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

Qian Sanjiang gave a cold laugh, then changed the subject:

"Unless the standard of the steel bars is lowered, and ordinary forged iron bars are used instead of refined steel, more than half of the time can be saved."

Chen Shijin did not hesitate at all.

"If we can save money, then let's do it this way. Anyway, it doesn't affect your brand when we sell it. Even if there are problems, it's the reputation of our Chen family."

Upon hearing this, Qian Sanjiang completely relaxed, and even his tone became much lighter.

"You should have said so earlier. That would have made things much easier. We'll do whatever Young Master Chen wants, and we'll cooperate completely."

Qian Sanjiang's narrow eyes were gleaming.

Chen Shijin suddenly felt a little dazed, with a feeling that he was about to be tricked...

But then he thought again, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Their common enemy is the Xiao family. He's plotting against me? That would be a deal that would bring nothing but harm…

So the two of them finalized the collaboration on the spot.

Qian Sanjiang agreed to deliver the first batch of 300 sets within three days, with the remainder to be delivered in batches, at a price reduced to 3.7 taels per set.

Chen Shijin was very satisfied with the price, urged the other party a few more times, and then got up to take his leave.

After he left, Qian Sanjiang stood at the door, watching his carriage drive away, and then turned to give an instruction to the accountant behind him.

"Go and relay my message: stop all normal bras and get rid of the Chen family's stock first. I have a feeling that his business won't last long. In the end, it will be his stock that will be stuck with the bad stock, not us."

The accountant nodded, turned and left.

Three days later, the 300 sets of bras were delivered on schedule.

Qian Sanjiang personally inspected the goods in the warehouse, and then took out a sample steel bar from the side and handed it to Chen Shijin to look at.

"This is what you call ordinary iron bar. The cost has been reduced, but its toughness is not as good as high-strength steel. You must not bend it too hard, or it will break."

Chen Shijin casually took it, bent it, and found that it was indeed a bit harder than the small fake steel bar. It got stuck after bending to a certain extent. He threw the steel bar back and said nonchalantly.

"Who the hell would forcefully pry this open for no reason? When a man and woman are actually doing it in bed, they take their clothes off. Who would use a bra as a bowstring to pull something important?"

Qian Sanjiang chuckled twice, then didn't reply.

After returning to Hengyang County with the goods, Chen Shijin immediately used some means to rent a shop in the bustling city center and hung up the sign for Chen Family Bras.

Inside the shop, there were several tables covered with plain-colored cloth, displaying samples of different styles of bras.

Chen Shijin spent a lot of money to hire a group of employees to lure people into his shop at the street corner.

Upon entering, he would boast: "Our products are cheaper and better than Xiao's."

however……

After a busy day, quite a few people came into the store, but very few actually spent money.

A woman in a floral print blouse was pulled into the store by the shop assistant, but after seeing the price tag, she turned and left.

The guy chased after him for a few steps, shouting at the top of his lungs.

"Big sister, our prices are much cheaper than the Xiao family's."

The lady threw out a sentence without turning her head.

"I want to buy the one-tael silver from the Xiao family, but your cheapest one is five taels, which I can't afford."

Another young woman was persuaded by the shop assistant. She walked around the yard, picked up a sample, looked it over, and asked a question.

"Is this a copy of the Xiao family's design?"

Before the waiter could explain, she had already put the items back on the table and clapped her hands.

"When I wear it out, people ask me where I bought it. I say it's a bra from the Chen family, but they've never even heard of it. So what am I doing spending five taels of silver on it? Who am I showing it to? What I want is the reputation of the Xiao family bras."

After saying that, she left.

For three consecutive days, Chen's shop sold less than twenty items in total, most of which were bought by relatives and friends to make up the numbers.

The shopkeeper was so anxious that he scratched his head and counted the accounts again and again behind the counter. Finally, he couldn't hold on any longer and went to Chen Shijin to discuss the matter.

"Boss, this won't do. The Xiao family's shop is always packed, and we can't even catch a ghost here."

Chen Shijin retorted irritably, "Then what's the point of you coming to me? What can I possibly do?"

The shopkeeper rubbed his hands together and cautiously offered a suggestion.

"Master, how about we select a batch of those with slightly inferior workmanship and less vibrant colors and sell them for one tael of silver? The rest of the better-quality ones, we can price them at eight taels, saying they're in the same class as the Xiao family's ten-tael ones. That way we can at least attract some customers."

Chen Shijin narrowed his eyes slightly. "Wouldn't that result in even greater losses?"

The shopkeeper took out his abacus and started typing away rapidly.

"Sell a small portion of them as cheap and the rest as expensive. As long as they can all be sold, the total loss won't be much more."

Chen Shijin thought for a moment, then waved his hand.

"Okay, we'll do it your way."

The shopkeeper worked through the night to sort through the inventory, picking out a batch of goods with slightly rough edges and uneven color, and labeled them as special offer items for one tael of silver.

This trick really worked.

The next day, a steady stream of customers came into the shop, most of them looking for bargains. They bought a piece for one or two taels of silver. Although the workmanship was a bit rough, it was still a good deal for ordinary women who didn't care about being fancy or presentable.

Over the course of a few days, about a hundred discounted items were sold.

However, those high-end models marked with eight taels of silver remained unsold.

After entering the store, customers would glance at the discounted items briefly, then leave, rarely giving the eight-tael silver samples a second look.

……

When the shopkeeper went to report again, Chen Shijin was sitting in the back room drinking tea.

Upon hearing the result, he suddenly stood up and kicked over the bench next to him.

Then he reached out and smashed several teacups on the table.

"Useless! They're all damn useless! Eight taels of silver is two taels cheaper than the Xiao family's, why don't they buy it?"

He was still angry as he cursed, so he grabbed the paperweight on the table and was about to smash it.

The shopkeeper, quick-witted and agile, caught it and offered words of advice in a humble tone.

"Boss, it's one thing to smash other things, but this can't be smashed, it's too expensive."

Chen Shijin, panting heavily, shook off his hand and kicked the table leg again.

"I need to think of a way. If all else fails, spread rumors that wearing things from the Xiao family is bad for your health."

The shopkeeper waved his hands repeatedly, "Master, we've already used this trick once before, and that's how Sun Decai fell for it."

Upon hearing the name Sun Decai, Chen Shijin's expression suddenly changed. He waved his hand dismissively, as if someone had touched a sensitive spot.

"Don't mention that person again."

Seeing that he had relented, the shopkeeper took another step closer and, gritting his teeth, offered one last suggestion.

"Boss, we've come this far, let's just go all the way and get it done in one go."

Chen Shijin frowned. "What kind of one-step solution do you have? Tell me."