In the afternoon, at the hour of Wei, at Taibai Tower.
Zhen Niang, accompanied by Mama Ma and Steward Zheng, had already arrived at the private room in Taibai Tower. As expected, the adjacent Orchid Room had reportedly been reserved by someone.
Zhen Niang knew exactly what this meant.
They entered the private room and sat down. Sun Bayi hadn’t arrived yet.
“Steward Zheng, why didn’t my Uncle Jin Hua come along? Didn’t I say to bring him?” Zhen Niang asked Steward Zheng. She had previously reminded him to bring Li Jincai.
“The son-in-law seems to have eaten something bad last night. He’s been having stomach issues all day, his face turned pale, so he had to stay home and rest,” Steward Zheng replied regretfully.
After all, it was the son-in-law who had helped him discover this business opportunity with the Sun family.
Zhen Niang nodded. This stomach illness was quite timely—clearly, he wanted to distance himself from the situation.
After quite a while, Sun Bayi finally sauntered in with a steward and two attendants. “My apologies, my apologies. I ran into some matters on my way here, causing a delay.”
Though Sun Bayi apologized with his words, his expression showed no trace of regret. Instead, he wore an amused look. He thought about how insignificant the Sun family had once been before the Li family, and now the Li family was coming to him for help.
It seemed like karmic retribution. The thought made Sun Bayi feel as refreshed as drinking iced plum soup on a hot summer day.
Zhen Niang remained composed, saying calmly, “We’re all merchants, we understand how busy things can get. A small delay is nothing.”
“I’m glad Second Sister Li understands,” Sun Bayi replied, using their old neighborly form of address.
Zhen Niang wouldn’t quibble over such forms of address.
Everyone then entered the private room and sat down.
After some tea and casual conversation, they got down to business.
[…]
“Fine, considering Steward Zheng’s sincerity, I can source the goods from your Li family ink workshop. However, there’s one condition—the payment will need to be delayed. Given the substantial value of this shipment, although our money house isn’t short on funds, we can’t gather that much cash at once. So, I’ll pay after the goods are sold,” Sun Bayi said lazily.
“That’s not a problem, but we’ll need a deadline and guarantee,” Zhen Niang replied. Credit sales were common in the ink business—many ink shops and pavilions often paid only a deposit when sourcing from workshops, settling the remainder after selling the goods. Of course, this privilege was reserved for trusted longtime customers.
Sun Bayi didn’t fall into the trusted category, but since they had such a large money house, credit could be extended with proper guarantees.
“What? With our Sun family’s Huiyuan Money House standing right there, are you worried I’ll run away?” Sun Bayi said with an unpleasant expression. Doing business with women was always so petty.
“Business is business. Verbal agreements aren’t binding; we need written contracts. Though I’m eager to make this deal if the risks are too high, we’d rather not proceed,” Zhen Niang replied inflexibly.
Having come this far, and wanting to settle an old score with the Li family, Sun Bayi wouldn’t back down. Besides, having worked at the ink workshop before, he knew this was a viable business deal. If something went wrong, he could simply fulfill the contract terms—the money house wasn’t short on funds.
The worst-case scenario would just be holding inventory for a while. With Cuixiang’s involvement, he didn’t think the person behind her would blame him too much. Thinking this through, he reluctantly nodded.
Subsequently, Steward Zheng and Sun Bayi’s steward drafted the contract, and both Sun and Li parties affixed their seals.
The business contract was thus completed, with subsequent deliveries to be handled between Steward Zheng and Huiyuan Money House’s steward.
Of course, Zhen Niang had little regard for Sun Bayi. Though she appeared to be negotiating with him, her real business counterpart was the lady next door.
Setting aside any ulterior motives, Hui ink had been popular overseas since the Song Dynasty. If Wang Cuiqiao wanted to venture into overseas trade, Hui ink would necessarily be one of the main commodities. It was only due to the current strict maritime controls that there was no urgency. Moreover, ink wasn’t perishable—it could be stored for years or even decades without issue.
The Li family was reducing prices to free up capital, making this an opportune time for Wang Cuiqiao to acquire stock. Furthermore, Wang Cuiqiao likely wanted to understand what was really behind this business deal. Therefore, she was unlikely to interfere at this point, and once Sun Bayi signed the contract, Wang Cuiqiao would have to honor it.
Although Wang Cuiqiao was Huiyuan Money House’s actual owner, her special circumstances kept her behind the scenes. Few in Huizhou knew she was the real proprietor, making it inappropriate for her to handle official matters. Thus, Huiyuan Money House was registered under the Sun family name at the magistrate’s office. In modern terms, this meant Sun Bayi’s signed contract had legal validity.
With business concluded, Sun Bayi had nothing more to say to Li Zhen Niang and left directly.
After watching Sun Bayi leave Taibai Tower, Zhen Niang had Mama Ma and Steward Zheng leave first, then go next door.
“Quite the scheme, Miss Li,” Wang Cuiqiao said bluntly as soon as Zhen Niang entered the Orchid Room.
“Madam speaks as if this isn’t a good business deal?” Zhen Niang said with a smile, then bowed in gratitude to Wang Cuiqiao, genuinely sincere. Regardless of everything else, Wang Cuiqiao had played along with her plan, and Zhen Niang needed to acknowledge this debt.
“It is indeed a good business deal, just spoiled by certain people,” Madam Xu said frostily. Cuixiang’s husband truly was a lost cause, allowing himself to be used so readily.
