Ding Ba only took a cursory look and found that there were at least ten families.

“So many people?”

Ding Ba was a little surprised, because Lai Fu had mentioned to him that the families to whom he planned to submit his petitions were mostly among the richest families in the city.

The amount of money they spend on jewelry and toys every year ranges from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars. They are all very rich and are the so-called decent people.

"My Lord, these are only the largest customers. There are still some smaller ones that we haven't visited yet."

A maid brought tea and a towel. Lai Fu took off his hat and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "It will happen in the next few days. But there is one thing I need to ask the master for advice on."

"There are no outsiders here, you can speak freely."

"The boss's products are all priceless treasures and toys. With so many big customers, is there any problem with capital turnover this week?"

Since Fumanlou is doing business for wealthy families, it must follow the rules of wealthy families.

According to the rules, these wealthy families basically do not pay cash when purchasing jewelry. They just get a receipt from the jewelry store, register and stamp the receipt to pick up the items they like. In essence, this is a form of buying on credit.

As for paying the bill, one would have to wait until the Dragon Boat Festival, the Ghost Festival and New Year's Eve every year, and then take a petition to the mansion to ask for money.

This kind of business model is naturally very profitable. After all, the wealthy and powerful are very wealthy. When buying things, they only consider whether they like them or not. They never bargain, as that would be too embarrassing.

But in this case, the payment period of several months would put very high capital requirements on the store.

Jewelry and other items are no different from other items. They often cost tens of thousands of dollars to purchase. With so many copper coins, it would take even a person deadly effort to move all of them just by packing them in boxes. Even if one has a lot of capital, it is difficult to accept credit orders from multiple customers at the same time.

Lai Fu was afraid that Ding Ba, an outsider, didn't know the key to this and was only greedy for more and bigger business, which resulted in him being unable to handle too much business and eventually failing miserably. Losing face would be a small matter, but if he was put on the blacklist of major wealthy families, he would never be able to touch the jewelry business again.

So Lai Fu found Ding Ba and tried his best to persuade him, "Boss, in addition to capital turnover, inventory and supply are also crucial. I don't know the details of this. Can you tell me a little bit?"

Ding Ba's cold eyes fell on Lai Fu, which made Lai Fu feel uneasy. He was afraid that his words just now would offend the ruthless man in front of him, so he waved his hands and explained: "It's not that I'm trying to find out the secrets. I really don't know the specific details, so I can't arrange the goods and make a marketing plan."

If you want to expand any business, you must have "sufficient supply".

Especially in the jewelry and jade business, if you don't have enough supply, it means you are not strong enough. Some of your old customers may come to buy but you say you are out of stock. After being disappointed a few times, they will never come to you for purchase again.

Therefore, Lai Fu had to ask for details so as to plan the sales quantity for each period and control the shipment volume to avoid selling out the goods and damaging his own reputation.

Ding Ba knew that Lai Fu was a capable man in the jewelry business. He had been working diligently for thirty years and had a great reputation.

Otherwise, he would not have missed out on inviting so many young, strong and hardworking managers, but instead went to the countryside to invite this old manager who had retired from business to come back.

For secret guards doing business, whether they make money or not is a small matter. The real priority is to establish good relations with wealthy families and gather intelligence.

Since Lai Fu asked, Ding Ba had no intention of hiding something that could be known to him, so he smiled and said to him, "Don't worry, you don't have to worry about the supply of goods. Come with me to the warehouse and you will understand."

After saying this, Ding Ba didn't waste any more words and took Lai Fu to the important warehouse.

On the way, Ding Ba found a topic and asked Lai Fu, "You have been in the jewelry business for quite some time, right? Tell me, do the jewelry, jade, antiques and collectibles in Luoyang often cross-sell with each other?"

"This is natural."

As a senior insider, Lai Fu is obviously familiar with this situation: "There are so many rare treasures in the world that it is impossible for every store to have a complete range of goods. Even the biggest stores have to find peers to exchange goods. Even if they sometimes lose money, they still grit their teeth and do it, because in this industry, connections are very important."

