After ten years of accompanying me in my studies, the entire court begged me to shut up.

Time flies, and it's already the end of October.

The cold winds in the north have become biting, signaling the arrival of winter.

In the capital, a type of sweater became popular at some point.

It is said to be made of wool yarn, lightweight and warm, and costs only 30% of the price of ordinary cotton clothes.

After the news spread, long queues formed outside the embroidery shop in the south of the city every day.

On this day, seven or eight merchants gathered together in a courtyard in the east of the city.

The leader was Zhou Youcai, a silk merchant and vice president of the Beijing Cloth Merchants Guild.

He put down his teacup, his face grim. "Gentlemen," he said, "you've heard about the sweater, haven't you?"

One of the men sitting down sighed, "How come I haven't heard? My family's fabric shop has seen a sharp drop in sales this month. Some customers come in and ask if we have sweaters, and if not, they turn around and leave!"

Another person chimed in, "Me too! In previous years, winter clothes would have sold out by now, but this year, we're stuck with them all!"

Zhou Youcai glanced around and said in a deep voice, "So, we need to think of a way."

Someone asked, "Manager Zhou, you're very knowledgeable, so where did this sweater come from?"

Zhou Youcai looked at everyone and said, "Manager Liu, what have you found out?"

Manager Liu's real name is Liu Quan. He runs a general store and is well-informed, traveling from street to street.

He leaned forward and lowered his voice, saying, "I asked around, and the owner of that embroidery shop is a woman named Xiuniang. She used to be a widow who fled from war, with a daughter, and almost starved to death on the streets. I don't know what kind of luck she had, but she was noticed by a nobleman and now she manages the entire workshop."

Someone frowned and said, "A widow? No one backing her?"

Liu Quan shook his head and said, "That's strange. No matter how we investigate, we can't find out who's behind her. The shop's property deeds and the workshop's land deeds are all in her own name."

Zhou Youcai sneered, "The more it's like this, the more it shows someone's backing you. Where would a widow get the capital to open a workshop? Where would she get her supplies?"

Liu Quan added, "I also learned about another matter. Those wools were from an agreement reached between the Ming Dynasty and the Mongols some time ago, at five copper coins per catty."

"Five coins?" someone exclaimed. "So cheap?"

Liu Quan nodded: "Yes, five copper coins a pound. How much do we pay the farmers for cotton a pound? Twenty copper coins! And that doesn't even include the labor costs for spinning and weaving. Their raw materials are 70% cheaper than ours, how can we compete?"

The room was silent.

Zhou Youcai's face turned even uglier.

Liu Quan hesitated for a moment, then added, "And... cashmere."

Everyone looked up again.

Liu Quan continued, "Besides wool, there's also cashmere, which costs fifty coins a pound. My relative works in the Ministry of Works, and he told me... some people in the palace are already wearing cashmere sweaters, which are a hundred times better than wool sweaters! They're so light, soft, and incredibly warm!"

Someone gasped and said, "If it's really that good, cheaper than silk, wouldn't it be amazing to make clothes out of it and sell them to wealthy people...?"

He only said half of what he meant, but everyone understood.

Cotton cloth is sold in large quantities, while silk is sold at high prices; these are the two pillars of the cloth industry.

Sweaters are taking away business from cotton fabrics, while cashmere is taking away business from silk fabrics!

Zhou Youcai remained silent for a long time before slowly saying, "Gentlemen, if this business gets too big, all of us will starve."

Someone grew anxious: "Manager Zhou, what do you suggest we do? We'll do as you say!"

"Yes! You make the decision!"

Zhou Youcai raised his hand and pressed it down, signaling everyone to be quiet.

He pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "Whether this sweater shop can survive depends first and foremost on how resilient it is."

After saying that, he looked towards the door and called out, "Zhao Wu!"

A burly, bald man with a fierce face entered through the door; he was clearly not a good guy.

