Chapter 61: Chapter 61 The Wooden Image Disappears
Daya, hearing her father’s call, picked up Wuwa and led her younger sisters out of the room.
The adults inside the room were still discussing around the bed, and the children had to dodge around to get out the door.
Hongji picked Wuwa from Daya’s arms.
“Dad, I want to be carried too,” Siwa said, too tired to walk.
“Alright, let’s go ho.” Hongji carried one child in each arm, the older girls looking enviously at their younger sisters as they followed their father’s steps out of the courtyard.
Ye Shuzhi, seeing her elder brother ready to go ho, thought of the wooden Bodhisattva and quickly followed to leave the courtyard.
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Ye Shuzhen was previously arguing with several sisters, accusing them of being unsupportive by joining others in speaking ill of her.
The sisters retorted that everyone in the village was saying the sa thing, and they were rely going along with it.
The person who had been arguing during the day had recovered from illness; she insisted that person must be lying. Otherwise, if everyone fell into water the sa way, how could she have burnt so severely?
They even had to call the doctor, who ca daily to swindle money from their family.
Another sister in the room argued that Ye Shuzhen was tarnishing their family’s reputation. Everyone had seen her sister was ill, and she got better so quickly only because the Bodhisattva had blessed her.
“My elder brother carved the Bodhisattva today; it must be the Bodhisattva blessing . I felt dizzy and bloated this morning but was able to get out of bed and eat lunch before lunch without calling the doctor. That’s why you could swindle so money from your family,” she argued.
Many girls did not believe Ye Shuzhen’s words, yet so elder sisters, upon hearing them, considered visiting during the day to see if Hongji’s house truly could carve the wooden Bodhisattva?
Upon seeing Second Sister and her elder brother, Ye Shuzhen huffed at the people in the room and hurried ho, thinking of the four wooden Bodhisattvas at ho. She resolved to get one into her room by any ans that evening to ensure she never fell ill again.
“Second Sister, wait for ….”
Typically, these two sisters walked with studied grace, mimicking the mannerisms of ladies from stories, but now, in their rush for the wooden Bodhisattva, they ran as if ghosts were chasing them.
Hongji, carrying two children, walked as fast as the wind, with the older three girls running after him.
He had already figured out that his sisters were running so fast because of the four wooden Bodhisattvas at ho.
He thought nonchalantly, since the wooden Bodhisattva made during the day had already been declared by their mother to be sold, even if the sisters managed to grab them, they would just be taken away by their mother.
Mrs. Lai, speaking, attracted a crowd around her, including won of her age or older and so younger won, who wanted to order a wooden Bodhisattva.
“Wait a mont! We haven’t decided yet how much to charge for this wooden Bodhisattva. If it’s too expensive, you might not afford it, and if it’s too cheap, we’d just be working for nothing. We need to find out how much the stores will buy them for, and we’ll give you a buying price based on that,” she announced.
Thinking of the wholesale price that her relation had given her, Mrs. Lai declared, with those who, even if neighbours, needed to pay her son for his craftsmanship.
“Mrs. Lai, we are all from the sa place, and you still want to charge high prices? That’s too greedy!” Mrs. Zhang, upset that her daughter’s illness had brought Mrs. Lai business, fud inside.
“I’m happy to do so. Anyone who thinks it’s too expensive doesn’t have to buy. Those who consider the store-bought Bodhisattvas will find them even more expensive,” Mrs. Lai retorted.
No sooner had Mrs. Lai’s words fallen than the hesitant won exchanged glances, not wanting to part with their limited money but convinced that the Bodhisattva’s blessing for their family’s safety was worth skipping a al or two.
So one by one, they verbally placed their orders with Mrs. Lai.
“rely saying verbally isn’t enough. If you’re serious, give us a deposit, and co back in a couple of days. We actually haven’t settled on a price for the Bodhisattva yet. I’ll need to ask my son what his labor charge is. Even if the wood is cheap, my son’s craftsmanship is certainly valuable,” she stated.
Upon hearing this, the other won looked at each other, also feeling that they should first check if their family was genuinely capable of creating the Bodhisattva.
They quietly decided to visit Hongji’s house the next day to see his craftsmanship and whether Mrs. Lai was exaggerating. Tomorrow would make things clear.
Mrs. Lai gloated with a victorious smirk. She had been arguing so much her lips were sore, and even smiling hurt.
Seeing Mrs. Lai’s smile accentuating the wrinkles on her face made Mrs. Zhang nauseous. This ti, her daughter lost an argunt to soone else, and she herself had lost an argunt to Mrs. Lai.
As Mrs. Lai left Mrs. Zhang’s courtyard, she turned back toward her own yard, spat on the ground disdainfully, and humd a tune, swaying her plump body triumphantly as she went ho.
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