章 13: Selling Things
Zhao Ce carried his book box as he walked out of the village. It was still dark outside, and people passing by couldn't see his face clearly. However, Zhao Ce's long robe and book box were too distinctive.
After walking for a while, someone who was going to work early in the morning shouted loudly, "Hey, our village's literary star is going to school at the academy?"
Zhao Ce glanced at him but didn't say anything. He withdrew his gaze and continued walking.
The person muttered, "Why aren't you saying some sarcastic words today like 'father of poetry' or 'father of literature'?"
As he passed the big acacia tree at the village entrance where people were waiting for the ox carts, many people who were going to the city early in the morning were also waiting there. Soon, someone recognized Zhao Ce.
"The top scholar has arrived. Why are you so early today?"
"Is the top scholar going to ride the ox cart with us ordinary folks today?"
"Look at what you're saying. He's the heavenly literary star who has descended to earth. How could he possibly squeeze onto the ox cart with us?"
Zhao Ce listened to their words and felt a bit helpless. The original owner was a fool who, as the only literate person in the village, had made the villagers hate him in just a few years because of his arrogance. He didn't receive any respect at all. In the past, he used to listen to these words and arrogantly thought that others were complimenting him.
Zhao Ce sighed lightly in his heart. A fool can't be helped.
He didn't reply and just carried his book box, striding towards the village.
It takes about half an hour to walk from the village to the city. Zhao Ce also wanted to ride the ox cart, but it cost one penny per ride. The copper coins in his pocket were saved by the little girl for so many years, and he didn't want to spend them so easily.
Yesterday, the original owner came back and walked home halfway. Otherwise, he wouldn't have brought a young wife back halfway. He'd better walk. At least this way, he could exercise his body.
On the road, he saw many people walking with their burdens or pulling carts. They were all farmers who got up early to sell their goods in the city.
Zhao Ce remembered when his grandparents were young. His grandfather would leave early in the morning with a shoulder pole, walking two hours to the town to sell some food made by his grandmother.
Sometimes, he couldn't tell the time from the sky and was afraid of not getting a good spot, so he set off early. Once, he arrived in town and found that there was no one there. He sat on the ground for a long time, and it was just starting to get light when people began to arrive.
The whole family survived because of his and his grandmother's hard work.
Later, life improved, and they didn't need to work so hard anymore.
Zhao Ce thought of these things as he walked forward. He arrived at the county town before half an hour had passed. He didn't need to be checked since he was carrying his book box. He just went straight into the city.
By now, the sky was just starting to get light, and there were many pedestrians on the streets of the city. Zhao Ce didn't bother to think too much and just followed his memory to the grocery store in the city.
The grocer's clerk saw Zhao Ce in a long robe and knew he was a scholar. He warmly welcomed him, "What does this guest need to buy?"
Zhao Ce nodded slightly at him and asked, "Excuse me, is the shopkeeper available?" The clerk heard that he was looking for the shopkeeper and didn't ask any more questions.
He led Zhao Ce directly to the front counter. The lighting here was not very good. The shopkeeper was sorting out the accounts and asked, "What's the matter?" when he heard someone was looking for him.
Zhao Ce took out a small bag of white sugar and said to the shopkeeper, "Shopkeeper, I have something good here. Do you accept it?" The shopkeeper became interested after hearing his words.
He looked at the man across from him who was wearing a long robe. Although he was a bit thin, he had a handsome face. Although the fabric of his clothes was not too good, there might be something really good in the bag. He curiously asked, "What good thing?"
Zhao Ce handed the cloth bag over and bluffed, "This is a gift from a relative who came from out of town to my house." "I think it could be worth some money. Shopkeeper, take a look." The shopkeeper received it suspiciously, opened it, and looked inside. Then, his eyes widened in disbelief. "This, this is..." Zhao Ce quickly stopped him and told him to keep his voice down. Then he said, "It's white sugar."
The shopkeeper picked up a small piece and put it in his mouth. Then, he confirmed, "It's white sugar!" "It tastes only sweet and fragrant, without any other flavors!" After the shopkeeper finished speaking, he could not help but pick up the cloth bag and walked to a place where the light was brighter.
He opened the bag and checked the white sugar again under the bright light. Although the color of the white sugar was not snow white in the light, it was the purest white sugar he had ever seen. The shopkeeper was overjoyed.
Although the shopkeeper had seen white sugar before, the quantity was too small and the quality was not as good as what the young man brought.
He walked up to Zhao Ce and asked, "Do you sell this white sugar?" Zhao Ce said, "Of course I do." Then he pretended to be hesitant and said, "Shopkeeper, to be honest, this thing, my relative who came from afar said that he knows someone who can get more." "If the price is right, I will go back and talk to him tonight and see if he can get some more from there."
Zhao Ce was not stupid. He couldn't directly tell the shopkeeper that he had made the white sugar himself. Although he had a scholarly title now, there were many things that he could not hold onto without status. During this time, it was not an exaggeration to say that white sugar was something that even money could not buy.
The shopkeeper looked at the sugar and hesitated for a moment. After the shock, he calmed down and rubbed his beard, saying, "Did you steal this?" Zhao Ce remembered the original owner's demeanor and pretended to be a little impatient, saying, "What are you talking about? How could I do something wrong? If my family didn't need the money, I wouldn't sell it!" He almost believed it himself after speaking so righteously and tried to take the bag of sugar back.
The shopkeeper quickly apologized and took out a scale to weigh it in front of Zhao Ce. "It's only 1.75 ounces, but we'll count it as two and a half ounces. That'll be 750 coins." Normal sugar would cost around 40 coins for this amount, so the price had increased by more than ten times.
Zhao Ce was satisfied with the price, even though he couldn't understand the scale. He knew that the shopkeeper could sell it to wealthy households for ten times the price. But since he had nowhere else to sell it, he had to earn this difference for now.
Zhao Ce pretended to be knowledgeable and warned the shopkeeper not to deceive him, saying that he had influential classmates in the city. The shopkeeper smiled wryly and asked who his teacher was.
Zhao Ce made up a name and urged the shopkeeper to hurry up and collect the money so they could discuss the matter with his relatives. He earned 750 coins for the sugar, which was a good start for him.
He believed that with more of these money-making opportunities, he would have no problem becoming rich in the future. Life is like a play, and it's all about acting skills. He felt that he had performed well today, and with this money-making item, he was on his way to his first, second, and many more future successes.
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