Fortunate Life of the Rural Beauty

Chapter 35: Chapter 34 The Golden Thief Chapter 35: Chapter 34 The Golden Thief Chen Afu shook his head and said, “Embroidery Tower is a business, aiming to make a profit. They only need to buy one bag to discern the clever use of the sewing kit and the method of making disk buttons. After we sell these sewing kits, you can go to Jin Yun Embroidery Tower and sell the design of the disk buttons to them.”

In her previous life, Chen Afu was in marketing, and she deeply knew that the same product, due to different marketing strategies, could fetch very different prices. She said, “We may be peddlers, but if we identify the right buyers and selling locations, we can still negotiate a good price. The average folk, and even the moderately affluent, certainly won’t spend so much on a sewing kit…”

She said that we shouldn’t sell the sewing kit at the Lingyin Temple stalls. Although there are many people there, few wealthy families’ women go shopping there themselves. Most of them get off their sedan chairs at the temple gates and enter the temple. These people, who make a living by selling ornaments, wouldn’t dare to hawk in front of these ladies. It may be considered rude to the nobles and they might end up being beaten up.

She had previously heard from Mrs. Wang that not far from Lingyin Temple was Yingxue Nunnery, where the goddess Guanyin, known for granting children, was primarily worshipped. Because Lingyin Temple was too famous, most pilgrims would visit there, resulting in fewer visitors to Yingxue Nunnery. However, the abbess of Yingxue Nunnery supposedly came from a wealthy family, and occasionally, ladies from high-ranking families would visit to offer incense, some even staying for a few days. As not many people did business outside the nunnery, some ladies would wander around outside and purchase small items they fancied.

Chen Afu’s idea was for Mrs. Wang and Alu to go and sell sewing baskets outside Lingyin Temple, while she and Dabao would sell sewing kits outside Yingxue Nunnery. They would meet again at Lingyin Temple around midday. She also mentioned that if they found a suitable buyer the next day, they would sell, and if not, they would think of other methods.

Because the sewing baskets took up a lot of space, Mrs. Wang visited Mr. Gao, who rented donkey carts in the village, to hire a vehicle to go to Honglin Mountain. The one-way fare was forty wen, causing Mrs. Wang to frown at the thought, but considering it was about half the selling price of a sewing basket, she felt more relieved. She was confident in her products.

That evening, Jin Yanzi also returned, as promised to Chen Afu who anticipated its return a few days ago. After the scuffle last time, Chen Afu felt reassured having this bodyguard accompany them. She made sure to tell him not to bring his flashy friends around, as they would draw attention, leaving them unable to distract him and certainly not allowing him to disturb Chen Ming.

The next morning, the family woke up early, put on their best clothes, had breakfast, and Chen Afu carried a package containing sewing kits. Mr. Gao arrived soon after.

It was early morning, and they had to set off early to secure a spot.

Chen Afu and Mrs. Wang carried out the sewing baskets that had been tied together with rope and loaded them onto the cart. They covered the baskets with a large cloth before getting onto the cart.

Mr. Gao glanced at the sewing baskets and was quite surprised, remarking, “These small baskets sure are sleek.” Then he became silent, whipped the donkey, and got onto the road.

Chen Afu felt that Mr. Gao was a competent and good driver. Any decent driver knew to hold their tongue, and no one liked a driver who chatters incessantly. In the future, they could consider using his service more often.

Jin Yanzi spread his wings and lay down in one of the sewing baskets. The donkey cart was moving too slowly. He would be anxious if he had to fly at this pace.

There were many people carrying or hoisting their goods to go to Honglin Mountain for sale. They were surprised to see that the poorest family, the Chens, had hired a cart full of goods which they covered with a piece of cloth.

Someone asked, “Mrs. Chen, what goods are you selling that fills up an entire cart?”

Before Mrs. Wang could answer, Dabao rushed to respond, “Those are the baskets that my grandfather wove.”

Someone commented, “Nonsense! How much can a broken basket sell for to be able to afford hiring a cart?”

