Lin Yuchan immediately realized she had made a tactical error. She should have made the first move!

She had already visited many tea companies before this. Either the quality was poor, or the management was bad, or they simply wouldn’t let her through the door. She wouldn’t settle and just turned around and left.

But this tea company was one she highly valued. Shopkeeper Mau knew this, too.

She wasn’t an outsider, so why did she obediently wait for others to quote prices? Wasn’t she putting herself in a completely passive position?

Look at Su Minguan, Boss Su—even for an almost impossible deal, he still had to be first to quote his price.

Of course, the strategy of “striking first” wasn’t universally applicable. But in the current situation, she had completely lost the initiative.

It was just a moment’s difference in thinking. It was her fault for having little practical experience before.

She had worked so hard at Defeng Trading for so long, accumulating knowledge, but never had the chance to practice negotiating prices. She was at a disadvantage in this area.

These thoughts flashed by quickly. Lin Yuchan pretended to lower her head to drink tea, thought for two seconds about remedial measures, then raised her head with a bright smile.

“Shopkeeper, you misheard. I want to roast four thousand pounds of tea, not eight thousand pounds.”

She stood up and came to the counter, taking the initiative to grab the pen and pull out a sheet of paper, beginning to calculate costs.

“…One hundred forty taels—this is market-level pricing that won’t leave you without profit.”

The processing fee budget Rong Hong gave her was just barely enough. If she couldn’t negotiate the price down, she’d have to pay out of her pocket.

Although she had already made nearly six times her cost on the raw tea and could afford to subsidize the processing a bit, she couldn’t be too lenient with herself. At least she had to negotiate a normal market price and not let people treat her like a sucker.

When Shopkeeper Mau heard her price, he laughed and looked at her with the kind of gaze one gives a little girl.

“Miss, you’re an expert at tea evaluation, but forgive me for speaking frankly—you don’t quite understand market conditions and labor costs. One hundred forty taels wouldn’t even cover our venue fees.”

His tone implied she was being childish and unreasonable.

Lin Yuchan had to settle down and continue the verbal sparring, saying this wasn’t a one-time deal and they would cooperate in the future; although she was a small merchant, trading with him wouldn’t involve commission fees or intermediary costs…

After a long while, Shopkeeper Mau insisted on his bottom line of “two hundred taels of silver” and wouldn’t budge.

Some clerks also gathered to listen to the excitement and chime in. Lin Yuchan suddenly heard someone say in a voice neither too loud nor too soft: “A woman—letting her in was generous enough. Playing with her this long and still haggling with the shopkeeper—really doesn’t know her place.”

Shopkeeper Mau’s face changed, and he scolded: “Don’t work properly, just gossip!”

That clerk shrank away.

Shopkeeper Mau turned back with a smile: “Miss…”

Lin Yuchan bit her lip. Here came the good cop, bad cop routine.

Shopkeeper Mau knew she had heard those words, sighed, and spoke heart-to-heart, very subtly reminding her: “Everyone has difficulties. I dare to speak frankly—these days, all businesspeople are men, not women. If you go to other tea companies, miss, there may not be any willing to receive you. If other fellow merchants knew I was doing business with you, a young lady, and negotiated a price below market rate, I would be ostracized.”

Just then, a clerk at the door loudly greeted someone. A slick man swaggered in, shouting: “Where is everyone? Where did everyone go? Our boss wants to roast some tea—isn’t anyone coming to introduce us?”

Shopkeeper Mau quickly said: “Excuse me, miss, please take your time leaving.”

He immediately bent over to receive the visitor and had a clerk take away the cloud cakes.

Lin Yuchan’s forced smile finally began to waver, her cheeks somewhat stiff. She silently left.

She finally realized that the negotiation strategy was secondary. With this girl’s face entering the tea companies, she wouldn’t receive the same treatment as ordinary customers from the start.

A woman without backing from major merchants, without a guarantee from father, brothers, or husband, was already at the lowest score in terms of “credibility.” Businesspeople judged by appearances—even knowing she was an expert, they wouldn’t give her the same treatment as major trading houses.

Lin Yuchan walked a couple of steps on the road, too dejected to continue. She found a bench in a park and sat down to quietly organize her thoughts.

This world was unfair to women. Even with the Empress Dowager in power in the Forbidden City, the Qing people still considered women inferior. Even the most gallant men would subconsciously think, “she can’t do it.”

