Top Scholar

Chapter 185 Buying a House
Sweet Water Diary.

Scholar Cheng had the common trait of being ashamed to talk about profit, and after a long pause, he finally managed to stammer out, "Teach us how to brew Erlang wine too..."

"Hehe..." Su Youcai laughed upon hearing this. It's true what they say, fortunes change, and now it's the Cheng family's turn to rely on Erlang wine to prolong their lives.

"What, am I indulging in wishful thinking?" Scholar Cheng's heart sank.

"No, sir, you've asked the wrong person. I have nothing to do with the distillery, so it's not my place to make decisions," Su Youcai replied truthfully.

"Then why are you laughing like that?!" Cheng Xiucai said irritably.

"It's nothing, it's nothing," Su Youcai quickly waved his hand. But the whole thing was so ridiculous that he had to press two fingers to his lips to keep from laughing.

Scholar Cheng then looked at his daughter. "Can you make that decision?"

"I can't either," the proprietress shook her head and said, "The distillery belongs to the Su family. Although I have a share, these kinds of decisions must be made by them."

"But the prescription is yours," Cheng Xiucai blurted out in his haste.

“I’ve already invested the recipe, and it’s now part of Su’s Winery.” The proprietress said helplessly, “So Father should have sought out the old patriarch and head chef of the Su family. It’s really a waste of time to come to me.”

“We definitely need to talk to them, but we have to sound them out here first and ask about their capabilities,” Cheng Xiucai sighed.

"I definitely can't express my opinion, otherwise I'll be disliked by both sides." The proprietress was very clear-headed.

"My dear daughter..." Seeing that Lanlan remained unmoved despite his efforts, Cheng Xiucai knew she was now a shrewd businesswoman and had no choice but to tell the truth: "Our Cheng family's distillery is having a tough time. Your brother and your uncle visited all our old customers over the New Year, and they all said they wouldn't place any orders this year and would wait until autumn to see what happens."

In the past, when the distillery was doing well, Cheng's wine was in high demand and short supply. So, to ensure a steady supply, regular customers would place their orders right after the New Year. In this way, the wine would be sold out before it was even brewed, ensuring a very secure business.

The Cheng family, accustomed to making sure-fire profits, panicked when orders suddenly disappeared. They couldn't even guarantee a full harvest of the sorghum planted this year, and naturally, the clansmen were full of complaints…

"Don't worry, old man, wine is like any other; the older it gets, the better it becomes," Su Youcai comforted him with a smile. "The wine from our Su's Winery has been aged for ten years; it's become a vintage..."

However, this attempt at comfort sounded somewhat gloating.

The proprietress gave Su Youcai a look, signaling him to stop provoking her father. Then she refilled Cheng Xiucai's tea and said, "Father, don't worry. Let me ask around and see how they're reacting."

"Aren't you reluctant to speak?" Cheng Xiucai asked.

"I can't speak to the old clan chief and the head of the household directly, but I can ask my son," the proprietress said.

"Oh right, I heard that Su Tai is also a shareholder!" Cheng Xiucai said suddenly.

"Hmm..." The proprietress certainly wasn't going to ask Su Tai, but there was no need to tell his father too much detail either.

"But the Su brothers are in Luzhou now, aren't they?" Cheng Xiucai asked again.

"Yes. Both brothers are in school." The proprietress nodded and said, "We're worried about them, so we're planning to go check on them in the next few days."

"Indeed, both children are still minors, and you've left them so far away. You two are really heartless," Cheng Xiucai said, unable to resist lecturing. "Aren't you afraid the children will go hungry, get cold, or be bullied?"

"Dad, please stop..." The landlady quickly told her father to stop, otherwise Su Youcai would start to cry. He was fine when he was busy before, but these past few days, as soon as he had some free time, he started to worry about Luzhou, wishing he could sprout wings and fly there.

~~
In the afternoon, when Su Youjin came to rest, Cheng Xiucai had already gone back.

The proprietress told her uncle about her father's visit.

"Hehe, they couldn't hold on much longer? I thought they could last another year or two." Su Youjin said with a smug laugh, his legs crossed.

He's riding high right now. Not only is his work going smoothly, but his wife isn't around, and he's also been commended by Commander Ma for his meritorious service in the battle to suppress bandits at Baisha. If everything goes well, he'll be Commander Su in just a few months.

Of course, we should try it on 100 households...

“Yes…” With Cheng Xiucai not present, Su Youcai’s attitude became much gentler. “Actually, it was clear in the county town before the New Year that the Cheng family was willing to reconcile.”

“They don’t want to reconcile, they’re just about to break down,” Su Youjin sneered. “Doing business is all about money going around in circles. Once it stops going around, you’re stuck in a bind.”

“Indeed.” Su Youcai nodded and said, “But if we can reconcile, we should.” “Can’t the old man sit at the same table with Mr. Cheng for a meal?”

"Haha, you're already worrying about your future father-in-law?" Su Youjin teased him, then waved his hand and said, "I have no objection to reconciliation. After all, my two younger brothers have become half sons of the Cheng family."

"Thank you, brother." The proprietress said, blushing. She had already tidied herself up by now.

"No need to thank me, as the eldest brother, I naturally have to think about my younger siblings!" Su Youjin laughed heartily.

