Little Miss Fortune: I Will Bring Prosperity to My Tang Family!-Chapter 106: The Chubby Child Has Upset Her Father

Chapter 100

The Chubby Child Has Upset Her Father

Long Licheng sat in the hall, turning to look at the plump child who had come in and was now sitting wide-eyed. Originally, he intended to discuss business with Hui Song, but he did not expect the round-faced child to follow and listen in. According to the customs of the capital, women should not interfere with men’s affairs.

When she introduced the products to him earlier, he thought she was simply doing her duty since no adults were around. But he didn’t expect that when it came to serious business discussions, she would follow them in.

“Is there something wrong?” Hui Song asked the young man in front of him, who was frowning while staring at his round-faced niece.

“Does she always come in when you discuss business?” Hui Song, hearing this, frowned, thinking it was never an issue before. But then he remembered the young man was from the capital, where customs were strictly observed. He looked down at his niece sitting beside him.

Xiaolin blinked her eyes, looking back and forth between the two, still not realizing what she had done wrong. When she saw they didn’t say anything, she smiled broadly until her eyes narrowed. Seeing this, Long Licheng sighed and straightened up, speaking seriously. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

“After walking around and tasting your products, I am interested in purchasing them for resale. I’m particularly interested in dried squid, dried mussels, and all types of dried noodles. I would like to negotiate the price.”

“Normally, we sell dried squid at three taels per jin, dried mussels at one tael per jin, rice flour noodles at fifty brass coins per jin, and mung bean flour noodles at thirty brass coins per jin. If merchants from other towns buy in large quantities for resale, I usually give a small discount per jin.”

“I would like three hundred jin each of dried squid and mussels, and one hundred jin each of the noodles. I will try selling them first. How much can you reduce the price?”

Both grandfather and granddaughter, hearing this, were wide-eyed before they bent down to whisper to each other. Long Licheng watched this scene, puzzled. Why did the grandfather have to bend down to talk to his niece as if they were consulting each other? Could this child have extraordinary abilities? The young man dismissed the thought, believing that such a small child couldn’t possibly handle business. Little did he know, his initial assumption was correct.

Xiaolin whispered to her grandfather to reduce the price of the squid by twelve brass coins per jin, the mussels by five brass coins, and each type of noodles by two brass coins.

Hui Song considered this and realized that the total amount, considering Long Licheng’s large order, would still be substantial. However, if they reduced the price too little, it might appear stingy, especially given the volume he was purchasing. He nodded to his granddaughter and then spoke as she had suggested.

“But if you are in a hurry, we can only provide the dried squid and mussels for now. The noodles take more time because of the multiple steps involved.”

“I understand. Thank you very much for the discount,” Long Licheng replied with a smile. The Tang family was the first supplier to offer such a significant discount; usually, the most he got was five brass coins off.

“You must buy a lot from us and continue to do so for many years,” Xiaolin added. Long Licheng looked at her sparkling eyes and nodded.

“If the products I receive from you sell well, I will certainly continue to purchase from you.”

“Thank you very much,” Xiaolin beamed.

After concluding the agreement and paying for the squid and mussels, as well as the deposit for both types of noodles, Long Licheng asked the Zhou family’s carriage driver to fetch his men to transport the goods back to the capital. This way, his father could try selling them.

If this trade became successful, he would order more from the Tang family, especially with winter approaching when demand for supplies would increase, and the Tang family’s production would pause due to the cold. Thus, if his father sent word back, he could promptly place an order for the Tang family to prepare before winter.

Xiaolin got a big smile on her face, looking at the ten-tael gold bill and several gold ingots. She recalled that in many novels she had read, wealthy people often did not carry ingots but instead used bills, much like modern people used credit cards instead of cash.

This trade had brought her over eighteen taels of gold. Although not as much as her share from selling woks, it would be added to the household’s central funds. Combined with the monthly earnings from the restaurant and market stalls, it was quite substantial. Moreover, Young Master Long mentioned that he was only ordering a trial batch for now. If he decided to sell the products seriously, wouldn’t he need to place even larger orders in the future?

"Oh, why are there so many eggs, Uncle?" Xiaolin asked happily as she walked to the backyard and saw Weng Shui carrying a large basket of duck eggs, even though he had already collected some in the morning.

