Chapter 86 Jade Radish
Grandmother Jia hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Since that's the case, then if the Chief Clerk asks you, just answer like this. If he dares to make things difficult for you, I know a few people, and we're not afraid of him!"
Yuan Hongqu was slightly moved. When did Grandmother Jia start protecting her as well?
Just as she was wondering, she heard Grandmother Jia say again,
"What you said last time was right: do good deeds and don't worry about the future."
This sentence explains why she helped Yuan Hongqu.
It seems that Grandmother Jia took Yuan Hongqu's words to heart last time.
Yuanyang led Yuan Hongqu to the main hall of Rongxi Hall, where Jia Zheng was entertaining guests. Upon seeing Yuan Hongqu arrive, he hurriedly said...
"Teacher Yuan is here. This is Chief Secretary Li of Prince Zhongshun's residence, who would like to invite you to Prince Zhongshun's residence."
Li Changshi has already told Jia Zheng about what happened in front of the Lin residence last time; it was all a misunderstanding.
I've come to the Rongguo Mansion today for two reasons: first, to apologize, and second, to invite Teacher Yuan back.
Although Jia Zheng was a bit confused about some things, Li Changshi looked arrogant and didn't seem to be sincerely apologizing. However, after hearing Jia Zheng order someone to go and ask the old lady to invite Teacher Yuan over, the corners of Li Changshi's mouth clearly turned up.
Clearly, this was his main purpose for the trip.
As soon as Yuan Hongqu entered, she saw the chief secretary sitting below Jia Zheng.
Upon seeing Yuan Hongqu enter, Chief Secretary Li was overjoyed, finally seeing her in person.
If they had known it was this easy, why did they do so much work?
Although Yuan Hongqu was a woman, Chief Secretary Li did not dare to underestimate her in the slightest.
They didn't make a single move, yet they've been causing chaos at Prince Zhongshun's residence for half a year. Even now, Prince Zhongshun has to lie before we can finally see the true face of Yuan Hongqu.
If you're going to put on an act, you have to go all the way. Since the prince has told this lie, if they expose his act, he'll probably tear them to pieces.
"Mr. Yuan." Chief Secretary Li rose and bowed respectfully.
Yuan Hongqu accepted his bow steadily. Regardless of whether what he said was true or false, if the original owner of this body was their young lady's teacher, she would accept this bow!
She returned half a bow and began to speak.
“Chief Secretary Li, I have taught many students over the years, and I did not know which one of them was a daughter of the Prince Zhongshun’s family. Now that I am the Lin family’s governess, it is very inconvenient for me to see my former students again.” Yuan Hongqu blocked this path before Chief Secretary Li could speak.
Then he added,
"If your young lady doesn't mind, she can come to the Rongguo Mansion for a visit and meet her junior sister."
She refused to believe that the Prince Zhongshun's Mansion would allow their daughter to come to the Rongguo Mansion!
As long as they aren't afraid of arousing the Emperor's suspicion due to their close ties with the Four Kings and Eight Dukes, Yuan Hongqu would dare to receive him if he dared to come!
Li Changshi was in a dilemma. Their Prince's Mansion didn't have many young ladies, and even if they did, they couldn't come to the Rongguo Mansion to play...
The Prince Zhongshun's Mansion and the old-fashioned mansions of the Four Princes and Eight Dukes were not on good terms. Their family belonged to the newly rich, and the Emperor would deal with the Four Princes and Eight Dukes sooner or later. Their family could not afford to get involved.
"Since that's the case, then it's not appropriate to force you. Mr. Yuan looks somewhat familiar. May I ask if you have a small shop on Ningrong Street that sells radishes and vegetables produced on the estate?"
Li Changshi felt it was better to go straight for the kill. Yuan Hongqu seemed like a capable person, and if he spoke frankly, he might have a better chance of winning.
"Yes, we'll sell some leftover vegetables from the estate. Has your family taken a liking to this shop?"
When Yuan Hongqu heard Li Changshi ask this question, she already knew what was going on.
The claim that she is a student of the Prince Zhongshun’s family is just a cover-up!
The real reason is probably that they couldn't buy coconuts and jackfruit last time!
When Li Changshi saw Yuan Hongqu's reply, he was secretly pleased. It seemed that he had guessed correctly. When dealing with Yuan Hongqu, being straightforward was indeed more effective.
"Sir, do you still have the jade radishes that you used to sell in your shop? Ever since my old lady ate the jade radishes, she refuses to eat any other fruit, she only wants to eat these jade radishes! The ones we had at home are all gone."
"Um, Lord Chief Secretary, what is a jade radish? I don't remember the shop ever selling such a thing." Yuan Hongqu really didn't know that the last batch of fruit radishes would be named "jade radish".
Li Changshi wondered if he had made a mistake.
"Teacher Yuan, what Chief Secretary Li is referring to should be the fruit radish. When this kind of radish first appeared, it was called the fruit radish. Later, more and more people liked to eat it, and this radish was eaten in many different ways..." Jia Zheng was quite clear about this matter.
It is said that two scholars, one rich and one poor, have taken a fancy to the same courtesan.
The wealthy man spent lavishly, bringing over a jade carving to make his beloved smile.
Since the poor family had no surplus money, they used the green radish to carve a plump green peony.
Unexpectedly, this green peony won the heart of the beautiful woman.
After this story spread, the fruit radish became known as the Jade Radish, and the fruit radish in the shop was snapped up as soon as it was put on the shelf.
After hearing Jia Zheng's explanation, Yuan Hongqu harbored deep doubts:
This modern marketing approach really feels like something I would use.
However, she always sold things in her shop by chance, and she never used any marketing methods.
That courtesan, ignoring the real jade, insisted on taking a fake peony carved from a radish. I wonder if she regrets it now?
"I didn't know there was such a story." Yuan Hongqu's voice was indifferent, showing no joy whatsoever from the best-selling jade radish.
“Mr. Yuan, the jade radishes are only sold in your shop. I wonder if you still have any in stock? Could you give us some?” Li Changshi hurriedly asked.
"How many does Chief Secretary Li need?" Yuan Hongqu asked. She said her family's estate still had so many radishes; she'd heard they'd been gradually collected and stored in the cellar over the past few days. Roughly speaking, it should be tens of thousands of jin (5,000 kg).
Upon hearing this, Chief Secretary Li was secretly delighted. It seemed that Yuan Hongqu still had quite a few of these jadeite radishes!
“I’ll take as much as Mr. Yuan has!” he declared on his own initiative.
Li Changshi hadn't expected things to go so smoothly. He had only thought about inviting Yuan Hongqu and then carefully investigating the jade radish, but Yuan Hongqu had skipped that step entirely.
Yuan Hongqu thought for a moment. She knew she had to sell all those radishes. It didn't matter who she sold them to. Since Chief Secretary Li had come to her door, selling them to him wasn't out of the question. The only question was, what price should she offer?
Seeing that Yuan Hongqu was deep in thought and silent, Chief Secretary Li became a little anxious, fearing that something else might happen, and quickly said...
“Mr. Yuan, the jade radishes are not what they used to be. I will buy them all for one tael of silver each.”
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