?

  Zhou Xuan returned to the mansion at the end of the Hai hour, and saw that Qin Que's room had already extinguished its lights, presumably having gone to sleep early. The lamps in his bedroom and Zhinuo's bedroom were still lit.

  Hearing the noise, the spinning wheel came out of the room: "Husband, you're back."

  Zhou Xuan responded with a sound, letting the spinning wheel wait for a moment. He went to his bedroom first and saw Xiao Hua lying on the desk, sleeping. The washing utensils prepared for him were placed beside her. It's not easy being a maid, she has to serve her master until he goes to bed before she can rest. And now she encountered Zhou Xuan, this night owl, it's really bitter.

  Zhou Xuan urged Xiao Huixiang to wake up and go back to her room to sleep.

  Xiao Huixiang rubbed her sleepy eyes and said: "Uncle is not washed yet."

  Zhou Xuan said: "I'll wash myself. Later, if I haven't returned by the end of the tenth hour, you just go to sleep and take care of yourself. Just prepare the washing supplies, did you hear?"

  Xiao Huixiang said: "Brother-in-law is really good." and went back to her own small room.

  Ying-needle stood outside the door waiting for Zhou Xuan, while Ya-huan and Xiao-ju followed behind her.

  "Little girl, hurry back to your room and sleep, don't disturb us."

  Xiao Ju was startled.

  Xue Zhen's face turned red as she said, "Husband, don't scare the little girl. Don't you have something to say to Xue Er?" She hinted for Xiao Ju to go back to her room and rest.

  Zhou Xuan smiled and said, "I knew you wouldn't be able to sleep if I didn't tell you that thing. Hehe, I was afraid that if I told you, you would sleep even less." He strode into the spinning room.

  She had been guessing for a long time, not knowing what her husband wanted to say to her, it should be good news. What is the good news after all? Her husband was really bad, wanting to say it early, making people anxious!

  Zhou Xuan sat down on a large wooden chair made of huanghuali wood, staring at the needlework in his hand, not making a sound.

  The needle was seen by him and his heart felt hairy, a bit uneasy, calling out: "Husband——"

  "Needle. Have you put on your underwear?"

  "Ah." The seamstress didn't expect her husband to ask this and blushed, saying: "I said so. I want to wear it with Sparrow's sister together."

  Zhou Xuan shook his head and thought to himself, "This needlework, everything has to be done with Que Er together. If she knew that Que Er had already spent the night with me, would she feel uncomfortable? Hmm, I'd better avoid her for now." He said, "You're the older sister, you should take the lead."

  Xian Zhen shook her head and said: "No way. Husband, you quickly say what's going on?"

  "Come over, sit on my lap and I'll tell you, otherwise I won't say."

  She fidgeted with her needle, glanced outside the door, walked over to shut it, and then sauntered back, only to be pulled by Zhou Xuan into a sitting position on his lap: "Alright, I'll start talking now..."

  The needle originally wanted to resist a bit more. Upon hearing this, it calmed down.

  "——Zhen'er, I'm asking you, are you willing to stay at home and do some needlework, or are you willing to apply your talent in clothing more broadly, so that more people can see the clothes you've sewn, and more Tang Dynasty women wear the clothes you've sewn? Of course, they will pay for it."

  Xue Ying sat sideways, looking at Zhou Xuan with a changed expression, and said cautiously: "Needle will listen to husband's words."

  Zhou Xuan patted her leg gently: "It's okay, just say what you really think. Your husband won't get angry, but I will if you tell lies."

  Zhen Needle said: "Of course, I want more people to see it, and if I can make money, that's even better. Husband, actually Zhen is quite envious of Que Er's sister, the female doctor. She has skills. Every day she goes to the hospital for a consultation, many people praise her medical skills are superb and her medical ethics are noble. Zhen really can't compare to her!"

  The wife felt that her husband had a good temper and was tolerant, so she spoke out all the words in her heart.

  Zhou Xuan, while feeling the soft pressure of the sewing needle's rounded buttocks on his thigh, said: "Needle, you also have your own talent. You can sew according to the dress style I drew, which is remarkable. It's not possible for someone who doesn't have a natural sensitivity to clothing to do this."

  "Really!" The needle in her heart blossomed with joy, and she gradually leaned into Zhou Xuan's arms.

  Zhou Xuan began to rub his thigh and said, "So I want to fully utilize your talent. This afternoon, I discussed with Hu Shang and Abu, and we plan to open the largest women's clothing store in Jiangzhou. I will draw ten autumn outfits for women, you make a set of samples, and then let the tailor follow suit. Anyway, this kind of loose-fitting dress doesn't need to consider any size, and when the time comes, I'll invite people to spread the word, guaranteeing that it will be popular all over Jiangzhou."

  Her needle and thread "thumped" with excitement, her husband's words resonating with the long-buried dream in her heart - she had always wanted to sew the most beautiful dress in the world.

  Zhou Xuan said, "Needle is more familiar with Tang Dynasty clothing than I am. The dress designs I drew are just for your reference. If you think they need improvement or additions, feel free to make changes without restraint. This year, we'll focus on long dresses, and next spring and summer, I'll introduce short dresses, hoping to change the conservative views of Tang Dynasty women's clothing. However, looking at you all, it seems like some noblewomen are already quite open-minded, with their chests exposed in their long dresses. Needle, why don't you show a bit more?" She glanced sideways at Zhen's collar and saw that her chest was bulging noticeably, likely much larger than Xiao Er's.

