NOVPUB
Chapter 506: Chapter 496 Do You Believe Me or Not
By early November, Ma Liguo finally brought some good news to Shen Yunfang, who was of course very happy and greatly praised Ma Liguo.
Next, they discussed the issue of partnership and profit-sharing for this year.
Since they needed to produce spring couplets and firecrackers, they found themselves a few people short.
Most of Ma Liguo’s relatives were public servants and not suitable for this kind of work, so Shen Yunfang mentioned that she had another family in mind, namely Brother Dashuan’s family.
First and foremost, Brother Dashuan’s family had a good reputation, they were not the sort to be underhanded or sly, and both Dashuan and his wife were capable workers. Most importantly, Shen Yunfang trusted them.
Ma Liguo had no objections to Shen Yunfang’s suggestion, so the decision on who to include was settled.
In total, there would be four families involved: Shen Yunfang’s own, Ma Liguo’s, Li Xianglian’s, and Dashuan’s.
It was tentatively decided to have Sister Li’s family and Brother Dashuan’s family participate in the spring couplet business, as the cost was low, and they could afford to invest in it. They couldn’t repeat last year’s incident where Li Xianglian didn’t invest anything but still received a share of the profits. Therefore, this year each of the four families would contribute five hundred, and the profits would be split equally.
The fireworks and firecrackers required a larger investment; after discussing with Ma Liguo, Shen Yunfang decided that their two families would collaborate, each initially investing five thousand to buy ten thousand worth of firecrackers to see how they sold. If sales were good and they recovered their investment, they would then purchase more stock. Of course, this approach was mainly because all of Ma Liguo’s assets amounted to less than five thousand, and he had to borrow from his aunt to make up the sum.
Shen Yunfang was indifferent, as with her current wealth, this was merely pocket money for her.
After the decision was made, Shen Yunfang sent a letter to Dashuan’s wife back in their hometown, inquiring whether they could come over after the winter, mentioning the nature of the work and that it was up to Dashuan and his wife to decide whether to join or not.
In December, Dashuan’s wife replied, confirming they would come.
After giving it some thought, Shen Yunfang sent another letter to Dashuan’s wife, suggesting they bring their children and Granny Wang with them. Granny Wang could help out, as someone would be needed at home to look after the children and cook when the others were out selling at the market. Granny Wang was perfectly suited for this sort of work.
By early January, Dashuan’s family of five were the first to arrive.
After Shen Yunfang received them at the courtyard house, she had them stay in the cleaned-up east wing, while last year Li Xianglian’s family had stayed in the west wing and would do so again this year.
"Yunfang, this house is really nice, a lot better than the mud-brick house back home," praised Granny Wang as she looked around, pulling Shen Yunfang into the conversation.
"Oh, Mom, you can’t even compare, this is the Capital," Dashuan’s wife chimed in, having overheard her mother-in-law’s remark while admiring the new bedding on the bed.
She could tell with one touch that it was filled with cotton, new cotton at that. She estimated the mattress weighed at least ten jin.
Ah, Yunfang really knew how to indulge, using such good things just to lie on. Their lifestyle must be so fine, just like the wealthy landlords of the past.
"True, this is the Capital; everything should be better than our place back there," said Granny Wang with a chuckle.
Shen Yunfang could tell that Dashuan’s wife was catching on, keeping the old lady happy and content.
At the dinner table, Dashuan’s wife couldn’t wait to ask, "Yunfang, when are we going to start our work?"
"We have to wait for a bit, my cousin hasn’t arrived yet. Besides, we’ll mainly be selling spring couplets and firecrackers, which are for the New Year. It’s too early to sell them now—they won’t sell."
So Shen Yunfang went on to explain the details of the collaboration and the division of profits to Dashuan and his wife.
"I’ve got five hundred yuan," Dashuan’s wife said, glancing to see her mother-in-law enter the house before carefully pulling out a roll of money from her pocket and handing it directly to Shen Yunfang. "Here’s five hundred; count it."
Shen Yunfang didn’t stand on ceremony and took the money directly, laughing as she said, "Sister-in-law, you really trust me, don’t you? Aren’t you afraid I’ll just take your money and run away?"
"What’s there to be afraid of? Even before I came to see you, I was never afraid, and I know you well. Plus, after arriving here, seeing your house makes me even more reassured. I wish you would take this five hundred yuan and run away—then I could take over your house and see who ends up winning and who ends up losing." Dashuan’s wife really admired Shen Yunfang’s courtyard house; it met all her desires, and she had decided in her heart that once she earned money, she would build a home just like it in her hometown.
"Oh my, sister-in-law, you’re scaring me to death; I don’t dare to take this money. What if you change your mind later and insist on taking my house? I would lose a fortune."
The two laughed and joked for a while, and it was only after Dashuan reminded her that Dashuan’s wife remembered the important matter at hand.
"Oh right, Yunfang, didn’t you send money in the mail before, asking Brother Dashuan to buy you that Monkey Stamp? Brother Dashuan went to the county and they said they didn’t have any; he had to go to the city to get them for you. Check if they’re the right ones," Dashuan’s wife said, pulling out a book from her luggage. As she spoke, she shook her hand and several square stamps fell out from the book.
Shen Yunfang quickly picked up the stamps, which were as big as books, and looked at one of them. They were indeed stamps, whole sheets of them. However, for convenience, Dashuan’s wife had folded an entire sheet to the size of a book. Fortunately, she had folded along the perforations of the stamps, so with some weight on them, the creases would probably not be noticeable later.
She counted them, and there were twelve in total—not a small number.
"Here’s the remaining money," Dashuan’s wife said, thrusting another roll of money into Shen Yunfang’s hands, "I don’t think these look very good. Brother Dashuan also followed your lead and bought two stamps to keep at home. You tell me, we don’t even write letters during the year. Why buy these things?"
Shen Yunfang looked at Brother Dashuan in surprise, not expecting him to be so insightful.
Embarrassed by her stare, Dashuan gave a silly smile and said, "Anyhow, we have money at home, so we might as well just buy and keep some."
Suddenly, Shen Yunfang turned and grabbed Dashuan’s wife’s hand, saying, "Sister-in-law, do you trust me?"
"What’s the matter?" Dashuan’s wife was baffled by her action.
"Just answer me first, do you trust me?"
"Of course, I trust you. If I didn’t, our whole family wouldn’t have come all this way," replied Dashuan’s wife, caught between laughter and tears.
"Alright, if you trust me, listen to me. Keep those two Monkey Stamps you have at home for Juanzi and Huzi. My classmate told me that the Monkey Stamp is out of print and will definitely appreciate in value," Shen Yunfang earnestly advised. She did this because she feared that if Dashuan’s wife saw the stamp appreciate slightly, she wouldn’t hold on to it and would sell it. If the price of the Monkey Stamp skyrocketed later, she would deeply regret selling it.
"Ah, really? How much can it go up?" Dashuan’s wife was already considering whether to ask her husband to look for more Monkey Stamps to buy when they got home.
"It’s hard to say how much it will appreciate, but you know, collectibles like this become more valuable as they age. There’s no urgent need for cash on your part, so just keep them," Shen Yunfang advised.
