Chapter 148: The Best Spokesperson in History
Of course, the new store had to be opened, but not in the store that Wan Yangui had given him. The store Qin Huai bought later had been renovated in a low-key manner. Li Rusong probably guessed that Su Luo wanted to hold a grand opening at this time, so he would definitely send someone to keep an eye on her and the newly recruited guys, but he didn't expect that the new store would not be located here. Su Luo had already asked Yun Lang to go to the real clothing store to meet Qin Huai when he was disguised for the job, and then Qin Huai would settle him down. As for today's lively opening ceremony, it was also carefully arranged to attract the attention of the factory guards and Li Rusong, and then Yun Lang would secretly transfer Zhao He to the clothing store.
Zhao He was indeed rescued by Yun Lang, and then he had a fight with the East Factory's men and was seriously injured, so he had to be transferred with such great effort, otherwise the opening ceremony tonight could have been saved.
There was a ready-made cellar in the original manager's office of the clothing store. Su Luo modified it slightly and used it as a temporary residence for Yun Lang and Zhao He.
Yun Lang had become much thinner and calmer when he separated from Su Luo. He was taciturn and unlike the original Yun Lang, he seemed to be on guard at all times.
Su Luo couldn't help but feel distressed. She asked about the military academy, but Yun Lang had no complaints. He just said that he was grateful for Lord Li's training, but the restrictive military discipline was really a headache.
Su Luo asked him about Zhao He again. Yun Lang was silent for a while, then looked at Qin Huai beside him and said, "Can we talk alone?"
Qin Huai said that no matter what you said to her now, she will tell me.
Su Luo smiled awkwardly and nodded to Yun Lang, "Qin Huai can be trusted. He has put a lot of effort into finding you this time."
Yun Lang looked at Qin Huai for a long while, then suddenly smiled and said to Su Luo, "I don't think he is as good as Zhou Si. I'm not sure if I can leave you to him."
Su Luo pouted at him and said, "Hurry up and tell me the story."
Yun Lang then said, "Actually, I don't know Zhao He at all."
Qin Huai frowned, and Su Luo was surprised, "Why did you go to so much trouble to save him if you didn't know him?"
"Remember when I told you I was an orphan?"
Su Luo nodded, and Yun Lang exhaled, "I was not born an orphan. I lived with my mother until I was eight years old. I didn't know what my father did. He came back twice a year and gave my mother a lot of money every time. Suddenly one year my father didn't come back, but someone still gave us money. Until I was eight years old, the man who often came to give money suddenly asked my mother to take me to pack up and leave. Then a large number of soldiers appeared. In the chaos, my mother and I ran away. That person took me and hid all the way to Shandong. He said he wanted to take me to the sea, but now he can't go. He told me that he and my father were both 'building bandits', but they didn't mean to hurt people. They were also trying to make a living."
"What is Loukou?" Su Luo asked hurriedly when seeing Yun Lang stop.
Yun Lang lowered his head and said "yes..." After a long while, he was still a little hesitant.
"It's pirates." Qin Huai said it for him.
Yun Lang grinned at Su Luo awkwardly and laughed at himself, "Both father and son are robbers."
"What happened next?" Su Luo didn't want to say more about this issue. She only knew that when she saw the longing in Yun Lang's eyes when he missed the past, it must have been a very good memory.
"Later, he settled me in an inn and left me some silver. Two months later, the silver ran out and I was kicked out by the innkeeper. At that time, I slept in the open air and did not dare to go far. I just waited for him to come back near the inn."
"Has he come back?" Su Luo realized that he had asked a stupid question. If he came back to continue taking care of Yun Lang, why would Yun Lang become a bandit?
"He can't come back." Yun Lang raised his hand and rubbed his face fiercely. "Later, I saw the notice and found out that he had been arrested and sent to the capital to be executed."
"Then you... joined Chuanfeng Village?"
Yun Lang shook his head. "I spent a few years on the streets, learned some Kung Fu, and officially joined the village when I was fourteen."
"What's that person's name?" Qin Huai, who had been silent all the time, suddenly asked.
"His name is Shang Xian, and he is my father's sworn brother."
There was a subtle change in Qin Huai's eyes, but he controlled it well and didn't let anyone notice.
Su Luo asked again: "Did you go back to look for your mother later?"
Yun Lang sighed, "When I was able to go back, several years had passed, but I couldn't find her. I don't know if she died or remarried."
"So..." Qin Huai stared at Yun Lang, without a trace of smile on his face, "You must have a grudge against the court, then why are you willing to join the military academy?"
"Because I want to..." Yun Lang suddenly clenched his fists and suppressed his slight trembling, "Because I want to understand Lou Kou, I want to understand the Wufeng Fleet where my father was!"
