Chapter 65: Everyone Earns Money Together

Chapter 65: Everyone Earns Money Together

Wen Xi set up a table under the eaves, spread a clean cloth over it, and carefully examined each piece of embroidery brought by the villagers, laying them out one by one.

Since these items were to be sold at their own stall, he couldn't accept subpar pieces just to maintain goodwill with the neighbors.

Many villagers came to sell their embroidery, but Wen Xi was strict—he rejected anything with uneven stitching or poorly done patterns.

For those that passed quality checks, Wen Xi paid them according to the material.

Shunzi's husband had embroidered five handkerchiefs and was surprised to receive forty wen from Wen Xi: "Xi Geer, did you overpay?"

If he sold these handkerchiefs to a peddler or the town embroidery shop, getting thirty wen would have been lucky.

"Not overpaid." Wen Xi smiled at him. "We're stricter than others when buying, but we also pay more. We're all from the same village—I won't let anyone lose out."

Hearing this, Shunzi's husband clutched his coins happily and said, "Thank you so much! Next time I embroider something, I'll come sell to you again."

Seeing how much he got for just a few handkerchiefs, Chen's husband quickly handed over his pillowcase cover: "Xi Geer, what do you think of mine?"

Chen's husband's pillowcase had two embroidered mandarin ducks. Though his work wasn't as lively as Wen Xi's or He Jin's, it wasn't sloppy either—even the loose threads were trimmed cleanly.

Wen Xi accepted the pillowcase and gave him twenty-five wen. Chen's husband took the coins with a grin that wouldn't fade, telling everyone outside the courtyard gate that Wen Xi's prices were very fair.

Auntie Liu, who had been lingering by the Yan family's gate, felt even more bitter hearing this.

Last year, over that batch of embroidery from Shen Liang, she'd argued with Wen Xi. She suspected Wen Xi had complained afterward because when He Jin went door-to-door yesterday, he'd deliberately skipped her house—wasn't that obviously holding a grudge?

She silently cursed, resenting both young husbands for being petty, while also fretting anxiously watching others make money.

After losing the work from Shen Liang, she'd tried selling her and Li Xinghua's pieces at the town embroidery shop.

Those shop people were ruthless, nitpicking that her work was bad here and there, and in the end paid her even less than others.

Auntie Liu was furious but couldn't bring herself to refuse the sale.

Without Shen Liang's income, her household had become tight, and with Li Xinghua pregnant, things were even harder.

Seeing that most families in the village could exchange embroidery for money at the Yan house, how could she sit still? Face wasn't worth more than silver. Knowing full well that Wen Xi and He Jin didn't care for her, Auntie Liu still swallowed her pride and came.

Once most people had left the courtyard, she carried her bamboo basket to the eaves, first offering Wen Xi and He Jin an apologetic smile, then pulling out three handkerchiefs and two pouches from the basket, speaking in a low tone: "Xi Geer, Jin Geer, could you take a look at mine too?"

He Jin had indeed skipped her house yesterday on purpose. He hadn't expected Auntie Liu to be so thick-skinned—even after he'd been so obvious, she still brought things to sell.

He took her pouches and handkerchiefs to examine them, then said critically, "The colors on this pouch are outdated, and the edges aren't finished cleanly. We probably couldn't sell these in town."

Hearing he didn't intend to accept them, Auntie Liu said anxiously, "I made them carefully. If you think they're not good enough, you can pay less."

He Jin shook his head: "Even a lower price is still money. If we can't sell them and they're stuck with us, we'd lose out. Auntie Liu, don't make things hard for us."

In the past, Auntie Liu would have loudly accused them of targeting her in front of the whole village, but remembering her current straits, she couldn't utter a single harsh word.

She hung her head and pleaded softly, "We're all from the same village—can't you just help me out? If I had any other option, I wouldn't come begging to you. Just pay whatever you think is fair, even a few coins is fine, as long as they don't end up wasted on my hands."

He Jin exchanged a glance with Wen Xi, then picked up Auntie Liu's pouches again to inspect them. Honestly, when Auntie Liu had taken orders before, her main flaw was being greedy and pocketing the shop's materials—but her craftsmanship was far better than her daughter-in-law Li Xinghua's.

Her pouches and handkerchiefs weren't unsellable, but if you accepted them too readily, she probably wouldn't feel grateful—she'd think her work was excellent and that they were taking advantage of her.

Yet refusing wasn't quite right either. Now that their own lives were better, there was no need to block others' paths over some petty verbal spat. Otherwise, cornered people might do something drastic, and it wasn't worth being resented over a few coins.

He Jin pretended to hesitate, handing the pouches to Wen Xi: "What do you think?"

Wen Xi knew he was meant to play the tough one, so he followed along: "Since you've put it that way, refusing would make us seem heartless. But your work really isn't as fine as others'. I'll give you five wen per handkerchief and twenty wen per pouch. If that works for you, leave them; if you think it's too low, you can ask elsewhere."

