The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 43 Brand Culture
Once the name for the pastry stall was decided, Gu Jingzhe took out his brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, laid the paper on the table, ground the ink, and wrote the four characters "Peach Blossom Dessert".

"Jingzhe's calligraphy is quite good!" Tong Huaqiong clapped her hands and sighed.

Gu Jingzhe said calmly, "It's all thanks to my mother who bought me calligraphy practice books since I was little and encouraged me to practice. I remember that my mother even taught me how to pick up a pen, and she also taught me the first character I could write, 'Gu'."

Tong Huaqiong was shocked.

It turns out that Tong Dajiao could read.

In the morning, Butler He came to the house and brought out the contract. She took it and read it aloud without thinking. She was surprised that Gu Dashu and the others were so calm about her being able to read. It turns out that Tong Daben himself is half a cultured person.

Out of curiosity, Tong Huaqiong searched for Tong Dajiao's early memories.

When Tong Dajiao's brother was learning to read, she wanted to follow suit. However, the Tong family would not allow girls to study, so she imitated her brother by picking up a pen. While her brother read, she would follow along and learn to recognize characters. In her spare time, she would practice writing on the ground with a twig.

Tong Dajiao was clever and quick-witted from a young age, and she studied even better than her brother.

While I can't say I'm an expert in the Four Books and Five Classics, I do have a certain level of cultural literacy to give a child an early education.

Before Gu Jingzhe started school, Tong Dajiao wrote all the Spring Festival couplets for the Gu family, and she was also the one who started Gu Jingzhe's formal education.

No wonder the genius boy was so filial to Tong Dajiao; it turns out that Tong Dajiao was not only his mother but also his mentor on his path to enlightenment.

As Tong Huaqiong pondered this, she carefully examined the four large characters "Peach Blossom Dessert," feeling that something was missing from the pristine white paper.

Since it's a signboard, it definitely needs to attract people.

Tong Huaqiong had a sudden inspiration.

"If you have paint, it would be even better to paint a peach blossom on it," Tong Huaqiong suggested to Gu Jingzhe.

"Mom, I have paints, and I can paint peach blossoms too."

Gu Jingzhe got up and went to the room to get the paint.

Gu Jingzhe was a well-rounded individual. He excelled in his studies and was also a skilled painter. In modern times, he would definitely be considered a model student with all-around development in morality, intelligence, physical fitness, aesthetics, and labor.

Tong Huaqiong was very satisfied with this.

Gu Jingzhe called out to Gu Taohua to help pour a few bowls of water, and then started mixing the paint.

"This paint is very expensive; it was a reward from my teacher when I passed the imperial examination for the first degree," Gu Jingzhe said, his voice tinged with melancholy as he recalled the past.

Tong Huaqiong understands Gu Jingzhe's psychology very well.

Whether he mentioned his mother's early education or the reward he received for passing the imperial examination, he was trying to remind Tong Huaqiong that his ambition to study remained unchanged.

Tong Huaqiong remained calm and didn't respond. When the time was right, she would naturally allow Gu Jingzhe to return to the private school.

Gu Jingzhe concealed the turmoil in her eyes, carefully mixed the paint, and then picked up her brush and dipped it in to paint a peach blossom next to the "Peach Blossom Dessert".

Gu Jingzhe's paintings are just as good as his calligraphy. A peach blossom is painted so beautifully and lifelike that anyone who sees it feels as if they are in the bright spring sunshine.

Tong Huaqiong searched through Tong Dajiao's memories and found fragments about Gu Jingzhe's painting. Gu Jingzhe went to Shengjing to participate in the imperial examination and became famous in the capital for his excellent calligraphy and painting just three days after arriving.

After being named the third-ranked scholar, people in the capital sought his paintings at high prices.

After he became a high-ranking official of the second rank, those who fawned over him catered to his tastes and hyped up his paintings. Those who wanted to ask him for favors and gave him money offered him huge bribes under the guise of buying paintings.

Similarly, he was ultimately defeated by a painting.

He was tricked by Man'er into getting drunk and writing words of rebellion on a painting, which set the stage for the massacre of the Gu family.

Thinking of this, Tong Huaqiong felt a little dazed.

