Chapter 21: You Actually Took a Liking to That Ugly Rabbit?

Half an hour later, they finally arrived at Dahe Town.

The town was bustling, filled with street vendors and pedestrians. Wen Ye found this rustic, ancient town quite fascinating, but after only a few glances, she urged Wen Lan and the other to hurry to the embroidery shop.

At the embroidery shop on North Street, a gaunt woman in her forties was dozing off behind the counter. Hearing them approach, she opened her eyes. Seeing the three girls, she asked, "Here to deliver the goods?"

Wen Yu'er nodded hurriedly, "Yes, yes, please take a look, Shopkeeper." As she spoke, she took the handkerchiefs out of her basket. Wen Lan, however, clutched her cloth bundle tightly, looking rather nervous.

Shopkeeper Sun inspected Wen Yu'er's handkerchiefs and finally nodded. There were no issues; the patterns were what she had requested, and the needlework was excellent. "Fifty pieces at three wen each. That’s 150 wen in total." She counted out the money. Wen Yu'er took the coins, her heart blooming with joy.

"And yours?" Shopkeeper Sun looked at the Wen sisters.

"Here," Wen Ye said, taking the bundle from Wen Lan. She opened it and revealed a stack of handkerchiefs. Because the sisters were burdened with heavy housework, they hadn't dared to take on too much work, so together they had only completed forty pieces.

Shopkeeper Sun began to flip through them. Wen Lan watched her nervously, terrified that the shopkeeper would find them substandard. After looking through a few, the shopkeeper's face changed. "What is this?" She pulled out a handkerchief featuring a cute rabbit hugging a radish.

Seeing the shopkeeper's expression darken, both Wen Lan and Wen Ye felt a surge of anxiety.

Shopkeeper Sun said with disdain, "I told you to embroider spring flowers and bamboo. Why did you embroider this instead? What is this thing? A rabbit? Why is it so ugly?"

At these words, Wen Lan’s heart shattered, and her face turned pale. Wen Ye, however, thought silently, *What the hell?* She tried to appease the shopkeeper, "How is this ugly? It's clearly very cute! Look at this rabbit, with its round head and the way it's hugging the radish."

"Ye-yes... it's very interesting," Wen Yu'er added quickly to help.

"Interesting? It's hideously ugly!" Shopkeeper Sun scoffed. "It's neither here nor there; I've never seen such a bizarre design."

Wen Ye stood there, stunned. This was the first time anyone had ever called her adorable cartoon embroidery ugly.

Shopkeeper Sun kept a stern face. "You've ruined my embroidery supplies. The fabric and the thread all cost money."

Wen Lan’s face turned white. "Shopkeeper, I'm sorry! Please, just deduct it from my pay!"

"Do you think a simple deduction will settle this?" the shopkeeper snapped.

Wen Ye frowned. "Then what do you suggest, Shopkeeper?"

Shopkeeper Sun squinted. "You’ve wasted my fabric and thread, and my time as well. Here is what we'll do: you must buy all of these handkerchiefs! I sell them for 15 wen apiece. Forty pieces mean 600 wen."

Buy them all? Wen Lan felt the world go dark. 600 wen?

Wen Yu'er said urgently, "Shopkeeper, can't you lower the price? Even setting aside the issue of compensation, if we buy 40 pieces at once, other shops would give a discount of one wen per piece for anything over ten."

Shopkeeper Sun felt contemptuous. They were just a few village girls; why should she give them any face? "No. You pay 15 wen each!"

Wen Lan pleaded, "Shopkeeper... we don't have that much money. I have 200 wen of deposit with you. As for the rest... I'll take on more work! Can you deduct it from my future earnings?"

Before the shopkeeper could respond, Wen Ye stopped Wen Lan. "Sister, we aren't taking any more work."

"But..."

Shopkeeper Sun sneered, "600 wen. Hand it over!"

Wen Yu'er sighed softly. "Lan, I’ll lend you 400 wen."

"Yu'er..." Wen Lan was on the verge of tears. Her family already owed Yu'er too much—first for borrowing the room, then the cart, then the grain, and even the egg she had eaten that morning. Now, borrowing money...

Wen Yu'er smiled. "It's all right, Lan." Her mother always told her that the Ye family had it hard and that she should help whenever she could. Besides, Uncle Duoshi and Aunt Duoshi were honest people who would never take advantage of anyone.

Wen Yu'er took out the 150 wen she had just earned. "Lan and I both have 200 wen on deposit here. With this, that makes 550 wen. We’re still short 50 wen." She pulled a coin purse from her bodice—she had brought 300 wen today, intended for buying fabric for her brother’s clothes and shoes. She counted out 50 wen and placed it on the counter. "There, that makes 600."

Wen Lan was so ashamed that her eyes turned red, and Wen Ye silently made a mental note. She would return the kindness tenfold in the future.

Shopkeeper Sun took the money, curling her red lips at Wen Yu'er. "You're using up all your deposit and quitting?"

"Yes, we're quitting," Wen Yu'er said, feeling a sense of indignation. They respected her aesthetic for finding the rabbit handkerchiefs ugly. It was true that Ye and Lan hadn't followed the shop's instructions, but they had been working here for nearly two years; they were old acquaintances. Mistakes were inevitable, but the shopkeeper was being ruthless, forcing them to buy everything at full retail price, including the eight pieces that were embroidered correctly. It felt heartless.

Seeing that they were upset, Shopkeeper Sun found it amusing. She said indifferently, "Quit if you want. People who can embroider are everywhere; do you think I'm short of workers?"

"Fine." Wen Ye picked up the stack of rabbit handkerchiefs. "These belong to us now, right?"

Seeing her treat the handkerchiefs like treasures, Shopkeeper Sun said with disgust, "Yes, yes, just take them and go!"

Wen Lan’s eyes were brimming with tears. Seeing her about to cry, Wen Ye felt a pang of regret and comforted her, "It's okay, Sister, we can just sell them at a stall later!"

Shopkeeper Sun chuckled. "Go on, get out!"

Wen Ye folded the handkerchiefs. Just then, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed two young girls passing by the shop. Both were dressed in fine clothes, especially the girl in the lead, who wore a small pink jacket and skirt made of silk. The girl behind her wore a double-bun hairstyle and slightly simpler clothing, though it was still high-quality fabric. They were clearly a young mistress and her maid from a wealthy household.

Wen Ye’s eyes lit up, and she ran out. "Miss, would you like to buy a handkerchief?"

The girl turned back. She was only about fourteen or fifteen, with a delicate and bright beauty. Just as she was about to refuse, Wen Ye unfurled a handkerchief. "Please, take a look."

The girl looked closely, her eyes brightening. "What is this? Wow, this rabbit is so interesting, and it’s even hugging a radish!"

The maid behind her stepped forward. "It really is! How interesting. You wouldn't find a style like this in this town, or even in the county seat. Miss, let's buy one!"

"All right!" the young lady agreed readily.

The people inside the shop were stunned, especially Shopkeeper Sun, who was left speechless. That strange, ugly rabbit was actually popular? And that young lady, who clearly belonged to a wealthy family, actually liked the ugly rabbit?