Moreover, going out to do business was traditionally a male domain. As a woman who should properly stay at home, insisting on entering the field for a share was undoubtedly seen as an “invader,” earning enmity for no reason.

But complaining was useless. She had no time to undertake social reform. She needed to negotiate a price tomorrow.

She had quite a few backup plans. She knew many men—pulling any one out to show face would probably make Shopkeeper Mau change his tune and bow. Rong Hong was her temporary employer and would spare time for his benefit; Boss Su, well, his life principles would probably prevent him from coming for free, but treat him to a meal, and he should show face; she even knew many male employees at customs. Like that big-nosed Victor—give him two pounds of liquor and he’d go through fire and water for you.

But she was somewhat unwilling. Was she destined to fail without asking a man to show his face?

…

Dwelling on social injustice, she got stuck in this dead end for a long time until her nose felt sour, finally thinking in self-abandonment: Why bother! She was already challenging a hell-level dungeon—why add more difficulty for herself?

Use connections when you should, damn it!

Lin Yuchan slapped her thigh hard and was about to stand up from the bench.

Suddenly, a loud shout came from the air.

“Hey, hey, hey, which woman is this? Are you blind? Do you know where this is? Do you know who can come here?”

A policeman with a pigtail cursed and walked over, waving the stick in his hand at her. His leather boots stomped on the ground.

“Get lost quickly!”

Although Xujiahui belonged to Shanghai County jurisdiction, it was also an area with many churches. In recent years, the concession authorities had built roads beyond their boundaries, incorporating it into the concession area with government acquiescence.

Naturally, the police came to show their authority.

Lin Yuchan was hit in the face by the policeman’s anger and couldn’t help but be confused, looking around—she hadn’t broken any laws.

Seeing she didn’t move, the policeman became even angrier: “Illiterate woman, do you know where this is? Park! Park! Public Garden! Only foreigners can enter! See the sign? For foreign residents only! Foreigners only! Get out quickly!”

Shanghai’s parks were recreational places built with funds from foreigners in the concessions to improve their living environment. The Chinese were never allowed inside.

Lin Yuchan didn’t have this awareness and had naturally walked in.

Only then did she notice that all the signs in the park were indeed only in English, and English posters were pasted on the bulletin board—Emergency Relief for Jiangsu-Zhejiang Refugees Charity Fundraising Dinner, hosted by Jianghai Customs. The edges of the poster had been dampened by rain.

The policeman bared his teeth and claws, rolling up his sleeves to grab her.

Lin Yuchan was already in a bad mood, and hearing the policeman’s terrible pidgin English made her even angrier. Instead, she crouched down and sat back on the bench, saying calmly: “Pardon? I don’t understand your English.”

Her accent was much purer than the policeman’s. The policeman was stunned, his face changing from blue to white like a chameleon, cycling through several expressions.

“You… You…”

Some women selling on the street could bargain in English. But not with her fluent, natural tone.

He had beaten many people on the street but had never encountered a woman who dared talk back to him.

The policeman couldn’t help but imagine various possibilities: a foreign family’s maid? Foreigner’s concubine? Foreigner’s adopted daughter? Mixed blood of a foreigner and a Chinese concubine?

…

“Sorry, sorry, sorry, miss, please continue sitting. Sit.”

The policeman didn’t dare act rashly and bowed obsequiously.

Lin Yuchan gave him a cold glance and walked away.

She found it truly ironic. What happened to women being inferior to men? How did this policeman forget Qing traditions after hearing a few foreign words?

Oppression came layer upon layer. No one should laugh at anyone else.

She walked quickly with a belly full of anger. The sky darkened again, and raindrops began falling continuously. She pulled her clothes tighter.

The spring cold was penetrating—Shanghai’s climate was much more humid and cold than Guangzhou’s. She wasn’t quite adapted yet. After being hit by a few raindrops, she felt the cold penetrate her bones and shivered repeatedly. She reached up to wipe the rainwater from her face.

Suddenly, her shoulder warmed as someone gently patted it.

“The little girl is quite angry. Who bullied you?” Someone appeared beside her, saying with a smile, “You obviously brought an umbrella but forgot to open it.”

“Young Master Minguan,” Lin Yuchan was irritated and saw all men as dogs, asking stiffly, “Instead of doing business properly, what are you doing in Xujiahui?”

“Coming to hold you accountable,” Su Minguan joked, then put away his smile and asked her, “You didn’t mention my quote to Boss Rong?”

“No time.” Lin Yuchan was even more annoyed. “I’m not running errands for you two.”