"The villagers saw that I got a lot of eggs to bring to your house, so they asked if I was going to make salted eggs. When I answered yes, they decided not to take their eggs home like usual but said they’d wait to buy salted eggs instead. So, after lunch, I checked again and found plenty of eggs still there. I guess they spread the news around,"

Xiaolin nodded in understanding and looked at her grandmother, mother, and youthful Aunt Huan Qingqing, who were busy washing the duck eggs from both the morning and the new batch Weng Shui had just brought in. On the right side were the lazy ones lounging around. Xiaolin sighed, rolled up her sleeves, and pulled a small stool over to help the three women clean the eggs.

“What kind of eggs are these?” Long Licheng, seeing the large white eggs, squatted beside the chubby child and watched her skillfully clean them with a cloth.

“Duck eggs. We’re making salted eggs to eat in the winter and selling the rest to the villagers. But there won’t be enough to sell to you,” Xiaolin replied, noticing his interest in the eggs. Long Licheng laughed softly at her straightforwardness.

At that moment, Tianrong hurried back home, picked up the chubby child, and carried her inside, causing the others to look on in confusion.

“Ah! Father!” The chubby child’s complaints were heard for a moment before fading away.

Once inside, Xiaolin quickly dressed after her father told her that someone from Uncle Zhou’s house had come to inform them that the land office officials had finalized the exact size of their land. The chubby child hastily got ready and grabbed her money box, fearing her father might not have enough money. Tianrong laughed at this, lifted his daughter onto the cart, and drove away, leaving the young men watching in surprise.

“Feeling lost without Xiaolin around, aren’t you lot?” Zhang Ruo chuckled upon seeing the boys looking at each other.

“Well... Xiaolin usually finds something for us to do,” Ching Lang admitted, and the others nodded in agreement. Long Licheng remained silent, as he was new and still unfamiliar with things.

“Go play with Xiao Zhong then,” Zhang Ruo suggested. With that, they found their solution and quickly invited each other to go play under the big tree, Zhou Minglu not forgetting to call his friend along.

Meanwhile, upon arriving at the governor’s manor, Xiaolin was greeted by Lian Hua, who was over eight months pregnant, waiting in the guest room. She hugged the child tightly, nearly smothering her round face against her ample bosom. The cheeky child grinned mischievously and snuggled into the soft chest, making Zhou Ming, who had just entered, feel a bit jealous. It was fortunate she was a girl; otherwise, he might have thought she was being inappropriate with his wife.

"Have those children caused any trouble at your house?" Zhou Ming asked Tianrong.

“Not at all. In fact, they’ve been helping my daughter with her work. That chubby kid seems to be the leader, finding work for the others too,” Tianrong laughed softly. Zhou Ming nodded in acknowledgment, then looked over at the chubby child who was now nestled comfortably against Lian Hua’s soft bosom, her eyes closed in bliss. Perhaps being surrounded by boys had led her to adopt some boyish habits.

"Alright, let’s discuss the coconut grove that Xiaolin wanted to buy. The officials have informed me that the area totals around 180 mu, but the northern part is a dense forest extending to the town’s port. The actual coconut grove is only about fifteen mu. If you’re interested, I suggest you purchase just fifteen mu of the coconut grove."

“Yes, my daughter and I are only interested in the coconut grove. As for the northern forest, it is a communal area, and I do not wish to claim it all for myself.”

Zhou Ming nodded in agreement and sent someone to fetch the land office officials to the residence, sparing the father and daughter from making another trip. Moreover, it seemed his wife did not want to let the chubby child leave too soon, so finalizing the land deal here would allow the child to stay and chat with her a bit longer.

Within half an hour, the officials arrived. While the three men discussed business, Xiaolin leaned against her beautiful aunt, leisurely eating snacks fed to her. Whenever she got thirsty, her aunt brought a teacup to her lips so she didn’t have to lift a finger. However, when Xiaolin overheard the price of the land, she choked on her tea, causing her beautiful aunt to hurriedly fetch a handkerchief to wipe her mouth.

“Eat slowly, you little rascal,” Lian Hua gently scolded the child, who was still coughing.

“Thank you, Auntie. Uncle, did you say the land costs twenty taels of gold?” The chubby child exclaimed, her eyes wide, making the three men turn to look at her.

“Yes, Young Miss. Since the land has many trees, which can be profitable, the price is higher than that of empty land. However, it is still cheaper than other forests with both trees and small herbs, which can cost fifty to seventy taels of gold per mu. A highly fertile forest can cost up to a hundred taels of gold per mu.”