“So, homogeneous competition is very serious?”

Ding Ba heard the term "homogeneous competition" from Wang Jing. It sounds easy to understand and the wording is straightforward.

After a few explanations, Lai Fu understood, and then nodded vigorously in agreement: "It is true that the competition is fierce, so the business of jewelry and jade requires a lot of capital to make money, and you also need connections and sources of goods. Not everyone can do it. In our capital, a large number of jewelry businesses have almost been monopolized by Qianzhen Pavilion."

"Qianzhen Pavilion? Is it the jewelry store you mentioned when you submitted the petition?"

"Exactly."

When Lai Fu nodded, he looked quite emotional. Since returning to Luoyang, all the changes almost made him at a loss.

For example, the various guild organizations that sprung up like mushrooms after a rain broadened his horizons. Therefore, in order to perform well in front of his new employer, he personally approached many old friends to inquire about the information.

Lai Fu told Ding Ba some information he had just obtained recently: "Qianzhen Pavilion was originally owned by Zhang Rang, one of the Ten Eunuchs. After Zhang Rang's death, it changed hands several times and now it is in the hands of the Zhong family. It is said that in addition to the Zhong family, other Luoyang families such as Wang and Lu are also involved. The background is really not simple."

This news obviously interested Ding Ba, but he remained calm and asked with a gloomy look, "So, if Fu Man Lou wants to rise, its biggest competitor is Qian Zhen Pavilion?"

Having been to the battlefield, killed people, and seen blood, even though Ding Ba has now left the secret guards and the front line of battle, every time he encounters a challenge, his first thought is to be full of fighting spirit and murderous intent.

In Ding Ba's view, all roads to victory need to be paved with the corpses of the enemies.

Lai Fu also felt the heroic spirit rising to the sky, and knew that his new boss was definitely not someone who would be afraid of trouble, so he was also excited, but he still reminded him in a low voice: "Boss, behind Qianzhen Pavilion are several major families from the four counties of the capital. They have monopolized most of the gemstone and jade mines, and the goods channel that Zhang Rang has been operating for many years is also monopolized by them. Therefore, it is not easy to defeat Qianzhen Pavilion."

"Oh, what are these mere jewels and jade articles worth?"

Ding Ba showed an obvious disdainful expression, and his tone was very relaxed: "If Qianzhen Pavilion wants to sell, let them sell it. We in Fumanlou have better things."

Lai Fu was shocked by this. What are jewels and jades? They are great treasures!
During the annual Luoshen Festival, jewelry colleagues would compete with each other for goods, and the jewelry and jade displayed by Fumanlou, even the most ordinary ones, could be sold for 50,000 coins.

Fumanlou often releases five or even ten lots of this kind of jewelry and jade at a time. They are always in short supply and are sought after by many families.

The owner actually said lightly, "It's nothing," and "There are better things." What better things could there be?

Lai Fu thought Ding Ba was bragging. After all, he had been in this business for most of his life. What rare treasures had he not seen? Even if they were royal collections or tributes from foreign countries, they had been stolen and sold by eunuchs and palace maids in the past.

Unless they are some rare treasures that are beneficial to spiritual practice, but such natural treasures are rare in the world. How many can the owner take out?

Even if they are only sold in small quantities and at a high price, it cannot shake Qianzhenge's position in the jewelry industry.

Doing business is not as simple as just thinking about it.

Lai Fu thought so, so he didn't take Ding Ba's words seriously and asked casually, "Excuse me, owner, what treasures are Fu Man Lou planning to sell?
Ding Ba did not answer, but took a step forward and pulled open the curtain behind him.

A huge wardrobe was revealed.

This cabinet was square and simple, without any beautiful patterns or decorations, but it made Lai Fu gasp.

Except for the bracket, the outer wall, door and partition of the cabinet are all made of solid glass!
Lai Fu had seen a lot of colored glass. There were many colored glass workshops in Luoyang City that made and sold small items such as dragonfly eyes, colored glass cicadas, and colored glass earrings, which were quite popular among young men and women.

