Chapter 297: Double Compensation

Chapter 297: Double Compensation

"...Even the shops passed down from our ancestors have been sold by them," Liu Yuanfeng exhaled, his face red from the wine, shaking his head slightly. "I wonder if my father, if he had any spirit in the afterlife, would be so angry that he might come back to life."

Bai Ge'er avoided meddling in other families' matters, merely offering a few comforting words.

Liu Yuanfeng shook his head, smiling, "Let's drop it; talking about them is a downer. Come on, Bai Ge'er, let's drink!"

Jiang Mengniang, sitting beside them, chided, "Alright, cut back on the drinking. Bai Ge'er is still a young man who hasn't married yet; he can't drink like you."

Liu Yuanfeng, heeding her advice, chuckled a couple of times and didn't mention drinking again.

After the family banquet ended, Bai Ge'er left Xingxing at the Liu family and went to the teahouse in front of Apricot Garden.

His covert holdings weren't confined to this location, but it was more accessible here.

Bai Ge'er laid the delicate, nearly translucent paper he'd taken from Liu Ge'er on the table, directing someone to look into it.

"I need the leads on this within a day, tops," Bai Ge'er stated coolly.

"Yes!"

...

On Xingxing's first day at the Liu family, Wei Sanniang went out to buy breakfast, worried Xingxing might not be accustomed to the food. She bought seven or eight varieties, covering the table with an array of choices.

Little Si Ge'er was amazed.

"Xingxing, help yourself to whatever you fancy," Wei Sanniang cooed, gazing at Xingxing.

Over the years, free from the Liu family's troubles, Wei Sanniang's gaunt face had rounded out, and her once-drained vitality had swiftly revived, leaving her brimming with energy.

Xingxing, slightly embarrassed, picked up the closest pan-fried bun with her chopsticks, "Auntie, I'm easy; I'll eat anything."

Wei Sanniang truly adored everything about Xingxing.

She even whispered to Jiang Mengniang, "...Now that mourning's done, why not have another with Yuanfeng? It's too quiet with just Si Ge'er around."

Jiang Mengniang replied with a bittersweet laugh.

After breakfast, under the bright sun, Si Ge'er nagged Xingxing to join him outside to play.

Jiang Mengniang sighed, "You little rascal..."

Xingxing, no stranger to her three younger brothers' pestering at the Yujia, smiled and went along.

The two kids played in the alley.

Si Ge'er, bursting with youthful energy, played ball with Xingxing, darting around like a forest monkey, never staying put.

Xingxing, brow furrowed, was on the verge of warning Si Ge'er to watch his step when she saw him collide with a young girl.

The girl yelped, and the brocade box in her arms tumbled to the ground.

The box hit the ground, and the contents spilled forth—a porcelain bowl that shattered into pieces upon impact.

Si Ge'er was utterly dumbfounded.

Xingxing rushed over, ready to apologize, but saw the girl grabbing Si Ge'er, her eyebrows furrowed in anger: "Which family are you from? You broke my bowl!"

Si Ge'er was so scared he started bawling.

Xingxing quickly said, "Miss, I'm really sorry. My brother is too naughty and broke your bowl. How much is this bowl? I'll pay double to make up for it, okay?"

As she spoke, Xingxing hugged Si Ge'er, checking him over for any injuries.

Si Ge'er, knowing he had caused trouble, sobbed and didn't dare to look up.

The girl looked Xingxing up and down, snorted, and said, "This bowl of mine is quite valuable. You're offering to double the payment? That's quite the offer!"

Xingxing kept her cool and spoke softly, "Miss, please don't be upset. It's indeed our fault for breaking your bowl. Don't worry, we'll pay double the bowl's value."

Hearing this, the girl rolled her eyes and quoted, "This bowl of mine costs twenty taels of silver!"

Xingxing's eyes went wide.

In recent years, the Yujia family's fortunes had improved significantly, and Xingxing had naturally been exposed to better things. She had seen plenty of fine items and could usually tell their worth at a glance.

The broken bowl was probably from a nearby city kiln, a thin-bodied bowl with simple patterns, not particularly difficult to make, and not crafted by a master artisan. Its market price would be at most eight taels of silver.

Xingxing was a bit worried.

The girl had quoted twenty taels, and Xingxing had promised to double the compensation, which would amount to forty taels.

Forty taels of silver wasn't much, and the silver notes in her pouch were more than enough.

But...

This girl was clearly jacking up the price, trying to take advantage of her!

Seeing Xingxing's troubled expression, the girl snorted, "If you can't pay, just admit it. Where are your parents? Get them over here fast. After you pay, I still have things to do."

Xingxing sighed, "Miss, I truly want to make it up to you. But you can't take me for a fool. Your bowl, at most, goes for eight taels on the market. I'll give you ten taels per bowl, making it twenty taels total. How about that?"

The girl was taken aback.

This young girl, who didn't seem very old, how could she be so sharp with her offer?

When she bought this bowl, the seller had indeed asked for eight taels, but after some bargaining, she got it for seven taels, and the seller even threw in a brocade box.

She had thrown out twenty taels earlier, partly to see how far she could push and partly because she saw that this girl spoke with an air of authority, hoping to get more compensation.

With this in mind, the girl felt righteous and said, "—What are you talking about? I don't understand! This bowl cost me twenty taels. Since you said you'd double the compensation, pay up already!"

As she spoke, the girl stretched out her hand and shook it at Xingxing.

Xingxing frowned a little, eyeing the girl, "If that's the case, and you insist that your bowl is worth twenty taels, then I'll compensate you with an identical bowl and an additional ten taels of silver. How about that?"

The girl's face stiffened. She had bought the bowl for seven taels, and if this girl compensated her with ten taels, that would only be seventeen taels, which was less than the twenty taels earlier!

As they were at a standstill, a woman's voice came, "Wang Qianer, what are you doing here?"

Xingxing found the voice familiar and turned around to see Li Lanzhu, who had competed with her for the diamond bracelet in the Apricot Garden's elegant room a few days ago, standing there with an impatient expression.

Li Lanzhu had been waiting for Wang Qianer and, seeing that she hadn't arrived for a long time, came out to look for her.

Unexpectedly, Wang Qianer seemed to be arguing with someone about some compensation.

She had grown impatient and thus spoke up.

Then she saw the person arguing with Wang Qianer turn around—Li Lanzhu was startled and also recognized Xingxing.

Seeing Xingxing, Li Lanzhu was reminded of that detestable Yu Er, and her back teeth itched, making her grind them involuntarily.

Wang Qianer, full of joy, called out "Lanzhu," then pointed at the shattered porcelain pieces on the ground with a grievance, "Lanzhu, this was the gift I was going to give you, but it was broken by this little brat. They said they'd double the compensation, but now they're trying to back out!"