Hearing this, Xiaolin froze, prompting Lian Hua to shake her gently. Seeing his daughter’s reaction, Tianrong laughed. This child was used to acquiring things easily and usually bought quality items at low prices. Facing the high cost of the land, it seemed her spirit had momentarily left her body.

"The final decision is that you want to purchase the southern forest, a total of fifteen mu, correct?" the middle-aged official asked Tianrong.

“Yes,”

Upon receiving Tianrong’s confirmation, the official pulled out the contract documents. A servant, already aware of the procedure, quickly brought over a brush and inkstone, preparing the ink. Tianrong carefully read through both copies of the document before signing his name. The official reviewed the paperwork for accuracy and handed one copy back to Tianrong.

“The total cost for the land is three hundred taels of gold, plus an additional processing fee of fifty brass coins,”

Tianrong counted out the money and handed it to the official, including an extra tael of silver as a gratuity. The official left with a broad smile on his face. Xiaolin, still in a daze, seemed to have not yet recovered from the shock, prompting Lian Hua to worry and ask a servant for a wet cloth to wipe the chubby child’s face. The cool cloth brought Xiaolin back to her senses, and she blinked, looking up at her beautiful aunt who was wiping her face.

“This kid, you scared me,” Lian Hua said with a sigh of relief, seeing that Xiaolin had returned to normal. Zhou Ming and Tianrong both chuckled.

“Father! How much did you pay?” Xiaolin asked, jumping down from her small stool and clinging to her father’s leg.

“Three hundred taels of gold,”

Hearing this, Xiaolin’s eyes widened, and she fainted. Luckily, Tianrong caught his round daughter just in time. This time, Lian Hua cried out in alarm and quickly sent a servant to call for a doctor.

The commotion made the pregnant Lian Hua feel a sharp pain in her large belly. Initially, she tried to endure it, but when her husband had the servant lead Tianrong to carry the chubby child to a guest room, the pain intensified, causing her to cry out. Zhou Ming, seeing his wife in such pain, hurriedly carried her to the birthing room, shouting orders to the servants.

“Fetch the midwife and call the doctor!”

Tianrong sat beside his unconscious daughter, hearing the distant cries carried by the wind. Just as he brought his daughter into the guest room, he heard the governor’s loud shouts. A servant, who had brought the doctor to examine Xiaolin, informed him that the lady was about to give birth. Tianrong, sweating with anxiety, feared that his daughter might be the cause of the premature labor.

While the father was deeply worried, the chubby daughter was having a stressful dream. She dreamt that the money she had saved at home was gradually disappearing. She feared that her family would fall back into poverty and tried desperately to gather the vanishing coins, but she couldn’t. The greedy child cried out as she watched the money slip away.

“Waaah!”

“Xiaolin!” Tianrong, who had been frowning in worry, rushed over as soon as he heard his daughter’s cries.

Xiaolin heard her father’s call and woke up, wrapping her chubby arms around his neck. Tianrong lifted her onto his lap and hugged her. The round-faced child cried softly, afraid that her family would fall back into hardship just a year after they had started to prosper. Suddenly, she heard the faint cries of a newborn baby. She quickly wiped her tears and listened intently.

"Is that the sound of a baby crying?"

"The furen is giving birth."

"Father, take me to see quickly!" Xiaolin said excitedly, forgetting her previous worries that had made her cry until her eyes were swollen.

Xiaolin clung to her father like a little monkey as they hurried to the birthing room. Zhou Ming stood there with a tense expression, listening to the cries of the newborn and the screams of Lian Hua. Xiaolin wriggled out of her father’s arms and went to hold her Uncle Zhou’s hand to give him some encouragement. Zhou Ming felt the small hand holding his and looked down to see the round-faced child smiling up at him.

"Auntie will be fine, Uncle. The babies will be safe," she reassured him. As if on cue, those words came true fast, Lian Hua’s screams reached a crescendo before the cries of the newborns filled the air again.

"They are both girls!" The midwife’s voice announced from inside the room. Zhou Ming, the relieved new father, sighed deeply and smiled through his tears. He sat down and hugged the chubby child beside him with joy.

"Congratulations, governor!" Tianrong exclaimed, equally delighted.

"Congratulations, Master!" The female servants around them echoed in unison. Finally, the two little daughters the Master and Mistress had been eagerly awaiting had arrived safely at the world.

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