Chapter 584 - 586: Here to Steal the Design
Bai Ruozhu glanced at the old lady and said, "Grandma, you’ve only been here a few days, what could you have possibly heard?"
Ignoring the old lady’s enquiries, Bai Ruozhu turned to leave, returning to her room to check on the children. The old lady, increasingly anxious, turned to Bai Yihong and demanded, "What unrest are you talking about, explain clearly!"
Bai Yihong, evasive, replied, "Mother, I don’t know either, asking me isn’t going to help."
A burst of laughter bubbled up within Lin Ping’er, though her face remained stern. "There’s nothing wrong, Mother. Just enjoy your time here, eat well and relax. There’s no need to worry right?"
The old lady pressed further, but got no more answers. She tried asking Bai Zehao, but even he didn’t know anything helpful. Eventually, she returned to her room to brood over various suspicions.
Bai Ruozhu handed over her child, Dengdeng, to her mother, then beckoned Fang Guizhi. They swiftly made their way out of the yard.
Upon stepping outside, Fang Guizhi stretched extensively, saying, "I was stuck inside for so long, I felt like I was starting to mold."
Bai Ruozhu laughed, "Let’s go to the store first, and then I’ll take you to the market to eat."
As they chatted, they boarded Wa San’s carriage, which headed towards Hua Xiangrong.
"What good food can there be at the market, surely none as good as your home cooking?" Fang Guizhi said, beaming, and latched onto Bai Ruozhu’s arm.
Bai Ruozhu rolled her eyes at her, "Haven’t you heard the saying ’there’s always someone better out there’? Don’t underestimate the hardworking folks."
"Alright, then I’ll give it a good try later." Fang Guizhi responded cheerfully.
Soon, the two arrived at the shop; Fu Sa greeted them, "When did you two find the time to come by? Ruozhu, you shouldn’t run around while still recovering."
"I met a skilled person today who helped me a lot with my injury." Bai Ruozhu’s thoughts ventured back to their spat with Jiang Yichun at the Hot Spring Mansion as she mentioned Elder Shougu, causing her some distress. But unwilling to let her family see her pain, she quickly hid her feelings.
Bai Ruozhu surveyed Hua Xiangrong’s recent business, it wasn’t too bad, though not as extreme as when she brought a large group of people last time. Their allocation of orders seemed manageable, so it was all for the best.
After a few words with Fusa, they spotted a customer and Bai Ruozhu stepped aside, allowing Fusa to serve the customer.
An embellished, middle-aged woman entered the shop. She was flanked by two well-dressed maids looking comparable to young misses from minor families. Bai Ruozhu and Fang Guizhi, dressed modestly to avoid upsetting the old lady, escaped the woman’s notice. A maid glancing at them evinced a hint of disdain, to which Bai Ruozhu and Fang Guizhi exchanged looks and curled their lips in return.
"Do you have any trendy products recently?" the wealthy woman asked Fusa after a quick glimpse around the shop.
"The latest models are all cataloged. Madam, please take a look first and see if there’s anything you like." Fusa handed the wealthy woman a catalog.
The woman flicked through the pages slowly, and Bai Ruozhu began to sense something was off. A discerning customer would usually browse quickly, only lingering on favorite items. But this woman looked very carefully at each page, as if...
She was memorizing all the styles!
"Nothing innovative here, don’t you have any other designs?" the wealthy woman asked hesitantly after a while.
Fusa nervously replied, "May I ask if Madam has a preference for anything in particular?"
"Doesn’t matter what type of product, as long as I like it. Do you think I can’t afford it?" The wealthy woman archly raised her eyebrows.
"No, no, not at all," Fusa hurriedly answered. "These are our styles currently, but if you leave your address, we can notify you of any new designs. What do you think?"
The wealthy woman’s eyes flitted about, "No need to trouble yourselves. I’ll return in three days." She walked away with her maids without buying or ordering anything whatsoever, acting as if nothing in the store had satisfied her.
Fusa turned to Bai Ruozhu with a wry smile after the woman had left, "That madam was quite picky."
Bai Ruozhu sighed in exasperation, "Fusa, you need to work on reading people."
"Huh?" A puzzled Fusa wondered if she had said something wrong.
"That lady wasn’t picky, she didn’t come here to buy anything," Bai Ruozhu clarified.
Fang Guizhi was surprised too, "Really? I didn’t notice."
Bai Ruozhu tapped Fang Guizhi on the head, saying "You and Fusa should both be more observant."
Bai Ruozhu flipped through the catalog, "Fusa, have you noticed how other customers look at the catalog? The more discerning they are, the faster they flip. Most styles are not to their liking. They will only pause when they see something they like or could potentially like."
Fusa looked enlightened and exclaimed, "Oh, right! The woman from earlier looked carefully at every page. Was she trying to steal our designs?"
Bai Ruozhu showed a satisfied look, at least Fusa understood quickly.
"So, what do we do now? From now on, we can’t just let anyone look at the catalog!" Fusa suggested in a panic.
Bai Ruozhu shook her head, "That’s not the solution, it’d offend the customers. This kind of thing can’t be avoided. All we can do is focus on maintaining our quality, even if they do steal the designs, they can’t copy our needlework. They can only make a facade, and without our quality, they won’t be able to sell at our prices. It will not affect us."
"But do we let them off this easily? They copy everything, even the name of the shop, and now they’re stealing our new styles. What nonsense!" Fusa cursed, "That woman must have been sent by Yun Xiaorong!"
Bai Ruozhu smiled, she was not angry. There’s always competition when there’s a market. Many big brands in her past life had knockoffs, but that didn’t mean the knockoffs could replace the real ones.
"Don’t worry, I have my ways," Bai Ruozhu said with a smirk.
Fusa inferred from Bai Ruozhu’s nonchalant demeanor that she already had a plan. She was extremely curious, but before she could ask, Bai Ruozhu said, "Guizhi, let’s go check out the imitation shop. It’s only polite to return the favor."
Fang Guizhi’s eyes lit up at the idea of the visit. She rolled up her sleeves immediately, but due to the thickness of the undercoat, she was struggling to get it above her elbow.
Bai Ruozhu, seeing her antics, couldn’t help laughing. "What are you doing? We’re just going for a visit, not to cause a scene."
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Thanks to Book Friends Ningbitan, - Private Desire, Unforgettable, Happy Waiting, "if...", Unforgettable, Melting Summer, Ice Point, Bright Moon and Sky, Book Friend 21272164, Maybe • See you again (Trying a new phrase today) for your generous rewards. Seeing the rewards every day always makes Mouka very happy~