Transmigrated into a female county magistrate during a famine, leading her country to prosperity

On the second day of the provincial examination, Shen Zheng went to Tongan Cloth Shop.

The full-length mirror was a gift for the Queen Mother, and it was not appropriate for it to appear in the cloth shop before the birthday banquet, so she settled for the next best thing and brought a few small mirrors to the cloth shop so that everyone could have a try first.

After handing the mirror to Yan Qiao and telling her some precautions, Shen Zheng began to look at the account book.

Yan Qiao stood quietly beside her, explaining something from time to time.

Yan Qiao kept the account books very clean, and even Shen Zheng couldn't find any fault with them after looking at them.

And there was one thing that surprised Shen Zheng.

——Since Yan Qiao took over the account book, she has recorded the cloth or garment number on each account, and she uses...

It is an Arabic numeral.

Shen Zheng was slightly surprised.

Mo Qingwan learned how to use Arabic numerals to remember product numbers, but that was more than half a month ago. Unexpectedly, in just a dozen days, Yan Qiao had learned it completely.

Seeing that she kept staring at the numbers, Yan Qiao began to feel nervous.

"Sir..." She stepped forward hesitantly and explained to the account book: "I saw Sister Mo make such comments on the account book, so I also..."

Does that mean Mo Qingwan didn't teach her specifically?

Shen Zheng paused for a moment and asked, "Then do you know what these patterns mean?"

"I know..." Yan Qiao pointed at one of the strings of numbers and said, "This is 24000019."

Shen Zheng opened her eyes slightly and couldn't help but sit up straight and look at Yan Qiao.

After a long while, she said, "You...work hard in the cloth shop and bring more people to the county. I have high hopes for you."

Yan Qiao was slightly stunned.

Is this a compliment?

After she realized what was happening, she quickly bowed and said, "I will definitely live up to your expectations!"

......

The sudden appearance of the mirror caused a new craze in the cloth shop.

Regardless of whether they want to buy the cloth or not, customers will go up to take a picture and then exclaim: "So the skin on my face is this color..."

Due to the limitations of production materials and craftsmanship, the skin color reflected in the bronze mirror will be yellowish and dark.

But today, when they looked at themselves in the strange mirror in the cloth shop, they realized that their faces could actually be described as "bright and fair".

Dozens of people surrounded Yan Qiao, talking at once: "Shopkeeper Yan, are you selling this mirror? How much is one? I'm an old customer of the cloth shop. If you want to sell it, you have to come to me first!"

"Who isn't a regular customer? My whole family is wearing cotton clothes now. I even asked someone to bring two pieces of cotton cloth to Fuzhou Mansion so that my brother-in-law can also make two sets of clothes! Shopkeeper Yan, if you count this, I am also helping the cloth shop to attract business!"

"Shopkeeper Yan, sell me! I'll give you one tael of silver!"

"Manager Yan, are you short of this little ounce of silver? I'll add two or three ounces! Manager Yan, if you're willing, I'll pay right now and we'll settle the deal!"

A mirror as big as a head, sold for three taels of silver!

Many people secretly took a breath of cool air.

You know, a polished, patterned copper mirror would cost anywhere from a few hundred to a thousand coins, but this mirror from Tonganbuzhuang was sold for three taels of silver right off the bat...

This high price makes many people stay away.

But some people thought it was reasonable. "This mirror is so clear, it's obviously made of a whole gem. Three taels of silver, I think it's reasonable. Shopkeeper Yan, whether you want to sell this mirror or not is up to you. If you want to sell it, I'll take the other ones!"

joke!

This is the "gem mirror" launched by Tong'an Cloth Shop.

Regardless of what kind of gem this crystal clear mirror is, just based on the four words "Tong'an Cloth Shop", this mirror can be sold at a high price if taken outside.

By then, it won't be something that can be solved with just a few taels of silver.

Some people buy mirrors to take them home and look at themselves, but others...are just eyeing the business.

Yan Qiao carefully held the mirrors in her arms, raised her head and said with a smile: "Everyone, please be patient and listen to what I have to say."

Everyone stopped fighting and stared at the mirror.

Yan Qiao handed the mirror to a clerk, signaled him to take it first, and then said: "First of all, I would like to thank everyone for their love for the mirror."

When the word "first" was uttered, many people understood.

Want to buy this mirror today?

——No hope!

But this is Tongan Cloth Shop, a business under the management of the lord in Tongan County. No one dared to get emotional or make trouble. Everyone stood where they were, quietly waiting for Yan Qiao's next words.

"To be honest, these mirrors were personally delivered by Lord Shen this morning."

Everyone stared when they heard this.

"Master Shen is here at the cloth shop?"

"How come we didn't see it? I came here once this morning!"

"I saw a woman this morning with an extraordinary temperament. I thought she looked a bit like Lord Shen, but I didn't dare to believe it! At that time, I changed my mind and thought, Lord Shen is now a sixth-rank official, how could he travel alone? So I doubted for a moment! Oh, now that I think about it, that woman couldn't really be Lord Shen!"

"What do you mean by sixth-rank official? Isn't the county magistrate a seventh-rank official? You don't even understand this?"

"Oh - you didn't know? His Majesty the Emperor promoted Lord Shen! Lord Shen is now a sixth-rank official in the Ministry of Works!"

"Oh my god! Sixth-rank official? Then Lord Shen is on par with the officials of the government? When did this happen? Why didn't I hear any news at all?"

"Just over ten days ago! I heard that a general came in person to announce the reward. And did you know that..."

When this topic came out, many people forgot about the mirror and waited for what would happen next with their mouths and eyes wide open.

The "storyteller" was also very knowledgeable. He coughed lightly, rolled his eyes, smoothed his robe, and became very stylish.

"Lord Shen will go to the capital in person to celebrate the Empress Dowager's birthday! And when he gets there, he will live in the mansion bestowed by the Emperor! You can't imagine how big that mansion is..."

"How big is it? Is it as big as a three-story house?"

"Three times?! Are you looking down on Lord Shen, or are you looking down on His Majesty the Emperor?"

"..."

Unconsciously, Yan Qiao was no longer the center of the crowd.

Yan Qiao breathed a sigh of relief, carefully squeezed out of the crowd, and said to the clerk waiting beside her: "No matter who asks, this mirror is not for sale. Just say it is Lord Shen's intention. If anyone really wants to buy it, just say they have to wait until Lord Shen returns from Shangjing before making a final decision."

The clerk nodded and took note. Yan Qiao then said, "Make a few more signs. The mirror is fragile and cannot be taken at will. You should also look carefully and try not to let the mirror out of your sight."

......

As the sun sets, the entrance to the examination center is crowded with people.

The students' families, book boys, servants and others blocked the entrance of the examination hall. Everyone stretched their necks and pricked up their ears, waiting for the bell to open.

Although the provincial examination did not need to be postponed until one day before leaving the examination hall, there were still some rules for opening the door and letting students out.

All students are required to observe the rules and check if they are in order before they are allowed to line up.

Many people joked about this rule - the examination authority was afraid that students would steal tables and chairs.