Chapter 192: Finalizing Two Groups

The Ninth Prince's teasing words were spoken in Mongolian, which Sarigule understood without any difficulty. Immediately, his face, which had become dark and rough from being exposed to the wind and sun, turned bright red, and he hung his head, stammering and unable to speak.

Yin'e turned to look at the Ninth Prince and nudged him with his elbow: "Ninth Brother, I think Sarigul is quite suitable. He is familiar with the route from the capital to Mongolia, and he is also good at riding and archery. He can serve as a guide and also as a guard when escorting goods."

After a pause, recalling Sarigul's self-introduction, Yin'e added with a smile, "And a translator. Although he's not fluent in Manchu or Chinese, he's clearly capable of everyday communication, and that's enough."

"We recruit Mongolians mainly to deal with the herders of Mongolian tribes. Even if their Manchu or Chinese is not very good, it doesn't matter."

Yin'e spoke these words in Manchu. He glanced at Sarigule, who was listening intently but still looked confused, and smiled again: "What's more, Sarigule can also make milk powder. He doesn't need to go to the grasslands to learn it on the spot. Isn't that another advantage?"

When asking Faka for help in recruiting people, Yin'e specifically mentioned that he needed a Mongolian, because he needed a guide to go to Mongolia to purchase milk powder. Considering that he would be dealing with the herders of the Mongolian tribes, Yin'e preferred a Mongolian guide rather than a Manchu or Han Chinese who understood Mongolian.

Originally, Yin'e had only one requirement for this Mongolian guide: that he know the way and not be directionally challenged, and be familiar with the roads between Beijing and Mongolia. As for being familiar with Mongolia and able to interact amicably with Mongolian herders, Yin'e felt that any native Mongolian could do that, so he didn't consider it a selection criterion.

Although Sarigul was chosen by Faka, he was surprisingly suitable and far exceeded Yin'e's requirements: he could be a guide, was good at riding and archery and could also serve as a bodyguard, was fluent in Manchu, Mongolian and Chinese and could also act as a translator; most importantly, he had been in charge of herding cattle on the grassland and knew how to make milk powder.

—Cattle are far more expensive than sheep, and sheep are the most common livestock on the grasslands. Few ordinary herders raise cattle, and even those who do don't raise large numbers. The majority of an ordinary herder's assets are sheep, not cattle.

Although Sarigul doesn't seem very shrewd, is rather simple and honest, and doesn't have any outstanding or eye-catching qualities, he is the kind of all-rounder who knows a little bit about everything and can handle multiple jobs without any problem, making him very cost-effective.

After listening to Yin'e's words, the Ninth Prince thought for a moment and nodded, then said simply, "Then let's choose him." After looking Sarigule up and down a few times, the Ninth Prince showed a somewhat satisfied smile, "Although he's a bit slow, he's still barely capable of being of great use."

This time, Sarigule understood what the Ninth Prince said, because the Ninth Prince only said two sentences, both of which were relatively short and not very long. Even though Sarigule's Manchu language was not very good, he could understand the meaning of the words.

Having received a positive response and knowing that he had indeed been hired, Sarigul, who had been very nervous, relaxed. A bright, excited smile spread across his dark face, and he happily said repeatedly, "Thank you, thank you, I will definitely do my best."

After Sarigul returned to the queue and stood in line, it was the turn of the remaining six people. They were four men and two women, all Manchus, and all belonged to the Plain Red Banner. However, these six were just ordinary banner people, not from noble families, and belonged to the working class among the banner people.

The four men were all around twenty years old, named Yanda, Mojun, Terra, and Antula. None of them had any powerful connections to climb the social ladder, so they couldn't become guards or servants in the mansions of nobles. They also had no interest in joining the army, so after reaching adulthood, they went out to make a living on their own.

Before being recruited by Faka, Yanda and his three companions had various backgrounds: some were small business owners who roamed the streets, others were errand runners for shopkeepers, and still others were general helpers in restaurants and teahouses. Although their origins were somewhat diverse, they were all, in essence, engaged in business and making a living through commerce.

Although none of the four Yanda members were capable of handling things independently, they at least had some understanding of how to do business, knew some etiquette for welcoming and seeing off guests, and knew how to greet customers without being ashamed to interact with them.

Most importantly, all four of them are very interested in doing business, are not opposed to it, and want to delve into it. This is quite remarkable and can be considered one of their strengths, since interest and passion are the greatest motivations for people.

The feeling and motivation are completely different when you do something out of genuine desire versus when you are forced to do it.

Studying in the Imperial Study, with so many learned and knowledgeable foreign scholars as their teachers, was a joy for the top students like the Third and Fourth Princes. However, for the academically challenged Yin'e, the Ninth Prince, and the Fifth Prince, it was an unbearable ordeal, the greatest torment in the world.

The remaining two women are named Ulinzhu and Ushiha, and they are sisters. The older sister, Ulinzhu, is twenty years old, and the younger sister, Ushiha, is only seventeen.

After the Manchus entered the Central Plains, although they were influenced by the Han people and practiced etiquette, they did not impose the same strict separation between men and women as the Han people. They did not restrict Manchu women from going out. It was common for Manchu women to work or do business outside the home, and no one would criticize them for showing their faces in public or for not staying at home.

