Meanwhile, Madam Liang, who was focused on the fan, said, "Madam Hui, I really want one of these wonderful things. My husband is extremely sensitive to heat, and he would be very happy to have one."
Song Anxin was growing increasingly disliked Madam Liang, but she figured she might as well take the money that was offered to her.
She smiled and said, "Madam Liang, you can order it from me if you want. Such a large item costs about four taels of silver per unit, but this amount of money should not be much for Madam Liang."
Madam Liang paused, though this small amount of money was nothing to her. But as the wife of a sixth-rank official, the highest-ranking official in the area, shouldn't Madam Hui be fawning over her and giving her this gift? She, a sixth-rank wife, was already feeling stifled enough, having to find ways to get close to her every day.
Before Madam Liang could reply, Old Madam Qi said cheerfully, "It's wonderful that Madam Hui can sell these fans. I'll order five right away."
Madam Dai, the magistrate of Gaokai County, said, "Then I'll order the fourth platform. This thing is really incredibly refreshing."
"My family also needs four units."
"And my house..."
The other ladies also placed orders, as they certainly didn't want to miss out on such a wonderful item for cooling off.
The maids and servants of some of the ladies took out their deposits one after another, afraid that they would be too slow to place orders. Before long, Song Anxin had received orders for dozens of units.
Song Anxin was very satisfied with the money she had earned and asked Madam Liang, "Madam Liang, how many units do you need? Don't worry, we offer delivery, so you don't need to pick them up. Once the fans are set up, I will send someone to deliver them to your residence. Madam Liang, you can just wait at home."
No matter how aggrieved Madam Liang felt, she could only swallow it down; she couldn't ruin her husband's good deed.
"Then I'll take Wutai tea. No need for you to send it, Madam Hui. I'll come to Linjia Village to have tea with you and bring it back with me."
Madam Liang spoke in a straightforward manner.
Song Anxin was surprised. She had deliberately embarrassed her twice today, yet Madam Liang was still very warm towards her and even wanted to come to Linjia Village to see her again?!
Afterwards, a group of ladies and young women chatted and drank tea while enjoying the breeze from the fans until almost evening before setting off for their return. Everyone was very happy to have received new items today, and Mrs. Liang was especially delighted.
As they left, Song Anxin and Madam Lu lagged behind. Madam Lu whispered to Song Anxin, "Madam Hui, I'm too old to get involved in things, but I still want to tell you, Madam Liang is usually so arrogant. This is the first time she's been so eager to please someone. I'm afraid..."
Madam Lu stopped there.
Song Anxin was also aware of this. At first, she thought that Madam Liang was just hospitable and easy to get along with, but compared with others, Madam Liang was simply too enthusiastic towards her.
The wife of a dignified sixth-rank official had actually come all the way to her house, and considering she had deliberately tested Madam Liang's reaction today, Madam Liang was definitely acting strangely. But she couldn't understand what Madam Liang was after. No, it should be said, what was the Lord Liang behind her after? She was just a seventh-rank lady with no real power.
However, she was very grateful that Madam Lu had reminded her.
"Thank you for your reminder, Madam Xie Lu. I will be careful."
Madam Lu patted her hand and got into the carriage. She really couldn't bear to see such a talented woman as Madam Hui get involved in some power struggles. She wondered what the Liang family was up to.
After seeing off the ladies and young women, Song Anxin went to her elder brother and sister-in-law's house.
"Oh my, sister-in-law, you're really something! You can earn so much money just by having tea with some ladies and young misses."
Sister-in-law Lin held the deposit of more than ten taels of silver in her hand and kept praising it.
Looking at the orders, Brother Lin said, "Fengnian, you designed this fan and you brought in the orders, so you can take half of the profits."
“Yes, sister-in-law, we can’t take advantage of you. We should split the money between our two families,” said Sister-in-law Lin.
Song Anxin knew that her older brother and sister-in-law were honest, so she nodded: "Okay, brother and sister-in-law, let's do this fan business together. But I can't take 50%. My brother has been doing all the work, cutting down trees and planing wood. Let's split it 20/80."
Upon hearing this, Sister-in-law Lin immediately said, "Sister-in-law, why can your family only contribute 20%? Without your design, your brother can't make anything. This won't do, this won't do!"
After several rounds of refusals, Song Anxin insisted on taking only 30%, and Brother Lin and his wife had no choice but to give up.
Now that they were going to start selling these fans, Song Anxin and Brother Lin worked together to develop several different models.
The largest model of fan is pedal-operated, which is suitable for restaurants and shops. It is also the most expensive, costing six taels of silver. There are also smaller models that ordinary people can afford, costing only two hundred coins. There are also mini fans that can be easily carried in your hand, costing only ten coins.
Unsurprisingly, fans are very popular, and almost everyone in the county town has a mini fan in their hand.
Meanwhile, after returning to the Liang residence, Madam Liang excitedly went to the backyard to find her husband.
"Master, Master, Madam Hui has made another rare item!"
Lord Liang, who was practicing martial arts, immediately stopped swinging his spear and asked:
"What is it? It is a powerful tool that benefits all people, just like a waterwheel."
Madam Liang immediately stopped her excitement and waved her hand, saying, "No, it's something called a fan. There's a hand crank on the side, and it automatically blows air when you crank it."
She was quite satisfied with the fan, so she added, "This fan is incredibly refreshing. I ordered several of them to help you cool down, Master. Aren't you most afraid of the heat?"
Lord Liang snorted: "I thought it was something that made you so happy. The owner of this trivial item would definitely not want it. You go and continue to find out from Consort Hui."
Madam Liang's face immediately fell.
“My lord, what kind of nonsense is it for the wife of a sixth-rank official to pester a seventh-rank lady every day? That’s not all, she doesn’t even give me face to keep my appointment. Today I went to Lin Family Village and I was humiliated. I’ve been here for so long and I’ve never suffered such humiliation. Every lady here treats me with utmost respect.”
"I think you're just used to being arrogant and haughty. You can't even be trusted by a lowly lady like Madam Hui." Lord Liang glared at her, both annoyed and helpless. He waved his hand and said, "Never mind. Didn't you go to that Lin Family Village? Take a few more clever maids and servants with you next time. Have them ask around among the servants in Madam Hui's residence. They're bound to find out something."
Time flew by and it was already July. The rice in the fields had begun to sprout and flower. Song Anxin remembered that at this time last year, her family was still watering the rice until dark.
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