CH 21

As soon as Lin Wanrong received the twenty taels of silver in the blink of an eye, Dong Rende was also very excited. Ten taels is ten taels; anyway, it's a seller's market now, and it's a one-time deal. What's there to be afraid of?

Just now, Dong Qiaoqiao, who had cooperated with Lin Wanrong to perform a double act in men's clothing, stood beside Dong Rende and smiled at Lin Wanrong, "Brother Lin, you said a dirty word."

Lin Wanrong laughed heartily, "I do what I think, and that's just me being true to myself."

Dong Qiaoqiao smiled sweetly at him and said nothing.

Lin Wanrong said to Dong Rende, "Uncle Dong, what are you waiting for? The silver is waiting for us."

Dong Rende's eyes sparkled with a beastly light. Lin Wanrong and he laughed heartily and rushed towards the group of literati.

Lin Wanrong firmly believed that soon, they would become the most popular people among the literati. With the successful marketing experience from the previous times, old Dong learned from example, and their previous transactions had already been seen by the literati around them. Therefore, as soon as the two of them appeared, they were immediately surrounded by the literati.

"Brother, is this the self-portrait of Miss Xiao from the Xiao family?"

"Brother, do you have any insider information about Miss Xiao?"

"Brother, do you have any insider information about Miss Xiao's younger sister, Xiao Er?"

"Brother, do you have any inside information on Lady Xiao?" Lin Wanrong broke into a cold sweat at the question. It seemed that all men were the same. The mother and daughter of the Xiao family had become a tempting target for everyone.

But for him, without this group of scheming fellows, where would he earn his money? As more people gathered around, Lin Wanrong and Lao Dong were already surrounded. The enthusiasm of the scholars had fully erupted. Lin Wanrong shouted, "Don't fight, don't fight! This is a rare and precious book that has been leaked from inside the Xiao family. There are not many copies, and it is extremely valuable. It's ten taels of silver for one book. Pay me upfront, and I'll deliver the goods."

"No need to look for more," said a wealthy scholar, throwing a heavy silver ingot to Lao Dong and snatching a small booklet from his hands. He treasured it as if it were a precious jewel.

The scholars exploded like boiling water. They pushed and shoved, frantically bidding for the remaining books. "I'll pay eleven taels! Brother, give it to me quickly!" "I'll pay fifteen!" "Twenty taels!"

Lao Dong and Lin Wanrong were squeezed in the middle, sweating profusely. In the blink of an eye, dozens of small booklets that they had used for trial marketing were snatched up. Fortunately, Lin Wanrong had already instructed Dong Qingshan to bring the remaining booklets, satisfying the scholars' insane demand. By noon, only a dozen or so of the five hundred booklets remained.

Although there were thousands of talented people present, those who had the ability to spend ten taels of silver to buy a book of sensual pleasures were limited. Selling all five hundred copies was a surprise for Lin Wanrong. He watched as groups of talented people gathered to admire the book, exclaiming in admiration at the beauty of Miss Xiao depicted within. Lin Wanrong secretly laughed to himself, amazed that the portrait of Miss Xiao was worth so much.

The Dong family, father and two children, took two batches to transport all of the silver they earned. Dong Rende did not expect that this little book would sell so well, and his face lit up at the sight of the white silver.

Lunch was prepared and brought by Dong Qiaoqiao, still dressed in men's clothing. She sat under a large tree and took out the hot dishes from the bamboo basket, saying, "Big Brother Lin, it's time to eat."

Dong Qiaoqiao's cooking skills were not exaggerated. These few small dishes were delicious and fragrant. Lin Wanrong couldn't help but swallow a few mouthfuls and said, "Qiaoqiao, your cooking skills are probably better than those of the famous chefs."

He wolfed down the dishes. Dong Qiaoqiao blushed and said, "Big Brother Lin, you are too kind. You know what? I never thought that such a simple little book could sell for so much money. It's worth five thousand taels of silver. My father and brother were so happy that they didn't want to sleep at night."

Lin Wanrong chuckled. It seemed that Dong's family had never seen so much silver before. He didn't care too much about money himself. One million was enough, and even one dollar was enough. However, seeing Dong Qiaoqiao's happiness, he couldn't help feeling a bit of joy, and jokingly said, "So it seems that Miss Qiaoqiao's dowry is quite substantial. Don't forget me when you find a good husband."

Dong Qiaoqiao blushed and lowered her head, saying, "Big Brother Lin, please don't make fun of me."

Lin Wanrong had an extremely thick skin. As he looked at Dong Qiaoqiao, he burst into laughter, causing her face to turn red and her head to hang down in embarrassment, too ashamed to lift it up.

He finished off all the food in one go and took a drink of water. Patting his belly, he said contentedly, "Thank you, Qiaoqiao. I almost swallowed my tongue."

Dong Qiaoqiao giggled and asked, "By the way, Brother Lin, my father wanted me to ask if we should print a few more copies of the booklet?"

Lin Wanrong shook his head and replied, "No need. Even if we printed more, we wouldn't be able to sell them for a good price."

Dong Qiaoqiao asked, puzzled, "Why not?"

"Firstly, the market is already saturated. That is to say, the people who want to buy it have already bought it. After all, not everyone can afford to spend ten taels on a booklet. Secondly, we need to consider Miss Xiao's reputation. Let these five hundred scholars appreciate her beauty first. But with your looks, Qiaoqiao, it's probably worth twenty taels per book, without any bargaining." Lin Wanrong pretended to be considerate for Miss Xiao, but at the same time, he was teasing Dong Qiaoqiao shamelessly.

Dong Qiaoqiao, feeling embarrassed by his boastful tone and teasing, couldn't help but blush and scold him, "Brother Lin, you're such a bad person."

"Really?" Lin Wanrong laughed loudly. He knew that a man must be bad to win a woman's heart. Dong Qiaoqiao was too young to understand this. When it came to having a thick skin and being shameless, Dong Qiaoqiao was no match for Lin Wanrong. The girl covered her face with both hands, afraid to show the redness on her face.

"On the other hand, the reason is because our book has already been pirated," Lin Wanrong chuckled for a moment before his expression turned serious. He pointed to a few guys in the distance who were selling a small booklet to the scholars sneakily.

"So soon?" Dong Qiaoqiao exclaimed.

Coincidentally, there was a scholar next to them who had bought a pirated copy. Dong Qiaoqiao took a quick look and saw that it was just Lin Wanrong's booklet copied and printed hastily. The ink had not yet dried, the paper was rough, and the text and images were all blurry.

Dong Qiaoqiao pouted and said, "Compared to ours, this is really inferior."

"It's indeed inferior, but they're selling it cheap, one or two silver coins per copy. Heh, it's still very attractive to those talented scholars from humble backgrounds. Well, let others do the low-end market, we'll stick to the high-end market. We have to leave some food for others," Lin Wanrong chuckled, but he was feeling quite unhappy inside. Damn it, he planted the tree, but they get the shade. These pirates are so unscrupulous. May God bless them with two small penises instead of one.

Originally, he was planning to print more copies, but less than three hours after the first one was sold, he saw the pirated version. He didn't expect piracy to be rampant even in this era, and these guys were really fast with their hands.

Although Lin Wanrong didn't care much about money, no one would refuse more money. If he could make more, why not? Who would say no to money?