The splendid countryside of the princess

Chapter 8

"Big girl, little girl, the vegetable market is on the West Street, and your embroidery shop is on the East Street. I'll sell the eggs first, and you guys will hand in the embroidery. I'll meet you at the bullock cart at the gate of the town in an hour and a half. Be careful on the road and hand things over." Just go there, don't delay the ox cart going back," Li Guihua told, took the eggs and headed west.

Thinking about her plan for today, Tang Dai didn't want too many people, so she happily agreed with Tang Hua, and dragged Tang Hua slowly towards the east.

There is only one long main street in Taiping Town, which is divided into east and west streets. The street is clean and tidy. There are various shops on both sides of the street. It is the time of the market, and there are constant hawking and bargaining, which is very lively.Although it is incomparable with modern times, Tang Dai happily dragged Tang Hua along for a stroll.

"Second sister, look, there are a lot of delicious food, including steamed stuffed buns, fruits, and cotton candy." Tang Dai jumped up and down in surprise, looking at this, touching that, her saliva dripped out from the smell, and she even exaggerated on purpose He sniffed and smiled innocently.

"Little greedy cat, don't be ashamed, let's go!" Tang Hua looked at the lively younger sister and smiled, and gently scratched Tang Dai's nose.

"Fugui Embroidery Shop! Is Second Sister here?" Tang Dai asked Tang Hua looking at the name above the embroidery shop.

"That's right. I've been handing in embroidery here. The shopkeeper's surname is Shangguan. Everyone calls her Shangguan shopkeeper." Tang Hua nodded
"The surname is Shangguan. This surname is rare. It doesn't seem to be our surname?" Tang Dai was a little puzzled.

"I don't know about this, but I heard people say that the shopkeeper of Shangguan is indeed not from Taiping Town."

Tang Dai nodded, no longer thinking about it, and walked into the embroidery shop.Looking up, I saw a woman in her 30s leading a woman in her 20s to look at embroidery. Standing beside the woman in her 20s was a girl in a green dress. She should be a maid.

"That's Shangguan shopkeeper." Tang Hua pointed to the woman in her 30s.

I saw that woman was holding an ordinary woman's head, with a fair-looking hosta stuck in it. She was tall and tall, wearing a fine cotton double-breasted sapphire jacket and a skirt of the same color. She was neat and generous, exuding a noble atmosphere.

Seeing that the two were reviewing and picking the embroidery, they stood aside and waited quietly.On the contrary, the shopkeeper Shangguan turned his head and nodded to Tang Hua, signaling to wait a moment, obviously recognizing Tang Hua.

"The embroideries in your shop are exquisite, and the embroidery skills are obviously good. It's just that the color of the implied meaning is not appropriate." The woman said to the shopkeeper Shangguan.

"What the young lady said is that I don't have a suitable unembroidered color, and you are in a hurry. The young lady should go to another shop to have a look."

Tang Dai's heart moved when she heard this, suit?Her embroidery skills are not very good, but thinking of all kinds of modern paintings, there are as many colors as you need.After thinking about it, he walked towards the two of them and greeted them.

"This is the shopkeeper of Shangguan. Please forgive me for disturbing you. It's not that I eavesdropped on the two of you. The distance is too close. I don't know what kind of appearance you want? Can you let me have a try?" Tang Dai started Explain it, and then explain your intentions.

Shopkeeper Shangguan looked Tang Dai up and down. Her coarse clothes were patched and washed to the point of discoloration. She had a small fair face and a pair of red phoenix eyes with little stars shining, revealing confidence and stubbornness.I can't help but think in my heart, how can a little girl who looks only about seven years old get her confidence?

The woman next to her also looked at Tang Dai, seeing that although she was small, her tone of voice was undeniably firm and her attitude was humble, which made people believe her.What's more, I was also anxious, so I had the idea of ​​letting the little girl try.

"The two of you are here to deliver the embroidery, right? Can I take a look first?" Shangguan shopkeeper changed his mind and decided to look at the embroidery first.

Tang Hua hurriedly took out his embroidery work and handed it to the shopkeeper Shangguan.Three handkerchiefs and three pairs of insoles, the shopkeeper Shangguan held them in his hands and looked at them.

The embroidery skills are good, but compared with the embroiderers in the store, they are still inferior.The pattern is also old-fashioned, and I can't help frowning, the little girl is a bit exaggerated!

Tang Dai calmly watched the change in Shangguan's shopkeeper's face, not worried.

When he saw the last pair of insoles, Shangguan's shopkeeper couldn't help but his eyes lit up, "It's good, it's good, the pattern is novel and unique, and the color matching is suitable.Shopkeeper Shangguan nodded while watching.

