Unlike the clerk who had chased her away before, this man was polite to her. So, Yao Zhi took out a set of inksticks and a Duan inkstone from her bamboo basket. She placed the boxes on the countertop and opened the lid.
The moment he saw the item inside, the manager's eyes widened with surprise. He had been following his father doing business since young, so he could recognize a good inkstone at a glance.
Reaching out, he took the inkstone from the box and asked, "Young lady, where did you get this inkstone?"
Yao Zhi didn't know if Duan stone had been discovered in this era. So, she asked carefully, "Sir, is there a problem with my inkstone?"
Not noticing her worries, the manager shook his head and replied, "There is no problem at all! Instead, the craftsmanship used to make this inkstone is very good. Not only does the stone have smooth grains, even the carving is also exquisite. This is the first time I have seen an inkstone with a lid."
After a moment of silence, Yao Zhi asked, "Sir, does your shop accept this inkstone?"
Hearing this, the manager looked at her and asked, "Young lady, are you sure you want to sell this inkstone?"
"My family is in urgent need of money. Otherwise, I would not be willing to sell it," Yao Zhi said with a sigh.
The manager nodded in understanding. With the prolonged drought and wars looming, the situation on the border was indeed not promising. "Young lady, what is inside this box?" he asked while pointing at another box.
Yao Zhi opened the box and said, "Sir, these are inksticks. The color comes from the natural pigment of plants and stones. It is not only safe for usage but also has a unique fragrance."
The manager checked the color and took a sniff. While colored inksticks were not rare in the Great Yan kingdom, the color was not as vivid as these inksticks, and it was hard to get such a faint yet lingering fragrance.
After he checked the quality, he asked, "Young lady, how many of these inksticks do you have?"
"Sir, I have five sets with me. Each set has twelve colors," Yao Zhi said, and placed four more boxes on the countertop.
The manager checked them one by one before he said, "Young lady, your inksticks are of high quality. I am willing to offer you three hundred taels of silver for one set. As for the inkstone, I am willing to offer you five thousand taels of silver."
Yao Zhi was surprised that these items could be sold for such high prices. Although she was surprised, she didn't agree immediately.
Instead, she tried to bargain. "Sir, the price for the inkstone is too low. It took my family more than eight thousand taels of silver to buy it from the western merchant."
When he heard this, the manager hesitated for a moment before he said, "Young lady, at most I can offer you six thousand five hundred taels of silver."
After a long silence, Yao Zhi finally agreed. "Alright. But I want the payment in gold taels."
Even though the manager preferred using banknotes, he didn't refuse her request. "I will prepare the money. Young lady, please wait a moment."
Not long after, the manager returned with a box. He handed the box to her while saying, "Young lady, here are eighty taels of gold. Please take a look."
Yao Zhi opened the box and saw eight pieces of ten-tael gold. She nodded and said, "The amount is correct. Thank you, sir."
When she left the bookstore, she used her sleeve as a cover and stored the box of gold ingots in her shop's warehouse.
After leaving the bookstore, Yao Zhi took a stroll in the town for more than half an hour. When she was sure that the people trailing her were gone, she finally went to the border market.
The moment she arrived at Altan Yisu's stall, she saw him waiting for her.
Seeing her coming, Altan Yisu stood up and said, "Young lady, you are finally here. Your meat jerky is ready."
Yao Zhi didn't bother to weigh it and said, "Thank you."
The meat jerky was packed in her grain sack and placed on her cart. Since the sun had slanted to the western horizon, Yao Zhi pushed her wooden cart to an alley. After she stored everything in her shop warehouse, she went to the town gate in large strides.
The border town gate would be locked at six o'clock in the evening, and it was almost four o'clock in the evening now.
Today, she was lucky to meet people from the military compound. Seeing them waiting there, she knew that the person called Xiao Hu would come. So, she stood behind them and waited.
Soon after, she saw a donkey cart coming. When she saw the young man driving the donkey cart, she raised her eyebrows.
'Is there such a good-looking man in this place?' she thought inwardly.
Unlike her nominal husband, who was the manly type, this young man was the cute, puppy type. Despite living on the border, his skin was fair, and his temperament was elegant. As she stared at him, Yao Zhi felt that he shouldn't be a simple character.
When the young women saw him, they blushed and kept throwing shy glances at him. Unfortunately, Xiao Hu didn't even glance at them.
After they boarded the cart, Yao Zhi walked over and asked, "This gentleman, can I take your cart?"
Hearing her voice, Xiao Hu finally looked at her. Since she was wearing a veiled hat, he couldn't see her face, but he still replied, "I am passing the military compound, Zhang Village, and Wu Village. You can take my cart as long as you pay five wen."
Yao Zhi didn't think the fee was expensive at all. She nodded and took out her purse. Before boarding the cart, she handed the money to him.
While she placed the money in his palm, she noticed the calluses on his palm. She saw similar callouses on her nominal husband's palms. It looked like this person was someone who practiced martial arts.