The GORGEOUS Mermaid Who Lands in the Eighties: Nine Brothers and Endless Pampering! - Chapter 18

To get into the city, they needed an early start. Seeing as Yun Linhe and Yun Chenxi were the sharper pair in the family, it was settled that they would be the ones to take the Flame Pearl to sell.
Little Yun Jiao was also up bright and early that morning. Her two pigtails sat all wonky on her head as she went straight for her youngest uncle, wrapping her arms around his leg just before he could walk out the door.
She went full sloth, using her hands and feet to hang onto his leg.
Yun Linhe chuckled: “Jiaojiao, what’s got you up and about so early, eh?”
He bent down and carefully picked up the little mite clinging to his leg.
Yun Jiao nodded, her bright, big eyes fixed on him: “Go together, please.”
Yun Linhe playfully tapped her small nose: “You’re much cleverer than your older brothers, you are.”
She hadn’t caused a fuss yesterday, but here she was, getting up at the crack of dawn to intercept them.
“Alright then. Uncle will take you to the city for a bit of fun, and we can buy our Jiaojiao some new clothes and hair ties while we’re there.”
Yun Chenxi chimed in: “Should we take a packet of dried fish?”
Yun Jiao nodded enthusiastically: “Yes, please!”
With a packet of small dried fish in tow, the two men carried little Yun Jiao to the town, where they caught the public bus heading to the city.
The bus was stuffy, packed to the rafters, and the air was thick and close.
They finally managed to squeeze into a pair of seats, and Yun Jiao settled onto her brother’s lap.
Yun Chenxi took one look at her completely ruined hairstyle, expertly untied the hair ropes, and quickly braided her hair into a couple of uneven pigtails.
Hmm… just about passable.
Yun Jiao didn’t care much. She was busy slowly crunching on a cucumber.
Sitting right by the window, she opened her big eyes wide, taking in the world outside.
“All aboard, mates! We’re moving!” the driver hollered.
With the driver’s yell, the bus lurched forward.
“Wow~”
Yun Jiao gasped in amazement. This was miles better than a tractor; there was none of that deafening rumbling noise.
She continued to chew her cucumber while excitedly pressing against the window to watch the view.
Her excitement only lasted a short while, though. The bus journey from the town to the city took a whole two hours.
The journey dragged on, and the smell inside the bus was truly awful.
Someone even felt unwell from the motion, which made the atmosphere even worse.
Yun Jiao straddled her little legs on her second brother’s lap and buried her face right into his chest.
Yun Chenxi took a piece of dried tangerine peel from his pocket and handed it to her.
“Hold this under your nose; it’ll be a bit easier to bear.”
Yun Jiao clutched the tangerine peel and, sure enough, felt much better.
She broke off a piece with her small hand and passed a bit to her uncle and a bit to her brother.
“Jiaojiao, you’re such a good girl.”
The two adults stroked the little mite’s fuzzy head.
Yun Jiao reveled in the attention, narrowing her eyes just like a beautiful, graceful kitten.
Two hours later, they finally pulled into the city.
After getting off the bus, Yun Jiao’s eyes weren’t big enough to take in all the sights.
The city had far more tall buildings than the town, the roads were wide and properly paved, and there were so many places selling all sorts of things.
Yun Linhe wondered aloud: “So, where exactly should we take this Flame Pearl to sell?”
Yun Chenxi was unsure too: “Let’s just have a wander around and get our bearings first.”
Regular shops didn’t look like they’d deal in pearls, and state-run stores were completely out of the question.
They had to find a private dealer, specifically one that traded in valuable items.
Finally, after asking around, they were directed to a back alley.
There was an unremarkable little shop here, but it was known for buying and selling all kinds of rare treasures.
The shop was called ‘Wu’s General Store’.
“Boss, do you buy pearls here?”
Inside, there was only a man of about forty, standing behind the counter in a black traditional jacket, his fingers clicking away at an abacus. “Pearls?”
Boss Wu stroked the tuft of beard on his chin: “I don’t bother with common, ordinary ones, mind you.”
