Chapter 54: Hunger Marketing! This Little Chubby Is Absolutely No Good!

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At dawn’s first light, the capital city slowly awakened in tranquil silence.

As this meticulously crafted and nearly perfect advertisement quietly spread, it was as if a stone had been thrown into a lake, sending ripples across the entire city overnight.

The high-ranking officials and nobles who lived in comfort and prominence throughout the capital all heard the rumors about this miraculous glass mirror. Suddenly, from street corners to noble estates and gardens, everyone was talking about this novel item.

The legend said the glass mirror stood as tall as a person, its surface smooth as ice, flawlessly pure, and incredibly clear. When sunlight struck the mirror, it refracted a spectrum of colors, as if it could reveal every minute detail of the world without concealment—even the faint trail left by an ant crawling in a corner could be seen distinctly in the mirror.

After morning court sessions, the civil and military officials returned home, and the moment they stepped through their doors, they eagerly recounted to their wives and concubines the wonders of this full-length mirror.

While the men spoke with relatively composed expressions, their eyes betrayed their fascination and excitement as they gestured to convey the mirror’s size and described the sharp reflections it produced.

If the men’s reactions were fairly rational, the women’s were quite the opposite. Upon hearing of such a mirror that could reveal a person’s every detail and that was tall enough to show one’s full figure, their eyes lit up instantly with longing.

Almost without exception, these noble ladies immediately ordered their servants to find out where the mirror could be purchased, eager to bring it home at once to stand before it and admire themselves.

Meanwhile, the wives of the powerful elites in the capital had recently been summoned to meet the Empress. Upon entering the palace, their eyes were drawn to the full-length mirror, filled with awe and envy.

Empress Ma, who doted on the two young princes Zhu Xiongying and Zhu Gaochi, smiled and openly revealed that the mirror was a gift from the Crown Prince Zhu Xiongying and the eldest son of the Prince of Yan, Zhu Gaochi.

In this vast capital, especially within Emperor Hongzhi’s palace, no secret could be kept for long. News spread like wildfire, and soon everyone knew that the mirror belonged to the two princes and that it had been placed in front of the Fengtian Hall’s gate.

This discovery gave everyone a source for inquiries, and soon Zhu Xiongying’s entourage was inundated with bribes, while the palace eunuchs serving the Eastern Palace all benefited to varying degrees, their faces beaming with pride.

Zhu Gaochi, observing the lively scene, couldn’t help but laugh, his eyes narrowing into slits—he had never expected such an unexpected delight.

Seizing the moment, he took Zhu Xiongying aside and personally selected some honest palace maids and eunuchs to attend to their daily needs.

At the same time, the two young princes actively expanded their networks within the Eastern Palace, no longer confined as before by Lady Lü’s covert imprisonment, like helpless captives in a blind man’s cage.

Now, the Crown Prince was gradually establishing his own influence within the Eastern Palace, speaking with greater confidence.

Moreover, Zhu Gaochi used these palace maids and eunuchs to spread false information.

Each maid and eunuch, while pocketing bribes, faithfully relayed Zhu Gaochi’s words.

Soon the entire capital knew that these full-length mirrors were scarce—there were only nine in the entire realm.

Zhu Xiongying was puzzled by this and furrowed his brow, looking at Zhu Gaochi with confusion, yet trusting his brother implicitly, he refrained from questioning further.

However, Xu Zengshou and Li Jinglong grew restless. The two hurriedly came to the Eastern Palace to meet Zhu Xiongying and Zhu Gaochi.

“Gaochi, what on earth are you thinking?” Li Jinglong blurted out, his face flushed with urgency. “Didn’t we have an unlimited supply of these glass mirrors? Why only nine?”

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Xu Zengshou nodded in agreement, his expression full of disbelief, adding, “Yes, Gaochi, aren’t you just cutting off your own business? If there are only nine mirrors, then we can only sell nine!”

Hearing this, Zhu Gaochi stared at them as though they were fools, his mouth twitching slightly before he sighed helplessly.

“Listen, you two fools, can you use your brains once in a while? If you can’t, maybe you should just give up!”

The two men wilted as though frostbitten, lowering their heads without daring to utter a word.

“This is a marketing strategy to maximize profits as much as possible!”

“You know we have mastered the production process; we can make as many glass mirrors as we want.”

“But have you considered the consequences if we flood the market without restraint?”

Upon hearing this, Li Jinglong and Xu Zengshou’s faces changed drastically, as if doused with cold water, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Why is glass so valuable? Because it’s rare and precious.

If it were mass-produced and dumped onto the market, its value would plummet, and their grand profit scheme would be ruined.

Watching their reactions, Zhu Gaochi sneered, “Have you figured it out? Still want to argue?”

“If we want to make money from this, we must adopt a proper sales strategy. Whether ordinary folks use these mirrors or not is irrelevant. The key is to find a way to make the wealthy officials and merchants in the Ming Empire willingly part with their money.”

“To make them crave it and go crazy over it—that’s success, and it benefits the long-term development of the glass industry.”

Listening to this, Xu Zengshou and Li Jinglong were stunned, their jaws nearly dropping. They found themselves face-to-face with a completely unfamiliar Zhu Gaochi.

They never imagined that this half-grown child possessed such business acumen!

If this isn’t a prodigy, then what is?

Zhu Xiongying looked at Zhu Gaochi with deep admiration, his eyes wide and sparkling with awe and faith.

“So, what’s our next step?”

Zhu Gaochi chuckled softly. “The rumor is out—there are only nine full-length mirrors. One is with the Empress Dowager, leaving eight.”

“We’ll use these eight mirrors to turn them into coveted treasures among the nobles. In fact, this craze has already begun; the elite know the Empress adores this treasure and that it’s rare, so they’re naturally competing to acquire it.”

“When the frenzy reaches its peak, we’ll hold an auction to sell these eight mirrors, earning the highest profits and raising the glass mirror’s reputation.”

“What comes after that?” Xu Zengshou asked anxiously.

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Zhu Gaochi looked at him with exasperation and scolded, “Xu, why did I ever choose you as a business partner, you fool?”

“When the full-length mirrors are gone, don’t you know how to produce half-length mirrors? When those sell out, ordinary-sized glass mirrors can be made.”

“As long as the glass mirrors become popular, they will become indispensable to officials and nobles. What’s there to worry about sales?”

Hearing this, Xu Zengshou and Li Jinglong were dumbfounded, disbelief written all over their faces.

Is business really done this way?

This is downright... crafty!

After a pause, Zhu Gaochi added, “Besides, the full-length mirrors can be sold again in three to five years, just claim they’ve come from overseas—who would bother to check the source?”

“Doing business with you guys is truly my worst misfortune in eight lifetimes!”

Everyone: “???”

What the hell?

This is utterly shameless!

Zhu Gaochi continued enthusiastically, outlining his strategy of scarcity marketing.

Unbeknownst to him, not far off, three figures watched him intently—none other than Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty, the recently returned War God Xu Tiande, and the scholarly general Li Wenzhong.

Xu Da, Li Wenzhong, and the old emperor had arrived earlier and listened carefully.

Exchanging glances, their expressions a mix of amusement and exasperation, they simultaneously cursed aloud:

“That chubby brat is utterly despicable!”