Disappointed at not being able to snag the dress her daughter wanted, the later mother looked at the vendor and asked, "Is that the only dress you have? Are there none left?"
The vendor, Xiao Xu, looked at her apologetically: "This was given to me by someone to test the waters of reselling; it's the only outfit I have right now."
Xing Zhaozhao had a sudden inspiration. She looked at the mother and said, "If you want, we accept custom orders. Currently, we only have the twelve zodiac animals to choose from. They are all handmade, and the quality is guaranteed."
"So it's all handmade, no wonder it looks so exquisite. That 800 yuan was well spent." The mother said, then thought for a moment and said, "I want to order a set of Little Dragons. When will it be ready, and how much is the deposit?"
"I'll deliver the finished clothes in about two weeks at the earliest. Leave your phone number, and I'll have Xiao Xu contact you. The deposit is 100 yuan," Xing Zhaozhao said.
The mother thought it was fine, paid the deposit, left her phone number, took the receipt, and left.
"Looks like everything's settled. From now on, I'll entrust you with selling my clothes. I'll give you a 10% commission on each set. What do you think?" Xing Zhaozhao asked the peddler, Xiao Xu, with a smile.
Of course, Xiao Xu, the street vendor, would agree to free money: "No problem."
While the peddler, Xiao Xu, was busy preparing goods for her, Xing Zhaozhao went to Xunlan Teahouse to see Mr. Lu.
When she arrived, Mr. Lu had not yet come. It was early morning, and there were not many customers in Xunlan Teahouse. However, the owner, Fu Hong, was already there, casually sitting in a seat near the door, leisurely sipping tea and reading a book.
Hearing someone enter the store, Fu Hong subconsciously looked up and said, "Welcome."
"Hello," Xing Zhaozhao said with a smile as she looked at Fu Hong.
I just saw the younger version of Fu Hong yesterday, and seeing the older version today is a bit of an adjustment.
"Miss Xing?!" Fu Hong looked at Xing Zhaozhao with surprise and immediately stood up to greet her. "You've finally arrived."
Xing Zhaozhao was taken aback: "You were waiting for me?"
Fu Hong nodded: "The incense I bought from you last time is almost used up. I've been waiting for you to come so I could buy some more, but you never came. I'm so reluctant to use the remaining incense because I'm afraid that once it's gone, there won't be any left."
"Something came up at home, so I haven't had time to come over," Xing Zhaozhao explained to Fu Hong.
“It’s good that you’re here,” Fu Hong said, then asked, “How much incense did Miss Xing bring today? I’ll take it all.”
Xing Zhaozhao looked embarrassed: "I didn't bring incense today."
"How could that be?" Fu Hong couldn't hide her disappointment. "Then why did you come here today...?"
"I had an appointment to meet a friend here," Xing Zhaozhao said, looking apologetically at Fu Hong. "Actually, I didn't mean to not bring incense today. I just didn't have any. My friend has run out of incense-making materials. He asked me to buy some for him before, but I had something to do at home and haven't had time to."
"I came here today and also wanted to ask Mr. Fu if you know any spice shops you could recommend?" Xing Zhaozhao asked Fu Hong. "I want high-quality spice; price is not an issue."
Fu Hong immediately perked up: "It's no big deal. What spices do you want to buy?"
Xing Zhaozhao took out the spice list that the former headmaster had written for her a long time ago and handed it to Fu Hong.
Fu Hong took a look and couldn't help but exclaim, "Beautiful calligraphy!"
She looked at Xing Zhaozhao expectantly and asked, "I wonder if there's a chance to get to know you as a friend?"
Xing Zhaozhao shook her head without thinking and said, "I don't think it will work. That old gentleman has always lived in seclusion in the mountains and doesn't like to see outsiders."
Fu Hong was extremely disappointed: "That's such a pity."
She quickly glanced at the list: "They're all common spices, no problem. I'll go and contact them for you right away."
"Thank you for your help, Mr. Fu," Xing Zhaozhao said.
"Miss Xing, you don't need to be so polite," Fu Hong said with a smile, then turned and left to help her make the contact.
Just then, another guest arrived outside. It was Mr. Lu, and Zhou Huaixi came with him.
As soon as he entered, he saw Xing Zhaozhao standing there. Mr. Lu immediately chuckled and said, "Miss Xing has arrived. I'm sorry we're late and have kept you waiting."
Xing Zhaozhao smiled and shook her head: "No, I just arrived too."
After saying that, the group found seats and sat down in the same spots they had sat in when they first came here.
"The bronze mirror you asked Lao Wu to give me before is indeed a Tang Dynasty mirror, but unfortunately its condition is a bit poor and the decoration is ordinary. The price it fetched at auction wasn't high. After deducting all the fees, the final price is 50,000 yuan. Please count it." Knowing that Xing Zhaozhao only accepted cash, Mr. Lu had already withdrawn the money in advance, a total of 5 stacks, and handed it all to Xing Zhaozhao.
Xing Zhaozhao took the money and casually tossed it into the basket, saying with a smile, "No need to count it. I trust Mr. Lu's character."
After saying that, she gave each of them a portion of the remaining wild vegetables in her basket: "These are fresh wild vegetables that I picked from the mountains yesterday. Take them back and have a taste."
Mr. Lu accepted it without hesitation: "What a nice thing! I still remember the wild berries you gave me last time. If I hadn't happened to be visiting Old Wu that time, he would have kept mine for himself."
Zhou Huaixi sat beside him, looking mournful: "So, while I was away from the country, you took all my share for yourself. How shameless!"
Mr. Lu laughed heartily with satisfaction.
When Fu Hong returned after making the phone call, she was taken aback to see Mr. Lu and Zhou Huaixi sitting with Xing Zhaozhao.
Aren't those two the old gentlemen who had arranged to meet Qin Shi here before?
Fu Hong remembered that Qin Shi had repeatedly told her to notify him immediately if she saw Xing Zhaozhao, so she quickly called Qin Shi.
"I'll be right there. Try your best to hold her off and don't let her leave, Sister Hong," Qin Shi immediately instructed solemnly.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com