Chapter 65

Before Elara received the letter from Lian Yi Building, the boss of every shop inside Plumera City was already told about it. So when Elara went with the token to pick her shops, the bosses all welcomed her with smiles. Some even showed her around their shops as if they were goods for sale.

With such warm welcomes, Elara quickly chose two shop buildings. She did not pick the best spots or places full of rich and powerful people. Instead, she chose one place on a busy street that was not too obvious but could be seen by everyone. The other was in a crowded area where many common people passed by.

Yang, the steward at Lian Yi Building, watched the reports from the shop owners and smiled while stroking his beard. This Miss White Three was truly smart in business. Even though he let her pick freely, she knew her limits well and was not greedy. Such a clever and clear-headed woman naturally made people like her.

On the street, after picking her spots, Elara heard from the shop owner that they could clean the shops tonight. She could move goods in and start selling the next day. Then, she said goodbye to Mathias and left.

Having shops meant she needed to prepare goods to sell. But Elara did not go straight to the White Family Trading Company with Mathias. Instead, she went to the biggest jade and stone carving street in Plumera City.

She had been here before to get a stone mill. This time, she was not looking for a stone mill. She wanted to see if she could find iron ore. In this time, people mostly used bronze. Iron smelting had not started yet. So iron ore, even if dug up, was mostly thrown away as waste.

Last night, Elara stayed up late reading a book called "Basic Ore Smelting Technology." She had read most of it and now wanted to find some ore to try smelting iron tools quickly.

Mathias, still tall and strong but pretending to be quiet, followed silently behind her. He did not know what she was thinking or planning, but he was used to following quietly and listening. Seeing Elara look around ahead, he quietly walked behind her.

Elara walked slowly to avoid missing any possible iron ore. Near the end of the street, she found a piece of iron ore mixed with other stones in a small stone carving shop that seemed to have poor business.

She stepped inside right away. The shop was receiving goods. When Elara entered, she heard the owner calling slaves and the heavy sound of big stones falling to the ground. The ground shook slightly from the impact.

Elara saw that the pile with the iron ore was being covered with more stones. More iron ore was mixed inside. After they finished unloading, the owner turned around in a cloud of dust and saw two people standing at the door.

He was surprised and wiped his face before coming over. But when he saw the young lady with a veil, he stopped. "Miss, are you lost? I do not have delicate jade bracelets here. I only have unopened stones. You should turn left outside for shops selling beautiful jade bracelets and hairpins."

He clearly thought she was a rich lady looking for pretty jewelry. Elara did not answer and walked to the stones. "I am here to buy stones."

The owner was stunned and looked at her twice. Women were rare, and usually low-born women would marry into a family to have food and clothes. Rich ladies could have men serve them. It was very rare to see a woman come out to do business. So the owner was surprised.

The owner had traveled a lot and seen many things. He had met women doing business before. So he quickly got back to business mode and looked Elara over while asking, "What kind of jade stones do you want to buy?"

Elara had already learned about jade stones when she visited the stone street before. She also collected information on the way here. Quickly sorting and using this information was almost instinctive for her. So when the owner asked, she answered easily like a pro.

At first, the owner asked carefully. He had met women traders but never did business with them. But Elara spoke sharply and smartly. She knew the jade trade very well, like she came from a family who did this for generations. The owner became serious and stopped dodging the question.

He showed her his stones and carefully explained each type. Elara listened and sorted new information in her mind. But her real goal was not the jade stones. After a long talk, she casually pointed at a piece of iron ore under the stones and asked the owner.

"Boss, isn't this ochre stone? Why is it mixed in your stones?"

Iron ore was also called ochre stone long ago. The owner had not noticed it before. Now he looked and saw it really was ochre stone.

Since iron ore was mostly waste back then, the owner quickly explained to avoid misunderstanding. "Miss, please don't think I mixed trash into my stones. This batch just came from the mine. The ore near the mine has ochre stones mixed in. The slaves might have accidentally put this ochre in. But I promise you, if you buy from me, these are all real good stones. No fake goods."

The owner got a bit excited and called his helpers to check the stones and remove the ochre stones. Elara stopped him with a smile.

