The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 851 - 829: Fated to Be with You

Chapter 851: Chapter 829: Fated to Be with You

Manbao had never encountered such aggressive and unfriendly tactics of forced buying and selling since her arrival in Yizhou City, and for a moment, she was completely stunned.

But her shock lasted only a split second; as they were about to forcibly take the item by hand, Manbao swiftly snatched the purse of money from the steward’s hand as he tossed it and said sternly, "You’re right, my Lord, it seems this plant is truly fated to be with you."

Zhou Silang and Zhou Lijun looked at Manbao in stunned disbelief, and even the household guards of the prince’s mansion were taken aback.

The steward also paused, then quickly understood, giving Manbao a meaningful look, "A wise person submits to the times, young lady. You have a promising future ahead of you."

Smiling, Manbao replied, "Not as promising as yours, sir."

The steward snorted, waving his hand dismissively, and a household guard stepped forward to snatch the flowerpot from Zhou Silang’s arms and turned to leave.

With a "snap," the side gate closed in front of them. Zhou Silang took the purse from Manbao, spilled out a handful of loose silver coins, counted them, and found there were only about sixteen taels in total. He couldn’t help his tears, "Six hundred taels, an item worth six hundred taels sold for just sixteen."

Manbao glanced at her Fourth Uncle, then turned back to look at the side gate of the mansion, her gaze growing colder.

She turned around and said, "Fourth Uncle, let’s go."

Zhou Silang put away the money, stuffing it into his bosom. Although it was only sixteen taels, it was still money, wasn’t it?

Zhou Silang asked anxiously, "Manbao, how much did you actually pay for it? Are we at a loss?"

"Not at a loss."

Zhou Silang didn’t believe her at all, and continued to mourn alone, weeping. After a while, he said, "Never mind, do you need money? Fourth Uncle can give you some. I’ll be going home soon, and I’ll ask Father to send you some money. By the way, Father still has your money, did you know?"

Zhou Lijun was also heartbroken, especially since such a precious plant had just been taken away like that. Although she didn’t know when their family had made enemies with the Prince of Yizhou, from their behavior, she thought to herself: It’s no wonder our family has made enemies with the Yizhou mansion; the people in our family are truly too wicked.

But she quickly recovered and realized they were going the wrong way, "Niece, this isn’t the way to the pharmacy."

Manbao said, "I’m not going to the pharmacy today. Fourth Uncle, please remember to stop by Doctor Ji later and tell him. I was supposed to accompany him on house calls today, but now... sigh~~"

Zhou Silang also realized something and looked around, asking, "So where are we going? It’s just as well you’re not heading to the pharmacy today. You’ve been upset, and what if you let your anger affect your medical judgment and make a mistake with a patient?"

Manbao thought, ...Is that the kind of doctor she was?

Soon, Zhou Silang realized where Manbao was headed, because a familiar building appeared not far ahead — the County Governmental Office!

Zhou Silang couldn’t help but stop in his tracks, incredulously saying, "Manbao, don’t tell me you’re going to sue the Prince of Yizhou for forced buying. You’re not bringing trouble upon County Magistrate Tang, are you?"

Manbao turned to look at Zhou Silang and said, "Fourth Uncle, I’m not foolish. I won’t sue the Prince of Yizhou or that steward. And I’m not even here to see County Magistrate Tang today; I’m here to see Madam Tang. You can just drop me here and head home. Remember to help me request leave."

Zhou Silang, curious, asked, "What do you want with Madam Tang?"

Grinning, Manbao revealed her teeth, "Building connections."

Zhou Silang shivered and said, "Manbao, don’t smile like that; it scares your Fourth Uncle a bit."

Manbao turned around and started to walk away, then walked back over, tilting her head towards the pastry shop at the side.

Zhou Silang still couldn’t figure out what she was intending to do when Manbao had already gone in, and then she took out a small piece of broken silver from her purse and bought two boxes of pastries that, to Zhou Silang, looked extremely expensive. Afterwards, she carried them and headed toward the County Governmental Office.

At this point, Zhou Silang believed her, Manbao really wasn’t there to file a complaint, and truly was there to find Madam Tang.

The uncle and nephew exchanged a glance and hurriedly followed her.

Arriving at the side gate of the County Governmental Office’s backyard, they watched as Manbao entered with the boxes of pastries, and even turned back to wave at them.

Zhou Lijun saw the Tang Family’s servants also smiling at them and then gently closed the side gate. She exhaled deeply, "Just now, my little niece’s demeanor was somewhat terrifying."

Zhou Silang nodded, "I’ve never seen her so angry, it seemed like she was fuming, yet her face still wore a smile."

Zhou Lijun suggested, "Why don’t Fourth Uncle go buy some meat, and tonight let Aunt Rong make the steamed meatballs that little niece particularly loves to eat? After eating something delicious, perhaps little niece’s mood will improve."

Zhou Silang pondered and nodded, halfway through remembering something, he asked, "Why me? Why don’t you go?"

Zhou Silang said, "Don’t think I don’t know, you’ve saved up quite a bit of money. What does a girl like you need with carrying so much money around?"

Zhou Lijun turned to leave, retorting, "Little niece also has a lot of money on her, why don’t you talk about little niece?"

She huffed, "Fourth Uncle, it was you who collected the money from the flower sale just now, a full sixteen taels."

Zhou Silang felt the pain again, "Six hundred taels became sixteen taels."

"Fourth Uncle, you can’t think like that. Think about it, it was just a pot of flowers, and it sold for sixteen taels."

Zhou Silang paused and then said, "I think as you say but it still hurts."

Though it hurt, he still went to the market and bought a large piece of meat to take home, chopped it up, and steamed the meatballs.

Meanwhile, Manbao was sitting across from Madam Tang, holding a cup of hot tea, as Madam Tang laughed with her, "The orchids have come back to life in their new pots, and the weather is warm today. The flowers have opened a bit more; this is the most beautiful time."

Now, those two pots of orchids were placed in Madam Tang’s bedroom and study room. She felt very happy looking at them every day, so seeing Manbao also made her smile broadly. Noticing her carrying gifts, she asked, "You’re a busy person, so without important matters, you wouldn’t come to my three-treasure hall. We’re all straightforward people here, just say what you need from me."

"Madam Tang, you’re truly perceptive, indeed, I do have a favor to ask of you." Manbao sat up straight and said, "Madam Tang, last time you mentioned that Second Madam Ji enjoys peonies as much as the Princess Consort of Yizhou does?"

Madam Tang nodded and asked with a smile, "Why? Are you now growing peonies too?"

"It’d be too late to grow them this year, but I have some beautiful and rare peonies on hand. I’d like to ask Madam Tang if you know of any other ladies in Yizhou City who also like peony flowers?"

"There are plenty, many people in our times love peonies. Spring is here now, and it’s the perfect time for peony flowers to bloom. In a few days, the whole of Yizhou City will be filled with flower-viewing parties." Madam Tang laughed, "I was thinking, once my two pots of orchids are in full bloom, I will also invite a few ladies over to enjoy them. Would you like to come when the time comes?"

Manbao thought it over and declined. She, a flower seller, couldn’t always be mingling with a bunch of ladies who might buy flowers from her, could she?

Business is business. They can talk about friendships when they’re not conducting business.