Chapter 8 Chapter 8 Selling Handkerchiefs

After Huo Xing finished his meal, he went to fill the water tank at home. The village well was not far from their home. The water used during this period was carried back by Li Hongying and Miao Ying. Miao Ying wanted to carry the water himself, but his injury had not healed yet, so he had to settle for the second best and carry water with Li Hongying.

Of course, he would hear countless gossips during this process, mostly because of the mistakes Miao Ying had made in the past. Most of the time, Miao Ying would ignore them. Only when someone said something more excessive, he would fight back with a powerful force.

Miao Ying was not a greenhouse flower before he traveled through time. The rebuttal he made was probably more fierce than these people could have imagined, which made his reputation in the village even worse.

When Huo Xing went to fetch water, some people gossiped in front of him. He just worked silently and didn't say anything. Those people found the gossip boring and dispersed.

At night, Huo Xing made another batch of medicine for Miao Ying and watched him drink it before returning to the room together.

Miao Ying had already taken off his clothes and lay on the bed, covered tightly with the quilt. Huo Xing glanced at him, paused in taking off his shoes, then put them on again and walked out.

Miao Ying looked at him: "Where are you going?"

Huo Xing didn't say anything, and soon Miao Ying heard the sound of water outside.

Then Huo Xing came back to the room with a chill, and Miao Ying realized that he had gone to take a shower. Because when Huo Xing came back, an oil lamp was lit in the room. With the help of the oil lamp, Miao Ying saw that Huo Xing's shoulders were covered with red and swollen marks.

He put on his clothes again and sat up, asking, "What did you do outside?"

Huo Xing said, "There's a dock in the county town. It's almost New Year, and there's work to unload cargo at the dock."

Miao Ying looked at his shoulders. He knew without thinking that he was still having a hard time. He found the medicine that Li Hongying had applied to his head earlier and said, "Apply some medicine."

Huo Xing hummed and reached out to take the jar from Miao Ying's hand. Miao Ying dodged his hand and said, "I'll apply it for you."

Miao Ying's fingertips were slightly cool. When they landed on the wound on Huo Xing's shoulder, Huo Xing felt that his wound was getting hot. Some cooling medicines could not withstand such heat. He slightly moved his shoulder away and said in a deep voice that there was no need to apply it anymore.

Miao Ying withdrew his hand. The smell of the herbs was not pleasant. Before he could say anything, Huo Xing got out of bed and brought him some water.

After everything was tidied up, Huo Xing lay down again. Miao Ying was already feeling a little drowsy. Feeling the heat source, Miao Ying leaned to the side and fell into a deep sleep.

In the evening, except for the noise made by Huo San who came back drunk and acted crazy, the whole yard was very quiet.

When he woke up, Huo Xing was already dressed. Miao Ying rubbed his eyes and asked about Huo Xing's injury in a daze.

Huo Xing said that it was nothing serious and told him to get up quickly, otherwise he would be late for the trip to the county town. Miao Ying then came to his senses and quickly got up to put on his clothes. However, after putting on his clothes, he hesitated again because his clothes were all patched and washed white.

His actions naturally caught Huo Xing's attention. Huo Xing also noticed that his cuffs were frayed, and he wanted to make him some clothes before he left.

After a quick breakfast, Li Hongying changed into new clothes and packed the embroidered handkerchiefs in a bag, preparing to go to the county town to sell them. She originally didn't plan to take Miao Ying with her, but Miao Ying said he was good at negotiating, so Li Hongying agreed to take him with her.

The road to the county town is different from the road to the town, but it is obvious that there are more people on the road to the county town than on the road to the town. Miao Ying felt a little tired after walking for a while, but because Li Hongying was with him, he didn't feel comfortable asking Huo Xing to carry him, so he was left behind by the two people who walked very fast.

After a while, Huo Xing discovered that Miao Ying had fallen behind. He said a few words to Li Hongying, and then went back to find Miao Ying. Miao Ying was leaning against a tree by the roadside, catching his breath. When he saw Huo Xing coming back, a light burst out in his dull eyes.

Without saying anything, Huo Xing squatted down in front of Miao Ying. Miao Ying did not refuse and lay on him directly. Taking into consideration that Huo Xing had an injury on his shoulder, he did not put his hand on Huo Xing's shoulder, but directly hooked it around his neck.

Huo Xing felt his throat tighten, and realizing that he might have choked Huo Xing, he quickly loosened his grip a little, smiled awkwardly and said sorry.

Soon they caught up with Li Hongying. Li Hongying looked at Huo Xing carrying Miao Ying on his back. She wanted to say something but held back, and just quickened her pace.

The county town is much more prosperous than the town. There are inspections at the city gate and there is already a long queue.

Huo Xing had already put Miao Ying down by now. They were standing in a line, and in front of them was a man carrying a large backpack. The man took a step back, and the large backpack almost hit Miao Ying's face. Huo Xing was quick to pull him behind him.

The team moved forward quickly, and soon it was their turn. Miao Ying didn't understand anything, but just followed behind Huo Xing. After checking the things they brought, the officers quickly let them into the city. They separated at the city gate. Huo Xing was going to work, and Li Hongying took Miao Ying to sell handkerchiefs.

Huo Xing stood there and watched their backs as they left. He suddenly wondered if Miao Ying could insist on walking back. He also thought about whether he should buy a cow to use as a means of transportation. Then he changed his mind and thought that he should leave after Miao Ying's injury healed. So Huo Xing turned around and went to his work place.