Lai Fu used to go there frequently to purchase goods, so he has a certain appreciation for the material of colored glaze.

But the glass in front of him, although the material is similar to colored glaze, he has never seen or even heard of a whole glass plate that is so crystal clear and invisible. Not to mention making a big cabinet with so much glass, even if it is cut into pieces and sold one by one, the price will be sky-high!
But now, they directly use a whole piece of glass to make a cabinet. It's like others use treasure chests to store gems, but my boss makes the gems into boxes. This kind of courage and means are fucking outrageous!
"Dong... Dongzhu!"

Touching the glass cabinet and feeling the cool touch between his fingers, Lai Fu even stuttered: "This... this is made of glass?"

"Let me correct you. We call this material glass, not colored glaze." Ding Ba raised his chin slightly. He enjoyed Lai Fu's performance very much. "Boss Lai, don't buy the casket and return the pearl. You'd better take a look at the treasures inside."

"Yes! That's right! We really need to take a closer look."

Lai Fu excitedly moved his face forward, and then he noticed that the cabinet in front of him was actually a sample display cabinet.

There are five such cabinets in front of me. They are all the latest products just shipped from the glass workshop in Mengjin Port. In addition to the shelves being made of new rosewood, the glass is polished with fine quartz sand and felt.

In later times, this so-called glass cabinet would be just like a country store, and even a naughty kid with a runny nose wouldn't even look at it twice.

But in the Three Kingdoms period, the display cabinet made of pure glass, the picture and texture are extremely amazing, and it can definitely cause a sensation when displayed.

The first thing that caught Lai Fu's attention was the rows of glass necklaces, bracelets and rings in the display cabinet.

Each glass bead was not only large in size but also round in shape with a smooth and delicate texture. They were all rare top-quality products and much more refined and beautiful than some Warring States dragonfly eyes he had seen before.

Lai Fu estimated that if these beads were broken down and sold separately, the largest one alone could easily sell for 100,000 coins, and the smallest one could sell for several strings of cash.

In addition, there are rows of glassware of various kinds.

There are glass cups with octagonal bottoms, common round bowls and plates, wine vessels, and even tea sets. Each piece is crystal clear, as if it was carefully carved and polished from the purest and flawless crystal.

Ding Ba looked calm, but the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, and he asked Lai Fu with a smile: "Boss Lai, are these enough?"

"Enough! That's enough! Nothing could be more enough!"

Lai Fu was very clear-headed. Anyone could make colored glaze, and it was not a rare item in Luoyang. It was so cheap that even wealthy common people could buy some to decorate their clothes.

However, the things in front of me are hundreds of times better than the goods of other products. Whether in terms of material or appearance, the difference is like heaven and earth. There is no comparison at all.

Is there any business in this world that is more profitable than a unique business?

Lai Fu finally understood why his new boss was so confident.

Jewelry and jade need to be collected. The snow-white, round pearls have to be purchased from Qingzhou and transported thousands of miles to Luoyang. The journey is long and costly, and the quantity and quality are difficult to control.

As for jade and gemstones, they are non-renewable resources. Once they are mined, they are gone. There are a limited number of mineral veins in the world. After they are mined, they have to be transported, polished, inlaid, made into jewelry and then sold. The processes in between can take half a day to talk about. The production cycle is often calculated in years, so it is necessary to rush to buy and stock up in advance, which will accumulate funds and affect turnover.

On the contrary, making glass is much simpler. It can be directly burned with sand. You can make as much as you want. After the industrial chain of the workshop is built, there is no need to worry about the output. The key is to have large quantity and sufficient supply.

What does this mean?
This means that Fumanlou has a stable supply channel for goods, which means that the business can continue for a long time. Moreover, Fumanlou is the only one that has glass at the moment, and no one else can compete with it.

To be honest, Lai Fu now feels sorry for Qianzhenge. He doesn't know how this competitor of Fumanlou can turn the situation around.

"Boss, you have seen how confident we are at Fu Man Lou. With such an advantageous situation, what you need to do is very simple. You just need to find painters and craftsmen to turn our glass products into jewelry that meets the aesthetic needs of dignitaries."

