From cannon fodder villain to superpowered queen

Bi Yao closed the door, opened the envelope, and found only a thin piece of paper inside with a few words written on it: Come to the dilapidated temple in the west of the city immediately.

The signature is Mao Ran.

Although she had made a profit, she was still far from her goal of one hundred taels of silver. Bi Yao's heart was pounding like a rabbit's.

Money, you really are a troublesome little devil!

She originally planned to expand her silk business and make a fortune, but good sources of goods became increasingly difficult to find. It was as if the merchants had conspired to keep their goods tightly under control, treating her like a thief.

Bi Yao then realized that her previous success was like a piece of fat meat, attracting the covetous eyes of hungry wolves.

"What am I going to do?" Bi Yao muttered to herself, munching on a steamed bun, feeling like she had fallen into a wolf's den.

After thinking it over, she decided to try her luck with Qian Youcai again. After all, they had worked together before, so he should at least give her some face, right?

However, Qian Youcai, that old fox, was even more cunning than she had imagined.

Not only did they not lower the price, they also joined forces with several other small merchants to boycott her, preventing her from buying affordable fabrics.

Bi Yao was so angry she almost exploded on the spot; this was blatant commercial bullying!

“Mr. Qian, that’s not fair of you. In business, harmony brings wealth. You can’t just do this…” Bi Yao tried to reason with him, but Qian Youcai wouldn’t listen at all, displaying an arrogant attitude of “What can you do to me?”

"Bi Yao, it's not that I'm not giving you face, it's just... hehe, you know what I mean." Qian Youcai winked and grinned wickedly, looking as utterly deserving of a beating.

Bi Yao finally understood that this old man was determined to strangle her, so it seemed she had no choice but to find another way out.

Just when Bi Yao was at her wit's end, she overheard an auntie at the next stall talking about the silk from Peach Blossom Village outside the city, which was said to be of excellent quality and reasonably priced.

Bi Yao's eyes lit up immediately. Wasn't this the business opportunity she had been searching for?

"Auntie, the Peach Blossom Village you mentioned..."

"Shh!" The woman suddenly lowered her voice, glancing around mysteriously, "The silk from Peach Blossom Village isn't so easy to come by..."

Bi Yao was asking the aunt about the secrets of Peach Blossom Village when she suddenly overheard a conversation between two out-of-town merchants at the next stall: "...That batch of tea, the packaging is tattered and looks like garbage, who would buy it?"

"You bet! I don't know which idiot bought this stuff; they're probably going to lose everything!"

tea?

Bi Yao's heart skipped a beat; her keen business sense told her that there might be something fishy going on.

She moved closer discreetly, pricking up her ears to listen carefully.

"I heard that the tea comes from a long-established tea shop. Although the packaging isn't great, the quality is absolutely top-notch!"

"Really? A time-honored brand? Then how come..."

"Oh, don't even mention it. I heard that the tea shop owner offended some powerful people, his property was confiscated, and this batch of tea was sold off at a low price."

Bi Yao's eyes lit up. Wasn't this a chance to snag a bargain?

She recalled her previous experience working in an antique shop, which honed her keen eye, enabling her to find treasures among a pile of junk.

Although this batch of tea is simply packaged, if it is truly from a time-honored brand, its value is immeasurable!

She remembered what Jiang Ruiyuan had once said: "Yaoyao, you are very talented. As long as you seize the opportunity, you will definitely succeed!" A warm feeling welled up in her heart, and Jiang Ruiyuan's encouragement gave her great courage.

Bi Yao stroked the few copper coins in her hand, her mind filled with countless thoughts.

The silk from Peach Blossom Village is certainly important, but this batch of tea...

She stared intently in the direction the two merchants had left, already having made up her mind.

"Boss, your tea..."

Bi Yao is not an indecisive girl. She immediately caught up with the two merchants and started her bargaining mode.

"Boss, how much are these tea leaves?" she asked with a smile, while secretly calculating how to get these "treasures" at the lowest possible price.

When the two businessmen saw that someone was interested in this batch of "junk," they were initially dumbfounded, but then they started to promote it as if they had seen a savior, and they were incredibly enthusiastic.

"Young lady, you have a truly discerning eye! This tea..."

Bi Yao's inner monologue: I'm not here to have a discerning eye, I'm here to snag a bargain!

She remained outwardly calm, feigning hesitation: "This packaging... um... it's a bit shabby, and the price..."

In the end, Bi Yao, with her silver tongue and superb acting skills, successfully secured the tea at a bargain price.

She hummed a little tune, her heart filled with joy, feeling that she was one step closer to her goal of one hundred taels.

After returning home, Bi Yao began to handle the batch of tea leaves.

She found some exquisite little boxes, repackaged the tea, and affixed labels of her own design that read "Peach Blossom Fairy Health Tea." She even convincingly fabricated a legend about Peach Blossom Village, exaggerating the tea as a magical tea that could beautify the skin, nourish the body, and prolong life.

The next day, Bi Yao brought the repackaged tea to the market.

Sure enough, the "Peach Blossom Fairy Health Tea" attracted a large number of health-conscious middle-aged and elderly people as soon as it was launched.

They all pulled out their wallets, scrambling to buy the legendary "divine tea".

Bi Yao looked at the silver in her hand and smiled so hard her eyes narrowed into slits. This money came too easily!

In just a few days, this batch of "junk tea" was sold out, and Bi Yao made a fortune, getting closer and closer to her goal of one hundred taels of silver.

She was secretly thrilled, feeling like she was a business genius!

However, just as Bi Yao was basking in the joy of her success, she keenly sensed several malicious glances.

She looked up and saw Qian Youcai and several other businessmen standing not far away, staring at her with gloomy expressions.

Qian Youcai smirked and slowly approached Bi Yao, his tone sarcastic: "Oh, Miss Bi Yao, your business is doing quite well!"