Chapter 292 A Look He'd Never Seen Before
Previously, Jiang Nuanzhi thought fifty taels of silver was a large sum of money. But now that she has spent it, she realizes that money is never enough when you need it.
Putting aside other things, just take the bricks and stones for the new house. They ran out of bricks and stones, so she ordered a batch of large, sturdy bricks and stones to build the outer courtyard wall. The wall was much higher than a normal wall, and the courtyard was large. The bricks and stones alone cost more than fifty taels of silver.
Jiang Nuanzhi had the windows in the new house made of glass that had been burned. They were even double-glazed.
It should be called glazed glass. In fact, wealthy families in Shengjing have already started using glazed glass for windows, but it is still very rare here.
The process of firing glass was very rudimentary, and the resulting glass wasn't very transparent, but it was still much better than paper. Jiang Nuanzhi went all out on the windows, even commissioning blacksmiths to make custom window frames. The doors were also specially made and thickened. The outer doors were also custom-made iron doors, taller and thicker, the kind that were airtight.
These items alone cost more than five hundred taels of silver. She was even trembling slightly when she spent the money. Luckily, she had earned five hundred taels of silver by chance, otherwise she would have been strapped for cash long ago.
In comparison, the custom-made wooden furniture she ordered—bedding, desks, wardrobes, and the like—was much more cost-effective. She found a very famous carpenter in the city to measure and customize it in her house. At that time, the concept of custom-made furniture didn't exist, and she was charged normal silver. A whole house would only cost four or five taels of silver. However, her new house had too many rooms. The whole thing cost her about sixty-odd taels of silver.
It has to be said that home renovation is a huge money-burning undertaking. Once you see something nice, you want even better. Who would have thought that she only spent ten taels of silver to buy the house, happily assuming that even if the renovation cost more, it wouldn't be much different? But who could have imagined that the money would multiply several times over?
Thinking of this, Jiang Nuanzhi couldn't help but sigh softly.
Since autumn began, the ointment business hasn't been as good as before. This is largely due to the taxation this year, which has reduced the number of merchants traveling between the shops. Consequently, fewer people are spending large sums of money on wound medicine. After she delivered the five hundred bottles to Old Master Lü, he only ordered two more orders of two hundred bottles each, earning her a little over a hundred taels of silver in total. The goods delivered half a month ago are still not all used up in the shop.
The whitening and freckle-removing cream from Huayue's side is selling quite well. When there were many merchants, it would sell out in the blink of an eye if taken to Gu Kuicheng. But now there are hardly any merchants to be seen, the streets are desolate, grain prices have risen sharply, and people almost always stay indoors when they have nothing to do. Sales are also a problem.
The whitening and freckle-removing cream that Jiang Nuanzhi made came in a large bottle; it would take three months to finish one. The ladies and young women of Liujiang Town were indeed using it, but they were using it up much more slowly. Their income was also significantly less than before.
Recently, the clinic has been seeing patients from the surrounding villages. Traveling back and forth doesn't bring much money to the villagers, and Jiang Nuanzhi offers fair prices, so the money she earns is also quite reasonable.
A while ago, Jiang Nuanzhi was thinking of selling two of the pieces of jewelry that Li Rong had given him to get more money to supplement the family income.
But those things were made too exquisitely, so exquisitely that even someone like Jiang Nuanzhi, who didn't know much about jewelry, could tell at a glance that they were very valuable.
Good heavens! These are all antiques! If she were to sell them just like that to make a living, she would regret it so much that she would wake up in the middle of the night and slap herself twice.
Fortunately, Li Rong was quite helpful and sent her more than 800 taels of silver at this time, which came in very handy.
As Li Rong said, this winter is not going to be peaceful. She's thinking of ordering some more iron hooks to be made on the wall of the new house to prevent ordinary people from climbing over it. She also wants to order curtains, as well as the thick curtains commonly used in the north to cover windows for insulation, from the fabric shop owner.
Upon closer inspection, there's still the clothesline to be installed at the new house, and there are also the weapons Li Rong mentioned needing to make. Furthermore, Jiang Nuanzhi has been making many house calls lately, and the various medicines are being used up quickly. It's best to replenish all the medicines before winter arrives, and stock up as much as possible. Firstly, medicine prices tend to rise in winter. Secondly, Jiang Nuanzhi's current shortage of medicinal herbs makes her feel uneasy.
I initially thought eight hundred taels was a lot, but after holding it in my hand and weighing it, I inexplicably felt a bit anxious. But the immediate problem is solved.
After the New Year, Ping'er will be taking a minor exam. There will be many places where money will be needed.
In his previous life, Ping'er didn't participate in the regular entrance exams. He was a student of the Imperial Academy, the kind of student who donated money to obtain the qualification to take the exams.
I heard Lord Feng mention a while ago that the Imperial Academy in the capital has the qualification to directly participate in the imperial examinations. However, to get in by donating money, you need at least ten thousand taels of silver.
Jiang Nuanzhi prayed that Ping'er would pass the exam smoothly, as this would not only change her own fate but, more importantly, Jiang Nuanzhi's. Otherwise, where would she find ten thousand taels of silver for him?
"Auntie Nuan, Auntie Nuan!"
Just as I was lost in thought, I suddenly heard a voice outside that sounded like it was crying.
Jiang Nuanzhi frowned, stood up, dried her hands, and went out to check.
Xinbo, blinking his eyes, followed closely behind, a candied hawthorn skewer dangling from his mouth, and went out the door as well.
"Man'er, what's wrong?"
As soon as they stepped outside, they saw Fu Man limping back with a basket in her arms. Her little face was red from the cold in the wind and snow, and tears streamed down her cheeks. Behind her followed Xie Liangchen, dressed in a blue robe with a cold expression.
"Auntie Nuan... Waaah... I'm so sorry."
Upon seeing Jiang Nuanzhi, Fu Man felt even more aggrieved and guilty, sobbing as she said, "I...I failed to protect our Yuli."
Jiang Nuanzhi rushed over and took her things, tears still clinging to her flushed face. "Don't cry, it's okay. Tell Aunt Nuan what happened."
Fu Man sniffed: "I went to deliver firewood to the new house and saw Wang Mazi and a few other guys from the village acting suspiciously in our field. I went up to call them, and they started cursing and trying to hit me. I twisted my ankle in the scuffle. It's all my fault for being useless; I lost so many jade grains. If I hadn't run into Brother Xie, who knows what those people would have done. Aunt Nuan, I'm sorry, it's my fault."
As Fu Man spoke, her eyes instantly filled with tears again.
Jiang Nuanzhi pulled the little girl into her arms, hugged her gently, and patted her back: "Okay, don't cry anymore. It's okay, Aunt Nuan doesn't blame you. You've done very well."
Fu Man is overly consumed by internal conflict. I often hear her blaming herself. This child must have experienced poverty before, which gives her an unusual obsession with food.
She sighed, "Silly child, remember to protect yourself next time. If you can't beat someone, learn to run first. Aunt Nuan will get revenge for you, understand?"
Xie Liangchen was momentarily stunned as he listened to Jiang Nuanzhi's gentle coaxing of Fuman. This was a side of Jiang Nuanzhi he had never seen before.
His gaze lingered on her rosy lips for a moment before quickly shifting away. He lowered his eyes in annoyance, took a deep breath, and forced himself to remain calm, saying, "I... I just happened to be passing by and saw Wang Mazi and his gang bullying people. I couldn't stand it, so I chased them away. However, they squandered some of the jade seeds you planted."
(End of this chapter)
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