TRCT_27

Chapter 27: A Social Butterfly — Is She Looking Down on Running a Ready-Made Clothing Shop?

"Get out of here. I don't have a son as shameless as you," Ji Qingzhou said bluntly.

Luo Mingxuan had been scolded, yet he wasn't angry at all. Instead, he grinned cheekily and said: "How much have I missed over these years? Why didn't I get to know you sooner? To be honest, you shouldn't be staying here making clothes. A ready-made clothing shop is wasting your talent. You're suited to be enshrined in a temple. Even the goddess Nuwa couldn't match your skill with needlework..."

"If you still want anything good to come to me, you'd better shut your mouth right now. You dare say anything."

Luo Mingxuan only then realized he had spoken words that would harm his karmic merit. He quickly turned toward the heavens and buddhas, bowing frantically.

After bowing, he turned to face the mirror and began posing and preening, saying boastfully with high spirits: "Look at this majestic bearing, look at these star-like brows and sword-like eyes, my own father probably wouldn't recognize me. I'm not flattering you, Brother Qingzhou, but you really do know how to style someone. This leather jacket is so fashionable. If Brother Yuan were here, I'm afraid he'd be outmatched by me, wouldn't he?"

"There's still quite a gap," Ji Qingzhou threw cold water on him.

Luo Mingxuan's handsomeness required finding the right angles, coordinating clothes, and playing to strengths while hiding weaknesses to be brought out. It could never compare to Jie Yu'an's naturally cold and noble bearing that came with an innate sense of refinement.

This was a difference in natural endowment, decreed by heaven, beyond dispute.

"Alright, alright. Among Shanghai's men today, if we're talking looks, Brother Yuan ranks first, I rank second. Is that good enough?" Luo Mingxuan said, seemingly reluctant as he compromised.

The moment the words left his mouth, he caught sight of Ji Qingzhou's doubtful gaze and quickly changed his tune: "Ah, forget it, forget it. You rank second, I rank third. This person, this person... what's his name?"

Luo Mingxuan gestured with his chin toward Zhu Renqing.

"Zhu Renqing," Ji Qingzhou answered.

"Xiao Qing, he ranks fourth," Luo Mingxuan took it upon himself to conduct a beauty pageant, then happily turned back to the mirror and began striking poses to admire himself.

Zhu Renqing was concentrating on tidying up the scraps of cloth he had sewn incorrectly. Hearing Luo Mingxuan's words, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly, finding this man's behavior truly ostentatious.

However, when he turned his head to look, and directly witnessed Luo Mingxuan's transformation, he felt that the other's reaction seemed quite reasonable.

In Zhu Renqing's memory, his impression of this Young Master Luo was simply a black monkey dressed in colorful clothes, yet the person before him now was spirited and distinguished, bearing little resemblance to the monkey-man from just a few days ago.

The contrast between before and after was truly striking at a glance, even more exaggerated than his own previous self.

For a moment, a sense of crisis welled up in his heart.

He realized that the teacher indeed possessed a kind of magic that could transform people almost to the point of being reborn anew.

If any man with even a bit of foundation could be dressed up to look handsome and extraordinary, then wouldn't his trade as a model be something anyone could take up?

Just as Zhu Renqing was kindling a competitive spirit and worrying about his future prospects, Ji Qingzhou finished organizing his tools and returned the items to the barbershop next door.

Upon returning, he had just sat down and picked up needle and thread to continue working on the main label, when Luo Mingxuan crouched down and leaned toward his chair to ask: "Could you tell me the secrets behind this?"

He was quite satisfied with his transformed appearance, but he couldn't trouble Ji Qingzhou every day to do his hair and coordinate his clothes, so he might as well learn some techniques while he had the chance.

Thinking of this, Luo Mingxuan felt it a pity that Ji Qingzhou had ended up with the Jie family. His Brother Yuan was the one who needed transformation least of all.