Su Minguan looked her over a few times, took the small umbrella from her hands, and opened it.

“Someone provoked you.” He concluded with a cool expression, drawling as he asked, “Which blind fool was it? Your brother will take care of him for you.”

Lin Yuchan snorted with laughter and finally smiled. This person was pretending to be a gangster with her—wasn’t he afraid his ancestors would strike him with lightning?

He was good at dealing with the cold. He wore a thick cloak when going out, long rain boots on his feet, and when encountering puddles on the ground, he stepped carefully to avoid splashing dirty water on her legs.

She suddenly felt childishly playful, tugged Su Minguan’s sleeve, turned around, and ran back to that shady park.

The Chinese policeman from earlier trembled: “Hey, miss…”

Lin Yuchan stepped on the inconspicuous “Foreigner only” sign, sat back on the bench openly.

Su Minguan naturally had no idea what was going on. But he knew this girl’s temperament, and looking back at the policeman—pointed face, monkey cheeks, stick-thin build, he wasn’t afraid.

So he dusted off his clothes, like a foreigner with “ladies first,” held the umbrella entirely over her head, and elegantly sat beside her.

The policeman was nearly dying of anxiety, but didn’t dare approach to ask. If they were foreign family members, he hadn’t seen them around; if they were ordinary Chinese… these two looked talented and beautiful—they didn’t seem crazy.

The policeman once again didn’t dare act rashly and could only turn away, pretending not to see, patrolling other alleys.

Only then did Su Minguan suppress his laughter and speak: “You’re quite playful.”

Lin Yuchan’s anger subsided slightly. She smiled reluctantly and pointed to the nearby “Xuhui Anglo-American Tea Company,” briefly telling him about her difficulties.

“…In my opinion, if a foreign comprador came, they’d immediately lower prices. But they just won’t budge with me…”

“Because you look easy to bully.” Su Minguan immediately identified the crux: “No help for it. You’re a young lady—that they’re willing to receive you is already rare. You still want to negotiate prices. No matter how fierce or sharp you pretend to be, they won’t take it seriously.”

Lin Yuchan nodded, no longer greatly disturbed inside.

Half an hour ago, she would have been nearly in tears over such words.

But the “Foreigner only” under her feet constantly reminded her that “being born a woman” was a sin, but under the backdrop of the greater sin of “being born Chinese,” it didn’t seem so overwhelming.

She asked: “Do you have suggestions?”

Su Minguan immediately said, “You beg me. I’ll step in for you—whatever you want to pay, pay that much. I can even make him pay you back.”

Lin Yuchan pursed her lips. This was the rebels’ work philosophy—efficiency above all.

She said seriously: “This is my first independent deal. I don’t want others to do it for me. If you… if you could give me some pointers so I can negotiate with Shopkeeper Mau independently, I’d be extremely grateful. Otherwise, next time I encounter this, I’ll still be helpless.”

Give a man a fish versus teach a man to fish. For Su Minguan, this was much harder than stepping in himself.

He frowned slightly, rubbing the faint moss on the bench armrest until his fingertips turned green.

After a long while, he said: “A’mei, sometimes there’s no need to be so stubborn.”

Lin Yuchan said peacefully, “I have to try.”

After a pause, she added, “It’s not too late to turn back after hitting the wall. Then I’ll obediently cling to your coattails—I’m just afraid you’ll find me annoying.”

Su Minguan glanced at her, suddenly his face stiffened, his eyebrows quickly reddening, and he moved two inches away from her on the bench.

“What nonsense are you saying again…”

Lin Yuchan looked at him in bewilderment. He glared at her fiercely, but was weak inside.

“You…?”

She suddenly understood, couldn’t help laughing and crying, and quickly explained: “Not clinging to coattails—it’s a metaphor. You understand metaphors, right? Just get the meaning! I… It’s slang from my old hometown. You haven’t even heard this?”

Still turning the tables, speaking righteously.

Cantonese had many dialects and colorful curses. Su Minguan was half-convinced and snorted coldly.

“You know quite a few dialects.”

Lin Yuchan thought: Thanks to your kind words, I can also speak Hakka.

Su Minguan suddenly looked up. The Chinese policeman from earlier had somehow returned, accompanied by a foreign police chief. The Chinese policeman respectfully pointed at the park, saying something.

Su Minguan signaled with his eyes and closed the umbrella.

“Let’s go.”

A wise man doesn’t fight when the odds are against him. Lin Yuchan followed him, quickly slipping out the park’s back door.

