The crowd was instantly shocked by Pingting's words, their eyes all turning towards them.
One thought dominated their minds: Who were these deities?
Did such people exist in Yun Country, people whom even the Emperor would call "eldest sister-in-law" and who would not kneel before him?
But a conclusion was quickly reached.
That woman had mentioned the Regent's Consort. Wasn't that Zhao Jiaqi, who had once been the Consort of the Zhenguo Prince, then Empress, then Empress Dowager, and now the Regent's Consort again? So many titles concentrated on one person.
The consort who came from humble beginnings!
At this, no one dared to look down on them anymore. Even that arrogant and overbearing madam's face turned from red to green, then from green to pale. She grabbed her daughter and hurriedly retreated from the crowd.
They visibly withdrew, not even daring to let out a sigh.
Pingting and the others exchanged glances and chuckled.
Pingting sighed, "This title of Consort is indeed quite effective. I hadn't even finished scaring them, and they left. It's no fun at all."
Zhao Jiaqi chided her playfully, "You even brought up the Emperor. That's not a threat, what else do you want to do to scare them?"
Pingting was unconcerned, "I wanted to scare them so much they'd wet themselves, to turn them from high and mighty noble ladies into dust in an instant. It's a shame this group of women is too weak. They didn't argue back or make a fuss, they just ran off. It's disappointing."
The others laughed speechlessly. The brief unpleasantness did not dampen their spirits. The group selected several novel fabrics, and arranged for embroiderers from Yunyi Workshop to come and take measurements for custom orders.
The waiter had watched the entire scene. He had thought they were wealthy ladies, but he never expected them to be the renowned Regent's Consort of Yun Country. This left him flustered, his expression a mix of a smile and a grimace. He busied himself serving them.
News of the Regent's Consort's arrival at Yunyi Workshop soon spread. Before long, Bailu, dressed in a new spring outfit and wearing a felt hat, returned.
Upon learning from the waiter and the shopkeeper that the Regent's Consort had indeed visited, she happily hurried away again.
Leaving Yunyi Workshop, the group found a teahouse. They had intended to drink tea and listen to a storyteller, but they ended up hearing a rather interesting tale.
The Legend of the White Snake.
Upon hearing the name, Zhao Jiaqi was startled. She thought perhaps someone else in this world was a transmigrator like her. However, as she listened to the storyteller, she realized it was quite different.
Pingting said, "Sister-in-law, this Legend of the White Snake isn't as good as the one you told me. It's not captivating at all."
This wasn't a complaint. The storyteller used gestures to convey the story's content, but no matter how vivid his telling, it couldn't compare to her sister-in-law's.
Su Ya was very surprised. She had served the Consort for a year or two, but she had never heard her tell a story. She was very curious, "What kind of story could the Consort of Dingbei Prince remember for so long?"
Seeing that someone was interested, Pingting leaned closer and began to tell the story animatedly, even drawing in the Consort of Xian and the Consort of Xiaoyao who were nearby.
While the storyteller on stage spoke with great effort, Pingting below was not idle either. She was also telling her story vividly. However, everyone around her was captivated by her. The teahouse was divided: those in front listened to the storyteller on stage, while those in the back gathered around Pingting, listening to her.
The teahouse split into two factions. The shopkeeper was bewildered, and even the guests listening to the story on the second floor were confused. They all sent their servants and maids down to inquire.
This inquiry was a revelation. What Pingting was telling was even more captivating and thrilling than what was on stage.
Pingting, engrossed in her storytelling, didn't notice the crowd gathering around her. Zhao Jiaqi, seeing that something was amiss, tugged at her a few times. "Go back and tell them then. We're in a teahouse now. You're going to wreck their business. Be careful, they might beat you."
Prompted by her sister-in-law, she looked up and saw the circles of people surrounding them. She became very embarrassed. Once she started telling stories, her words flowed like a flood, unstoppable.
Those who were engrossed in the story were waiting for the part about the flooded Golden Mountain. But she stopped. Some people grew anxious.
"Madam, what happened next? Please tell us, did the White Snake manage to save people?"
"Yes, that Fahai is a monk, why is he doing such wicked deeds?"
This made Pingting even more embarrassed. She waved her hands at the crowd. "Everyone, please disperse. Go back and listen to the storyteller. I was just messing around."
Hearing her say this, everyone knew there would be no continuation. They all gave her a blank stare and returned to their seats.
Pingting wiped the sweat from her forehead and sheepishly stuck out her tongue at Zhao Jiaqi. "Thank goodness for your reminder, sister-in-law. Otherwise, I would have ruined their business, and the shopkeeper would have skinned me."
Zhao Jiaqi withdrew her gaze and smiled faintly at her, shaking her head. "It's unlikely they'd skin you. I think the shopkeeper is quite interested in your story!"
Pingting's mind hadn't quite caught up when a portly man walked over. He stood before Pingting with a semblance of respect and smiled faintly. "The story you just told was very exciting. I wonder if this story has an ending?"
Pingting was not foolish; she immediately realized the man before her was the teahouse's shopkeeper.
Ji Xueli cupped his hands towards her. "I am the shopkeeper of this teahouse, named Ji Xueli. I am very interested in the story you just told. I wonder if this story was created by you?"
It wasn't, actually. Just as she was about to deny it, Zhao Jiaqi spoke up. "She created it."
Pingting looked at her sister-in-law in surprise. This was clearly not a story she had created; why would her sister-in-law say that?
The next moment, she understood her sister-in-law's intention.
Ji Xueli said, "Then that's wonderful! I'm very interested in this story. I wonder if you would be willing to sell it to our teahouse? Of course, the price is negotiable!"
Upon hearing this, Pingting realized business had come knocking!
She looked at her sister-in-law with surprised delight. After receiving a hint from her, she suppressed her excitement and spoke patiently.
In the end, they went to the back hall and chatted for half an hour before reaching an agreement. Clutching a five-hundred-tael silver note, she floated out of the back hall.
The first thing she said to her sister-in-law was, "Sister-in-law, I'm not useless either. See? even the God of Wealth has found me!"
"Although it wasn't a script I came up with myself, with my silver tongue, I still managed to sell it for a good price."
When she returned home, she would throw these earned silver notes at her mother, letting her see that besides giving birth and eating, she also had the ability to earn money.
Far away in her fiefdom, Yao Jingyun suddenly sneezed a few times. She rubbed her nose and looked at the bright sun outside the window. It was such a beautiful day, how could she have caught a cold?
Seeing her triumphant look, Zhao Jiaqi asked with a smile, "Look how happy you are. How much did you sell this script for?"
Pingting held up two fingers. "Two thousand taels."
Zhao Jiaqi gave her a thumbs-up. "Amazing."
Two thousand taels wasn't a lot, but selling a script for that much wasn't bad. She didn't lack this small amount of money, but what she lacked was the ability to earn it.