However, her favorite was still that jade hairpin, but she had never managed to snag it.
"No, I absolutely must get one!"
Lin Yuwei stamped her foot in frustration. She refused to believe she was that unlucky. Everyone else could win something, so why couldn't she?
"Feng Jin, I need another five taels of silver."
Taking out a piece of silver from her怀 (huái - bosom/pocket), Lin Yuwei handed it to Feng Jin and resumed her attempts with the rings, determined to win something. It would be too embarrassing if she couldn't even win a single item.
Seeing Lin Yuwei buy more rings, Ling Wan couldn't hold back any longer. With a determined heart, she also bought five taels of silver worth of rings. She was set on winning that jade hairpin.
"What's gotten into them? Are they possessed, spending money on these useless rings? Are they planning to wear them around their necks?"
Ling Mohan picked up a ring and examined it, unable to find anything special about it. It was just made of ordinary bamboo. Why were these two women spending money on these things and continuously tossing them out?
After much observation, finding no use for them, Ling Mohan's puzzled gaze fell upon Feng Jin, expecting her to reveal some hidden secret.
"You naturally wouldn't understand. Would you like to try your luck with five taels of silver?"
Feng Jin's mind was brimming with thoughts of money. She had set up her business right here, not even sparing her own people.
Ling Mohan's eyebrows subtly rose, his confusion about Feng Jin's intentions growing.
He reached out, took the money pouch from Lu Shi's waist, pulled out five taels of silver, and tossed it to Feng Jin. He wanted to see firsthand what Feng Jin was up to.
Lu Shi, holding his now empty money pouch, almost burst into tears. He wouldn't be able to save any money this month. Why did the young general take money from him instead of his own?
And he always forgot to return it. He worked hard every month for this meager salary, only to have some of it snatched away by the young general. At this rate, when would he ever save enough to marry?
"Here are the rings. See this line? Stand behind this line, and then use the ring in your hand to try and loop it around an item beyond the line. Whatever you successfully loop will be yours."
Feng Jin pulled Ling Mohan to the line and carefully explained, inwardly convinced that Ling Mohan wouldn't succeed.
After all, these people had used dozens of rings without winning anything; they were simply too clumsy. Yet, they persisted, eagerly sending her money.
She felt it would be a disservice to them if she didn't profit from their spending.
As Feng Jin had predicted, Ling Mohan tossed several rings, all of which missed their mark.
A faint smile played on Feng Jin's lips. She patted Ling Mohan's shoulder with schadenfreude, feigning comfort: "It's alright. It's your first time. Practice a few more times, and you'll get the hang of it. Because our relationship is so good, I'll give you a few more rings for free."
This was the first time Feng Jin had been so generous since opening for business, directly giving Ling Mohan ten extra rings. It was meant as encouragement, as ring-tossing was a skill that could be mastered with practice.
However, what happened next made Feng Jin less than pleased and almost led to a falling out between them.
"You're quite generous. Don't regret it and end up crying later."
"Hmph... How could that happen? Your skills aren't at a level where you could make this young lady cry."
Feng Jin snorted dismissively. She truly looked down on Ling Mohan's abilities, believing no one could make her cry.
"Then we'll see!"
"We'll see who cries then!" Feng Jin declared, turning away to sit on a chair behind her, mentally calculating how much money she would earn this time.
"Mama, I want to play too."
Da Bao had been watching them play for a long time. His hands itched, and his heart yearned to join in. Unable to resist, he began to pester Feng Jin, clamoring to play.
"Be good, Da Bao. Mama is earning money to marry you off. Once they're done playing, you can play for as long as you want tonight."
Feng Jin pulled Da Bao to her side and began to coax him. She intended to seize this opportunity to make money and couldn't let Da Bao ruin it.
"Okay then." Da Bao replied with a hint of disappointment. It was more important for Mama to earn money first. He could play later.
"Such a good boy! Mama loves you dearly. Mama will make you something delicious later."
Feng Jin happily kissed Da Bao a few times, holding him in her arms. She felt like a wealthy landowner, pondering who the next customer would be.
However, only having a stall at home meant earning very little. If she set up a stall at the market, she could surely make a substantial profit.
As this thought crossed her mind, Feng Jin began to consider whether she should try setting up a stall at the market. What if it really worked out?
"Ah... Big Brother is so amazing!"
"He can even loop it from this far!"
"He's already looped three in a row!"
The surprised exclamations of several people reached Feng Jin's ears, pulling her out of her reverie.
Feng Jin craned her neck to look ahead and vaguely saw Ling Mohan holding rings, his aim incredibly accurate as he looped one after another. Soon, half of the items on display had been hooked.
"Oh no... it's over!"
Instantly realizing the dire situation, Feng Jin quickly put down Da Bao and dashed forward.
Feng Jin directly blocked Ling Mohan's hand as he was about to toss another ring, her eyes blazing with anger as she glared at him: "You're doing this on purpose, trying to sabotage my business!"
Faced with Feng Jin's accusation, Ling Mohan put on an innocent expression: "Didn't you say I could loop anything? Whatever I hooked would be mine."
Feng Jin was instantly rendered speechless. She had indeed said that. But she wondered if it was too late to go back on her word.
"Even so, you can't just keep hooking things like this! You're hooking everything I have! Do me a favor and stop quickly!"
Feng Jin whispered the latter half of her sentence into the man's ear.
If Ling Mohan continued to hook things so indiscriminately, her stall would truly be ruined. It had only just started to pick up, and she couldn't let it be destroyed like this.