In Sanshui County, on the north side of the street near the east gate of the city, there was a shop with the words "Mind House" written on it. It was a little remote, so there were not many people coming in and out of the shop.
The shopkeeper had gone somewhere to rest, so he was left alone at the counter, looking at the passers-by in boredom.
When it was noon, the waiter could hear his stomach growling, but no one came to ask him to take his place. He could only continue to endure. From time to time, he would think about the wine and dishes in the restaurant. He felt even hungrier. Even the movement of the shadows of the trees outside slowed down.
He put his two arms on the counter and rested his chin on it. He looked at the small soup and pancake restaurant across the street and muttered, "It's good to eat a bowl of soup and pancakes. I don't see two people in this shabby shop every day."
Just as he was muttering to himself, two people came in from the door. The shop assistant immediately took off his arm and glanced at them. He concluded that these two were rich people. They were wearing silk robes and there was a piece of jade hanging from a rope hanging from their waists. As they walked, they kept moving up and down.
"Sirs, what are you looking for? I can give you some pointers." The shop assistant put on a smile and asked respectfully according to his judgment.
"Go do your work. We'll just look around." One of them said and threw a small piece of silver to the shop assistant.
The shop assistant hurriedly caught it. After weighing it in his hand, he estimated its weight. It was definitely three taels of silver. He felt that his spirit had returned, and he wasn't hungry anymore. With three taels of silver, when he got off work in the evening, he would go to the Apricot Spring Brothel to have a good meal, find a beautiful sister, and come straight back tomorrow morning.
The two people just looked and did not talk. They walked around and suddenly stared at a painting. They looked at each other and nodded at the same time. The one who gave the money said,
"What is this painting?"
"Oh, sir, your eyes are so sharp. You can see the beauty of this painting at a glance. This painting was painted by a predecessor. It's a lotus flower in early spring. Look at the tip of the brush. It's hard but not broken, soft but not evil. With just a few strokes, it's already …"
"Okay, okay, how much is this painting?" Without waiting for the waiter to finish, the man waved his hand impatiently, interrupted the introduction, and directly asked for the price.
The shop assistant was sensible. Since the other party didn't want him to say anything, he didn't say anything. He looked at the painting and calculated how much it would cost. If the painting wasn't damaged at all, it would be possible to ask for 20 taels of silver. The problem was that there was a spot on the painting that was damaged by fire.
In the upper right corner of the painting, there was a hole the size of a fingernail. It had been patched up by the craftsman with a special technique, but it could still be seen. For a moment, he didn't know how to ask for money. If he asked for more, he was afraid that the other party would leave. If he asked for less, he felt that the reward he could get was too little. The more he sold, the more he would get.
Just as he was hesitating, a voice sounded from behind him.
"Liu Wang, are you slacking off again? Didn't you see that we have an important guest? Why aren't you serving him?"
Hearing the voice, Liu Wang was relieved. When the shopkeeper came out, he quickly turned around and said to the shopkeeper, "Uncle Zhao, these two people took a fancy to the painting on the wall and asked for the price. I forgot."
While the shop assistant was speaking, he blinked his eyes.
In fact, Shopkeeper Zhao didn't need the shop assistant to hint at him. He could tell that the two people were rich from their clothes. He looked at the painting and said with a smile, "How should I address you?"
"Li." The person who spoke first replied with one word and didn't say anything else.
"So it's Young Master Li. You really have good taste to take a fancy to this painting. By right, this …"
"How much?" Young Master Li didn't wait for Shopkeeper Zhao to finish his sentence and directly asked for the price.
"200 taels of silver. This painting was painted by a famous artist in the West Jin Dynasty. After a long time, it was not well maintained and there are some flaws on the painting. Therefore, it only costs 150 taels of silver."
Shopkeeper Zhao didn't know how much he should ask for. He wanted to ask for a sky-high price and wait for the other party to bargain. He wasn't afraid that the other party wouldn't buy it if he asked for too much, but he was afraid that the other party wouldn't like it if he asked for too little. There were always people like that.
"150 taels of silver? Okay, I'll take it. "Young Master Li didn't bargain at all and directly agreed.
Shopkeeper Zhao was stunned and felt a little regretful for Weiwei. If he had known that these two people were so easy to talk to, he would have asked for more. But now, he couldn't back out. When he was about to take the painting and wrap it up, Young Master Li spoke again.
"Don't be in a hurry. We didn't bring enough money today. We only have 50 taels of silver. Let's settle the payment first and come back in a few days. Is that okay?"
Shopkeeper Zhao heard this and quickly nodded. It made sense. Who would carry so much money when they went out? It was so heavy. He wouldn't be afraid if he had 50 taels of silver.
"I heard that some shops will secretly replace the goods after people pay the deposit. I wonder if …" Young Master Li asked again.
Shopkeeper Zhao knew that he was worried, so he immediately said, "Don't worry, Young Master Li. Our shop will never do such a thing. If you are still worried, you can find someone from Jiahui to vouch for you. But … it will cost more to find someone to vouch for you."
"It's okay. Go find someone." Young Master Li spoke.
