Seeing how excited everyone was, Yu Li naturally decided not to reveal anything. She wanted to avoid people bothering Fu Wenxiao.
With his frail health, Fu Wenxiao couldn’t handle any disturbances. He was already nearing the end of his life—she wanted him to spend his final days in peace.
She skipped over the shopkeeper’s question and asked directly, “Shopkeeper, how much is this book worth?”
The shopkeeper was about to speak when Scholar Yan interjected, “I’ll offer one hundred taels!” Then, looking slightly embarrassed, he added, “Is a hundred taels too little?”
This was, after all, a handwritten manuscript. The term rare manuscript (孤本) alone made it worth more than a hundred taels.
Whenever a rare manuscript emerged, it would always attract the fervent competition of scholars and connoisseurs, sometimes fetching as much as a thousand taels. Though this was a handwritten copy and naturally less expensive, the value of Master Songhe’s exquisite calligraphy alone made it a worthy collector’s item—let alone the content of the book itself.
Yu Li was startled and was about to speak when the shopkeeper immediately said, “No!”
He turned to Yu Li with a warm smile and said gently, “Miss, Master Songhe’s handwritten manuscripts are highly valuable. If you trust me, I can send this to the prefectural city for auction.”
Since Master Songhe’s handwritten manuscripts had gained widespread fame, many people sought to acquire them. If the manuscript were sent to an auction house frequented by the literati of the prefectural city, the price could easily reach three or four hundred taels.
In this world, there were plenty of wealthy and leisurely scholars—not to mention those merchants who pretended to be refined and were willing to spend lavishly.
The shopkeeper explained further to Yu Li, saying that the bookshop would take a 20% commission, and the rest of the proceeds would go to her.
To show sincerity, he suggested drafting an agreement and immediately paying her a deposit of thirty taels as a guarantee.
The two scholars became visibly anxious, wanting to speak several times, but the shopkeeper skillfully cut them off.
Eventually, Scholar Yan even raised his offer to two hundred taels, knowing full well that if the manuscript reached the prefectural city, he wouldn’t stand a chance against the wealthy collectors there.
Yu Li glanced at their desperate expressions and ultimately decided to accept the shopkeeper’s suggestion.
Although she didn’t fully understand how auctions worked, the attitudes of everyone present made it clear just how valuable this handwritten manuscript was. Naturally, she chose the option that promised the best outcome.
She believed that Fu Wenxiao would agree with her decision—after all, he had mentioned trusting the shopkeeper.
Under the disappointed gazes of the two scholars, Yu Li and the shopkeeper drafted an agreement, and she carefully kept her copy.
The shopkeeper assured her, “The results will be ready in no more than half a month. Miss, you can return then to collect them.” He also handed her a deposit of thirty taels on the spot.
Holding the thirty taels in her hand, Yu Li once again marveled at how lucrative scholars’ pursuits could be.
While this world had many poor people, there was no shortage of wealthy and leisurely individuals.
When Yu Li stepped out of the bookshop, the two scholars immediately followed her.
“Miss!” Scholar Yan bowed deeply to her with a sincere expression. “I have a deep appreciation for Master Songhe’s handwritten manuscripts. Would you be willing to introduce me to him?”
Scholar Fang echoed his sentiment with equal earnestness.
If Master Songhe could produce one handwritten manuscript, he could certainly produce a second. If they could meet him in person, they might arrange for him to transcribe something directly—wouldn’t that be even better?
Moreover, Master Songhe’s identity was undoubtedly extraordinary. Establishing a connection with him would bring countless benefits.
Yu Li replied bluntly, “I’m sorry, I can’t.”
Her straightforward response left the two scholars momentarily speechless. Ever since they had become xiucai, few people had treated them with such brusqueness.
Before they could say anything else, Yu Li turned and walked away. The two scholars instinctively tried to follow her, but as bookish men with no physical prowess, they couldn’t keep up with Yu Li’s swift pace.
Within moments, she had left them far behind.
The two scholars: “…..” What speed!
—
In the afternoon, Yu Li returned to the Fu household.
For the first time, she didn’t head straight to the main hall for lunch but went directly back to her room.
Fu Wenxiao was sitting by the window reading. Seeing her return looking dusty and tired, he was slightly surprised, then smiled and said, “Li Niang, you’re back. Have you eaten?”
Yu Li glanced at him. At this moment, in her eyes, this frail and sickly man was no longer just a useless sickly scholar but a gold nugget capable of earning a fortune.
Previously, she thought making a few hundred wen a day was already a lot. Little did she know that while she was painstakingly earning small amounts, he, with just one transaction, had brought in thirty taels. And after the upcoming auction, it could potentially exceed a hundred taels…
“What’s wrong?” Fu Wenxiao asked, puzzled by her strange gaze.
Her straightforward look of seeing him as a “gold nugget” was so blatant it made him feel a bit embarrassed.
Yu Li slowly recounted the events at the bookshop and how she had drawn up the agreement with the shopkeeper.
Fu Wenxiao listened calmly, his expression unchanged, as if it were all perfectly ordinary. When she finished, he simply said, “Li Niang, you can decide. I’ll follow your lead.”
Yu Li: “….”
