Perhaps because they had been placed in space for many years, the clear luster of those gems appeared even more dazzling in Chen Afu's white and tender palm.
Shopkeeper Bai smiled as soon as he saw it. He took the gem and looked at it carefully at the window. He said, "It's OK. How much do you want to sell it for, young lady?"
Chen Ahfu smiled and said, "I asked around before, and everyone said that Shopkeeper Bai has a very good reputation. He values a business of one or two taels of silver as much as a business of one thousand taels of silver. So, I, a poor man, came to this silver shop just for Shopkeeper Bai, and I have never been to any other silver shop."
Shopkeeper Bai laughed and said, "Young lady, you are really good at talking. You speak so highly of me, I can't lower the price for you." He turned to the window to look at the gems and said, "These three rubies are of average quality and not big, but the valuable part is that they are quite shiny. If they burst, they are worth ninety taels of silver. This emerald is good, shiny and transparent. Hmm... I'll give you three hundred taels of silver, how about it?"
This is much higher than the price Chen Ahfu had in mind. Shopkeeper Bai is indeed a good old man who never cheats anyone. He did not lower his price. I have to talk to Jin Yanzi in the future and tell her not to think about this store no matter how much she wants.
But she had to raise the price to make it sound like a business deal, she couldn't just say whatever he said. So she smiled and said, "Boss Bai, although I don't know much about this business, I know that emeralds are fragile and difficult to cut and polish. This emerald has already been formed and can be directly set in jewelry. Can you give it a higher price?"
Shopkeeper Bai said, "The price I offered is not low. Let's do this, twenty more taels, no higher."
A total of four hundred and ten taels, not bad. Chen Ahfu smiled and said, "Deal."
Shopkeeper Bai gave Chen Afu two silver notes worth two hundred taels and a silver ingot.
After leaving the hut, Shopkeeper Bai said with a smile, "Young lady, why don't you buy some jewelry? The jewelry in our silver shop is quite good and the price is reasonable."
Chen Ahfu touched the ten taels of silver and came to the counter, saying he wanted to buy some cheap silver hairpins. The waiter brought a small tray, and Chen Ahfu picked out four silver hairpins with flower carvings, one for himself, Wang, Zhang, and Old Lady Chen, and bought a pair of silver cloves for himself and Wang, for a total of eleven taels of silver.
Shopkeeper Bai gave a discount and only charged ten taels.
The mother and son thanked and left the jewelry store.
Chen Afu looked around. This was the most prosperous street in Dingzhou Prefecture. The bluestone road was wide enough for six carriages to pass side by side. The shops on both sides were multi-story buildings and were extremely gorgeously decorated.
Diagonally opposite was the Nishang Embroidery Workshop that Chen Aman had mentioned.
The Nishang Embroidery Workshop is a three-story building with black tiles, green walls, and red carved doors and windows. There are also several strings of beautiful lanterns and colorful flowers hung around it, and the huge plaque can be seen clearly from such a distance.
She thought about going there again tomorrow after getting those dolls.
Just as she was about to turn around, she saw Mr. Chen, whom she had just met, leading those women out of the Nishang Embroidery Workshop. Three horse-drawn carriages passed by, and he helped the old woman get on the carriage, and the others also got on one after another.
Even after only meeting him twice, Chen Afu could tell that the man was not only good-looking, but also had a good temper and a gentle attitude. He was always very kind to his mother, wife, and daughter.
That was an illusion, wasn't it? He was ruthless to the woman who had brought him up and had a physical relationship with her. His heart was harder than stone. Fortunately, Mrs. Wang didn't come, otherwise she would be very sad.
Chen Afu watched the carriages disappear in the hustle and bustle of traffic.
Chen Dabao tugged at Chen Afu's collar again and shouted, "Mom, hug me, hug me." He had been worried about the banknotes in his mother's arms, but his mother didn't seem to care at all, which made him very anxious.
Chen Ahfu picked him up, and he whispered in Chen Ahfu's ear, "Mom, let's find a donkey cart and go back to Third Uncle's house quickly. Mom has so much money on her, don't let anyone steal it."
Chen Afu teased him, "Aren't you going to eat in a restaurant?" When they came, Chen Dabao specifically said that he wanted to eat in a restaurant.
Chen Dabao swallowed his saliva, shook his head and said, "No need to eat today, let's eat another day."
Seeing those people, Chen Ahfu no longer wanted to continue shopping and nodded. She took Dabao to a nearby snack bar and bought two baskets of steamed buns, one for each of the mother and son, and hailed a mule cart.
When they returned to Chen Shi's house, it was just noon and they were having lunch.
The invited guests also came to Chen's house. They were two boys about thirteen or fourteen years old. They were sitting aside eating with a large bowl in their arms.
Chen Afu took the buns out of the oil paper package and ate together.
After dinner, Chen Ahfu took out a hairpin and gave it to Zhang. He said, "I went to West Street and bought it at Yu Qilin Silver Shop. Third Aunt, please don't dislike it."
Zhang was shocked and said, "Oh my God, you gave my family the secret recipe for the braised skewers, and we haven't thanked you yet. How can you have the nerve to accept such a valuable hairpin?"
Chen Shi also helped to refuse, saying, "Save it for my sister-in-law."
When Wang saw her daughter went to the silver shop, she guessed that she had sold the gems. She smiled and said to Zhang, "You can keep the ones that Ah Fu gave you. I will definitely have some of mine."
After refusing for a long time, Zhang happily accepted the silver hairpin.
Chen Afu said he was tired and did not help. He went back to the house with Dabao and Alu to rest.
She couldn't fall asleep because of the snoring of the two little ones. The face that looked 80% like her appeared in front of her from time to time.
The older girl seemed not much younger than himself, which meant that he got married not long after the Chen family kicked Wang out of the house.
Think of that noble lady with her hair covered in pearls and jade, who looked very imposing, and those two delicate girls wrapped in silk. Think of Wang who married into the Chen family with a burden, working hard day and night to support the sickly Chen Ming, and that silly Ah Fu who had been bullied to death. Chen Ah Fu was still unhappy...
Hearing the laughter of Wang and Zhang in the yard, Chen Ming and Zhang were cheerful and their voices were much louder. Although Wang also laughed and talked, she was much more polite.
Thinking of Wang, Chen Ahfu's eyes were a little hot. She was sold to the Chen family as a child bride by her stepmother at the age of ten. She raised the ignorant five-year-old boy to a 15-year-old boy in his prime, and even had a child. They should have a certain emotional foundation, right?
Of course there is! Otherwise, he wouldn't love his own flesh and blood so much, even more than his own son.
I don't know if it's the love between mother and son, sister and brother, or man and woman. Most likely, it's the faint flame of love, right?
For her to be pregnant, she and her son-in-law must have had mutual love for each other, right?
However, once the son-in-law passed the imperial examination, he turned against her, and she was sent back to her parents' home. She was sold for the second time by her stepmother while she was pregnant.
The weak Wang was smart and tenacious. She had no time to feel sad and painful, and was married to another Chen family. She married so happily and chose the dying Chen Ming. Perhaps she was ready to be a widow and find a legitimate birth for her unborn child.
She's really been wronged.
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