"I'll buy them."
The one speaking was not Li Yin, but Li Qingruo.
Perhaps it was out of pity for them, or perhaps it was because of the look in the child's eyes when he was beaten, or perhaps it was because of Li Yin's empathy.
In short, Li Qingruo spoke up.
She can afford to buy people; since she started making hairpins, she has accumulated quite a bit of gold and silver.
Mo Qiaoniang never accepted any money from her, so she had money.
Bai Sha and Bai Xue looked delighted, their eyes filled with gratitude, but also with nervousness.
"Miss, you're so kind. If you're sure you want to buy them, then they're yours. I can't give them away for free, you know."
"Name your price."
Mo Qiaoniang stepped forward, glanced at the two children, and then spoke.
"The girl is nine years old, so she gets five taels of silver; the boy is thirteen years old, so he gets ten taels of silver."
Mo Qiaoniang's eyes widened. These two little ones cost fifteen taels of silver?
"Thirteen years old?! You must be kidding me, this child looks only about ten years old."
Bai Sha was a little embarrassed. He was indeed thin and small, and the matchmaker's high prices always scared away some people who wanted to buy them.
Could this place be hopeless too? Before he could even feel disappointed, Mo Qiaoniang continued to speak.
"The man is seven taels, the woman is three taels. If you're willing to sell, I'll buy them. If I buy these two little ones, I'll have to take care of them for several years."
Mo Qiaoniang looked indifferent, but what she said next was indeed an objective fact: such a young child wouldn't be able to do any work even if she bought him.
That's how it is when you buy things; you can't let the shopkeeper dictate your decisions.
Bai Sha looked pleadingly at the matchmaker. They had only spent one tael of silver to buy it, and her younger sister was a free gift.
Even at this price, the matchmaker can still make a profit.
"Alright, alright, these two have been stuck with me for over a year, I can finally get rid of them today."
The matchmaker waved her hand impatiently, resigning herself to her bad luck.
The matchmaker's agreement was like heavenly music to the brother and sister.
Bai Sha returned to Bai Xue's side and kowtowed to the matchmaker to thank her for taking care of her for more than a year. To be honest, even the hardest days in the matchmaking business were better than when she was at home.
The matchmaker ignored her and went to sign the contract with Mo Qiaoniang.
Neither of them felt embarrassed, and they kowtowed three more times to Li Qingruo.
"Alright, alright, get up. You guys stand in that corner and wait. I'll come back for you after I'm done."
Li Qingruo wanted to pay for the people she was buying herself, so she told the two children to wait while she followed her mother to sign the contract.
Liu Yun also selected quite a few people.
There was a family of four. The couple seemed honest and upright, and the woman had worked as a cook in a wealthy household, so it was a good idea to entrust the kitchen work to her.
Men can drive carriages, and Li Xuming is, after all, an employer, so it's cheaper for him to have someone drive the carriage when he goes out.
Her son is fifteen years old, an adult, and can serve Li Qingzhang.
The girl, with her hair in a bun, was thirteen years old, a bit older than usual. But being older has its advantages; she's more sensible and can take good care of her two daughters.
Moreover, this girl answered very fluently. Although she was a little timid and her appearance was only pretty, she was more than enough to be a maid.
Liu Yun, a woman with two children, also bought it.
What she was attracted to was the woman's strength; the matchmaker had described her as very efficient, and she had a larger frame. However, her face was different from her figure; she had a delicate, demure appearance.
I heard that this woman's husband died early, and she had no one from her family to help her. She was raising her two children on her own. Her relatives, wanting to seize the family fortune left by her deceased husband, forced her to remarry and wouldn't let her take her children with her.
She refused, and even falsely accused the two children of not being her deceased husband's offspring, leaving her speechless with grievances.
Forced into a corner, the woman sold off her family's land at a low price, outmaneuvering her husband's family, and then sold herself with her two children.
This move can be described as injuring the enemy by a thousand while also damaging oneself by a thousand five hundred.
But she had no choice; this was the only way.
It's just duckweed anyway, it'll drift wherever it takes it.
The woman's two children were boys.
Liu Yun intended to arrange for this woman to take care of her mother-in-law; she felt safer just looking at her.
As for the two children, one is only five years old and the other is seven years old. They are not of much use. They can only be trained and then used as servants for Li Qingjun and Li Qingtong.
They then selected two more clever-looking men to serve as servants for the second and third sons.
The maid told Li Qingruo to arrange the two children she bought herself, but since the boy couldn't stay by her side, Li Qingruo gave him to her younger brother.
The twins weren't happy about it. Over the past year, they had gotten used to being together, and they didn't need the servants. If it weren't for their older sister's insistence, they wouldn't want either of them.
After this round of picking and choosing, the Li family bought almost everything, and the others also made some purchases.
The matchmaker was beaming with joy. Today's performance had earned her several months' worth of sales, and she didn't even need to work anymore.
The matchmaker handed the indenture to the Li family and instructed them to register at the county government office as soon as possible before leaving with the rest of the people.
This lesson on buying people is finally over.
Yan Min didn't buy any people; there were only three people in her family.
Wang Jiao still had the same status, so he didn't need anyone to serve him. Li Qingyao also didn't want anyone, so he simply stopped buying people and only hired people to cook and do laundry at home.
Everyone dispersed with their own servants, but Madam Cheng didn't leave. She didn't know how to manage people; back in Nanze, her family had never had servants.
Yan Min then taught her some techniques for managing people.
“When dealing with servants, you must use both kindness and severity. You can’t be too close to them, or they will look down on you. Once they figure out your bottom line, they will keep testing you and pushing it.”
Therefore, you must assert your status as an official's wife, be dignified, and make it clear from the outset that any mistakes will be punished. This way, they won't dare to easily deceive you.
Of course, a balance needs to be struck. When they do a good job, occasionally giving them a kind look or a small reward will let them know to work harder in that direction next time.
"So, the more you speak with a stern face, the more grateful they become, and the less likely they are to act recklessly?"
"That's right. Everyone has their own plans. If we can't control them, they might turn around and hold us back."
Especially those at the very bottom of society, they are often cunning and manipulative. Many of them, seeing that you're easy to talk to, will try to take advantage of you and bully you.
Cheng listened as if she had found a treasure. Although she felt a little uneasy, she remembered Yan Min's words and put on the airs of an official's wife.
When he got home, he gave the servants he had bought a lecture, then softened his expression and said that if they did well, he would reward them.
This combination of a beating followed by a reward successfully intimidated those people, who kept kowtowing and expressing their gratitude.
The woman who served Pan Jinhua was surnamed Yao and had no given name, so everyone called her Yao Niang and the younger generation called her Yao Gu.
He was indeed very efficient. On the first day, he gave Pan Jinhua's room a thorough cleaning, even changing the bedding and washing it clean.
He's a capable worker.
Yao Niang was well-liked by the Li family. Even the three Li brothers, Xu Ming and Yao Niang, thought that Liu Yun had chosen a good person, and that it didn't matter that she had two children with her.
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