Yun Linhe glanced around and noticed some liquor bottles on the counter, as well as things that looked suspiciously like antiques.
In those days, many antiques weren’t dared to be displayed publicly, but they were still traded privately, albeit rarely. Anyone running this kind of operation definitely needed to have some connections behind them.
“We have a Flame Pearl.”
At this, Boss Wu’s interest immediately piqued: “The Flame Pearl, sometimes called a Dragon Pearl? Now that’s rare. You must be fishermen from the coast, then. Let’s have a look at the pearl.”
Yun Linhe cautiously unwrapped the handkerchief that was bundled layer upon layer.
When the cloth was opened, the vibrant, orange-red pearl was revealed.
Boss Wu’s eyes lit up, and he carefully accepted it.
He even used a specialist ruler to measure it.
“Twelve millimeters in diameter, orange-red like the midday sun, a porcelain-like lustre, perfectly round, and it has the flame pattern…”
“Excellent, excellent! This pearl is a masterpiece, both in terms of size and appearance.”
Boss Wu looked absolutely thrilled.
Hearing his assessment, Yun Linhe and Yun Chenxi secretly let out a breath of relief.
Boss Wu didn’t hold back: “This Dragon Pearl is a rarity. It’s hard to find a single one like this in ten thousand shellfish, especially one over 10mm. You two are genuinely lucky.
I won’t try to cheat you. Sea pearls are quite valuable. I usually buy good quality ones that are 8mm and up, well-formed and with good lustre, for a decent price. The Dragon Pearl is far rarer. For this 12mm one, I’ll give you 1,500 yuan. This is the absolute highest I can go.
I’m keen to build a relationship with you lads. If you ever come across any other strange things out in the sea, you can always bring them straight here to me.”
One thousand five hundred yuan!
Before they came, they’d mentally prepared themselves for five hundred yuan to be the absolute ceiling.
After all, they didn’t know much about pearls.
They never imagined that this tiny little thing could sell for so much!
The two men managed to suppress their excitement and replied: “Thank you, Boss Wu, we’ll sell it here.”
They had gone to a lot of trouble to track down this place, and the price had already blown their expectations out of the water. As for shopping around and comparing prices, they weren’t even sure other places would buy it.
Perhaps there were others, but they were strangers in the city. Rather than risk being noticed wandering around, it was better to simply sell it right here.
Boss Wu nodded, satisfied: “Right then, I’ll fetch the cash for you now.”
One hundred and fifty ‘Big Unity’ notes (1,500 yuan) were handed over. Yun Linhe’s hand was trembling slightly as he took the money.
He’d never held so much cash in his entire life.
Boss Wu smiled happily at them: “I generally buy good quality, ordinary sea pearls of 8mm for around 200 yuan. Anything above 8mm also depends on the quality, and better quality fetches a higher price, naturally.
Those with rare colours, like black or gold, fetch even more, and this Flame Pearl is no different. If you find any more in the future, just bring them here. I guarantee you’ll get a fair price. If you don’t believe me, just go ask around elsewhere and you’ll soon find out.”
“Okay, thank you, Boss Wu.”
Boss Wu nodded, his gaze falling upon the plump and fair Yun Jiao.
“You’ve certainly raised this child well.”
He turned, took two pieces of hawthorn cake from his desk, and handed them over.
“Here you are, little one, have some hawthorn cake.”
Yun Linhe and Yun Chenxi tried to politely decline, but Yun Jiao had already eagerly reached out her small, plump hand.
“Thank you, Uncle.”
Having received the treat, she was very sweet, flashing a big smile at Boss Wu.
“Hahaha… I genuinely like this little girl.”
Yun Chenxi and Yun Linhe could only thank him helplessly.
As they were leaving, Yun Jiao waved the hawthorn cake: “Bye-bye, Uncle! We’ll come again next time.”
Boss Wu smiled: “Well, Uncle will be waiting for you then.”
This settled a good connection. If they ever had any more pearls or similar finds, they could bring them straight back to this shop.
However, Yun Linhe didn’t think they would be so lucky again. After all, he hadn’t come across a single pearl his whole life until now.