Here, Miao Ying and Li Hongying walked to the most prosperous street in the county town. Half of the street was selling food, and the other half was selling small items.

Miao Ying took a careful look at the food sold at the stalls. They were all small wontons, candied haws, steamed buns, steamed buns, pancakes and the like. They were all staple foods, and none of the delicious food found in the current snack streets. He wondered how much he could make if he could move the modern night market snack street here.

But now it’s all he can think about. Miao Ying sighed and followed Li Hongying to find a silk shop in the county town.

This store sells ready-made clothes, cloth, embroidery, and handkerchiefs. Many young men and women come to such stores to buy things.

Before entering the store, Li Hongying took a deep breath, straightened her clothes, and then pulled Miao Ying into the store.

This shop not only welcomes people who come to buy things, but also welcomes embroiderers who come to deliver embroidery works. After all, if they only rely on the people in the shop, how can they sell so many embroidery works?

There were quite a few people selling embroidery. Miao Ying and his friends were ranked fifth. The people in front of them brought handkerchiefs, purses, sachets and so on. Compared with them, the handkerchiefs brought by Miao Ying and his friends were not very impressive.

After a while, it was their turn to go in. The person who collected the handkerchief was not the shopkeeper, but the second-in-command of the store. The shopkeeper was doing business in the front.

When Li Hongying took out a few handkerchiefs, the second-in-command's face was not so good, because generally those who came to sell handkerchiefs were from the villages below. Not only was the embroidery quality poor, but they also liked to bargain for the price.

Although Li Hongying is a person who has the final say at home, she can't help but lower her posture when doing business.

"Shopkeeper, this is our handkerchief." The handkerchief was neatly folded and not yet unfolded.

The second-in-command didn't even look at it: "Five cents a handkerchief."

Miao Ying's eyes widened. Mother and grandmother had worked so hard to embroider this, and they were only selling it for five cents a piece? Even the wool yarn cost money, right?

Seeing that Li Hongying didn't seem surprised, he knew that they had been being pressured into paying the price. Just when Li Hongying was about to agree, Miao Ying walked up to them. He put his hand on Li Hongying's shoulder and said to the man, "You're giving me a price without even looking at the handkerchief?"

"What's so good about it? It's just flowers, grass, birds, and so on. What's so good about it?" The second shopkeeper said with a hint of impatience, "If you can't stand the price, then walk out."

Miao Ying rolled up her handkerchief and walked out with Li Hongying.

Li Hongying was pulled out of the cloth shop by him. She looked at Miao Ying and said, "The price in town is three cents. Five cents here is already very good."

Miao Ying shook his head: "Mom, is it possible that the thing you and grandma have been bowing your heads for for so long is only worth ten cents? In my opinion, it is definitely more than that." What's more, there are his paintings.

After passing this store, there was another store not far away. The store was not as big as the previous one, and there were not as many people buying things inside, so the shopkeeper was collecting embroidery products on the side. There were not as many people coming here to sell embroidery products as in the previous store, so Miao Ying and the others only had to wait for a while before they arrived.

The shopkeeper was not surprised to hear that it was a handkerchief, and he quoted the same price as the previous shop: five cents. When entering the door, Miao Ying said that he came to negotiate the price this time, so Li Hongying did not move.

Miao Ying unfolded the handkerchiefs one by one and placed them in front of the shopkeeper: "Shopkeeper, I also know what patterns of flowers, plants and mandarin ducks are popular these days. My handkerchiefs are the most unique in style. I can guarantee that once they are put out, they will definitely sell well. Can you raise the price a little?"

The shopkeeper looked at the dozen or so handkerchiefs. Each one had a different pattern on it, but the overall style was very similar. It was indeed something they had never seen before.

The shopkeeper calculated in his mind: "How much do you want?"

Miao Ying licked his lips and said, "I want 20 coins each."

The shopkeeper was startled, but he laughed out loud: "You are really brave to ask for such a high price, husband. Do you know that even the top embroiderer in Beijing, Cao Sanniang, only sells a handkerchief for thirty coins?"

Not to mention the shopkeeper, even Li Hongying was shocked. She thought Miao Ying would only ask for ten cents, but he asked for twenty cents right away.

Miao Ying didn't know who Cao Sanniang was, but from what she said, he could guess that the highest price of the handkerchief was only thirty cents.

"Embroidery skills are in everyone's best interest, but what I sell is not the skills, but the styles," Miao Ying said without a trace of timidity. "Every handkerchief in our family is unique, because I am the only one who can draw the patterns."

The shopkeeper remained silent, still thinking for a while before he said, "Ten cents a piece."

After a lot of back and forth, Miao Ying had already made up his mind and would not sell it if the price was lower than fifteen cents.

Miao Ying said, "If you offer a higher price, I can guarantee that you can sell all these handkerchiefs today."

The shopkeeper's mind moved: "Twelve cents."

Miao Ying shook his head: "Let's each take a step back. How about fifteen cents?"

"Are you sure all these can be sold today?" The shopkeeper looked at him suspiciously.

Their business is far inferior to that of Longxingfang down the street. Obviously, the products of the two shops are similar. If this handkerchief can really be sold quickly, he is willing to give it a try.

"Then it's fifteen cents, but you have to help me sell these handkerchiefs today."

"make a deal."