“Chunmei, it’s actually quite good that we’re helping you with the banquet and getting paid,” Xia Mingshi said first.

Aunt Pear Blossom: "Yes, Chunmei, I never intended to take advantage of your skills."

Chen Jinlian: "Yes, we are already very satisfied with helping you earn money. Chunmei, your skills are the foundation of your livelihood and the support you will rely on when you get married. Don't easily hand them over to others."

Hearing this, Xia Hongfen breathed a sigh of relief.

Xia Hongfen, unafraid of offending anyone, said directly, "Chunmei, if you feel that Grandma Ming and the other aunties are good to you, then you should compensate them in other ways. I won't agree to the fact that the skills cannot be passed on to outsiders."

Teaching them is just giving them the opportunity to steal your business, isn't it?

I used to think my niece was quite smart, so why has she suddenly become so stupid? Or has someone tricked her?

Xia Hongfen secretly glanced at the people in the room, but couldn't discern any malicious intent among them.

"Listen to me first, everyone. Our reputation has already spread. We had to cancel a lot of shows before because of scheduling conflicts, which I think is a real shame."

So I'm thinking of setting up a company that specializes in catering for banquets, and teaching you three skills, free of charge.

However, you must sign a contract with me, stipulating that you will not pass on your skills to others, including your family members, within ten years, and you will not accept banquets privately. All jobs you take on will be arranged and distributed by the company.

Of course, once you've learned the skills, you'll essentially become the company's chefs, and your wages will naturally increase. For each job you complete, you'll receive an additional one-cent commission on top of your current wages. In other words, your income per job will at least more than double what it was before.

The jobs I take on now are relatively simple, and there are more people doing the work, so we're all familiar with each other and it's not as tiring as when I was preparing banquets for the Wang family. Of course, I don't earn as much either.

So, apart from Chen Xiaoyu, whose wage was 25, and Zhao Di, who was brought in to make up for the shortfall, everyone else's wage was 28. When the number of tables exceeded 50, Chen Xiaoyu received 28 coins, while the other long-term employees received 32 coins.

If Xia Mingshi, Chen Jinlian, and Aunt Lihua become chefs, in addition to the several dozen coins they earn for each order, they will also receive a commission of one coin per table. If a banquet has fifty tables, the commission alone will amount to fifty coins!

Although they are illiterate and have never been to school, it doesn't mean they can't do the math.

"Grandma Ming, Aunts, if you become chefs, you will inevitably have to lead your own teams, and then our company will have to expand its recruitment."

Not only should we expand enrollment, but we can also develop secondary industries in the future, such as chicken, duck, pork, fish, eggs, tofu, bean sprouts, and so on.

Expanding enrollment means that others have job opportunities, and that their relatives and friends also have opportunities to earn money.

The development of the secondary industry can also benefit the entire village. Even if it doesn't make them rich, their lives will at least be better than they are now.

Xia Chunmei is living a very impressive life now. Although she has the Jin family backing her up, it doesn't mean she doesn't need to maintain good relations with her neighbors.

If she can make life better for more people around her, she will have fewer troubles in the future.

"You should go back and discuss it with your uncle first. There's no need to rush. After all, you haven't learned the skill yet."

“This is such a big matter, I really can’t make a decision on my own. I need to go back and discuss it with your Uncle Tianji.”

Chen Jinlian said she was discussing it with Xia Tianji, but she probably still wanted to go back and ask her father. Chen Shuitian is the village chief, so his vision and perspective are naturally higher than those of ordinary villagers.

“I also need to go back and discuss it with your Uncle Qiang.”

Xia Chunmei had almost finished wrapping things up when she received the news. Chen Jinlian and Aunt Lihua quickly went back to discuss it with their husbands.

Xia Mingshi was a little undecided, so she quickly called Xia Huohua, who was practicing driving with great enthusiasm, back.

"Mom, can't you tell me later? I was just getting into the mood..."

"Feeling what?! Get back here right now!"

Under pressure from his mother, Xia Huohua had no choice but to stop practicing driving.

The mother and daughter went back inside, closed the door, and began to discuss Xia Chunmei's plans...

Now that there were no outsiders around, Xia Hongfen hurriedly pressed Xia Chunmei, "Chunmei, have you lost your mind? You want to hand over such an important skill to someone else and not even charge them? Let me crack open your head and drain the water out."

After saying that, Xia Hongfen flicked her niece's forehead twice.

Xia Chunmei covered her forehead where she had been flicked and quickly pulled Xia Hongfen to sit down beside her: "My dear aunt, listen to me first, come, come, let's sit down and talk."

Grandma Ming, Aunt Jinlian, and Aunt Lihua have been helping me organize banquets for so long. To put it bluntly, dishes like pickled fish and fish balls aren't difficult for them. If they were willing to put their minds to it, they could always figure it out.

Now that I'm teaching them my skills, they'll appreciate my kindness, and I won't have to go out to work anymore. I can also take care of my three younger sisters at home.

At first glance, my income from a single banquet has decreased, but if you think about it, once the three of them learn the skills, three teams will emerge.

All three teams can generate revenue for me, and I'll be able to take on more orders in the future, even those from farther away, and maybe even orders from the county town.

Today, Village Chief Wang also said that the longevity peach buns I made in the county town the other day were very popular, and several families have already asked about them. Village Chief Wang also said that I should take some time to go to the county town to see his sister, and his sister will take me to meet those interested customers.

So, if I calculate it this way, will I still lose money?

If our secondary industry develops well, we will have more and more money in the future, our clansmen will live better and better lives, and we sisters will have an even better life in the village.”

The main problem is that Xia Chunmei is six months pregnant and can't hold a banquet. These families have all treated her well, and she has no shortage of food and drink. If she doesn't want to hold a banquet, she doesn't have to. But what about them?

We can't just stand by and watch them continue living like they don't know where their next meal will come from.