Su Ran stood up and smoothed out the folds of her clothes, saying indifferently, "We’ll take this one." She planned to make a set of hair accessories for her younger daughter.
Her tone was so casual, as if it were a trivial matter.
"Sister-in-law, that’s not right!"
Lian Wanzhen and Lin Yuejuan both exclaimed in shock.
Su Ran gave them a gentle smile to calm them down, especially Lin Yuejuan, with a look that told her not to worry.
Lin Yuejuan quieted down, full of apprehension. She knew her sister-in-law usually had the right idea and suspected she must have made up her mind by now.
Lian Wanzhen, seeing his mother , immediately stopped talking and followed his mother’s lead.
The Straw Hat Vendor looked at the stone; it was a rough stone, the cheapest kind, and also the riskiest.
In their line of business, there were rough stones, windowed stones, semi-exposed stones, and fully exposed stones. Rough stones are left as they are without any special treatment. Windowed stones have a small area ground away to give an idea of what might be inside, while semi-exposed and fully exposed stones have been processed, offering less risk, but at a higher price.
The vendor had examined each stone dozens of times to make sure he hadn’t missed anything before putting them up for sale. The one the lady had chosen would be quite good if it sold for ten taels.
Once he was sure of the stone, the Straw Hat Vendor was relieved and, eager to finalize the sale before anyone could change their mind, he quickly said, "My lady truly has an eye for quality; many have wanted this stone, but I refused to sell. Would you like it as it is, or should I attach a cord so you can carry it back with you?"
"Tie a cord to it; it will be easier to carry that way," Su Ran replied, then turned to signal Lian Wanzhen to hand over the silver. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ noveⅼfire.net
"Right away," the Straw Hat Vendor said cheerfully, wrapping the stone in hemp rope, tying a loop, and handing it to Lian Wanzhen, exchanging the stone for the money in a single, fluid motion.
Just as she was about to hand over the money, Lin Yuejuan couldn’t help but interject, looking at Su Ran, "Sister-in-law..."
Su Ran patted her hand and comforted her with a smile, "It’s alright; I want to be happy today, and it’s worth it just for the joy."
Next, Lin Yuejuan could only watch as the vendor eagerly took the silver, and as they walked away with another stone, she consoled herself by thinking that her sister-in-law must know what she was doing and wouldn’t make a purchase for nothing; there had to be some method to it.
After leaving, Lian Wanzhen asked, "Mother, is that stone a treasure?
"Perhaps," said Su Ran nonchalantly, as she continued to look at the stalls on either side.
If her younger daughter were here, she would have begged her to buy it, but unfortunately, Su Ran had always been worried about spoiling her daughter and had been very strict with her in these kinds of places.
It was getting harder to make it up to her now. Sigh...
Hearing this, Lin Yuejuan raised her voice, "What? Sister-in-law, you’re not sure?"
Forty taels of silver for a worthless stone?
Before the family mishap, she knew that Lian Changhe’s family had plenty of silver, and she vaguely understood that her younger sister-in-law came from a distinguished family and was very insightful. She was also not the type to be ignorant of the hardships of the common people, which was why she hadn’t been as resolute in stopping Lian Wanzhen at the beginning.
But upon hearing these words now, her mind exploded in shock.
Su Ran’s attention came back to the present and, seeing Lin Yuejuan’s expression, she immediately understood what was troubling her.
She had been distracted before, constantly thinking about her young daughter and not paying attention.
She hurriedly explained with a smile, "Sister-in-law, don’t worry, this stone will definitely fetch its original price, it’s just that I’m also not very certain about the quality of the jade it contains."
"If I’m not mistaken about this stone’s texture," she pondered, somewhat uncertainly, "there’s a twenty to thirty percent chance it could yield top-quality jade, a forty to fifty percent chance for medium quality, and if luck is poor, it might just be ordinary quality."
Gambling on stones is very unpredictable; if there are cracks or flaws inside, a whole piece can be ruined.
Lin Yuejuan was startled; even ordinary jade would cost several dozen taels, while medium and top-quality jade would start at several hundred taels. If the jade had truly exceptional luster, then its price was beyond estimation, coveted but rarely obtained, and beyond the means of ordinary people.
She quickly looked at the stone again and now found it more pleasing to the eye with each glance. Seeing Lian Wanzhen handling it casually, she felt uneasy and hurriedly instructed him in a low voice. In the end, she insisted on holding it herself, fearing it might get lost or damaged.
How could Lian Wanzhen let her carry such a heavy stone? It took some convincing before she relented, but Lin Yuejuan’s eyes remained fixed on the stone, with no intention to continue browsing the shops.
Su Ran shook her head in amusement and turned to see a bookshop. To attract customers, the shop had posted many papers on its exterior, announcing the arrival of new books. But what caught Su Ran’s attention was the large characters for "Records of Strange Affairs and Curiosities."
She stared blankly at those characters as if she saw her little daughter, perched on her toes, "studying hard."
The atmosphere was gradually becoming lively at this time.
Concubines who hadn’t strolled around freely for a long while all came out; the Emperor’s decree allowing palace attendants to leave the palace primarily affected the servants, who weren’t those directly serving the palace concubines, so most of the palace concubines weren’t impacted.
Throughout the harem’s pavilions, kiosks, and towers, festive streamers and decorative ribbons could be seen every few steps, with cheerful lanterns hung all around. These lanterns would be lit all night for three days, until the end of the Longevity Festival.
The scenery near Qianqiu Hall was the most vibrant and lavishly decorated. On the eastern side, a stage had already started performances, bustling with a play titled "The Immortals Celebrating Longevity." Meanwhile, on the western side, where the tents were pitched, the current show was storytelling, and it was equally crowded.
Along the paths to the main hall on both sides, two lantern galleries had been constructed, adorned with colorful lanterns of different styles. Even in daylight, it was a beautiful sight, and it would look even more stunning when the lights were lit at night. The best part was the many riddles hanging above, inspired by the Lantern Festival tradition where guessing lantern riddles could lead to rewards.
At the end of each lantern gallery, several young eunuchs guarded a five-tiered display stand, with a board nearby that seemed to be used for recording. On each tier of this stand were different rare jewels and treasures, with the topmost tier featuring a striking pair of tortoiseshell bangles inlaid with gold and jewels, dazzling and regal. Even a layperson could tell at a glance that they were highly valuable.
As the display stand progressed upwards, the items became increasingly precious, with the value decreasing tier by tier. On the very bottom, the fifth tier held ten small ingots, each weighing five taels.
Every palace concubine who arrived would stop for a long time; after inquiring with the young eunuchs, they learned that the items on the stand were rewards for the lantern riddle game. The top prize was the pair of tortoiseshell bangles inlaid with gold and jewel, with other prizes descending in order, no rewards for those after the fifth place, but they could pick a decorative lantern to take with them.
Apart from the lantern galleries, different kinds of amusements were set up all around, including pitch-pot, calligraphy, archery, tracing, painting, and card games with leaves—all sorts of entertainment where excelling meant rewards of golden melon seeds, provided for the palace concubines’ enjoyment and delight.