Casting Nets to Catch a Husband

Chapter 161: Maritime business, Logo

After hearing the word “sea merchants” from a nine-year-old child, Lu Chengxiao and Liu Yanping were both stunned. Although they had never directly dealt with sea merchants, they were well aware of the strict maritime prohibition policies of the Daqing Dynasty.

The Daqing Dynasty had tight control over its maritime borders, and while sea merchants existed, only those with imperial permission were allowed to engage in such trade. It was dangerous for ordinary people to get involved.

Noticing Ge An looking around and lowering his voice, clearly aware of the sensitivity of the topic, Lu Chengxiao curiously asked, “You’re just a child—where did you hear about sea merchants?”

Ge An lifted his chin with a smile and said, “Did you forget, Third Young Master? I’m from Quanzhou.”

Quanzhou is a coastal city, but Lu Chengxiao wasn’t convinced that just being from there meant every child knew about sea merchants.

“So? Do all kids in Quanzhou know about sea merchants?”

Ge An shook his head, “No, not everyone. But our village is different.”

He then explained his background in detail. It turned out that Ge An and his sister, Ge Zhu’er, came from a rather remote village in Quanzhou. While it seemed ordinary, there was a hidden natural harbor several dozen miles outside the village. This harbor was so well concealed that it was only accessible on specific days due to a few treacherous currents that otherwise made it impassable.

As for what those specific days were, Ge An, being just nine years old, didn’t know. This secret harbor was the livelihood of the entire village, and the villagers treated it as a closely guarded secret. Typically, only one or two key people in each household knew the exact details. Ge An only learned bits and pieces because, after losing his parents, he often eavesdropped on his uncle and aunt’s conversations, trying to fend for himself.

“This matter is a big secret outside the village, and the villagers are tight-lipped about it. In most families, only a couple of the main adults know the specifics. But my uncle would leave for a few days every month, and I never knew why until one time I followed him.”

He had secretly tailed his uncle and discovered this hidden trade route that sustained their village.

Ge An spoke lightly, but Lu Chengxiao and Liu Yanping were deeply shocked by what they heard.

A hidden and unknown harbor—this was not about legitimate sea merchants approved by the government, but rather about smugglers.

Although Lu Chengxiao had never been to the Quanzhou area, he had read a poem titled “The Song of Southern Quanzhou” during his studies, which described the hardships faced by the people there, stating, “The people of Quanzhou are many, but the land is barren, even if they wanted to farm, there is no land to cultivate.”

The poem illustrated the difficulty of making a living in that region. The land couldn’t support the population, but people had to find ways to survive, leading some to seek opportunities across the seas despite the risks. His teacher once said that there was often a fine line between a sea merchant and a pirate, and many, fearing for their families’ safety, would sever ties with their loved ones and turn to piracy.

Lu Chengxiao gently ruffled Ge An’s hair and said, “You mustn’t talk about this outside, or it might cause trouble.”

Whether it was sea merchants or pirates, the stakes involved were too high.

Despite his young age, Ge An was sharp and astute due to his early experiences. He understood the gravity of the situation and whispered, “I know, I’m only telling you, Third Young Master, and Liu Second Brother and Liu Third Brother.”

Lu Chengxiao didn’t need to explain; after all, he had taken in Ge An and his sister. As for Liu Yu’s brothers, Ge An naturally felt favorable toward them. Hearing that the three of them needed money, he earnestly said, “Third Young Master, if you’re short on money, you could go there. It’s really profitable.”

Lu Chengxiao and Liu Yanping exchanged glances and then smiled. Liu Yanping said, “We appreciate the thought, but not everyone can become a sea merchant, and traveling by sea is extremely dangerous. It’s not something just anyone can do.”

Ge An shook his head vigorously, “I’m not suggesting you go to sea or become sea merchants, but rather to supply goods to the sea merchants.”

There was no way he would let his great benefactors risk their lives at sea!

Ge An had been at the Lu Feng Fabric Shop for nearly six months. He was quick-witted and had absorbed quite a bit of business knowledge, even speaking like a professional. But the idea of supplying goods to sea merchants puzzled Lu Chengxiao, Liu Yanping, and Liu Yanan.

“Supplying goods to sea merchants? What do you mean by that?” they asked.

