25: Chapter 25 The Girl Who Speaks Big Without Drafting 25: Chapter 25 The Girl Who Speaks Big Without Drafting After hearing Wufu’s question, the shopkeeper really wanted to agree with the two customers’ words.
Judging solely by Wufu and her companion’s apparel, they didn’t look wealthy.
Indeed, if they were to break one of the hangings, it might truly be beyond their means to compensate.
However, a shopkeeper who had risen to his position had long since learned to be shrewd and developed a keen eye for appraisal.
The mother and daughter standing before him wore dresses patched with repairs.
The woman had a timid and slightly cringing demeanor that clearly betrayed her lowly birth.
But the girl, dressed in coarse clothes, had her black hair simply combed into a plait that hung down her chest, with not a single ornament on her person.
At the moment, her hands were clasped behind her back as she looked at him, and those eyes…
The shopkeeper’s pupils shrank slightly, and he inexplicably found himself unable to meet her gaze directly.
Those dark, pitch-black eyes carried a look of serene indifference, and even her recent question was delivered with a calmness like still water.
Yet, he could detect a hint of challenge in it.
It was strange — how could a girl of merely ten or so years make him feel a sense of danger?
It was as if the moment he confirmed it, the girl would turn around and leave.
As his mind worked, the shopkeeper smiled and said, “The young lady jests.
We open our doors to do business; when has anyone ever been forbidden to look?
Regardless of whether they can afford it or not, if our customers have a request, we naturally will oblige.
As for damage, compensation based on the price is inevitable, wouldn’t you agree, miss?”
There were two implications in his words: one could look, but if anything was damaged, compensation was mandatory.
Wufu smiled faintly, “I thought anyone could manage a shop.
If that’s the case, then I would like to see your jade hangings.
Could you tell me where that would be convenient?”
When she said this, she didn’t even glance at the two other female customers who had spoken insultingly.
She didn’t deign to do so!
“Please follow me this way, miss,” the shopkeeper said, lifting his eyebrows slightly as he ushered Wufu and her mother upstairs.
The two customers snorted and said, “Not buying, let’s go!”
Wufu was utterly unconcerned.
Madam Zhou felt uneasy.
And yet, it wasn’t long before the shopkeeper was slightly taken aback by Wufu’s demeanor.
A tray filled with jade wares was laid out before them, including hangings, jade pendants, and earrings.
Wufu appraised each item, commenting on the good, the bad, and the minor imperfections that detracted from their beauty, speaking with the authority of an expert.
Madam Zhou stared at her daughter in stunned silence, as if watching someone possessed.
The shopkeeper, with a tentative, apologetic smile, said, “Look at me, I almost misjudged you, miss.
You seem to be quite knowledgeable.
May I ask who you are…?”
Wufu toyed with a double-fish jade pendant in her hand and said indifferently, “These, I can carve, and I can carve them better than these!”
You speak such big words without a draft, young lady.
How old are you to be able to carve, and jade ware at that?
And to claim you can carve better than these?
To become a top craftsman, one must spend countless years honing their skills with dedication; only then can one earn such a title.
Take for example the number one craftsman in their shop, known as Ghost Hand, Mr.
Lin Gonyun, who was approaching sixty years old.
He didn’t make a name for himself until the age of forty, yet here was a little girl speaking with such unwavering confidence.
Suppressing a sarcastic laugh, the shopkeeper said, “The young lady’s ambitions are sky-high.”
Wufu caught the sarcasm but remained indifferent, placing the pendant back down.
“It’s been a bother, thank you for your hospitality,” she said as she stood up.
She didn’t bother with another word.
She simply left Silver House with Madam Zhou, paying no mind to the shopkeeper’s astonished gaze.
The assistant approached the shopkeeper and asked, “Uncle, what’s the story with them?”
Stroking his beard, the shopkeeper muttered, “Young people, too much ambition isn’t always good.
Put everything away.”
He looked toward the departing figure in the distance, and for some reason, he frowned slightly.