Su Luo finally understood a little, "So that's why you saved Zhao He?"
"Saving him was purely accidental. After I graduated from the military academy, I wanted to go to Nanjing to find you, but I felt embarrassed, so I lived in Luoyang with the money I had, thinking that I would come to find you when I couldn't make it anymore."
Su Luo snorted, "I still have your IOU."
Yun Lang chuckled, "After wandering the streets for a long time, I found that there are many bandits in the streets and alleys. They often want to arrest people. Sometimes I help them, and they pay me. I think being a spy is not bad. Maybe one day I can make it and come to you in glory. I heard about Zhao He by accident. Those two bandits were too proud and let it slip. They said he was the owner of Wufeng Ship. When I rescued Zhao He, I found out that he was not."
Qin Huai narrowed his eyes slightly, "How do you know he's not?"
Yun Lang smiled, and the worry in his eyes faded a lot. "I was also the village chief. If I was captured and claimed to be the village chief, wouldn't it mess up our army's morale if the rumor got out? The Wufeng ship owner is so cautious, how could he do such a thing? So I think Zhao He must want to use this method to confuse the barbarians, so as to protect the real ship owner and make the ship owner alert after the rumor gets out."
"What are you going to do next?" Qin Huai's eyes flickered, as if he was thinking about something quickly.
"I don't know." Yun Lang shrugged. "It would be best if we could get Zhao He out of the city, but the guards must be keeping a close eye on him now. I don't plan to stay here for long, so as not to implicate you. It all depends on Zhao He's luck. If I can get him to a safe place, it will be my repayment for Uncle Shang's kindness in saving me. If I can't, it will be considered that I have done my best."
"You stay here." Su Luo said anxiously: "Don't worry, with Li Rusong by our side, the factory guards won't dare to act too recklessly. Li Rusong will never expect you to be here."
Yun Lang looked at Su Luo deeply, still shaking his head, "Find an opportunity, or leave. Brother Zhao He seems to have a mission. He can't hold out for too long in his current condition, so we must leave as soon as possible."
Su Luo looked at Zhao He who was unconscious on the bed and asked anxiously, "What mission? Can I help?"
"He didn't say anything, and I didn't ask." Yun Lang said, "This is their internal matter. I'm just an outsider."
Su Luo glared at the person on the bed angrily, "You saved him and he didn't say anything?"
Yun Lang didn't say anything, but just looked at Su Luo with a smile, "How have you been doing in the past six months ? Are Auntie and little brother okay? How is Zhou Chongwen?"
Su Luo introduced them to him one by one. When Yun Lang heard that Su and Bao Zixing had a chance, he laughed out loud, "That old guy really has a way! But..." He rubbed Su Luo's head, "Your mother has been found, you don't have to be alone anymore."
Su Luo smiled and said, "Why? You still want to marry me?"
Yun Lang smiled and waved his hands, "Forgive me, I think you should still look for Zhou Si, that guy is honest and easy to deal with, look at this..." He gestured to Qin Huai on the side and whispered, "It's obvious that he is a profiteer."
Su Luo pushed Yun Lang and said, "Don't talk nonsense, we are just friends." After saying that, she turned around and smiled apologetically at Qin Huai, but Qin Huai just stared at Yun Lang and said nothing for a long time.
Since Su Luo found Yun Lang, he has been more wary of Li Rusong. Li Rusong seems to have sensed something and would launch surprise attacks from time to time. Fortunately, the cellar was in the shopkeeper's room, and Su Luo laid a carpet and put a table on it, allowing Su Hong, Su Jiang and others to come in and out without any flaws.
On the tenth day, Zhao He's injury improved a little. Yun Lang wanted to leave, but Su Luo stopped him. Qin Huai also said that it was better to stay still than to move. Since he had not been discovered, he might as well continue to hide and wait until the storm passed.
Yun Lang had no way to escape, and Zhao He was not in a hurry to leave after waking up, so the two of them continued to stay in the cellar. Except that the place was a little small, there was nothing wrong with it.
Time passed quickly and it was the end of August. All preparations for the garment shop had been made. The name "Chuanfeng" no longer had any meaning, so it was changed to "Yamei" according to Su Hong's wishes. The signboard was decided and the time for the press conference was imminent.
Su Hong and Bi Hen had already found a dozen tall girls from the villages on the outskirts of Luoyang. They said they were just showing the clothes and the pay was good. This business was much better than selling themselves to rich families to serve their masters. Although they had to be exposed to the public, it was not much better than being a maid .
