Chapter 9 Sandalwood Comb Set
When we got home, there was still some light on the horizon.
Using the remaining daylight, the three of them organized the things they had bought that day, putting what should be put in the cupboard and what should be hung on the beam in the baskets hanging there.
After tidying up, Guo Baiwen was carrying his precious wicker basket back to his room when he heard Xiao Hua peek out from the kitchen and call out to him, "Brother, Grandma boiled hot water today. I'll call you in to wash up after I'm done."
"knew."
Hot water is useless. Now that the weather is cold, the Guo family can't have hot water for bathing every day. In the past, they would just mix a little hot water with cold water until it wasn't too cold to the touch, then use a cloth dampened with water to roughly wash their bodies, and use the remaining water to rinse their feet.
Grandma Guo thought that since everyone had been to the market all day, and it was crowded, it was inevitable that there would be some body odor. She decided to boil some hot water so that everyone could have a good bath.
After responding, he carried the basket back to his room. Xiaohua lived with her grandmother. He carefully closed the doors and windows before taking out some non-perishable items from the system's warehouse.
First, there were the two bottles of shower gel and shampoo. He had originally intended to open them and use them, but before even opening them, he smelled that fragrance. Helpless, he took two large pieces of broken tile, squeezed out a little from each, and mixed them with a lot of water and wood ash used for bathing in rural areas, until it formed a dark, bean-like mass. Only then could he faintly smell a tiny, barely perceptible fragrance before he stopped and placed the tile pieces on the table.
He carefully tightened the remaining shower gel and shampoo, and took out the woolen hat he had drawn from the sign-in lottery in the warehouse a couple of days ago. After covering the two bottles with the hat, he placed them flat in the wicker basket, and then placed the bags of white rice he had drawn on top of them, stacking them neatly on either side.
The wicker basket was big enough that it was only half full after all these things were put in it. To cover up the rice, Guo Baiwen put a few old clothes in the basket and then put the lid on the basket and dragged it to his bedside.
After tidying up these things, four more slots in the system's inventory became available. He wiped his hands on the hem of his clothes before pressing the sign-in button for today.
[White peppercorns seasoning, 50g bottle x1]
【A pair of sandalwood combs】
500g of dried white fungus
After many days, he finally drew dried white fungus again.
However, it hasn't been long since Guo last sold white fungus. If he's been running around too frequently, it's easy for people to suspect the source of the white fungus he has.
Therefore, he planned to wait a little longer, at least until after the New Year, before he could pretend to have received the item by chance and go to Manager Li with it.
He knew about pepper, and there was a legend in ancient times that an ounce of pepper was worth an ounce of gold, but he also knew that was ancient times he knew from his previous life.
He didn't know which dynasty he was in, so he wasn't sure if these peppercorns could still fetch a good price. After thinking for a moment, he took a cloth bag and put all the peppercorns into it. The bottle for peppercorns was glass, just like the soy sauce bottle.
He planned to take it with him when he took a shower later, soak it in hot water, scrub it thoroughly, and wash off all the labels so he could take it with him to ask about the price.
This is also a novel version of buying the box and returning the pearl.
I was lucky today; the things I got from checking in were all good items that can be directly exchanged for money.
Compared to peppercorns and glass bottles, Guo Baiwen valued the sandalwood comb set more. Sandalwood is precious, and even ordinary families who were doing well could afford one for a wedding or as part of their dowry, and because of its valuable material, the comb was also meant to be passed down to future generations.
This explains the origin of these combs better than anything else.
Guo Baiwen planned to first take the pair of combs to a pawnshop in the county town to test the waters, and then, once he had enough money, he would see if he could rent a house in the county town.
Although Guojia Village is not far from the county seat, it is located in the mountains with many narrow paths. Oxcarts can only stop at the village entrance, and people mostly have to rely on carrying heavy loads in and out using baskets on their backs. Over time, this has caused problems with their backs, knees, and other back muscles.
Besides, the village is still too small; everyone sees each other all the time.
He had just made braised pork belly with preserved mustard greens and eggs that night, and the next day, neighbors came to ask what delicious food he had made the day before. The aroma was so strong that his children didn't want to sleep until midnight.
Grandma Guo didn't mention that her family had bought pork, as everyone was struggling financially and only ate meat two or three times a year. She only said that a little lard had been added to the steamed eggs, but even that was praised as a sign of a good life.
Guo Baiwen knew that the villagers didn't really have any bad intentions. He was already feeling very tired from secretly hiding the system from them, and he didn't want Grandma Guo and Xiaohua to be like him, having to hide anything good they ate.
Although the households in the county town are quite close to each other, it's not like people would come and ask about something as simple as using lard or eating steamed pork with eggs.
As for the two and a half acres of land at home, he plans to rent it out before spring planting after settling down in the county town, and then collect some rent from the farmers during the autumn harvest based on the previous year's yield.
The grain collected as rent can be used to pay taxes, or taxes can be paid directly with silver. It's also acceptable to keep the grain for one's own consumption.
When he has more money in the future, he will buy more land and rent it out. That way, even if he does some small business in the county town, he will still be a farmer because of the land quota he has.
