My eunuch godfather

Chapter 80 The Arena

Nanjing Jinyunhao Main Store.

Zhang Kun acquired the land for the government-run archery workshop from the Ministry of Works in Nanjing and opened the main store on Sanshan Street, the most prosperous street in Nanjing.

The main building is three stories high, with nine bays in width and seven bays in depth, and was used to sell various goods such as tampons.

Zhang Kun spared no expense, using a large amount of brick and stone structures to enhance load-bearing capacity and create more open spaces.

The layout adopts a "pseudo-atrium" style, which is actually a central courtyard with tall cabinets to "hide" the pillars.

There is also extensive use of detachable lattice doors and hinged windows, and the use of screens for partitions...

In short, the store should be as spacious, bright, and grand as possible.

Not only its architectural style, but its business model also resembled that of later department stores as closely as possible.

They mainly sell danbagu, including Zhenjinhao's superior gold silk and Qingxiahao's Qingxiaxiang and Zhiqiujin.

The Jinlu San and Yulu San from the Jinlu ship, and the Da Dongyang and Heishuiyang from the Tongyang ship, were all mid-to-high-end products.

Sun Family Winery – now renamed Shaochunhao by Zhang Kun – sells mid-to-high-end spirits and liquors such as Lotus White and Lanling Spring.

Matsuura Yasunobu's Kujira-go sells Japanese lacquerware such as maki-e, mother-of-pearl inlay, and mita-e, as well as folding fans with gilded decoration, lacquer-bonded decoration, and Kano-e decoration.

Japanese swords with white sheaths, foreign-made swords, and finely crafted swords, as well as fittings, and various gold, silver, and bronze wares.

In addition, there was the Shengzhou ship in Gaoping, which sold mink fur, fox fur, deer antler, Changbai ginseng, pine nuts, hazelnuts, and wood ear fungus from Liaodong.

Korean paper, Korean ginseng, seaweed, and large hats; Tatar white ghee, cashmere, and wolf fat, etc.

Lu Jizu's Tongji shop sold Shandong tussah silk, dried sea cucumbers, dried scallops, and Shanxi Lu silk, among other things.

The remaining counters were rented to local businesses to sell fabrics, clothing, home textiles, tableware, jewelry, watches, tea, and other items.

The variety and abundance of the products are refreshing and eye-opening.

Next to the main building is a two-story annex, which sells tea, milk tea, fruit tea and other beverages as well as snacks, for guests to rest.

In addition to traditional desserts, Zhang Kun also introduced new desserts from Europa, such as pudding, soufflé, and sponge cake.

Behind the main building and the annex were the head office's accounting office and warehouse, as well as the dormitories for the managers and stewards.

Compared to the capital, Nanjing has a much larger so-called "middle class" population, which can support this middle-class consumption pattern.

......

While opening the flagship store, Zhang Kun was also promoting the Nanjing Jinyunhao brand.

Besides employing storytellers and opera singers, and collaborating with brothels and theaters, Zhang Kun also organized so-called poetry gatherings:

Hosted by three socialites, Wang Wei, Xu Fo, and Yang Wan, the event took place in brothels, gardens, and other venues.

They invited scholars and literati to a banquet, where they composed poems and lyrics based on the names of various lightly processed mushroom products, such as "golden silk" and "blue clouds."

Then renowned experts would provide commentary, and outstanding contributors would receive prizes. In reality, this was the same tactic used by Guangwen Daily to give away premium cigarettes as payment for articles.

Even without prizes, you can still enjoy free fine wine and food, and be flattered by beautiful women.

Furthermore, their works were also included in the poetry collections such as "Jin Si Ji" and "Qing Xia Ji" printed and published by Nanjing Jin Yun Hao Printing House.

When it comes to beauties, three socialites alone are clearly not enough to manage everything:

In addition to the prostitutes and maids he employed, Zhang Kun also invited famous courtesans such as Lin Tiansu, Wang Yuesheng, and Li Zhenli through Xu Fo.

These courtesans were considered popular actresses, but they were far from being top stars like Wang Wei, so they were willing to play supporting roles.

Because of Wang Wei, they were able to meet many famous figures they had never been qualified to associate with before.

Besides, the Nanjing Jinyun ship offered very generous compensation, so being a supporting character was quite good.

Somewhat unexpectedly, major tea merchants in Southern Zhili and Zhejiang quickly followed suit.

