novelraw Chapter 192 Buying Gu Tang for 2 Silver Dollars
Chapter 192 Buying Gu Tang for 2 Silver Dollars
Chapter 192 Ten Taels of Silver to Buy Gu Tang
The father and daughter's words tempted Li, but she still wanted to do something that required no investment...
However, if one wants to do business without any initial investment, the Gu family becomes somewhat of an obstacle.
After a moment of contemplation, Li feigned hesitation and asked, "Name your price. If it's right, I'll take the risk. If it's too high, then let's call it quits."
These words left Old Master Gu speechless and speechless.
How can he set a price?
He had never sold anyone before and didn't know the market price. If he set the price too low, he would lose money, and if he set it too high, Li would not be willing. This was really a dilemma!
After a moment of stunned silence, Old Master Gu glanced at his wife sitting on the bed again.
When it comes to buying and selling people, my own husband has certainly experienced it all.
He might be more knowledgeable than him.
"My dear wife?" Old Master Gu called softly, his voice neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for Madam Feng to hear.
Mrs. Feng turned her face away, clearly not wanting to get involved.
But her own grandfather's gaze was fixed on her, making her soften and unable to get angry.
After a brief stalemate, Mrs. Feng gave in.
She pulled a long face and announced a price: "Give me ten taels of silver now, and Siya is yours!"
Ten taels of silver?
Ha ha!
Mr. Li was not very satisfied with the price.
Although she could make at least five times the profit by reselling it, in the past she would have immediately agreed to it with a smile.
But now she had other ideas, and the ten taels was more than she had expected. She looked unhappy and shook her head to refuse.
"If that's the price you want, then you should find another buyer. Ten taels of silver? I can buy four or five girls in the mountains with ten taels of silver!"
"What good are four or five girls if you buy them? Once you resell them, all of them together won't be worth as much as Siya alone!" Madam Feng sneered, knowing that Madam Li was intentionally trying to lower the price.
Just now, when she looked at Siya, she had such a look of amazement on her face, her eyes almost popped out of their sockets!
All that talk about forgetting or not forgetting is just fooling people; they probably have other plans in mind.
Feng was not afraid of Li and directly confronted her: "You know very well that ten taels sounds like a lot, but I really didn't ask for more. Siya is indeed worth that price! If you resell her, the price can multiply several times."
I know you're cunning and calculating. Don't get any other ideas about this. If Siya is sold to you through us, we guarantee no one will know.
But if you refuse to take it today, and if something happens to Siya in the future, or if she goes missing, I will hold you responsible!
Don't blame me for being ruthless; I'll definitely have a serious talk with my second son about what happened today. No matter how despicable his family may be, they're still my flesh and blood. If they're to be sold, it should be me! Nobody else is allowed to touch them.
These words made Li's face turn pale and then red, she was both ashamed and angry, she wished she could turn around and leave immediately and not get involved in the family affairs!
But the thought of that pile of silver made her feel rooted to the spot, and she didn't want to leave at all.
Despite her seemingly comfortable life over the years, it's all just a facade; her actual life hasn't been good.
She was a slave trader, but she couldn't reach girls from good families, nor did she have the money to hire someone to secretly kidnap people. She could only search for them herself, and the girls she came into contact with were all from farm families in and around the mountains.
Farm girls don't fetch a good price. After deducting the cost of hiring someone, the farmer only gets a tael or two when he sells a girl.
One or two taels of silver may seem like a lot, but the men and children in the family, as well as the mother-in-law and father-in-law, all depend on one or two taels of silver for their expenses! Especially since last year, when her eldest son and two youngest sons went to school, their expenses have increased several times over, and the silver is becoming increasingly scarce.
Take this year for example, it's been a case of living beyond one's means.
After a year of hard work, not only was I left with not a single penny, but I also lost a lot of my own savings!
If this continues, she might really starve.
She thought things would continue like this, but unexpectedly, she ran into Gu Siya today.
Despite her complaints about how troublesome it was, she actually wanted the job more than anyone else!
If she takes this job, the money she earns will be enough for her to live comfortably for a year.
Faced with such a large sum of money, and being extremely short of funds, Li naturally wanted to bypass the Gu family and keep all the money for herself.
But what Madam Feng said just now hit her like a ton of bricks.
Bypassing Gu Jia?
I'm afraid it's not possible.
After calming herself down, Li smiled apologetically at Feng and said, "Aunt Feng is a woman of the world. Don't hold it against someone as spineless as me. We're relatives. If I don't take this business, how will I ever face my sister-in-law again?"
These words immediately eased the tension in the room.
Old Master Gu's tense lips relaxed, Gu Liansheng laughed, and Gu Zhier looked smug.
As for Madam Feng, she snorted lightly, and Madam Li's submission made her very proud.
Ignoring the Gu family's reaction, Li continued, "As you wish, I will offer ten taels of silver to buy your Siya. But there's one condition: you two must sign Siya's indenture."
"Didn't you just say that Siya was adopted away, so this indenture is invalid? If it's invalid, why did you make us sign it?"
Li remained calm, only her smile deepened: "You don't know, maids with indentures are very easy to sell, while those without indentures are generally not bought by anyone, as they are afraid of causing trouble."
I know it's a fake contract you two sign for me, but what about outsiders? I can use it to fool others and get rid of Siya quickly, instead of keeping her in my hands for too long and risking complications..."
Feng didn't know much about these things, but she remembered that when she was sold, the slave trader also made her parents sign a contract of servitude.
What Li said is probably true.
"The contract of servitude should be signed; it will put our minds at ease, but the money..."
"Sign the indenture and I'll give you the silver immediately!" Madam Li took out two silver ingots from her sleeve, one weighing five taels, the two weighing exactly ten taels.
The moment the gleaming silver appeared, it drew all the attention of the Gu family. They all stared greedily at the silver in Li's hand, not even daring to blink.
"Eldest brother!" Old Master Gu's breathing quickened, and he hurriedly grabbed Gu Liansheng's arm, urging him to go out and borrow a pen, ink, paper, and inkstone.
"The innkeeper has writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. Go and borrow some. Let's hurry up and finish writing the indenture so as not to delay your sister Li's later business..."
At this moment, Gu Liansheng was very easy to manage. He responded with two quick words and hurriedly left the house.
Not long after, he returned with a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, laid them out on the table, and intended to personally write the contract of indenture.
Only by writing it myself can I relieve the anger in my heart.
Fearing that he might write something carelessly or make a mistake, Li told him the common indenture used by slave traders and asked him to write it down according to his own words.