The time had been sufficient for Wang Cuiqiao to investigate certain matters. The entire incident was a scheme by the son-in-law of the Li family’s Sixth Branch.
“Tell me, how should I cooperate going forward?” Wang Cuiqiao asked. She couldn’t stand watching several grown men plotting against a young woman. Moreover, she and Li Zhen Niang faced similar difficulties in their respective situations—they were kindred spirits in their struggles.
Perhaps it was also a matter of personal chemistry—this Miss Li had won her favor.
Besides, she wanted to see how this drama within the Li family would unfold.
“Thank you, Madam,” Zhen Niang expressed her gratitude again, then continued, “After our workshop delivers the ink, I hope Madam will settle the account by personally delivering the payment to Madam Chen, the principal wife of the Li family’s legitimate Seventh Branch. That’s the first point. Secondly, please keep track of how Manager Sun handles the delivered ink.”
Zhen Niang’s thinking was clear. Steward Zheng, Li Jincai, and Sun Bayi were using this business deal as part of their scheme. As long as she and Madam Xu kept the business dealings clear—with transparent payment and tracking of goods—whatever they were plotting would become irrelevant.
Of course, among the three—Steward Zheng, Li Jincai, and Sun Bayi—Zhen Niang could see that Steward Zheng was also being kept in the dark.
“These aren’t problems at all. In business, payment and goods change hands simultaneously. Once your workshop delivers the ink, I’ll naturally pay. As for how the goods are handled, they’re my goods, so I’ll certainly keep track. Also, if you need me to step in, just let me know,” Wang Cuiqiao said.
This was what it meant to help someone thoroughly, to go the extra mile.
“I’m in your debt, Madam,” Zhen Niang expressed her thanks once more.
“It’s nothing. You’ve got it tough, girl,” Wang Cuiqiao said, gently patting Zhen Niang’s arm.
These words immediately brought tears to Zhen Niang’s eyes, as they struck straight to her heart.
In this era, life wasn’t easy for women, and it was even harder for women trying to accomplish something.
Zhen Niang could have stayed out of the Li family ink workshop’s troubled waters, but the Seventh Grandmother had entrusted it to her in a time of crisis, along with the legacy of the Li family’s ink business. Moreover, she knew something of the outcome. If she withdrew, the situation would likely unfold as recorded in the family genealogy—something she was unwilling to see, as it would mean failing the Seventh Grandmother’s trust in her.
When she first arrived at this time, she immediately faced the Tian family’s withdrawal from the marriage agreement, and if that wasn’t enough, they wanted her to follow in death.
Though her grandfather ultimately resolved that situation, without the Seventh Grandmother’s earlier support, who knows how far things might have escalated?
Moreover, this was a challenge in her life—if she backed down now, it might become a lifelong regret.
In everyone’s life, some battles are necessary, that cannot be avoided.
“There now, I was just praising your capability, and you’re already shedding golden tears,” Wang Cuiqiao teased.
Zhen Niang rubbed her forehead and smiled sheepishly.
“By the way, Madam, you should legitimize your fleet in the next couple of years,” Zhen Niang added.
“Legitimize?” The modern term Zhen Niang used wasn’t immediately clear to Wang Cuiqiao.
“Convert your fleet into a legal merchant fleet,” Zhen Niang explained.
“Ah,” Wang Cuiqiao finally understood, but then smiled bitterly. Who wouldn’t want to legitimize if they could? But after Xu Hai’s death, she barely survived and gathered these brothers who had followed Xu Hai. These people had always made their living at sea—what else could they do?
“We can’t legitimize unless we abandon the sea routes entirely,” Wang Cuiqiao said.
“Madam, the maritime ban won’t last forever,” Zhen Niang replied.
“You mean they’ll lift the ban?! Do you have any information? That’s impossible—there hasn’t been any news,” Wang Cuiqiao said, visibly moved.
“I don’t have definitive news, but I’ve heard the national treasury is empty, even the imperial coffers are depleted. When the imperial family needed money, they might turn to maritime trade. Of course, this probably won’t happen in the short term, but in two or three years, who knows?” Zhen Niang said.
The Longqing Emperor’s opening of trade was forced by circumstances. When he became emperor, the imperial coffers had been emptied by his father—reportedly, they couldn’t even afford cosmetics money for the imperial consorts. The Ming Ministry of Revenue was very strict; when Longqing tried to divert funds from the national treasury, they kept crying poverty, though they were indeed poor.
That’s why Longqing ultimately had to resort to opening trade as a last resort.
Telling Wang Cuiqiao this in advance was meant to help her prepare—Zhen Niang was returning the favor.
Seeing Wang Cuiqiao’s still skeptical expression, Zhen Niang continued, “Legitimizing isn’t something that happens overnight. Since maritime trade is so strictly controlled now and Madam needs to pause for two years anyway, why not use this time to legitimize? That way you can compete for sea trading rights when the time comes. Even if they don’t lift the ban then, with Madam’s capabilities and manpower, you could still navigate the sea routes. It’s just about preparing for both possibilities.”
Wasn’t Wang Cuiqiao’s establishment of Huiyuan Money House already the beginning of legitimization? She just hadn’t fully realized it yet.
The initial lifting of the maritime ban wasn’t implemented all at once—it was gradual, with only a limited number of merchants initially granted sea trading rights.
In business, the first step leads to the first advantage.
Wang Cuiqiao pondered deeply. What this Miss Zhen said made sense. After a while, she nodded: “Very well, I’ll consider it.”
Zhen Niang said no more—she had taken this matter as far as she could. She then took her leave.