Seeing Lin Wanrong pocket twenty taels of silver in the blink of an eye, Dong Rende was thrilled. Ten taels it is—whatever! It's a seller's market, a one-off deal anyway. What's there to fear?
Dong Qiaozhao, who'd just teamed up with Lin Wanrong to pull off a little two-man act, stood beside her father in men's clothing. She grinned at Lin Wanrong and said, "Big Brother Lin, you're swearing again."
Lin Wanrong laughed heartily. "What I think in my heart, I do with my hands—that's my true nature shining through."
Dong Qiaozhao gave a gentle smile, gazing at him without a word.
Lin Wanrong turned to Dong Rende. "Uncle Dong, what are we waiting for? That shiny silver's calling our names!"
A feral glint flashed in Dong Rende's eyes. He and Lin Wanrong burst into laughter, charging straight into the crowd of scholars.
Lin Wanrong was dead certain they'd soon be the most popular guys among these talents.
With a few successful marketing stints under their belts, Old Dong had picked up the trick. Their earlier deals had already caught the scholars' eyes, so the moment they stepped up, they were mobbed.
"Brother, is this really a self-portrait of the Xiao family's eldest miss?"
"Brother, got any inside scoop on Eldest Miss Xiao?"
"Brother, what about Second Miss Xiao?"
"Brother, any dirt on Madame Xiao?"
Damn, Lin Wanrong thought, wiping a cold sweat. So all men think alike, huh? The Xiao women are basically prime meat—everyone wants a bite.
Still, without these scheming fools, where'd he rake in the cash?
The crowd swelled, trapping Old Dong and Lin Wanrong in the middle. The scholars' enthusiasm erupted, and Lin Wanrong shouted, "Don't shove, don't shove! This is a rare edition straight from the Xiao family—limited stock, precious as hell. Fixed price: ten taels a copy. Cash in hand, goods delivered!"
"No change needed," a loaded scholar barked, tossing Old Dong a hefty silver ingot. He snatched a booklet from Dong's hand and tucked it into his robe like it was a treasure.
That sparked chaos—like boiling water, the scholars went nuts, shoving forward.
"Eleven taels—hand it over quick, brother!"
"Fifteen taels—"
"Twenty taels—"
Caught in the crush, Old Dong and Lin Wanrong were drenched in sweat. In moments, the dozens of booklets they'd brought for a test run were snatched clean.
Good thing Lin Wanrong had seen it coming—he'd told Dong Qingshan to fetch the rest of the stock earlier. By noon, only a dozen of the five hundred copies remained, satisfying the scholars' frenzy.
Thousands of talents milled around, but only so many could actually shell out ten taels for a risqué booklet. Selling all five hundred blew Lin Wanrong's mind—he hadn't expected it.
Watching the scholars cluster in groups, oohing and aahing over the pages, it was clear Eldest Miss Xiao's looks had them hooked. Lin Wanrong smirked inwardly. Didn't think her portrait would be worth this much.
The Dong family—father and kids—took two trips to haul all the silver away. Dong Rende hadn't dreamed the booklets would sell like Lin Wanrong predicted. Staring at the pile of gleaming coins, his face split into a grin.
Lunch came courtesy of Dong Qiaozhao. Still in her boy's outfit, she found a big tree to sit under, pulling steaming dishes from a bamboo basket. "Big Brother Lin, time to eat."
Dong Qiaozhao's cooking wasn't just talk—these dishes were a feast for the eyes and nose. Lin Wanrong swallowed hard. "Qiaozhao, your skills? Even top chefs couldn't touch you."
He shoveled food into his mouth like a starved wolf. Blushing, Dong Qiaozhao watched him. "Big Brother Lin, I'm not as good as you say. You're the amazing one. I never imagined a simple booklet could fetch so much—five thousand taels! Dad and Little Bro are at home staring at the silver, too happy to sleep."
Lin Wanrong chuckled and shook his head. Old Dong's really never seen money before, huh?
He didn't care much about cash—a million or a single coin, life went on. But seeing Qiaozhao so giddy warmed his heart a bit. He teased with a laugh, "So, Miss Qiaozhao, your dowry's looking pretty solid now. Don't forget me when you snag that perfect groom!"
Dong Qiaozhao's face went red, her head dipping low. "Big Brother Lin, don't tease me."
Lin Wanrong, thick-skinned as ever, let out another big laugh. Her blush spread to her neck, her head nearly touching her chest—she didn't dare look up.
After polishing off the meal, he gulped some water, patted his belly, and sighed, "Qiaozhao, thanks. I nearly swallowed my tongue."
She giggled shyly. "It's not that serious. Oh, Big Brother Lin, Dad asked if we should print more booklets."
He shook his head. "Nah, even if we did, they wouldn't fetch much now."
"Why not?" she asked, puzzled.
"For one, the market's nearly tapped out—uh, I mean, everyone who'd buy already has." Worried she wouldn't get "saturated," he clarified fast.
"Not everyone can afford ten taels a pop. Plus, we gotta think of Eldest Miss Xiao, right? Letting five hundred scholars drool over her beauty's enough. Now, if it were your looks, Qiaozhao, we'd charge twenty taels—no haggling." He put on a pious act for the Xiao girl, then slid into flirting with her.
Hearing his shameless tone and teasing, Dong Qiaozhao's face burned. She huffed, "Big Brother Lin, you're awful!"
"Am I? Haha—" Lin Wanrong roared. Men aren't bad, women don't love. This girl's too young to get it.
When it came to thick skin and shamelessness, poor Qiaozhao was no match for this rogue. She covered her face, hiding the flush.
"The other reason," he said, sobering up after a laugh, "is that our book's already got knockoffs." He pointed at some shady guys peddling booklets to scholars in the distance.
"So fast?" Dong Qiaozhao gasped.
Just then, a scholar nearby bought a pirated copy. She peeked—it was a sloppy reprint of Lin Wanrong's work. Rushed job: wet ink, rough paper, blurry text and pictures.
Pouting, she said, "It's nowhere near ours."
"Sure, but it's cheap—one tael a copy. Heh, that's tempting for broke scholars. Oh well, we took the high-end market—let the low-end go to them. Gotta leave some scraps for others, right?"
Lin Wanrong chuckled, but inside, he fumed. Damn it, I plant the tree, you freeloaders enjoy the shade. These pirates have no shame—hope your sons grow two peckers!
He'd planned to print more, but within three hours of the first batch selling, he'd spotted fakes. Piracy was as rampant here as anywhere—those bastards moved quick.
He didn't obsess over money, but who'd turn down extra cash? Nobody hates profit.