Shopkeeper Zhao was even more relieved. He was really worried that in a few days, the two people would find someone who knew the business and ask for the money back. Even if they didn't get the money back, there would be some dispute. He urged Liu Wang to find someone from Jiahui and prepared tea and snacks.
After a while, Liu Wang came back with Jiahui's guarantor. The guarantor asked for the price and asked for 150 taels of silver. Young Master Li paid without hesitation.
He took the painting down and wrote down some of the unique features on it as proof.
Young Master Li deliberately wrote down the burned part of the painting with thin paper and added some description of the surrounding burn marks. He said that he would come back in half a month. If it wasn't this painting, the shop would pay ten taels of silver. If he didn't come back in half a month, Young Master Li would pay an extra 100 taels of silver every night. If he didn't come back in a month, he would give the shop a deposit.
Shopkeeper Zhao thought for a while and saw that Jiahui's guarantor was there. He nodded and agreed. Both parties signed the contract and the deal was done. Seeing the two people walking away, not only was Shopkeeper Zhao happy, but Liu Wang also received five taels of silver.
*****
The sun was setting and the red clouds filled the sky. Birds flew past, their white feathers fluttering in the wind.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan walked hand in hand beside the small river in front of the door. The sun shone on their shadows.
Xiao Hong watched nervously, afraid that the two little ancestors would jump down in joy. This kind of thing could happen. After all, her little master was different from others.
"Xiao Bao, do you think we can raise some ducks and geese if we draw the water into a dug pond? Salted goose eggs and duck eggs are more delicious than salted eggs." Wang Juan stood beside the river, looking at the clear water and the fish that occasionally flashed under the water. She asked with longing.
"Yes, I also want to do that, but now we are short of manpower. The most important thing is that I don't have enough money. I have to start running the recent business. If I want to eat, I have to go to Zhuangzi first. After a few days, I will have money after I deal with Liar Song."
Zhang Xiaobao had this plan a few days ago. He wanted to ask his mother for money. After hesitating for a while, he decided to earn it himself. He didn't mind waiting for a few days.
"Little Master, Little Miss, it's better to move back a little. Don't fall." Xiao Hong felt that this place was dangerous. She tried to persuade them. The water was not deep, and it was easy to drown two children.
"Don't be afraid. Cuckoo and I both know how to swim. We just look at the water and feel good. The sky is beautiful. After we finish the business here, you will be in charge of raising ducks and geese. You can also raise lotus flowers and a few more dishes. It's always expensive. If you can solve it yourself, solve it yourself. Every meal is not easy to come by."
Zhang Xiaobao said as he took a step back. He didn't want Xiao Hong to worry.
Xiao Hong nodded blankly. She felt that the words of the Little Master seemed to be more acceptable coming from the mouth of the Madam.
When the three of them were admiring the sunset, the sunset, the flying birds, and the flowing water, a person rushed over. As soon as he saw Wang Juan, he said, "Little Miss, I already know where the Liar Song is.
"Little girl, this little one already knows where that thing is. According to that Swindler Song's description, we found a few boats on the Luoshui River, and from the places where they occasionally exposed themselves, we saw that red and green thing."
As he spoke, the person took out a piece of paper from his arms. There was something drawn on it. He was delayed because he was looking for someone to draw it.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan looked at the drawing and said at the same time, "Carrots."
"Good stuff. Now there's a new dish. I haven't seen this thing here." Zhang Xiaobao was happy.
Wang Juan also nodded fiercely, "Yes, this thing shouldn't be locally produced. It seems that they really got it from a foreign gang. I don't know what Liar Song was thinking. It seems that all the boats are full of carrots. Then, can the ones in the middle continue to be planted? When we have the seeds, we can plant them ourselves. I like to eat fried carrots. What about you? "
"I like to eat them raw. I also like to eat cucumbers, eggplants, and cabbage. I like to eat them raw and treat them as fruits." Zhang Xiaobao replied.
"Who would treat these things as fruits? It's not good to eat raw carrots." Wang Juan said with a smile.
"Then what should we do? Who would send fruits to the orphanage for no reason? It's not easy for that group of people to send some here. They clearly bought it for 100 yuan, but they insisted that it was 1,000 yuan. The reporters from all over the place brought a lot. They were afraid that others wouldn't know that they were sending things. "
Zhang Xiaobao said with a twitch of his mouth.
"So that's the case. Then you did suffer a lot when you were young. People all want a good reputation." Wang Juan sighed. She felt that Zhang Xiaobao was really too pitiful when he was young.
Zhang Xiaobao shook his head indifferently, "Actually, I'm very grateful to those people. No matter what their purpose is, as long as they send things, it's fine. If people send things every day, I'd rather be their witness. It's also fine to say that 100 yuan is 10,000 yuan. It's better than nothing.
The happiest thing for me is that I completed the last wish of the dean's grandfather. Before I die, I can exchange a child. It's worth it. Now, I have carrots to eat in the future. "
"Xiao Bao, please allow me to use solemn words to evaluate you. You are a good liar." Wang Juan blinked her big eyes and said.
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