Cui Shijiu spent a large amount of silver but yielded meager returns, and the quality of the goods was poor. Seeing the half-boxes of small and unevenly sized pearls, she became furious. In fact, while Cui Shijiu was purchasing pearls, Yan Zijin was also buying large quantities of high-quality goods at exorbitant prices. When Cui Shijiu heard the report from her subordinates, she realized that Zhang Jinran had employed the “cutting the roots” strategy.
Cui Shijiu personally went to see Yan Zijin. Initially, she intended to deceive Zhang Jinran by claiming that the court had serious complaints against him, urging him to voluntarily offer pearls to gain favor. However, Yan Zijin was not fooled by Cui Shijiu’s tactics. He maintained that he was a straightforward businessman and had never overstepped his bounds, insisting that there was no need to pledge loyalty to the court. Yan Zijin then instructed his men to present their jewels. Seeing the box filled with dazzling pearls, Cui Shijiu was tempted. With the deadline for tribute pearls approaching and her urgent need for these items, she was determined to acquire them at any price.
Stills from Episode 6 of “The Story of Pearl Girl”
Yan Zijin’s arrogance greatly angered Cui Shiqi. Hepu was burned down, and Yan Zijin had deceived Hepu’s steward with fake gold. Cui Shijiu quickly reported this matter to her brother. Xu Nanying was demoted by the court and dared not get close to Yan Zijin anymore.
Danwu and her fellow sisters finally had the opportunity to go ashore. The group went to the marketplace to watch the festivities. One of the young women fell in love with a jeweled hairpin. Danwu noticed that the flowers on the hairpin were made from waste materials. Remembering that there was still plenty of waste on the ship, Danwu spent the night painting and designing a plum blossom pattern. She specifically called Xiaoxiaomi to ask what type of wood to use for the hairpin. After some thought, Xiaoxiaomi suggested using old ship wood, which had weathered years of storms and was as sturdy as iron.
Once, Xiaoxiaomi followed Cao Tou and saw him sell coral beads to the most famous jewelry store in town. As a newcomer unfamiliar with the area, Danwu thought of various ways to approach this store. She learned that the store owner’s favorite daughter was Feng Wuniang, so she hurriedly crafted a jeweled hairpin overnight.
Feng Wuniang was also pitiable; her two fiancés had died in succession, and people said she was cursed to bring misfortune to her husbands. As a result, Feng Wuniang always wept and wore a face mask. When Danwu learned that Feng Wuniang was going to offer incense, she went there as well. She pretended to cry and kneeled before the Buddha statue, claiming that she was cursed and finally received a coral jeweled hairpin from the deity, believing her luck had changed.
Danwu was eloquent. Upon hearing that Danwu was also cursed, Feng Wuniang thought they were both kindred spirits and asked how to obtain the coral jeweled hairpin. Just as Danwu was about to sell the coral bead, Zhang Jinran unexpectedly appeared and publicly exposed Danwu’s deceit. Enraged, Feng Wuniang stomped away.
Zhang Jinran reminded Danwu that she should not be blinded by greed. When she first boarded Yan Zijin’s merchant ship, she might have learned some cunning business tactics, but such deceit was not sustainable in the long run. Business relies on trust; if Feng Wuniang received Danwu’s hairpin today and it did not bring her good fortune, she would harbor a grudge and there would be no future dealings.
Stills from Episode 6 of “The Story of Pearl Girl”
Although Danwu felt a vast difference between herself and Zhang Jinran, his words made sense. She decided to personally apologize to Feng Wuniang and even rented a special outfit for the occasion. Danwu took Feng Wuniang to see a fortune-telling shaman, pretending to be a woman from the Pan family. The shaman falsely claimed that Danwu’s appearance would bring misfortune to her future husband and that her destiny was unfavorable. Danwu immediately exposed the shaman’s scheme, questioning how she could discern the truth from facial features alone, especially since Danwu was still unmarried. The shaman had no choice but to admit that she usually spoke nonsense. Feng Wuniang finally realized that everything was fabricated and understood that fate could not be determined by a deceitful old fortune-teller.
Danwu encouraged Feng Wuniang to have confidence, assuring her that as long as she stayed strong, no one would look down on them. Deeply moved by Danwu’s assistance, Feng Wuniang immediately signed the order, allowing Danwu to secure her first business deal in her life.
