Ye Caiping coughed lightly: "No... where did all these cats come from!"

Ye Caiping didn't know how to explain it.

Should I just say it was sent by Shen Zhiyan? I feel a little embarrassed.

"This is... I found it! It was right by the door. I was craving fish, so I brought it in... I'll go catch some more, and we'll make a mixed fish stew for lunch!"

After saying that, Ye Caiping put the small fish into the basin, poured in some water, and then turned and ran out.

Halfway there, she suddenly stopped, clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. She had made a mistake!

She should have just run to the river, caught half a basket of fish, and mixed that little crucian carp in with them!

Now, that little fish has become the most eye-catching part!

To avoid letting the small fish continue to be the center of attention, Ye Caiping quickly went to the riverbank and started fishing.

Because the bait was good, I caught half a basket of small fish in less than half an hour.

Yellow catfish, loach, goby... but no crucian carp.

As we were getting ready to go home, I caught another big grass carp.

Ye Caiping carried a basket of miscellaneous fish and a large grass carp with its gills tied with turf as she walked back.

From afar, three little boys came towards them, each carrying a bundle of firewood on their backs. They turned out to be Hu Xiuxiu's three youngest brothers.

"Where are we going?" Ye Caiping asked.

The three little ones were timid when they saw Ye Caiping. Hu Xiaowu said, "We just went up the mountain to gather firewood."

Since they were going the same way, the group chatted as they walked.

Ye Caiping asked, "Is this firewood for sale?"

Hu Xiaowu nodded: "Yes, we can gather six bundles of firewood every day. We save three bundles at home and sell the other three bundles to Aunt Ping's workshop. We can get six coins for that!"

Seeing how cute and hardworking they were, Ye Caiping couldn't help but smile: "Is there no problem with meals at home?"

“We are all well-fed. Third Brother gets paid every month. Our family has six mu of land, but we are too young for Mother and Fourth Brother to farm alone, so we rent out four mu. The remaining two mu are used to grow rice and cassava.”

"Fourth Brother said that cassava doesn't require much care and is easy to grow."

Ye Caiping was almost home when she handed them the large grass carp she was carrying: "Here, this is for you."

The three little ones were startled and quickly waved their hands, "Thank you, Aunt Ping, but no need..."

"Why not use it? My family can't finish all this fish."

Hu Xiaoliu said timidly, "Fourth Brother said we can't take anything from the Ye family..."

Ye Caiping understood, because they had always been called Hu Xiuxiu's burden, and children also have self-respect.

To prove they weren't a burden, they kept their distance from the Ye family.

Ye Caiping said, "It's nothing. I would give it to any villager I meet. I would take it home and say that it was given to me by an aunt in the village."

She was telling the truth. It was just one fish, and they couldn't possibly eat that much. If it were any other villager, she would have given some to them while chatting.

With that, he hung the grass carp on the firewood behind Hu Xiaowu, then turned and left.

The three little ones were at a loss, and in the end they had no choice but to carry the firewood and fish home.

Upon entering, one sees Xiuxiu's mother scolding Hu Xiaosan, who has just returned home from work:

"That furniture workshop pays 60 cash a day. Why don't you go and try working there? If you get selected, you'll earn 1.8 taels a month!"

Hu Xiaosan pretended not to hear and went into the kitchen to wash his hands. He had always been bad with words, so if he didn't want to answer, he wouldn't.

Hu Xiaosi said, "Third Brother is only 14 years old. He's already very young. It's lucky that he was able to get into the spicy soup workshop. That furniture workshop makes furniture, and it's all wood. Third Brother is so small, how will he move it?"

"People will think he's in the way, how can he possibly manage? Besides, it's pointless for him to go, he has no chance of being selected."

Xiuxiu's mother said angrily, "Your sister is pregnant. This time, let her put in a good word for her, and she'll definitely be selected."

"Mother is capable; Mother will plead for them."

Xiuxiu's mother choked. That brat wouldn't listen to her at all. What could she say?

And these brats, why don't any of them listen to her! Xiuxiu's mother is about to have a heart attack!

...

At noon, all the owners of the furniture workshops ate at Ye Caiping's house, divided into two tables.

Because Ye Erquan was still busy outside, Wei Shi and Yinhua did not come to eat.

"Drink, drink, drink!" Ye Daquan picked up his wine glass and excitedly drank with Ye Lizheng and Ye Ershu.

Ye Caiping and Grandma Ye focused on eating.

Ye Caiping stared at the plate of stewed mixed fish, picked up one, looked at it, and put it in Jin'er's bowl.

I picked up another one and put it in Huan'er's bowl.

Grandma Ye watched silently, speechless. Finally, she quietly picked up the small crucian carp in front of her and put it into Ye Caiping's bowl.

Ye Caiping: "..."

After finishing their meal, Ye Caiping and the others continued working on recruiting workers for the workshop.

In addition to Qinghe Village, Ye Caiping also had people post recruitment notices in Wangjia Village.

As soon as the job posting was released, villagers from nearby Xiahe Village, Qiaowei Village, and other villages flocked to the site, in addition to those from Wangjia Village.

Ye Caiping simply gave the people at the spicy soup workshop a day off tomorrow, which would also make it easier for them to interview at the furniture workshop.

After three days of screening, the results are finally in.

Eight of the hot and sour soup workshops were selected by the furniture workshops. Of the remaining 42 people, 30 were from this village and 12 were from other villages. A total of 50 people.

Once enough people were recruited, they started working immediately the next day.

Instructed by Wang Shuantou and his son, along with Ye Yong, the group consisted of several people, each with different steps and techniques. Some were responsible for planing the wood, some for chiseling the tenons, and some for mortising...

Simply put, it's an assembly line, with each group responsible for one process.

These technical tasks were assigned to Wang Shuantou, Ye Yong, and three others.

The workshop management was handed over to Ye Lizheng. In addition, a young man who had studied for more than ten years was hired to handle the bookkeeping of goods and services. That man was from Wangjia Village and his name was Wang Neng.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!