Old Man Yun patted Xiao Xi Tian’s head and looked at Shopkeeper He, “My daughter said, she’s not selling!~”
Shopkeeper He’s lips twitched, his expression somewhat awkward.
But to get the piece of wood back, he had to lower his status and coax her.
“Little girl, if you sell that piece of wood to Uncle, Uncle will give you lots and lots of copper coins!”
Xiao Xi Tian: “……”
She rolled her eyes.
Why didn’t he say lots and lots of silver?
One thousand copper coins only equaled one tael of silver.
She wouldn’t do it!
“No!~” Xiao Xi Tian clutched her small satchel tightly.
The villagers chimed in, “Shopkeeper, Little Sweet Treasure is the living Bodhisattva of our Dashui Village. You can’t afford her things!”
“That’s right, our Sweet Treasure is as smart as she is cute, and everyone loves her. If she says no, it’s no……”
Shopkeeper He looked dejected.
He pondered for a moment and directly made an offer, “Little girl, I’ll give you four taels of silver for that piece of wood in your bag!”
Upon hearing this, the villagers gasped.
Four taels of silver?
That was a really high price!
With that money, they could buy a whole set of furniture, let alone just a piece of wood.
Old Man Yun was also excited.
His precious daughter always surprised him!
“Daughter, why don’t you sell the wood to him, okay?” Old Man Yun coaxed in a low voice.
Although four taels of silver wouldn’t make them rich, it was at least equivalent to Yun Jin He’s tuition for two and a half months.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Xi Tian pouted her chubby cheeks and shook her head like a rattle, “Not selling, selling!~”
Hmph, she was so angry!
This piece of wood was the best among her collection.
She wouldn’t sell it for any amount of silver.
Shopkeeper He narrowed his eyes. Seeing the little girl’s firm stance, he thought she was dissatisfied with the price.
He then held up five fingers, “Five taels of silver, is that acceptable?”
The villagers immediately erupted.
Wow! Was this shopkeeper’s head stuck in the door?
Although Little Sweet Treasure was adorable, there was no need to spend five taels of silver on a piece of rotten wood!
Was he afraid he had too much money to spend?
“So generous!” Fu Daqiang smacked his lips.
He would have to sell tofu for years to earn five taels of silver.
Du Lao San stomped his feet anxiously, reminding Xiao Xi Tian, “Sweet Baby, hurry up and sell it to him!”
Oh, this was so frustrating!
Although Old Man Yun was fond of money, he also respected his daughter’s opinion.
Seeing Xiao Xi Tian puffing out her cheeks, her little face flushed, he understood her feelings.
“Shopkeeper, please go and check other villages. We are absolutely not selling this piece of wood!”
Old Man Yun said to Shopkeeper He with a smile.
Xiao Xi Tian lifted her little head and held Old Man Yun’s rough big hand.
Dad is the best!~
Shopkeeper He was heartbroken and gritted his teeth, “Ten taels of silver, no more!”
The villagers’ expressions changed drastically.
From surprise to shock.
Ten taels of silver for a piece of rotten wood.
Did he have a serious illness?
No, it must be that the wood was valuable, extremely precious.
Otherwise, why would a shrewd businessman like Shopkeeper He be so fixated on a piece of wood and chase after it relentlessly?
The villagers all looked at Xiao Xi Tian in unison.
Their gazes slowly moved down, finally settling on her small satchel.
Xiao Xi Tian: “……”
Why did she feel like she was being stared at by a bad guy?
“Little girl, what have you decided? Are you selling it or not?” Shopkeeper He asked her.
Xiao Xi Tian clutched Old Man Yun’s big hand and suddenly revealed a mischievous smile.
“One thousand taels!” Her crisp little voice rang out, stunning everyone.
Shopkeeper He looked as if he had been struck by lightning, and it took him a long time to react.
“Hmph, after all this, you little girl was playing a trick on me!” Shopkeeper He’s face darkened.
Upon hearing this, Old Man Yun immediately became angry, “How can you talk like that? When did my daughter ever trick you?”
Fu Daqiang spat and retorted coldly, “Yeah! Your ears aren’t deaf, did you not hear one thousand taels of silver?”
Du Lao San also clenched his fists, “If you can’t afford it, get lost, and don’t spout nonsense in our village!”
How dare he bully Sweet Baby? What a joke!
The villagers would have him thrown out in minutes.
Shopkeeper He felt a chill down his spine and his scalp tingled.
No, are you guys serious?
A little girl caused such public outrage?
It was as if she was a celestial being in Dashui Village.
Shopkeeper He glanced at Xiao Xi Tian resentfully, “Hmph, one thousand taels? You can keep it and let it rot!”
“Shameless, what did you say?” Du Lao San picked up the kang table and was about to hit him.
“Scratch him!” Aunt Zhang happened to pass by and rushed forward to scratch him.
Shopkeeper He flinched, jumped onto the carriage with a ‘whoosh’, and disappeared without a trace.
These villagers in Dashui Village were truly terrifying.
Aunt Zhang picked up Xiao Xi Tian and kissed her, “Oh my, Sweet Baby, were you scared?”
“No!” Xiao Xi Tian grinned.
After watching the commotion, the villagers dispersed.
Some went to the fields, some went to cook, some started bickering…
There wasn’t much entertainment in this small village to pass the time, and no one wanted to be bored to death.
After returning home, Old Man Yun told them about Shopkeeper He wanting to buy the wood.
Madam Gu was slightly taken aback and looked at Xiao Xi Tian, “Daughter loves playing with bones, when did she get wood?”
Old Man Yun said with a wry smile, “It’s just an unremarkable piece of wood, and that sucker was willing to pay ten taels of silver for it.”
Xiao Xi Tian cooperatively opened her small satchel and handed the wood to her mother, “Woody!~”
Madam Gu’s eyes lit up. She took the wood and sniffed it gently.
It had a pure fragrance, even more refreshing than herbs.
It was the same scent as the sachets she wore when she was a child.
“Agarwood!” Madam Gu murmured.
That’s right, it was agarwood.
This type of wood was extremely precious.
For a palm-sized piece of wood, let alone ten taels of silver, even a hundred taels would be snatched up by someone who recognized its value.
Agarwood could be steeped in wine, used as medicine, or extracted for spices, and so on.
It was said that agarwood trees with damaged bark would secrete a large amount of resin.
Each time it healed, it would emit a rich fragrance.
The government had already strictly prohibited the felling of agarwood trees.
Even the imperial palace rarely saw agarwood.
How could Dashui Village have such a scarce item?
“Wife, what is agarwood?” Old Man Yun asked her.
Madam Gu didn’t know how to answer. After a moment of thought, she replied, “It’s… a type of wood!”
Old Man Yun: “……”
Wife, you haven’t said anything at all!
Even if my old eyes were blurry, I would know it’s a piece of wood.
Not a stone.
“Daughter, tell mother, where did this piece of wood come from?”
Xiao Xi Tian rolled her eyes, “Picked it up!~”
Picked it up in our field.
This baby is just that lucky.
Can’t help it!
Madam Gu said with a smile, “Mom will keep this piece of wood for you, okay?”
Xiao Xi Tian: “……”
As soon as she heard the word “keep,” Xiao Xi Tian felt her entire life was no longer beautiful.
Oh mother, can’t you let this baby cherish it for a few more days?
The answer was, no!
With such a large piece of agarwood on her, it was one thing if the villagers saw it.
But if someone with ill intentions noticed it, her daughter would be in danger…