After the new Purple Bamboo Mat was woven, Xiao Xian was tidying up the leftover bamboo strips and realized that because Spiritual Energy was infused, there were quite a few strips remaining that were originally expected for the weaving of one Purple Bamboo Mat.
She had promised Mao Dazhu one mat per week, and the materials had been calculated by the stingy Mao Dazhu himself, so having too many leftovers might give rise to suspicions of cutting corners.
Xiao Xian thought for a moment and, since it was still early, she decided to weave some new items overnight.
Previously, Xiao Xian was clumsy, but only after weaving the mats did she realize that in the realm of bamboo artistry, mastering the craft of weaving meant many things came naturally.
The next morning, everyone in the Zeng Family found a pillow mat woven with Purple Bamboo on their beds. Approaching the end of August, Beijing’s sweltering heat seemed to be incessant, as the mercury in the thermometers remained stubbornly high, causing aggravation just at the sight of it.
During the days Mao Dazhu supervised the store renovation, the temperature had already reached thirty-eight degrees.
Thanks to the brief sensation caused by the Black Wisteria Mat last time, the rattan mat store had slightly regained its vitality.
Moreover, with the seniors from the nursing home motivated by Xiao Xian, they were putting in great effort to weave; just Shanyang alone was producing Purple Vine Mats at twice his previous speed.
When Xiao Xian arrived at the rattan mat store holding a Purple Bamboo Mat that felt even cooler than blocks of ice, Mao Dazhu was draped with a wet towel around his neck, holding a clay teacup, and had the few employees in the store rearrange the mats from inside to the north side of the storefront.
Mao Dazhu’s store, geographically speaking, was indeed well-situated, close to two old-style neighborhoods and surrounded by several newly developed ones.
There were plenty of convenient facilities like bus stops and markets. It was heard that in the second half of the year, a multinational supermarket would open on the street nearby, which would attract even more people.
The rattan mat store had an area of 8M*10M, a bination of two joined storefronts, flanked by other shops on both sides, with the front space used by Mao Dazhu for selling mats.
At the back, there used to be a door, but Mao Dazhu had sealed it off to store excess mats.
After the peak sales season, storage for the mats would no longer be necessary. Mao Dazhu planned to have one last clearance sale before the summer pletely passed. By clearing out the warehouse and giving it a good clean, it could then be repurposed as a store for specialty agricultural products.
When Mao Dazhu saw Xiao Xian, he was a bit surprised. A mat finished in one night? That was incredibly fast; he had thought it would take several days.
"Don’t cut corners. If this mat is of worse quality pared to the last Black Purple Vine, then we’ll put off the store business," Mao Dazhu was not really confident because, after all, no one on the mainland dared to weave mats with Purple Bamboo Strips; Black Purple Vine was soft and thus relatively easier to weave.
As soon as the mat was unfurled, Mao Dazhu hurriedly stored it away and shouted at the employees behind him, "Move it, clear out the mats inside. In a few days, I’m going to bring people over to view the store."
He had just given orders when Mao Dazhu immediately switched to a more pleasant demeanor, "Xiao Xian, this mat is really woven from Purple Bamboo, it’s mine now, right?"
Seeing his cautious look, Xiao Xian couldn’t help but laugh, "It’s yours to begin with. After it’s sold, remember to deduct the amount from the account balance."
"How could I forget, my memory is excellent. But we need to sell the mat before deducting from the account," Mao Dazhu’s eyes were gleeful. But unlike last time, he did not plan to display the mat in the shop; instead, he reached out for the business card given to him last time by Boss Qiu of the art pany.
Within an hour of hearing there was a new mat, the other party arrived.
"Mr. Mao, are you saying there’s more stock of the Black Purple Vine Mat from last time?" Boss Qiu of the Global Art pany was actually Taiwanese, who had made some money years ago by flipping court furnishings from the Late Qing and Republican eras in the mainland.
Later, as the government tightened regulations and the living standards on the mainland rose, Boss Qiu registered an art pany, importing Western exotic products and exporting Eastern antiques. In this two-way trade, he amassed the substantial prosperity he has now.
Boss Qiu also had a keen eye; he immediately recognized the advantages of the Black Purple Vine Mat and wanted to buy it for a high price. In the days following his departure from the rattan mat store, he relentlessly contacted Mao Dazhu almost every day with phone calls; Mao Dazhu had brushed him off on the pretext of having no stock.
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