She took out the thirty taels of deposit from her basket and pushed it toward him, but Fu Wenxiao said, “You keep it.”
Yu Li looked at him, puzzled.
“Right now, you’re the one managing this household. Naturally, the family’s money should also be managed by you.” As he spoke, Fu Wenxiao looked apologetic. “It’s also because of my poor health that I can’t share the burden with you. I’ll have to rely on you for everything in the future.”
Yu Li responded immediately, “No problem!”
She didn’t expect a frail man to manage household affairs anyway. As long as he stayed quietly in his room, reading or writing, she and Zhou Shi could handle the rest just fine.
Yu Li placed the thirty taels into the money box.
Turning to Fu Wenxiao, she said, “Your medicine is almost finished. Tomorrow, I’ll go to the pharmacy to get a few more doses. Make sure you drink it properly.” Try to live a little longer.
Fu Wenxiao smiled and agreed.
Afterward, Yu Li finally went to the main hall for lunch.
Zhou Shi was waiting for her there, as was her habit. Knowing Yu Li would return in the afternoon, she always waited to serve her food.
Seeing Yu Li head straight to her room after returning, Zhou Shi didn’t mind and greeted her with a smile.
Yu Li took out the money she had earned from selling the table screens today—a total of six taels—and handed it to Zhou Shi.
“Wasn’t it supposed to be five taels?” Zhou Shi asked, puzzled. The shopkeeper had mentioned that embroidered table screens typically sold for three to five taels. Since Yu Li had put extra care into her work, the shopkeeper estimated it could reach five taels.
Yu Li explained the shopkeeper’s reasoning, and Zhou Shi immediately understood.
Having lived in Qingshi Village for so long, she often forgot that the embroidery techniques she had learned were taught by a skilled embroiderer from the capital, specifically from a prestigious aristocratic family. Naturally, her skills were far superior to those of ordinary embroiderers in the countryside. Any discerning shopkeeper would recognize the value of her work.
Despite this, Aunt Zhou felt uneasy, worried that it might attract trouble. However, after glancing at Yu Li, she suppressed her concerns.
It had been three years. Surely… there wouldn’t be any problems anymore, right?
—
In the afternoon, Yu Li took a nap. Upon waking, she found Yu Yin sitting in the main hall, working on embroidery.
Yu Yin was now learning embroidery from Zhou Shi. She would come in the morning, return home around midday for lunch, and then come back in the afternoon to stay until evening.
Although Zhou Shi warmly offered to keep Yu Yin for lunch, she felt embarrassed about freeloading. Every household had its difficulties, and she didn’t want to impose by eating for free at someone else’s home.
When Yu Li entered, Yu Yin greeted her obediently, calling her “Elder Sister” and getting up to pour her tea.
Yu Li took out the fabric scraps sent by the embroidery workshop and gave them to Yu Yin to practice with.
This had been Zhou Shi’s suggestion. Zhou Shi mainly focused on embroidering table screens now and didn’t find much use for these fabric scraps.
“How much does this cost?” Yu Yin asked excitedly when she saw the pile of fabric scraps. While they were fragmented, some pieces were large enough to make pouches—a lot of pouches, in fact.
Yu Li told her they were free, as the embroidery workshop had given them at no cost.
Yu Yin happily accepted and softly thanked her.
As Yu Yin continued embroidering, she chatted with Yu Li, mainly about the Yu family’s affairs.
“…Our courtyard wall has been built, completely separating us from Grandpa, Grandma, Eldest Uncle, and Third Uncle’s family. Second Sister arranged for bricks and yellow mud to be delivered to build the wall, and Grandpa and Grandma weren’t happy about it. But when Second Sister mentioned it was with your approval, they didn’t say much.”
Naturally, Old Madam Yu and the others wouldn’t be pleased.
Even though the family had officially split, they were still living on the same property, only cooking separately. This made it seem like little had changed, allowing Old Master Yu to maintain his influence over his sons.
But now, the second branch had built a wall, physically dividing themselves from the others.
What angered Old Master Yu even more was that when the third branch saw this, they also wanted to build a wall. However, after being scolded harshly by Old Master Yu, they dropped the idea for now.
Still, given the current situation, it was clear that if conflicts arose in the future, the third branch would likely follow suit and build a wall as well.
At that point, Old Master Yu and the first branch would truly be isolated.
“Oh, by the way, Eldest Aunt, Cousin Qin, and Cousin Zong have gone to the county town. I heard that Eldest Uncle has been seriously ill for several days. Apparently, he fell ill the day he returned from the village. With no one else to care for him, Cousin Qin asked someone from the village to deliver the message so Eldest Aunt would go look after him.”
Yu Yin speculated that Eldest Uncle’s illness might have been caused by the stress of splitting the family.
Of course, it could also have been triggered by the incident where Elder Sister made him kneel. That might have upset him so much that he fell ill as soon as he got back.
Yu Li responded with a casual “Oh” and didn’t think much of it.
What did Eldest Uncle’s illness have to do with her? It wasn’t her job to take care of him anyway.
—
Author’s Note:
The male lead’s illness won’t improve so quickly, but it won’t affect next year’s county exams—he’ll still participate! ^_^