Their eyes met in mid-air, and they both sensed a kindred spirit in each other, which was quite unusual.
Hu Delu saw Lü Tu and waved to him, saying, "Lü Tu, wait a moment, I'll finish negotiating this distinguished guest's business."
Lu Tu laughed and said, "Alright, I'll go browse the market and come back later." With that, he turned and left the blacksmith shop.
Suddenly, he remembered that Song Yuxi and Nangong Huiyu had married him so inexplicably, and for so long they hadn't even exchanged any tokens of their love. In fact, the necklace he gave Song Yuxi was stolen from the White Lotus Sect.
Women may remain silent, but men cannot pretend not to know.
Thinking of this, Lü Tu led his horse toward a rather large jewelry shop.
A servant wearing a servant's hat immediately came over: "Sir, please come in. Are you here to have some jewelry made?"
"Is there one readily available?"
"Yes, sir, please sit down and rest for a moment. I'll serve you some tea."
The servant was very efficient and shrewd throughout, which made Lu Tu subconsciously curious about the shop. If even the servants were so capable, who exactly was the master?
At this moment, a servant led out a young girl from the back hall. Dressed in fine silk and satin, she was clearly a young lady from a wealthy family. She was also very pretty and charming, and Lu Tu couldn't help but admire her a few more times.
He assumed the other woman was also there to buy jewelry, but to his surprise, the young woman bowed to Lü Tu and said, "I am Wang Miaoling, greetings, sir. May I ask if you are here to buy finished jewelry?"
Lu Tu quickly stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "Yes, I want to buy two rings for my two wives."
Wang Miaoling nodded in understanding and led Lü Tu to the counter, where she immediately brought out a tray of jewelry, seemingly unafraid that Lü Tu might have malicious intentions and steal the items.
Lu Tu looked around and felt a little dizzy. He was an expert at appraising weapons, but looking at the exquisite craftsmanship that was no less than that of jewelry stores in his previous life, he really didn't know where to start.
Seemingly sensing his predicament, Wang Miaoling took out two rings, one large and one small, and said, "If you are giving these to both ladies at the same time, you can give these two."
Lu Tu shook his head: "No, they have to be the same size. My two are equal wives."
"A secondary wife? It seems the two ladies have truly found good husbands who are so devoted to them." Wang Miaoling's tone carried a hint of sarcasm. As a woman, she knew all too well how much grievance a woman had to endure to acknowledge another woman's status as a secondary wife. If it were her, she would never do it, even if she were beaten to death!
Lu Tu discovered that the jewelry made by Wang Miaoling's family was indeed excellent, which showed that some techniques are not necessarily advanced just because they are modern.
He picked out three identical gold rings and handed them over: "I want these three."
"A total of 100 taels of silver."
Lu Tu stared wide-eyed in disbelief: "These three rings are made of less than an ounce of gold, and you want to sell them to me for 100 ounces of silver?"
Wang Miaoling raised her proud chin and nodded, saying, "Logically speaking, these three rings should only cost 10 taels of silver, but our shop has a rule: if a couple is deeply in love, I can even sell them at a 90% discount, but for playboys, the price will be ten times higher!"
Lu Tu was speechless. He realized that Wang Miaoling might have been hurt by a playboy, otherwise why would she hate someone who takes a concubine so much?
“I have a deep and abiding love for both of my wives; I am not a playboy.”
Wang Miaoling directly dismissed him: "Young master, do not disgrace the words 'deep affection like the sea.' Why don't you go and see another place?"
This was the first time Lü Tu had suffered a setback in Wuchuan, and he never expected it to be because of a woman. Given his impulsive nature, he would have liked to slam the 100 taels of silver on the table.
But he had such a heavy burden on his shoulders that he couldn't afford to be so extravagant, and since the shop belonged to Wang Miaoling, the rules naturally had to be set by her.
He could only laugh awkwardly and say, "That's a real shame. I'll come to visit again when I've raised the money."
After saying that, he went out, picked up his horse, and left. The servant came to Wang Miaoling's side and advised, "Miss, doing business like this is ruining your reputation. Madam will be angry if she finds out."
Wang Miaoling snorted coldly: "All heartless men in the world are the same. My Wang family won't starve even if we don't make money off them! By the way, Lin San, be more discerning in the future. Don't just call me out with anyone and ruin my mood for the whole day."
"Yes, Miss." The servant Lin San awkwardly touched his nose.
When Wang Miaoling returned to the back room, the image of Lü Tu's upright figure still appeared in her mind, the elegant young man who had maintained his composure despite being rebuked by her.
To be honest, Lu Tu was so handsome that he seemed to have stepped out of a storybook, so it's no wonder that some women would be willing to humble themselves and let him take another wife.
But he could never compare to Xu Jing, who was much darker-skinned.
...
When Lü Tu returned to the blacksmith shop, he found that the man in white had already left, and Hu Delu, who had been so excited, was now sitting on his well-worn recliner, sighing.
Lu Tu asked curiously, "What's wrong, Lao Hu? Did your wife run off with someone else?"
Hu Delu knew that Lü Tu was joking, and rolled his eyes at him, saying, "Who in the entire Wuchuan market doesn't know that my wife ran off with someone eight years ago?"
Lu Tu was taken aback; he really didn't know. He cupped his hands in embarrassment and said, "I'm sorry, I've reopened your wounds."
Hu Delu chuckled: "That lazy old woman still wants me to cook for her every day, but actually I chased her away."
Seeing how ridiculous his exaggerated manner was, Lu Tu suppressed his laughter and asked, "I've come to discuss something with you today."
Hu Delu got up and tied on his leather apron: "Tell me what you want me to do? I'll get it done for you in two days, then you won't see me again."
Why?
Hu Delu was about to say something, but then shook his head and hesitated, saying, "I'm tired of blacksmithing. I want to sell my property cheaply and go south. You know I like slender and delicate women. I want to go to Jiangnan."
Blacksmithing is a family tradition passed down through Hu Delu's family. Can he just stop doing it whenever he wants?
Hu Delu used to be absolutely passionate about this craft, but after just one business deal with the man in white, he turned out like this. It's obvious that it was mostly the man in white's idea.
Lu Tu cut to the chase: "You should have said you liked slender women earlier. Come to our village, and I'll introduce you to a few."
Hu Delu glanced at him sideways: "Who doesn't know that your village is full of old, faded widows? How could you possibly have young wives?"
Lu Tu pounded his chest loudly: "I'm not lying, I can't have a son!"
Hearing this, Hu Delu could only smile wryly and say, "Thank you. Tell me quickly what kind of equipment you want to make. I won't charge you for this deal. If you ever think of me, Old Hu, just throw a cup of water and wine towards the south, and I'll be able to drink it."
If Lü Tu still didn't understand by now, he would have lived in vain. He grabbed Hu Delu's arm, which was about to swing his hammer, and whispered, "What happened? Tell me, and I'll help you solve it."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
