Chapter 83: Jealousy And Curiosity
As the daughter of a wealthy merchant in Chun Shan Town, the young woman knew that only distinguished customers could be personally entertained by Tan Lidan. She was very curious when she saw that the servant was so polite to Duan Yixin, so she asked out of curiosity.
The servant shook his head and said, "This little one doesn’t know."
The young woman became even more curious and said to one of her personal maidservants, "Go and pay for the ointment."
One of her personal maidservants, who was standing behind her, bowed to the young woman and then followed the attending servant to pay for the ointment. Without waiting for the maidservant, the young woman left Chang Shou Pharmacy with the other maidservant. She looked around the street for a long time but couldn’t find Duan Yixin.
She thought for a while and then said, "Go back home."
When the young woman got into the horse carriage with a heart full of curiosity, Duan Yixin was waiting in line in front of a grain store.
While queueing, Duan Yixin looked at the people leaving the grain store. Just as she was watching an old couple leave with despairing expressions, someone suddenly asked in a loud voice. Duan Yixin craned her neck and saw a man standing in the front, arguing with the grain store worker.
"Wasn’t yesterday’s price of coarse grains only ten copper coins for a catty? Why has it become twenty copper coins today?" The man asked in disbelief.
The worker looked at the man and said helplessly, "Customer, you also know that because of the bandits, no merchants are visiting our town anymore. Due to security issues, we need to hire guards and escort the goods from another city. Money is required to do that, so the price of food will naturally rise. Customers, if you are unsatisfied with our prices, you can try your luck at other grain stores."
Hearing what the worker said, the man wanted to argue again, but a woman standing next to him grabbed his arm and shook her head at him. When the man saw this, he gritted his teeth and said, "Please give us a catty of sorghum."
The worker nodded and weighed a catty of sorghum for the man. Then, he poured the sorghum into the bag bought by the couple and accepted the woman’s twenty copper coins. After the couple left, Duan Yixin saw that most of the people queuing in front of her had only bought a little bit of coarse grain.
Soon, it was her turn. The worker looked at her and asked, "Young Lady, what do you want to buy?"