Looking back at the shady bench, she felt much better.

On the street, it wasn’t appropriate to stay too close. Lin Yuchan took the umbrella and followed him at a distance, smiling obediently: “So, young master will help. I just need a crash course training in price negotiation…”

Su Minguan glanced back slightly and said, “I can help, but not for free.”

“Of course. Name your price.”

Su Minguan pretended to think for a while before saying: “One silver dime—not much, right?”

Lin Yuchan was stunned. One dime was too cheap—not his style.

She said quietly, “Young Master Minguan, you should stick to your principles. Don’t let yourself suffer losses.”

Su Minguan smiled slightly and stopped under an archway. Fine spring rain fell on his face, then caught the sunlight, creating a halo of helpfulness.

“I’ll teach you just one little trick. After you hear it, you might think this dime was overpriced.”

Lin Yuchan didn’t believe it. He had just advised her that “sometimes there’s no need to be so stubborn”—better to give up.

Su Minguan saw her confused expression and couldn’t help but smile.

He suddenly stepped closer and slowly wrapped his long cloak around her shoulders.

The cloak was thick and very large for her. The outside still had scattered raindrops, but inside was warm and cozy, wrapping around her cold body. Lin Yuchan couldn’t help trembling all over.

She felt somewhat flushed and carefully looked up at him. He looked serious, his slender fingers with slightly green tips fastening the large button at her collar. Then, following his habit, he smoothed the surrounding wrinkles with his fingertips and gently pulled down.

Lin Yuchan stammered: “I, I don’t need…”

Su Minguan patted the wrinkles smooth on her cloak and reminded her quietly: “One silver dime.”

She hesitantly reached into her pocket for money. He snatched it away.

Su Minguan said quietly, “The trick is to dress warmer. When your body is warm, your complexion is rosy, and you have confidence when negotiating prices.”

Lin Yuchan: “…”

Why did she feel like this person had taken advantage of her and made money at the same time?

Su Minguan pointed at the “Xuhui Anglo-American Tea Company” across the street and nodded at her with great professional ethics.

“A’mei, go ahead. If it doesn’t work, I’ll refund your money.”

Lin Yuchan, wearing a men’s cloak for some inexplicable reason, re-entered the tea company’s front door.

It was just about having thick skin—at worst, she’d let the young master across the street watch her make a fool of herself.

She couldn’t help sneaking a look back. Su Minguan was indeed across the street, but he wasn’t watching her at all. Instead, he had stopped at a snack stall, seriously selecting steamed dumplings.

Shopkeeper Mau was naturally also baffled, smiling apologetically while probing indirectly, asking what the young lady had come to do this time.

She quickly adjusted her state and said, “Shopkeeper, I suddenly remembered I have business tomorrow and can’t come, so let’s settle things now.”

Shopkeeper Mau thought she had accepted the price of two hundred taels and beamed with joy, instructing a clerk: “Bring paper and pen!”

“No rush,” Lin Yuchan ran her fingers along the fur lining inside the cloak, imagining herself as the unscrupulous Boss Su, saying calmly, “I can pay at most one hundred forty taels—don’t rush to object, let me finish. First, you don’t need to hire a separate supervisor. I can come daily to assign work and record progress, saving you labor costs. Second, if we cooperate well, there may be large orders in the future. Third, I know this price is on the low side for the industry, but it won’t leave you without profit. Additionally, I guarantee I won’t mention the details of this deal to anyone.”

Lin Yuchan said this all in one breath, her eyes clear and bright as she looked at Shopkeeper Mau.

She had brought up these terms sporadically earlier. But Shopkeeper Mau had insisted on his bottom line then, not budging at all.

But this time, perhaps because her mindset had changed, perhaps because the cloak made her appear larger and more imposing, she felt Shopkeeper Mau listened especially seriously, occasionally scratching his smooth scalp.

Lin Yuchan smiled slightly and had a sudden inspiration: “Oh, fourth point. If I come daily to supervise, I can help you look after your daughter and at least keep her company. Otherwise, with all these grown men here, it’s quite inconvenient.”

She was using all her skills, throwing in babysitting services.

Shopkeeper Mau hadn’t expected this move. Looking at her face that was only two years older than his daughter’s, then seeing the navy blue cloak she wore, his expression froze.

“Miss, are you… Are you really in the tea trade?”

Lin Yuchan smiled without speaking.

This was learned from Wang Quan. Topics unrelated to business should be avoided when possible. Her time was valuable.