"Little girl, did you embroider the insole?" Shangguan the shopkeeper looked at Tang Dai and asked.

"It was embroidered by my sister, but I drew the pattern and matched the colors," Tang Dai explained.

"Young Madam Lin, please rest in the back room, the two girls," Shangguan shopkeeper said, and let Tang Dai and the others go to the guest room behind the embroidery shop.

"Xiaodie, serve tea and snacks to the guests," Shangguan shopkeeper ordered the embroidered lady in the back room.A sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl in a pink coat brought it up swiftly.

Several people sat down, and after an introduction from Shangguan's shopkeeper, Tang Dai finally figured out the ins and outs, the cause and effect of the incident.

It turned out that this young mistress was the eldest mistress of the Li family, the mayor of the town. She was the daughter of the richest man in the county, the Bai family.The so-called scholars, farmers, and businessmen are about to fall into autumn, and they want to take the exam to come back to improve the status of the family.

In two days, she was going to go to Beijing to take the exam. Mrs. Bai wanted to give her younger brother a small screen with auspicious meanings, but she couldn't find a suitable one after searching left and right.

After listening to Shangguan's shopkeeper's introduction, Tang Dai pondered for a while, and an idea came to her mind.

"Shangguan shopkeeper, eldest young mistress, I have this idea, but the ugly words are in the front, the idea is mine, and the painting is also mine. I only charge the idea and the money for the painting. As for the embroidery and inserting at the back Screen Freedom, you two have decided."

"It's possible, as long as Young Mistress Bai thinks it's appropriate to accept your painting, I will definitely be innocent." Looking at Tang Dai sitting there elegantly sipping tea, the aura emanating from her small body is not inferior to hers at all. Two, said Shangguan shopkeeper.She almost had the illusion for a moment that the person sitting in front of her was an adult, not a little girl.

"Shangguan shopkeeper, borrow a piece of paper that is the same size as the screen, and please bring me a carbon strip used in the kitchen"

"Xiaodie, go get the paper and carbon sticks." The little girl in pink agreed just now and turned around to get paper and carbon sticks.

Tang Dai spread the paper on the table, tried the carbon strip on her hand, and found it fit her hand.He turned sideways, squinted his eyes, and thought about how to arrange it.She is going to draw a picture "Koi Leaping over the Dragon's Gate". The carp jumping over the Dragon's Gate symbolizes high school, and it is suitable for students who are rushing to take the exam.

Seeing Tang Dai holding the carbon stick, waving her hands on the paper and trying it out, she just immersed herself in painting, as if no one else was there.Shopkeeper Shangguan, Mrs. Bai, and Tang Hua were also watching with bated breath, not to disturb her.

After half an hour passed, Tang Dai put away her brush, seeing that there was nothing to correct, she wrote a line on the painting and stopped painting.

The young lady Bai next to her stretched out her hand to take the painting, and she felt satisfied when she saw the dancing carp, the churning river, and the majestic dragon gate in the painting, which seemed real.Just what does this painting mean?She didn't know the words on it.

The Shangguan shopkeeper on one side is literate, and he was a little excited to see the words "Koi Leaping over the Dragon Gate, High School in One Swipe". "This drawing is good, it couldn't be more appropriate"

Tang Dai didn't seem to see the excitement of the few people, and she sat there and slowly told the modern myth of the story of the carp jumping over the dragon's gate and the moral of the story to a few people, and they were fascinated by what they heard.After hearing this story, Mrs. Bai immediately said that she would use this painting for embroidery.

"You little boy, you are really capable. You can make such paintings at such a young age. You are really a child prodigy." Shopkeeper Shangguan and Mrs. Bai praised Tang Dai in unison.

"My father used to be a scholar, and he was a good painter. It's a pity that my father died early. I also studied his paintings." Tang Dai felt a little embarrassed. In modern times, she has just learned painting at the age of eight. Although she died early My father can indeed paint.What a child prodigy she is!
"Daddy used to be a good scholar. His paintings were sold by mother for money for the family to eat and drink. There is nothing left for her to think about." Tang Hua looked at Tang Dai who was lying and did not blink, and said to himself .The fourth sister has really changed!

When Young Mistress Bai saw that the drawing was finalized, she was satisfied, so she made an appointment with the shopkeeper to pick it up in five days, and the price was easy to negotiate.After speaking, he helped the maid and left.As for how the shopkeeper Shangguan and Tang Dai talked about, the amount of money was not her concern.

(End of this chapter)