Before parting, Dong Wu told Lin Xue and the other person about his identity; he was a constable from Linzhou Prefecture.
If Lin Xue and the others encounter any trouble in Linzhou Prefecture, they can go to the prefectural government office to find him.
After seeing Dong Wu and his companion off, Lin Xue greeted Lao Ma and asked him to come pick them up in ten days.
Presumably, Lao Ma should have enough time to pick up people and travel to Donglin County once during this period.
This way, it won't interfere with Lao Ma's earnings, and the two of them can feel more at ease taking a familiar person's carriage back home.
After Lin Xue and the others arrived in Linzhou City, there were still a few days before the exam. During these days, Huang Dehai studied at home every day, while Lin Xue took care of his three meals a day.
Once Huang Dehai was taken to the examination hall, meals would be prepared by designated staff, so students did not need to bring their own food.
Of course, the meals weren't free; for the seven-day exam period, you had to pay two ounces for food.
At this time, regardless of family background or the gap between rich and poor, everyone ate the same things.
After seeing Huang Dehai off to the examination hall in the morning, Lin Xue took the embroidery to Jinxiu Pavilion, which she had inquired about beforehand!
"Hello, are you here to buy or sell embroidery?"
As soon as Lin Xue stood in front of the counter, a middle-aged woman with a gentle face came up to talk to her.
"Shopkeeper, could you tell me how much this embroidery is worth?"
Lin Xue first took out her first embroidery piece, an integrated version of plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums.
"This design is elegant and refined, full of natural beauty; it will surely be loved by scholars!"
"Look at the embroidery. This must have been done by an experienced embroiderer with over ten or twenty years of experience."
"The stitching is so meticulous, the layout is so clean, and the needlework is so unique and distinctive! I have never seen such amazing embroidery skills anywhere else!"
"Madam, the embroidery you brought can be rated as excellent. We can offer 80 taels of silver. I wonder if this satisfies you?"
Lin Xue calculated in her mind that she had spent a little over three taels of silver on materials for this integrated version of plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo and chrysanthemums, and then spent a month embroidering it.
The other party offered 80 taels, which was actually quite a lot.
"Then please take another look, shopkeeper, and tell me what price I can offer for this one?"
Lin Xue then took out a set of embroidery from her bundle. This set of embroidery depicted four seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter. It was specially made for creating a modular screen.
"The embroidery technique of these four pieces is the same as that of the previous plum blossom, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum piece, so it seems they were made by the same person!"
"Because these four paintings are more complex, and the embroidery seems to have improved, I can offer 100 taels of silver!"
The female shopkeeper saw two such exquisite embroidered pieces at once, and her smile became even gentler.
Fortunately, she stayed in the store all day and didn't go out to chat with the neighbors, otherwise the sales would have fallen into the hands of someone else.
You should know that for each piece of this high-end embroidery, there is a huge commission.
If someone else in the shop received these two embroidered pieces, then their commission would have to go to that person. Even though she was the shopkeeper, she would only get a small portion of the profits.
What could be better than keeping all the rewards in your own pocket?
"Madam, 180 taels is already a very high price for these two works from our Jinxiuge Pavilion. I can guarantee that no other place in the entire Linzhou City can offer a higher price than us!"
The female shopkeeper's words were not untrue, after all, she had her eye on Lin Xue's embroidery skills, regardless of whether the embroidery was made by Lin Xue herself or by someone behind her.
It's always beneficial to have a good relationship with people like that.
After all, their Jinxiu Pavilion is in the business of embroidery.
Some customers are very demanding and have a lot of requirements.
Embroidery work like that is very difficult to do, but if someone with the skill of the owner of this embroidery, like Lin Xue, were to do it, then their Jinxiu Pavilion could earn a lot more money.
"Selling it to your esteemed establishment for 180 taels is no problem, but I wonder if you could give me some needles and thread as an extra gift!"
Lin Xue knew that what the other party said was true, after all, she had gone in and looked around when she passed by other embroidery shops before.
Although I didn't bring my own work with me, I did see other people selling their embroidery.
The price, in terms of quality, was indeed 20-30% lower than what the female shopkeeper offered.
"No problem, our Jinxiu Pavilion has the most complete selection of embroidery threads in the entire Linzhou City."
"Madam, you can bring your new works to our Jinxiu Pavilion to sell in the future. I guarantee that the price we offer will be the highest in the entire Linzhou City!"
When the female shopkeeper heard Lin Xue agree, she quickly took out 180 taels of silver and placed it on the table, and then took out a whole set of embroidery thread from the side and placed it on the counter.
These embroidery threads were pre-packaged and intended for experienced embroiderers like Lin Xue.
This set of embroidery thread would cost ten taels of silver if sold separately, because it also includes gold and silver threads.
Although it accounts for a small percentage, these are all good things.
"Thank you very much, boss. I wonder what kind of embroidery is popular lately, and which type can fetch a high price?"
As far as Lin Xue knew, truly valuable embroidery pieces could sell for thousands of taels of silver.
These two paintings are certainly not worth much in her own hands, but they could fetch double or triple the price if sold through Jinxiu Pavilion.
However, that's someone else's connections and skills, something Lin Xue can't envy; she can only watch others make money.
"Madam, the two sets of embroidery you brought are quite nice. They have auspicious meanings and well-chosen patterns. If done properly, they could fetch a high price!"
"Madam, we are all embroiderers, as you know, good embroidery can only fetch a high price if it meets a good buyer."
Take your painting of plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums, for example. Under normal circumstances, we'd sell it for a little over 100 taels of silver. But if someone really likes it, they might buy it for over a thousand taels!
"So it's really hard to say what the price of embroidery is; it mostly depends on fate!"
After listening to the shopkeeper's words, Lin Xue roughly understood that selling fashion items was similar to gambling.
Crafts like Lin Xue's, which are sold to Jinxiuge, are priced according to the craftsmanship they produce.
However, if they were to sell them, the prices would vary greatly depending on the needs of different customers.
Finally, Lin Xue simply bought some high-end embroidery fabric at Jinxiu Pavilion.
She only buys the best materials, because only in this way can her embroidery fetch a high price.
If you're just buying ordinary fabrics, then even if the embroidery is excellent, the price will still have a floor, and it won't go much higher.
With 180 taels, in a place like Huangjia Town, you could buy two or three small shops like Huangji Restaurant.
In Donglin County, you can probably only buy two houses at most, and that's probably not enough! If you buy one house, you might still have some left over.
If it were in Linzhou Prefecture, then you could only buy the worst kind of shop with a remote location and a narrow space.
And it's the kind without a backyard, just a separate little house.
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