Gu Nanjiao was also very happy. This time, the pig offal cost nothing. After deducting the artificial seasoning, she made a net profit of one or two taels of silver, which was no different from a pie falling from the sky.

"When we leave, we'll buy more pig offal to cook at home." Lu's mother is now full of energy.

"Jiaojiao, here's the money, take it!" Mother Lu handed the money she earned from selling pig offal to Gu Nanjiao. Although she liked money, she knew that her daughter-in-law had made the pig offal and come up with the idea, so the money should go to her.

"Mom, take this first. Later, you can look around for New Year's goods nearby and make some purchases." Gu Nanjiao refused the money that Lu's mother offered.

She still needs to visit Lü Siniang later, so she'll leave the New Year's shopping to Lu's mother.

...

Lu Siniang was very busy today. There were several customers in the shop, and Lu Siniang greeted them with a big smile, enthusiastically introducing the products in the shop.

When Gu Nanjiao arrived, she happened to see this scene. It has to be said that Lü Siniang's attitude towards guests was really good. Whether they were dressed in fine silk or simple clothes, she always greeted them with a smile and enthusiasm.

Lu Siniang gestured to Gu Nanjiao with her eyes to wait a while, so Gu Nanjiao found a place to sit and pass the time.

After a while, Lü Siniang suddenly called her.

Gu Nanjiao turned her head away. Lü Siniang walked over, pointed at her, and said to the female customer next to her:

“This is the second owner of our Jiaoniang Pavilion. The ready-made clothes you see are all made by her according to the patterns she drew.”

The female customer was about forty years old. Judging from her clothes, she was from a wealthy family. However, she was probably not the hostess; she was just a nanny out shopping.

"Can you make a wedding dress?" the old woman asked.

Gu Nan smiled and said, "We can make it. First, tell me your requirements for the wedding dress, and I'll draw a few designs for you to choose from. Once you've selected one and paid the deposit, we can start making it."

Upon hearing Gu Nanjiao's words, the old woman nodded in satisfaction.

"Here's the thing, our young lady is getting married after the New Year. The wedding dress she ordered was soiled by a careless maid. We've looked at several places, but the young lady isn't satisfied with any of them. If you can satisfy her, money is no object."

Upon hearing that money was not an issue, Lü Siniang's eyes immediately lit up.

This is a big fish! We can't let it get away; we have to grab it quickly!

Lu Siniang gestured to Gu Nanjiao with her eyes, and Gu Nanjiao met her gaze.

Then, Gu Nanjiao nodded to the old woman, "No problem, please tell me your young lady's likes and dislikes, and I can draw the pattern right now."

The old woman walked up to Gu Nanjiao and whispered her own family's likes and dislikes.

Before long, Gu Nanjiao had finished drawing several wedding dress designs.

She handed it to the nanny with both hands: "Please take a look."

The nanny was truly amazed when she saw the wedding dress design drawn by Gu Nanjiao. She never expected that the young girl in front of her would be so talented.

The old woman smiled and looked at Gu Nanjiao: "My surname is Deng, you can call me Granny Deng. I need to take these drawings back to show my young lady. I'll come over when she takes a liking to one of them."

“That’s no problem. However, Granny Deng, you can take these drawings back like this, but you need to pay a deposit first.”

Having worked in the old mansion for a long time, Granny Deng immediately understood Gu Nanjiao's intention: she was afraid that Gu Nanjiao would take the blueprints and run away, and then she wouldn't be able to find her.

“No problem,” Granny Deng said without getting angry. Instead, she paid the deposit generously. Her composure was truly remarkable, befitting a granny from a wealthy family.

After seeing off Granny Deng, Lü Siniang winked at Gu Nanjiao.

"How are the kudzu root powder sales?" Gu Nanjiao asked, completely ignoring Lü Siniang's funny antics.

"It's not bad. At first, nobody cared about it, but then I heard that even the imperial concubines in the palace were eating it, and they were all scrambling to grab it. Now it's sold out." When she said this, Lü Siniang's voice was a little excited.

"I'll send over more tomorrow." Gu Nanjiao was also very happy to hear that the kudzu root powder was selling well.

"Here you go! This is your share of the kudzu root powder profits. We'll settle the accounts with you for the finished garments at the end of the month." Lu Siniang placed the money in front of Gu Nanjiao.

Gu Nanjiao counted the money and found it was more than ten taels. She couldn't contain her excitement. How could she have earned so much in such a short time? It felt like a windfall, leaving her dizzy with joy.

When Gu Nanjiao arrived on the street, Lu's mother hadn't finished shopping yet, so Gu Nanjiao went to browse the small stalls next to her.

To her surprise, she discovered that the Chu Dynasty actually sold beef; she had thought eating beef was illegal in this fictional ancient world. Excitedly, she bought some beef, planning to have a beef hot pot. She then wandered around again, buying a copper pot, some charcoal, and some ingredients for the hot pot. She also bought two bags of roasted chestnuts for Lu Xiaomei to take with her.

The total cost was three taels of silver. The beef was a bit expensive, costing four times as much as pork. The copper pot and charcoal accounted for the majority of the expenses.

Gu Nanjiao sighed. She thought she had made a lot of money, but who knew that she would spend a third of it just to have a hot pot meal.

I still need to work hard to earn money, otherwise I won't be able to afford even a hot pot meal.

Just as Gu Nanjiao put the things on the oxcart, Lu's mother rushed over in a flurry, carrying a large basket of pig offal.

"Jiaojiao, come quickly and help me lift it."

Gu Nanjiao went over to help Lu's mother lift the basket of pig offal onto the car.

"Mom, you bought so much."

"I bought it cheaply, only one cent per pound."

"So cheap!" Gu Nanjiao was stunned. This was practically a steal!

Lu's mother not only bought a lot of pig offal, but also two catties of pork, saying that she would bring it back to the oxcart when she returned it, to thank them for lending the oxcart to them, so that it would not be difficult to borrow it again in the future.

Gu Nanjiao had to admire Lu's mother's thoughtfulness; she hadn't even thought of that.

When the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law arrived home, Lu Xiaomei was already waiting at the door.

Seeing the roasted chestnuts in Gu Nanjiao's hand, her eyes curved into crescents with joy.

Lu's mother was full of energy. As soon as she got home, she didn't even have time to rest. She went straight to the river to wash the pig offal.

Gu Nanjiao, carrying two jin of pork and leading the cow, strolled leisurely toward Liu Meihua's house.

"Sister-in-law Meihua, are you home?" Gu Nanjiao called out from the doorway.

"Coming, coming." A woman's voice came from the kitchen, and then Liu came out.

Gu Nanjiao returned the oxcart to Liu and handed her the pork in her hand.

"Sister Meihua, I'm sorry to have troubled you with using your oxcart all morning. This is a small token of my mother-in-law's appreciation. Please accept it."

"Oh dear, it's only right for neighbors to help each other, why be so polite?" Mrs. Liu pushed him away, refusing to accept the offer.

“Sister-in-law Meihua, please accept it. We need to borrow your oxcart again tomorrow. If you don’t accept it, I won’t dare to borrow it next time.”

After a couple of shoves, Liu accepted it.

At this moment, Zhang San returned, carrying a weasel in his hand.

Upon seeing Gu Nanjiao, he greeted her warmly: "Madam Lu, you've arrived. How is Yanzhao's injury? Is he feeling better?"

"I'm much better, thank you for your concern, Brother Zhang." Gu Nanjiao had a good impression of Zhang San and his wife; they were both the kind of people who didn't talk much but were always willing to help others.

After saying goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Zhang, Gu Nanjiao returned home.