"Village chief, you can think of it as supplementing these cotton plants with nutrients so they can grow better! Just like if you give Gousheng an egg every day, Gousheng's body will grow faster, that's roughly the idea!" Jiang Ling explained.

The village chief still had a furrowed brow. It was clear that he didn't quite understand what Jiang Ling meant. In all his years of life, all he had heard about was farmyard manure, and most of that was used in people's own yards. He had never seen anyone dump it in the wheat fields.

Jiang Ling wasn't in a hurry and continued to patiently explain, "Village chief, do you hope that our rice will grow better and the land environment will be better next year?"

The village chief nodded vigorously. Increased production was certainly what he wanted; he didn't want to relive those years of famine. He blinked his somewhat cloudy eyes, which shone brightly, and said, "What, Jiang, do you have a solution?"

Jiang Ling was a little annoyed, realizing that the village chief hadn't understood her patient explanation at all. But she wasn't angry. She patiently explained it again, and only then did the village chief show a look of half-understanding.

"Then how do you tell me how to make this fertilizer?" the village chief asked, scratching his head.

Seeing that the village chief had finally gotten to the point, Jiang Ling quickly told him about her plan to open a small fertilizer factory.

The village chief had never heard of opening a factory before. Although he didn't understand what it was all about, he was surprised when Jiang Ling said that villagers would be needed to work there and that she would pay them wages. This was a good thing for the village.

"Where do you want to build the factory?" the village chief asked.

Jiang Ling pointed to the open space in her backyard and said, "The fertilizer plant will have a bit of a smell. I plan to put it in the spot in my backyard so that the smell will be less noticeable!"

Although the village chief didn't know what the fertilizer Jiang Ling was talking about was, he seemed to have a voice in his heart that kept saying, "You're right to listen to her, you're right to listen to her!"

“Alright, however much land you want, I’ll give it to you at eight copper coins per mu. When it comes time to build a house, I’ll also help you find a few reliable and steady men!” the village chief replied.

Jiang Ling nodded her thanks, then chatted with the village chief for a few more minutes before starting to plan the fertilizer plant project, explaining that both cotton and rice needed compound fertilizer.

It is a mixture of nitrogen fertilizer, phosphorus fertilizer and potassium fertilizer, which is not difficult to make, but Jiang Ling is having some trouble with how to promote it.

If you don't want this to be popular or have an immediate effect, it has to be placed on the ground, and it takes time to see the results.

Thinking of this, Jiang Ling frowned deeply, but then the image of Magistrate Duan's chubby face reappeared in her mind.

Jiang Ling quickly shook her head, trying to shake off this very manipulative thought. She knew perfectly well what Magistrate Duan thought of her, yet she still used this relationship to increase her own income. No matter how she thought about it, it felt very manipulative.

But then he thought that if chemical fertilizers were widely used and increased grain yields, then both the prefect and the emperor would most likely reward Magistrate Duan after they learned of this. Thinking about it this way, it seemed like a good thing for him.

Thinking of this, Jiang Ling's lips couldn't help but curl up slightly.

Jiang Ling worked almost all night to develop the design drawings and subsequent plans. The next morning, after preparing breakfast for the children, she took the drawings to the village chief's house.

The village chief and his wife looked completely bewildered at the blueprints, but they both believed that as long as they listened to Jiang Ling, they would be right, after all, she was now the only woman in the surrounding area.

The overall discussions went very smoothly, the land purchase went very well, and construction is scheduled for tomorrow. It's not a difficult task; all we need are three simple houses.

On her way back, Jiang Ling suddenly remembered her mala tang (spicy hot pot) shop. She had been busy going to Yecheng and Jiang Yaojie was getting engaged recently, so she had no time to take care of the mala tang shop.

Jiang Ling knew that this was a major taboo in business. If this spicy hot pot wasn't the only one of its kind in Pingxi County, the two shopkeepers who mainly cooperated with her would probably have terminated their contracts with her long ago.

Jiang Ling herself knew very well that she couldn't continue like this. She was probably too engrossed in her thoughts when she bumped into someone coming from the opposite direction.

"oops."

"Feel sorry!"

"Silly wife!"

After Jiang Ling apologized, she realized that the person she had bumped into was Zhao Erleng's wife. Zhao Erleng's wife was initially a little unhappy, but when she saw that the person who bumped into her was Jiang Ling, her expression immediately changed.

She asked with a smile, "What are you thinking about? You seem so lost in thought!"

Suddenly, an idea popped into Jiang Ling's mind. Without saying a word, she grabbed Zhao Erleng's wife's arm and said with a hint of excitement, "Sister-in-law Erleng, can I ask you for a favor?"

Zhao Erleng's wife immediately patted her chest and said, "What do you mean by 'please'? Just tell me what you need!"

Jiang Ling didn't respond directly, but instead led Zhao Erleng's wife towards her home.

"What? What did you say? You...you mean..." After hearing Jiang Ling's words, Zhao Erleng's wife suddenly stood up from her chair, staring wide-eyed with an incredulous expression.

Then, seemingly realizing he had spoken too loudly, he quickly covered his mouth, moved closer to Jiang Ling, and asked in a low voice, "You...you said you wanted me to take over your shop in the county town?"

“Sister-in-law, look, Yaojie is getting married soon, and I have other things to do. I really can’t manage the mala tang shop properly. We’ve been neighbors for so long, and I know what kind of people you and my brother are. I think it’s most suitable to hand this over to you!”

"The profits will be settled every three months, and we'll split them 30/70!" Jiang Ling explained.

Zhao Erleng's wife felt as if she had been struck on the head, her head buzzing. She couldn't hear what Jiang Ling was saying after that. She licked her dry lips and murmured, "I...I'm not dreaming, am I?"

Jiang Ling smiled faintly and explained, "I'm not dreaming, it's real. If you think 3/7 is too little, then let's go with 2/8. Yes, you get 8, and I get 2!"

"Ah! That...that won't do! You've been so kind to our family. A while ago, when you built your new house, you gave us a lot of copper coins! Now that you've handed over such a good business to me, how can I let you have two out of ten! We'll split it 40/60, I'll have four and you have six!" Zhao Erleng's wife was a little agitated at this point, and even her eyes were a little red. Her words began to become incoherent.

Jiang Ling gently patted Zhao Erleng's wife to signal her not to get so agitated, and then continued, "Sister-in-law, I know how you treated me before. Without the help you two gave me back then, I wouldn't be where I am today. Let's split it 30/70, don't try to refuse!"

Zhao Erleng's wife's eyes reddened even more. If she hadn't bitten her lip so hard, two lines of tears would have fallen by now. She nodded vigorously and said "Mmm" to Jiang Ling.