Lin Wanrong glanced over and saw what she was holding was the original copy of the three editions of the tabloid he used to earn his first bucket of gold in this world. The original copy had been taken by Xiao Yushuang, but it somehow ended up in the hands of this young lady.
Why is she suddenly asking about this? Could it be that Xiao Yushuang's maid informed her? Lin Wanrong is quite confident in Xiao Yushuang. The maid is much more obedient than her sister, and it's unlikely that she revealed anything.
This is strange. Lin Wanrong felt suspicious. How did she find out that this matter is related to me?
He and this young lady are not on good terms. Most of their encounters involve arguments. If this young lady finds out that he sold her portrait and earned five thousand taels of silver, who knows what trouble might arise?
"What is this? Oh, isn't this the portrait of the young lady? But wait, is it possible that the young lady wasn't as beautiful as depicted in this portrait? Perhaps it was when she was still a child? Hmm, I never expected the young lady to be so charming even in her childhood." Lin Wanrong took the booklet and teased.
Xiao Yuruo watched him play along, thinking, "You underestimate me. Your unique artistic style is not easy to imitate. Yet, I managed to expose your disguise, and you still act so dishonestly."
She smiled and said, "I don't know who this little thief is, imitating someone else's mediocre artistic style and creating this booklet to slander me. If I find out who it is, I won't let them off."
"Yes, we shouldn't let them off easily," Lin Wanrong said. Both of them were crafty, and their words were full of subtlety. The atmosphere at the moment was quite peculiar.
Miss Xiao said with a smile, "I heard that this little booklet was sold for ten taels of silver each. Since he used my image, I charged him eight taels of silver for each. Isn't that reasonable? But don't let me find him; otherwise, I'll make sure he pays me back."
Lin Wanrong thought to himself, "This young lady has already investigated the matter thoroughly. It seems she had a plan in mind. She's clearly pointing fingers at me now, but unfortunately, I can't admit it." He said, "Miss, you have plenty of silver, and losing a few taels won't hurt. Once the lingerie and perfume business starts, we'll recover these small losses."
His underlying message was, "Don't dwell on this matter; once the lingerie and perfume business takes off, the profits will far exceed the losses from this little booklet."
Miss Xiao smirked, "I heard that this booklet sold for ten taels each. Since he used my image, I charged him eight taels for each. Isn't that reasonable? But don't let me find him; otherwise, I'll make sure he pays me back."
Lin Wanrong chuckled, "Miss, you have plenty of silver. Losing a few taels won't make a difference. Moreover, once the lingerie and perfume business is up and running, we'll recover these small losses."
His words implied, "Don't focus too much on this issue. Once our new businesses are successful, these minor losses will be insignificant."
Just as Lin Wanrong was about to leave, Xiao Yuruo stopped him and took out a small booklet from her pocket. She looked at him with a smile and asked, "Do you recognize this item?"