Since her conversation with Wang Cuihua, Xu Ruyi had rarely gone out.
Mainly because the weather was getting hotter, and she couldn’t be bothered to go out and get sunburned. She’d rather spend her time embroidering at home.
Chen Hour (7-9 AM)
Xu Ruyi carried her back basket and headed to the county town with Xu Sigui.
Today they planned to sell the medicinal herbs they had accumulated over this period, then go buy some fabric. Wang Cuihua had specifically instructed them to buy some fabric and cotton to make her Xi Bei.
Although Xu Ruyi wasn’t in a hurry, she couldn’t avoid getting married, so it was naturally better to prepare early.
The two queued up and each paid two wen as the city entrance fee. Xu Sigui led Xu Ruyi to Cao An Tang, where he often sold herbs. “Sis, this medical hall offers fair prices for herbs. I’ve sold to them many times.”
“If you think it’s good, then let’s go!” Xu Ruyi wasn’t skilled at selling medicinal herbs, so she didn’t offer any opinion.
As soon as they arrived at the medical hall, the errand boy recognized Xu Sigui and quickly came forward. “Oh, little Sigui, here to sell herbs again? Any good herbs this time?”
After asking, he noticed a woman with some presence. Before Xu Sigui could answer, he said to Xu Ruyi, “Miss, are you here to get medicine or see a doctor?”
Xu Ruyi smiled and pointed at Xu Sigui. “I’m Sigui’s sister. I came with him to sell herbs this time.”
Upon hearing this, the errand boy quickly said, “So you’re little Sigui’s sister. Please come in.” He then led them to the back courtyard of the medical hall.
The old doctor carefully examined the herbs they brought and nodded with satisfaction. “The quality of these herbs is quite good. I’ll take them at a higher price. Shitou, take them to be weighed!”
A full back basket of herbs sold for five taels and seven hundred thirty wen in total, with Huangqi and Danggui being the most valuable.
Xu Sigui was delighted, never expecting they could earn so much money.
After the transaction was completed, Xu Ruyi counted the silver in her hand, calculating how much fabric and cotton she could buy.
Leaving the medical hall, Xu Sigui took Xu Ruyi to the fabric shop.
As soon as they entered the fabric shop, they heard a commotion. A richly dressed woman was scolding a shop assistant. “What kind of fabric is this? So rough! How could someone of my status use this!”
The shop assistant smiled apologetically. “Miss, this is actually mid-to-upper grade fabric in our shop.”
Xu Ruyi glanced at the fabrics – the quality was indeed quite good.
The woman persisted, demanding that the assistant bring her better fabric.
Not wanting to get involved, Xu Ruyi pulled Xu Sigui to go choose fabrics.
Just then, the woman suddenly looked at Xu Ruyi. “You pauper, what are you looking at?”
Suddenly being insulted, Xu Ruyi wasn’t about to tolerate it. “What? If you’re ugly, can’t people look? If you’re afraid of being seen, then don’t come out!”
Being called ugly in public made the woman instantly furious. “You bitch! Do you know who I am? How dare you insult me!”
Xu Ruyi observed that the woman’s most expensive possession was her silk outfit, but wearing thick silk in the middle of summer clearly showed she was pretending to be wealthier than she was. “I don’t care who you are. If you’re not buying anything, get lost.”
The woman trembled with anger, pointing at Xu Ruyi. “You… how dare you be so rude! I’ll make you pay for this!” She reached out to grab Xu Ruyi.
Seeing this, Xu Sigui quickly stepped in front of Xu Ruyi, glaring angrily at the woman.
Just then, the cloth shop owner hurried over. Seeing the situation, he inwardly groaned.
He quickly put on an apologetic smile and said to the woman, “Miss, please calm your anger. This is our fault. A person of your stature shouldn’t lower yourself to argue with this country girl.”
Then he turned to Xu Ruyi and said, “Miss, please don’t argue with this lady either. Let’s all take a step back.”
Xu Ruyi snorted coldly, “I haven’t done anything wrong. She was the one who started insulting me first.”
The woman refused to back down, “No, I must teach her a lesson today.”
Just as the two sides were at a stalemate, an elegant young gentleman walked through the door.
After glancing around the scene, he smiled slightly and said to the woman, “Cousin, why get angry over such a trivial matter? It’s beneath your status.”
Seeing the gentleman, the woman’s aggressive demeanor diminished considerably. “Cousin, she insulted me,” she complained.
The gentleman looked at Xu Ruyi and immediately felt his eyes light up. “Miss, where forgiveness is possible, one should forgive. I hope you’ll do me this favor.”
Seeing that he spoke quite politely, Xu Ruyi replied, “Fine. For your sake, I won’t argue with her anymore.”
Noticing her cousin stealing glances at Xu Ruyi, the woman was naturally displeased. But wanting to maintain her gentle and magnanimous image, she could only find an excuse to pull her cousin away.