The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

A slight smile played on Anmi's lips beneath her veil. Interesting, this is getting interesting!

Knowing this, An Mi felt reassured. She lowered her brows slightly and said calmly, "I have seen it. The Liu family was quite lively that day, unforgettable. I even gave them an embroidered handkerchief. I wonder if Madam Liu still likes that handkerchief?"

Anmi drove straight towards Madam Liu, her eyes smiling, her words seemingly unintentional, yet piercing straight to Madam Liu's heart.

How could Madam Liu not understand what Miss Yan meant? She wasn't referring to the embroidered handkerchief from their wedding day, but rather the grand gift she had given them some time ago!

Like? She hated it more than she could think of! Thinking of the fire that had plunged the Liu family into their current predicament, Madam Liu's anger raged uncontrollably, and her face turned ashen!

Seeing how much Madam Liu hated her, An Mi knew that she understood what she meant, and her smile deepened.

The Prefect's wife naturally noticed this as well, and her gaze narrowed. She had never seen Madam Liu suffer a loss in front of anyone before. Today, she was surprised to find that Madam Liu was unable to utter a single word in front of this Miss Yan. It was truly satisfying.

The prefectural lady couldn't help but take another look at Miss Yan, and she liked her even more. She took her hand and said affectionately, "I like it, Madam Liu must like it. Some time ago, I sent someone to buy one. Look, this is such an exquisite embroidered handkerchief. Only Miss Yan's skillful hands could embroider something like this! I like it very much."

The Prefect's wife's praise of An Mi made the other women who already admired An Mi even more fond of her, and they all stood closer to her.

Madam Liu's face indeed turned even paler, and she glared at the Prefectural Lady. The Prefectural Lady received her gaze and naturally understood her meaning, but she didn't take it to heart. "Madam Liu, what's wrong? If you're not feeling well, have a maid take you home first."

Madam Liu paused, enduring everyone's gaze, and had no choice but to force a smile, "No, I'm not feeling unwell, Madam of the Prefecture. Didn't we agree to have a small gathering? How can I go back first?"

Go back? She hasn't achieved her goal today, how can she go back?

After saying that, Madam Liu stepped forward with a smile, gently took the arm of the Prefectural Lady, and whispered in her ear in a voice that the two of them could hear, "Have you remembered my instructions?"

The lady of the prefecture simply nodded slightly before greeting everyone, "Gentlemen, I will not attend to you for now. Please feel free to wander around. My husband will be arriving soon. Ladies, please follow me. The flowers in the garden ahead are in full bloom. I have instructed someone to prepare some snacks and tea. Wouldn't it be a pleasant thing for us to enjoy the flowers and drink tea?"

Upon hearing the Prefectural Lady's words, the women present became excited and followed her toward the garden ahead. An Mi was held by the Prefectural Lady's hand the whole time, and the intimacy between the two of them was just like that of a mother and daughter.

Soon, the group arrived at the garden ahead and stopped. The garden was full of flowers in full bloom, which was exceptionally beautiful.

As soon as everyone sat down, the Prefectural Governor's wife spoke up, "Madam Liu, didn't you have something to tell everyone?"

After she finished speaking, everyone looked at Madam Liu. Madam Liu's expression stiffened. She had obviously not expected the Prefect's wife to say such a thing. But at this moment, she had no choice but to put on a brave face and put on a smile. "Yes, there are some things."

After saying that, he frowned and instructed the maid beside him, "Go and bring up the gift I prepared."

The maidservant withdrew, and soon returned with two other maidservants, each carrying two rather large boxes. Seeing this, everyone couldn't help but wonder what Madam Liu was up to.

What is Madam Liu trying to do? An Mi glanced at the two boxes, thought for a moment, and understood, but remained calm and simply sipped her tea.

"Ladies and misses, here are some jewels from my collection. I'm taking advantage of the opportunity of the Prefect's wife's invitation to show them off. Good things are meant to be shared, aren't they?" Madam Liu said warmly, giving her maid a wink.

The maids immediately opened the boxes and carried them to the ladies and young women present.

When everyone saw the jewelry inside, most of them were immediately impressed. These were treasures they rarely saw in their daily lives, all made of the finest materials, some of which they had never even seen before. The ladies and young women present were all stunned, secretly marveling at how Madam Liu truly lived up to her reputation as the wife of the richest man, possessing such a private collection.

An Mi glanced at the jewels, a smile playing on her lips. "Isn't that the legendary Phoenix Pearl?"

Everyone immediately followed Anmi's gaze and saw that there was a string of pearls that was exceptionally beautiful. They were all rare pink, and there seemed to be about a hundred pearls in the string. They were bright and shiny.

Phoenix Pearl? Is that the Phoenix Pearl?

"Legend has it that the late Emperor received a string of pink pearls as tribute from the Southern Frontier. Their color was lustrous and they were extremely rare. The late Emperor personally selected one hundred of the largest, roundest, and most flawless pearls and strung them together as a gift to the late Empress. These were called Phoenix Pearls. The remaining pearls were then selected and strung together again, becoming the first-class Phoenix Pearls. From the remaining pearls, another one hundred were selected and strung together, becoming the second-class Phoenix Pearls. This process continued until a total of five-class Phoenix Pearls were created. Therefore, there are only six strings of Phoenix Pearls in the world. Judging from the color, the pearls that Lady Liu has now are probably fifth-class Phoenix Pearls!" An Mi slowly recounted, observing the expressions of the crowd. She paused for a moment and continued, "However, although these are fifth-class pearls, they are still a thousand times more precious than other ordinary pearls. It is said that after that, no pink pearls have ever appeared again."

Everyone knew more or less about the preciousness of the phoenix pearl, but none of them knew it in such detail. Now that they heard it, they were even more fascinated by the pink phoenix pearl in the box.

Looking at everyone's expressions, Madam Liu was quite satisfied. She glanced at the woman in white and said, "Miss Yan is quite perceptive."

This phoenix pearl was her most prized possession!

An Mi frowned. Of course she recognized it. In her previous life, she had only had the good fortune to see it once. This Madam Liu treasured this fifth-grade phoenix pearl so much that she wouldn't even allow anyone to touch it. She treasured this fifth-grade phoenix pearl so much, yet she was willing to take it out today. Ha! It was beyond her expectations.

"I just happened to know that." An Mi took a sip of tea, a smile playing on her lips.

The Prefect's wife had also seen this fifth-grade phoenix pearl, so Madam Liu certainly wouldn't miss the opportunity to show it off in front of her, would she? Thinking of Madam Liu's imperious manner, she lowered her gaze slightly and spoke softly, "If this fifth-grade phoenix pearl is this beautiful, then how dazzling must a real phoenix pearl be!"