At that rate, she'd still get fifty-five wen total—better than the embroidery shop by any calculation.

Auntie Liu nodded eagerly, afraid they'd change their minds: "Fine, fine, whatever you say."

After Wen Xi counted out the coins to her, Auntie Liu said happily, "Next time I'll make them finer and bring them again."

Wen Xi didn't agree, only saying, "We'll see next time—we don't know yet how well these will sell in town."

Auntie Liu opened her mouth to speak, but seeing the two had already turned to organize their things, she said nothing more and left with her half-empty basket.

Once everyone was gone, Wen Xi and He Jin tallied up the day's purchases and expenditures. Together they'd bought fifteen handkerchiefs, ten pouches, five sachets, two pairs of pillowcases, and three children's belly bands, spending six hundred and one wen in total.

Wen Xi looked at the variety of embroidered goods and finally felt more at ease—with these, their cart wouldn't look so bare.

On the first of the month, Wen Xi and He Jin packed the thread baskets and little stools into the lower cabinet, and wrapped the remaining embroidery in coarse cloth to protect it from dust during the trip.

Though the cart had wheels, the mountain roads were bumpy, so Yan Fuqiu, worried about his brothers' husbands struggling to push it, helped push it into town.

By the time they reached the street for the morning market, it was fully light. Wen Xi and He Jin parked the cart next to the painting-and-calligraphy stall, paid the market fee, then pulled off the coarse cloth covering and laid out the embroidery pieces one by one—higher-priced on one side, lower-priced on the other.

Wen Xi inserted the bamboo flagpole into the slot, and once it stood upright, the character "Wen" on the flag caught the attention of early market shoppers.

Yan Fuqiu was sweating from pushing the cart all the way, so He Jin wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief and took a stool from the lower cabinet for him to sit and rest nearby.

At first, when no one came to buy, He Jin and Wen Xi kept busy—one tying knots, the other braiding bracelets with colored silk thread, which attracted quite a few looks from passersby.

Mornings were the busiest time at the market, and Wen Xi and He Jin were fairly lucky—not long after setting up, they sold three handkerchiefs, two pouches, and one child's belly band.

As for prices, each item was sold for half again what they'd paid, so they'd make a profit.

Before long, a young man in shop assistant's clothes walked up to their cart, smiling broadly at Wen Xi: "Yan's husband, do you still remember me?"

Wen Xi looked up and recognized him: "Of course, you're the assistant from Wencui Pavilion. You came to our place before."

Hearing this, He Jin and Yan Fuqiu also remembered. Yan Fuqiu greeted him: "Young man, are you here for the morning market too?"

"I came specifically to find Yan's husband." Li Er explained, "Previously, when Scholar Yan went to the academy, he worked something out with our manager. He said Yan's husband would be setting up a stall in town on the first of the month, and since the village is far from the county town, pushing the cart back and forth is inconvenient. So he asked if our bookshop could spare a spot to store your cart. Our manager agreed and had me come tell you today."

Yan Fuqiu had been dreading the hassle of pushing the cart back and forth, and was delighted that his third brother had thought of everything: "That's wonderful!"

Wen Xi was also pleased. With the cart storage solved, coming into town without the cart would be much easier. Besides the first and fifteenth, if they were free, he and He Jin could come into town to do business on other days too.

He asked Li Er to thank Manager Yan on his behalf.

Li Er said, "The manager said we're all friends, no need for formalities. Our bookshop closes at the you hour (5–7 PM), so just bring the cart over before then."

Wen Xi nodded in agreement. After Li Er left, all three of them couldn't help smiling happily.

As the sun climbed higher, some of the embroidery Wen Xi had bought in the village sold, but his own pieces attracted no buyers.

There were many knowledgeable people in town, but ordinary households weren't willing to pay such high prices for his sachets and pouches.

This was all within Wen Xi's expectations—otherwise, he wouldn't have deliberately bought embroidery from others to fill out the stall.

After deducting their costs, they'd earned nearly two hundred wen by now—either way, they weren't losing out.

A young master in silk, trailed by a maidservant, entered the market. After scanning the stalls, he finally stopped in front of Wen Xi's cart.

Wen Xi, like any ordinary vendor, took the initiative to pitch his goods: "Young master, what would you like to buy? These over here are made by me personally—the fabric's a cut above the usual stuff. If you like them, I can pick one up for you to take a closer look."

The young master's gaze fell on his face, then glanced at the pouches Wen Xi had pointed to. After a beat, he said, "How about you guess what I like? Guess right, and I'll buy one of your pouches."

Wen Xi gave him a once-over, then picked up a pouch with a smile and handed it to the young master across the stall: "Then I'll just go ahead and pick one out for you."

The young master took it and looked at it. The light green pouch had two lotus flowers with half-open buds embroidered on it, and a dragonfly perched on one of the buds. It was simple but classy.

A faint smile tugged at the corner of the young master's mouth as he asked, "Why do you think I'd like this one?"

