"Young Master is here!"
"Master is here!"
"Young Master, hurry and see! The thieves have kidnapped the old manager!"
"Everyone, disperse for now. Don't worry, under the Emperor's nose, in broad daylight, no villain dares to cause trouble."
A steady voice rang out, and then most of the crowd dispersed, the human wall parted, and a young man in fine clothes, who looked no more than twenty-five or twenty-six, appeared before Jia Yun, escorted by two burly men who looked like bodyguards.
"Release the old manager!"
The young man in fine clothes saw the old manager being held by the hair by Tie Tou, a finely crafted steel dagger pressed against his neck, his face ashen, his eyes instantly filled with rage, and he couldn't help but shout in a low voice.
But at the crucial moment, he seemed to recognize the style of the dagger; it seemed to be something only the Liangzhou army possessed, and it was top-quality!
It was said to be repeatedly forged, known as hundred-times-refined steel!
Jia Yun seemed not to hear, glancing indifferently at the young man in brocade robes before turning to the old shopkeeper and saying, "Now, you can recount the events to your master again."
The old shopkeeper, his breathing uneven, glared at Jia Yun before recounting the day's events to the young man in brocade robes.
Perhaps sensing Jia Yun's confidence and likely powerful background, he didn't embellish the story, simply giving a general account.
However, the old man still insisted that the dyeing formula Jia Yun used must have been stolen from Hengsheng Cloth Shop.
The young man in brocade robes' lips twitched upon hearing this, his gaze falling on the few feet of blue cloth on the ground.
After observing for a moment, he said to the foreman beside him, "Fetch some dark blue cloth from the counter."
The foreman immediately called for a shop assistant to fetch the cloth. Soon, the blue cloth was brought back. The young man in brocade stepped forward, squatted down, looked at the blue cloth on the ground, then at his own blue cloth in his hand. His expression changed; he understood his old manager's intention.
He stood up, gave Jia Yun a deep look, then turned back and instructed, "Is Master Li here?"
The foreman hurriedly replied, "I've already sent someone to invite him, and he's here now!"
Before he finished speaking, he looked towards the door and exclaimed joyfully, "Master Li is here!"
An elderly man was being helped in, unaware of what had happened.
The young man in brocade first dismissed most of the shop assistants and temporarily closed the shop door. Then he said to Master Li, "Master Li, you're a veteran from my Wang Family Dyehouse. You know the ins and outs of the dyeing trade. Take a look at these two pieces of cloth. Are they from the same formula? And where are the differences?"
Upon hearing this, Master Li first glanced at the "held hostage" old shopkeeper, then looked down at the two pieces of cloth. After a long while, his expression grew increasingly serious. Finally, he gasped and said, "This formula is amazing!!"
"How so?"
The young man in brocade quickly pressed.
Master Li replied, "This formula isn't made with pure colors; it's a mixture of cyan and magenta. Moreover, it requires at least seven or eight steps; even a slight difference will ruin the color, which is why it's so vibrant!"
The young man in brocade robes hurriedly asked, "Can we mix this color?"
Master Li shook his head repeatedly, saying, "It sounds like it only requires two colors to mix, but magenta itself needs mixing. Even a slight difference, and the color won't come out. It's better to use pure colors. This formula is amazing, truly amazing! I'm afraid we can't mix it."
Jia Yun Hearing this, he smiled and praised, "Master, you are indeed a master. Just by looking at the fabric color, you can tell a lot. Perfect timing. Your old manager said that the formula for this fabric is stolen from Hengsheng Company. Please, Master, tell him that one should be as honest as one is in dyeing cloth."
Master Li was stunned upon hearing this, looking at the old manager and saying, "Old Zhou, how could this formula be..."
"Shut up!"
The old manager shouted, "What do you know! This formula is from Hengsheng Company!"
Having said that, with a fearless look, he closed his eyes.
Seeing him like this, Jia Yun didn't care, chuckled lightly, and continued reading with her eyes downcast.
This demeanor made the young man in brocade narrow his eyes.
This was clearly a sign that he wasn't afraid of the power of the Wang family of Hengsheng.
The young man in brocade took a deep breath, cupped his hands, and said, "Brother, I am Wang Shouzhong, the young master of Hengsheng. May I ask your esteemed name?"
Jia Yun was not arrogant, returning the greeting, "My name is Jia Yun."
"Jia Yun?" Wang Shouzhong seemed completely unaware of or had never heard of this person. Where did he come from? Could he be from the Jia family?
But he knew everyone in the Jia family; they were all prominent families in Chang'an. They saw each other all the time, how could he not know them?
Moreover, recently the Jia family members had been frequenting the brothel, a veritable den of pleasure. He himself couldn't help but indulge in it. Fortunately, he had been busy recently, otherwise he really would have become addicted. Even so, he still went there every few days.
"Brother Jia, you are clearly no ordinary person. I wonder if you can understand the difficulties my humble establishment faces?"
Wang Shouzhong sighed softly and asked.
Jia Yun asked curiously, "What if I understand? What if I don't?"
Wang Shouzhong chuckled and said, "If you understand, we can naturally continue discussing Brother Jia's visit to our shop today. I guarantee you won't suffer any loss. If you don't understand, then there's nothing I can do."
Seeing his composed demeanor, Jia Yun understood that this man wasn't actually that afraid of him.
After all, they didn't seem to have really done anything to him; they wouldn't bother the Emperor Emeritus just for a fright… Moreover, it seemed this young master had already guessed his purpose for coming.
Jia Yun asked with a smile, "Aren't you afraid I'll take this piece of cloth and turn around and go to Dongsheng?"
His research before coming revealed that the Hengsheng Wang family and the Dongsheng Zhao family, both among the eight major cloth shops, were decades-long rivals.
Wang Shouzhong laughed, "Brother Jia has come here intending to cooperate with us, not to make enemies. Today's events were a mistake by the Hengsheng Wang family, so we will certainly make amends. However, if Brother Jia goes to Dongsheng, then he will become an irreconcilable enemy of the Wang family. We merchants ultimately pursue wealth. Brother Jia's visit to Hengsheng was presumably for this purpose. And his decision to go to Dongsheng Cloth Shop was also for this purpose. The outcome is the same, and we will certainly offer more. But if you choose us, Brother Jia will gain the friend of Hengsheng Cloth Shop; if you choose Dongsheng, you will unwittingly make a mortal enemy." "With your intelligence, brothers, you should naturally understand how to choose."
Jia Yun looked at Wang Shouzhong upon hearing this, but sneered, "You think you've got me cornered? You're right, I do need a partner right now, but it doesn't necessarily have to be your Hengsheng Cloth Shop."
Wang Shouzhong's smile suddenly froze. He let out a soft breath and looked at Jia Yun, saying, "Brother Jia, do you really intend to be an enemy of the Wang family?"
Jia Yun chuckled and shook his head, "Don't worry, I won't give this formula out for now. After all, besides blue, I also have red. I can just find another partner to cooperate with for red, right? But remember, I've taken today's matter to heart."