Ulinzhu and Ushiha were originally apprentices in a pastry shop in the inner city, helping out while learning the crafts from the masters. After two years of learning, they have now become quite proficient. Although they cannot be called pastry chefs, they have a solid foundation and can make most common pastries.

The reason why Wulinzhu and the other two were recruited by Faka was because they had just been fired from the pastry shop where they used to work.

The pastry chef who was training them refused to take them on as apprentices and was unwilling to teach them how to make his signature pastries. So he wanted to dismiss them and hire two new apprentices to help out.

Apprentices are paid almost nothing, making them a very cheap form of human resource compared to regular employees. However, most apprentices are there to learn a skill, and they are willing to accept being paid as long as they can learn something.

Ulinzhu and Ushiha can only make ordinary pastries; they don't know how to make more complex or sophisticated ones, because no one has taught them. If they had detailed pastry recipes, they could try to learn how to make more difficult and sophisticated pastries on their own, since they have a solid foundation.

Yin'e and the Ninth Prince exchanged a glance, both quite satisfied with the six people Faka had found. Yan Da and the other three had either run small businesses or worked odd jobs in restaurants and teahouses, while Wulinzhu and Wuxiha had even learned their skills in a pastry shop. The abilities of these six people far exceeded their requirements.

With the addition of Sarigul, although Faka helped them recruit only seven people in the first batch, their business was just starting out and they only planned to do the small business of milk candy first. Seven people were just enough to get the initial framework set up.

Let's get the milk candy business up and running first. Once it's profitable, Yin'e and the Ninth Prince will be grown up and able to leave the palace freely. We can also bring the Fifth Prince and the others over to do business together. Then we can slowly recruit more people and expand the business step by step.

The Ninth Prince nodded in acknowledgment, and Yin'e turned to look at Yan Da and the other six, first reassuring them: "You all stay as well. Like Sarigul, keep the signed long-term contracts safe. From now on, we will be your employers, and your monthly wages will be paid on time. If you do a good job, you will receive a bonus."

The Ninth Prince then spoke up in perfect unison: "I'll assign you some tasks. Sarigule, you take Yanda and Mojun to Mongolia and be responsible for purchasing milk powder there. Remember, only milk powder, and it must be freshly dried recently. The fresher the milk powder, the better."

"Terra, you can run around the inner city a few times and find a suitable shop to rent. All the preliminary preparations for opening the shop are up to you. Antura, you used to be a waiter in the restaurant, so you can handle the procurement of ingredients. Find a few shops or trading companies and establish your supply channels."

At this point, the Ninth Prince looked at Ulinzhu and Ushiha again: "Our shop sells not only sugar but also pastries. Apart from milk powder which we source from Mongolia, all other raw materials needed for making pastries are purchased locally. You can tell Antula what you need and leave the purchasing to him."

The Ninth Prince swiftly divided the seven people into two groups: one group went to Mongolia, and the other stayed in the capital. This allowed them to handle matters on both sides simultaneously, saving time on preliminary preparations.

As the older sister, Ulinzhu boldly stepped forward and answered. After thinking for a moment, she hesitated and asked in a low voice, "What about Ushiha and me? We won't be able to open the shop so quickly after we rent it."

Needless to say, the three Sarigul who went to Mongolia also had work to do, while the two sisters who stayed in Beijing, Tela and Antula, seemed to have no jobs. After all, the shop wouldn't open immediately, and the milk powder wouldn't be transported back from Mongolia right away, so the two pastry chefs couldn't start work for the time being.

"You guys just stay home and wait," the Ninth Prince said casually. "Anyway, you'll still get paid. Of course, if you can't stay idle, you can join Tra and Antura. Anyway, there are only four of you in the capital. If anything happens to the shop, the four of you can come up with a plan."

Since Yin'e and the Ninth Prince rarely leave the palace, they certainly can't remotely control the opening of the milk candy shop in real time. At most, they can offer a few pointers initially and use Faka to pass on some messages, asking Faka to help look after, supervise, or give a little nudge. After the shop opens, the specifics of what to do next will have to be figured out by Tera and the others themselves.

He rolled his eyes at the Ninth Prince, telling him to shut up and stop talking nonsense, and then said to Wulinzhu and Wuxiha, "You two also have a lot to do. How to arrange the kitchen in the backyard of the pastry shop, how many stoves to set up, you all need to help with the design. And..."

Taking out a folded piece of white paper from his sleeve, Yin'e thought for a moment and asked, "Can either of you read?" After a pause, Yin'e added, "You can read any of the three languages: Manchu, Mongolian, and Chinese."

Ulinzhu and Ushiha were stunned for a moment, then looked at each other blankly. Finally, the younger Ushiha whispered in a voice so soft it was almost inaudible, "I know a few Manchu characters, and I can write my own name."

Yin'e frowned slightly, but quickly relaxed. He put the folded white paper back into his sleeve pocket and said calmly, "Then I'll dictate the method. Once we've rented the shop and built the kitchen, you can try making the milk candy."