Chapter 15 I run a general store, not a pawn shop
After Jiang Ling finished her lunch, she reopened the wooden door.
Here, the moonlight shifts, and the sun rises.
It was already the next morning.
Blue sky and white clouds, the sun shining brightly.
The sun has finally come out!
The villagers of Jishui Village, carrying hoes and baskets, trudged along the muddy paths towards the fields.
The heavy rain has just passed, so we need to check if the crops have been affected. Some crops were knocked down, but if we straighten them in time, they can still recover.
As noon approached, the sun grew stronger.
The fields were sweltering, and the villagers, drenched in sweat, packed up their farm tools and prepared to go home.
Perhaps it was because of the signboard that the villagers finally discovered that a general store had opened there.
"Huh? When did a shop open in this old house?"
"That's right! This shop has been abandoned for decades, how come it suddenly reopened?"
"Old Zhang, do you know a few words? Can you tell me the name of this shop?"
Old Zhang had been studying since he was a child, and was a student in the imperial examinations, so he knew quite a few characters.
He failed the imperial examination for more than ten years and finally gave up, returning to farming.
He earns some extra money by writing letters and couplets for the villagers on a regular basis.
Old Zhang looked up at the signboard. The characters were easy to recognize, regular script with a touch of elegance, and the strokes were strong and vigorous.
"Auspicious General Store"
"Ji Xiang. This name is auspicious!"
"I wonder what this shop sells?"
"You're obviously unsophisticated. A general store naturally sells everything!"
"The shop looks shabby on the outside, but the interior is quite well-decorated."
Rural people, having never seen much of the world, dare not say anything strange for fear of being laughed at; they can only say it's particular.
They came out to farm, but they didn't bring any money with them, so they didn't dare go into the shop.
I could only peek out from the outside.
Jiang Ling, who was sitting at the counter, saw it all.
Since you've decided to do business, you naturally need to do some promotion and advertising.
She turned and walked to the refrigerator, taking out two large bottles of chilled plum juice. The transparent bottles shimmered in the sunlight.
They took a dozen or so disposable cups, filled them up, and carried them out.
Jiang Ling smiled and said, "Dear fellow villagers, my shop is officially open for business today. It's hot today, so I've prepared some chilled plum juice to help you cool down. It's free, so please come and have a taste."
The villagers were used to this behavior. After all, they all lived in the same village, and when someone opened a shop, they would inevitably invite their fellow villagers to come in, sit down, and have some tea.
However, the villagers were meeting Jiang Ling for the first time and were a little embarrassed.
"Then I won't be polite, thank you shopkeeper." The bold Aunt Zhao stepped forward first. She had been working in the fields all afternoon and was very thirsty.
With her as an example, several aunties who knew her also stepped forward and took a cup, saying, "Thank you very much, shopkeeper."
A cool sensation came from my fingertips!
Aunt Zhao exclaimed in surprise, "Eh!" and took a big gulp.
"hiss--!"
The moment the icy plum juice slid down my throat, it felt as refreshing as rain extinguishing a raging fire!
"Wow—this plum juice is so refreshing! It's as cool as snow water in winter, how do you do that?"
Wow! It's so cold!
"It's both sour and sweet, with a unique aroma! It's even better than Zhou Ji's in town!"
"This feels so good!"
I originally thought the chilled plum juice the shopkeeper mentioned was just boiled in well water, but I didn't expect it to have such a freezing effect.
Seeing that the older women had already started drinking, the other villagers stopped being so hesitant.
They stepped forward in an orderly fashion and took a cup.
Those who are particular will also say thank you and wish the shop owner a prosperous business!
Before long, all the plum juice on the tray was taken, and every villager at the door had a drink.
In an instant, exclamations of delight rang out.
Jiang Ling said with a smile, "It's sunny outside, folks, please come in and have a drink."
The villagers waved their hands.
Aunt Zhao said, "We just worked in the fields and are covered in sweat, so we won't dirty the shop's tables and chairs."
The villagers all chimed in.
"Yes, we were covered in mud and sweat."
"We need to go home and cook later, so we won't bother the restaurant any longer."
"Thank you for your kindness!"
Just then, a woman hurriedly carried something wrapped in burlap into the shop.
She was a woman in her early thirties, wearing patched coarse cloth clothes, with a pale face and red, swollen eyes.
She looked around in alarm, but dared not speak.
Jiang Ling went up to him, "Welcome to Jixiang General Store, sir. What would you like to order?"
The eldest sister pursed her lips, as if she had made up her mind, before finally speaking.
“My father-in-law was originally a craftsman at the official kiln, but he was expelled for making a mistake. This is what he got from the kiln… My family lives in Xianshui Village downstream, which was flooded a couple of days ago. My younger brother was rescued, but he caught a cold and has a persistent high fever. The doctor said that if his fever doesn't break today, there's no hope of recovery…”
As she spoke, the woman began to cry.
The villagers who were originally planning to go home stopped to watch the spectacle.
"I've heard that Baiyang Village and Xianshui Village downstream were flooded a couple of days ago. The dams were destroyed, and the houses were submerged. Quite a few people died!"
"Isn't the young wife from the Zhao family next door from Baiyang Village? I rushed over there early this morning. But I heard that her family was lucky; there were no casualties, only their house was destroyed."
"Luckily, our Jishui Village was located upstream, otherwise we would have been the ones flooded."
"I heard the flood came suddenly, and the military is involved in the rescue efforts?"
"That's because you don't know. That army was a grain transport army. They had just returned to the capital to report on their duties and happened to be camped at the foot of the mountain. That's why they were able to participate in the rescue in time when the flood broke out."
"It's a blessing that the villagers of Baiyang Village and Xianshui Village have encountered something like this. If it weren't for the army, the casualties would have been much more severe."
Jiang Ling listened for a long time but still couldn't understand what was going on.
"So, ma'am, what you want is..."
The eldest sister stopped sobbing and carefully lifted the burlap sack, revealing a celadon vase about half a foot tall inside.
"...Shopkeeper, I...I'd like to sell this vase to you to get some money...to buy medicine for my younger brother. Is that alright? I don't need much, just one hundred coins will suffice."
Jiang Ling was stunned, then gave an awkward smile: "But sir, this is a general store, not a pawn shop."
Treating this place like a restaurant is one thing, but why is it being used as a pawnshop?
Although she sympathized with the woman's plight, she couldn't really help her.
This blue and white porcelain vase looks nice, but she's not interested. More importantly, she has no money!
She had exchanged all the copper coins she had previously possessed, and now she only had one silver ingot left.
Aunt Zhao, who was outside the door, spoke up, "I'm telling you, Da Shan's mother, the shopkeeper is right. This is a shop selling goods, not a pawnshop. If you urgently need money, you should take it to a pawnshop."
"That's right, that's right."
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