The casual life of the flat space

After visiting Toad Village, Bai Tieying visited other villages one by one and signed a thick stack of contracts. When she handed the contracts for the mountain products to Zhang, she was worried that his jaw would be dislocated.

"Tieying, you... I... Ouch, am I dreaming?" Shopkeeper Zhang finally came back to his senses, but his speech was incoherent.

“Uncle Zhang, can your niece joke with you about this?”

"Oh! My mind is in a mess right now, but you said before that there is a way to solve the funding problem. What do you think?"

"Uncle Zhang, rather than saying that this year is our first step in expanding the market, it is better to say that we are snatching food from the tiger's mouth of a large merchant. Although we have a backer, if we want to develop in the long run, we can't eat alone.

So I want you to take the lead and contact all the small and medium-sized shops in Shangan County to set up a "Small and Medium-sized Shops Mountain Products Association". Let's divide a part of the mountain products pie and only keep our own characteristics. This way, we can firstly raise our status so that we can compete with the big merchants, and secondly, we can't be too exclusive. In the future, each store will only specialize in a few items, and everyone can make money!"

Shopkeeper Zhang found Bai Tieying's description of "egg pancake" novel, but this kid has many novel words, so he is no longer surprised.

"Tieying, you should think more about what you said before you act. Although Shang'an County is not big, it has a special location and rich resources, so the mountain products are very valuable.

The big merchants in Shang'an County are actually Chen, Zhou, Cui, and Jiang. When Chunweizhai opened, these four also sent their representatives to the market. Although there have been many rumors recently praising you as a business genius, because you are a girl after all, they still don't take you seriously, so there is no other action.

In the early years, the Jiang family was the largest merchant in Shang'an. During the flood nearly a hundred years ago, they made some stupid decisions, especially their refusal to pay for post-disaster reconstruction. They wanted to manipulate power, which made the county magistrate at that time and the officials in the capital later very angry. As a result, they gradually fell to the last position.

In fact, there were some businesses that could potentially compete with them, but no one wanted to be the first to do so. Moreover, the position of county magistrate was mostly funded by the Jiang family over the years. The intention of pretending to obey the county magistrate and secretly disobeying him was to help the then county magistrate take the position. Although it failed, the relationship with the county magistrate was maintained, so the Jiang family could barely maintain its dignity.

In recent years, the Cui family has been gaining momentum. Not only has it obtained good goods for many consecutive years, but it has also grasped the market trend every year. Although everyone is curious about the Cui family's vision, no matter how hard they try, they still get no results. It can only be said that the Cui family is blessed with luck and brains! So even if it cannot compete with the Chen and Zhou families on the surface, it still has a head start over the Jiang family.

And you have made a name for yourself in just a few months. Some people even say that you are just like Mr. Cui from the Cui family! It is rumored that he once sneered at you at a banquet. If it weren't for the fact that you are a girl, you might have become the target of public criticism. That's why I didn't tell you right away.

The Zhou family had been struggling to survive this year, and their vitality was greatly damaged. Although they still ranked second on the surface, many people said that they were only slightly better than the Jiang family. If they could not make a comeback in the autumn harvest this year, they might even be eliminated.

But you told me before that some cooperation with his family will be implemented soon, and I still believe in your vision. So today, Shanhuo has not signed the contract with the Chen family yet, and is just waiting for your decision!

As for the Chen family, it is really hard to comment. His family also relied on the business of mountain products, but his family was more inclined to pursue a career in government. You don't know yet, right? The prefect of our Zhibei Prefecture is from the Chen family. This family has the real confidence.

But I say it is difficult to evaluate his family because with such a background, if they run their business honestly, they will surely be safe for a hundred years. But his family... Hey! Flowers are blooming, and the fire is boiling, so let's wait and see!

Tieying, although our Dayu encourages business, due to the previous dynasty, the restrictions on women are not as harsh as they were a thousand years ago, but firstly, you are young, and secondly, your foundation is not stable. Uncle's advice is that you wait a little longer. Sometimes letting go may actually be a sign of progress."

Bai Tieying was thinking while listening to what Manager Zhang said, but in the end they still couldn't reach a consensus.

"Uncle Zhang, I know your painstaking efforts, but please forgive me for not agreeing with you. I was able to be so successful only because of the east wind. So if you are afraid of wolves in front and tigers behind, when this east wind is no longer available, it is more likely that everyone will come to step on you.

I haven’t told you clearly before, but the Qiu brother who has always been by my side...” Bai Tieying hesitated for a moment and still didn’t say it clearly, “He is indeed from the capital. If we talk about status alone, Prefect Chen is not comparable to him.

Moreover, even if he is the ceiling I can achieve in this life, while our relationship is still good, I want to work harder, so that even if something goes wrong in the future, I will have a stronger foundation to take risks.

Uncle Zhang, actually my future plan is not to do business. But money is not everything, and without money, nothing can be achieved. No ideal can be divorced from reality.

I was born in a peasant family, and I am a girl. I want to change my fate and realize my ideal. Apart from the imperial examination, the only other way is to do business, so I spend my time on these things. My purpose is not just to make money, because money alone, or a small amount of money, is definitely not enough to support my ideal.

Uncle Zhang, I am only ten years old, and only twelve in lunar age. The reason why I suddenly took such big steps instead of being secretive and sneaky like I did at the beginning is because I have determined my ideals and faced up to my own abilities.

Uncle Zhang, please forgive me for not wanting to tell you everything when things have just taken their first step, but for now, I have connections and abilities that other families don't have, so why should I follow the rules and do things step by step? Sometimes taking a bigger step can deter some villains.

You are my benefactor and my first comrade in the business world. I sincerely hope that we can fight side by side."

Bai Tieying said nothing more, just holding the cold tea and bowing his head in silence. But Zhang, the shopkeeper, was feeling mixed emotions.

He really likes Bai Tieying, but now they have different business philosophies. He wants Chunfutang to continue its prosperity for decades under his leadership, and is willing to make some new attempts, but only when he feels it is safe.

And just as Bai Tieying said, her steps were too fast and too big, and he was already a little flustered to follow her. If he set up the "Small and Medium-sized Shops United Guild" as she said, not to mention whether others would agree, the Chen, Zhou, Cui, and Jiang families would definitely be offended.