  The needle is both shy and happy, thinking about opening a clothing store, eager to try, husband is really good, being with him always has so many surprises!

  Zhou Xuan pulled her into his arms and whispered in her ear, "Needle, can I sleep in your room tonight?"

  The needle in her hand trembled as she spoke in a pleading tone, "Husband, can you wait for two more months? By then, you can do whatever you want."

  With a gentle and weak personality, Zhou Xuan could have coaxed her into bed with soft words, but thinking about it, he endured. Filial piety is important after all, and brothers are not evil spirits, why destroy the moral integrity of his little wife!

  Zhen needle saw Zhou Xuan and didn't speak for a moment, feeling a bit flustered. She said: "Husband, Qu Er's sister has already married you, why don't you..."

  Zhou Xuan burst out laughing: "She wouldn't agree either, insisting on going with you together. I'm really frustrated."

  The needle comforted itself by saying: "Well, I'll persuade the sparrow's sister tomorrow. She can't compare with me, after all, I have a father to mourn."

  Zhou Xuan murmured a response, then continued to work on her embroidery, lost in thought for a while. When she heard the third watch, she finally returned to her room to rest. She thought to herself: "Tomorrow morning, I'll have to discuss this with Que Er. At first, when I advised her, she didn't agree, but after repeated persuasion, she silently agreed. Hehe, from now on, we won't have to sneak around in front of Mother."

  ……

  The next day, Zhou Xuan won again with four pieces in the second round against the chess player from Ou State, thus ending his match against Ou State's chess player with two wins. Jiang State won the championship of the three-state chess tournament. Zhou Xuan, Gu Liuquan and Fu Yannian will represent Fuhua Du Hu Fu to compete in the top ten Du Hu Fu chess tournament held in Jinling, Dongdu next year. It is a grand event in the chess world that takes place every three years. At that time, not only Tang State but also chess players from Southern Han, Northern Song and Wu Yue States will gather in Jinling. At least half of the top 18 chess players in the country will come. The winner of the tournament will compete with Gu Liuquan, who is currently ranked last among the top 18 chess players, for a spot among the top 18. However, it seems that there may not be a need to compete now as Shang Chuan Yuan's position has become vacant.

  Xu Stabbing History saw that the third round was not used, Jiangzhou had already won, and he was overjoyed. He set up a banquet to entertain the three chess players. Zhou Xuan had an engagement in the afternoon, so he just drank a few cups and bid farewell. When he returned to his residence, Abu was already waiting there. Zhou Xuan called out Su Zhennan and discussed with Abu about opening a tailor's shop. In order to maintain Zhou Xuan's reputation as "Zhou Qiujue", the tailor's shop was registered under Su Zhennan's name.

  Abu is indeed a shrewd and cunning Hui merchant, he has already hired five of the most famous tailors in Jiangzhou, all of whom were poached from other clothing stores at great expense, and has already found a shop in Jin Feng Alley, which was originally a silk store, with a five-bay storefront facing the street and three floors up and down.

  Zhou Xuan immediately took the needle and followed Abu to see the store, arriving at Jin Feng Fang silk street, where various fabrics and garments were sold in Jiangzhou. The half-mile-long street was lined with wooden buildings on both sides, with nearly a hundred silk shops and thirty or forty garment shops, bustling with activity.

  The silk store that Abu had set his sights on was called "Cloud and Mist Silk Store". It was located in a prime spot, facing east towards the street, making it highly visible. The owner was planning to move to Western Capital Guangling and so was preparing to sell the property for 1,500 taels of silver. Additionally, there were some remaining fabrics in storage that he was willing to part with for an additional 500 taels of silver, bringing the total price to 2,000 taels of silver.

  Zhou Xuan thought it was good, asked Zhēn Zhēn, and Zhēn Zhēn also said it was good. They decided to buy it on the spot. Two thousand taels of silver were still within Zhou Xuan's means, as not much of the five thousand taels Abou had invested last time had been used.

  Abu wanted to pay for Zhou Xuan, but Zhou Xuan was adamant and only asked Abu to use his connections to help purchase some high-quality fabrics with bright colors. Zhou Xuan thought: "In the future, there will be two types of people who come to this tailor shop, one is the wives and daughters of government officials and wealthy merchants in Jiangzhou, and the other is the courtesans from Pingkang Lane, only these people are willing to spend money on clothes."

  Abu has been selling "Fanghua Yong Zhu Xue" in Jiangzhou for over a decade, and his apprentices are familiar with which families' women are willing to spend money on cosmetics. Therefore, when the ready-to-wear store was first established, it could borrow the sales channel of "Fanghua Yong Zhu Xue" to sell ready-to-wear clothes, and Zhou Xuan already had an excellent idea in mind to expand the influence of the ready-to-wear store.

  Zhou Xuan is now short of capable assistants. Although Zhiniao can make clothes, she knows nothing about the way to run a business.

  Abu said: "It doesn't matter, let the sixth concubine of mine assist Mrs. Zhou, she has always followed me in business and is familiar with affairs, very smooth."

  Zhou Xuan asked Abu how many wives and concubines he had. Abu replied: "Not many, just eleven."

  "Still not enough? Plant some more, old chap!"

  Abu said: "When I married concubines, they were all trained by them to help me with business, not because of lust."

  Zhou Xuan deeply felt that Abu's business philosophy of "Kun Dai" was very advanced, no wonder he could get rich, and must learn from Abu.

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  A brief interlude, a wonderful moment is about to arrive. Jian Nu San Chi will make another appearance tomorrow, please stay tuned, book friends!