NABC Chapter 152 Learning Poetry
Chapter 152 Learning Poetry
This was the first time that Minister Ying and Shen Xin were alone together, even though it was in public.
What's more, the rumors about the two have just died down.
Minister Ying couldn't explain why he did this, he just felt guilty, heartbroken, and angry. If he hadn't insisted on Shen Xin moving into his courtyard, Yu Hui wouldn't have made a big fuss about it and slandered her. He underestimated Yu Hui's shamelessness and the difficulties women face in this world.
He looked at Shen Xin deeply. The illness had worn away her spirit and appearance. If he said that when he first saw Shen Xin on the boat, her appearance was ten points, now it was less than five points. Her face was sallow, slightly swollen, and her hair had fallen out a lot. She looked haggard and weak.
Minister Ying felt a sharp pain in his heart as he thought of what the doctor had told him, that Shen Xin's condition was not optimistic.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Shen." Thousands of words came to my mind, and I could only say this in the end.
Shen Xin raised her eyebrows: "Why do you say that, Lord Ying? I am grateful for your care and concern."
Minister Ying did not mention the rumors as he did not want to upset her.
He smiled and changed the subject: "It must be boring for Mr. Shen to recuperate at home. If you want to eat or play anything, please tell me. I have the freedom to find it for you."
The atmosphere suddenly became much more relaxed, and Shen Xin smiled and said, "Really? Then I want to learn poetry."
"Learning poetry?" Minister Ying was quite surprised.
"Yes, I have spent all my time learning embroidery since I was young. To reach the pinnacle of embroidery, one needs poetic and picturesque feelings. How can one embroider well if one does not understand poetry? I have made some progress in painting, but I am not very good at poetry. It is just right for me to take advantage of the time I have spent recuperating to learn more." Shen Xin explained with a smile.
Minister Ying was so overjoyed that his small eyes narrowed into two curved lines. He didn't expect Shen Xin to really ask him for something, instead of just being polite and perfunctory.
"Leave it to me." He patted his chest loudly.
About half a month later, Shen Xin received a booklet sent by Minister Ying. The booklet was all handwritten by him, with beautiful hairpin-shaped small characters, which was totally inconsistent with his rough appearance. He carefully selected 80 ancient poems from the "Source of Ancient Poems", including the annotations of the poems and the pronunciation of the words. He even named this booklet "Shen Dajia Learning Poetry Reading Book" and wrote these seven big characters on the cover.
Obviously, this was a reading book he had specially customized for Shen Xin, and it took half a month of sleepless nights to complete it.
Shen Xin's fingers lingered on the cover of the reading material. She rubbed it for a long time, then slowly opened it and began to read the poem.
***
Shui Qinghua wrote a letter to Chen Jinlan in Beijing, asking her to transfer several talents from Beijing to Jiangnan to open an embroidery school.
After sending the letter, Shui Qinghua thought that the embroidery products of Jiangxia Shuixiufang had long been sold to Jiangnan through the Siyifang channel. She had been in Jiangnan for so long, but she had not found the time to inspect it. So she took Ji Fei and Xiao Hulu and drove to Siyifang where Manager Wang was.
Shopkeeper Wang was naturally happy to see Shui Qinghua, and even happier to see the two little ones. He took them into the embroidery workshop and came to a special counter. The embroidery displayed in the counter was bright in color, with crisp lines and extremely delicate stitches. Shui Qinghua recognized it at a glance. It was the product of the Shui Embroidery Workshop.
Ji Fei also recognized it. She had worked in Jiangxia Water Embroidery Workshop for several months and was most familiar with the embroidery style.
"Grandpa Wang, are the embroidery products from Shuixiufang selling well in Jiangnan?" Ji Fei asked.
Shopkeeper Wang stroked his short beard, nodded and smiled, "Very good! The style of these embroidery is completely different from Suzhou embroidery. People from Jiangnan also want to see something new and come to buy them often."
The Shuixiufang was built up by Wang, the shopkeeper, so he naturally worked hard. Whenever a customer showed interest, he would spare no effort to recommend it. But in other Siyifang, the embroidery of Shuixiufang was not treated so highly, and the sales volume was just average.
Shopkeeper Wang did not shy away from Shui Qinghua and her daughter. They visited several other Siyifangs and found that it was indeed the case. The embroidery works of Shuixiufang were rarely displayed in a prominent way, and some were even randomly piled up in the corner. When customers asked about the origin and characteristics of the embroidery works, neither the shopkeeper nor the clerk could explain it.
Ji Fei frowned and thought for a moment, then said to Shui Qinghua: "Mother, this is not the fault of Si Yi Fang. They only provide a sales channel, and we have to do everything behind the scenes ourselves. We couldn't reach Jiangnan before, but now that we are here, we should take good care of it."
She had nothing to do for a long time since she came to Jiangnan. She felt extremely depressed at home. After inspecting the embroidery workshop, she felt like a fish seeing water and came alive again.
Shui Qinghua smiled slightly: "Mother has to help Aunt Shen build an embroidery school, so she can't take care of these things for the time being. You bring your sister to show me the rules first."
Ji Fei was slightly startled when her mother mentioned her sister, but then she realized that her mother was watching her every move, along with her military advisor. She touched her nose shyly and said hello.
After Ji Fei described the situation of inspecting Si Yi Fang, Ji Wei sighed like a little adult, "It's as expected. Cooperative sales are not just about signing a contract. You need to establish a complete system."
"System? What does it mean?" The little sister often uttered some strange words, which made Ji Fei confused.
Ji Wei found a charcoal pencil, spread out the rice paper, and sketched some lines on it. As she drew, she said, "Shuixiufang is the manufacturer responsible for producing embroidery products, and Siyifang is equivalent to our exclusive agent in Jiangnan. The manufacturer needs to provide products, technology, and pricing, and also train sales staff, set sales targets, and establish a reward and punishment system. The agent needs to provide venues, personnel, and sales channels, and cooperate with the manufacturer to carry out various promotional activities."
"Wait, little sister, you speak too fast, I can't understand you." Ji Fei covered her ears, feeling her mind was in a mess.
Ji Wei paused, reorganized her words, and said it again in a way that Ji Fei could accept. Now Ji Fei finally understood the general idea.
"Little sister, what did you do in heaven before?" Ji Fei asked curiously.
"What did you say?" Ji Wei's eyes narrowed and her eyes flickered.
"I overheard my father and mother discussing that you are the golden boy under the Bodhisattva's seat, who was reincarnated into our family after experiencing tribulations. I thought so at first, but now I don't think so anymore. How could a golden boy be as smart as you! When you were in heaven, you must have been in charge of business. Are you the God of Wealth? No, the God of Wealth is an old man. He is one of the Seven Fairies. You are the daughter of the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother, so you are so smart and know everything!"
Ji Wei was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. She ignored her sister's face full of pride, kept silent, and lowered her head to paint.
Ji Fei thought to herself, no matter what kind of fairy you are, if you are reborn into my family, you will be my biological sister, and I will just be happy.