Tang Baozhu and Li Jun went straight into the county town, and to their surprise, it was incredibly lively. There were many farmers on both sides of the street bringing their own homegrown produce.
Even though she had witnessed such a lively scene before, she still felt a strong liking for it after so many years.
If she hadn't brought so many embroidered handkerchiefs that she hadn't yet delivered to the embroidery workshop, she really would have liked to go and take a look.
"Brother Li, it's so lively here! Let's go to the embroidery workshop first, and then we can stroll around again when we get back."
Li Jun was protecting her from the crowd. There were so many people around that he was afraid she would get hurt. Hearing what she said, he didn't refuse.
"Okay, I remember a pastry shop that has really good pastries. I'll buy a lot for Baozhu later, I promise you'll love them."
Tang Baozhu had eaten all sorts of delicious food, and even had a stock of pastries made by the imperial physician in her spatial storage. However, seeing how enthusiastic he was, she didn't refuse.
The two bypassed the crowded area and arrived at the embroidery workshop. The female shopkeeper inside was no stranger to Tang Baozhu.
Although the little girl's skills weren't great, she still submitted many embroidery pieces. Moreover, she was quite pretty, so she left a deep impression on me.
As soon as Tang Baozhu entered, the shopkeeper greeted her warmly, his attitude as always.
Shop owners who can manage a store have exceptionally high emotional intelligence; business people believe that harmony brings wealth.
"Baozhu, it's been a long time since you last came. What happened that kept you from coming?"
Upon hearing this, Tang Baozhu immediately thought of her scholar father and gave a forced smile. "My father passed away two months ago, so I haven't been in the mood to do embroidery."
The shopkeeper was also unaware that it was because of this. "Baozhu, I'm so sorry, I didn't know your father had passed away."
After saying that, she sighed. She was quite familiar with Tang Xiucai. Every time Baozhu came to deliver embroidery, it was Tang Xiucai who delivered it.
It's clear that he dotes on his daughter, so it seems that Baozhu must have been very sad during this time.
"Sister Hong, how can I blame you? Besides, you didn't know about this. I came here to deliver my embroidery. I think the embroidery skills have improved this time, so I'm going to take a small screen to try it out. Take a look at my embroidery, does it meet the requirements?"
Tang Baozhu and the shopkeeper were very familiar with each other, and they addressed each other intimately, calling each other "Baozhu" and "Hongjie".
Hongjie was initially a little hesitant, after all, Baozhu's skills were still far from being good enough to embroider a screen.
Looking at the handkerchiefs that were delivered, I was surprised to see how much progress they had made in the past few months. At first, you could tell that their embroidery was quite immature, but it gradually got better and better. They can now embroider not only small screens, but even large screens.
"Baozhu, you must have received guidance from a master, right? Your skills are so good now. You can embroider not only small screens, but also large ones."
As Sister Hong watched the embroidery work progress, she realized it was getting better and better. In the end, she found it to be no worse than her own skills, and it seemed she had struck gold.
Based on my relationship with Baozhu, I don't need to worry about being poached by someone else. A good embroiderer is not easy to cultivate.
"As long as Sister Hong is satisfied, then could you tell me what kind of embroidery I should accept?"
Although Tang Baozhu felt that her skills were quite good and she planned to make a living from embroidery, she should continue to hone her skills even further.
She didn't even mention whether her skills had been taught by a master. Even if she said no, she wouldn't believe it. Besides, the person in charge has changed, so why bother?
She's prepared to dedicate her life to embroidery and calligraphy.
“Baozhu, don’t worry. I have an order from the magistrate’s family. The magistrate’s mother is about to turn 60, and the magistrate’s wife wants to order an embroidery of Guanyin to please her. Since your craftsmanship is so good, I’ll entrust this job to you.”
Sister Hong took out the embroidery ordered by the county magistrate's wife from inside the counter. The fabric and embroidery thread had already been prepared, so she could just put it away and take it home to embroider.
“Baozhu, would you like to open it and take a look? This embroidery is quite large, but because of the tight schedule, we only have three months. I wonder if you can complete the task within three months? If not, I’ll be looking for someone else.”
Although they had a good relationship—in fact, she had a good relationship with all the embroiderers—if she couldn't finish the embroidery, she would definitely find someone else. This was a matter that would damage her reputation, so she couldn't be careless at all.
Tang Baozhu opened it and took a look. It was about 1.5 meters long and 1 meter high. The pattern was Guanyin sitting on a lotus platform, with two children beside her.
Three months is a bit tight, but if we work overtime, we can still finish the embroidery.
"Sister Hong, don't worry, I will definitely finish the embroidery within three months. I just don't know how much it will cost after it's finished?"
Tang Baozhu definitely wanted to find out the details. If she worked herself to the bone for three months and the money was too little, then it wouldn't be worth it.
Sister Hong glared at Baozhu and said, "Don't worry, when have I ever let you suffer a loss? This screen is quite long, and we were in a very tight time, so the magistrate's wife offered a pretty high price. After deducting what the embroidery shop is entitled to, you can get ninety taels of silver, which is quite a lot."
She would receive ninety taels of silver, which would be split equally between the embroiderer and the workshop. Therefore, the wages for this embroidery alone would amount to one hundred and eighty taels of silver, which was not a small sum.
"Sister Hong, I'll accept this embroidery. Thank you for thinking of me."
Sister Hong could say it's because you're lucky. The county magistrate's wife just left, and you came over. Plus, your embroidery is decent. It doesn't matter who you give it to, right? She certainly couldn't say that. So let her think that it's good that she's thinking of her.
Hongjie took out thirty taels of silver from the drawer where the silver was kept and handed it to Tang Baozhu. "Baozhu, this is the deposit. Keep it for now, and give the rest when you deliver the embroidery."
Tang Baozhu didn't stand on ceremony; it was what she deserved. "Thank you, Sister Hong."
The two chatted for a few more minutes, then, seeing that she had business to attend to, they said goodbye.
Li Jun didn't utter a sound from beginning to end, but he was worried that the embroidery was so big that he wondered if Baozhu's eyes could handle it.
As for how much money he could make, he didn't care. He had bought a small estate with more than 200 acres of land, which would definitely be enough to support Baozhu.
He did want to tell Baozhu not to work so hard, and there was no reason to stop her. He hoped that after they got married, Baozhu wouldn't have to do these embroidery pieces anymore, so as to save her eyesight.
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