The Lucky Heiress

Wei Ruo immediately understood what Madam Xiu meant, “Madam, rest assured, I still have some Loquat Syrup. I will let my maid bring you a couple of jars.”

Madam Xiu quickly stopped her, “Miss Wei, I feel embarrassed even for accepting one jar from you, how can I ask for more for free? How about I buy them from you? You can name your price.”

Madam Xiu was not a shameless person, she did not want to take advantage of Wei Ruo. Especially given that her husband would need to continue taking this Loquat Syrup long-term. It wouldn’t be proper to keep asking for more every time, even she as an old woman would not do such a thing.

Wei Ruo smiled lightly, “That won’t be necessary.”

It’s not that she didn’t want the money, but now she was Wei Ruo, not Xu Heyou.

Especially in the presence of Madam Yun, if she were to name a price right now, it would be inappropriate.

Seeing Wei Ruo’s refusal, Madam Xiu straightforwardly said, “How about this, ten taels of silver for each jar, is that acceptable?”

Madam Xiu understood the difficulty of the situation. She was asking to buy something from a girl of a strong noble lineage. Although it might not sound so nice, she was indeed in need.

Therefore, before she came, she had specifically asked a doctor from the Hundred Herb Hall to estimate the price of the Loquat Syrup.

The doctor couldn’t accurately estimate the price of the Loquat Syrup because he didn’t know the ingredients. However, based on Madam Xiu’s description, he understood that it was effective for treating Old Master Xiu and informed Madam Xiu that medicinal prices are not only high due to the cost of ingredients but sometimes the value lies in the formula.

The fact that the renowned doctors in Taizhou Prefecture were unable to help Old Master Xiu demonstrated that this seemingly ordinary Loquat Syrup was indeed a precious item; thus, the price couldn’t be too low.

Convinced by the doctor’s argument, Madam Xiu decided the price after some discussion with him.

Hearing the price Madam Xiu offered, Madam Yun spoke before Wei Ruo, “Madam, there’s no need for that. It’s just some Loquat Syrup, it’s not worth this much.”

Just to give an idea, with ten taels of silver, one could fill the entire backyard with loquat leaves.

Furthermore, Madam Yun didn’t entirely trust the effectiveness of Wei Ruo’s Loquat Syrup. What if Old Master Xiu’s slight improvement after taking it was merely a coincidence?

However, Madam Xiu insisted, “Madam Wei may not understand how important this Loquat Syrup is for my husband. Its effectiveness can’t be bought with money.”

Then, she spoke to Wei Ruo, “Miss Wei, if you feel the price is too low, we can negotiate further.”

Upon witnessing Madam Xiu’s determination, Wei Ruo naturally couldn’t object.

Even though the cost of her medicinal syrup did not amount to this price, it was the formula that was precious and this couldn’t be bought elsewhere, therefore, she didn’t feel like she was robbing them by selling it at this price.

Wei Ruo agreed, “Since Madam insists, I won’t be decline. Let’s follow your suggestion.”

Madam Xiu smiled and said, “That’s best.”

Then, Wei Ruo summoned Xiumei, “Go and bring two jars of Loquat Syrup from Wangmei Garden.”

Hearing this, Madam Xiu hurriedly said, “Two jars won’t be enough, ask for more. Six jars, or even eight.”

Wei Ruo explained, “Madam, storing the Loquat Syrup for a long time is not recommended. I will initially provide you with two jars. After a month, if you’re about to run out, send someone to inform me, and I will make fresh ones for you.”

Some things improve with age, such as dried tangerine peel or wine, but this Loquat Syrup was not the same. Hence, Wei Ruo would never make it in large quantities.

Upon hearing this explanation, Madam Xiu understood, “So that’s how it is. We’ll take two jars for now, and come back to bother Miss Wei later.”

“Alright,” Wei Ruo agreed, and soon after Xiumei brought over two jars of Loquat Syrup.

Madam Xiu let her lady-in-waiting take the jars of Loquat Syrup, and also gave Xiumei a bag containing twenty taels of silver.

Afterward, Madam Xiu left the Military Prefecture looking satisfied.

After Madam Xiu left, Madam Yun looked at Wei Ruo and frowned slightly, “Ruoruo, where did you get this Loquat Syrup?”

Wei Ruo replied, “When I was at Mo Jiazha, an old woman had a Loquat Syrup recipe that had been passed down from her ancestors. It had cured many villagers’ coughs. She saw my sincerity and taught me the recipe.”

Madam Yun still frowned, “Ruoruo, you shouldn’t have charged so much for this Loquat Syrup. What will you do if Old Master Xiu doesn’t see any effects after using it?”

“Didn’t Madam Xiu just say that Old Master Xiu showed improvement after using it, that’s why she came to buy it? Given that, why would I worry? Even if it doesn’t work afterward, it won’t be my fault,” Wei Ruo answered with a calm demeanor.

Madam Yun seemed annoyed, “You child, do you know who Madam Xiu is? The Xiu Family has deep roots in Taizhou Prefecture. If you offend her, our family might face difficulties in Taizhou Prefecture.”

Wei Ruo replied, “If we offend the Xiu family over such a minor matter, wouldn’t it mean that we’re already facing difficulties in Taizhou Prefecture? Every step we take, we would be worrying about offending someone, slightly anxious, and it would affect our future horrifyingly.”

Wei Ruo’s rebuttal ignited a rage in Madam Yun’s heart.

Her mood was already sour because of the prince’s disappearance, and the fact that her eldest daughter didn’t seem as concerned for her as her younger one, and today she openly defied her once again!

“What kind of language is that? Is that how you disrespect your mother?” Madam Yun accused Wei Ruo, her face full of anger.

“If having a different opinion from you is considered disrespect, then I have nothing to say,” Wei Ruo responded, looking up without a hint of fear or hesitation.

“So now that your wings have hardened, and you have Madam Yuan as your backer, you can disregard your mother, is that it?” Madam Yun’s anger flared even more.

“This has nothing to do with whether I have a backer. Regardless, my viewpoint remains the same. I don’t see any problem with selling my Loquat Syrup for ten taels of silver, and I don’t see any problem with the interaction I had with Madam Xiu today,” Wei Ruo responded confidently, without any hesitation.

Madam Yun suddenly raised her hand, aiming to strike Wei Ruo’s face.

However, her hand did not manage to hit Wei Ruo’s face. Wei Ruo reached out and grabbed Madam Yun’s wrist.

Madam Yun was startled, then she incredulously looked at her wrist that was held by Wei Ruo.

“Before you lay a hand on me, please think it through. As you said just a moment ago, I have Madam Yuan as my backer. Mother, if you hurt me, I don’t know what I might out of frustration mention tomorrow when I go to visit Madam Yuan,” Wei Ruo calmly but sternly said.

The calm expression on Wei Ruo’s face and the tranquility of her tone were filled with a sharp threatening notion.

Regardless of whether she had Madam Yuan backing her or not, Wei Ruo’s opinions wouldn’t change. The only difference was that with the backer, Wei Ruo would use it. If she could stand her ground, she wouldn’t hide her strength and let herself be bullied..