I Picked Up a High-Maintenance Mistress for Famine-Fleeing and Farming 17

Chapter 17: Selling Gold and Hoarding Goods

After borrowing an ox-cart from the village, Liu Yunhe changed into the only beautiful outfit she had left.

She wore a water-pink, half-length, thin blouse with embroidered edges over a white tube top with a subtle peony pattern. Below, she had on a spring-green, silk-cotton, hundred-pleated skirt, tied at the waist with a fully embroidered palace tassel, and a pair of exquisite, thick-soled embroidered shoes.

She ran towards the ox-cart with light steps, looking more delicate and beautiful than the most vibrant flower of August. With sloping shoulders and a willowy waist, her figure was graceful and slender. Her hair was half-up in a tasseled topknot, with just a pair of small silk flower hairpins on either side. Her long, beautiful hair danced in the wind behind her. Every movement, every expression was picturesque.

“How much do you trust me, to dress yourself up like such a delicate flower? Aren’t you afraid of being kidnapped on the road?” Zhang Muchun looked at this celestial fairy who seemed so out of place next to their dilapidated little house, suddenly afraid she wouldn’t be able to protect her.

“Ah? We might run into bandits on the road?” Liu Yunhe hadn’t considered these problems. She only knew that for some time to come, she wouldn’t have another chance to wear this kind of dress. Because on this trip, she planned to buy many long-sleeved shirts and trousers to keep in reserve.

“It’s fine, I was just joking. Get in the cart. You’d look the same even if you were wearing a burlap sack.” Her milky-white, lustrous skin was just too eye-catching, especially in this small mountain valley. Sometimes, when she got too close, Zhang Muchun’s teeth would itch.

“Okay.”

Zhang Muchun drove the ox-cart, while Liu Yunhe sat inside on a small mattress, looking at the green crops on both sides, her mind preoccupied.

They arrived in town at noon. They found a pawnshop, and with Liu Yunhe in the lead and Zhang Muchun behind, the two of them strode in.

“Young Miss, are you here to pawn something?” a shopkeeper of about forty asked, bowing slightly, his eyes sizing them up.

“Naturally, I’m here to pawn,” Liu Yunhe said, meeting his gaze with an imposing air, looking more like a young lady who had come to buy goods.

“Oh, since you’re here to pawn, what is it you wish to sell?” The shopkeeper was momentarily confused.

Liu Yunhe turned and gave Zhang Muchun a look. She understood immediately and respectfully took out the gold bracelet.

“Looking at you, Young Miss, you don’t seem like someone short on silver. Why the thought to pawn something?” the shopkeeper asked, a routine question.

“It’s rather embarrassing to say. An elder in my family is celebrating a birthday, and I wanted to give a valuable gift. But I’m used to spending freely and haven’t saved much. I have plenty of bracelets like this, but very few silver notes,” Liu Yunhe said slowly, her tone casual.

It was the first time Zhang Muchun had seen her acting be so superb; it was as smooth as flowing water.

“May I ask which estate the Young Miss is from? Perhaps this old man has heard of it,” the shopkeeper probed.

“You’re being awfully long-winded. A person like me who cares so much about face would naturally not pawn something at my own doorstep. If you don’t dare to accept it, I’ll just find another shop. It’s not like gold is hard to sell,” Liu Yunhe said, lifting her chin and giving the shopkeeper a haughty look.

A beauty is beautiful even when angry. The shopkeeper didn’t get angry at being rebuked.

“Does the Young Miss wish for a temporary pawn or a permanent sale?” This time, he was more direct.

“A permanent sale. It’s nothing rare, so I won’t be coming back to redeem it,” Liu Yunhe said, waving her hand nonchalantly.

“Very well.”

“This gold bracelet weighs exactly four taels. According to the current market price, I can offer you thirty taels. What do you think?” the shopkeeper asked, testing her.

At this, Zhang Muchun, who hadn’t spoken a word, reached out and snatched the bracelet back, her movement so fast the shopkeeper didn’t even see it.

“Young Miss, this is a crooked shop. Let’s find another one,” she said, about to pull her away.

