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With Cheng Xi's personal appearance, twelve ships and twenty naming rights were easily sold. Shipbuilding is fine, as you get what you pay for. But the naming rights are pure profit. After all, it is still early for Hepu to open to navigation, and these are all advanced investments. When the investment will be recovered depends on the future victory of the two gangs.

With such a large sum of money, the shipyard prepared earlier can be started smoothly.

Nowadays, the sources of the Red Flag Gang’s ships are divided into two parts. The small boats are basically built by the boat villages on the shore, while the maintenance and construction of large ships are carried out on Luoling Island.

Now, in order to resist the Changjing Gang and expand the fleet as much as possible, Cheng Xi has united the shipbuilding masters from several boat villages and is preparing to establish a larger shipyard. This money is the start-up fund, which is enough to support the normal operation of the shipyard.

At the same time, the emergence of the General Temple and the shipyard basically marked the beginning of the disintegration of the Tanka Village. Faith and ships were the main components of the Tanka Village, and now that they have been involved by the Red Flag Gang, it may only be a matter of time before these Tanka people are completely absorbed.

As the chief financial officer and head of Minsheng Bank, these matters naturally fell on Tian Yu's head. While he was busy drafting documents and signing agreements, Cheng Xi had already gone out to inspect the workshop.

"Boss!" Wang Sanniang was surprised to see the boss in the cloth shop. She quickly stood up and saluted.

Cheng Xi looked her up and down and said with a smile, "You look much better than before. Sit down first. I have something to ask you."

The last time she saw the gang leader was when she first arrived on Luoling Island. The clan uncle Wang Laowu, who had exchanged her for money, was treacherous and betrayed the Red Flag Gang, so the gang leader summoned her for questioning. Back then, she was terrified and her words were incoherent. She had thought the gang leader was a handsome man, but who could have imagined he would become like this?

Perhaps it was because of the red dress she was wearing, or because the smile on her face was too gentle, but Wang Sanniang didn't feel timid at all and sat down opposite him in a very polite manner.

"The cloth shop has been open for half a year. You have done a good job. The accounts are clear and the personnel are fair. I heard that you have been learning to read and write with a female teacher recently?" Cheng Xi asked first as if chatting.

This was practically like a casual chat. Wang Sanniang suppressed her excitement and said seriously, "The gang leader has been very kind to me and promoted me to manager. Naturally, I have to do my best to take care of the affairs of the guild. I also learned some books from Mr. Sun, but I'm not very good at reading, so I only learned two elementary books and learned a few words."

She only has two books to learn now, and it takes a lot of effort for her to catch up quickly after work. Cheng Xi nodded in satisfaction and asked, "If you had many more people under you, would you still be able to manage it?"

Wang Sanniang was shocked. She had heard that the cement workshop was going to expand again. The number of workers had increased several times and it was busy every day. Could it be that the cloth workshop would be the same?

She didn't dare to answer immediately. She thought for a moment before saying, "There are a lot of rules and regulations in the cloth shop now. Everyone has their own responsibilities, so there's no rush or chaos. If the number of people increases several times, as long as the rules are made more detailed and a few more managers are assigned, it should be possible to handle it properly. I think I can manage it."

She was a little hesitant when she started speaking, but became more determined as she went on, as if she had made up her mind to seize this opportunity.

This look reminded Cheng Xi of the first time they met her. There were so many people in this world who were wronged but dared not seek justice, or were indignant but dared not speak out. But she dared to do so. Even though she was frightened to the point of paleness and stuttering, she could still explain the events of Erwang Village clearly. She hadn't changed much, it was just that the knowledge she had gained and the things she had experienced had given her more confidence.

No need to ask any more questions. Cheng Xi smiled and said, "Panyu is planning to build a new weaving mill, mainly engaged in the weaving of silk, cotton and linen, and there will be thousands of weavers. Are you willing to go to Panyu and become the head of this weaving mill?"

Wang Sanniang was shocked, her mouth slightly open, and after a while she nervously said, "The gang leader is too kind to me. How can I be so worthy..."

Cheng Xi raised his hand to interrupt her. "You are only the supervisor of the weaver girls, not the owner of the weaving mill. Others will be responsible for major matters. You just need to concentrate on managing the weaver girls and ensure that they can work as efficiently as possible. Of course, you will also be given some convenience in personnel appointments and dismissals. If there are suitable subordinates in the weaving mill, you can also bring them to Panyu."

Wang Sanniang's expression immediately wavered, and she whispered, "I have a daughter..."

"The weaving mill also has a nursery. If you are worried, you can send your daughter to the nursery on the island. Of course, if this supervisor does a good job, there is a possibility of further promotion. Maybe he can really become the shopkeeper in the future." Cheng Xi said with a smile.

