Chapter Sixteen: The Choice is Yours (Seeking Bookmarks)

  The next thing to do is the product. Now, nothing has been done yet. Even if someone wants to buy it, there's nothing to sell. After returning home, Zhang Lei quickly called Zhang Chen over.

  "Come on, help me roll cigarettes. I'll teach you how to do it." Zhang Lei took out the paper and cotton he had bought and said eagerly to Zhang Chen.

  Zhang Chen didn't say much, and readily agreed. He was a clever person with skilled hands, and in just half an hour, the cigarettes he rolled looked even better than Zhang Lei's, which made Zhang Lei feel very ashamed.

  "Alright, that's it. I'll also leave the cutting of tobacco to you, and I'll take care of the blending." Zhang Lei said. The secret to cigarettes lies in the blending of flavors, which he had completed through a long period of exploration combined with his own memories of the taste of tobacco from his past life. This was an ultimate secret that absolutely could not be known by a second person in the Ming dynasty where there were no patents.

  Zhang Lei locked himself in the house again, on the desk there were various spices he had bought specially, some of which were very irritating and fragrant, burning them made the whole room full of fragrance, this was a special blend of spices he had imitated from his previous life's cigar smoke.

  There is also a type of smoke with a faint fragrance and mint flavor, the scent is relatively light and lasting, it smells very comfortable, this is a less stimulating women's cigarette.

  After making many spices, Zhang Lei put the two spices in two ceramic jars and took them out. He put Zhang Chen's cut tobacco into it, mixed the tobacco and spices thoroughly like pickling vegetables, and then reserved for three days under sealed conditions to fully blend the fragrance and tobacco.

  On the fourth day, Zhang Lei put the already very fine tobacco shreds on the chopping board again. This time, he wanted to chop the already very fine tobacco shreds into even finer fragments, like dust, and then mix this tobacco with spices again and seal it for three days.

  During this time, Zhang Lei went to town once and handed over the deed tax with the boss of Fangyuan Tea House, and also registered at the pawnshop, completing all the formalities.

  The fully mixed tobacco was handed over to Zhang Chen, who rolled it into large cigarettes the size of a thumb using palm-sized paper. A small amount of cotton was stuffed into one end and perfume was used as an adhesive to seal the cigarette. The resulting cigarettes were twice as big as the samples Zhang Lei had made in the previous few days. According to Zhang Lei, this was done to make the cigarettes burn longer.

  The cigarettes made, whether in shape or color or the fragrance emitted, Zhang Lei imitated cigars as much as possible. At the connection between the filter mouth and tobacco of each cigarette, he also wrote a few tiny characters with the most eye-catching crimson paint, which was the serial number of each cigarette. According to Zhang Lei's words, every cigarette smoked by customers would be unique.

  Twelve cigarettes were carefully crafted and neatly arranged in two rows of six each inside the exquisite cigarette case. To prevent compression, he specially added shock-absorbing cotton balls to fill the gaps between the cigarettes.

  Holding the cigarettes that had taken him nearly half a month to make, Zhang Lei finally smiled in satisfaction. For the next few days, he and his family of three worked day and night at home, producing twenty-four boxes of cigarettes. Zhang Chen carried one large box, and together with Zhang Lei, they hired a horse-drawn carriage to transport it to Fan Xiang Tea House.

  At this time, the Fangyuan Tea House was already very different from what it had been in recent days. Under Zhang Lei's financial offensive, a powerful woodworking contractor took over the renovation of the entire house.

  The fake tea house in front of Zhang Lei can be said to have completely changed its appearance from a month ago. Except for the entrance, which has not changed much, all other areas have been divided into small private rooms of about one square meter. Inside, there is only a comfortable large bed and a delicate small table on the bed to place some items. This is the smoking room that Zhang Lei needs to provide for his guests.

  Zhang Lei and Zhang Chen had just finished arranging things when Zhang Baosheng appeared at the Fangyuan Tea House with that huge plaque.

  Their behavior on this bustling street was naturally not to be hidden from others. Some regular customers of Fangyuan Tea House were already very surprised that Fangyuan Tea House had suddenly closed for a month, and now they saw two young people suddenly arrive, bringing such a large plaque, their curiosity grew even more, and they couldn't help but stop and watch without thinking about the things they needed to do when they went out.

  Zhang Lei was not surprised at all by this scene, and he was even delighted to see it. The more people gathered to watch the commotion, the more potential customers there would be in the beginning, which meant less effort would be needed for publicity.

  They watched as the sign of Fang Yin Tea House was taken down, and some old men felt a bit uncomfortable. Finally, an elderly man with white hair couldn't help but ask out of curiosity: "What are you doing? Where is Old Hu of Fang Yin Tea House?"

  "Ha! You're talking about Old Hu? He's gone out to do some big business, and this storefront was just sitting idle, so he transferred it to me to do some small business."

  "You? You're still under twenty, what kind of business can you do?" The old man's tone was full of disdain and disbelief, and he hummed twice to show his stance.