Ji Qingzhou gave him a sidelong glance, and while deftly sewing the main label, said: "I mentioned it before, your foundation is actually quite decent. Your biggest shortcoming in terms of physique is narrow shoulders, and you're tall with a lean build. Wearing those long robes with good drape just makes you look like a bamboo pole.

"So I recommend you wear Western suits, especially those men's jackets with thick padded shoulders. They can help you conceal that flaw and fill out your upper body's presence. For example, the leather jacket you're wearing now. As for the hairstyle..."

He pointed out Luo Mingxuan's strengths and weaknesses one by one, telling him how to play to his strengths and hide his weaknesses.

Luo Mingxuan listened and nodded repeatedly. Later, when there was too much content to remember, he even tore a page from Ji Qingzhou's draft notebook, held a pen in his teeth, and wrote down the key points line by line on the paper.

He swore he had never been this serious when he was at school.

After finishing his notes, Luo Mingxuan folded the paper neatly and stuffed it into his trouser pocket, then said: "I want this jacket. How much?"

Ji Qingzhou raised his eyebrow imperceptibly. He was still thinking about how to pitch it when the other person spoke up first.

He stood up with a composed expression, placed the qipao with the completed main label on the pressing table, and replied straightforwardly: "The price isn't very expensive, but it can't be sold yet."

"Why not?"

"Haven't you noticed it's still a half-finished product? It doesn't even have buttons."

Luo Mingxuan lowered his head to look and only then discovered the leather jacket didn't have a single button. He then said: "Then can I place a pre-order?"

His tone carried a note of urgency, afraid that Ji Qingzhou wouldn't be willing to sell it to him. After this, he wouldn't know where else to find an outer jacket so suited to him.

"I need to go back on the fifth to attend a wedding banquet. Can you finish it and sell it to me before then?"

Ji Qingzhou met his eager gaze and thought to himself that today was already the second, so the timeline was a bit tight. However, this leather jacket was only a few steps away from completion. At worst, he could just work late that evening. He nodded and said: "I can do it."

"That's wonderful! You name your price, and I'll pay you now."

After all, he was Jie Yu'an's friend and one of the young masters of Taiming Xiang. There would likely be frequent business dealings in the future. Ji Qingzhou gave him a friendly price: "Forty-five yuan."

He had originally planned to sell this jacket for at least fifty yuan, after all it was a rare and uncommon item in this era—a luxury good.

"Done!" Luo Mingxuan agreed with barely any deliberation. He was clearly someone who didn't lack money.

One jacket for forty-five yuan, and the Sulu that Ji Qingzhou had ordered cost twenty yuan. With this exchange, he actually made twenty-five more taels from Luo Mingxuan.

This meant that after the leather jacket paid for itself, he made an additional five yuan in manufacturing fees, and got a bolt of Sulu for free.

Overall, he had earned quite a bit.

Luo Mingxuan went back to his car, retrieved silver dollars, and paid readily. He then took off the leather jacket and left it at the shop, agreeing to pick it up in two days. After that, he took his long robe, didn't even change clothes, and left after a quick goodbye.

From his manner, he was eager to show his new look to friends and family right away.

After another several tens of minutes, Ji Qingzhou finished pressing the pale yellow qipao, wrapped it carefully in bamboo paper, tied it with silk ribbon, and prepared to bring the clothes to Fang Birong's home after dinner to have Miss Fang try it on.

Since he had already tried it on once at the Fang residence using the muslin mockup after test-sewing, and had adjusted the pattern, Ji Qingzhou was very confident about this fitting.

Even if there were minor issues, at this stage, there was basically no need to remake the pattern from scratch. Making some adjustments to the finished garment would be sufficient.

After buying lunch for Zhu Renqing, Ji Qingzhou left him to mind the shop, while he himself took the electric tram back to the Jie residence to eat. 