"I'll go!" Wang Sanniang almost blurted out, "I want to take my daughter with me!"

She truly knew how important this position was, and she wanted it so badly that she was determined to take it, even without knowing the salary.

This was the answer Cheng Xi desired most. Textile factories were probably the places with the largest number of female employees in the world. If only men were in the middle and lower management positions, the exploitation faced by the weavers would be even more severe. However, one, or even a group of female middle managers could easily change this situation. As they matured, they would naturally rise to higher positions. This was another path to advancement that Cheng Xi had opened up for the women under her leadership.

Just studying wasn't enough, far from it. Only work could bring a voice and open the world to women. It might still be early for the Industrial Revolution, but she didn't mind giving that door a push.

"Then arrange the handover of the current matters as soon as possible, and select the people you plan to take to Panyu in advance." Cheng Xi ordered.

Wang Sanniang nodded vigorously, then suddenly remembered something and whispered, "Oh, there's a little girl in the neighborhood who comes from a boat family. She studies very hard and is very dedicated. Can we take her with us?"

"Little girl? How old are you?" Cheng Xi asked.

"She just turned thirteen this year." Wang Sanniang became nervous. "I just wanted to take her with me and teach her because I saw she was eager to learn."

This action may have been unconscious, but Wang Sanniang had indeed begun to look for talent and wanted to cultivate it into a confidant early on. This was what was bound to happen when a woman became a manager, just like her, and how she was doing.

Cheng Xi smiled and said, "It's okay. These people will be your future team. As long as you are sure of them, it's fine. Ah Ling is also in Panyu. When you get there, you can discuss things with her. You can also give some suggestions on the specific rules and regulations, and they can be changed according to the actual situation."

Hearing this, Wang Sanniang immediately breathed a sigh of relief and felt happy again. It seemed that the gang leader really trusted her, and she couldn't let him down.

The two talked about the weaving mill for a while, and then Cheng Xi stood up and prepared to go to the cement workshop to take a look.

Wang Sanniang didn't dare to neglect them and respectfully stood up to see them off. Unexpectedly, as they walked out of the courtyard, they bumped into a young woman carrying a basket. Seeing them, Wang Sanniang hurriedly greeted them, "Mr. Sun is here? The gang leader is here today, let's..."

Before she could finish her words, the woman ducked down, kneeling on the side of the road, her head bowed low, her body trembling. Sun Xiaoyu knew the gang leader, of course; she'd heard countless stories about him from Miss He. She'd gotten her into the bank, taught her to read and write, and given her a salary and a job, yet she'd left the bank without realizing it. Facing the gang leader again, Sun Xiaoyu felt an indescribable guilt.

"Stand up! You are also a teacher. How can you kneel down and worship others casually?"

A voice reached her ears, neither high nor low, neither cold nor hot, as calm as the sea at noon. Sun Xiaoyu burst into tears for no apparent reason: "I'm sorry, Gang Leader..."

"You are still teaching in the cloth workshop. What have you done to me? Get up!" Cheng Xi's voice became stern, and Sun Xiaoyu stood up almost subconsciously.

Looking at the little girl who was now dressed like a woman, Cheng Xi said, "Even if you get married, you can't give up teaching in the cloth shop. Don't think of it as atonement, but as a serious job. I will ask the school to copy two handouts, and you can try to learn them. The cloth shop will also purchase more books, and you can study them whenever you want. These five years are an opportunity left for you. How you will go in the future depends on you."

The future? Was there still a future for her? At that moment, Sun Xiaoyu couldn't help but raise her head. However, when she met those clear eyes, she suddenly retreated, filled with shame and fear. She wasn't like the gang leader, like Miss He, or even like Madam Wang San. She was just an ordinary woman, who could only marry at her parents' command...

"There may be nothing in this world that belongs to you. Parents, husband, children, they will leave you sooner or later, but the skills you have learned will not. They belong to you. Don't waste what you have learned. Pass them on to more people who are eager to learn." Cheng Xi looked at the shivering little woman, said only this sentence, and walked past her.

Wang Sanniang hesitated for a moment, patted Sun Xiaoyu's shoulder gently, and quickly followed.

Standing there, looking at the book basket that fell to the ground, tears flowed like broken strings and Sun Xiaoyu squatted down sobbing, burying her head in her skirt.

In fact, the gang leader never blamed her. He was still teaching her and gave her another way. Could she do it?

After crying for an unknown amount of time, Sun Xiaoyu reached out and held her book basket.

It was time for class, and she still had students to teach. Supporting her knees, Sun Xiaoyu slowly stood up, carefully wiped the tears from her face with her sleeve, and started walking again.