Ch 94: The Regent’s Farmer Husband

After entering the twelfth lunar month, the New Year atmosphere grew stronger by the day. Many shops were selling New Year goods, and people were preparing food, clothing, daily supplies, and festival gifts for the holiday.

On Laba Festival, the streets were especially crowded.

Suddenly, in the middle section of East Street, firecrackers burst loudly. After the crackling stopped, gongs and drums thundered, the festive sound ringing through the entire street.

“What happened? Which family has a happy event?”

“I heard a cloth shop up ahead is opening today.”

“It’s the Duke’s cloth shop. They posted a notice three days ago saying they’d have grand opening discounts today.”

“The Duke’s family? Then we have to go see.”

“They’re doing a lion dance!”

“Hurry, let’s go look. I heard the Duke’s family harvested a lot of cotton this year. Let’s see their cloth!”

Everyone rushed toward the commotion.

A large crowd gathered outside Jiang’s Cloth Shop. The full chapter is up on HololoNovels dot com. People watched the lion dance, cheering whenever the performance grew exciting, adding another layer of joy to the winter street.

After the lively lion dance, Jiang Ji and Jiang Xia lifted the red silk from the shop plaque together.

Jiang Xia’s face was bright with excitement. Her brother had said the shop was registered under her name, so he had specially asked her to unveil the plaque.

The thirteen-year-old girl had eaten well over the past year and had grown noticeably taller. She had large eyes, a pointed chin, and fair, delicate skin, looking fresh and lovely.

She wore a short red front-opening jacket and skirt, with a circle of fluffy white fox fur around her neck, making her look even more beautiful and charming.

“Oh my, who is that girl? She’s so pretty. Why is she unveiling the plaque with the Duke?”

“I heard she’s the Duke’s younger sister.”

“So she’s the young lady of the Duke’s family. No wonder she’s so pretty.”

“The clothes she’s wearing are beautiful too. That pattern is perfect for a young girl. I wonder where they bought it? I want to buy a bolt for my daughter.”

“The deep red on the Duke looks good too.”

“The blue cotton jacket on the shop assistant beside them is also nice.”

Jiang Ji handed the red silk to a shop assistant, then cupped his hands and spoke loudly to the gathered crowd.

“Everyone, today is the opening of my younger sister’s cloth shop. As you can see, the clothes worn by me, my sister, our shopkeeper, and the assistants are all made from cloth sold in our store. They are all pure cotton fabrics.

“Thank you all for your support. There are discounts for buying cloth today. Since our stock is limited, only a little over three hundred bolts, it will be first come, first served. Everyone is welcome to come in and choose!”

After he finished, he entered the shop with Jiang Xia.

Many madams who planned to buy cloth went inside to take a look. Others simply wanted to join the excitement and see what the Duke’s cloth was like, so they also entered.

Once they went in, they could not bear to leave.

“My heavens, why is this cloth so soft? It’s much more comfortable than the cloth from the Zhang family’s shop!”

“This is better than all the cotton cloth on the market!”

“This cloth is really comfortable. Wife, buy two bolts and make clothes for you and the children.”

“This would be perfect for undergarments. We need to buy several bolts!”

“This is the first time I’ve seen this pattern! Mother, this would look good on you!”

“Assistant, how much is this bolt?”

“Oh my, such good cloth isn’t even that expensive. It’s only a little more expensive than other cotton cloth. Worth it, very worth it.”

“Miss, this pale pink fabric is so pretty. It suits you beautifully.”

“Quick, quick, assistant, get me one bolt of the fabric the Duke’s sister was wearing earlier!”

“The Duke just said there are only a little over three hundred bolts. Hurry and buy, or they’ll be gone soon.”

“I want one bolt in the color the Duke was wearing!”

“Assistant, get me one bolt of this dark blue, and one bolt of that lotus-pink!”

“Assistant, I want two bolts of that lotus-pink too. What? It’s out of stock? How can it be out of stock right after opening? When will you have more?”

“This pattern is gone? Why didn’t you make more?”

“Aiya, sister, I got this bolt first. Don’t fight me for it! Go ask the assistant!”

…

The cloth shop was packed with people, all scrambling to buy cloth.

Before coming in, they had not expected the Duke’s cloth to be this good. The texture was fine and soft, and when placed on the back of the hand, it felt gentle and comfortable.

