The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 487 - 476: Take a Fancy To

Chapter 487: Chapter 476: Take a Fancy To

Old Zhou, although he asked to buy many items, they were all general goods that were mostly available in three or four shops, and, luckily, those three or four shops were not far apart from each other.

Normally, things like vegetable seeds and jars would be for sale at the general store, and they wouldn’t be out of sewing needles either.

So, Zhou Silang and Zhou Wulang, carrying baskets on their backs, led them straight to the half-street of miscellaneous shops. They selected for a while and picked out everything their father needed. Then, it was time to bargain.

Zhou Silang was indeed skilled at haggling; he grouped all the items together, went back and forth with the shopkeeper a few times, and managed to knock down eight wen (coins) from the price.

Don’t just look at those eight wen. General stores operate on small margins, counting on volume rather than high prices, so eight wen was already quite a lot.

Zhou Silang was very satisfied, and so was Manbao.

Everyone put the goods in their baskets and carried them back to the ox cart. After handing them over to Zhou Erlang to watch, they went off happily to stroll the streets.

Zhou Silang touched his money pouch and said to Manbao, "I’m going to buy something for your Fourth Sister-in-law. Let’s go to the fabric shop."

"No, I want to go to the silver shop. You go ahead by yourself."

Zhou Silang was taken aback and asked, "What are you going to the silver shop for? To exchange small coins?"

"No, I’m going to buy bracelets," Manbao said. "I want to buy a big bracelet for Mother and Big Sister-in-law, and it has to be gold."

"What about Second Sister-in-law and the others?"

"They get silver ones."

Zhou Silang said, "... You’re not exactly pouring the water evenly there."

After thinking for a moment, Manbao said, "I’m not the head of the household, so why does it matter if it’s even or not?"

So, Zhou Silang didn’t go to the fabric shop after all but followed them to the silver shop for the excitement.

Mainly because it was a big purchase, and he was worried Manbao might be taken advantage of.

He glanced at Manbao’s cloth bag and asked, "How much silver have you brought with you?"

Manbao touched her cloth bag and said, "Quite a lot."

The Zhou family’s party burst into the silver shop, startling the customers and shop assistants inside.

Mainly because there were so many of them entering, and judging by their attire, they didn’t seem like they could afford jewelry, yet their manner wasn’t weak, nor did they seem like they were there to cause trouble.

The shop assistant was momentarily stunned in place, and the shopkeeper gave him a covert glare, signaling him to attend to their guests, while he went forward with a smile, looking at Zhou Silang, who appeared to be in charge, and asking, "What would you like, customers?"

Manbao, who stood next to Zhou Silang, said with bright, shining eyes, "Bracelets!"

The shopkeeper then lowered his head to look at Manbao and asked with a smile, "What kind of bracelet would the young lady like?"

Manbao had already looked past him to the trays on the counter, neatly arranged with golden bracelets.

She admired them silently with amazement and moved forward to get a closer look.

The shopkeeper immediately smiled and said, "These are gold bracelets, we have all sorts of designs."

"Are they pure gold?"

"Naturally. Our silver shop has been doing business in Luojiang County for dozens of years. You can trust us on this. We also have gilt jewelry over in that tray."

Manbao glanced over and noticed that the gilt seemed even prettier than the pure gold.

She couldn’t help but reach out and touch it, looking towards Zhou Silang and the others.

They also looked on in amazement, "It seems the gilt ones look better than the pure gold ones."

Manbao resolutely turned her head back to the pure gold bracelets and said, "But their value isn’t comparable; this is all that glitters is not gold."

The shopkeeper: ...

The Zhou family had a blind trust in Manbao, and after her comment, they stopped looking at the gilt ones and crowded around to see the pure gold bracelets.

Seeing this, the shopkeeper immediately passed the tray to a nearby assistant to take it away.

Manbao stretched out her little chubby hand and turned to ask the shopkeeper, "May I try one on?"

The shopkeeper smiled and nodded, "Of course, the young lady can pick one and try it on."

Manbao had already committed to memory the pattern of the silver bracelet her mother had. She searched for a similar design but didn’t find the same one in the tray, though she did see several attractive ones.

At least Manbao thought they looked better than the ones her father had chosen.

She was conflicted.

Zhou Silang urged her, "Hurry up, what kind do you want?"

The shopkeeper looked at Zhou Silang gratefully.

Manbao said, "Mother and Big Sister-in-law both like the pattern Dad picks."

"Forget it, Dad’s taste..." Zhou Silang thought for a moment and felt his dad’s choices were also alright, then he corrected himself, "Not just Mom and Big Sister-in-law, even I like them. I like anything silver, even a lump would thrill me to no end."

Zhou Silang continued, "So what’s important isn’t the pattern, but that it’s made of silver, and it’s a bracelet that can be worn on the wrist."

"Is that so?" Manbao couldn’t help but look to Zhou Wulang and the others.

Everyone nodded in agreement, clearly sharing Zhou Silang’s view.

Manbao then readied herself and said, "Then I really have to pick carefully. This is the first time I’m buying something for Mother and Big Sister-in-law."

"Hey, wasn’t the flower you gave last time your first?"

Manbao said, "That doesn’t count."

"Alright, next time I hope you’ll also say this one doesn’t count."

The shopkeeper now understood that the bracelets Manbao was selecting weren’t for herself, but for her family members.

He grew even happier, and so he said, "Young lady, I have another tray of fine gold bracelets. Shall I bring them for you to see too?"

Usually, when buying jewelry for oneself, one might decide not to purchase after looking around, but when buying jewelry for others, it’s generally a definite purchase.

Two trays of gold bracelets were placed in front of Manbao. Daya, Erya, and Sanya stepped forward to help the young aunt make a choice. With the collective effort of the four young girls, Manbao finally selected two from dozens of gold bracelets that everyone unanimously agreed were attractive.

Then she tried them on with her little chubby hands.

Though they were chubby, she was young, and her hands were different from those of an adult.

Manbao looked around and then pulled Zhou Wulang over to try them on.

Zhou Wulang: ...

The shopkeeper: ...

Actually, except for the exceptionally overweight, almost anyone could fit these bracelets.

Manbao slid the bracelets onto Zhou Wulang’s wrist and asked everyone, "Do they look good?"

Everyone nodded in unison, "They look good!"

Shiny and gleaming gold, they were really beautiful; they looked tempting enough to bite into.

Zhou Wulang also looked carefully and nodded, "I think they’re good looking, too."

Manbao asked the shopkeeper, "How much for these bracelets?"

The shopkeeper said with a smile, "Well, I need to weigh them first."

Taking a small scale, the shopkeeper weighed the bracelets, "This one is six qian, and the other is five qian and five fen. Including the craftsmanship, wear and tear, and such, one will be eight taels, and the other will be seven taels and three hundred coins."

Everyone was taken aback; that was rather expensive.

Zhou Silang counted on his fingers and whispered to Manbao, "Manbao, isn’t six qian of gold just six taels of silver?"

Manbao nodded; that was correct. So she also felt their craftsmanship was quite costly.