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Chapter 556 Wait

"I see, then we at Zelifang are truly honored!" Gu Lingyun glanced at Zhu Yu again, noticing that she was dressed and looked ordinary, but seemed completely oblivious to the high prices of their goods. She tentatively pointed to the side, "There's a set of silk robes over there, Madam, would you like to take a look?"

“Alright, then I’ll trouble Manager Gu to make a recommendation.” Zhu Yu nodded quickly and followed Gu Lingyun over.

"I wonder if Madam likes this pleated skirt?" Gu Lingyun led Zhu Yu to a wooden shelf where a skirt was hanging. "This skirt is made of four-warp gauze and is embroidered with mandarin ducks. Both the material and the style are the most popular among the young ladies and wives in the capital."

Zhu Yu hesitated for a moment, then shook her head: "No, this dress is beautiful, but my father-in-law told us before we left that my relatives are from an extraordinary family. Although we are distant relatives, since we are here to offer birthday wishes, we cannot embarrass them. Our attire must be respectable."

Gu Lingyun smiled and nodded, then led them to another piece of clothing.

Although the dress was already quite beautiful and much more luxurious than the previous one, Zhu Yu didn't seem particularly satisfied.

After selecting a few more items, Gu Lingyun's smile remained, but her gaze had turned slightly colder.

"I never expected Madam to have such high standards. I'm afraid our shoe shop won't be able to find any clothes that suit Madam's taste." She covered her mouth and smiled insincerely, her tone neither praising nor mocking.

"Your shop looks quite large from the outside, but is this all you have inside for customers to choose from?" Lu Qing seemed to be angered by her words, and said with a displeased expression, "This is supposed to be one of the top fabric and clothing shops in the capital?!"

Gu Lingyun chuckled, "Honored guest, you flatter me. Our Turban Shop is not just a name without substance."

"Oh? So it's not on this floor?" Lu Qing was more than a head taller than the petite Gu Lingyun. He looked over her head and towards the stairs leading to the third floor. "In that case, take us upstairs to take a look."

As he spoke, he took a step toward the stairs leading upstairs.

Gu Lingyun quickly stopped him again: "Our honored guest is quite impatient!"

There are indeed some truly good things upstairs, but while the quality is exceptional, the prices... are certainly not cheap.

"My wife and I are going to a wealthy family's house to celebrate their birthday and have a banquet. We want to make sure they don't lose face. We know that good things won't be cheap."

If you're worried we can't afford it, why don't you give us a price first?

Gu Lingyun didn't hesitate and extended a hand.

"Five... taels?" Zhu Yu asked cautiously.

Gu Lingyun smiled and shook her head: "Madam is joking. We do have some good materials upstairs that are hard to find outside, but the price may be more than fifty taels."

This price is indeed very high.

Given the financial resources of Jin Kingdom, even in the capital, an ordinary family that can make a decent living can only earn seven or eight taels of silver a year.

Even a minor official in the capital, or the owner of a large shop, would only earn forty or fifty taels a year at most.

Fifty taels for a dress, and that's just the starting price; how much more expensive it could be is anyone's guess. Gu Lingyun quoted this price right off the bat; rather than wanting to make money, it seemed more like she was trying to drive customers away and didn't want them to go upstairs.

Upon hearing this, Lu Qing scoffed and laughed, "I thought you were saying it was expensive! A starting price of only fifty taels, what's wrong with that!"

As he spoke, he took out a gold ingot from his pocket, which looked to be about ten taels.

Gu Lingyun was truly surprised that such an unremarkable couple, with an older servant following behind them, could suddenly pull out a gold ingot. After a moment of stunned silence, she smiled even more broadly.

"I said that earlier because I was afraid you two would be in a difficult position if you knew the price, so I made sure to put the unpleasant truth out in advance. Since you two are so sincere and eager for the best, I will take you upstairs now and make sure you get what you're satisfied with!"

Lu Qing nodded in satisfaction and instructed Fu Wen to wait for them by the stairs on the second floor. Gu Lingyun seemed quite pleased with this, and then led them to the third floor.

She seemed very reluctant to let unauthorized people set foot on the third floor.

As they went up the stairs, Zhu Yu followed behind Gu Lingyun. With each step Gu Lingyun took, the fragrance became more pronounced. Through the semi-transparent silk, Zhu Yu could vaguely see a sachet-shaped object hanging from Gu Lingyun's waist.

The shape and color of the sachet looked exactly the same as those worn by the old steward of Fairy Castle and his men.

They were also able to confirm that the sachets worn by the old steward of Fairy Castle had no other function than to refresh the mind and prevent the wearer from being disturbed by the intoxicating fragrance.

Even so, Yan Daoxin had carefully examined the sachet. The herbs used inside were not particularly common, and the combination of them was even more unusual. It was definitely not something that could be bought casually outside.

It seems that Lu Qing and the others were right before; these people were indeed connected.

Zhu Yu silently gestured to Lu Qing with his eyes, and the two of them followed Gu Lingyun to the third floor without making a sound.

The third floor was even smaller than the second floor, with dim lighting and layers of gauze curtains hanging down.

On this floor, there seemed to be some kind of sandalwood incense burning, the fragrance of which was very elegant. Even the wooden pillars were carved with some patterns. If it weren't for the fact that they were in the Tse-lamp shop, Zhu Yu would have thought that they had accidentally wandered off from the cloth shop to some other place.

It gives people a feeling that is both strange and elegant.

The scent of sandalwood completely masked the fragrance of the sachet on Gu Lingyun's body.

This made Zhu Yu feel inexplicably more at ease.

We can at least infer that no sleeping potion was used to ambush them on this floor.

"Madam, this way please. Let me introduce you to some rare and exquisite fabrics." Gu Lingyun gestured to the side. "We don't sell ready-made clothes on this floor. After all, such fine fabrics would be a waste if they were made into ready-made garments using the same cuts as everyone else."

If you two aren't in a hurry to wear them, why don't you choose a piece of fabric that you like first, and then come back to pick them up in a few days after they've been cut? What do you think?

“We’re not in a hurry. We’ll be staying in the capital for a while, so let’s do as you say, innkeeper.” Zhu Yu pretended to calculate the time and nodded in agreement.