He learned this news a few days ago while sitting on a small stool with Grandma Guo during a farmer's lecture in the village.
Even though most of the farmers who came to give lectures in the evenings were experts in farming and spoke eloquently about planting and fertilizing, appearing quite authoritative, when talking about the wealthy farmers and landlords living such lives, their words and hearts were still full of envy.
They didn't need to work hard every day; they only needed to collect rent on time, and their lives were still better than the rich peasants'. The rich peasants could eat white flour buns three times a day, and the landlords could even eat chicken, duck, fish, and meat every day in different ways. To the villagers who still relied on the weather for their livelihood, such a life was something they couldn't even dream of; it was the best life ever.
Guo Baiwen wanted Grandma Guo and Xiaohua to also live such a good life.
He had just finished packing the things he needed to take with him the next day when he heard Xiaohua's voice coming from the courtyard, "Brother, the hot water in the kitchen is almost cold."
"Here it comes, here it comes."
Grandma Guo knew he was going to the county town today, so she gave him a few more instructions before he left in the morning, telling him to take a detour around the chess club when he saw it.
We must never end up like Old Man Guo, who went in and never came out.
She genuinely felt that her son resembled his father, fearing he might follow in his father's footsteps.
Guo Baiwen found it somewhat amusing, but seeing his grandmother's serious expression, he didn't dare to laugh. He simply nodded a few times before heading to the county town under her watchful gaze.
Since I had already been here once before, I was able to leave much faster today.
Once inside the county town, Guo Baiwen had a clear goal and headed straight for the street where the pawnshop was located. He straightened the hem of his clothes at the pawnshop entrance, wiped the mud off the soles of his shoes on the bluestone slabs of the street, and then carried his basket into the shop.
There weren't many people in the shop, and pawnshops don't have business every day. Guo Baiwen noticed a young shop assistant sweeping dust off the antique shelf with a feather duster. Behind the wooden lattice of the counter sat an old man who looked drowsy, his eyes almost closed.
It's not even noon yet.
Guo Baiwen muttered to himself, and after seeing that he almost bumped his head on the wooden fence in front of him again, he finally spoke up loudly: "Shopkeeper, I'm here to pawn something."
It would have been better if he hadn't made a sound, because once he did, his head, which had barely managed to bump into him, immediately slammed into the ground.
'hiss--'
The sound was so crisp that it made Guo Baiwen's teeth ache just listening to it.
The pawnshop owner wasn't having an easy time either. His drowsiness was completely gone, but he grimaced and started rubbing his reddened forehead. His voice, coming from the folds of his clothes, was a little muffled, but clear enough to be understood: "You little rascal, what good stuff are you planning to pawn?"
Although his tone was flat, Guo Baiwen sensed the implication that "if you don't have anything good to wake me up, you're finished."
I should have struck up a conversation with the young man earlier.
There's no turning back now that the arrow has been released. Guo Baiwen took a deep breath and took out the set box containing two combs from his basket.
The outer box is also made of wood and decorated with mother-of-pearl patterns. Although the patterns are only on the four corners and the area is not large, it looks like something valuable inside the box.
The shopkeeper stopped rubbing his temples. He rubbed his eyes, became interested, took out a handkerchief to wipe his hands, and then reached out to take the wooden box.
He held it in his hand and turned it around to look at it. "This box looks nice, but it's a pity that the wood is just peach wood, which isn't very good. The only thing that shows some craftsmanship is the butterfly and mother-of-pearl inlay pattern on it."
It's true that there are some skills involved. After all, mother-of-pearl is made by modern technology and machines. Cutting a shell into more layers can increase its value. Ancient manual tools could not make mother-of-pearl so thin, and the patterns could not be made without breaking it.
Although he thought this in his heart, he put on a sorrowful expression and wiped away the tears that had not yet fallen from the corners of his eyes. "It's also because my family has fallen on hard times. Otherwise, such a good item would never have been pawned."
The shopkeeper has seen at least five hundred, if not a thousand, customers like this in his pawnshop. Some are genuinely from impoverished families, while others are unfilial descendants who have racked up debts from eating, drinking, and having fun.
Ignoring Guo Baiwen's words, the shopkeeper opened the wooden box again and found a pair of sandalwood combs inside, one with a long handle and the other a large crescent-shaped comb.
The comb's teeth and surface are smooth and delicate, and there are decorative patterns engraved on the back of the comb. Together with the wooden box used for packaging, it must have been a fine item used in a wedding in the family.
He picked up the comb again and smelled it; it was indeed sandalwood.
Although they are not the finest rosewood or ebony, which are good woods used by the wealthy and powerful, these two are made of relatively rare green sandalwood, which has a faint fragrance.
The box, along with the two combs, is considered to be in relatively good condition.
After closing the box, the shopkeeper looked Guo Baiwen up and down, and without waiting for him to speak again, directly quoted a price.
A note from the author:
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Yesterday seemed to be Qixi Festival (Chinese Valentine's Day). Although it's a day late, I wish everyone a happy Qixi Festival! [fireworks]
I have something to do tomorrow, so I'll be taking a day off. I'll be updating as usual on Monday. Love you!
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