Some of the more shrewd prisoners had already bought umbrellas from the officers, and when the officers saw that it was about time, they brought out all the umbrellas to sell.
Ma Dazhuang and Mu Wanting are shameless; they both bought small umbrellas that can only fit one person at a time.
Each person can only play one game!
The prisoners scrambled for the items, but many still ended up not being able to buy any.
Ma Dazhuang bought 50 umbrellas at 20 taels of silver each and sold them for 1,000 taels of silver. Keep in mind that the cost was only 200 wen, so he made 100 times the profit. It was like he robbed the place.
Moreover, these prisoners also had to worry about not being able to rob anything, as they all came from aristocratic families and couldn't endure hardship.
The umbrellas were almost sold out, and then it started to rain.
Mu Wanting's umbrella was placed there at this time.
Her cunning trick was that she would only display ten umbrellas each time, and Mu Wanting would sell them for 30 taels each.
Seeing that Mu Wanting still had ten umbrellas, the prisoners, fearing they wouldn't be able to buy any, all came over to buy them.
They certainly didn't notice that every time an umbrella sold out, Mu Wanting would secretly replace it with another one.
The art of scarcity marketing was mastered perfectly by Mu Wanting.
With thirty umbrellas, Mu Wanting earned 900 taels of silver, tears welling in her eyes.
Su Yu, with a candy figurine in his mouth, marveled at the sight while perched on the tree.
"You guys could have just robbed them and given them an umbrella instead."
Mu Wanting sighed, "There's no way that kidnapping people is as profitable as legitimate business."
It's just that this business is a bit unethical.
But she also knew that the prisoners' resources were almost exhausted, and it would be harder to fleece them further down the line.
With each of the three family members holding an umbrella, Mu Wanting still pushed Shen Mingjiao onto the carriage.
"You should stay in the carriage with Qin'er."
The rain at first was in large drops, barely enough to shield us from the rain with an umbrella.
As the wind picked up, the rain poured down on everyone.
Everyone was in great distress; the umbrella couldn't shield them from anything, and the raindrops hurt as they hit their bodies!
Everyone couldn't help but look towards the third branch of the family, where they saw the members holding umbrellas. Each of them was also wearing an oilcloth raincoat, remaining completely dry despite the raging wind and rain.
Even the officials kept glancing at Mu Wanting.
Zhang Caiyun was so angry she almost twisted her mouth. The third wife's situation was so good, while theirs was so miserable, making their situation seem even more tragic.
How does Mu Wanting's brain work? How does she come up with so many strange and wonderful ideas!
Mu Wanting smiled.
"After a few more rains, there will be even more mushrooms, which will give us more food sources."
Shen Yujiao said happily, "Second sister-in-law, you can teach me to identify mushrooms later."
The crowd couldn't bear to listen anymore. They were all shivering from the rain, their lips turning purple. What were those three families saying? Picking mushrooms? Was that something a human being would say?
The rain had been falling for quite some time without showing any signs of stopping, so Mu Wanting went to ask Su Yu and the other officials about their next plans.
Su Yu said, "The boss said we're not leaving today."
Reassured, Mu Wanting called over all the members of the three households, and they set up the tent together.
Her mother, Xia Chan, had deliberately trained her in wilderness survival skills, so setting up a tent was naturally no problem for her.
They built it in the rain, while all the other convicts found shelter from the rain. They even mocked the third family for being foolish, saying that the officials might leave soon.
The three families remained silent. After assigning tasks, Mu Wanting watched as everyone set up the tent. It must be said that Shen Shurong was quite skilled with his hands.
Aunt Qin worked very hard, and her three children were not afraid of getting dirty or tired.
Aunt Liu stood by, holding an umbrella, watching, her whole demeanor cold and aloof.
Shen Haipei is stronger and can occasionally lift a tree branch.
Shen Yanchen was in poor health and had been coughing, so Aunt Liu pulled him aside.
The frail Shen Yuru wanted to help, but Aunt Liu held her shoulder down.
"Yu Ru, don't go. You're not healthy, what if you get sick again?"
Mu Wanting took all of this to heart; it seemed that Aunt Liu's family was timid and unfit for important positions.
On the other hand, Aunt Qin is diligent and honest, and can be of great use.
For the location to set up the tent, Mu Wanting chose several flat areas that were high in elevation and relatively dry.
First, they used tree branches to elevate the ground, and then they covered it with tarpaulin, so that even if there was water accumulation at night, no one would be affected at all.
Then they took some rattan mats that they had woven from vines and spread them out. They were sure they wouldn't get wet in the rain tonight, and in fact, they would be more comfortable than usual.
The three families set up four tents in total, which accommodated only a dozen or so people, so the space was quite large.
Once everything was set up, the people from the three households took turns entering the tents to take shelter from the rain.
Now, even the officials and constables are no longer as well-off as the third wife.
Su Yu and Ma Dazhuang shamelessly squeezed in.
"There are still empty seats, let's squeeze in."
Ma Dazhuang looked up at Mu Wanting. He had a scar on his right cheek and looked fierce.
"Mr. Mu, do you have any extra oilcloth?"
Mu Wanting, however, was not afraid of him and spoke with a smile.
"Yes, the oilcloth cost two taels of silver per bolt when we bought it, and now we have three bolts left over, which we gave away for free to the officials to set up their own tents."
Ma Dazhuang originally wanted Mu Wanting to help them set it up, but Mu Wanting stopped him from doing so.
After thinking for a moment, he coughed lightly and said, "We don't know how to pitch a tent."
Mu Wanting pointed at Chen Shurong: "Shurong, go and give the officials some guidance while wearing a raincoat and holding an umbrella. Everyone has worked hard just now. I'll treat you to a special meal tonight."
Shen Shurong's eyes sparkled, and he immediately took the umbrella and followed Ma Dazhuang to set up the tent.
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