The colors were beautiful too. The full chapter is up on HololoNovels dot com. There were many solid colors to choose from, and many of them were shades other cloth shops did not have. The patterned fabrics were also very pretty.

The madams and young ladies who had already planned to buy cloth immediately began snatching it up. Even those who had only come to watch the excitement could not help being tempted.

The shop assistant also called out, “Dear customers, stock is limited! Each style only has a dozen or so bolts at most. If you see something you like, buy quickly. It may be gone soon!”

With that shout, the customers who were still hesitating could no longer hesitate. They grabbed the fabric and quickly hugged it to their chests, afraid someone else would snatch it away.

Sure enough, later on, stock ran out. Seeing several people fighting over a single bolt, those who had managed to get one were instantly satisfied.

Good thing they had grabbed it. If they had hesitated any longer, it would have been gone.

Jiang Ji hurriedly instructed, “Those who didn’t get any can place an order with the assistants. From now on, we’ll send more cloth over every day. You’ll be able to get it within three days at most!”

Those who had failed to buy cloth immediately swarmed over to the assistants to register their orders.

A successful opening!

Jiang Ji, Jiang Xia, Meng Dahai, and the others all smiled at the lively scene.

There were many people lining up at the counter to pay, so Jiang Ji and Meng Dahai hurried over to help.

This year, because of the new rice seed, sweet potatoes, potatoes, and peanuts, families with farmland in Changping County had earned quite a lot of money.

With silver in their pockets, people bought cloth decisively.

Such fine cloth was only thirty or forty wen more expensive per bolt than the cotton cloth in other shops. It was extremely worth it.

Not far from Jiang’s Cloth Shop, at the back door of Zhang’s Cloth Shop, two young men entered, each holding a bolt of cloth.

“Master, we bought the cloth!”

Old Master Zhang immediately set down his teacup and stood. “Put them on the table quickly. Let me see.”

The two men placed the bolts on the table, one pale blue and one dark blue striped.

Old Master Zhang and the cloth shopkeeper both unfolded the cloth to examine it.

The moment they touched it, both were startled.

“So soft?” the shopkeeper said in surprise.

Old Master Zhang’s heart tightened. This cloth was better than what their family produced. Not only theirs, it was better than all the cloth currently on the market in Da Sheng.

He leaned closer to inspect it carefully, then touched the edge and pulled out a thread to examine it.

“Master, look at their thread,” the shopkeeper said, eyes widening. “It’s finer than ours, so the cloth can be this soft.”

Old Master Zhang had noticed as well, but he was curious. “How can they spin thread this fine?”

The shopkeeper was also surprised. “Their textile workshop has only been open for a month. Logically, the cloth shop shouldn’t have opened this quickly.”

Old Master Zhang asked the people who had bought the cloth, “How much stock did they have in the shop?”

One of them answered, “The Duke said they only had a little over three hundred bolts.”

The shopkeeper’s eyes widened slightly. “Over three hundred? Their textile workshop started from processing cotton and spinning thread. In the first month after opening, they actually wove over three hundred bolts? I remember they didn’t hire that many people.”

Old Master Zhang nodded. “They hired sixty-eight people.”

He had already sent people to investigate all of this clearly.

“Sixty-eight people, for the entire process. They shouldn’t have many weavers. How could they weave that much?” the shopkeeper said, astonished. “They would need at least thirty people just to weave that amount. Then no matter how you calculate it, they wouldn’t have enough people for the other steps.”

Old Master Zhang said grimly, “They only have four people removing cotton seeds and four people spinning thread.”

“What?!” The shopkeeper knew less than Old Master Zhang and was shocked. “Only four people deseeding cotton and four spinning thread? How could four spinners produce enough thread for that much cloth in one month?”

Old Master Zhang was silent for a moment, then said heavily, “They have a new cotton-ginning machine. It removes seeds very quickly. They also have a new spinning machine. They say one person can do the work of eight.”

“One person can equal eight?” the shopkeeper said in shock. “What kind of machine could that be?”

Old Master Zhang shook his head. He did not know either. He also very much wanted to see that machine.

But even putting that aside, he pointed to the patterned bolt and said, “This pattern, this weaving method, none of it is something we have.”

The patterned cloth on the table had a subtle design alternating between blue-gray and dark blue, very suitable for making outer robes for middle-aged men.

