NOVPUB
Chapter 257: Chapter 259: Too Shrewd_1
Tan Zhengyuan perfectly illustrated what it means to bully the weak and fear the strong; as soon as the Hu Clan showed a bit of firmness, he stopped his pointless chatter.
However, seeing Da Ya and Er Ya in their new clothes, he felt an itchy frustration.
Why dress up two losers so nicely? Sooner or later, they’re going to belong to another family!
It was just that Fat Fat and Fatty were always in the courtyard, and those two dogs often followed the girls, so he dared not act rashly.
Ah, who would have thought such a bastard could be kept so docile by a pair of dogs?
It was a case of one thing overcoming another, wasn’t it?
In the past couple of days, the snow fungus had dried properly, and Qiao Duo’er planned to sell it before the busy farming season, to keep those with ill intentions from eyeing it covetously.
Having made the decision, Qiao Duo’er and Tan Zhenghong got up early to ride in Uncle Huang’s ox cart to head to town.
When selling snow fungus, the Bai Family was the first choice. Not only did they offer a high price, but Old Granny Bai had specially instructed the servants that if anyone brought snow fungus, they should let the housekeeper handle the purchase, and to accept all comers.
So, Uncle Huang had them stop right at the Bai Family’s gate.
"Wait here for a bit; I’ll come back to pick you up," instructed Uncle Huang.
Tan Zhenghong politely responded, "Then we’ll have to trouble you, Uncle Huang."
Uncle Huang said there was no need for thanks; he now had a steady income from delivering vegetables to the Fourth Boss’s house every day, and in the afternoon, he took Erhu and the others to town.
And he genuinely adored the couple from the Fourth Boss’s House.
Especially since his wife always lamented not having a daughter and envied having one like Qiao Duo in the future, claiming it would make her happy enough to wake up laughing from dreams.
Unfortunately, they only had one son in their lifetime, and once their son married, he also had only sons.
Tan Zhenghong knocked on the door of the Bai Family, and a clerk soon opened a side door: "What can I do for you?"
"Brother, we’re here to sell snow fungus, please inform the housekeeper for us," Tan Zhenghong said politely—as the saying goes, ’A gatekeeper at the Prime Minister’s house is a third-rank official,’ and the same principle applies to wealthy households.
The gatekeeper clerk looked them over and then said, "Let me see the goods first, and if they’re acceptable, I’ll call the housekeeper."
Tan Zhenghong took out a box from his carrying basket and opened it to reveal neatly arranged snow fungus inside.
There were six pieces in total, white and pure as jade.
In fact, they had found a total of eight pieces, with two left at home for his daughter-in-law to eat.
He’d heard others say snow fungus was a good thing, that in winter, stewing it with lotus seeds and red dates into a sweet soup warmed the body and nourished the blood, which his daughter-in-law was sure to enjoy.
Even if Duo’er didn’t like it, he would keep it for its health benefits for her.
The gatekeeper clerk had been with the Bai Family for many years and had seen plenty of snow fungus, but he had never encountered such high-quality ones before. 𝒏𝒐𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝒄𝙤𝙢
"Please wait, I’ll go immediately to fetch the housekeeper," he said.
After giving the instruction, the gatekeeper knew he couldn’t delay as Old Granny Bai’s status in the Bai Family was unrivaled.
Before long, Qiao Duo’er and Tan Zhenghong were invited into the side hall.
The housekeeper was a middle-aged man, immediately appearing astute.
Moreover, he didn’t try to hide it, giving an unsettling feeling, as if one might easily be outwitted by him.
Tan Zhenghong presented the snow fungus, and the housekeeper examined and sniffed it, still keeping his face tight, seemingly unimpressed.
"The quality of your snow fungus is only average. I’ll offer you three taels for each piece, how does that sound?" the housekeeper squinted his eyes.
The pair before him seemed honest and simple, so three taels per piece must surely be a high price to them.
As for the actual value, he was well aware.
If he managed to secure that box of snow fungus, the silver he’d gain would far exceed theirs.