Ge An scratched the back of his head and explained, “I don’t know much, but after my parents passed away, besides relying on the help of neighbors and relatives, I would also carry small bundles of firewood to the town to sell. I didn’t sell much, but I would earn a few coins each day. One day, I recognized some of the people who led my uncle and his group during the night.”

Ge An paused before continuing, “My uncle and his group were involved in transporting goods over a cliff. The goods had to be loaded onto a ship at a location several dozen miles outside our village. The journey itself was dangerous, but carrying the goods made it even more treacherous. Those sea merchants wouldn’t do the work themselves—this kind of labor was left to people like my uncle and his men.”

This was a side note, and Ge An quickly brought the conversation back on track. “The leader of the group that took my uncle and his men that night—I saw him in town. Third Young Master, they didn’t seem to have any goods. I saw them talking to some foreign merchants, and from what I overheard, the goods they were shipping out to sea were purchased from these foreign merchants through private transactions, and they were making a hefty profit.”

Lu Chengxiao was taken aback. If it was just about selling goods to sea merchants, especially smugglers, the profit would indeed be substantial.

These sea merchants couldn’t easily procure goods from various sources. Traveling merchants who transported goods over long distances incurred high costs and faced significant risks along the way. If they could deliver goods to Quanzhou, they could demand higher prices. Meanwhile, the profits sea merchants made from selling goods overseas far exceeded those of the merchants, so they were willing to share the profits and avoid the hassle of sourcing the goods themselves.

In this light, this business seemed feasible. The risks at sea wouldn’t affect them, and the political risks could also be avoided. They were merely selling goods; what happened to those goods afterward and where they ended up wouldn’t be their concern. Traveling merchants dealt with buyers from all over—could they really investigate every buyer? Even if the authorities pursued the matter, it wouldn’t be traced back to them.

Seeing that Lu Chengxiao, Liu Yanping, and Liu Yanan were clearly interested, a smile appeared on Ge An’s young face.

He was genuinely happy to be able to help Lu Chengxiao and the Liu brothers. However, the smile quickly faded, and Ge An said with some regret, “It’s just a pity that after my uncle and aunt tried to sell my sister and me, we escaped during the night. I don’t know exactly how to sell goods to those people. If the Third Young Master and Liu Second Brother and Liu Third Brother want to pursue this, you might have to put in some effort to find out.”

Naturally, it would take some work. If these were indeed smugglers, it would be difficult to establish a connection without the right contacts. But for Ge An, who was only eight years old at the time, discovering as much as he did was already remarkable. It involved some luck, but more importantly, it demonstrated his courage and sharp business instincts. Perhaps Ge An himself hadn’t realized this yet, but Lu Chengxiao and Liu Yanping had already noticed—this child had the makings of an excellent merchant.

Lu Chengxiao smiled and said, “You’ve done very well. This information is very valuable. If I get the chance, I’ll look into it further. If we make any money, we’ll make sure to thank you along with Liu Second Brother and Liu Third Brother.”

Liu Yanping also cupped his hands in thanks, “Thank you, Little Brother Ge An.”

Liu Yanping’s formal gesture made Ge An blush shyly, and he smiled modestly, “There’s no need to thank me. It’s just a few words I overheard—I haven’t really helped.”

But this was an understatement. In this world, it wasn’t a lack of goods or production capability that held people back—many lacked the ability and channels to turn goods into money. The information Ge An provided was like a map leading to those channels, serving as a guide.

Lu Chengxiao asked for more details about Ge An’s hometown, including the county, town, and village. Ge An answered each question carefully, even recalling the date and time he witnessed the sea merchants transporting goods at night. He shared everything with the three men.

This also included a description of the leader’s age, appearance, and build. Ge An pointed to a spot on his right neck and said, “He has a black mole about the size of a fingernail here on his neck. I heard those foreign merchants call him ‘Seventh Master.'”

~

While Lu Chengxiao, Liu Yanping, and Liu Yanan were exploring a potential path to wealth, Liu Yu was also investigating a possible lucrative opportunity for Ruyi Embroidery Workshop.

Lufeng Fabric Shop offered affordable fabrics, including the cheapest rough cloth. After all, in these times, there were still many impoverished families who couldn’t afford enough food or clothing. It was common for people to sell their children for ten or twenty taels of silver. Where there were rich people, there were also poor people—and the poor made up a larger proportion of the population.

