Crossing Over to Yamada Love

Mo Lan looked her over. She was about 40 years old, with a hollowed-out gold hairpin in her hair. Her face was like a full moon, and her once almond-shaped eyes were now covered with wrinkles, as if lamenting the passing of her mistress. She wore a dark purple pleated skirt, and judging from the material of the skirt, her family must be well-off. However, she wondered why there were no maids or servants with her.

"Uncle Shopkeeper, last time you told Lanlan the names and uses of these things. Now Lanlan will introduce them to this lady. Can you listen to whether Lanlan's explanation is correct?" Molan answered crisply, afraid of putting the shopkeeper in a difficult position.

"Alright, then I'll trouble Miss Lan." Manager He was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and agreed. After all, he was in business and his reaction was quick.

"Madam, this little sachet you're holding is called a 'lucky bag.' It's made of silk and filled with dried flower petals, so it has a faint floral scent. You should wear this lucky bag around your neck on the morning of the Dragon Boat Festival, and take it off after the festival. You can hang it in your house to bring good fortune to the homeowner. Of course, you can wear it as long as you like; it's not only pretty but also brings good fortune." After introducing the sachet, Mo Lan paused slightly, observing the expressions of the shopkeeper and the two women. Seeing their smiling faces, she knew they liked it very much and were quite satisfied.

"This rope is called the Five-Colored Rope. It's woven from five colors. You wear it on your wrist on the Dragon Boat Festival, and take it off and throw it away when it first rains. This will get rid of all the illnesses of the year and keep you healthy. Of course, you can wear it anytime if you like, just not on the Dragon Boat Festival," Mo Lan explained the Five-Colored Rope.

People in ancient times were superstitious and sought auspicious meanings, which is why Cymbidium goeringii incorporated these elements. It looks beautiful, and one symbolizes good fortune while the other wards off illness, so there's no worry about finding a market for it when the time comes.

"I'll take all three pairs! Shopkeeper, please calculate the price." The lady in purple immediately spoke up after hearing Mo Lan's words, wanting to buy the three pairs of sachets and the five-colored rope.

"Sister-in-law, three couples, besides the ones for Mother, you must save me a sachet and a five-colored rope when the time comes." The other lady had a fawning smile on her face, wanting to ask for the sachet and the five-colored rope. Judging from their tone of voice, they should be talking to their sister-in-law.

"There are only 3 pairs. Besides my mother's, there are so many people in the family. It's not enough to go around. Shopkeeper, is there anything else?" The lady in purple was a little troubled. There were few items and many people in the family. She couldn't help but have some reservations about giving some to one person and not others when the time came.

"Madam, you can put these away for now and give them to the elders and younger generation first. These three are samples, and the shopkeeper should be able to deliver them in about two days. When the time comes, Madam can come over and choose some more for the family, and that will be enough to distribute." Mo Lan's eyes lit up as she offered her suggestion after hearing her question.

“The little girl is right. Shopkeeper, please wrap these three pairs up for us first, and we'll calculate the price. I'll come back to buy them in a couple of days.” The woman in purple gave Mo Lan a deep look, smiled at her, and then asked the shopkeeper to wrap them up for her.

"This? This lucky bag and the five-colored rope only arrived today. We haven't estimated the price yet. Why don't the two ladies come together in a couple of days to settle the accounts?" The shopkeeper was a little embarrassed. The items belonged to someone else, and the price hadn't been agreed upon yet. He didn't know how much silver to sell them for now.

"Shopkeeper, we're regular customers. This stuff just arrived, are you unwilling to sell it to us first? We won't take advantage of you. This lucky bag is exquisitely designed, has auspicious connotations, is made of silk, and the workmanship is quite fine. I'll offer 100 coins for this one. The five-colored rope is pretty, but it can't compare to the lucky bag, so I'll offer 50 coins. 150 coins for both, is that alright?" The woman in purple, seeing the shopkeeper's reluctance, was somewhat displeased, and her eyes sharpened. Thinking he was trying to raise the price, she directly gave him her offer.

To be honest, the price she offered was quite high. After all, Mo Lan had gotten a unique bargain when she sold the shoes to Madam Fang last time. Madam Fang loved her daughter dearly, so she paid a high price for Mo Lan's shoes, which allowed Mo Lan to make a lot of money.

"Uncle Shopkeeper, these two ladies are so eager to buy, please sell it to them. They are both very beautiful, and I think it will look even better on them." Mo Lan hurriedly persuaded the shopkeeper, fearing he would refuse again, and flattered the two female customers.

There was no other way; she had to sell her things. Otherwise, why would she take them out? The reason she gave them to the shopkeeper instead of taking them to his wife in the backyard was because she felt the shopkeeper was easier to talk to and had more people around him. She thought that once the shopkeeper saw the business opportunity, he would buy the goods from her properly and at a reasonable price.

"Alright, you two ladies are regular customers, so I'll sell to you even if no one else wants to. The three items total 450 coins, but I'll charge you 400 coins, ladies. Consider it my apology for what happened earlier." Manager He generously reduced their price by 50 coins, as a gesture of respect.