Gu Jingzhe is too destructive; she can't easily let him go back to school. His temperament still needs to be tempered.

"The painting is quite good," Tong Huaqiong praised calmly. "Third Brother's calligraphy and painting are both excellent," Gu Taohua said.

"Oh my, these peach blossoms are painted so beautifully, they look just like the real thing." Gu Dashu walked in and joked, "Everyone can tell at a glance that our peach blossoms are this beautiful. Third brother's handwriting is also very good. That's why they say you can tell if someone is academically inclined just by their handwriting. When I was little, my mother taught me, and my handwriting was like a dog's crawl, so I was obviously not academically inclined."

Gu Dashu admired and praised the scenery.

When Gu Jingzhe heard Gu Dashu mention his studies, his eyes dimmed.

He quickly masked his gloom, raised his head, and said, "Whether your handwriting is good or bad has nothing to do with studying."

“Second brother, that’s because you didn’t study hard enough. My calligraphy is pretty good too. I’m a girl, so I can’t study. Otherwise, I would have gone to the private school with third brother,” Gu Taohua added.

“My mother used to say that I was destined to marry into a wealthy family and become a wife, so she made me learn to read so that I could manage the household.”

Tong Huaqiong looked surprised; it turned out that Tong Dajiao's three sons, all of whom were illiterate, could read.

Even Gu Taohua is no exception, so Tong Dajiao isn't entirely without merits.

Tong Huaqiong regretted it a little. If she had known that Gu Taohua could also write, she would have let Gu Taohua write the sign herself. That way, the signboard would have been another marketing gimmick.

However, Gu Jingzhe has already written it, so it's fine. As for the subsequent types of pastries and the poems attached to the packaging, Tao Hua can write them.

Wouldn't those who blindly follow trends and indulge in vulgarity be even more eager to follow suit?

"Peach Blossom, I have another task for you. You can write in small regular script, right? You can write the words on the packaging paper for our pastries," Tong Huaqiong said to Gu Taohua.

Gu Taohua looked surprised.

Do they need to write on the packaging paper? And they're giving her the task of writing it?
Seeing that Tao Hua looked puzzled, Tong Huaqiong said, "Our stall is just a small shop, and we can't compete with big pastry shops. So we have to take a different approach so that people can remember us. Other shops use the same wrapping paper, but we can't. We can write the names of various pastries on the wrapping paper, and different pastries correspond to different wrapping papers. This is our specialty, so customers can know what kind of pastry it is without even opening it when they buy it."

A brand must highlight its characteristics from the very beginning.

Packaging paper is also part of brand culture.

Gu Jingzhe agreed with Tong Huaqiong's idea, saying, "Mother's idea is good. Write the name of the pastry on the packaging paper, and you can even write a corresponding poem on it."

Tong Huaqiong sighed again, saying that Gu Jingzhe was indeed quite adept at drawing inferences from one instance to another.

"Oh my, Mother's mind is truly full of all sorts of ideas. I think my third brother's mind comes from Mother. I could never come up with these kinds of ideas."

It's just selling pastries, but there are so many intricacies involved.

Gu Dashu sincerely admired his mother.

No wonder Mother was able to earn fifty taels of silver in just a few days. If Mother continues to do so, the Gu family will soon become the richest family in Qinghe Bay.

"Since you can't think of these tricks, don't offer any more random opinions in the future. Just follow my instructions obediently," Tong Huaqiong said irritably.

"Yes, yes, I'll listen to you, Mother. I'll take good care of our few acres of wheat fields first," Gu Dashu said.

"Peach Blossom, where did we put the wrapping paper we bought? Let's write it down today." Tong Huaqiong said to Gu Taohua, who was already stunned.

"Mother really wants me to write this?" Gu Taohua's voice trembled.

"If I don't let you write, am I supposed to write it myself? Do you want to work me to death?" Tong Huaqiong said irritably.

"I write, I write."

Gu Taohua jumped up excitedly, quickly grabbed a stack of wrapping paper she had bought at the market the day before yesterday, and spread it on the table. She and Gu Jingzhe pondered what else they should write on it besides the names of the pastries to make it more appealing.

Seeing everyone working together towards a better life, Tong Huaqiong felt quite gratified.

(End of this chapter)