The woman’s face imdiately showed a few signs of anger when she heard Xie Liangchen’s words, feeling that this yellow-haired girl was deliberately toying with her.
The woman sneered, "What? You still don’t want to admit it? I bought the thread tassel from the shop, the shopkeeper can testify. Just because you say it’s not, makes it not? Do you think this is your Zhenzhou? You act tyrannically as you please; better ask if we, the people of Xingzhou, agree..."
The woman’s voice was sharp. Usually, when she used half of this aura to scold embroideresses, they would tremble in fear. Who would have thought the young girl before her wasn’t frightened but instead laughed.
The woman was startled.
Xie Liangchen said with a smile, "You’re right, this isn’t Zhenzhou, but everyone should have heard that we are from Zhenzhou Chen Family Village. Before selling the thread tassel, we had just finished spring plowing. We are farrs, wearing and eating what we earn with our own hands; where is the tyranny?
Before this, our village had also co to Xingzhou to sell dicinal herbs, is anyone aware?
Recently, during the epidemic in the North, the village also helped the Official dicine Bureau make finished dicines. In a while, we, the Chen Family Village, will co to sell dicinal herbs again, and everyone will frequently hear the na Chen Family Village in Xingzhou."
"That’s the Chen Family Village."
"Isn’t Xingzhou going to build an Official dicine Bureau? I heard the finished dicines there ca from Zhenzhou."
"Yes, I’ve heard about it too."
The crowd began to murmur.
The woman frowned; the young girl had deftly diverted the topic of conversation.
The woman said, "So what if Chen Family Village has sold dicinal herbs and helped make finished dicines for the Official dicine Bureau? I’m talking about the thread tassel, regardless of whether your Chen Family Village is of farming background, you’re using such thread tassel to deceive people."
"Since you say it’s Chen Family Village’s thread tassel," Xie Liangchen said, "please have the embroidery shop bring out all those thread tassels."
The woman waved her hand, and the assistant beside her hurriedly carried over the thread tassels, along with the shopkeeper who sold the thread tassels to the embroidery shop.
The woman looked at the shopkeeper, "We indeed bought the thread tassel in your shop; did you say your thread tassel ca from Chen Family Village or not?"
The shopkeeper said, "It was Chen Family Village that sold us the thread tassel. I thought it looked good at the ti, but didn’t expect there was bad mixed in with the good... If I had known, I wouldn’t have taken it. After all, they are outsiders selling thread tassel in Xingzhou for the first ti; it’s hard to judge their character."
As the shopkeeper spoke, Xie Liangchen and Liu Erniang carefully checked the thread tassels.
"This is not our thread tassel," Liu Erniang said as she took up a thread tassel, "Our Chen Family Village would not sell such things."
After saying this, Liu Erniang was belatedly aware that she had said "our Chen Family Village." She glanced quietly at Xie Liangchen, who appeared naturally unconcerned, as if hearing the most ordinary statent.
Xie Liangchen nodded, "This is not Chen Family Village’s thread tassel."
The woman coldly said, "Just because you say it’s not, it’s not? I have the shopkeeper as a witness here, don’t think you can shirk."
Xie Liangchen looked toward the shopkeeper, "When Chen Family Village sold the thread tassel, did we inform you that if the thread tassel couldn’t be sold, you could notify the warehouse, and as long as the thread tassel was intact, we would refund you the silver coin?"
The shopkeeper replied, "You did."
Xie Liangchen nodded, "Then didn’t we also ntion what would constitute intact?"
This matter needed no concealnt, the shopkeeper replied, "You said the thread tassel must not be dirty, and the thread tying the tassel must not have been untied."
Xie Liangchen picked up the thread tassel in her hand, "This thread tassel isn’t dirty, the thread is also not untied. If it were Chen Family Village’s goods, I would refund the silver coin myself."
After saying this, Xie Liangchen looked at the shopkeeper, "Do you still have Chen Family Village’s thread tassel in your shop? Do you want to bring it all over for refund?"
"Of course, it must be refunded," the shopkeeper said, "We can’t have such goods."
"Good," Xie Liangchen said, "Then let’s handle this together, saving you another trip, bringing over the goods and the accounts from the ti."
