Wasn’t the So family a house of the scholar-gentry?
And yet, for her very first sale, how could she raise her voice so shamelessly and confidently?
Passersby walking down the street all turned their heads, hypnotized by Yeonhee’s practiced calls.
“My goodness. What is that pretty thing? Is it even food?”
“It’s a snack called tanghulu. It’s sweet and sour, so it’s perfect for whetting the appetite or freshening your mouth after a meal. And since it also helps digestion, there’s nothing better when your stomach feels heavy!”
When she held the glistening tanghulu up to the sunlight, the red of the hawthorn berries stood out vividly beneath the transparent sugar shell.
A young married woman, carrying a basket full of eggs and heading home, had no choice but to stop.
“How much is one?”
“Two mun each. Pretty reasonable for something made with expensive sugar, right?”
At Yeonhee’s words, the woman nodded dreamily.
After all, the osmanthus rice cake sold at Geumho Hall, the best confectionery in Jin Fortress, cost five mun per piece simply because it contained a little honey.
And yet this tanghulu, which looked as if it had been soaked in heaps of malt syrup, cost only two mun.
She looked excitedly at the eggs in her basket and asked,
“Can I trade eggs for it? I’m selling them at one mun each.”
“Of course. How many skewers would you like?”
“Just one to start.”
At her answer, Yeonhee handed her one of the tanghulu skewers she was holding.
Watching from the side, Grandfather Shim’s eyes flashed.
This tanghulu really is something.
And where on earth had So Yeonhee learned to sell like that?
Grandfather Shim’s mouth fell open before he realized it.
The Great General seems like the sort of man who only knew military affairs, and yet his daughter has such dazzling business talent.
The world really was full of surprises.
But whether he was surprised or not, Yeonhee simply kept smiling and trying to draw more customers.
“Tanghulu for sale! Sweet and sour, delicious tanghulu for only two mun! Helps digestion and is great for your skin too! Taste happiness for just two mun!”
Her clear, bright voice rang out across the street.
And before long, the already busy morning market in Gangha Village became even more crowded.
Even nearby merchants stared at her in surprise.
Who is that young lady? I’ve never seen her before, but her salesmanship is no joke!
But their gazes soon shifted to the tempting fruit skewers shining in transparent coats of sugar.
“So what exactly is this tanghulu thing?”
Curiosity did the rest, and wallets began to open one after another.
Two mun per skewer.
In about one sijin of preparation, she had sold all fifty or so tanghulu skewers she had brought, earning a total of 100 mun.
I made 100 mun in just one hour!
Yeonhee’s mouth nearly curved all the way to the sky.
Of course, she had accepted some payment in goods along the way, so the actual cash income was about 80 mun, but even so—that was still impressive.
“Five-day markets are wonderful. If I could, I’d come out every day.”
“It’s called a five-day market because it only opens every five days. If you want to sell every day, you’d have to go to Jin Fortress.”
Business in Jin Fortress.
The distance was a little far, but if she could make that much money every day, why would she refuse?
Just as her cheeks were starting to flush with excitement, the butcher’s wife, who had begun packing up her stall, spoke to her first.
“That tanghulu is quite the item. You had customers swarming you from the very first day.”
“Maybe because it was something people had never seen before. I hope it sells just as well next time.”
“Don’t worry. After tasting one earlier, I can tell you—it’s going to be a hit.”
“Thank you for saying so. And please speak casually with me, Auntie. I’m much younger than you. Mrs. Song, please do the same.”
“Oh my, then shall we?”
“If you’ll let us, I’d be grateful.”
At Yeonhee’s words, the women covered their mouths and laughed softly.
They both seemed quite pleased, their cheeks flushed with color.
“It looks especially crowded today. Did everyone manage to sell a lot?”
“What do you think? Thanks to your tanghulu, people came rushing over. We benefited from that too. This is our third time at the five-day market, and it’s the best we’ve ever done.”
“Same for us. There are so many people selling bamboo goods that our sales are usually poor. If we can make as much as we did today next time too, that would be a dream.”
Hearing that, Yeonhee glanced toward the butcher’s stall and the Shim family’s stand.
All that meat they had brought was already mostly gone—only a little miscellaneous meat and some innards remained.
A good many of the bamboo baskets, ladles, and other items the Shim family had brought were gone too.
So that’s why they didn’t look at my side with any envy at all.
Yeonhee chuckled and continued,
“Then let’s sit side by side again next time too. I still don’t have the courage to come to the five-day market on my own.”
“That would be wonderful! Honestly, I’d love to give you a place right in front of the shop in Jin Fortress too.”
