhao smiled without saying anything and did not explain much. In fact, everyone knew some things very well but just didn't say them out loud.

……

……

Zhang Luan had been out for a day and just returned home. He sat down on the doorstep as if he didn't care about his reputation anymore.

"Dad, what did you do to make you so tired?"

Zhang Heling looked at his old father sitting at the door with a surprised expression.

"Ugh!"

Zhang Luan stood up and said, "I am so embarrassed this time. On the way back just now, everyone pointed at me and some even chased after me, saying that I was crazy because of poverty."

At this time, Zhang Yanling came out and said with a smile: "Dad, I asked someone to tell you that, don't take it to heart."

"What?"

Zhang Luan jumped up on the spot, pointed at Zhang Yanling, and said with red face: "Son, why did you find someone to tarnish your father's reputation? You...you are such a filial son!"

Zhang Yanling laughed and said, "If you don't say that, how can public opinion spread quickly? Only when the news spreads quickly, others will know that you are selling things and make a joke of it. Then they will know that it is not our Zhang family that is short of money now, but the royal family..."

Zhang Luan glared and was speechless. Then he followed Zhang Yanling back to the main hall of his home and sat down. He told him about his experience in Wang Yuan's mansion as if pouring out his grievances.

"Lord Ryan said that he didn't have the money to buy a piece of yellow coral. He said it very bluntly. To buy this thing, one must not only be of noble status, but also have a wealthy family. Only those who have both of these qualities can afford it. And Lord Ryan himself said that the total annual expenses of his mansion are less than 100 taels of silver. How could he possibly afford such a big item? I guess I chose the wrong person."

Zhang Luan complained to himself and said, "I thought about it carefully. Even if they can afford it, we can't go to their house and give them such a big problem, right? What's the point of buying this thing?"

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "It seems that Earl Ryan is also a real person."

Zhang Luan said: "They came to visit us in advance and showed us enough courtesy. In return, we should not be too excessive in our conduct.

"You know clearly that they can't afford it, but you still go to their house to ask. Not only do you lose your own people, but you also make them feel bad. Why bother?"

"Dad, this trip is a great start for you!"

Zhang Yanling ignored his cheap father's nagging and said with a smile, "Then we can start the next step."

"Next step? There is a next step? Whose house should I go to next? Humph, I won't go there again. I really can't afford to lose face in front of that person." Zhang Luan said aggrievedly.

Zhang Yanling asked with a smile: "Dad, do you know what bundling means?" Zhang Luan shook his head.

"So-called bundling means buying one thing and giving away another thing. So we'll sell yellow coral and give away a glass mirror. What do you think?"

Zhang Yanling asked with a smile.

Zhang Luan frowned and asked, "Is it... the mirror you gave your sister?"

"Yeah. It's that kind... I've made a few more recently, but they haven't been sold yet. Since you're helping the people in the palace sell tribute, let's try to sell them together. What do you think?"

Zhang Yanling asked with a smile.

"Not good."

Zhang Luan persuaded, "Son, do you have excessive expectations for your thing? Your sister sent someone to say that the Queen Mother seemed to like it very much, but... at best it is just a mirror, and there is no essential difference from a bronze mirror.

"Why would someone spend one or two thousand taels of silver to buy a yellow coral and then receive this as a gift... It doesn't seem that impressive. If you sell the yellow coral and give away gold or something, someone would probably want it."

Zhang Yanling slapped his thigh and said, "Dad, you hit the nail on the head."

"What?"

Zhang Luan stood up suddenly and waved his hands, "Don't tell me you want to covet our little gold! That's what I got from selling... marrying off my daughter."

Zhang Yanling thought to himself, Dad, you are such a real man.

In your opinion, Zhang, sending your sister to the palace is an act of selling your daughter. You have the nerve to say this out loud when you think this in your heart.

Zhang Yanling said, "If the glass mirror can make people feel like a piece of gold, and is worth a fortune, wouldn't that be enough?"