On the road, Chen Afu was still instructing Mrs. Wang and Alu in whispers that they should ask for a higher price for the sewing baskets, and if the buyers bargain, they should offer the predetermined price. This price should not be lowered further. If they couldn’t sell all the goods at once, they shouldn’t hurry and should sell them slowly. If they encountered any domineering buyers, they should just sell to them, putting their personal safety first.

Alu replied, “Sister, rest assured. I’m watching. I won’t allow mom to undersell or be taken advantage of.”

Hearing this, Mr. Gao laughed and said, “Mrs. Chen, you are raising such a clever pair of children. Good times are surely ahead for your family.”

Mrs. Wang’s heart was filled with joy, she chuckled, “I appreciate your kind words.”

Two hours later, the donkey cart arrives at Honglin Mountain. Lingyin Temple is situated at the foot of Honglin Mountain. Two hundred meters from the temple, many people had set up to sell their goods. Mrs. Wang found a patch of land, spread out her cloth, and brought down her basket of threads and needles.

Chen Afu glanced at the majestic vermillion gate of the temple from afar, feeling very pious. Mrs. Wang had once told her that a senior monk in the temple predicted she could be cured of her dementia, indicating she is indeed fortunate. Turns out, he was right: not only has she recovered from her illness since her journey here, but she also brought with her a spirit swallow; this must prove she is fortunate. It seems that there really are prophetic monks in this world.

Mrs. Wang pointed at a courtyard, barely visible under the dense foliage on the right-side hillside, and said, “That is the Yingxue Nunnery, quite a two-mile hike from here.” She then instructed Dabao, “Take good care of your mom. Don’t let anyone bully her.”

Chen Afu found these words somewhat embarrassing. Yet, Chen Dabao earnestly agreed.

Chen Afu carried four baskets of threads and needles while Dabao carried two. They started walking toward the Yingxue Nunnery.

Although the Yingxue Nunnery is uphill, the road leading up was well-maintained and quite wide, allowing two carriages to pass simultaneously. Green trees lined both sides of the road, blooming flowers were scattered around, a winding stream could be heard, and there were little pavilions not too far ahead for travelers to rest.

There weren’t many pedestrians on this road, occasionally a horse-drawn carriage would pass by.

After around fifteen minutes, they had arrived.

The Yingxue Nunnery doesn’t occupy much ground, but it is extremely quiet and the environment is beautiful. The green walls and black tiles, vermilion gate, surrounded by green trees and bamboo, mostly ginkgo. It’s said that the nunnery has a century-old magnolia and a large plum garden; winter and spring are the most beautiful seasons here. The space is vast outside the main gate, with two century-old banyan trees that resemble huge open umbrellas.

Already a few vendors were selling their goods under the trees. Perhaps to preserve the tranquility of the area, none of them were shouting about their products. When visitors arrived, they would promote their goods.

They didn’t have many items, but all were of good quality and quite expensive. There were exotic mushrooms among the game food, and a strange “wild chicken”, later revealed to be called a “Flying Dragon.” Handicrafts such as hand fans, wallets, shoe pads, wooden carvings, and all of them intricately beautiful.

The place wasn’t busy; when they didn’t have customers, the vendors gossip. Chen Afu listened to their banter while selling her goods, and kept an eye out for anyone looking to “buy cheap items forcefully”. After all, she had learned her lessons from her past lives, having been bullied to death.

Whether it’s because this is holy Buddhist land, the order here was commendably maintained. While haggling was common, there was no incidence of forceful sale or purchase.

When the vendors started gossiping about a grand theft, Chen Afu lost her cool.

The vendors buzzed that recently in the capital of Dingzhou, a grand theft had been committed by a thief who had, in just twenty days, committed four separate thefts. He had stolen jewelry worth more than 2,000 taels of silver from three Silver Towers in Dingzhou. The governor’s mansion had deployed many bailiffs, however, none could catch the golden thief, nor did they have any lead. The governor was furious and reprimanded the chief bailiff…

Chen Afu’s palm was sweating, she gave side-glance to the Golden Swallow who was calmly residing in the basket. If those bailiffs really do manage to catch the golden thief, that would be strange.

………

Thanks to Xiaohuaner, Ah Ah Ah Ah Ah Ah Ah Ah Goddess, Hera@Qianlin wallet, Thank you!