At Mrs. Yang’s words, Yeonhee’s eyes sparkled.
Hanhwa Market was even farther than Gangha Village, but its location was incomparably better.
If I can get into Jin Fortress, what’s a two-hour walk? Nothing at all!
Her face slightly flushed, Yeonhee replied,
“If you’d allow it, we’d be so grateful. Opportunities like this don’t come around often.”
“I’m glad to hear that. But right now, it probably wouldn’t be easy to do business in Jin Fortress.”
“Why not?”
“Since early last year, the Fengyun Merchant Guild from the capital opened new branches in Hanhwa Fortress. Everyone’s been flocking there, and the city market has been in terrible shape lately.”
At Mrs. Yang’s words, Yeonhee’s expression froze.
The Fengyun Merchant Guild was a huge trading house with strong ties to the power holders in the capital.
Why would a capital-based guild like Fengyun come all the way out to a remote place like this?
A bad feeling crept over her spine in an instant.
But now was exactly the time to stay sharp.
Yeonhee forced herself to stay calm and asked carefully,
“Is the Fengyun guild’s business really that impressive?”
“It’s not just their business. They also bring in goods that are hard to find here, so people flock to them even more. Thanks to that, only the merchants at the western market are getting any real benefit.”
Mrs. Yang sighed deeply, as though just thinking about it gave her a headache.
It wasn’t as if their meat was inferior or overpriced either. It really was a shame.
After a moment of thought, Yeonhee’s eyes suddenly lit up.
“In that case, Auntie, why not create something that sets your shop apart?”
“A distinguishing feature?”
“Yes. Bring in and sell something other shops can’t get.”
Mrs. Yang scratched the back of her head, looking a little embarrassed.
“I’ve tried all sorts of things. I made side dishes from the meat left over from the previous day’s sales and sold braised innards too.”
“Oh, that’s actually a pretty good idea.”
“What good is that? The moment we start something, they copy it right away. And they even use special seasonings and the like over there. A small shop like ours just can’t compete.”
The woman let out a long sigh.
She seemed to believe they were an opponent they simply couldn’t beat.
But Yeonhee thought differently.
Selling side dishes together with meat is definitely a good marketing tactic. But side dishes are just extras. A butcher shop should compete with its meat itself.
Attracting customers with tasty side dishes or snacks might help in the short term.
But people went to a butcher shop to buy meat, not side dishes.
So, in Yeonhee’s view, the thing the butcher couple needed to do was obvious.
“If it’s alright with you, could I buy some of the leftover meat?”
“Hm? If you’re just trying to boost our sales, don’t bother. Thanks to you, we sold far more meat than usual already. We can’t keep taking advantage of your kindness.”
“That’s not it. Please give me one and a half geun of intestines, four and a half geun of the scraps there, and about one and a half geun of fat as well.”
Surprised by the sudden huge order, Mrs. Song widened her eyes and asked,
“What are you planning to do with all that meat?”
“Exactly. Aren’t you overdoing it?”
“I have my reasons for buying it. More importantly, Auntie, what do you think if I were to supply you with a new kind of meat product? Would you be able to pay a good price for it?”
“A new kind of meat product? Well, if it tastes good, I suppose I wouldn’t have a reason not to pay…”
Mrs. Yang trailed off, looking at Yeonhee with suspicion.
But Yeonhee didn’t care about that at all.
She declared even more boldly,
“I’ll come by your shop soon and let you taste this new kind of meat. I promise—it’ll be really delicious.”
Her fearless attitude seemed to inspire trust rather than doubt.
The butcher’s husband, who had been silent until now, burst into a hearty laugh and said to Yeonhee,
“All right! Then take the whole lot for forty-one mun.”
“Pardon? Then you’d be short by the price of one geun of intestines. The scraps are twenty-seven mun, the fat is twelve, and the innards are six—that makes forty-five mun.”
“We already got two tanghulu skewers for free earlier. Since each tanghulu costs two mun, the amounts match exactly. Since we’ll be seeing each other often, we should make the accounts precise. Oh, and take these three bones too—they’re unsellable anyway, so no need to refuse them.”
Mr. Jang stubbornly insisted, with no intention of compromising at all.
The seller was the one trying to lower the price, not the buyer.
Was this what village generosity looked like?
In the end, Yeonhee could only chuckle and nod.
“All right. But when I come by later, you really have to give me a proper price.”
“Of course.”
Seeing Mr. Jang speak so confidently, Yeonhee smiled brightly.
Was it Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva’s protection?
It really did seem like good fortune was following her around.