The servant beside him added, “Master, they had other patterns in the shop too, many kinds, but there weren’t many of each. We couldn’t get them. There were too many people.”

The shopkeeper asked, “Were there many customers?”

“When we left, the cloth had already sold out. I heard the assistant say there was no stock left.”

“It sold out that quickly?!” Old Master Zhang froze.

The shopkeeper also said, “It hasn’t even been an hour since they opened!”

The servant nodded. “Yes, there were so many people. And they were all individual customers. Many bought several bolts each. I heard some people had only gone in to watch the excitement, but in the end, they still bought a bolt to take home.”

Another person added, “But they started taking reservations. Many people reserved cloth. They can pick it up tomorrow or the day after.”

Old Master Zhang and the shopkeeper: “…”

The shopkeeper thought that if he saw such soft cloth, he would buy some too.

But he did not dare say it aloud, afraid of stabbing his master in the heart.

Old Master Zhang looked at the bolts on the table and let out a deep sigh.

Ever since Jiang Ji first signed cotton-growing agreements with the farmers, he had been worried that Jiang Ji intended to open a textile workshop.

Back then, he had not been too anxious. The Zhang family had operated in Changping County for several generations and had rich experience. Jiang Ji’s family had always been farmers. When it came to textiles, surely Jiang Ji could not compare to him.

Later, when Jiang Ji really did open one, Old Master Zhang remained in a wait-and-see state, only sending people to gather news.

It was not until later, when he heard that Jiang Ji’s family had some kind of new machine, that he became curious and sent people to Jiang Ji’s textile workshop to see what this new machine was.

At the time, he thought that even with new machines, the textile trade was not so easy to enter. Only making good cloth that could sell counted as real ability. He was somewhat worried, but not yet afraid. He felt that Jiang Ji, a mere farmer, could not possibly weave cloth of any great quality. He did not believe it.

Even if Jiang Ji truly made good cloth, given the Zhang family’s standing in Changping’s cloth trade, suppressing a small workshop should still be easy.

Who would have thought that at that exact time, Jiang Ji went to the capital and was granted the title Duke Chang?

Faced with power and status, Old Master Zhang truly began to worry. He no longer dared move against him and could only hope that the cloth they produced was poor.

But the cloth before his eyes had slapped him hard awake.

Today, on their first day of opening, in less than an hour, more than three hundred bolts of cloth had actually sold out.

Old Master Zhang truly had no solution now.

Was the Zhang family going to decline in his hands?

Full of worry, he returned home with the two bolts of cloth.

---

Over at Jiang’s Cloth Shop, after the final customer paid and left, the shopkeeper counted the silver while the two assistants tidied up the shop. Everyone’s face was full of joy.

They had not expected everything to sell out so quickly.

It was not even noon yet.

Jiang Ji smiled and handed out red envelopes to everyone. “Today is a good day. Once you’ve cleaned up, you can all go home.”

“Thank you, Your Grace!”

They only had to work half a day and even received reward money. The cloth shopkeeper and assistants were all very happy.

Jiang Ji also brought Xia’er, Meng Dahai, and the others back home.

By the time they arrived, it was only noon. The workers were eating in the dining hall, so Jiang Ji went to the textile workshop to announce the good news.

“I have good news for everyone. The cloth produced by our factory sold out within one hour of opening!”

Everyone was stunned.

“Sold out?!”

“So quickly?!”

“The cloth is so good, even I want to buy some!”

Jiang Ji smiled and said, “Today is Laba Festival, so everyone has the afternoon off. After eating, you may go home. Also, every person can go to the accounts office to receive a holiday bonus. It’s just a small token of thanks for everyone’s hard work. In the future, please continue working hard so we can make our factory bigger and stronger!”

“Wonderful! Thank you, Your Grace!”

“Thank you, Your Grace!”

“We’ll definitely work hard!”

“Yes, we’ll work hard!”

Seeing how happy everyone was, Jiang Ji also cheerfully went home to eat.

Because the cloth shop had such a successful opening, and because it was Laba Festival, double happiness had arrived. In his good mood, Jiang Ji also gave red envelopes to everyone in the household.

Everyone at home had already heard the good news about the cloth shop, and they were all very excited.

If the employer did well, they would do well too.

