Episode 6: Duanwu gets the order
Cui Shijiu spent a lot of money but got very little, and the goods were not good. Looking at half a box of small and uneven pearls, she was furious. In fact, while Cui Shijiu was buying pearls, Yan Zijing also bought a large number of high-quality goods at a high price. Cui Shijiu heard the report from his subordinates and knew that Zhang Jinran had used the trick of cutting off the source of the trouble.
Cui Shijiu went to see Yan Zijing in person. She wanted to trick Zhang Jinran, saying that the court had some complaints against him and asked him to offer the pearls for good luck. Yan Zijing was fooled by Cui Shijiu. He said that he was a law-abiding businessman and had never done anything beyond his authority, so he did not need to show his loyalty to the court.
Yan Zijing asked his men to take out the jewels. Cui Shijiu was tempted when he saw the box full of jewels. As the date of the tribute pearls was approaching, he needed these things urgently and was determined to get them even at a high price.
Yan Zijing’s arrogance greatly angered Cui Shiqi. Hepu was burned, including Yan Zijing’s use of fake gold to deceive Hepu’s housekeeper. She quickly reported the matter to her brother. Xu Nanying was punished in the court and he dared not get close to Yan Zijing again.
Duanwu and other sisters finally had the chance to go ashore. They went to the market to watch the fun. One of the sisters fell in love with a red hairpin. Duanwu found that the flowers on the hairpin were made of waste.
Thinking that there were still a lot of waste on the boat, Duanwu painted all night and designed a plum blossom shape. He also called Xiao Xiami and asked him what kind of wood he used to make the hairpin. Xiao Xiami thought about it and suggested using old ship wood. This old ship wood has experienced wind and rain for many years, the wood will not crack, and it is as strong as iron.
Once, Xiao Xiami followed Cao Tou and saw Cao Tou selling coral beads to the most famous local jewelry store. Duanwu had just arrived and was not familiar with the place at all. She thought of many ways to get close to the store. When she heard that the store owner’s favorite daughter was the ninth daughter of the Pan family, she hurriedly made a pearl hairpin overnight.
The Ninth Lady of the Pan Family was also pitiful. Her two fiancés died one after another. People said that she was a husband-killer, so she always cried and wore a mask.
When Duanwu learned that the Ninth Lady of the Pan Family was going to be photographed recently, he rushed over and knelt in front of the Buddha statue crying and saying that she was a husband-killer. Fortunately, the statue showed its power and gave her a coral bead and red hairpin. Now her luck has finally changed.
Duanwu is a silver-tongued woman. When Lady Ninth of Pan’s family heard that Duanwu was also unlucky in marriage, she thought they were both stranded in the world and asked her how to get the coral beads and the red hairpin. When Duanwu was about to sell the coral beads, Zhang Jinran came uninvited. He exposed Duanwu’s deception in public and Lady Ninth of Pan’s family left in anger.
Zhang Jinran reminded Duanwu that he should not be blinded by greed. Although he could learn some deceptions from Yan Zijing’s businessmen when he boarded the merchant ship, it was not a long-term solution.
Business requires credit. If the ninth lady of the Pan family gets Duanwu’s pearl hairpin today but cannot change his luck, she will bear a grudge against him in the future and there will be no long-term contact between them.
Although Duanwu felt that there was a huge difference between him and Zhang Jinran, what he said made sense, so Duanwu decided to personally apologize to the Ninth Lady of the Pan Family, and she even rented a dress for this purpose.
Duanwu took the Ninth Lady of the Pan Family to see the fortune-teller, and deliberately claimed that she was a daughter of the Pan Family. The fortune-teller lied, saying that her appearance would bring bad luck to her husband, and that her horoscope was not good, etc.
Duanwu immediately exposed her conspiracy, saying that she was not married yet, so how could she tell the truth from the face? The fortune-teller had no choice but to say that she usually talked nonsense. The Ninth Lady of the Pan Family finally realized that everything was fabricated, and how could she tell the fate from the eyes of a swindling old procuress.
Duanwu told Pan’s Ninth Lady to be confident, as long as she didn’t fail, no one would look down on them. Pan’s Ninth Lady was very touched by Duanwu’s help and immediately signed the order. Duanwu got his first business in his life.
