The Transmigrated Farm Girl's Journey to Wealth

“We don’t need fancy wood, just something sturdy. The carpenters in the village cut the wood from the mountains, and they only charge for their labor, so it shouldn’t be too expensive. Tomorrow we’ll go to town to look at some styles, compare prices, and then decide whether to buy a ready-made one or have someone make it.”

"Ready-made ones are definitely more expensive. I remember when the Wang family, the landlords, married off their daughters. I heard they bought ready-made ones from town. They were very beautiful, all red, and the styles were different from those of our villagers."

"Oh, let's go take a look tomorrow. If we can afford it, we'll buy a ready-made one. They're all made in sets, which looks more comfortable."

“But we’ve run out of money. How are we going to get through the winter? We still need to buy winter clothes and quilts. Cotton is so expensive. Mother also needs to take medicine. All of this costs money. We also need to save some for the New Year.”

"Even though it's cold, we won't be idle, don't worry."

Song Feng sat up in bed. "Thinking of a new business opportunity?"

"I've only been making liangpi (cold skin noodles) for about ten days now. Things have been much slower lately. I'll try making it again when I have some free time."

“Okay, yours will definitely be delicious. It’s just that it’s cold, so you don’t need to come with me to set up the stall. I can sell less by myself. If all else fails, you can stay home and let your father-in-law come with me.”

"My dad never goes out in winter." His dad, as soon as it gets cold, can't leave the kang (heated brick bed). He says he can't stand the cold and is weak, but he's really just lazy.

"If I give you 30 coins a day, you'll be sure to follow me every day."

"Pfft!" Fang Xiaoning couldn't help but say, "You know my dad pretty well."

In the darkness, Song Feng awkwardly touched his nose. His father-in-law's temperament was indeed too easy to fathom. As long as there was food in front of him, he could endure any hardship, at most he would just complain a few words.

People say that old people are like children, and my father-in-law is no different from a child.

The next day, after selling the cold noodles, the two went to the furniture store in town. The shopkeeper was very enthusiastic when he saw them. He was a local celebrity and the owner of the cold noodle stall. He had been a customer of the stall several times, not for himself, but to buy things for the owner.

"We'd like to take a look at the furniture."

"This way, this way, everything here is ready-made. Take a look at the styles; they are all the most fashionable right now. If you are not satisfied, we can also customize them."

So many! Song Feng felt dizzy. The colors were so beautiful, a bright, deep red, just as vibrant as the landlord's daughter's dowry.

"Xiao Ning, this color is beautiful."

Fang Xiaoning: ...

The room was filled with deep red decorations; anyone who didn't know better would think the mother-in-law was about to remarry. It's tacky, really tacky, but isn't that what people do these days—love bright colors, love red?

What is commonplace can be elegant; when in Rome, do as the Romans do.

She didn't plan to buy a kang table, an eight-immortal table, a brazier stand, a long table, an incense stand, stools, and chairs; instead, she set her sights on the latest wardrobe.

"How much would this whole set, including three large wardrobes, cost? We'd need four chairs and eight stools."

The waiter was overjoyed; the deal was done, and his commission would be substantial. It seemed selling cold noodles was quite profitable!

"It costs 10 taels, 8 mace, and 37 cash in total. If you really want it, I'll go find the shopkeeper and give you a discount."

Song Feng scoffed, looking at Fang Xiaoning. "This is really expensive."

"Okay, go ask the shopkeeper to give us a discount."

The shopkeeper went into the inner room and came back very quickly. As soon as he entered, he cupped his hands and said, "Greetings, greetings! The waiter just told me that if you want it, we'll round it down. Is that alright with you?"

Fang Xiaoning was not satisfied with the price being only a few dozen coins cheaper.

"How much does this girl cost?"

Getting up at night in winter is inconvenient, so this is still necessary. The one at home is broken and dirty, and she's wanted to throw it away for a long time.

"28 Wen."

"How about this, shopkeeper, round it down and give me three girls as a bonus."

Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper was unwilling to accept the hundred or so coins being short. "No, no, I haven't made much profit from this business. How about this, I'll round it down and give you a girl instead."

"Three."

Fang Xiaoning insisted that she wouldn't buy any more girls until she had at least three. A deal that cost ten taels of silver had been settled for about 100 coins – how could that be too much?

"If it really doesn't work, then forget it."

Song Feng couldn't have wanted it more; he really thought it was too expensive. His mother would be heartbroken if she knew.

Seeing that the deal was about to fall through, the shopkeeper was reluctant to let it go. After deducting the waiter's commission, he could have earned one tael and two mace of silver. Now, he was only losing about a hundred coins, which was still a good deal. It was rare to encounter such a big customer in a month.