Chapter 177: Selling Embroidery
Editor: Atlas Studios
Steward Zhu, who had run over, heard this and hurriedly said, “Miss Mu, since it’s already noon, at least stay for lunch. General should be back soon.”
Mu Yangling shook her head. “I have to make a trip to the embroidery workshop and rush back before nightfall. I definitely can’t delay any longer. Steward Zhu, you don’t have to be so polite.”
Seeing that Mu Yangling was about to leave, Steward Zhu hurriedly got someone to get some food from the kitchen and stuffed it into her hand. As he sent her out, he said, “Then take these to fill your stomach. When you come to the prefectural capital in the future, remember to come to the General’s Residence.”
Steward Zhu knew that the three masters of the Qi family treated this lady differently, so he did not dare to be negligent.
When Qi Xiuyuan returned, Steward Zhu reported Mu Yangling’s matter and asked, “Young Master, that little wild boar is still alive. How do you think we should prepare it?”
Qi Xiuyuan smiled and said, “That’s rare. Keep it for now. I’ll invite a few people to try it tonight. By the way, prepare a birthday gift for Mrs. Qin. I’ll bring Haoran and Zijin to celebrate her birthday with her.”
The emissary’s mother’s surname was Qin. She came to the office with the emissary, but the emissary’s wife and children were left in the capital as hostages. From this, it could be seen that the emissary was filial to his mother, so Qi Xiuyuan paid a lot of attention to this matter.
Steward Zhu started to worry. “I’ve been thinking about this for the past few days, but I haven’t been able to find anything suitable. Mrs. Qin is from the south and likes refined and exquisite things. We have no problem finding things like ginseng, lingzhi, or precious fur in Xingzhou Prefecture, but where can I find refined and exquisite things?”
Qi Xiuyuan couldn’t help but stop in his tracks. In the end, he waved his hand and said, “If you can’t find it in Xingzhou Prefecture, go to Xingyuan Prefecture to take a look. There’s still a month to go. Take your time.”
Steward Zhu agreed and asked, “Aren’t you going to keep this little wild boar until Fourth Young Master and Young Master Zijin return? Fourth Young Master will definitely like this.”
Qi Xiuyuan smiled and said, “Do you think he won’t receive one as well? Since Ah Ling gave one to me, I’m certain he won’t receive any less than us since he lives nearby.”
Noticing the change in the way Eldest Young Master addressed Miss Mu, Steward Zhu could not help but rejoice that he was sufficiently polite and warm to Mu Yangling just now.
After leaving the residence, Mu Yangling went straight to Brocade Workshop. Previously, she had already asked the shopkeeper of Brocade Workshop and he had given her an estimate of about 100 taels of silver. Mu Yangling felt that it was alright. At least, it was not much different from what her mother had said and could be discussed.
However, the shopkeeper of Brocade Workshop was someone else this time.
Mu Yangling looked at him curiously for a while but did not ask where the previous shopkeeper had gone. After all, no one knew if this shopkeeper had any conflicts with the previous one.
The shopkeeper opened the embroidery and looked at it for a while. He placed it on the counter and said to Mu Yangling, “This is good stuff with exquisite embroidery skills. How about this? I’ll give you 20 taels. How about that?”
Mu Yangling’s eyes widened. The shopkeeper thought that she was shocked. After all, 20 taels of silver was a huge sum of money in this remote village.
Unexpectedly, Mu Yangling shouted, “20 taels? Shopkeeper, did you make a mistake? Not 200 taels?”
The shopkeeper’s expression froze. He flung his sleeves and said, “Miss, are you playing with me? What embroidery is worth 200 taels of silver? Have you gone crazy from thinking about money?”
Mu Yangling sized him up and carefully put away the embroidery before turning to leave.
Realizing that he had met someone who knew the market price, the shopkeeper’s face turned slightly ashen. He originally thought that she was a young lady who did not know anything, but who knew…
Seeing that she was about to leave, the shopkeeper stopped her. “Miss, wait. Since you’re not satisfied with 20 taels, we can increase the price slightly.”
Mu Yangling turned around and said, “Shopkeeper, you sure like to joke. This is double-sided embroidery. Even if you increase the price by a lot, I can’t sell it at such a low price, let alone a slight increase. In short, are you going to give me an honest price? If not, I’ll go to the next shop.”
The shopkeeper gritted his teeth and said, “I’ll pay 50 taels, how about that? It’s 10 taels more than double the previous price.”
Mu Yangling pursed her lips and asked, “Then do you know how much the shopkeeper offered me previously?” At this point, Mu Yangling didn’t care if she would offend him. As this person was too cunning in doing business, Mu Yangling decided not to interact with him in the future if there was no need.
With an ashen face, the shopkeeper sized up Mu Yangling and snorted coldly. “Young lady, the previous shopkeeper was fired by the boss because he didn’t handle things properly and committed a crime. The price he offered you might not be right. 50 taels of silver is already not a small amount. Don’t you know what kind of territory this is? Who in the entire Xingzhou Prefecture would use such a refined and unique screen? It’s still unknown if it can be sold after framing it.”
“Perhaps it might fetch 200 taels in the south.” The shopkeeper said, “But it has to be framed. Do you know how much it costs to frame this screen? The frame has to be made of excellent wood. Good quality wood is sold according to weight. How heavy must the wood be for such a huge screen?”
Mu Yangling sneered. “Shopkeeper, don’t lie to me. Although I’m young, I’m knowledgeable. Before I came, my mother specifically mentioned to me that this embroidery can’t be sold for less than 150 taels. If it’s framed, even if it’s only sent to Xingyuan Prefecture, it won’t be a problem to sell it for 500 taels of silver. In Xingzhou Prefecture, it can fetch at least 300 taels of silver. Even if you’re using top-notch wood, the cost of that plus craftsmanship definitely won’t exceed 50 taels of silver. You can use sandalwood, but can you buy it?”
The shopkeeper’s face immediately darkened. If it were any other businessman, they would probably immediately give in. However, this shopkeeper was clearly not as tactful as other businessmen. He immediately flicked his sleeves and said, “It’s fine if you don’t want to sell it. Hurry up and leave.”
Mu Yangling, who originally wanted to buy embroidery threads, decided not to buy them here now. She turned around and left.
It wasn’t as if Brocade Workshop was the only embroidery workshop in Xingzhou Prefecture.
However, the other embroidery workshops were not as big as Brocade Workshop, so they were not as confident. The highest bid was only 80 taels.
If it was in the past, Mu Yangling might have considered the difference between 80 and 100 taels. But now, she would calculate that 20 taels of silver was enough for Bowen to attend school without any worries for two years, enough for four months worth of food therapy, or enough living expenses for Bosi and Kejia till they reach the age of three…
In short, she could not back down on the 20 taels of silver.
After buying embroidery threads from an embroidery workshop, she went home with the embroidery.
When Mu Yangling returned home, Xiuhong had called Qi Haoran and Fan Zijin over like she had asked. Shu Wanniang was cooking dinner in the kitchen, and Qi Haoran was playing with the children in the courtyard. She didn’t know what Qi Haoran was teasing Kejia with, but Mu Yangling could hear Kejia’s angry cries from afar.
Fan Zijin was standing in the vegetable field at the back asking Great-aunt some questions, so he did not notice that Mu Yangling had returned.
However, when Qi Haoran heard the sound of the cart, he looked up and met Mu Yangling’s angry eyes. He hurriedly picked up her sister and placed her on the ground properly. He said with his hands behind his back, “I didn’t tip her over.”