Shopkeeper Mau looked her over a few more times, afraid of being rude, and lowered his gaze to work his abacus. After calculating for a while, he looked up again, wanting to speak but hesitating.

Finally, he said, “Miss is a straightforward person. I’ll take this deal. Let’s help each other in the future—I’m counting on you to introduce more business.”

A clerk brought paper and pen. Shopkeeper Mau called over a clerk and accountant to seriously draft a contract.

…

Lin Yuchan felt like she was dreaming for a moment.

She had recovered in the park, regrouped for another battle, with a belly full of verbal weapons still unused!

How did it suddenly get settled?

She couldn’t help looking back at the door. Steam rose from the snack stall, and Su Minguan sat on a bench with chopsticks in hand, rubbing his hands together eagerly at a steamer of hot dumplings.

While carefully checking the contract terms, she thought it wasn’t because she had “a rosy complexion and confidence when speaking.”

After signing the contract, she stood up, suppressing her excitement, and said: “Here’s the deposit. Early tomorrow morning, have porters transport the tea here.”

Shopkeeper Mau was all smiles, politely seeing her to the door, and even stuffed a can of tea into her hands—the Wuyi Mountain black tea that the Russians had defaulted on. The quality was excellent, good for personal use or gifts.

Lin Yuchan smiled and thanked him, stepped out the door, and tucked the tea can into her arms.

As she raised her hand, the navy blue cloak fluttered, and she suddenly noticed the edge of the collar had slightly raised patterns embroidered with red double-coin symbols.

She couldn’t see it herself, looking down, but Shopkeeper Mau across from her should have seen it.

She exclaimed “Ah!” in sudden realization and whipped around.

She saw that on the slowly opening and closing door of “Xuhui Tea Company,” there were also two small coins. Inconspicuous, but once seen, hard to ignore.

These weren’t random graffiti that Su Minguan had carved with a razor. They were properly and officially stamped with a seal, completely above board.

“Su Xiaobai, give me my money back!”

Su Minguan looked up in surprise. Lin Yuchan stood with his cloak bundled in her hands, threatening look in both eyes, her thin little hands sharp as knives, blocking between his chopsticks and the dumplings.

He calmly pulled out a chair: “Sit. Have some snacks.”

Lin Yuchan’s heart was like a dye shop with all colors—she didn’t know what emotions she felt. Thinking of that one hundred forty tael contract, she wanted to sing out loud on the spot; looking at the cloak in her hands, she felt thoroughly deceived.

She plopped down and unceremoniously grabbed a dumpling, biting it viciously: “Young Master Minguan, I sincerely asked you to teach me price negotiation, not to help me cheat!”

Su Minguan said blandly: “Heaven and Earth Society members helping each other is called solidarity, called brotherhood—not cheating. This tea company’s owner cooperated with Shanghai’s Heaven and Earth Society years ago and is one of our people. A’mei, one person’s strength is limited. Seeking help from the collective isn’t shameful—hey, don’t eat like that, look, you’re spilling soup.”

She was speechless, but…

“I’m not a member, don’t break the rules.”

“You weren’t a quarter hour ago. Now you are. Forgot to tell you—membership fee is one silver dime, good for one year. Next year, when you renew, you get a twenty percent discount.”

With a “pop,” Lin Yuchan’s hand tightened and crushed another dumpling.

“You told me Heaven and Earth Society initiation ceremonies required selecting auspicious days, worshipping Guan Gong and the founding masters, fasting and bathing, having various seniors present as witnesses, burning three and a half incense sticks…” She gritted her teeth. “Not just paying a dime and being done!”

Su Minguan sneered: “You tell me—of all those conditions, which one do I have the means to fulfill? The initiation procedures have been simplified. Just need to pass the qualification review and have an introducer. Don’t you always tell me to adapt to the times and not be stuck in the past? I’ve been following your teachings faithfully. This is the nineteenth century—we don’t do that Water Margin stuff.”

Lin Yuchan: “…”

“Don’t be angry. I don’t force people.” He softened his voice and smiled slightly. “If you regret joining within seven days of joining, a full refund of membership fees. I already used your membership fee to buy crab roe dumplings—you can come to Yixing another day to get it back.”

Lin Yuchan nodded. That anger came and went quickly, and she suddenly found the dumplings quite fragrant.

Su Minguan looked at her helplessly and smiled: “Ah, spilling soup again—stop, let me demonstrate for you.”