"Boss, don't rush. Many good ores come with some ochre stones. I know this. It is normal to have some mixed in."

Seeing the owner calm down, she added, "Also, when I came in, I saw you, your slaves, and the oxen pulling goods all looked very tired. I guess your mine is far away and it took a long time to bring these stones here. Small mistakes like this happen when you are tired."

The owner's angry face relaxed. He sighed and nodded. "Yes, this batch came from a mine far south of Plumera City, behind Anqi Town. That mine was only found a few years ago by local merchants. Maybe you heard about it. When the mine was first found, most stones were waste ochre. Good stones were rare. The government thought it was a worthless mine and forced a rich man in Anqi Town to buy it at a high price. But guess what? Recently, I got secret news. The mine suddenly found many rare good ores. Some say there might be silver ore too. Soon, the government might take it back."

"I usually travel a lot to find mines and have some contacts. So I heard this first. I want to get some good stones before the government knows."

"But I was too focused on time and forgot that the land is more chaotic these years. The road from Anqi Town to Plumera City is controlled by bandits. The mountain with the mine is almost their base. Even Anqi Town is affected."

"Sigh, this batch made me lose many slaves and goods. That is why the ochre stones mixed in by mistake. Luckily, you know this business. If it were someone else, they might accuse me of cheating and I would have no way to explain."

The boss spoke with a sad tone. It was clear from his face that business had become harder over the years.

Elara listened carefully and took notes about Anji Town and the mine. She also had System 92 mark the location on its transparent map.

Finding a good iron ore source was the best thing she could get here. If handled well, she could control the mine. Then she would not worry about iron ore for smelting.

Thinking this, Elara quietly encouraged the boss to say more about the mine.

The boss had nearly lost his life on this trip. Seeing Elara's interest, he couldn't stop talking. He complained about how many men were lost and how fierce the bandits made up of refugees were.

They set traps and ambushes on the roads. The boss lost most of his goods and many servants. He was so worried he might lose money instead of earning any.

Elara listened closely while the boss finished complaining. She carefully recorded the mine details. When he stopped, she pointed to the stones and said:

"Boss, this trip was really tough for you. I need these materials. I will pay the market price for all of it, even the ochre mixed in. You can pick it out and keep it separate. When I take the goods, I will also take the ochre away."

The boss was happy and quickly said:

"Meeting a customer like you is my good fortune! But I don't want to trouble you by making you take the ochre. I will sort it out now and make sure your goods are clean and beautiful!"

Elara smiled and said: "No need to be so polite. There isn't much ochre anyway. The city is tense now, especially after the city guard leader was publicly punished a few days ago.

Now, the tax for entering and leaving the city has increased several times. They check people and goods carefully. I have to leave the city anyway. You don't need to pay that tax again. I can take the ochre without trouble.

I am glad to meet you today and get these good materials. Maybe I will come back to buy from you again. So you don't need to be so polite."

The boss's happy face became even brighter. He thought more highly of Elara now.

He had been a trader for many years but rarely met such a generous buyer, especially a female merchant!

If it weren't for their different social status, he would have wanted to shake her hand tightly to show his thanks!

"The thing about the city guard leader, I know it too. Honestly, I even went to watch when Captain Yang was whipped! It was really satisfying!

That beast killed so many people. He deserved it. The princess is usually as bad as Captain Yang, but this time she did a good thing! Fighting evil with evil made me feel good inside!"

Since coming here, this was the first time Elara heard someone talk about her body like that. She wanted to smile inside but lightly cleared her throat to remind the boss.

The boss was very excited but looked up when he heard the cough. He saw not only the lady but also the silent man behind her staring at him.

He quickly stopped talking. Seeing Elara's figure covered by the curtain and the man behind her showing no anger, he breathed out quietly. Then he smiled nervously and said:

"Please don't mind me. I was just saying casually…" He could not help but say more because Captain Yang was so bad and talking to this lady felt easy.

"But since you already said that, I won't refuse anymore! Today I owe you a favor! From now on, if you need materials, come to me. I will sell them to you at a price two levels below the market.

No matter what materials you want, I promise to get them for you!"