Chapter 51 Departure to Changxing County
The owner of the cloth shop was a woman in her thirties. She heard the laughter before she saw anyone.
“Thank you for your kindness in looking at the clothes in our store, but the four taels of silver are really not enough. It’s not possible to make that much profit in a small business.
How about this, five taels of silver, and I'll give you a few more handkerchiefs, and two bags of scraps of cloth from the shop, what do you think?" said the shopkeeper.
As the saying goes, "the higher the price, the lower the price." Li Wanqing also felt that it was still a bit expensive, so she said, "Four taels and five qian of silver, but I want three packages of cloth."
The shopkeeper lowered his head and thought for a moment. Although he felt a little pained, in order to close the deal, he nodded and said, "Okay, young lady, you really know how to buy things? I really won't make any money selling it at this price.
But never mind, I'll just consider this as making friends with the young lady."
"The shopkeeper is very generous. I also want to buy some cloth. You have to give me a lower price." Li Wanqing didn't really think that the shopkeeper was not making money. It is better to know how to sell than to know how to buy. The shopkeeper would not do a business that does not make money.
The shopkeeper didn't expect that this young lady was so generous that she bought so many ready-made clothes and also needed to buy fabrics.
This is a big customer, and he must attract a main customer. He immediately said: "Don't worry, young lady, I will definitely give you a good discount."
"I want one piece of this dark blue muslin, one piece of navy blue and one piece of white, one piece of navy blue and one piece of light blue coarse cloth.
Shopkeeper, I'm buying so much, so you have to give me a discount and give me two more packages of cloth." Li Wanqing said, looking at the cloth on the counter.
In the end, Li Wanqing spent a total of twenty-one taels of silver and left the cloth shop with the shopkeeper's warm smile.
After buying the fabric, the two went to the grocery store and bought a lot of oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and seasonings, which are commonly used household items.
Li Wanqing also asked Gu Yan to buy a few pieces of oilcloth. Li Wanqing was afraid that the thatched house at home would leak when it rained in the summer, so she wanted to be prepared in advance.
For dinner, the two of them found a random restaurant and had a bowl of noodles each. Then they returned to the inn to rest.
The next morning, Gu Yan and Li Wanqing got up early. They were going to the provincial capital, so they took advantage of the cool morning to set off.
I didn't stop to have breakfast, but bought a few meat buns to eat, and then went to the pastry shop to buy two pounds of osmanthus cake to fill my stomach if I got hungry on the way.
The carriage left the county town and headed south. There were not many pedestrians on the road at this time, and most of them were in horse-drawn carriages, with only a few pedestrians walking.
Gu Yan sat on the shaft of the cart, facing the rising sun, feeling the breeze, chewing a meat bun, and feeling very happy.
Li Wanqing was also in a good mood. She took out the scraps of cloth she had received from the cloth shop yesterday and started to choose.
Although they are just pieces of cloth, some are half a foot in size, but most are still the size of a palm.
Don't underestimate these scraps of cloth. They are also useful things for farmers. The larger ones can be used to make shoe uppers or clothes for children.
The smaller ones can be used to make paper clips or to make shoe soles. Anyway, they are all good things.
The shopkeeper probably really wanted to keep Li Wanqing as a repeat customer, so he chose mostly large pieces of cloth for her.
Li Wanqing now picks together those with similar colors and sizes.
It's boring to ride in a carriage anyway, so having something to do can help avoid boredom.
I didn't stop for lunch, just ate some sweet-scented osmanthus cake to fill my stomach.
Finally, they arrived at Changxing County, the closest county to Fuyuan County, in the evening. After entering the county, they first found an inn to stay in. They handed the carriage to the waiter and asked him to pull it to the backyard to feed the cattle.
After entering the room, they asked the waiter for hot water, washed up, and went out for a walk on the street.
They didn't plan to stay here for long. After selling the prey tomorrow, they planned to continue to the provincial capital.
Now I just want to go out for a meal and find out which restaurant has reasonable prices.
Although it was evening, there were still many people on the street. Gu Yan took Li Wanqing to find a stall selling steamed buns and noodles, sat down and ordered two bowls of noodles.
Then, taking advantage of the free time of the noodle seller, I pretended to chat and asked, "Uncle, how's business? I see the street is quite busy."
The uncle who was cooking noodles was also a guy who liked to chat. When he saw Gu Yan talking to him, and since he was free now, he came over and sat at the table next to Gu Yan and the others.
"Hey guys, you're not from this place, are you? Your accent sounds like you're from Fuyuan." The uncle asked instead of answering.
"Uncle, you have good hearing. We are indeed from Fuyuan County. We passed by here and wanted to rest for a night.
We could smell the aroma coming from a long way off, and we followed the scent and found your noodle stall." Gu Yan was also good at talking, and the uncle was beaming with joy after hearing these words.
"Don't look down on my noodles. They are cooked with bone soup. Drinking the soup and then eating a mouthful of noodles is very comfortable.
Most of my customers are regulars, but there are also many people like you who come here because of my reputation." The uncle is very satisfied with his noodle stall that supports his family.
"That's because you have good cooking skills and are willing to spend money. Uncle, we came here and wanted to try some local specialties. I wonder which restaurant makes the best food?" Gu Yan said.
“There are many delicious foods in Changxing County, and donkey meat hotpot is a must-try.
There is also the roasted venison at Linjiang Tower and the nine-turn large intestine at Chunfeng Tower, which are also famous for their deliciousness.
But I heard that the owner of Chunfenglou is a bit mean and not very nice to the waiters and chefs.
A few days ago, I heard that the chef at Chunfenglou was about to quit. I wonder if he's still employed now?" The uncle spoke of this in a very logical manner.
“It seems to be gone. I passed by Chunfenglou yesterday and heard the guests inside cursing and saying that the Nine-Turn Large Intestine was not authentic.
The customers who came to eat noodles nearby also joined in the conversation.
"If you ask me, Chunfenglou will be doomed sooner or later. I heard that the owner of Chunfenglou has taken in a new concubine, and this new chef is the concubine's brother.
The original Chef Zhang was forced out by the concubine, just to make room for her brother."
"Didn't they say that the owner of Chunfeng Tower married into the family? How dare he take a concubine?"
"The restaurant's proprietress only gave birth to two daughters. I heard she took a concubine in order to have a son."
"What? I heard that this concubine is Zhang's widowed cousin, and they had an affair before they got married."
"I heard that Zhang and his cousin had a son, and then the daughter of the old restaurant owner fell in love with Zhang. In order to climb up the social ladder, Zhang abandoned his cousin and became a live-in son-in-law.
It is said that his cousin stayed at home for a year, gave birth to a son, and then got married after she finished her confinement.
"And the child?"
"I've given it away, so where else can I go?"
…
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