The Fang residence was not far from the intersection of Aiwen Yi Road and Park Road. Since he had to go there anyway, he might as well eat lunch at the Jie mansion. It would also save him the cost of one meal.

When Fang Birong had left her address before, she had specifically mentioned that she was generally at home after four in the afternoon and on weekends.

And today it happened to work out perfectly, it was the weekend.

From some information Ji Qingzhou had gathered through back channels, Fang Birong's father seemed to be the owner of some major restaurant and was considered a somewhat well-known merchant of means in Shanghai.

And judging from the meticulously maintained garden at her residence and the red brick foreign-style building, her family's income was indeed considerable.

In the afternoon, when Ji Qingzhou arrived at the Fang residence, Fang Birong was gathered in the parlor with two of her friends, drinking tea and chatting.

One of the friends, Ji Qingzhou recognized—she was the customer Shi Xuanman who had posed him quite a difficult challenge.

The other young lady had a delicate figure and lively eyes. She had a plump, fair complexion, wore a light blue fitted dress with a wood-ear ruffle and small round collar, white mid-calf silk stockings and beige high-heeled leather shoes on her ankles. She was altogether dressed in a thoroughly modern and chic manner.

He had not seen this person before.

"Mr. Ji, let me introduce you. This is Miss Lu Xueying. She is my friend."

Fang Birong was usually quiet and reserved in temperament, not good at communicating with others. However, now that she was in her own home surrounded by familiar people, she took the initiative to assume the role of introducing them.

When Ji Qingzhou heard the name Lu Xueying, he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows slightly.

Well then, just as expected—birds of a feather flock together, and like seeks like. A famous person's friend was still a famous person.

This Miss Lu, if it wasn't just a case of the same name and surname, then she must be that well-known social butterfly from the Republican era, wasn't she?

At this time, debutantes or social butterflies were by no means derogatory terms. In the Republic, to become a social butterfly in the upper circles, beautiful appearance and fashionable dress were the most basic entry requirements.

And to become one of the finest among them, one had to be skilled in all eighteen martial arts, so to speak.

One needed to have knowledge, be proficient in foreign languages, music, dancing, opera and the like. In sports, one also had to master several pursuits such as golf, tennis and so on. It would be no exaggeration to say they needed to be accomplished in ten different fields.

This Miss Lu appeared quite young at present, looking as though she hadn't yet come of age, yet she had already blossomed into a graceful young lady.

"Xueying, this is Mr. Ji from Shiji Clothing Shop. He is Madam Jie's cousin's son," Fang Birong then introduced Ji Qingzhou's identity to the young lady.

Lu Xueying had initially heard the servant announce that some tailor from a ready-made clothing shop had arrived and wasn't particularly interested. Only when she heard the second half of what was said did she lift her eyes, and with only modest interest, glanced at him once, saying: "So you're Madam Jie's grandnephew. How is it you've gone to open a ready-made clothing shop?"

The way she said it made tailoring sound like such a lowly profession, one that only people without power or background would take up.

Whether Lu Xueying meant it sincerely or carelessly, since Ji Qingzhou had sensed malice in her words, he didn't indulge her at all and asked directly: "Miss Lu, what do you mean by that? Are you looking down on running a ready-made clothing shop?"

Although Lu Xueying did indeed have that intention, she hadn't expected him to ask so bluntly. By her thinking, they ought to be standing on the same level.

"I was merely surprised, that's all. You're already a relation of the Jie family, why bother opening a ready-made clothing shop? You could simply have Uncle Jie arrange some position for you."

"Ah," Ji Qingzhou said slowly, nodding with meaningful implication: "I thought that making a living by one's skill in Shanghai was something worthy of respect. It seems you don't see it that way."

Lu Xueying frowned, displeased: "You know full well that's not what I meant. Why deliberately misinterpret me?"

Ji Qingzhou feigned confusion: "I'm merely a humble little tailor. How would I dare misinterpret Miss Lu's meaning? Don't blame me unjustly."

