Zhulan took out the blueprint she had drawn and said, "Tomorrow I'll find a craftsman to polish some special wooden vases and bamboo baskets. Do you think I'll do a good job?"
Zhou Shuren took the stack of drawing paper and said, "I have to admire that your paintings are getting better and better."
"Thanks."
After Zhou Shuren looked through them, he said, "The designs of the wooden vases are all good. Mrs. Zhou, your tea party will definitely be a great success."
Zhulan took the blueprint and said, "I thought so too. My preparations will be completed in two days. When will you take a break?"
Zhou Shuren sat down and said, "Four days from now will be the day for rest."
"That's great."
Zhou Shuren also thought it was great. He was finally going to get the book he had been thinking about for a long time.
The next morning, Zhulan asked Guyu, the eldest son of housekeeper Ding, to find a carpenter. There were many carpenters in Lizhou City, and those who had worked in Zhou's mansion liked to work there. Not only were their meals provided, but their money was also settled on a daily basis. If they did not eat their meals in the mansion, they could take the food home. Because of this rule, many people asked if there was any work left in Zhou's mansion.
Zhulan asked Butler Ding to go and look at a shop again. Zhulan had her own requirements for choosing a shop. First, the shop must be large, and second, the location must be good, even if it was a little more expensive.
The people of Lizhou City were settled, and they had more or less money in their hands. With money, there were demands. Within a month, there were many more merchants in Lizhou City, mainly cloth merchants and grocers. At least the people would not have money but could not buy soy sauce and vinegar.
With more merchants, Lizhou City also became more lively. The prices of shops and houses increased a lot, especially the houses. Some far-sighted wealthy families from nearby states came to Lizhou City and bought many houses.
As for shops, most of them are waiting and watching, waiting for more merchants to come before making a purchase.
Butler Ding is a celebrity in Lizhou City and is very recognizable. Butler Ding first selected a few suitable ones and came back to report to Zhulan. Zhulan took a carriage to see them. Several shops were on the main street. According to modern calculations, the area of one shop was about 150 square meters, and several were 120 square meters.
Zhulan chose two shops of 120 square meters each because the two shops were connected. In the future, the two shops could not only take care of each other, but also could be connected if merchants really needed a larger area, and the rent could also be earned more.
The two shops were really cheap, costing only one hundred and ninety taels in total. Including the fees for the broker, the total cost was two hundred taels.
Most of the shops in Lizhou City are now vacant. Zhulan is not planning to do business. Although many officials like to invest in merchants or register the business under the name of outsiders, Zhulan is not planning to do so.
She kept her shop, preparing to rent it out next year. In fact, compared to the shop, she liked the farm and land more. There were some advantages to being an official. As long as Zhou Shuren was in office, they would never have trouble selling the output of the farms, and they would not have to worry about being cheated by merchants.
Zhulan bought two shops in Lizhou City purely for investment. She believed that after the autumn harvest, the housing prices of both houses and shops in Lizhou City would soar.
There is one advantage of being a frontier city, it is convenient for trading with foreign races. Our dynasty has crippled the foreign races but has not banned trade. As long as Lizhou City has goods that attract foreign merchants, the tax revenue of Lizhou City will soar.
Apples are not only scarce in this dynasty, but even more scarce in foreign countries, especially in the winter when dried vegetables are good things for foreign countries, not to mention fruits.
When Zhulan dug the ice cellar, she never thought of transporting her own apples to the north to sell. There were good buyers nearby, so why go far away
Time passed quickly, Zhulan's invitations were delivered to the mansions of officials in Lizhou City, and Zhulan's family had made all the preparations.
All the female members of the family were invited to the garden. The weather in June was not particularly hot, so it was just right to entertain guests outside.
The front yard is where Zhou Shuren entertains his colleagues.
As for food, the pastries were all made by Li's kitchen staff, and the dishes and wine all had fixed recipes. Zhulan didn't get much information, and her only source of information was Zhou Shuren. Zhulan really had no idea who liked what flavors, so in order to avoid any inconsiderateness, the table had sixteen dishes, four spicy dishes, four salty dishes, four sweet and sour dishes, and four light dishes. She also bought several kinds of wine.
This time, Zhulan invited everyone of high rank. There were quite a few officials of high rank in the provincial capital. The female relatives all brought their daughters with them, as well as their maids. Fortunately, Zhulan's family had a large garden, otherwise it would have looked crowded.
Among these ladies, Zhulan was concerned about the wife of Tongzhi, Hua Yiren, and the wife of Tongpan, Miao.
The wife of Tongzhi Chen Chen, 42 years old, not tall, from the south with a soft accent, and a thin figure. Well, all the ladies who came today are a little thin, this is because they are vegetarians, and even after more than a month of maintenance, they haven't gained much back in figure.
The wife of the Tongpan, Ms. Miao, was thirty-five years old. She was good-looking, not short, and had a rhythm in every move. Born into a wealthy family, Ms. Miao knew how to maintain herself and looked to be around thirty years old.
Zhulan looked at the two of them, and Hua and Miao also looked at Zhulan.
Hua was surprised. She heard from her master that Lord Zhou came from a farming and reading family. So in her mind, Lord Zhou's wife was a vulgar peasant woman. Even though Yang's nephew became a general, he could not change his previous background. Especially since Zhou Yang had either bought land or farmed when she arrived in Lizhou City, she and Miao looked down on him.
Even though her husband said that Lord Zhou was extremely cunning and capable, that only represented Lord Zhou. She still despised Zhou Yang.
She had been waiting for Yang's invitation to watch the fun, and to use Yang's vulgarity to suppress Lord Zhou. After all, her husband would have no chance to play since Lord Zhou came to Lizhou City.
She came here to see the joke today, but she was shocked. Yang was obviously a few years younger than her, but how come she seemed to be ten years younger? Her appearance aside, what about her demeanor
How can this person be from the countryside? He looks more like someone from an official family than her, who is from an official family.
Miao calmed down and thought to herself, let Yang and Hua fight, she doesn't like either of them anyway. At least now it seems that Yang is not simple!
Zhulan and the others sat down and said with a smile: "I have been in Lizhou City for more than a month, but I have never had the opportunity to meet you all. Today I specially held a tea tasting party, and I hope you all can taste it."
Hua Shi felt a little upset when she heard the voices agreeing with her. She used to hold her in her arms. She put down the fan in her hand and said with a smile, "I love tea. I have a tea garden at home. I wonder what kind of tea Lady Zhou got? I think Mrs. Zhou must have got good tea. I must taste it carefully today."
Zhulan kept smiling and looking for trouble. She used to sympathize with Lord Chen, but now she doesn't sympathize with him anymore. She hopes Zhou Shuren can get more books out of him.
Miao covered her mouth with a fan. This was right. Should she try to smooth things over? Forget it. It was better to just watch the show.