Jiang Ling slept for quite a long time this time—a full ten hours.
This was the first truly restful sleep she’d had since her father’s accident.
When she woke up, the sky was already bright.
She freshened up hastily, had a quick breakfast, and then carefully packed another bag of ancient coins she had sorted out the previous night into her backpack.
A total of two hundred and five coins—a heavy weight.
She was in urgent need of money, and turning them into real cash was what could set her mind at ease.
It was the same antique shop.
On her second visit, Jiang Ling already knew the antique shop owner was surnamed Zeng.
Yesterday, Boss Zeng had bought the thirteen copper coins Jiang Ling brought at a price of 2,000 yuan each. He had calculated that night that he could make at least a 100% profit reselling this batch.
So, even before Jiang Ling stepped into the shop, Boss Zeng spotted her from a distance.
Years of experience in business allowed him to see at a glance that Jiang Ling had something to sell again this time.
“Miss Jiang, good morning. I wonder what you’re selling today?” Boss Zeng greeted her warmly at the door, his face full of shrewd smiles.
Jiang Ling didn’t beat around the bush. She walked to the counter and placed the cloth bag on the glass surface with a dull thud.
“Good morning, Boss Zeng. Last night, while tidying the old house, I found some more ancient coins from the same period at the bottom of my grandfather’s old trunk. I’m not particularly interested in collecting antiques, so I thought I’d see if you’re interested in taking them all.”
Boss Zeng was overjoyed but didn’t show it.
He put on white gloves, carefully untied the cloth bag, and began inspecting the coins one by one.
This time, the quantity was larger, but the conditions varied: some had clear inscriptions and good patina; others were severely worn with green rust; and a few had chips on the edges.
“Miss Jiang, you see, there are more items, but the quality is much more uneven. These heavily worn ones, the ones with tough soil rust to deal with—their value is greatly diminished. The two thousand for the fine pieces last time was the market rate, but these…”
Boss Zeng seemed to sense Jiang Ling’s urgent need for money and kept trying to drive the price down.
Jiang Ling didn’t want to waste too much time haggling. After some negotiation, they settled on a round figure.
320,000 yuan.
Her phone buzzed with a notification of the 320,000 yuan deposit into her bank card. A faint sense of relief eased the tight string of anxiety in Jiang Ling’s heart.
Boss Zeng happily saw Jiang Ling, his “Wealth God,” off at the door.
Jiang Ling immediately hurried back to the general store.
The store’s inventory was still plentiful, so there was no need to restock for now.
However, after the noblewoman easily bought two bars of soap yesterday, Jiang Ling realized she wasn’t fully prepared to run a business.
She needed to re-price all her goods and prepare a sign to hang up. That would make it look more like a proper shop.
Pricing was a challenge. She knew nothing about the price levels in the Dayu Dynasty.
After much thought, she decided on a rough method: multiply the original price of every item by ten!
Individual adjustments could be made later. Simple, but better than nothing.
The out-of-towner who had previously rented her shop had named it “Jixiang General Store” (Auspicious General Store).
This sign had been taken down and stored in the warehouse after they left.
The name “Jixiang” was quite good, and the village she was in was called Jishui Village (Auspicious Water Village).
Getting a new sign made would waste too much time, so Jiang Ling decided to simply hang up this old sign.
With the planning done, it was time to open for business!
Jiang Ling took a deep breath, walked to the wooden door that separated the two worlds, and pulled it open with force.
A breeze carrying moisture rushed in, bringing a slight chill. Immediately after, fine raindrops sprayed against her face.
So it was raining outside.
Raindrops fell into puddles, splashing up tiny droplets.
Judging by the puddles of varying sizes on the road, this rain must have been quite heavy.
And it had probably been raining for a while.
Jiang Ling calculated the time difference. At ten times the flow rate, the time she had been away translated to five days and nights here.
It was already the evening of the fifth day.
The sky had already darkened. Along with the rain, mist condensed in the air, draping the earth in a veil of gauze.
In ancient times, to save on lamp oil, most people finished dinner before sunset and went to bed early.
Now, dinnertime was over, and with the drizzling rain, no one was walking outside.
No matter what business you’re in, foot traffic tends to decrease on rainy days.
Business couldn’t be rushed. She turned and went to the warehouse to bring out the dust-covered “Jixiang General Store” sign, wiping it clean.
The sign was made of solid wood. After all these years, time had imbued it with a simple, antique charm, perfectly matching the character of her small shop.
Over half an hour later, the rain outside gradually stopped, but there were still no customers in the shop.
Jiang Ling brought out a stool and, taking advantage of the lull, prepared to hang up the sign.
But…
She had underestimated the weight of the solid wood sign!
She had the strength to lift the sign overhead, but the heavy feel made her arms ache, and she couldn’t hold it for long.
Even standing on the stool and stretching on her tiptoes, her fingertips were still a short distance from the hook under the eaves.
“Just a little more…” Jiang Ling gritted her teeth, her body trembling slightly from the effort. Just as she strained to reach again, her palms slipped!
The heavy sign instantly slipped from her grasp, falling straight toward her head!
Before she could react, she saw a strong, large hand support one corner of the sign, steadying it firmly.
Almost simultaneously, Jiang Ling felt a sudden lightness on her other side—another corner of the sign was supported by another equally strong hand!
A voice sounded behind her. “How could a young lady have the strength to lift such a large sign? If we hadn’t arrived in time, this sign could have knocked you out!”
Jiang Ling let out a breath of relief, her heart still pounding. She steadied herself and stepped down from the stool.
Standing before her were two young men, seemingly no older than seventeen or eighteen.
One had a stern face with steady brows; the other wore a slight smile at the corner of his mouth, his eyes lively and spirited, carrying an air of unruliness.
Both wore seemingly ordinary dark-colored casual clothes, but the fabric subtly gleamed with a satin sheen under the light, tailored to fit perfectly.
Their bearing was extraordinary, clearly not villagers from around here.
“Thank you, young masters, for rescuing me.” Jiang Ling performed a bow she had just learned online.
The young man behind her looked her up and down. “Your clothing is quite strange, miss. It doesn’t look like the attire of our Great Yu Dynasty?”
Oh no, I forgot to buy a set of ancient-style clothes!
However, Jiang Ling was wearing a long-sleeved, high-collared outfit today. It was a bit unusual, but not exactly improper.
“Cheng Fang, mind your manners!” the other young man lightly scolded.
“Miss, were you trying to hang this sign? The two of us can help.”
Jiang Ling was taken aback for a moment, then said gratefully, “Then I’ll trouble you two, young masters.”
The two of them each held one end of the sign, gave a light leap, and easily jumped up, securely hanging the sign on the hook under the eaves.
Is this the so-called qinggong? So impressive!
“‘Jixiang General Store’?” Cheng Fang clapped his hands, looking at the sign. “Not a bad name.”
“Thank you again for your help today, young masters. If you don’t mind, please come inside for a cup of tea.”
They didn’t stand on ceremony either, as they had come to buy things in the first place.
Inside the store, the bright lighting, neat shelves, and never-before-seen product packaging made Cheng Fang exclaim in wonder.
“Shopkeeper, your shop is decorated quite uniquely. Do you manage it all by yourself?”
“Currently, it’s just me.”