Seeing the satisfied smile on the purple-clad lady's face, Mo Lan chuckled and went into the backyard. She was confident that the shopkeeper would come to the backyard to discuss business with her later.

Mo Lan found the room based on her memory. The door was open, and she looked inside. Madam Fang was sitting at the head of the table. Today, she was wearing a dark purple embroidered jacket, a light blue pleated skirt, a gold hairpin with a pomegranate flower in her hair, and gold stud earrings. Her face was half-smiling, giving people a feeling of unpredictability.

Sitting to her left was the second young lady who had come with her last time. She wore a plain white dress embroidered with floral branches in dark purple silk thread and blooming plum blossoms in peach pink silk thread, extending from the hem of the dress to her waist. She wore a jade hairpin in her hair and silver stud earrings. Her complexion was rosy, and she looked very fresh and beautiful.

Sitting on the other side of Madam Fang was Madam He, who was chatting with Madam Fang with a smile on her face, while Madam Liu stood there with her head down, looking somewhat embarrassed.

Mo Lan glanced at the three pairs of embroidered shoes spread out on Madam Fang's table, and then at Madam Fang's expression. She understood that it must be that Madam He had started her own embroidered shoe business and had slandered them in front of Madam Fang today, embarrassing her aunt.

That Madam He is such a despicable person! She was the one who told them about the shoe design, and now she's trying to sabotage them! How awful!

"Hello, Madam Fang, Second Miss, and Madam He." Mo Lan entered the room cheerfully, smiled at the group, and greeted them.

"Hehe, Miss Lan is a rare guest indeed. What brings you here today? Are you here to patronize my business?" Madam He revealed a hypocritical smile, her eyes filled with sarcasm and schadenfreude.

Madam Fang nodded to Mo Lan without saying a word. The second young lady, however, smiled at Mo Lan. The embroidered shoes Mo Lan had sold her last time had made her stand out among her companions, so she still held some goodwill towards Mo Lan.

Mo Lan ignored He Niangzi. The more you argue with this kind of petty person, the more she will take advantage of you. It's best to leave her alone.

"Auntie, what's wrong? Is Madam Fang unhappy with our shoes?" Mo Lan stepped forward, took Liu's hand, and asked softly.

"It's nothing, it's just that Madam thinks our shoes are a bit expensive. She's been waiting for us all this time, and she feels we're not very sincere in making embroidered shoes for her." Liu's face was a little gloomy, and her eyes flashed with embarrassment. She felt really useless, even managing to get someone to cancel a job she had already ordered.

“Oh, is that so? Since Madam Fang is not satisfied, we will return the money to her. We can’t let others be dissatisfied with our products just to make money, can we?” Mo Lan was not angry. Instead, she firmly advised Liu to return the money to the person.

"This?" Liu hesitated, unsure how to respond to Mo Lan's words. The money had already been spent last time; where would she find the money to return to someone else?

Mo Lan nodded to her, then turned around and smiled at Madam Fang, saying, "Since Madam is not satisfied with our embroidered shoes, we will return the deposit Madam gave us last time. However, we did not bring any money with us when we came out, so please wait a moment, Madam."

As Mo Lan finished speaking, she took out two sachets and a five-colored rope from her bosom and said, "These two items were originally intended to be given to Madam as a way of thanking her for ordering our shoes. Now that Madam no longer wants the shoes, how about I sell these items and return the money to Madam?" Mo Lan looked at Madam Fang solemnly, asking her opinion, but inwardly she found it amusing.

"What is this? Let me see. You've made something new again. Is it a new style of the capital?" The second young lady's eyes lit up when she saw the sachet and colorful rope in Mo Lan's hand. How could a little girl her age not love novel and beautiful things?

"This is a lucky bag, and this is a five-colored rope..." Mo Lan brought the items to the Second Miss, letting her look through them, and explained the uses of the two items.

"Hmm, it really smells wonderful. Is this really meant for us?" The second young lady was quite fond of it and tied the five-colored rope to her wrist.

"We originally intended to give these to Madam and Miss, but now that Madam doesn't want the shoes anymore, we can't give them to her. We'll have to refund Madam's money. We'll have to sell these lucky bags. When we have more later, Lanlan can give Miss one, okay?" Mo Lan said to the Second Miss with a worried expression, indicating that she couldn't give them away now.

"Mother, look how pretty I look wearing them! These were originally meant to be a gift from Lanlan, but you insisted on listening to Madam He and returning the embroidered shoes to buy them from her. She did offer a discount, but does she have these lucky bags and five-colored ropes? These things are not only pretty, but they can also bring good fortune and ward off illness. Isn't that wonderful? Mother, just buy Lanlan's embroidered shoes." The second young lady was reluctant to take off the five-colored ropes. They were rightfully hers; it was all Madam He's fault for causing trouble and urging her mother to return the shoes, which led to this whole mess.

Madam Fang also examined the sachet and the five-colored rope. Her eyes narrowed slightly; this girl was not to be underestimated. It hadn't been long, and she already had new things. It seemed they truly knew the nobles of the capital; they hadn't been fooled last time.