Zhou Youcai instructed, "Take a few brothers and go to that embroiderer's sweater shop. Have a good talk with her. It's a newly opened shop, she doesn't know the rules, let's teach her."

Zhao Wu grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth: "Don't worry, Master Zhou, I know this stuff."

Zhou Quan hesitated and said, "Manager Zhou, what if she really has someone backing her..."

Zhou Youcai waved his hand: "If there really was someone, they would have shown themselves long ago. If they're hiding, it's either because there's no one there, or they can't stand the light of day. Either way, let's test the waters first. If she chickens out, we'll devour her piece by piece."

Zhou Quan asked, "What if...she doesn't back down?"

Zhou Youcai sneered, "Even better, let's force out who's behind her. I want to see which powerful figure dares to oppose the entire cloth industry!"

Everyone nodded, smiles appearing on their faces.

Zhao Wu led four men and swaggered towards the south of the city.

Chengnan Street is bustling with people.

There was a long queue of more than 20 people in front of the embroidery shop.

Inside the shop, the embroiderer was holding up a sweater and introducing it to a customer.

She wore a simple jacket and skirt, her hair was tied up, and she had a faint smile on her face. She spoke softly but clearly.

"This one is made of wool, so it's the warmest and suitable for the elderly and children. This one is mixed with cashmere, so it's lighter and looks good on young people. Feel the texture..."

The customer nodded repeatedly and bought two items.

The embroiderer thanked her, took the silver, and turned to get the packaging.

At that moment, a commotion broke out at the doorway.

The people in line were pushed aside, and five burly men walked in sideways.

Zhao Wu stood in the center of the shop, looked around, and grinned, "Wow, business is good!"

The embroiderer's expression changed slightly, but she quickly regained her composure and stepped forward to give a curtsy: "Gentlemen, are you here to buy clothes?"

Zhao Wu chuckled and looked her up and down: "I'd like to buy it, but I don't know if your shop is even qualified to sell."

The embroiderer said softly, "Sir, you flatter me. The shop is open, so of course we're selling. Which piece do you fancy? I'll get it for you."

Zhao Wu walked to the counter, grabbed a sweater, weighed it in his hand, threw it on the ground, stepped on it, and even rolled it over.

"This piece of junk doesn't even deserve to be called clothes!"

The people in line were so frightened that they backed away, and a crowd of onlookers gathered at the entrance, but no one dared to step forward.

The embroiderer took a deep breath and said softly, "Sir, if you're not going to buy anything, please leave. Don't delay my business."

"Oh? This little wench's got some nerve?"

Zhao Wu was taken aback for a moment, then stepped forward, looking down at the embroiderer: "Listen carefully, this street is under our brothers' control. New shops opening require protection money. Fifty taels a month. One less coin, and you can forget about opening your shop."

The embroiderer looked up at him, her gaze calm: "What if I don't pay?"

Zhao Wu narrowed his eyes, his smile gradually turning cold: "Not handing it over? Then don't blame us brothers for being impolite. We'll smash up your shop, sell you to a brothel. Look at your little face, you're not exactly pretty..."

"It's just fifty taels, I'll pay!"

The embroiderer turned around and took out fifty taels of silver from the counter, placing it on the counter.

Zhao Wu was stunned, seemingly not expecting the embroiderer to be so agreeable.

Fifty taels is no small sum; even an ordinary shop might not make fifty taels in a year.

The embroiderer smiled and asked, "Is there anything else?"

Zhao Wu's expression changed, and he said, "Who told you fifty taels? I just said eighty taels!"

"Eighty taels, is that right?"

The embroiderer then took out another thirty taels of silver ingots from the counter.

Zhao Wu's lips trembled as he said, "You misheard, it's one hundred taels!"

"Alright, one hundred taels!"

The embroiderer took out another twenty taels.

Seeing that the other party was so cooperative, Zhao Wu figured they must be afraid of him, so he smiled with satisfaction and said, "You're smart enough to pay on time every month. Let's go!"

After saying that, he gestured for the people to leave.