Lu Qianqian was still not very familiar with the rules of this world, so whenever she had the chance to learn something, she made sure to ask questions.
“There’s no problem. The first registration only records who discovered the plant. There are no rules saying that other people can’t use or sell it,” Elder Ge explained, understanding what Lu Qianqian meant.
Lu Qianqian nodded, indicating that she understood.
“Miss Lu, I’ll give these three Cold Beauties to you. When you get home, place them in a bottle with some water, and they can stay fresh for another seven days.”
Being able to sell them was the best outcome. She still planned to use the Cold Beauty flowers to make soap. If she couldn’t use them, things would become troublesome.
As for the three flowers, they weren’t a big deal. She could simply give them to Shen Yalan as a gesture of friendship.
Besides, once the soap was made, Shen Yalan could help promote it.
“This is too valuable. I can’t accept it.”
Shen Yalan really liked the flowers. Such vibrant blossoms would fetch a high price if sold outside. She couldn’t bring herself to accept them for free.
Lu Qianqian smiled.
“Just consider it a gift between friends. Besides, I’m hoping Miss Shen can help spread the word for me.”
Hearing this, Shen Yalan smiled. She understood Lu Qianqian’s meaning and didn’t find it offensive. In fact, she liked straightforward people.
“Alright. I’ll gladly be your friend. Thank you, Qianqian, for the flowers.”
Lu Qianqian even gave her the basket. Otherwise, carrying three such eye-catching flowers around would attract too much attention.
With nothing else to do at the Botanical Association, Lu Qianqian bid farewell to Elder Ge and Shen Yalan and left.
After Lu Qianqian had gone, Elder Ge spoke up.
“Yalan, Miss Lu is no ordinary person. If possible, make friends with her.”
For Elder Ge to say something like that, Shen Yalan immediately understood the significance.
“Grandpa Ge, I genuinely like Qianqian. Talking with her feels very comfortable.”
The Shen family was headed by the Prime Minister of the Great Xia Empire, and Shen Yalan was his legitimate granddaughter. Countless people tried to get close to her, but how many truly wanted to be her friend?
When Lu Qianqian arrived at the Chen residence, the accounts for the mangoes and guavas had already been settled.
This time, they had earned a total of twenty-eight taels of silver.
As soon as he saw Lu Qianqian return, Lu Zhengguo immediately handed her the money. It was the first time he had ever held such a large amount of silver, and he had been tense the entire time, afraid he might lose it.
Now that he had given it to his little sister, he finally relaxed.
“Sister Lu, the fruit you delivered today was truly timely. If you get any good products in the future, just bring them here. I’ll buy everything. Don’t worry about the price—we’re practically family, and I definitely won’t let you suffer a loss.”
Chen Feng wore a broad smile.
The fruit from yesterday had already been sent to the capital. He hadn’t sold it elsewhere but had delivered it directly to the main branch of the family. How they chose to market the fruit was up to them.
“Of course.”
Lu Qianqian was satisfied with cooperating with the Chen family. She didn’t want to spend time figuring out how to sell all her produce herself, so selling directly to them worked just fine.
After chatting with Chen Xin for a while, Lu Qianqian and the others left.
This time, Lu Qianqian bought a huge amount of supplies—quilts, bedding, food, and various daily necessities.
She spent five taels of silver in one go.
There was no helping it. She genuinely disliked the quilt she had been using, and she wasn’t buying only for herself, so naturally the expenses added up.
Lu Zhengguo and Lu Zhengjun’s hearts trembled at the sight.
That was silver!
Still, since the money had been earned by their little sister herself, she had every right to spend it however she wanted.
On the way home, Lu Qianqian handed each of her two brothers one tael of silver.
“Big Brother, Second Brother, this is your salary for the month. I’m paying you in advance. For now, I’ll set your wages at one tael per month. When there’s more work in the future, I’ll raise it.”
The two brothers stared at the silver in disbelief.
Especially Lu Zhengguo. Just yesterday he had accepted fifty copper coins from his little sister, and today she was giving him a whole tael of silver.
“Little Sister, this is too much. Helping you is only natural. I can’t take so much money.”
Lu Zhengjun nodded.
“That’s right. Take the silver back.”
Lu Qianqian was pleased with their attitude.
Although they were family and she was willing to help them, she had no interest in supporting ungrateful people.
“Enough. Just keep it. You treated me well before, so what’s wrong with me treating you well now?
“Besides, Xiao Chen is already four years old. It’s time to send him to school to learn how to read and write. If he’s talented, we’ll continue his education and I’ll support him through the imperial examinations. If he isn’t, then we’ll see what he wants to do in the future, and the family will support him.”
Then she turned to Lu Zhengjun.
“And Xiao Pan should study too. Women may not be allowed to take the imperial examinations, but learning to read is still important.”
The eyes of both men reddened.
As fathers, they naturally wanted their children to have bright futures and live good lives.
“Alright. We’ll do as you say.”
They decided to accept the silver, while silently resolving to treat Lu Qianqian even better.
The ox cart swayed leisurely along the road home.
Lu Qianqian leaned against the bedding and rested.
“Big Brother, do either of you know someone named Liu Hua?”
Whoever had taken the Cold Beauty flower from the house had to be someone connected to the family. There had been no outsiders visiting in the past few days.
Lu Qianqian already had her suspicions, but she wasn’t completely certain yet.
Lu Zhengjun froze.
Wasn’t Liu Hua his brother-in-law?
“Little Sister, why do you ask? Liu Hua is your second sister-in-law’s elder brother.”
“It’s nothing. I was just asking.”
Lu Qianqian didn’t explain immediately. She would deal with the matter after they got home.
By the time they arrived, she had already dozed off for a while.
Hearing the noise outside, Old Madam Lu came out.
When she saw that Lu Qianqian had once again bought so many things, she felt both distressed and delighted.
Seeing the old lady’s expression, Lu Qianqian found it amusing.
Still, the old woman had improved. This time she didn’t complain about wasting money.
“Mother, I bought new bedding and quilts for everyone. You can distribute them.”
“Alright, alright. I know. The moment you have money, you start spending recklessly.”
Old Madam Lu agreed, though there was affection in her tone.
Watching the old lady organize the supplies, Lu Qianqian headed to the backyard.
After two days, the Cold Beauty flowers had bloomed magnificently.
She carefully inspected the area and finally noticed signs of digging behind a cluster of stems.
The culprit had been cautious.
Only one plant had been dug up, and afterward the spot had been covered up.
That was why she hadn’t noticed anything when she cut flower branches earlier that morning.