Chapter 43 Selling Flowers
After Song Yushu finished running the restaurant, it was time for Zhou Chengyu to go to the academy to study. For convenience, the three of them moved from the Wei family home to live in town. Wei's mother and two sisters-in-law came to help because the Wei family's pork shop had not yet opened.
Song Yushu's restaurant business was booming for a while, and many families in the surrounding area followed suit and sold wild vegetable pancakes. After all, wild vegetables were not valuable and were something that could be picked up for free in the countryside.
However, this had little impact on Song Yushu's restaurant. Her restaurant had a wide variety of wild vegetables, and her qingtuan (green rice dumplings) were very popular, so many people were still willing to buy from her.
Moreover, compared to the small profits from wild vegetable pancakes, she was more concerned about whether grain merchants were delivering grain. Without meat and staple food, she could only make some snacks to sell and earn a little bit here and there.
Wei's mother and the others did not understand her current worries. Every day, she helped in the kitchen and was satisfied as long as she could sell the few dishes. After all, this year's situation was different, and it would be good if she could not lose money.
"Your eldest uncle is here! Go and invite him in for a seat!" Mother Wei took over her daughter's position selling wild vegetable pancakes at the door and asked her to greet Uncle Yang.
"Alright, I'll take my uncle out later, and I'll leave this shop to you," Song Yushu said as he went to the door to greet Uncle Yang.
Uncle Yang's name was Yang Su. He was tall and had a scar on his face, making him quite intimidating when he stood at the entrance of the restaurant.
"Uncle, you brought the orchid!" Song Yushu saw that he was carrying a big basket on his back. When he opened it, he saw that it was the orchid that had been transplanted into a flowerpot and was growing well.
"We just happened to hunt some wild game today, so your aunt urged me to bring the flowers down the mountain to see them too."
After selling his game in town, Yang Su would rush back home. Sometimes he would buy some necessities, but he rarely paid attention to other things. Today, he came here specifically to find out that the restaurant that was so popular on the street was actually run by his niece. If he hadn't seen Song Yushu come out of it, he wouldn't have recognized it.
"Uncle, try my cooking first, and then I'll take you to Chengyu Academy to ask their teacher if they'll accept you."
After Song Yushu led Yang Su inside to eat and drink his fill, he packed up the green rice dumplings and vegetable pancakes from the shop and stuffed them into Yang Su's arms.
"These are all meant to be sold for money. If I take them back, your grandmother will probably scold me," Yang Su said, knowing that there were quite a few things packed inside, and he felt a little embarrassed to accept them.
"No need for formalities among family. My maternal grandmother and aunt haven't tasted my cooking yet. Uncle, please come more often in the future. Once the food supply is normal, I'll cook some of my signature dishes for you!"
Song Yushu planned to cultivate a good relationship with the Yang family. If her uncle Yang hunted something good, he could sell her a share, giving her another source of goods. Moreover, her maternal grandmother and the others in the Yang family had treated her quite well, so getting closer to them wouldn't hurt.
Song Yushu drove the oxcart, bringing Yang Su and the food from the shop to the entrance of the academy.
After all, I'm just here to ask, and it's not certain whether they'll even buy orchids. It wouldn't be right to come empty-handed.
The gatekeeper at the entrance of the academy still remembered Song Yushu and greeted her before she could speak.
"Is Madam Wei here today to see the teacher or to do business?"
"Business is tough these days. I've come here today to ask the teachers at the academy for help. This is some new food from my shop. I'll bring some over for you to try," Song Yushu said, skillfully taking out a packaged food and handing it to the gatekeeper.
"Oh my! I'm in for a treat! Wait a moment, I'll go ask the teachers if they're available these days," the gatekeeper said, putting away the food and smiling even more sincerely.
Unfortunately, their timing was off; the academy's teachers were still giving classes, and only a servant was entertaining them in the Qingsong Hall.
Song Yushu had visited several times, but he had never noticed the orchid that Zhou Chengyu had mentioned. This time, he took a special look and indeed saw a pot of orchid placed next to the window, as well as several other pots of green plants that looked to be growing well, making Qingsong Hall more elegant than other places.
It seems her shop is still too monotonous. She should put some green plants out sometime to make it more pleasing to the eye, Song Yushu thought to herself.
The teachers hadn't finished their lessons yet, so they couldn't move around freely. They just sat in the reception area and waited. The maid who was serving them poured tea for them.
After drinking two cups of tea, the teachers from the school gradually returned.
"Is Madam Wei here to see Master Xue?" a teacher who recognized Song Yushu asked.
"No, it's not that. The main thing I wanted to ask you gentlemen for a favor is that a relative of mine dug up an orchid on the mountain. I don't know if it's good or bad, so I'd like to ask you gentlemen to take a look," Song Yushu said, handing out the wrapped food one by one before explaining his purpose.
"Quickly, take it out and let us see!" Upon hearing Song Yushu's words, the old scholars forgot about the food they were holding and became curious about the orchid she mentioned.
Seeing this, Yang Su took out the orchids from his basket and laid them on the ground for them to see.
"Wow! This Cymbidium goeringii is of excellent quality! Look at it, the leaves look glossy and feel thick and smooth to the touch, and the flower shape is also beautiful, with three tightly rounded petals..."
The scholars moved the potted orchid on the ground to the table and examined it closely.
"Madam Wei, is your relative selling this orchid?" one of the teachers asked, ignoring the other teachers who were still looking at the flowers.
"Well, we don't know what kind of orchid it is either. How much would you quote, Master?" Song Yushu pulled Yang Su aside and told him not to speak yet, so she could sound him out first.
"Fifty taels! If you sell it, I'll give you that amount!"
To be honest, fifty taels was already quite a lot, if those teachers behind me hadn't spoken up.
"I'll offer sixty taels! This orchid is much better than the one you have on the window. Don't embarrass yourself by offering fifty taels!"
"Hey! Why are you raising the price again!"
The teachers were arguing and making a fuss, so it was really impossible to determine who the buyer was for the time being.
"Sixty-five taels, I'll buy it," Xue Huai'an said as soon as he entered Qingsong Hall. He heard a commotion and saw Song Yushu standing to the side and the orchids on the table. He immediately understood what was going on and made a bid.
“Master Xue, a gentleman does not take what others cherish. You don’t seem to like orchids much, so why are you competing with us old bones for them?” The other teachers complained, displeased with Xue Huai’an’s unreasonable bidding.
"Several teachers are getting old, and arguing like this is bad for their health. I'll just buy it and display it in the Green Pine Hall for you to enjoy every day. Is that wrong?" Xue Huai'an looked at the old teachers who were arguing so fiercely with a half-smile.
“Ahem! We misunderstood you. Well then, since this orchid belongs to all of Qingsong Hall, we can’t let you, a junior, pay for it all. I’ll also contribute something.”
"Yes, yes, we're old, we won't take advantage of you."
"Gentlemen, we have two more orchids like these at home. Would you still like to buy them?" Yang Su was surprised that someone was scrambling to buy these orchids and that they were selling for such a high price. He immediately thought of the two orchids he had at home. If he sold them, his family could buy several acres of fertile land.
"What? There's more!"
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