Chapter 168: Suggestion
Editor: Atlas Studios
Mu Yangling carefully touched the porcelain and asked, “The cost is quite high, right?”
“Fortunately, the price is not low either, so the profit is considerable.” Fan Zijin turned around and picked up another can. He waved his hand and said, “If there are buyers, that is.”
Pondering, Mu Yangling said, “If only there was a bag that was waterproof and preserved the quality.”
Fan Zijin did not take it to heart. Such a bag only existed in one’s imagination, and the paper was not cheap either. In that case, they might as well use porcelain. Such porcelain looked exquisite, but it was actually incomparable to the few types of exquisite porcelain kilns in the south. The cost was not as high as Mu Yangling had imagined.
However, Qi Haoran asked curiously, “What kind of bag is so good? Paper and cloth are not waterproof. Could it be oil paper and oil cloth? But it’s dark and not exquisite at all. Who would buy it?”
Mu Yangling briefly described it and said, “When the time comes, you can engrave little white rabbits and logos on the bag to give it an exquisite look. Of course, it’s hard to say if it can be made.”
Fan Zijin fell into deep thought and nodded. “You’re right. We should have a trademark and logo that belongs to us. That way, people will know that this thing is ours at a glance.”
“…” Mu Yangling said weakly, “I’m talking about the bag.”
Qi Haoran’s gaze was instantly diverted as he shouted, “I’ll name it.”
Fan Zijin glanced at him and said, “Alright, I’ll leave this matter to you. I’ll even trouble you with the logo.”
Qi Haoran patted his chest and agreed. He drooled as he looked at the bottles and jars. “Zijin, let me try some. Since my wound has already healed, it’s fine to eat a little. I definitely won’t tell Big Brother.”
“No.” Fan Zijin went out and handed a jar to Mu Yangling. “This is for you. Take it back and try it.”
Qi Haoran was instantly jealous. Why was Fan Zijin so attentive to Mu Yangling? His gaze swept across the two of them.
Seeing Mu Yangling accept it without standing on ceremony, he was even more unhappy.
Fan Zijin only thought that his pal was angry because he did not get to eat the diced rabbit meat and did not think much about it.
Mu Yangling clearly thought so too. Before she left, she even patted his shoulder and said, “When your injuries recover, Young Master Fan will give you as much as you want to eat.”
Qi Haoran said unhappily, “When did you become so close to Zijin? You call me by my full name, but you refer to him so politely.”
Mu Yangling opened her mouth slightly and said, “Alright then, Little General. I’ll call you that from now on. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave first.”
Qi Haoran looked at her nervously. “Are you angry?”
Mu Yangling burst out laughing. “Why would I be angry? Alright, come to my house when you’ve recovered. I’ll get my mother to cook delicious food for you.”
Qi Haoran’s mood instantly improved. “You said it yourself.”
Mu Yangling nodded and carried the jar back.
This being the first time the children had eaten this kind of diced rabbit meat, they all found it delicious. Even Great-aunt and Shu Wanniang couldn’t help but eat two more.
However, Mu Yangling didn’t let the children eat too much. She said, “There’s a lot of spices in this thing and it’s easy to get heaty from eating it. You kids can only eat four pieces a day at most. Two for Bowen.”
Bowen pouted, but he also knew that his sister was doing this for his own good. Picking up the last one, he stuffed it into his mouth and puffed out his cheeks while he chewed.
Seated on the brick bed, Bosi and Kejia kept drooling non-stop. They stretched out their hands to reach for the jar. Mu Yangling quickly put it away and hid it. Smiling at the two little ones, she said, “You’re still young. You can’t eat this yet.”
Bosi clenched his tiny fists and looked at his sister with tears in his eyes. Kejia, on the other hand, was so angry that she kept wailing and grabbing at Mu Yangling with her hands.
Mu Yangling laughed out loud, picked up Kejia, and threw her up. With a smile, she said, “Little girl, why are you even fiercer than your brother?”
Shu Wanniang pursed her lips and smiled. She looked at her eldest daughter and then at her youngest daughter. “All the girls in our family have such tempers. On the other hand, the boys are refined. It should be the opposite.”
“I think it’s good that girls have such tempers.” Great-aunt said, “Otherwise, if they’re too gentle, they won’t complain even when they’re bullied in the future. It’s better for boys to be more refined so that they won’t cause trouble when they go out in the future. If they’re more tolerant, everything will be safe and smooth.”
“You’re right. With your wealth of experience, you must be wiser than us.”
Great-aunt smiled in satisfaction when she heard this. She looked at Xiuhong and Xiulan and sighed. “I’m not worried about Xiuhong. Although this child is usually quiet, she is sharp-tongued and has a mind of her own. So, she won’t let herself suffer in the future. But Xiulan, this child is too soft-hearted.” Great-aunt patted Shu Wanniang’s hand and said, “Not everyone is as lucky as you. It’s not a good thing for a girl to be soft-hearted.”
Madam Ma-Liu had been domineering her entire life. She knew that in this world, women were already at a disadvantage. If she continued to be soft-hearted, she would be bullied.
Face slightly reddened, Shu Wanniang lowered her head and did not speak.
After Great-aunt left, she stood up and took out a basket from the inner room. She handed it to Mu Yangling and said, “This is a gift I prepared for the teacher at the academy. Bring it with you when you bring Bowen over tomorrow and say something nice to him.”
Mu Yangling nodded.
Shu Wanniang called Bowen over again and said seriously, “It’s not easy for our family to support you to go to school. You have to study hard in school and not fight with others. But if someone bullies you, don’t swallow your anger either. You’re a scholar, so you should have the bearing of a scholar. Do you understand?”
Mu Bowen agreed seriously. “Mother, I understand.”
Only then did Shu Wanniang nod in satisfaction. After saying some encouraging words, she took out the school bag that Ah Ling had asked her to sew. “Your sister asked me to make this for you. Later, put your books and stationery box in it. Just carry this to school every day.”
Mu Bowen took the bag in surprise and gave his sister a big smile.
Mu Yangling couldn’t help but rub his hair.
Early the next morning, Mu Yangling changed into clean clothes and held Bowen’s hand as they headed to the county. As Great-aunt was going to set up a stall to sell the rabbits, she carried a basket on her back and wanted to walk with them.
“Great-aunt, let me carry it.” Mu Yangling wanted to take her basket.
Great-aunt blocked her hand and said, “Don’t. You’ve just changed into clean clothes. If you dirty it again, it’ll be a waste of effort. Let’s go quickly. It’s just a basket. Don’t I carry it into the city like this every day?”
Mu Yangling had been busy with work in the fields, so Great-aunt had officially taken over the work of setting up a stall in the city to sell prey. Every day, she would enter the city to sell at the morning market.
When they arrived at the city gate, there were already people queuing up to enter the city one after another. Most of them were rushing to the morning market like Madam Ma-Liu.
When Mu Yangling brought Bowen to the entrance of the academy, there were already many parents and students waiting at the entrance.