By then, even if others wanted to imitate, they couldn’t—it would be her unique business.
Moreover, she didn’t have to open a store for such things; it was all about word of mouth, small-scale customer referrals. When the time came, she would go straight to custom orders, following the highest-end route.
Otherwise, wouldn’t those talisman diagrams be a waste?
These past few days, Chiang Xiao had actually been contemplating the issue of the talisman diagrams.
It would be fair to say, it wasn’t just about the talisman diagrams, but also the Magic Brush.
At first, she felt it would be best not to use the Magic Brush for painting anymore, as possession could lead to guilt. After all, wasn’t it because of the Magic Brush that Deng Qingjiang’s greed was provoked, resulting in her tragic end in her previous life?
But then she thought again, and felt it would be foolish to abstain from something due to fear of envy. She had the Magic Brush in her hand—should she hide it just because of others’ covetousness?
What was the point of owning the Magic Brush if she did so?
Why should she give up her own fortune for the sake of others?
She had been naive and foolish in her previous life, but that did not mean she would be just as naive and foolish in this one. If used well, the Magic Brush could help her earn more money and build more connections.
The latter was the most important.
Wasn’t it by using the magic of her paintings that Deng Qingjiang managed to ingratiate himself with that old man?
By just selling paintings and tea snacks, she might earn a fair amount of money and improve her living conditions, worry-free about food and clothing, but she would not build any connections or get close to that particular circle.
For those buying paintings and tea snacks, the most relationship she could expect with them would be as mere buyer and seller, unlikely to get any closer.
If she couldn’t get close to that circle, how would she take her revenge? The old man was surrounded by people with formidable abilities.
So, in the end, she would have to make good use of both the talisman diagrams and the Magic Brush.
But she had to manage a delicate balance: before she could stand up to those people, she had to stay as inconspicuous as possible. The method Meng Xinian had suggested was something she actually found feasible—that she would paint the cups, and then he would deliver them to the buyer.
Yet, she always felt this might drag him down with her.
And it wasn’t hard to guess the connection to her. Among those close to him, she was the one who could paint. A little investigation, and others could still pull her into the spotlight.
Chiang Xiao felt that maybe she should just go directly herself.
But such a thing still required careful planning.
However, before she could finalize her plans, Meng Xinian called her directly to the village militia’s phone line to talk to her.
"Little, paint two cups, the same kind as grandpa and grandma’s. I’ll be returning to the Capital next week. One for grandpa, and I’ll find a way to sell the other," he said without any hint of politeness.
Tyrant Meng was indeed not the least bit courteous.
However, Chiang Xiao was no longer so resistant to his tyrannical behavior.
It made no sense to give one to Xue Liujin but not to Grandpa Meng.
Thinking of her relationship with Grandpa Meng, her face heated up again—his granddaughter-in-law?
"What are you thinking about? Daydreaming?" Meng Xinian’s deep voice came from the handset.
Chiang Xiao was taken aback.
Wasn’t it a bit much that, through a phone call without seeing her, he could tell she was daydreaming?
"I was thinking that maybe I should consider things more carefully before selling the cups," she replied.
Upon hearing her say that, Meng Xinian’s eyes flickered slightly as he pondered for a moment before asking, "Apart from the secret formula for the pigments and the value of the medicinal ingredients, is there an even bigger secret that must not be discovered?"
In fact, those were the very two points he had considered.
Prodigies emerge from the populace.
His initial analysis was that the cups had their miraculous effects due to the secret formula used in the pigments, combined with extremely valuable medicinal ingredients.