Chapter 392
Chapter 392: 386_1 Chapter 392: 386_1 “Buddy, we’re both in business here, and experts like us don’t speak like laymen. My wife and I came to Longmen Town on purpose, well informed. You know better than us whether or not your goods are genuine. I fancy these few items; just name your price, and if it’s right, I’ll buy them.” Lin Yue had hawked and run various small businesses for the sake of living and tuition fees. She was well aware of the tricks in such matters, and besides, this lad wasn’t as shrewd as she was. Her words sounded quite credible, indeed.
Upon hearing Lin Yue’s words, the stall vendor’s bluster deflated in an instant, and a smile reappeared on his face. “So, you’re an insider. Well, in that case, I won’t bother with making up a price. Let’s say the brush pot here has a fixed price of two hundred taels.”
“Buddy, that’s not a sincere price you’re offering. This brush pot looks nice, but it’s actually a fake. It’s worth, at most, a few dozen taels of silver. I bet you got it pretty cheap. We’re in the same trade, we both know the cost, no need to put on airs—name a fair price. I just fancy this brush pot for its beauty to have something nice to display, but if it’s too expensive, then it’s not worth it.”
After half a day of haggling with the vendor, Lin Yue spent one hundred and fifty taels of silver to buy the brush pot and a few other selected items. Although Zhao Erhu felt it was somewhat unworthy to spend so much on a few fakes, seeing his wife in such high spirits and rarely wanting to buy something for herself, he stood by silently without a word.
Having agreed on a price, Lin Yue asked the vendor to pack up the items. She paid with a silver note and strolled off to other stalls with Zhao Erhu. Only when Lin Yue and her husband were far away did the vendor’s pained expression spring back into a grin as he clutched the newly acquired silver note.
“These two fools, they thought they haggled a great deal out of me, little do they know I bought these fake items for just over ten taels of silver. What a couple of saps, earing me over a hundred taels just like that; that’ll keep me in food and drink for a while,” the vendor chuckled to himself.
It was indeed a day of great profits, and the vendor couldn’t be more satisfied. He had set up his stall there for some time, and although customers did come by, most would only buy one or two small items, merely earning him a few taels. This batch of new goods, purchased just yesterday, cost him less than a hundred taels in total, and now he had recouped his investment and made a profit—all in one go. The next day, he’d have to go to the temple to give thanks to the God of Wealth.
Meanwhile, Zhao Erhu observed the sheer joy Lin Yue took in her purchases and couldn’t help but remark, “Wife, how can you be so happy spending one hundred and fifty taels of silver on a few fakes?”
Lin Yue gave Zhao Erhu a disdainful glance. When had she ever made a bad deal? “Who said they’re fakes? I tricked that vendor; he doesn’t know his goods, selling these as fakes. I’ve struck it rich this time. If I tried to buy these items in a proper shop, they’d cost several thousand taels at least. No wonder Big Brother Li said Longmen Town is a good place to make money. This time we’ve really found a treasure.”
In truth, Lin Yue knew that if she had pressed the vendor further, she could possibly have gotten an even cheaper price. However, she was inherently kind-hearted and had left some profit for the vendor. One must not be too greedy; it’s never good to overdo things.
Zhao Erhu, somewhat astonished, questioned, “Just these items are worth several thousand taels?”
“Wife, are you sure you haven’t made a mistake? Those vendors are crafty, and if these items were genuine, wouldn’t someone have recognized them? If the vendor failed to see their worth, others who know better surely wouldn’t have waited for us to come along. They’re probably just nice to look at, even if they are fakes.” Zhao Erhu remained skeptical about the sudden windfall of several thousand taels, and besides, Lin Yue had grown up in the backwoods. Although he found his young wife to be knowledgeable and clever, she had never had a chance to see such valuable items before, so where would she have learned to distinguish them? Perhaps she had been fooled after all.
“That’s just luck, finding a few treasures among a bunch of fakes. It makes me incredibly happy. Are you saying you don’t trust me, Zhao Erhu?” As Lin Yue delighted in her discovery, she realized Zhao Erhu’s words implied distrust of her judgment.
“It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s just that we country folks have never seen such expensive stuff. How did you recognize it?”
At that question, Lin Yue found herself at a loss for words. She couldn’t admit that her keen eyesight was honed in a previous life. Even if she didn’t recognize the exact nature of the items, she could tell their quality from the craftsmanship, easily discerning the good from the bad. The few items definitely worth the one hundred and fifty taels.
“Well, that’s not so hard. Look at our purchases; the workmanship and the feel are all excellent, far more refined than the rest of the goods on the stall. It’s not just superficially pretty. Compared to them, everything else looks rough in manufacture, obviously inferior fakes. Even if what we bought are fakes too, they’re certainly worth the price. Once we get back to the Capital City, we’ll have Big Brother Jiang take a look, and he’ll know the truth,” Lin Yue managed, although it sounded like she was placating Zhao Erhu. Nevertheless, her words weren’t mere lip service, and he looked over the items carefully, convinced she was right.
Zhao Erhu, who had been casually handling the items, became alarmed when Lin Yue claimed they were worth thousands of taels. His grip tightened as he handled the supposed treasures, cautious not to knock or damage them; any harm would be a painful loss.
Caught up in excitement, Lin Yue then dragged Zhao Erhu through many more stalls, purchasing a slew of other items along the way, though none as remarkable as their earlier finds. Nevertheless, Lin Yue wasn’t greedy; having unearthed so much good fortune, she felt content with their haul.
“Zhao Erhu, I think we’ve shopped enough for today, shall we head back?” They had been browsing for most of the afternoon, and Zhao Erhu’s arms were getting heavy with their finds. Lin Yue, feeling somewhat weary from the outing, suggested they return.
“Alright, let’s go home. We’ve bought quite a few nice things this time. Once we’re back from the Capital City, we can come here again,” Zhao Erhu had come mainly to accompany his wife and was happy to follow her lead. He hadn’t expected such an uneventful shopping trip but now it seemed time to head back. Just as they began to leave, an incident occurred.
“Wife, watch out!” Zhao Erhu couldn’t prevent a little one from suddenly dashing over and bumping into his wife. His hands were laden with items, preventing him from catching her, and he could only watch helplessly as she tumbled to the ground.