  Zhang Lei still smiled and said, "The ancients said that having ambition is not limited by age. What's wrong with me doing business? As long as someone pays the bill, anyone can be successful in business."

  While talking, Zhang Chen has already taken down all the signboards of the former Fangyuan Tea House and hung up the signboard of Zhangshi Technology with Zhang Baosheng.

  The old man looked up and saw the words on the lintel, saying: "Zhangshi Technology? What is this thing? Why take such a strange name?"

  Zhang Lei said: "I'll explain this later, if you're interested, you can go in and take a seat. I believe that the things I'm going to sell later will definitely interest you."

  Zhang Chen brewed a pot of strong-smelling Pu'er tea, and as he poured it, the entire shop could smell its rich aroma. A connoisseur old man nodded in amazement, saying: "The fragrance is like that of aged Chen Nian Xiang Lan, judging from its scent and color, this should be a twenty-year-old raw tea."

  "The old man has a good eye for things, and he's absolutely right." Zhang Lei chimed in with a few words amidst his busyness.

  The old man was delighted and gently stroked his white beard with his right hand, saying: "I didn't expect this fake tea house to change its signboard, change its owner, and still sell the same old things."

  Xuān guà hǎo zhāo pái de Zhāng Léi yī xià zi cóng tī zǐ shàng zhí jiē tiào xià lái, shuō dào: "Lǎo xiān sheng bú yào wù huì le, wǒ zhè chá kě bú shì yòng lái mài de, zhǐ shì jīn tiān zhū wèi jìn le běn diàn, yòu méi yǒu shén me huò wù kě yǐ gòu mǎi, yú shì qī shàng yī hú hǎo chá lái zhāo dài gè wèi."

  "What's wrong with drinking it?" Zhang Lei's words surprised everyone. After the old man's introduction earlier, this Pu'er tea gets better with age and has been treasured for twenty years. Each cake of tea leaves is very valuable, and brewing so many pots uses a considerable amount.

  No one does business at a loss, this is common knowledge. Zhang Lei actually brought out such precious good tea to entertain the passing travelers, it's not like something a businessman should do.

  After fully arousing everyone's curiosity, Zhang Lei felt that the time was almost up, so he took out a large red paper and posted it on the door. The paper was filled with dense and tiny characters, as well as several paintings that no one had ever seen before.

  "What does this notice say?" In this remote place, there were not many people who could read. Everyone stumbled and bumped into each other, and they could still read a few sentences, but it was difficult to connect them together. The heavy responsibility of explaining the notice to everyone naturally fell on Zhang Chen's shoulders.

  It wasn't until after the whole thing was over that everyone finally understood what Zhang Lei's Zhangshi Technology actually did.

  "Is there really such a wonderful thing in the world? When you inhale, it's like swallowing clouds and spitting out mist, when you smell it, it's refreshing to your heart and spleen, after inhaling, your energy is boundless, and the aftertaste is endless. This sounds like an elixir of life." Someone asked in doubt.

  "Look at this sentence, 'Discover the true magic of tobacco, fully exploit the full value of tobacco, take a puff, cure all diseases' sounds so divine. I think, however, that these are just three swindlers. Don't look anymore, let's go... Hey, this cup of tea is mine, little brother, get another one..."

  ……

  Just as people outside were skeptical of what Zhang Lei was promoting, a strong fragrance wafted through the crowd. The scent had a familiar tobacco flavor from pharmacies, mixed with a hint of sandalwood's pungent aroma. Taking a sniff, it refreshed and invigorated the mind.

  Everyone followed the source of the fragrance and finally saw a strange object emitting green smoke in Zhang Lei's hand. The young man put it to his mouth, took a deep breath, and looked intoxicated. Then, he puffed out a puff of smoke from his mouth, and the fragrance in the room became even more intense.

  "This is the product I've been working on, I wonder if any of you are interested?" Zhang Lei took out a box of cigarettes while everyone's attention was focused on him.

  "I wonder how much this treasure costs?" A short and stout man took a deep breath, his face showing an intoxicated expression, then said: "Indeed, it smells refreshing."

  Zhang Lei saw that someone asked for the price so quickly, and the large piece of recommendation he had prepared earlier was swallowed back into his stomach. He said: "This box of cigarettes, whether it's the selection of tobacco leaves or even the production of this box outside, is all made by hand by my father and son. The selling price is twelve taels of white silver. Each box, each cigarette has a unique number. What you enjoy will be a one-of-a-kind service."

  "Twelve taels of silver?" As soon as this price was quoted, everyone was shocked.

  That fat man shook his head in disappointment, preparing to leave. Zhang Lei immediately said: "Of course, apart from this, we also have special cigarettes prepared for everyone. This kind of cigarette is smaller in size and more convenient to carry. When going out, it can be put in the pocket or held in the hand, very convenient. Moreover, it only costs one cent to buy, and has the effect of refreshing the mind and replenishing energy. Compared with the high-end cigarettes I showed you earlier, they are more affordable. There are many specifications, choose as you like."