Liu Yu had first ruled out the cheapest rough cloth. The color and texture were too poor, making it difficult to create attractive garments. Moreover, those who bought this grade of fabric would likely prefer to save money by sewing the clothes themselves rather than buying ready-made ones.

So, Liu Yu selected fabrics with relatively rich colors that were still reasonably priced. These materials didn’t have the luster and brilliance of silk, but when used properly, they could showcase the unique beauty of cotton garments.

She matched five different fabrics and went to settle the account with Lu Chengzong. When Lu Chengzong saw the fabrics, he was a bit puzzled. “Sister-in-law, these materials aren’t typically used in your embroidery workshop, are they?”

Lu Shuang, who had been watching Liu Yu put together the color schemes, was excited and helped explain the situation. Only then did Lu Chengzong understand, and, surprised, he quickly finalized the account.

At Ruyi Embroidery Workshop, they settled accounts with the Lu family for such small quantities of materials every ten days, so it was just a matter of bookkeeping and signing.

Lu Chengxiao called over a few workers to help move the ten or so bolts of fabric to the workshop. Wei Shi and Chen Shi had just seen off two customers when they came over to help. When they saw the fabrics, they had the same reaction as Lu Chengzong, but after Liu Yu explained that she planned to use them to make samples to sell in the nearby towns, they understood.

These fabrics weren’t intended for display on the shelves but were taken straight to the cutting room.

Before Liu Yu could start working on her third series of designs, Wei Shi came over with two newly made outfits and brought up a concern.

“Yu’er, we’ve divided each design into three sizes, which is convenient, but there’s a problem. It’s hard to distinguish which one is bigger and which one is smaller. You have to compare all three sets to tell the difference. Now, with only a few designs, we can manage, but if we start sending them to embroidery shops in small towns like you mentioned, it’ll be chaotic to match sizes when stocking large quantities.”

It turned out that one of the customers who had just come in had bought one of Liu Yu’s new designs. The sample on display was slightly smaller, and when Wei Shi and Chen Shi tried to find another size for her, they couldn’t immediately tell which one was larger or smaller, which led to the discovery of the problem.

Liu Yu thought about it and realized it was true. The clothes were almost identical except for a difference of a few inches in size, making it hard to distinguish between them when placed together.

“We need to create a label.” Liu Yu looked at the two outfits on the long table, flipping through the collars and hems, and then called for Mrs. Zhang. She also asked Lu Shuang and Chen Shi, “What do you think? How should we label them?”

Mrs. Zhang, who had been cutting fabric, put down her scissors and joined the discussion. After some brainstorming, they concluded that a small label should be sewn on the inside of the collar, where it wouldn’t affect the garment’s appearance or comfort, and would indicate the size using numbers.

The inside of the collar wouldn’t affect the garment’s exterior, but it would be the easiest spot to see when searching for the right size.

“The fabric should be thin and soft so that it won’t be uncomfortable to wear,” Mrs. Zhang suggested.

Liu Yu liked the idea and, while flipping through the inside of the collar, suddenly had an idea. “How about we also add the name of our series and the Ruyi Embroidery Workshop brand?”

Lu Chengxiao had thought of protecting their designs by using specific fabrics, and Liu Yu, prompted by Wei Shi’s reminder about size labeling, also thought of using labels as a way to prevent counterfeiting.

Wei Shi, Chen Shi, and Mrs. Zhang weren’t familiar with the concept of a series name, so Liu Yu explained it to them again.

“This is a great idea. It’ll help distinguish our original designs from imitations.”

Lu Shuang was the first to express approval.

Wei Shi also nodded. “But if we add ‘Ruyi Embroidery Workshop,’ ‘Fangfei Yin,’ and the size, won’t that be too many words?”

That would require a large piece of fabric inside the collar.

Liu Yu pondered for a moment, then suddenly her eyes lit up. “I’ve got it!”

She took a small piece of white silk from the scrap box and used a pen normally reserved for drawing embroidery patterns. After sitting down, she quickly sketched a simple design—a jade ruyi. Above the handle of the ruyi, the words “Fangfei Yin” were delicately written, blending seamlessly with the ruyi design. Next to it, she added a small “1” to indicate the size.

Wei Shi’s eyes sparkled. “This is perfect! It looks good and immediately identifies the garment as one of our Ruyi Embroidery Workshop designs!”

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