Chapter 398: Face Slapping Operation (Three)
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The attendant at Jiang’s shop didn’t take kindly to this and frowned, “Who are you calling a scammer?”
Zheng Momo didn’t bother with him and glanced at the other maidservants. One of them stepped forward, raised her chin arrogantly, and declared, “Your shop! You dare to deceive customers under the Emperor’s nose! Aren’t you afraid of exposure and being arrested?” Her gaze swept over the onlookers, and she loudly proclaimed, “All of you have been deceived!”
The attendant was furious, “Who’s deceiving people? We’re conducting legitimate business here. Who’s deceiving people? Speak up, or I’ll report you to the authorities and have you arrested!”
The Momo chuckled, “Oh my, I’m so scared! I’m just afraid the officials won’t come! It’s perfect, we can have these deceitful merchants who earn dirty money arrested!” She displayed the pot to the crowd, “These cheap pots, they’re just clay molded together and worth only a few coins each. They’re everywhere, yet they dare to sell them for twenty taels of silver each!”
The crowd started murmuring, and some who were planning to buy pots put them down. The attendant, seeing this, became agitated and retorted loudly, “Where’s this crazy old lady from? This is an idea from our master himself. There’s only us in the world who can compare to those worthless pots outside? They’re everywhere, where are they? Go find a few and show me!”
He then asked the crowd for their opinions, “Everyone, tell me, are these pots really everywhere? Are they worth this price? They save water, oil, firewood, and time, and the food cooked in them tastes great. Where else can you find such good pots?”
The crowd echoed his sentiments, “That’s right, this old lady is talking nonsense. We haven’t seen these pots everywhere!”
The maidservants from the palace remembered bringing out these pots before they left. They immediately wanted to fetch them to show the people. Zheng Momo stopped them, staring at the attendant with a raised eyebrow and asked calmly, “Young man, did you just say that your master came up with this idea and that there’s only your shop selling these pots in the world?”
This was obviously absurd, but the attendant stood firm, “Of course, naturally, there’s only us in the world.” These pots were indeed rare items, and it was their master who came up with the idea. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be any to buy outside. Although these old women looked formidable, he had his own backers. Moreover, when someone came to provoke trouble, he couldn’t just let it pass.
Zheng Momo said, “It’s not your master’s idea, he’s a fraud.”
The attendant’s face darkened immediately, and he angrily retorted, “Are you trying to pick a fight? If it’s not our master’s idea, whose idea is it then, yours?”
Zheng Momo shook her head, “No, it’s not ours either.”
The group of attendants laughed and jeered, “Since it’s neither yours nor ours, why are you talking nonsense here? Are you jealous of our good business? Get lost quickly, or we’ll report you to the authorities!”
Zheng Momo and her maidservants said, “Someone has a dirty mouth and is cursing at us.”
Most of these maidservants, carefully selected by Li Quanxin, had served in the palace for many years and had also served in Ying Wang’s mansion for several years. They all considered themselves quite dignified and couldn’t tolerate being mocked by these street shop attendants. They became angry and rushed forward to grab the attendant who cursed and wanted to beat him up, “Who are you cursing at? Did your parents not teach you manners?”
The others went to smash the drip dew pots, cursing, “Shameless scoundrels, earning dirty money. They’re everywhere in the northwest, yet they dare to claim they came up with the idea themselves, deceiving the world, tarnishing their reputation, bragging and deceiving. They think we’re all fools!”
With their numbers and courage, they soon turned the once well-run shop into a mess. The attendants from Jiang’s shop couldn’t handle them and had to send someone to find the boss.
The boss was named Jiang Daiqi, a scion of the Changxing Marquis’s family, who usually ingratiated himself with the nobility. He often praised the Marquis’s second daughter, Jiang Shanshan, very highly. This time, when Jiang Shanshan wanted to do business, she had learned her lesson and didn’t dare to show herself, so she pushed him out to take the blame. She promised to share the profits with him, which made him very happy, and he worked extra hard.
Today, when Jiang Shanshan brought a group of noble ladies to watch the fun and buy pots, he naturally wanted to serve them well. He arranged for them to eat, drink, and play in the backyard. The dishes they ate were all cooked in the special drip dew pots. Just as he finished arranging the food, he heard that something was happening in the shop. Jiang Daiqi hurriedly went to report to Jiang Shanshan, “Someone is causing trouble in the shop. I’ll go check it out.”
Jiang Shanshan was somewhat surprised but didn’t take it too seriously. She waved off her cousin, “You go take care of it. I’ll entertain them. Besides, if you stay, you’ll just be waiting around on the side anyway.”
It had been a while since she had interacted with these noble ladies. Some time ago, when she got into trouble, many people avoided her to avoid trouble and didn’t dare to visit her, leaving only a few who had known her for a long time and got along well with her to secretly visit her. This time, she finally used the blueprint of the bed crossbow and borrowed money from Yuwen You to open this shop. Naturally, she wanted to use these noble ladies to help open up sales channels in various mansions in the capital.
She was well aware that the business in the shop seemed lively lately, but it was all superficial. If she really wanted to sell these pots to every household in the north and south, she would have to rely on the promotion in the major mansions. Only when the major mansions made this pot popular would the people in the capital truly accept it.
So today, when she brought these noble ladies here, she didn’t intend to sell pots to them, but rather to fish for big fish with a long line. The pots were bought with money in front of them and given to them as gifts. The table was set in the name of Jiang Daiqi. This was a rare opportunity, and she wouldn’t bother with trivial matters outside.
When the maidservant filled everyone’s glasses, Jiang Shanshan raised hers, “This toast is for all the sisters. Thank you for your unwavering support in the past few days. It’s said that only through hardship do we know who truly cares. You have suffered with me. I drink this toast to you all, drink as you please.”
The several noble ladies smiled and raised their glasses, praising the dishes cooked in the drip dew pots for their unique flavors. They chatted and laughed, and Jiang Shanshan’s gaze swept over each of their faces. Suddenly, her eyes reddened.
Someone noticed and quickly asked her, “What’s wrong with you?”
Jiang Shanshan forced a smile, “It’s nothing, just feeling sentimental. Thinking about the past and the present, it’s a bit sad.”
The noble ladies all comforted her, saying that good deeds would be rewarded and bad deeds would be punished, and that the day for retribution would come.
Jiang Shanshan shook her head, “Let’s not talk about this anymore, it’ll bring trouble.” Before she finished speaking, an attendant rushed in panic, “Second Miss, help!”
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