Is the workmanship complicated?

Yunling didn't know what was complicated about this. It was just a very simple single dyeing process, not a tie-dye pattern, and there was no design. The process was the same as the jade-colored one from before.

I guess he saw her fondness for turmeric, so he thought of raising the price on the spur of the moment, hoping to squeeze an extra fifty coins out of her to make up for the business downturn.

When Yunling first heard that a piece of jade-colored silk cost 800 coins, she was unwilling to haggle because she thought that she would only buy it once and could buy it from Manager He next time, so she didn't care much about it.

But now this person is trying to extort fifty coins from her for no reason. It's like the abacus beads have hit her in the face. How can she let herself be slaughtered like a piece of meat on a chopping board?

"Oh, since it's nine hundred cash a bolt, I'll go check somewhere else. There are a lot of people at that cloth shop across the street, so the price must be reasonable. I'll go take a look. If it's the same price as the shopkeeper, I'll come back."

As Yunling spoke, she pulled her hand out of the cloth and walked towards the door.

The man panicked.

In the past, young women of Yunling's age were very easy to fool. As long as they were coaxed a few times, praised a few times, and were a little more enthusiastic, they would listen to her like lost little lambs and do whatever she said. Who would have thought that they would encounter such a tough nut to crack today?

Seeing Yunling walk out without looking back, she panicked and followed, calling out to her.

"Young lady, don't be in a hurry. I haven't opened for business today, so I'll give you a discount. This ginger-yellow one won't make a penny, so I'll sell it to you for 850 coins a bolt, which is 700 coins in total. I'll wrap it up for you right now."

Yunling stopped and turned around, but did not go inside.

"But this is the owner's price. Seven hundred cash is more than my budget. I'll look around some more. If other stores don't suit me, I'll come back and buy it."

No, no, no.

The shopkeeper rushed forward and grabbed Yunling, yelling as he dragged her into the shop.

"What do you mean 'my' or 'other'? This cotton fabric is the same no matter where you buy it. You might not even find someone as honest as me elsewhere. Tell me, what's your budget?"

"One string of cash, two hundred coins, two bolts of silk."

"Two hundred cash??? Are you planning to rob me with your mouth? You were saying it was okay for a bolt of emerald green cotton cloth to be eight hundred and fifty cash, but now you're asking for two hundred cash? Who would believe that?"

Yunling opened her eyes wide, her face full of innocence, and said:

"Isn't that right? My budget is two hundred cash a string. If I buy a bolt of your jade-green cotton cloth, I'll still have some left over."

These words left the shopkeeper speechless. It made sense, but the shopkeeper was very strict about the price. Two hundred cash was exactly the purchase price of two bolts of dyed cotton cloth. How could this be allowed? Wouldn't that mean she wouldn't even be able to eat?

However, if she only sells one horse to her, wouldn't she earn 250 coins?

So she's not at a loss either!

"Okay, then let's buy a jade-colored one. I'll wrap it up for you right away."

"OK."

Yunling took out some copper coins from her pocket, and a few banknotes and a rope that couldn't be held in one hand floated out unnoticed.

The shopkeeper's eyes widened in astonishment. So many copper coins! Even she, as a cloth shop owner, couldn't produce that many coins in a short time. This man must be a big customer! She'd better hold on tight to him.

"Young lady, why don't you just take that piece of ginger-yellow cotton cloth too? That way you won't have to walk around so much."

"I'm the kind of person who likes to wander around. It's not a bad thing to go and look at other shops. Anyway, I'm just a free person, so I'm not in a hurry."

Yunling wasn't in a hurry, but her employer was frantic. If she hadn't seen Yunling's coins, she would have remained calm as a rock. But fate had other plans, and now how could she possibly stay calm?

"Let's take them all. I won't make a single copper coin. I'll just offer 800 cash per bolt, 600 cash in total. How about that?"

Yunling pursed her lips and didn't say anything. She carefully put away the few banknotes and then rummaged through the few copper coins.

Hearing the conversation and seeing Yunling counting her coins, the shopkeepers from the neighboring shops greeted her one after another, urging her to come to their shops.

The landlord was even more anxious, fearing that Yunling would be persuaded to go, so he hurriedly said:

"Don't listen to their hype, my prices are the best."

"But I just heard that woman say that her shop only sells a bolt of cloth for seven hundred coins."

The landlord held Yunling tightly, fearing that she might be snatched away by the pack of fierce tigers and wild beasts if she wasn't careful.

"They say a man fights for a breath, and a Buddha fights for a stick of incense. You come here, and I'll give you a loss. Seven hundred and fifty coins a bolt, take two bolts, and it'll be one string of cash and five hundred coins in total. It's settled then."

Yunling nodded with a smile. Although the owner was being cunning and offering a less-than-ideal price, she was also a businesswoman and didn't want others to drive the price down to the bare minimum, leaving her with no way to make a living.

Furthermore, it is said that one should always leave room for maneuver, so that it is easier to meet again in the future. Everyone is doing business, and it is hard to say whether there will be any handover in the future. It is better to be lenient with her if possible, as it is better for her own sake.

"Alright, boss, you're so generous. Even if you don't want to make money, you still gave me a good price. I won't go anywhere else; I'll just buy two horses from you."

As Yunling spoke, she put the rest of the copper coins back into her pocket, leaving only two strings of cash. She broke off five hundred of them and handed the remaining one string and five hundred coins to the person in front of her.

The shop owner was naturally delighted. Not to mention that she had managed to get Yunling to place the order on her own, successfully stealing the spotlight from these alluring and cheap women.

Selling two horses would earn me three hundred coins, fifty more than before. And who knows, I might even turn Yunling into a loyal customer! Wouldn't that be great? Absolutely!

Unaware of the man's intentions, Yunling obtained the jade-colored and ginger-yellow cotton fabrics as she wished. She then went to the nearest teahouse to pack two roast chickens and three drunken geese, and bought two bottles of fruit wine before rushing home.

When they returned to the village, it was almost dusk. Zhang was tidying up the cotton that had just been soaked in herbal juice by the river when she saw Yunling returning in a carriage in the distance. Her lips curled up in a smile, but she quickly pulled them down and stubbornly put on a stern face.

Yunling waved her hand and called out to Zhang Shi, "Mother, Mother."

Zhang's expression didn't stay stern for long, but she wasn't willing to talk to her so easily, so she simply turned her back, pretending not to hear, and let Yunling continue calling.

Yunling immediately knew that Zhang was being difficult and throwing a tantrum, but she didn't mind. She simply held the reins beside Zhang and said with a smile:

"Mother, I just came from the city and brought back some good food. You won't have to cook later, so it will be easier for you."