"What do you mean? Are you going to go out and publicize that your mirror is the Queen Mother's favorite treasure? Are you going to use the Queen Mother as a living sign to get people to buy it?"

Zhang Luan frowned at his son and sat down angrily.

Zhang Yanling asked confidently, "Dad, do you know why we can't sell yellow coral?"

Zhang Luan shook his head: "I don't know."

Zhang Yanling patiently persuaded them: "Even if it is a treasure and is extremely valuable, originally worth tens of thousands of taels, and we only sell it for a few hundred taels, no one will dare to buy it, because it is not something that people of our status can own... The source is questionable, and people will not buy it from us at all."

"That's the reason..."

After listening to this, Zhang Luan thought about it for a moment and nodded heavily.

“In this case, everything you did today was actually to show the world that this yellow coral did not belong to our Zhang family. You are at best a middleman, a comprador, and you are selling it for the emperor.

"And those who buy yellow coral also know that they are creating value for the emperor. Whoever buys yellow coral is actually giving money to the emperor."

Zhang Yanling said meaningfully.

"Oh!"

Zhang Luan suddenly realized: "I understand. Someone wants to give money to the emperor, but has no way to do so, so he will try every means to buy the yellow coral back from me. Is that what you mean?"

"Correct."

Zhang Yanling said affirmatively, "But there is a problem. This thing is beautiful and is extremely precious in the eyes of those who like it, but in the eyes of many people, its value is not high. To put it bluntly, if you buy a piece of yellow coral, it can only be used as a decoration. The possibility of appreciation is almost zero, and it is almost useless. Why would people buy it?"

"Isn't it? This thing can't be eaten or worn, and the possibility of getting rid of it is very small. It can easily get stuck in your hands." Zhang Luan seemed to have a deep understanding of this.

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "So... we are going to do a tie-in sale, selling yellow coral and giving away a glass mirror."

Zhang Luan asked curiously, "Son, wait a minute, if the yellow coral is useless, then your mirror is useful? Dad is not trying to discourage you, it's just that your mirror is useless, maybe even worse than the yellow coral."

In an instant, the topic was over again.

The scene became quiet with an eerie atmosphere, as the father and son stared at each other.

After a while.

Zhang Yanling suddenly changed the subject and asked, "Dad, what has Mom been doing recently? I won't beat around the bush. Is she preparing to enter the palace?"

"Isn't it?"

Zhang Luan thought his son was trying to liven up the atmosphere, so he continued the conversation, "Your mother has received the imperial decree, and the Queen's birthday is coming soon. As a lady of the imperial decree, she naturally has to go to the palace to celebrate the birthday, and she is worrying about what to wear. I see that she is dressed like an old lady who has suddenly become rich. In one word: vulgar! Extremely vulgar!"

Zhang Yanling asked, "What gift will mother give to the queen?"

Zhang Luan asked, "Why? You need to give gifts when you go to celebrate a birthday? I've never heard of that."

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "Mother naturally doesn't need to give gifts, or even if she gives gifts, no one will notice, but the prince must give gifts to his stepmother on her birthday.

"I have prepared a nice birthday gift for the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, that is, my brother-in-law and sister. It is a three-foot square glass mirror."

"What?"

Zhang Luan stood up and said, "Boy, are you waiting here in a roundabout way? A glass mirror... is it for the queen? That... that should be quite big."

Zhang Yanling said: "The Queen Mother liked the glass mirror very much before, and even gave her own mirror to Your Majesty, so that Your Majesty could observe his condition in the mirror. Later, the Queen Mother took the initiative to ask my sister for another one..."

"Yes, I know about this."

The Empress Dowager took the initiative to ask for gifts from her grandson's wife, which was a great honor, so Zhang Luan was particularly excited.

Zhang Yanling continued, "So I prepared another mirror that is larger than the half-length mirror I gave to the queen. It is a full-length mirror that can be placed on the ground so that you can see yourself clearly in the mirror from a distance. The observation distance and clarity are many times higher than those of a bronze mirror."