The shopkeeper glanced at the embroidery shop woman, their eyes t, and the shopkeeper instructed the assistant, "Go fetch them." Fortunately, he had already mixed so inferior goods into the remaining thread tassels, rendering Chen Family Village’s people unable to deny no matter how glib they were.
While the assistant went to retrieve the goods, the woman at the embroidery shop loudly berated Chen Family Village outside, quickly drawing a larger crowd to spectate.
"They should be reported to the governnt office."
"Yes, seal the warehouse."
"Who would dare buy their dicinal herbs? Poor thread tassels cost silver coins, but fake herbs could cost lives."
"Hush, don’t speak recklessly, how could a village sell goods like this? Who knows how many underhanded dealings there are behind it."
The staff at the warehouse grimaced upon hearing these words; if it weren’t for Miss Chen forbidding them from speaking, they would have confronted those people long ago.
"Listen," Mrs. Ge said, "Have they ever seen our dicinal herbs? Do they know how many people our finished dicines have saved? Speaking carelessly without knowing anything. We have a Grade A plaque given by the Official dicine Bureau, how is that deceiving?
The court even repeatedly rewards Chen Family Village, how do we beco nothing in their words? Mr. Xu and Miss Chen even handed the thod to make finished dicines over to the court; if we were just after earning silver coin, we wouldn’t do such things." Not to ntion, Miss Chen helped everyone plant dicinal herbs together in Zhenzhou.
During the war, Mrs. Ge’s family all perished, leaving her alone, so she ca to the Xingzhou warehouse to work, seeing everyone diligently busy, not expecting such an outco. Her heart was filled with grievance and resentnt, with many things she wanted to say but could only hold back.
Beside her, Liu Erniang tense and clenching her hands, palms sweaty, turned her head to look at Xie Liangchen. From beginning to end, Xie Liangchen stood there without a change in expression.
Seeing Xie Liangchen like this, Liu Erniang’s panic and anxiety suddenly slowly faded away at that mont, finding Xie Liangchen’s frail figure so reassuring at this mont.
Until the shop brought all the thread tassels and accounts over.
The shopkeeper said, "Everything is here."
Xie Liangchen looked at Chen Zhongdong, "Bring a few tables over and put all the returned thread tassels on them."
Chen Zhongdong responded, his fourth uncle had gone with the Miao Family Trading Team to Mingzhou, and before leaving, instructed him to take care of the warehouse, so he now led the young guys from the village to work.
The tables were set up, and the thread tassels placed on them.
Xie Liangchen looked at Liu Erniang, "Bring over the thread board, we’ll inspect the goods."
The shopkeeper and the woman from the embroidery shop looked at each other, not understanding what the thread board Xie Liangchen ntioned was.
Mrs. Ge had prepared the thread board earlier and didn’t wait for Liu Erniang to step forward; she personally handed it to Xie Liangchen.
It was a wooden board, with several skeins of spun yarn wound around it.
Xie Liangchen said, "The wool we buy differs slightly, but the spinning wheel we use is the sa, so the spun yarn is uniformly thick. Now we, Chen Family Village, only produce three types of thread tassels. The best thread tassel uses the finest, longest inner wool, making the spun yarn lightweight, smooth, and soft to the touch.
The second-grade thread tassel contains fibers mixed with outer wool fibers. Although not as good as top-grade yarn, it’s equally warm, flexible, and elastic.
The third-grade uses only outer wool; we call it coarse thread. Coarse thread is good for making bedding, it’s cheap, and in winter can be laid on the heated brick bed or bed to fend off the cold and dampness."
After explaining this, Liu Erniang had just picked out all the thread tassels mixed in that didn’t belong to Chen Family Village.
Xie Liangchen pointed at the wooden board, "Our Chen Family Village’s three types of thread tassels are here. You can compare them and determine what grade the selected thread tassels belong to?"
Liu Erniang took a skein from among them and handed it to Xie Liangchen. Xie Liangchen compared it on the wooden board, "Such thread tassels, no matter which grade they are mixed with, will be easily picked out."
After saying this, Xie Liangchen looked at the shopkeeper, "If the goods we sent to your shop contained things like this, would you not notice?"
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