"To be honest, I don't actually know which one you'd prefer. I just figured the lotus's clean, elegant vibe suited you, so I chose it."

The young master smiled, asked the price, and had his maidservant pay. For a big spender like that, Wen Xi didn't hold back. As He Jin took the money, Wen Xi also threw in a handkerchief he'd made himself.

The young master's smile deepened: "You sure know how to work a sale. I haven't seen you here at the market before—but you don't seem like a first-timer at this either."

Wen Xi replied, "I used to set up somewhere else. From now on, I'll be here. If you like my work, feel free to come back anytime."

The young master asked again, "Will you be here every day?"

Wen Xi thought for a moment and said, "Hard to say, but I'll definitely be here on the first and fifteenth of each month. Come by on those days, and you're bound to find me."

"Alright, I'll come find you next time if I need anything."

After the man left, He Jin and Yan Fuqiu stared at those three taels of silver, feeling mighty pleased.

That was the beauty of selling high-end embroidery—even one sale a day could feed the family for ages.

By noon, the crowd in the market had thinned out. Wen Xi was about to push the cart down the street to try his luck when a middle-aged man passing by their stall suddenly stopped.

Unlike other customers, he didn't even glance at the embroidered goods on display. Instead, he walked around their cart, touched the wood of the cart, and even crouched down to look at the cabinet doors and drawers at the bottom.

He Jin and Wen Xi were both baffled by his behavior, but Yan Fuqiu stepped up and struck up a conversation: "Sir, are you looking to buy embroidery or asking about the cart?"

Wang Zhengde stood up, a look of genuine admiration on his face: "This cart's really well made. Solid materials, and even the drawer slides are planed smooth. Where'd you get this made?"

Yan Fuqiu grinned. "We made it ourselves."

"Made it yourselves?" Wang Zhengde was somewhat surprised and walked around the cart again. "You know how to do this sort of work?"

"My dad, my oldest brother, and I are all carpenters back in the countryside," Yan Fuqiu said in a casual tone, but with a hint of pride he couldn't hide. "This kind of thing's nothing for us."

Hearing that, Wang Zhengde's eyes lit up: "Since you're carpenters, you must take on work. Young man, could you make a batch of cabinets for me?"

Yan Fuqiu asked, "What kind do you have in mind?"

Wang Zhengde pulled a folded piece of paper from his chest and handed it over, speaking with some eagerness: "I've rented a shop in town to sell odds and ends and stationery. The shop's all set, but I still need the counter and shelves. Here are the dimensions and styles I've drawn up. Take a look and see if you can do it."

Yan Fuqiu took the drawing and examined it carefully. It showed simple sketches of several rows of counters, with dimensions clearly marked and the designs not too complicated. He nodded: "We can make them, but autumn harvest is coming up soon. If you're in a hurry, we probably won't be able to finish in time."

For country folk, the autumn harvest was everything. The Yan family wasn't about to let their crops go for a bit of silver.

"No rush, no rush." Wang Zhengde waved his hand repeatedly. "The shop is still being rented out by someone else right now. I'll give you a grace period of two months. As long as you can finish within two months, that's fine."

Two months was more than enough time.

For large items like this, the pricing wasn't usually calculated by the hour but by the piece. The carpenter would estimate a total price and quote it to the employer. If the employer accepted, the deal was done.

Yan Fuqiu had worked alongside Yan Shichang for years, so he wasn't some naive greenhorn. After the middle-aged man asked about the price, he said, "The whole set will be twenty-three taels of silver. If you think that's fair, we'll sign an agreement."

Wang Zhengde had already approached many carpenters before. The ones in town charged high prices but didn't do fine work. Comparing goods side by side, it was obvious at a glance who was better.

This price was even slightly lower than what the city carpenters charged. After hearing it, Wang Zhengde agreed without much hesitation.

Once they settled on the deal, Wang Zhengde paid Yan Fuqiu a deposit of two taels. Yan Fuqiu then gave a few copper coins to the scholar selling calligraphy next door and asked him to write up two agreements. The agreements clearly listed the price, materials, timeline, and delivery terms, and both were signed with the names of Yan Fuqiu and Wang Zhengde. One copy for each party, kept safely—if any dispute arose later, they could be used as evidence even at the county office.

After Wang Zhengde walked away with his hands behind his back, He Jin came over to look at the agreement in his hand and laughed: "Xiao Xi and I set up a stall, and you go and make money on the side. Once these cabinets are done, we'll have another prosperous year."

Yan Fuqiu tucked the agreement into his chest, straightened his back, and said proudly, "This is the benefit of having a skill. See? Now do you know you made the right choice marrying me?"

"Get lost." He Jin laughed and gently twisted Yan Fuqiu's ear. The force was light, but Yan Fuqiu pretended to wince in pain, which made He Jin laugh again.

Wen Xi stood nearby, watching the couple mess around, and a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. It was truly wonderful that the whole family could earn money.