Zhang Luan exclaimed, "Oh, my son, you are so thoughtful. You gave the Queen a half-length mirror, and then gave the Queen Mother a full-length mirror. You clearly distinguished the main from the secondary. This is very good. If you enter the officialdom in the future, you must make sure that the relationship between the upper and lower levels is smooth. Not bad, really good!"

Zhang Yanling said calmly: "While all the ladies of state gathered in the palace, my brother-in-law and sister personally presented the half-length mirror to the queen as a way for the younger generation to express their filial piety. They let hundreds of the most powerful women in the world see this rare treasure at the same time and know that glass can actually be used to make mirrors, and they are so clear.

"Whoever owns a mirror like this will not only be radiant, but may even become the best among the nobles and ladies. If we sell a mirror together with the yellow coral, will anyone buy it?"

Zhang Luan swallowed hard and stammered, "You...your idea...is very good, but is it really...workable? Would someone really pay such a large sum of money for a mirror?"

Zhang Yanling smiled.

Whether this is feasible depends on the development history of glass mirrors.

Europe also had bronze mirror technology at that time, but glass mirrors were still monopolized by a group of craftsmen, who maintained the patent at a high price and successfully spread among the upper class in Europe through monopoly and hunger marketing strategies.

At the moment, Zhang Yanling was just copying, reflecting what had happened in the history of mirror development on these upper-class ladies of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhang Yanling said, "Dad, if you ask me now, I can't answer you. Anyway, our family doesn't need to sell mirrors in the future. We can only make money from this. We only give away mirrors, not sell them. If someone wants to spend money just to buy a mirror, we won't allow him to ask."

Zhang Luan smiled and rubbed his hands: "How big is the mirror that came with it?"

“Not too big.”

Zhang Yanling asked, "Probably... one foot square?"

Zhang Luan asked again with concern: "My son, others can't imitate it, right?"

Zhang Yanling spat and said, "Damn it, have you forgotten about the telescope? First, we need to develop the flat glass, and then we need to master the silver plating technology... This is a difficult task that most people cannot complete even after decades of research. So don't worry, Dad. No one else can develop this thing within ten years."

"That's good, that's good!"

Zhang Luan smiled and said, "In fact, I am not a pedantic person. After hearing what you said, I know what you mean.

"You see, I don't spend much money normally, I live frugally, but if your mother wants to buy something, even when our family was poor, we would buy her things worth a few taels of silver, especially during festivals, I would buy your mother some jewelry...

"Hey, this woman's money is easy to make..."

Zhang Yanling said, "Dad, you have had similar experiences, so you think my idea is not bad... But you just said that buying yellow coral and selling mirrors together is not reliable."

"Isn't your father just saying this for the sake of talking? In fact, I didn't expect that you actually have a brother-in-law who is the crown prince. Whatever he brings out can attract attention and start a trend."

Zhang Luan was overjoyed at this time.

Zhang Yanling said: "So we must clarify the priorities in this matter. We should first lay the foundation. We are selling tribute to the imperial palace, and we are selling glass mirrors together for better sales.

"Customers buy tributes to show their filial piety to the emperor, and to give them a rare treasure as a gift to show off to the women in their families... We are not doing this for personal gain."

Zhang Luan nodded solemnly: "Yes, yes, my son, you are right. We are here to help His Majesty, not to make a profit for ourselves.

"Hey, are we that kind of person? Son, have you made your mirror? Is there anything in trouble that you need your father's help? Do you have enough money or something?
"How about I give you some more silver, one hundred taels... just think of it as pocket money from your father, what do you think?"

Zhang Yanling rolled his eyes, not knowing whether to laugh or cry: "Alright, Dad, stop being so attentive to me. Buy something for Mom when you have time. Don't think I don't know what you did in Lizi Province's villa. If Mom knew, you'd be dead."

(It’s the end of the month, please give me some monthly tickets, I’d be grateful! Thank you for your generosity!)

(End of this chapter)