Led by the most powerful ship, Fukang, they directly invited three top stars: Zheng Tuoniang, Ma Ruyu, and Zhu Wuxia.

Individually, Wang Wei could easily defeat these three, but together they could hold their own, or even have a slight advantage.

To prevent these three from vying for star power, Fukang even invited Xue Susu, a former top star who had semi-retired, to come out of retirement.

You know what, even though Xue Susu is past her prime, she still has a lot of influence and appeal.

The first poetry gathering attracted many famous figures, including Qian Qianyi, Gu Qiyuan, Wen Zhenmeng, and Dong Qichang, causing a sensation throughout the city.

The poetry gathering on the Nanjing Jinyunhao side is called "Jinyunhui," while the gathering on the other side is co-organized by several companies, so they simply named it "Sujunhui" after Xue Susu.

Thus, Jin Yunhui and Su Junhui began a rivalry in Nanjing, even clashing in person at Yuhuatai.

The fact that women are "fighting" with many beautiful women is something that everyone enjoys watching, and the buzz keeps getting bigger and bigger.

Seeing the unfavorable situation, Wang Wei, Xu Fo, and Yang Wan, driven by their competitive spirit, led Xu Fo to...

Finding Zhang Kun, who was organizing the Tampa Gu Conference, she said in a sweet voice:

"Master Kun, our Jin Yun Society is being routed by that Su Jun Society, they're about to be completely routed!"

"Hold on tight!"

Zhang Kun encouraged the three socialites, saying, "As long as the Tambak Conference is a success, everything will be alright!"

"Master Kun,"

Xu Fo walked over and approached Zhang Kun, "There are still more than ten days until the Tampagu Conference, could you please give me some advice?"

"Alright then,"

Zhang Kun picked up a small calligraphy brush, wrote down some memorable lines from later generations that he had seen before his time travel, and offered Xu Fo some advice:

"Find a few capable people to complete the sentences, then go over there and write a few poems titled 'To Su Jun,' to use as a psychological warfare tactic against the enemy commander!"

Beauty has been like a famous general since ancient times, and the world is not allowed to see gray hair.

As spring fades and beauty withers, flowers fall and people die, both unaware of the other's passing.

Flowers fall and fly all over the sky, who will pity them when their color and fragrance are gone?

Love has always brought only regret, and sweet dreams are always the easiest to wake from...

After reading it, Xu Fo and Yang Wan, who were nearly thirty, looked at each other with resentment. "This is an indiscriminate attack that doesn't distinguish between friend and foe!"

Wang Wei, who is a few months younger than Zhang Kun, was quite surprised:

As Wang Wei spent more time with Zhang Kun, she discovered that he was not actually a fierce person, but rather quite kind.

Furthermore, their collaboration through poetry gatherings fostered an increasingly close relationship.

At the celebration banquet for the first poetry gathering, he even mustered up the courage to join Xu Fo and Yang Wan in urging Zhang Kun to compose poems and exchange verses.

It turned out that the other party knew nothing about this and couldn't even compose a limerick.

Where did you copy these good sentences from?

Considering that the other person's writing is quite good, could it be that they are good at writing but not good at poetry, and these are just some random clever lines?

Zhang Kun had no idea what Wang Wei was thinking, and sighed inwardly:

Xue Sujun, you're over forty years old, why don't you learn from Zhao Caiji and stay at home like Zhao Si, instead of running around competing with the younger generation?

Since that's the case, don't blame me for resorting to such underhanded tactics!

No matter how much wealth Nanjing Jinyunhao possessed, it was far less than the combined resources of the major tea and rice merchants in Southern Zhili and Zhejiang.

Jin Yunhui only gained an advantage in the early stages because of the initial advantage. It is normal that he is now being defeated one after another by Su Junhui.

After Zhang Kun used the Danbagu Conference to dismantle the temporary alliance of major Danbagu merchants in Southern Zhili and Zhejiang.

Only by letting Jin Yun launch a counterattack then can we achieve final victory!

However, such a two-way battle can sometimes be more effective in generating publicity and attracting more attention than a one-sided show.

Perhaps it is unnecessary for the Kim Un-hui to achieve a complete victory, or to dismantle the Kim Un-hui after its victory.

Creating events like the Jiangdu Club, Qinhuai Club, and West Lake Club to compete with each other helps maintain the club's popularity.