Laba Festival was very popular in the north. In the south, people did not pay as much attention to it, but there were many people from the capital in their household now, so Jiang Ji had specially instructed Sister Guihua to make Laba porridge.

At noon, everyone had a bowl of fragrant, glutinous Laba porridge. Some liked adding sugar, making it sweet and soft. Others ate it without sugar, like ordinary porridge with dishes, which was also delicious.

The people who had come from the north felt touched. His Grace still remembered that they celebrated Laba Festival.

At noon, after returning to the east wing, Jiang Nan and Jiang Bei went to take their nap. Jiang Ji sat in the small hall and wrote a letter to Lu Huaizhou.

He had to share the good news that the cloth shop had sold out within one hour of opening.

He wrote two full pages, then handed the letter to Lu Jiu and asked him to arrange for someone to take it to the city and send it off.

Then Jiang Ji continued drawing blueprints.

Judging by today’s trend, if cloth remained in short supply after the New Year, they could consider expanding production next year. Their current workshop could only add a dozen or so more weavers at most. There was not enough space, so they would have to expand the factory.

The ten mu of land next door was perfect for it.

After that, the textile factory sent a batch of cloth to the shop every day, sometimes a dozen bolts, sometimes over twenty. Customers who had placed reservations only needed to come pick them up each day.

Customers who came after hearing the news could only line up to preorder and return on the day their cloth arrived. Sometimes, if they came too late, there might not even be any available, and they would have to wait until the next day.

Within a few days, clothes made from Jiang’s Cloth Shop fabric appeared on the streets.

“Oh my, Madam Wang, your clothes are truly lovely. Was the fabric bought from Jiang’s?”

“Yes, Madam Li. Yours is too, isn’t it? I also wanted to buy a bolt in that color, but unfortunately, it was out of stock!”

“You can preorder it. This fabric is truly comfortable. I went back and ordered several more bolts to give as New Year gifts.”

“What a coincidence. I ordered several bolts too. I’m planning to replace all the undergarments at home.”

Jiang Ji listened to the madams and young ladies chatting, the corners of his mouth lifting high.

Seeing customers wearing clothes made from fabric produced by his own factory gave him indescribable satisfaction.

This was a sense of achievement.

Days passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was the end of the year.

The textile factory closed for holiday on the twenty-sixth day of the twelfth lunar month, giving everyone time to prepare for the New Year. Jiang Ji gave the employees thick red envelopes, and everyone was very happy.

He also gave New Year benefits to the employees. Each person received one bolt of cloth. If they wanted to buy more, they could buy one additional bolt at seventy percent of Jiang’s Cloth Shop’s price.

He had told them about this in advance. Meng Dahai registered everyone’s choices and set aside the employee benefit cloth ahead of time. Almost everyone bought one additional bolt, and some even bought two more.

“We only dare buy like this because we made money selling seeds this year,” one employee said with a smile.

“Exactly. In the past, we wouldn’t have dared. Not going hungry during the New Year was already good enough.”

On New Year’s Eve, Jiang Ji and the others got up early. Everyone put on new clothes, all made by Zhao Ru from the cloth their family had produced.

Jiang Ji also put on the brown bracelet he had made, matching Lu Huaizhou’s.

He also had someone go into town to bring Ding Xiaojun and the others home so everyone could celebrate the New Year together.

Zhao Ru, Madam Meng, Jiang Xia, and the others cut window paper in the hall. Lu Jiu and the others took Jiang Nan and Jiang Bei to hang red lanterns. New red lanterns were hung everywhere inside and outside the courtyard. After finishing at home, they also went to hang them at the factory courtyard gate.

With Lu Huaizhou absent, the person in the household with the best handwriting was Lu Wen. Jiang Ji simply had Lu Wen write the couplets while he helped grind the ink.

The whole family was busy.

Near noon, Jiang Ji was pasting couplets at the entrance when he suddenly heard the sound of hooves.

His heart stirred. He could not help standing and looking toward the road.

Several people wearing black cloaks were riding this way on horseback.

The man in front had cold, handsome features and an extraordinary bearing.

Jiang Ji froze. Then immense surprise bloomed in his heart.

Soon, the horses reached the gate. A tall figure hurried over and pulled him into his arms.

“Jiang Ji, I’m back.”

🌾🌾🌾🌾🌾