“You girl, what are you talking about? Who’s a crooked shop?” the shopkeeper glared, instantly displeased.

“The market price is ten taels of silver for one tael of gold. You’re shorting us ten taels right off the bat, and you say you’re not a crooked shop? May I ask what the shopkeeper’s monthly wage is? Are you trying to earn half a year’s salary from a single transaction?” Zhang Muchun’s eyes were even wider than the shopkeeper’s as she stared him down, full of imposing momentum.

“Young lady, I’m running a business here, I have to make a profit. If I really exchanged it at the market price, wouldn’t I be doing charity? I have a family to feed as well.”

“That may be so, but for you to try and deduct a quarter of my Young Miss’s silver from the start is truly not very honorable.”

“Alright, alright. Business is all about give and take. The most I can offer is thirty-five taels of silver. If you two are still not satisfied, then this old man won’t keep you,” the shopkeeper said, seeing that these two weren’t easy to fool. He gave them his highest price directly.

Zhang Muchun looked at Liu Yunhe, who gave a slight nod.

“Fine. Thirty-five taels it is,” Zhang Muchun said, slapping the gold bracelet firmly back onto the counter.

“Good. Please wait a moment, you two. I’ll go get the silver.” With a profit of five or six taels, the shopkeeper’s smile returned.

The two stood on the street, clutching the silver, wondering where to splurge first.

“Let’s go. We’ll find a ready-made clothing store and buy some clothes first,” Liu Yunhe said. Having a tailor make new clothes would take too much time. She didn’t know how much time she had to prepare, and there was still so much to do, like sending a message to Liu Yanzhu to warn her to make plans.

“I have two sets of clothes, that’s enough. You don’t need to buy any for me,” Zhang Muchun stated.

Liu Yunhe ignored her.

They went to an old, established clothing store. The moment they entered, they were greeted by all sorts of fabrics and a dazzling array of beautiful clothes.

“Young ladies, what style of clothing are you looking for? My shop has the most complete selection on the whole street. Anyone who comes here is a discerning customer,” the proprietress said. She seemed steady but had a sharp tongue.

Liu Yunhe looked around but didn’t see the style she was looking for.

“Proprietress, do you have any clothes suitable for manual labor? I plan to buy a couple of sets,” Liu Yunhe said, getting straight to the point.

Zhang Muchun didn’t know why she wanted to buy work clothes, but she didn’t say anything. Even country girls, if they were young, would wear skirts. Very few wore short shirts and trousers.

The proprietress didn’t look down on her for buying cheap clothes and naturally led them to a rack on the other side.

Jute, linen, coarse cloth, fine cloth. Liu Yunhe looked at Zhang Muchun and felt that these fabrics were too rough and hard; she wasn’t satisfied. But then she thought that coarse cloth was more resistant to dirt and wear, so she bought two sets for each of them.

For Zhang Muchun, she picked two sets of white fine-cotton undergarments, an orange vertical-collared short shirt, a dark blue printed vest, and a pair of brownish-red wide-legged trousers. Then, a dark green printed round-collared short robe, a pair of mist-blue tight-legged trousers, and two pairs of black cloth shoes.

Zhang Muchun watched her holding the clothes up to her for size, secretly tugging her sleeve. “I’m not buying these,” she whispered.

“They’re not for you to buy,” Liu Yunhe said, not wanting to waste time on this.

“Oh.” Zhang Muchun sheepishly shut her mouth.

Liu Yunhe turned away, hiding a smile. The proprietress, seeing everything clearly, covered her mouth with a round fan.

Liu Yunhe then picked out two sets for herself: satin undergarments that were smooth and finely woven. She couldn’t wear undergarments that were too coarse. She also chose a water-blue vertical-collared short shirt, a blue-and-white checkered vest, and a pair of dark blue lantern pants. Then, a pink cross-collared short shirt with a matching printed short vest, a pair of apricot-colored straight-legged trousers, and two pairs of dark, patterned shoes.

“Proprietress, how much for all of this?” The fabrics she chose were ordinary, better than coarse cloth, but cheaper and more durable than fine cloth.