"I support whatever you do! If your sister-in-law has trouble speaking up for the old man, let me do it for her!" After becoming an official, my uncle has become increasingly responsible. Unlike before, when he always had to ask my aunt to speak on his behalf.

"Brother, don't say anything yet," the landlady said. "I want to go to Luzhou first and ask Qiu-ge'er what he thinks..."

“Yes, we should let him make the decision about these things.” The uncle nodded naturally and said, “I wonder how those two lads are doing in Luzhou. You two might as well go and check on them…”

"I'll leave the shop in my brother's care for a while," the proprietress said. "The staff will be back tomorrow, and I'll give them a heads-up. They're all long-time employees since the shop opened, so it'll be running smoothly even without us."

“No problem, how long do you plan to stay?” The uncle laughed and said, “If it’s a long trip, I’ll have to set some rules for them.”

"It's hard to say," the proprietress said. "Besides looking after the children, we also want to investigate whether we can sell Erlang wine in Luzhou."

"You two are really ambitious. You haven't even taken over Hejiang County yet, and you're already thinking about going to Luzhou?" Uncle couldn't help but laugh.

"The county has its own chief manager to handle things; we don't need to get involved," the proprietress said confidently. "Besides, Luzhou is the real big city. Only by getting Erlang Liquor into Luzhou can we truly establish our reputation!"

She said calmly, "Besides, I've inquired. The same wine sells for fifty coins in Hejiang, but it can sell for one hundred coins in Luzhou! I have to make a good price for the fruits of everyone's hard work!"

"Is it really that much of a difference? Then we really can't let the dealers make all the money!" The uncle immediately put his hands in support and said, "You all go ahead, I'll take care of things here!"

The Su family is very sensible.

Actually, Sweet Water Kee's wholesale and retail businesses are all on track, and daily operations are fine. My uncle's main concern is preventing his employees from neglecting their duties and lining their own pockets.

"Sigh, I never thought that the sweet drink business, which was the hope of the whole family last year, would become a bit of a burden this year," Su Youcai sighed.

"You're not the type to manage a household!" Su Youjin rolled his eyes at him and said, "What do you mean by 'chicken rib'? This is still a golden goose, okay? As long as we're making a steady profit, we have to keep going!"

"Brother is right," the proprietress laughed. "You can't put all your eggs in one basket."

"When you pass through the county town, go and take a look at your family. Your sister-in-law is buying a house; don't let her get ripped off," the uncle instructed again.

"Hahaha, brother, you're overthinking it. Who in Hejiang County would dare to cheat the Su family now? Don't they want to live in the shadows?" Su Youcai laughed loudly.

“You don’t understand. They may not have the guts to rip you off, but they have a lot of guts to fleece you!” Uncle shook his head. No one understood the hearts and minds of ordinary people better than him.

"Okay, don't worry, brother." The proprietress accepted the task.

~~
After the shop reopened, the proprietress gave some instructions to the employees and then took a boat with Su Youcai to Hejiang County.

When we arrived in the county town, we found that my aunt had indeed been busy looking at houses for a long time. If she hadn't been overwhelmed by the choices, she probably would have already paid for the property transfer.

The person who understands Aunt best is indeed Uncle. He knows that Aunt is not good at managing outside affairs... She has a problem when dealing with outsiders: she forgets her own surname after being flattered.

My aunt took a fancy to a large house with four courtyards, and after being showered with praise, she was willing to pay 150 taels of silver to buy it...

Fortunately, the proprietress arrived just in time. As soon as she arrived, the aunt breathed a long sigh of relief and immediately handed over the right to negotiate.

Things changed when the proprietress arrived; she managed to cut the price in half, settling on eighty taels...

Actually, eighty taels was only a fair price, because the house needed renovation from top to bottom, and new furniture had to be purchased, so there wasn't much profit to be made. The landlady could have negotiated another ten or eight taels down if she had insisted. But she had to consider the Su family's reputation and couldn't afford to lose more for a small gain…

The aunt had saved half of her down payment for the house, which was more than enough to renovate it. But the landlady still found a construction team for her, negotiated the price, and told them that she would settle the bill after she returned to inspect the property.

In short, my aunt doesn't have to worry about anything that requires money.
The eldest aunt was very happy and asked the younger aunt, "You two are both daughters of the Cheng family, how come you haven't learned even a single move from your sister?"

My aunt is so depressed she can't eat anymore...

The aunt asked the landlady if she wanted to buy a house in Luzhou as well.
Upon hearing this, the proprietress smiled wryly and said, "Is your wife addicted to buying houses?"

"Haha, it seems so." Auntie laughed, "Besides, Xia-ge'er and Qiu-ge'er will have to stay in Luzhou for a long time, so it's not a bad deal for you to buy a smaller one."

"Let's talk about it when we get there," the proprietress said, not giving a definitive answer.

Buying and decorating a house sounds simple, but it's incredibly time-consuming and stressful. By the time the landlady had everything arranged, it was already February, and the tender willows along the riverbank were sprouting new buds…

The proprietress and Su Youcai then continued their journey towards Luzhou, accompanied by Xiaotian and Su Youma.

This time, my uncle, having learned his lesson, resolved to start afresh and build a solid business from scratch. His backside had barely healed when he set off with his older brother and sister-in-law, partly to run errands for them, and partly to learn how to do business...

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(End of this chapter)