Speaking of this, Hong Erniang felt her heart was bleeding. The shopkeeper of the embroidery workshop had just sent someone to inform her a few days ago that prices had increased. All embroidered items would have to be charged an extra ten coins on top of the original price.
Hong Erniang was so angry she almost spat out a mouthful of blood. These days, who doesn't want to make more money? There's only one embroidery workshop in the entire Changning Town, but there are dozens of fabric shops of all sizes.
With these increased costs, her shop simply lost its competitive edge.
Hong Erniang looked at He Tiantian with some suspicion, "Do you have any finished products? Let me see them." She couldn't just go for the cheapest option and not care about the quality.
He Tiantian shook her head. This was a spur-of-the-moment idea of hers; she hadn't prepared much for it.
"Hmph, why should I believe you if there's no finished product!" Hong Erniang pretended to drive the customer away.
"Hey... wait a minute." He Tiantian clung to the door frame, refusing to leave. "How about this, I can buy the half-finished products in your shop first, and then come back to exchange them for money after I finish embroidering next month, is that okay?"
The mine's oxcart only comes to town once a month, and He Tiantian didn't want to miss this great opportunity.
After thinking it over, Hong Erniang decided it was feasible. After all, the person had paid for it, so she wouldn't lose out no matter how well the embroidery turned out.
"Okay, I'll make it clear beforehand: if the embroidery is very poor, I won't accept it, and I won't refund the money!"
“Okay, then I have one request. You have to keep it a secret when I get the goods from you, and you can’t subcontract them to anyone else,” He Tiantian demanded.
If the other women in the village knew about this, they would definitely contact the shopkeeper directly, and there would be no need for her, the middleman.
"Hmph, that brat is really clever." Hong Erniang glanced at He Tiantian disdainfully, then turned around and took out a stack of unfinished embroidery pieces from the counter.
"Here are thirty handkerchiefs. The finished products from the embroidery workshop cost thirty coins each, totaling nine hundred coins. You said you only wanted half, so the wages are four hundred and fifty coins."
Hong Erniang quickly turned the abacus in her hand and continued, "We'll charge these semi-finished products thirty coins each, so you'll have to leave one tael of silver with me as collateral. I'll return it after I inspect the finished products next month."
One tael of silver… He Tiantian felt a pang of heartache. She steeled herself and took out one tael of silver from her purse. “Then you have to give me a receipt. We need some kind of proof.”
When you're out and about, you shouldn't trust strangers too much.
Hong Erniang sneered again, glancing at her, "You're one who never suffers a loss." But she still turned around and went to the counter to write a receipt.
"Let me make this clear beforehand: if I'm not satisfied with the embroidery, don't blame me for not refunding your money."
Hong Erniang held a tael of silver in her hand. Although she looked sullen, she was secretly overjoyed.
No matter how you look at it, she got the better deal. If only there were more suckers like He Tiantian.
He Tiantian held the receipt in her hand and glanced at the name on it: Hong Erniang from Yunshuipu.
After coming out, she carefully folded the receipt and placed it in her bosom. Seeing that the appointed time was approaching, He Tiantian quickened her pace towards the city gate.
When they arrived at the city gate, He Tiantian saw that the oxcart was already piled high with freshly bought vegetables and other items. Erhua's mother and several other women were squatting to the side, cracking melon seeds and chatting.
When Erhua's mother saw He Tiantian coming over, she scattered the sunflower seed shells in her hand and said with dissatisfaction, "Why are you so late? We've been waiting for you for ages."
"Excuse me, I went to buy some household items." He Tiantian was carrying a package containing a handkerchief she had taken from her second aunt's shop.
She kept it tightly tucked in, so even if the women around her wanted to look, they couldn't figure out what was going on.
The small oxcart became even more crowded after being loaded with goods. Erhua Niang, Zhao Yanniang, and several other women, all with large breasts and plump hips, took up even more space!
"Hey... move over a bit, just leave me a small spot."
"Oh dear, sister-in-law, my butt is sore from being squeezed like that. There's a board right next to me, how could I possibly crush it?"
He Tiantian sat among the group of women, so squeezed that she felt like her bottom wasn't even touching the ground. She held her breath, afraid that she would be pushed off if she took another breath.
The oxcart slowly made its way back along the same route. When it was quite a distance from the city gate, a woman suddenly shouted in He Tiantian's ear.
"Hey, aren't we missing someone? Where's Widow Zhang? Where did she go?"
He Tiantian was so shocked that she almost went deaf. It took her a long time to recover before she realized that Widow Zhang was indeed not on the bus.
"Yes, did Widow Zhang say she would come back in an oxcart? It's such a long way, how can she come back without an oxcart?"
"Why are you worrying about this? Maybe she has a lover in town. She's just staying here for a while."
"Haha, yes, yes, you're right, Erhua's mother."
The women's initial worry turned into schadenfreude. He Tiantian didn't want to gossip, so she remained silent.
The oxcart didn't arrive at Changfeng Mine until almost noon. He Tiantian and Erhua's mother unloaded all the cabbages and radishes they had bought from the cart.
When she finally finished cooking and getting everything done, Erhua's mother quickly packed her things and prepared to leave.
Before leaving, she glanced at He Tiantian, who was still wiping the stove, and asked with dissatisfaction, "Wanzi's mother, why aren't you leaving yet?" She was already done and still hadn't left, which made it seem like she was slacking off.
If the person in charge here sees her, will she still be able to continue working here?
He Tiantian wrung out a black rag in her hand, glanced up at Erhua's mother standing at the door, and said, "Oh, I'll be done wiping soon, I'm leaving right away."
Erhua's mother muttered something under her breath and quickly walked away.
Once she was sure Erhua's mother was far away, He Tiantian stopped what she was doing. She planned to talk to Director Song about whether she could bring both children with her when she came to work; she was really worried about leaving them at home.
Director Song's office was not far from the kitchen. While the entire Changfeng Village was filled with thatched houses and mud-walled dwellings, this place was home to houses with blue tiles.
Moreover, the house has a very spacious layout, and it looks very grand from the outside.
When He Tiantian arrived at the door, she saw Mo Zhu standing outside.
She stepped forward tentatively and asked, "Is Director Song here?"
Mo Zhu smiled and said, "So it's Sister He. The adults are in the office, so I'll go and inform them."
In this era, women with children are often addressed as "sister-in-law" as a sign of respect. He Tiantian felt that although she was only twenty-three years old, being called "sister-in-law" so often made her feel like she was thirty-two.
Oh well, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
Song Yun ate well and was in a good mood. He couldn't understand why, even though it was the same radish and cabbage, He's cooking made it taste so much better.
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