“All together, that’s two and a half taels of silver. I’ll just round it down for you two and throw in two belts for free,” the proprietress said, her fingers flying across the abacus, her eyebrows dancing with delight.

So cheap, Liu Yunhe thought. This is a real bargain for such a big pile.

“Do you have any padded jackets for late autumn?”

“Yes, yes, I do,” the proprietress beamed. Is this person here to clear out my old stock? The padded jackets were all leftovers from last year.

“I want thicker ones, darker colors, and durable.”

“You got it! I’ll go find them.”

“Are you really planning to live with me in this mountain valley for the rest of your life? What are you buying all this for?” Zhang Muchun couldn’t hold it in any longer.

“What? Are you not welcoming me? If you’re not, I’ll leave right now. Am I getting in the way of you and your little childhood sweetheart’s billing and cooing? When you asked me to follow you, you never said it was only for a few days,” Liu Yunhe said, somehow circling back to “that apricot.” She didn’t want to, but she had had that dream. Even if there was nothing between them now, she subconsciously felt that Zhang Muchun belonged to her.

“Aren’t you just being unreasonable? Is that what I meant? And who is this ‘childhood sweetheart’?” Zhang Muchun looked at her spouting earnest nonsense and really wanted to pinch two red marks onto her fair cheeks.

“See? You don’t even know who, so there must be more than one,” Liu Yunhe’s voice grew softer, but she didn’t give up.

Zhang Muchun raised a hand to her forehead and shut her mouth, continuing to hold the clothes for her from behind.

“Four pairs of cotton trousers, four pairs of cotton shoes, two bolts of white fine-cotton cloth, two bolts of dark blue, one bolt of dark red, one of dark green, and one of black. Seventy jin of cotton, and some needles and thread. That’s all,” Liu Yunhe said, pointing as she looked. She would need all of this. She had a premonition that it would be very cold after the flood.

Zhang Muchun’s eyes went wide. This is too extravagant, she thought. But the girl was spending her own money, and compared to the old Liu Yunhe, this was probably already very restrained.

Forget it. I don’t understand, but I respect it. She resignedly began to carry the things to the ox-cart.

Next, the Young Miss led her to the grain seller.

“Two hundred jin each of fine rice, fine flour, millet, and yellow rice. One hundred jin each of soybeans, red beans, green beans, and peanuts,” Liu Yunhe ordered without batting an eye.

“We can’t eat all that. How about we buy more after we finish this?” Zhang Muchun, standing behind her, was about to faint. She negotiated in a placating tone, a fake smile plastered on her face.

Is she planning to waste her entire bracelet today before she’s satisfied?

“If we can’t finish it, we can give half to Second Sister.”

“The Second Miss’s in-laws are short on grain?”

“They are,” Liu Yunhe said, turning around with a sweet smile, her eyes crinkling into little crescents, a picture of innocence.

As if possessed, Zhang Muchun let herself be led by the nose. After that, she resigned herself to being the laborer and just did the work.

The fine rice and flour were three copper coins per jin, the rest were two per jin. In total, it cost two taels of silver.

Of the thirty-five taels she had exchanged, only twenty-five now remained.

Liu Yunhe wanted to buy a lot of grain, but firstly, she didn’t know the limit of her pouch, and secondly, they couldn’t carry any more. The ox-cart was full. With twelve hundred-jin sacks piled up, there was no more room.

But she still needed to buy essential seasonings like coarse salt, cane sugar, soy sauce, and aged vinegar. Looking at the cart, Liu Yunhe had a flash of inspiration and decided to have the seller deliver to their door.

“Muchun…” Liu Yunhe called out in a soft, drawn-out voice.

“What!” Zhang Muchun replied, her face wooden.

“There’s still a lot of silver left. Can I… can I spend a little more?” Liu Yunhe asked, looking at the overloaded cart, her confidence wavering even though she was spending her own money.

“Spend it.” Zhang Muchun closed her eyes, a headache coming on. She really doesn’t want to leave herself any way out. If something goes wrong with the Liu family, what will she do?