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“People are never satisfied; being too greedy never ends well. You just earned an extra two hundred coins in there, and you still don’t want it. Now you insist on checking elsewhere. When you return, I’m sure the treasurer won’t be pleased,” the assistant grumbled, sounding disappointed. “When you come back later, don’t blame me for not warning you.”
Jiang Youcheng felt unsure about these words and reached out to tug at Jiang Mixia’s sleeve.
Jiang Mixia turned to the assistant and replied, “Thank you for the reminder. When buying things, it’s always good to compare, and the same goes for selling. If we can’t secure a better price, at least we’ll be at ease. Those extra two hundred coins won’t matter then.”
The assistant sneered, clearly unimpressed.
It was quite ironic to see a rural person, who would normally be ecstatic over two hundred coins, now speaking so casually about it. This was truly laughable.
The assistant chuckled, “Well, since it’s come to this, I won’t say more. Just head south along this street; you’ll find Gaoji Pawnshop. Go and ask about the price. It will give you peace of mind, at least.”
With that, he flicked his sleeve and returned to the shop.
As the trio left the Treasure Pavilion’s front entrance to find a quieter spot to discuss the pearls, a figure hurriedly slipped out of the rear courtyard gate of the Treasure Pavilion, swiftly making their way into the bustling crowd, soon vanishing from sight.
Unaware of this, Jiang Mixia and her group moved away from the shop entrance to find a less crowded area to talk about the pearls.
“The treasurer seemed quite confident in his words. It’s possible the pearls aren’t worth much,” Jiang Youcheng scratched his head.
He had been thinking that if the pearls could be sold for a good sum, they could use the money to renovate their house and buy some land, making life better for their family. But now it seemed that at most, they could only renovate the house.
The reality was far from what he had anticipated, and Jiang Youcheng appeared somewhat dejected.
“Businesses like the Treasure Pavilion naturally aim to lower the price when acquiring goods. It’s similar to us looking for flaws when buying things and claiming that prices are cheaper elsewhere. But it’s often just casual talk,” Jiang Mixia remarked. “Let’s go and inquire about the price first.”
“True, at least we’ll have an idea,” Jiang Youcheng nodded.
The three of them headed to Gaoji Pawnshop. After some haggling, the highest price offered by the pawnshop was two taels and five mace of silver.
“This…”
After leaving the pawnshop, Jiang Youcheng scratched his head once more, “I reckon the treasurer wasn’t lying to us. It seems the pearls are worth just this much.”
Jiang Mixia pursed her lips.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that something was amiss.
The price offered by the pawnshop seemed too in line with what the treasurer had said.
“Then let’s go sell the pearls at the Treasure Pavilion,” Jiang Youcheng suggested.
Three taels of silver was still a substantial amount.
Considering they had found the pearls for free, it was like stumbling upon three taels of silver. In previous years, that amount would have been the family’s income for over half a year.
“Let’s check elsewhere first,” Jiang Mixia hesitated to return to the Treasure Pavilion.
The assistant’s arrogant attitude and the uncanny pricing alignment made Jiang Mixia feel that something wasn’t quite right. It seemed like a case of a large shop taking advantage of its customers.
Moreover, the two establishments were not far from each other in the county town and were somewhat interconnected in their business operations. If they colluded to buy at low prices, then with some modifications and repackaging, they could sell at higher prices.
The daughter, cautious as ever, and Jiang Youcheng, somewhat dissatisfied with the price offered for the pearls, agreed that it was worth checking elsewhere. However, they were unfamiliar with the county town and didn’t know where to find other jewelry shops, let alone which ones were reliable. They could only walk along the street and look around as they went.
“Is this also a jewelry shop?” Song Jingyun pointed to a shop not far ahead, “I think the pattern on the cloth banner hanging above is the same as the one on that shop we just visited.”
In typical fashion, aside from the wooden signboards, most shops also hung small wooden or cloth signs with patterns, making it easy for illiterate people to identify the type of shop.
Although Song Jingyun couldn’t read, he could remember patterns.
Jiang Mixia looked up and indeed saw the sign above the shop, which read “Golden Jade Pavilion.”
However, the shop looked new, with a less ostentatious exterior compared to the Treasure Pavilion, and there were few people coming and going, giving the impression of sluggish business.
Nevertheless, since it was a jewelry shop, they decided to give it a try.
Jiang Mixia nodded, “It should be. Let’s go take a look.”
The three of them entered the Golden Jade Pavilion, finding only one or two people inside browsing the merchandise.
The shop assistant hurried over to greet them, “Honored guests, what would you like to see? Bracelets, hairpins, or necklaces? What’s the occasion? A birthday gift, a bridal dowry, or a baby’s hundredth day or first birthday?”
“None of those,” Jiang Mixia explained their purpose, “We found some pearls in some freshwater clams and would like your shopkeeper to appraise them.”
Realizing they were not there to buy but to sell, the assistant’s smile didn’t waver, “Please wait a moment. The shopkeeper is settling a customer’s bill. Once he’s done, I’ll take you to him.”
“Thank you.”
The assistant’s friendly demeanor left a positive impression on Jiang Mixia.
Before long, the customer who had been browsing made their purchase and left. The assistant then led Jiang Mixia over, saying, “This is our shopkeeper, Mr. Zhao.”
“These individuals are looking to sell pearls,” the assistant informed Mr. Zhao.
“Sell pearls?” Mr. Zhao smiled, “Found in freshwater clams?”
“Exactly,” Jiang Mixia confirmed.
“You’ve been quite fortunate. Pearls found in wild freshwater clams are quite rare. Kindly show them to me, and I’ll give you an estimate,” Mr. Zhao requested.
He led Jiang Mixia and her group to a room in the back of the shop. Once settled, they presented the pearls to Mr. Zhao.
Using a handkerchief to cushion his hand, Mr. Zhao carefully examined each of the three pearls, giving a detailed assessment.
“This one is large but lacks roundness, has slight surface flaws, and is slightly light in weight. In terms of quality, it’s still acceptable.”
“This one is of medium size, oval-shaped, with slight surface flaws, placing it in the middle range in terms of quality.”
“This one is small, perfectly round, with a smooth surface and minimal flaws. In terms of quality, it’s better, but its small size limits its potential.”
After evaluating the pearls, Mr. Zhao turned to the trio, “I wonder what price you have in mind?”
Jiang Youcheng considered, tentatively thinking of suggesting a price with five fingers. Yet, he hesitated, contemplating whether to extend only four…
Jiang Mixia intervened, “Mr. Zhao, as you know, we rural folks are not well-versed in this. Please suggest a price, and if it’s suitable, we’ll sell.”
“In that case, I’ll make an offer.”