Chapter 190: Gift from the Earl's Mansion
Yang Qingqing knelt on the cushion behind her, accompanying her obediently, without saying much, but just looking around at the wealth of the Earl's Mansion.
Before the Countess arrived, these noble ladies were walking back and forth chatting. Many of them knew Madam Xie, and seeing that there were unfamiliar faces around her, they came to ask her about her.
"Oh, Madam Xie, you actually brought a companion with you today. Why don't you introduce her to us? Whose family is this lady from?"
Su Wan was not nervous at all. She could still handle such a situation. She nodded slightly at them as a greeting.
"This is the woman behind the Yuyantang goat milk soap that I told you about earlier, Miss Su Liu."
When it comes to goat milk soap, they have an impression of it. Ladies here, has anyone used goat milk soap?
"So this is the landlady you were talking about. She looks very young. How old is she now? Is she married?"
Madam Xie leaned close to Su Wan's ear and told her which lady was speaking.
This is Mrs. Liu. Her family made their fortune in wine-making. Their signature drink is the heirloom daughter’s red wine. When buying wine in Xiangzhou, people will look for her family’s time-honored brand.
"Madam Liu, I am fifteen years old and still unmarried."
"You're incredible! You're so young, yet you've already started your own business. We've tried your goat milk soap before, and it's truly amazing. I especially love the Shandan one. I wonder what flavor you'll come up with next?"
"Next season there's jasmine, which smells great and helps with sleep. If you're interested, you can try it."
Su Wan responded to them calmly and easily, and got along with them quite harmoniously.
However, those who came to talk to her were all businessmen's families. The wives of officials were more aloof than each other and were unwilling to pay attention to them.
After much difficulty, the Countess finally arrived, accompanied by her daughter, Miss Ning.
"The Countess has arrived."
Following a shout from outside the door, the female members of the family hurried back to their seats. After the Countess took her seat, all of them stood up to greet her except Countess Changlong, who was sitting on the same level as her.
"We wish the Countess a happy birthday."
"Alright, this isn't the first time we've met, just take a seat. There's no need to be so polite."
Mrs. Ning waved her hand and everyone sat down.
The next step is the gift-presenting session. The gifts prepared by each family will be taken out in order and read to the lady of the lord's house. This is also a session of invisible comparison.
First, the officials’ wives presented their gifts one by one, all of which were some grand jade ornaments, such as jade ruyi, coral and the like.
When it came to the Shang family, they became adorned with jewels and precious stones, including glass, agate, and oriental pearls.
However, Mrs. Ning only nodded slightly when she saw it, and there was no joy on her face.
Madam Xie gave her a pair of jade pillows, but it didn't even make Lady Bo smile.
When it was Su Wan's turn, everyone worked together to lift up the largest object of the day, which was covered with a red cloth and looked very mysterious.
Just this style made everyone present curious about what it was.
The butler took the list and read:
"Miss Su Liu from Yuyan Hall presented a gift: a yellow rosewood four-season screen."
As he finished speaking, the red cloth was also unveiled. According to the rules, Su Wan had to stand out and let the lady see her.
The four words "huanghuali wood" are enough to make people amazed. After all, wood like huanghuali wood is more valuable than sandalwood.
Golden nanmu is the best, but only members of the royal family can use it. If ordinary people use golden nanmu, it is illegal and violates the royal dignity.
Therefore, the best wood available to the nobles was huanghuali wood, followed by sandalwood, and only the more precious red sandalwood could be on par with huanghuali wood.
The Ning Bo Mansion had been prosperous in the past, so there was no shortage of sandalwood ornaments and furniture in the mansion. However, as for huanghuali wood, only the old lady had a bronze mirror made of huanghuali wood, and even that small item cost over a thousand taels.
This screen uses so much huanghuali wood, so it must be worth several thousand taels, right?
This screen also attracted the attention of the two countesses. Lady Ning was the protagonist today, and she wanted to take a closer look, but she couldn't lose face and appear stingy.
But Mrs. Zhou was different. She came here to join in the fun today, so she winked at her daughter-in-law.
Her daughter-in-law was so smart that she immediately understood what her mother-in-law meant.
"This yellow rosewood is rare to see. I'd like to take a closer look. Madam Ning, do you mind if I come closer to take a closer look?"
Mrs. Ning Bo smiled and gestured to her to come in.
"Young Madam, please feel free to do as you please."
The young lady of Zhou Bo's house stood up and walked to the screen, looking at it carefully.
Others only dared to watch from a distance and did not dare to get closer.
"Ah, I've discovered something incredible. The embroidery on it is a rare double-sided embroidery. Miss Su Liu of Yuyan Hall is such a master of her craft."
Everyone was shocked when they heard this. One of the ladies who owned an embroidery workshop stood up and said:
"My family runs an embroidery workshop. Let me see if it's really double-sided embroidery."
Su Wan had been standing there for a long time, circling around the screen, and no one paid any attention to her.
She suddenly felt that she shouldn't have looked for Jiang Yu. She was too high-profile and a bit too much. After all, it overshadowed Mrs. Zhou's blood coral, and it was obvious that Mrs. Zhou was unhappy.
The owner of the embroidery workshop went forward to take a look and found that it was indeed double-sided embroidery, and the embroiderer's craftsmanship was at the master level.
"It's indeed double-sided embroidery. Anyone who knows embroidery knows that this is the most difficult to embroider, because you have to make the pattern on the front and back consistent. It takes the most effort and is the most difficult to learn. Miss Su Liu, you are really generous. Does your family really only make goat milk soap?"
The lady from the embroidery workshop raised doubts. Yuyantang's reputation had just started to rise, and it didn't even have a physical store. Yet, it was selling a double-sided embroidered Huanghuali wood screen. It was too high-profile.
Su Wan was still quite calm. She was being questioned for being too outstanding when she participated in such a big event this time, and she was thinking about how to turn the situation around.
"Indeed, I come from a modest background and have just arrived in Xiangzhou to do business. This huanghuali wood four-season screen was a gift from a good friend. To be honest, ladies, this is my first time attending such an occasion, and I was worried about losing my dignity and etiquette. However, I am shortsighted and don't know much about the business. I just wanted to avoid losing my dignity and making a fool of myself since it was my first visit. I only knew that it was made of huanghuali wood, but I didn't realize that the embroidery on it was double-sided. But thank you for your suggestion, madam. It has broadened my horizons."
Su Wan's words were very insightful. She said she didn't know it was double-sided embroidery. On the one hand, she lowered herself, and on the other hand, she elevated others. She meant to say that she didn't deliberately try to steal the limelight. She had little experience, so she didn't know.
Ignorance is not a crime, and Mrs. Zhou couldn't bother with her. She looked that young, and if she bothered too much, it would make her look inferior.
This statement is completely watertight.
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