I just wrote a love poem, how did that make me so powerful?

Li Jinghuan looked at Chen Shijin.

"You mean if you say we'll pay, you mean I should also pay?"

A troubled look appeared on Chen Shijin's face.

"Young Master, our Chen family doesn't have the capital to do business. Our resources are limited, and the price of bras isn't cheap. If we rely solely on our own money to compete with them, I'm afraid it won't be very effective."

He looked up at Li Jinghuan's expression, and seeing no significant change, he cautiously continued speaking.

"What I'm thinking is... my Chen family will contribute 10,000 taels of silver, and you will also contribute 10,000 taels to cover the initial costs. If we can recover 15,000 taels in the future, you can take 10,000 taels back. The remaining 5,000 taels of loss will be accepted by my Chen family. If we can only recover 10,000 taels..."

Li Jinghuan raised his hand to interrupt him.

His gaze lingered on Chen Shijin's face for a moment, then he burst out laughing.

"I think I've figured it out. Others wage business wars to make money, but you're waging business wars to drag Xu Qing down with you."

"Don't bother. Since you're going to play this game, the loss will be split 50/50. Five thousand taels is five thousand taels. If five thousand taels can get the job done, I can afford that price."

Chen Shijin hadn't expected that Li Jinghuan would be so extravagant when it came to spending money.

He paused for a moment, then nodded repeatedly.

"Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Your Highness!"

"Besides this, do you have any other ideas?"

Chen Shijin thought for a moment: "This step is to cripple Xu Qing and the Song family's business, preventing them from making money. As for their studies and the county examination, my uncle will find a way. As the county's instructor, it would be incredibly easy for him to obstruct Xu Qing..."

"Alright, at least there's a plan now." Li Jinghuan waved his hand and picked up his tea.

It means he can leave now.

"Then I shall take my leave..."

When Chen Shijin pushed open the door, he found that the back of his clothes was already soaked.

He walked to the door, and the doorman glanced at him again. This time, he didn't say anything unpleasant, but the corner of his mouth curved slightly, as if he was suppressing a laugh.

Chen Shijin pretended not to see it, and muttered to himself:

Laugh all you want, but you'll have your day to cry sooner or later. You won't have the chance today, just you wait.

Thinking to himself, he quickly walked out, got into the carriage, and then let out a long sigh of relief.

He looked down and noticed a damp stain on his cuff. He tried to wipe it off, but it didn't come off.

He rolled up his sleeves, leaned against the carriage, and closed his eyes.

He had the ten thousand taels in hand, but Li Jinghuan's last words clearly indicated that if the deal fell through, he wouldn't let the matter rest...

……

After leaving Li Jinghuan's villa, Chen Shijin did not delay for a moment and went directly to the prefectural city by carriage.

He changed into an inconspicuous gray cloth outfit on the way, to look more low-key.

After arriving at the Qian family, a silk merchant in the prefectural city, they were treated like easy prey and slaughtered.

……

The carriage stopped at the entrance of an alley in the western part of the city. He got out of the carriage and went into a house with a sign that read "Qianji Cloth Shop".

In the study in the backyard, a tall, thin man in his early fifties was looking at account books.

He wore a worn scarlet silk robe, the cuffs gleaming from wear. His eyes were long and shrewd, and he always seemed to be weighing the price when he looked at people.

This man was none other than Qian Sanjiang, the owner of Qianji Cloth Shop.

Upon hearing the servant's report, he looked up, a smile on his face:

"Young Master Chen, you have come from afar, please come in."

Chen Shijin didn't bother with pleasantries and went straight to the point:

"I'm sure Boss Qian knows we're at odds with the Xiao family. So I'll just ask directly, how much do you charge for a single bra?"

Qian Sanjiang held up three fingers and said, "The purchase price is seven and a half taels."

Chen Shijin's brows immediately furrowed.

"Seven and a half taels? That price is too high. The cheapest bras from the Xiao family sell for one tael of silver, and you're asking for seven and a half taels at cost. How am I supposed to compete with them?"

Qian Sanjiang wasn't in a hurry. He pulled out an account book from under the table, flipped through a couple of pages, and pushed it in front of Chen Shijin.

"Young Master Chen, look for yourself, what benefit would I gain from lying to you?"

Chen Shijin glanced down at the entries in the ledger, his face darkening.

He pointed to the column above that listed the cost of forging steel bars.

His tone was filled with disbelief.

"What?! A seemingly insignificant steel rim accounts for more than half of the cost?"

Qian Sanjiang nodded.

"That's high-strength steel. It needs to be forged dozens or even hundreds of times to make that kind of thin and elastic steel bar. Just this one component alone makes it impossible to reduce the cost."

Chen Shijin closed the ledger, his tone clearly showing some dissatisfaction.

"Isn't it because your craftsmanship is lacking? The Xiao family can make bras that cost one tael of silver, why can't you?"

Upon hearing this, Qian Sanjiang's smile faded, and his tone became somewhat cold.

"We also want to know why. If Young Master Chen can obtain the Xiao family's secret recipe, I am willing to offer ten thousand taels of silver."

Chen Shijin was momentarily speechless at his words. He opened his mouth, but ultimately waved his hand.

"Then forget about it. You're not the only ones who want the secret formula. Some have offered up to ten thousand taels, but the craftsmen from the Xiao family are like death squads. They don't even leave their homes, let alone get their hands on it."

Qian Sanjiang retrieved the account book and put it back under the table, his tone no longer as cold as before.

"How much does Young Master Chen plan to sell it for? At the original price?"

Chen Shijin shook his head. "Selling at the original price isn't competitive. I plan to sell it directly for five taels of silver."

Qian Sanjiang paused slightly as he picked up the teacup, then put it down, looked at Chen Shijin, and said in a somewhat strange tone.

"No, you guys are doing business at a loss... So how much stock are you planning to buy?"

Chen Shijin held up two fingers.

"Twenty thousand taels, we need to buy twenty thousand taels worth of goods. I don't believe we can't defeat them."

Qian Sanjiang quickly did some mental calculations, but remained outwardly calm, only uttering a single sentence.

"If you think you can bring down the Xiao family with just 20,000 taels of goods..."

He started to say something, then swallowed the rest of his sentence. Looking at Chen Shijin's confident face, he muttered to himself:

As far as I know, the shareholders' capital of the Xiao family's business has already exceeded 100,000 taels. To overthrow them with 20,000 taels is practically a dream come true.

But he didn't say it.

Chen Shijin did not notice the change in his expression and continued to ask.

"How long will it take to deliver?"

Qian Sanjiang considered it for a moment and then held up two fingers.

"It will take at least twenty days, and at worst two months. The craftsmen who forge steel bars are all skilled old blacksmiths. They also have to make weapons and farm tools, so they are not free every day."

Chen Shijin refused outright.

"No way, let alone twenty days, even half a month would be too long for me. The Xiao family's bras have already been sold elsewhere, and you haven't even supplied them yet. Is there any way to shorten the time?"

Qian Sanjiang shrugged, "I can't help it, unless..."

Chen Shijin frowned. "Unless what? Just say it! Why are you hiding it from me? Are you afraid I'll learn your methods?"