As for the model training work, Su Luo handed it over to Su Jiang. Although Su Jiang was very surprised, Su Luo did not make any special explanation, but just let her do it with a fake smile. Su Jiang didn't know what she was thinking, but she took up the training work seriously. Those beautiful wide-sleeved clothes were swaying with the girls' slender and well-proportioned figures, and even the designers praised them.
Everything was ready. Before Su Luo went to meet Master Zhu, Master Zhu came to him.
After watching a preview of a fashion show, Mr. Zhu excitedly changed into his clothes, and looked straight ahead, turned around, and posed under Su Jiang's guidance. Seeing Su Jiang's gradually familiar directing techniques, Su Luo smiled sarcastically and met Su Jiang's gaze.
Su Luo turned around and took care of other things without worrying about letting Su Jiang see her disdain. On the contrary, Su Jiang froze in place after seeing Su Luo's actions, and was lost in thought.
The fashion show of Yamei brand clothing was scheduled to be held on the last day of August. On the day of the show, in addition to the businessmen and socialites invited by Qin Huai, there were also several sedan chairs belonging to officials.
Due to the low status of businessmen nowadays, officials will not get overly close to them unless necessary, let alone a gathering of women.
What was even more surprising was what happened next. Officials’ sedan chairs kept stopping in front of the clothing shop. It seemed that all the officials in Luoyang City had arrived, and some of them had brought their families with them.
Su Luo vaguely knew that this was related to Master Zhu, but she didn't expect that he had so much influence. Two of them introduced their family backgrounds and turned out to be descendants of a certain prince. They both inherited the title. They were all royal relatives. For a time, Su Luo's clothing shop became the hottest topic in Luoyang City. The families of businessmen and celebrities also rushed to the shop, fearing that they would miss such a good opportunity to make friends.
The shop was not particularly big, and there was a booth in the backyard. With so many people coming at once, there was no room for them to sit. Su Luo simply asked the servants to remove the tables and chairs, and everyone stood under the stage. Since they were willing to come, they would not mind standing for a while.
Li Rusong naturally had to attend such an occasion, and he finally met Master Zhu who had arrived early, and they really knew each other. However, Li Rusong's face was a little bad, Master Zhu just looked at Li Rusong and laughed, then pulled him backstage, saying that he wanted Li Rusong to go on stage with him.
Su Luo was really confused for a while, because Li Rusong did not seem like someone who would give face to others easily. Qin Huai revealed the secret and said that our princes have no real power, but this Mr. Zhu can invite so many adults and make the general willing to go on stage to accompany him.
Su Luo’s mind suddenly opened up. Damn it, why didn’t she think of it earlier?
So at the end of this lively and luxurious fashion show, the most magical scene took place when the men's clothing appeared. The adults in the audience saw the model's face clearly, and some of them who reacted quickly immediately knelt down and shouted "Long live!" three times, followed by those who reacted slowly. The last to kneel down were the businessmen and socialites - they remained in a daze for the next two hours.
With such a prominent model, all sixteen outfits displayed by Yamei Garment Store that night were sold at sky-high prices.
The minimum price for a single set of ready-made clothes is one thousand taels. Su Hong and Su Jiang frowned at the price, but Su Luo had her own reasons. Real rich people would not care whether their clothes cost one thousand taels or two thousand taels. What they care about is their status, taste, and what the clothes represent.
The fashion show lasted until late at night. Of course, this was not the charm of Yamei Clothing Store, but the emperor's personal appearance. However, Su Luo didn't think it made any difference. The emperor himself endorsed the product. Is there any advertisement more impressive than this? Su Luo believed that even if the starting price was 1,000 taels, not to mention 1,000 taels, she would still get more orders. Moreover, orders would come from all over the country, not just Luoyang, and the fastest one would be the capital.
Even the most lively banquets have to end and people have to go their separate ways. Su Luo knew Wanli's true identity, so she was not too restrained. The emperor was also a human being, with a nose and eyes. Although kneeling was not pleasant, she just treated it as a TV drama. Wanli liked Su Luo's bold personality, and of course more for the novelty. After her identity was revealed, she did not feel strange, but became closer. This move won Su Luo more customers and connections, and it was from this time that Su Luo's journey to wealth and glory in the Ming Dynasty began to take shape.
After making an appointment with Wanli for the next day, the emperor left with Jinzhong and a group of officials. Su Luo dealt with the merchants who stayed behind one by one until the late night. He was exhausted and was about to find a place to sleep when he saw Li Rusong leisurely appearing in the backyard of the clothing store. Su Luo asked curiously, "Didn't you send the emperor back to the palace?"
Li Rusong smiled mysteriously, "I'm staying to meet an even more mysterious guest."
