Zhao Jiaqi was also at a loss for what to do about this matter. The best course of action now was to register her own brand and make it a nationally recognized one, so that when people thought about buying something, the first thing that came to mind would be whose brand was good and cheap!
However, this brought new problems!
Once they did this, there would be even more imitators, and not only that, prices would come down. What if there was a price war, and it ended up in a vicious cycle where no one made any money!
After thinking it over, this method still didn't seem appropriate!
After a long period of contemplation, Zhao Jiaqi decided that a price war was the most unwise move. The only way to attract and retain customers was to focus on quality!
"Imitators cannot be eradicated. If you want to do good business, one is quality, and the other is price. If you can achieve both, I know it might be difficult, but there are always more solutions than difficulties!"
"Secondly, we are mainly engaged in export business. I can assure you that it will not affect this lucrative export sector, allowing you to earn money with peace of mind. As for our domestic consumers, you cannot lower the existing quality. Even mosquito legs have some meat!"
Her words resonated with everyone. It was precisely because of the lucrative export trade that they didn't pay much attention to these matters. The key issue was that it was annoying, but it didn't have much impact on their sales otherwise!
Meng Yang was the first to express his stance: "Our Meng family is an old establishment. From beginning to end, we will always be honest and will never deceive customers. Your Highness can rest assured about this!"
"Yes, yes, yes. Our other two families are also old establishments. We have been in business for so many years, and we have built our businesses on integrity. As for those imitators, as long as they don't use our family name, they can do whatever they want. In the end, everyone relies on quality!"
Li Yi quickly chimed in. It wasn't possible that only their families were in business in the world, right? Anyone could do business, as long as they didn't use their banner to defraud people.
Zhao Jiaqi nodded: "It's good that everyone thinks this way. Although I can't help you in this regard, I will do my best to facilitate things in the trade city. When you do well, I do well, and we all do well. We will form a mutually beneficial situation, which is what we expect and collectively strive to achieve!"
Liu Runming continued with a smile: "Your Highness speaks the truth. We humble subjects will absolutely not lag behind Your Highness and His Majesty. We will ensure the quality of our own products!"
His speech represented the others.
Zhao Jiaqi didn't dwell on this topic and changed the subject: "Our inner city has many merchants from out of town. What do you think is still lacking in the inner city?"
Lacking?
The three men looked at each other for a while, and they all shook their heads. They didn't feel that anything was lacking in the inner city regarding this issue!
"Although there are many merchants from out of town in the inner city, the public order is still very good, and the nearby villagers have already achieved moderate prosperity, traveling by carriage everywhere. There is no need to change anything here. It's good as it is!"
Alright, the farmers here traveled by carriage, which was even more prosperous than imagined. The prosperity was not much different from the capital, the only difference was the court officials!
"It's been two or three years since I last saw you. Stay for a simple meal at noon today. After the Dragon Boat Festival, everyone should bring their wives, ladies, and young masters to the prince's mansion for a gathering. We can all have a lively time. Also, I will introduce my good brothers and my godfather to all of you. Knowing more people opens up more paths. Everyone is in business, and if there are good opportunities in the future, we can work together. Money is not a problem; the problem is the lack of business opportunities!"
Meng Yang nodded repeatedly as he listened to her words: "Yes, yes, yes. Your Highness is right. In this stable era, everyone is striving to move forward. Only then will life have hope. Compared to the past schemes and intrigues, life now is simply too comfortable!"
The four of them chatted for a while longer in the room. When it was time for a meal, Zhao Jiaqi invited them to stay for dinner. The feast was not a lavish banquet, but rather some traditional dishes.
However, even these dishes stunned the three of them.
In a pink and tender flower dish lay a bun, lying limply in the dish, different from ordinary buns.
Zhao Jiaqi introduced the dishes in front of them and said, "This is soup dumpling, a type of bun. This is a newly researched delicacy. You can try it and see how it tastes!"
They had eaten meat buns and vegetable buns, but they had never eaten so-called soup dumplings!
They dared not pick them up with chopsticks, for fear of breaking the bun. The bun seemed to be full of soup, and if they took a bite, wouldn't the soup flow into the small dish.
The three of them looked at Zhao Jiaqi. None of them dared to use their chopsticks, partly because she was the Empress, and partly because they didn't know how to eat them and feared losing face if they made a fool of themselves.
Zhao Jiaqi used a reed stalk to poke through the bun's skin, sucked up the soup, and then ate the bun. This was the first time they had seen such a way of eating.
They learned from her example. A mouthful of soup entered their mouths, filling them with fragrance, fresh and delicious. After finishing the entire bun, they finally put down their chopsticks!
"This is no ordinary bun, this is simply a king of buns, it's too delicious!"
Li Yi exclaimed while wiping his mouth!
Before the others could comment, Su Ya walked in with a tray and distributed the divided dishes to them. They looked down and thought the item resembled rice cakes, and also resembled zongzi, but if they were to distinguish carefully, it was neither.
They didn't need to imitate her with this delicacy anymore. They picked up their chopsticks, took a bite, and put it in their mouths. It was soft, glutinous, sweet, with the sweetness of candied dates, the fragrance of red beans, and the stickiness of glutinous rice.
Meng Yang thought that this delicacy was a combination of zongzi and rice cakes.
"This delicacy is called Zeng Gao. According to rural miscellaneous tales, it is a local specialty!"
After Zhao Jiaqi introduced it, everyone tasted it again. They had only taken two bites when another dish was brought up!
From afar, a scent of osmanthus wafted. Three small, snow-white pieces of pastry were placed in front of them, sprinkled with osmanthus!
"This is osmanthus wine glutinous rice cake!"
Following closely behind, several more pastries were served continuously, sweet and savory, crispy and crunchy, soft and hard, spicy and sour, but not bitter.
They tasted one or two bites of each item and were already full. One could imagine how many desserts were served!
Just as their mouths felt greasy, at the opportune moment, a refreshing drink was served to cleanse their palates: kumquat lemon tea, with a little honey added, tasted exceptionally good and had a lingering aftertaste!
They were all businessmen, and since Your Highness served these delicacies, there must have been a deeper meaning.
They moved from the dining hall to the front hall. As businessmen, they could understand the implications.
Li Yi spoke, saying, "Your Highness, these delicacies today are very delicious. Why don't we make them together? You can decide on the division!"