Ding Ba then looked at Lai Fu and reminded him, "The styles of our glass ornaments are still too monotonous. You must pay special attention to this. Don't be stingy with your money. Find the best craftsmen to design them for me. Try to enrich the styles and varieties. I want everyone in Luoyang to know that our Fu Man Lou is the best."

Lai Fu has been in the jewelry business for many years. He has seen countless different kinds of jewelry and also knows something about expert craftsmen, so he knows what to do.

"Don't worry, sir. I'll do it right away."

Lai Fu agreed without hesitation, as this was also one of his jobs.

Generally speaking, master craftsmen in the jewelry industry are specially employed by each shop. The skills may be passed down from father to son and grandson to grandson, and such specialized talents are not easily found outside.

But Lai Fu was different. He had been in the business for many years and was well-informed. He knew that when Dong Zhuo and the Western Liang army were rampant in Luoyang a few years ago, many jewelers were exploited and robbed and suffered great losses. Some jewelers were even forced to separate from their wives and children and their families were destroyed.

These jewelers' shops could not continue to operate and closed down, so many craftsmen and assistants were left alone. Now they have no work to do, so it is the time to recruit them.

"Okay, then it's your responsibility to recruit them all."

Upon hearing the news, he couldn't help but be delighted. What he thought was coming true: "As long as the guys there are trustworthy, they can also be employed. As for the salary, just increase it by 20% according to their previous standard. Be generous and don't be stingy. After all, we want to do big things."

Lai Fu listened and nodded frequently. After all, the more generous Ding Ba was, the better he would be treated.

However, seeing Ding Ba recruiting so frantically, Lai Fu couldn't help but persuade him, "Boss, right now we only have one shop in Fu Man Lou, and we already have two employees. Would it be too much to hire more people?"

Ding Ba shook his head, "Not much. How can it be much? Don't just look at the present. I have a lot of business to open in the future. I'll keep this kind of person for now. It's just one more mouth to feed. What's the big deal? I want to do big things. Why would I be stingy with a few meals?"

Now that Wang Jing has stopped the war, he is focusing on developing various industries. Although the overt military expansion has stopped, the secret commercial expansion has just begun, and he is preparing to go on expeditions to all directions.

Ding Bayi thought that there would be more business activities to be carried out in the future. If he didn't reserve professional personnel now, he would have nowhere to find them when the time came.

Even though there are refugees everywhere in the Yanhan Dynasty, the flow of people is actually very slow.

Many farmers have never left their hometown in their entire lives, while people with some skills in big cities, unless something unexpected happens, will work in a shop for their entire lives. It is not uncommon for three generations of a family to work for the same employer.

Unless you are recruiting apprentices or laborers, it is difficult to find available people at any time.

However, the apprentices and laborers who are hired temporarily at a high cost are not very useful in a short period of time and require years of training to enable them to master basic skills.

Ding Ba is now in a hurry to secretly extend his intelligence tentacles through business layout. How could he ruin the big things just to save money over such a trivial detail?
So it’s better to spend more money and have as many people as possible to avoid having no one available, which would be really embarrassing.

When Lai Fu heard this, he immediately praised sincerely: "The owner has foresight!"

Everyone has their own aspirations. Although Lai Fu is just a shopkeeper, he also wants to make Fu Man Lou bigger and stronger as soon as possible. By then, he will be able to enjoy his job as a shopkeeper, right?

The two of them discussed a lot of details.

Ding Ba thought that it would be difficult for Qiqiao Pavilion to make fine glass ornaments, so he said to Lai Fu, "Boss, please find some masons to come with us tomorrow to prepare for the new house."

"Owner, building a house is good, but what is the use of building a house?"

In Lai Fu's opinion, the house in Fumanlou is already sufficient, and it would be unnecessary to build another one."

“I want to build a glass jewelry workshop.”

When Ding Ba said this, he was full of ambition and had a comprehensive plan in mind - he wanted to become the future glass king of the Eastern Han Dynasty! (End of this chapter)