Chapter 35 An Unexpected Source of Income
"About how much?" Du Wanchun asked.
The pawnshop owner held up five fingers.
Du Wanchun asked, "Five taels of silver?"
The pawnshop owner shook his head. "Fifty coins."
"Fifty coins?!" Although Du Wanchun rarely saw ivory pens, she knew how valuable ivory was, and surely it shouldn't cost fifty coins.
She quickly took back her pen and said, "Fifty coins is too little."
The pawnshop owner then asked, "How about one hundred coins?"
Du Wanchun shook her head again. Looking at the pen in her hand, she suddenly remembered the way Zhou Ruiyuan taught her to write that night.
Seeing her silence, the pawnshop owner then asked, "How about five hundred coins? Want to pawn it?"
Du Wanchun snapped back to reality, clutching the pen tightly to her chest. "I won't do it anymore, I won't do it anymore."
The pawnshop owner frowned. "Young lady, one shouldn't be too greedy. Five hundred coins is the only amount you can accept; any more than that is not allowed."
Du Wanchun looked up at him and said decisively, "I won't even take it for five hundred taels."
After saying that, she grabbed her pen, turned around, and ran out of the pawnshop.
As luck would have it, Du Wanchun ran into Aunt He, who worked as a kitchen helper at Magistrate Li's house, as soon as she stepped out.
Aunt He was overjoyed to see Du Wanchun and exclaimed, "Wanchun, what are you doing here?!"
Du Wanchun glanced at the pawnshop behind her, smiled, and said, "Auntie, I came to the county today to buy some things for my husband."
Aunt He stepped forward, took her hand, and asked with a smile, "Wanchun, do you still have any of your little radishes?"
Du Wanchun paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "There are still some at home."
Aunt He quickly said, "Could you sell me some more?"
Du Wanchun asked in surprise, "Auntie, you still want to buy radishes?"
Aunt He nodded repeatedly, "Yes, I bought some of your radishes last time. Magistrate Li and his wife loved them. Not only did they eat them, they also asked me to make some and send them to the Fang family. The old man in the Fang family also loves your radishes, so he asked me to buy some more."
The Fang family were well-known wealthy merchants in Cheng'an County. They did business in the capital in their early years and later made a lot of money. They then handed over their business to their son and returned to their hometown with their wives to retire.
Du Wanchun was very happy, "Really? How many radishes does Master Fang want?"
Aunt He thought for a moment and said, "Just buy the same amount as last time, so that we don't buy too much and let it spoil at home. If they need me to buy more from you in the future..."
Du Wanchun nodded, "Okay, I'll go back and pick some radishes for you now."
Aunt He looked up at the carriage behind her and smiled, "Alright, I'll wait for you in the backyard of the Li residence."
"Okay, Auntie." Du Wanchun thought that the Li family hadn't finished eating all those radishes from last time, but she didn't expect that not only did they want more, but even wealthy merchants like the Fang family wanted to buy some.
If these two long-term employers continued to exist, the Zhou family would have a way to survive.
Aunt He then took out a bag of copper coins from her pocket and handed it to her, saying, "Wanchun, take these as a deposit for the radishes. I'll give you the rest after you deliver them to your residence."
Du Wanchun took the money in her hand and weighed it; it was probably around one hundred coins. "Thank you, Auntie."
After receiving the money and saying goodbye to Aunt He, she immediately drove her carriage home.
When Aunt Zhou saw her return, she quickly went up to her and asked, "Wanchun, how much silver did you pawn?"
Du Wanchun took out the money bag and placed it in Aunt Zhou's hand.
Aunt Zhou opened it and exclaimed, "Wow, there are a hundred coins!"
At this moment, Zhou Ruiyuan pushed a chair and slowly came out of the room.
Du Wanchun stood in front of him, a ray of dazzling sunlight shining down. She raised the corners of her lips, revealing her two small dimples, and smiled as she spread her hands.
In his hand was his pen.
Zhou Ruiyuan was taken aback. Looking into her eyes, which were filled with stars, he slowly stood up.
He walked towards Du Wanchun step by step, his steps much more steady than before, unlike the unsteady gait he had shown at the beginning.
Du Wanchun quickly took a few steps forward, trying to support him.
Unexpectedly, Zhou Ruiyuan suddenly reached out and pulled her into his arms.
His embrace was warm, and it carried his own faint fragrance.
Du Wanchun, nestled in his arms, listened to his pounding heart and reached out to hug him back. "Husband... your pen... I didn't pawn it..."
Hearing this, Aunt Zhou exclaimed in surprise, "Wanchun, you didn't pawn the pen! Then where did this copper coin come from?!"
"Wanchun..." Before Aunt Zhou could finish speaking, she looked up and saw the two of them embracing each other. In order not to disturb them, she quickly turned around and went into the house.
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