Chapter 37
Chapter 37
On the east street of the city, there were several medicine shops, and among them was Young Master Ximen’s shop. The plaque above the door read “Xuanhu Medicine Shop,” and it looked quite conventional.
“This is the eldest daughter of the Prime Minister’s Mansion, Miss Ye Piaoling. I have gifted the entire shop to her. From now on, she is the owner, and you are all to follow her arrangements.”
Upon hearing this, the manager quickly called everyone out to meet their new boss.
Aside from three assistants, Xuanhu Medicine Shop also had an old physician in residence.
The old physician had white hair and a weathered face, yet he looked vigorous and healthy, possessing the air of a transcendent master from beyond the mundane world.
Pointing to the old physician, the manager introduced him: “This is our shop’s resident divine physician. His medical skills are exquisite, and he is deeply well-versed in the way of health preservation! Just look at him-he’s only twenty-eight this year, and look how sturdy his constitution is!”
“…”
Ye Piaoling felt a bit uncertain and couldn’t help but ask again: “This old grandfather… he’s twenty-eight this year, is he?”
He looked about eighty-two.
The manager replied, “Yes, twenty-eight.”
Ye Piaoling couldn’t help but show a look of admiration.
She had never seen a doctor of Chinese medicine who looked like he was in such a hurry to age; it was practically a medical miracle.
She immediately cupped her hands toward the old physician. “May I ask the divine physician’s honorable name?”
The old physician sat with his head held high, looking proud as he announced his name in a clear voice.
“I am Ximen Wuming.”
After hearing this, Ye Piaoling’s admiration instantly deepened.
“Wuming?”
Ye Piaoling gave him a thumb’s up and said with utter devotion, “Old grandfather, based on that name alone, I feel you are exceptionally suited for curing the sick and saving the dying!”
Ximen Wuming nodded proudly. “That is natural.”
Ximen Chunqiu, standing to the side, looked a bit embarrassed and quickly explained: “This is my young uncle. He has been obsessed with medicine and alchemy since he was a child. He even personally tasted a hundred herbs-he’d taste any herb he found.”
Ye Piaoling asked, “And then?”
Ximen Chunqiu said, “And then he got poisoned and ended up looking like this. But in terms of medical skill, he truly has the touch of a miracle worker!”
Ye Piaoling nodded, believing him.
Given this resident physician’s appearance and his name… the fact that Xuanhu Medicine Shop hadn’t gone bankrupt yet was proof enough that Ximen Wuming’s medical skills were actually quite good.
Ye Piaoling took a walk around the shop. Just as Ximen Chunqiu had said, the medicinal ingredients were all top-grade, with good color and a rich fragrance.
“It’s a pity that despite having a great physician and quality ingredients, business isn’t exactly booming,” Ye Piaoling sighed.
The manager quickly explained, “Miss Ye, the only thing to blame is that there are too many medicine shops on this street-over a dozen of them, large and small. The competition is just too fierce. Our ingredients have high costs, so we can’t sell them at low prices. We don’t have an advantage, so only old customers come.”
“I see…” Ye Piaoling thought for a moment and said, “No matter, I’ll find a way!”
“Miss Ye has a way?” The manager was surprised.
He had been a manager for many years and hadn’t found a good solution to this situation.
Even Young Master Ximen hadn’t thought of a way to make Xuanhu Medicine Shop’s business flourish.
Ye Piaoling walked to the entrance of the shop and pointed at the plaque. “Let’s start by changing the shop’s name! Look, right now it’s called Xuanhu Medicine Shop, the one next door is Jishi Medicine Shop, and the one diagonally opposite is Xuanji Medicine Shop… The names are so similar that there’s no brand recognition. Customers buying medicine will inevitably compare prices across the three shops and choose the cheapest one.”
Ximen Chunqiu frowned. “You mean, change the name?”
“Exactly!” Ye Piaoling said. “This whole street is full of medicine shops. To stand out, the name must have personality. It needs to be concise, easy to remember, and it must strike the soul-meeting the customer’s needs with pinpoint accuracy!”
“That… while that’s true, can there really be such a perfect name?”
The manager looked troubled and asked, “Then in Miss Ye’s opinion, what should it be called?”
Ye Piaoling held up three fingers and said, “Three words: Bing-le-me.”
The manager repeated, “…Bing-le-me??”
Hua Wuhuang couldn’t help but burst out laughing upon hearing this.
Ximen Chunqiu knit his brows. “You’re saying we should change the name of Xuanhu Medicine Shop to ‘Bing-le-me’?”
Ye Piaoling replied, “Exactly!”
The manager thought for a moment, then suddenly realized. “Brilliant! The three words ‘Bing-le-me’ seem simple, but they hit the nail on the head! Anyone coming to this street to buy medicine is sick. The moment they see our plaque, they’ll feel an instant resonance and think this is exactly where they need to be!”
After hearing this, Ximen Chunqiu murmured, “That makes sense… Bing-le-me? If you’re sick, come to us for treatment, and the medicine will cure the ailment! It truly is marvelous!”
He couldn’t help but laugh, looking at Ye Piaoling with admiration. “Miss Ye truly has a whimsical mind and extraordinary intelligence!”
No one else would have come up with such an idea!
Ye Piaoling smiled. “Let’s change the plaque first and see how it goes.”
The manager said excitedly, “Alright! I’ll have someone make the new plaque right away!”
Leaving the medicine shop, the three of them headed toward the Weapon Pavilion in the east.
On the way, Young Master Ximen said thoughtfully, “Why don’t we change the name of the Weapon Pavilion as well? How about… Duo-le-me?”
Ye Piaoling laughed loudly. “Duo-le-me? ‘Are you hacking?’ Does your Weapon Pavilion only sell kitchen cleavers?”
Ximen Chunqiu pondered. “Hmm, that indeed isn’t quite appropriate…”
The Weapon Pavilion was named Divine Weapon Pavilion. Compared to the medicine shop, business was even more desolate, with only one manager and one assistant.
Ximen Chunqiu said, “We are currently in an era of peace and prosperity, so weapons aren’t in high demand. There are only two types of people who buy weapons: people from the martial world, and wealthy young masters who buy them to wear for show. But sabers and swords aren’t easily consumed; one can last a long time. That’s why there are only a few weapon shops in the entire Imperial City.”
Ye Piaoling flipped through the account books and couldn’t help but frown. “Only two swords were sold yesterday and the day before, and nothing has been sold today… This sales volume is indeed dismal.”
The manager sighed and shook his head. “This is just the market state; it’s the same for the other weapon shops.”
Hua Wuhuang crossed her arms. “This isn’t something that can be solved just by changing the shop’s name.”
“Exactly, we must increase the sales volume!”
Ye Piaoling’s lips curled into a gradually wicked smile.
“Since the customer base is limited, we’ll just have to shear the sheep vigorously. If someone comes to buy one sword, we’ll sell them two, or even three!”
The manager gave a bitter smile. “Miss Ye makes it sound easy. If someone only needs one sword, how can we convince them to buy more?”
Ye Piaoling said, “Simple. When the next customer comes, I’ll give you a demonstration.”