Fang Birong, seeing that the two of them had stirred up a conflict in just a few exchanges, couldn't help but grow anxious. She wanted to mediate but didn't know how to interject.

Shi Xuanman suddenly let out a laugh and smoothed things over: "Well now, Mr. Ji, Xueying didn't mean to belittle your profession. I think it's simply because you really don't look like a tailor, so she was curious and asked a few more questions."

Lu Xueying opened her mouth, wanting to retort.

But she immediately met Ji Qingzhou's eyes, which held not the slightest trace of a smile. Considering that he was after all Shen Nanqi's nephew, she closed her mouth.

Since the old customer had already smoothed things over, Ji Qingzhou knew when to quit while ahead. He handed the qipao to Fang Birong and had her go try it on. He himself, with the maid's assistance, settled into a single armchair upholstered in velvet, holding his teacup.

"I wish I had known you were here earlier. I would have brought your blouse-and-skirt set along as well," Ji Qingzhou said after taking a sip of tea to moisten his throat, addressing Shi Xuanman.

"There's no rush for me to wear it anyway. You can bring it together with my qipao next time," Shi Xuanman said with a smile, then asked: "By the way, have you found a fabric for my qipao yet?"

Ji Qingzhou nodded and said: "I just received the shipment this morning. It's five jiao per chi. This is my cost price for acquiring it, I haven't added a single fen on top for you."

Five jiao per chi was the highest price Shi Xuanman could accept.

She let out a slight breath of relief: "That's good then. I was worried that you hadn't given me word because you couldn't source the fabric. I was thinking of stopping by your shop in a couple of days to ask about it. If it really wasn't available, I'd have no choice but to order a different style.

"Fortunately I chose to have it made at your place. Birong received her qipao in just one week. If I'd gone to Yuxiang instead, who knows how long I'd have had to wait."

Ji Qingzhou had just opened his mouth to murmur something in agreement when Lu Xueying, sitting on the sofa across from them, couldn't help but interject: "It's just a qipao. You can have it made anywhere. Is there really any need to go to such lengths?"

The smile in Shi Xuanman's eyes instantly dimmed somewhat.

As for Lu Xueying, she had never much liked this person's direct manner. If not for the fact that Birong and she were childhood friends, and her own brother worked under Lu Xueying's father, she would have been too lazy to maintain even a facade of civility with her.

"You didn't attend Old Master Bao's birthday banquet last time, so you're not aware," she explained to Lu Xueying without showing her feelings: "A new style of qipao has recently begun to appear in Shanghai. It was originally an idea Mr. Ji came up with for Madam Jie. Madam Jie wore it once at Old Master Bao's birthday banquet, and it truly captivated all of us."

"No matter how modern, it's still just a robe. How much better can it really look?" Lu Xueying replied without a moment's thought.

"If you ask me, those outdated jackets and robes are nothing but backward and pointless. All those decorative borders and patterns—they're laborious to maintain, inconvenient for movement and work, and utterly cumbersome even as mere decoration. Rather than spending so much money on qipaos, you'd be better off going to the department stores more often. Aren't the Western dresses there lighter, more convenient, and more beautiful than these old robes?"

She had barely finished rattling off her opinions when, before Ji Qingzhou and Shi Xuanman could think of a rebuttal, they heard the tap-tap-tap sound of leather shoes striking the wooden floor coming from the corridor on the right.

Immediately after, accompanied by a bashful female voice, Fang Birong emerged from the corridor entrance, dressed in a pale yellow fully open-front qipao.

"I'm sorry for keeping you waiting so long."

Lu Xueying's single armchair happened to face directly toward the corridor entrance. Hearing the footsteps approach, she lifted her eyes and caught sight of her friend's body adorned in a qipao that was entirely beyond her expectations—light, elegant, and charming.

For a moment, she stared with eyes wide in surprise, her lips parted, unable to speak.

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