Chapter 117 Chapter 117 Xue Fenglin reluctantly left...
Xue Fenglin got out of the car reluctantly and put on a professional smile again.
"It's Lord Li!" Xue Fenglin got on Li Yuran's carriage with a smile on his face, and Madam Li got off the carriage wisely and came to Shen Xuan's side.
Mrs. Li is twenty-eight years old and has a shrewd face. She has been married to Li Yuran for many years and has a son and a daughter.
Li Yuran was born into a merchant family, and Mrs. Li was his mother's cousin, also from a merchant family. Different from the ladies from famous families in Beijing, she was better at using an abacus and keeping accounts than at embroidery or writing poetry.
At Lord Tang's residence, Shen Xuan was in the limelight, surrounded by many officials and their wives, and with the third lady of the Tang family accompanying him throughout the conversation, he had no chance to chat with Madam Li for a few more words.
Now that the two of them were sitting alone in the car, they actually had a chance to spend time together. In addition, Mrs. Li was also good at socializing, so she greeted Shen Xuan very naturally.
"Mr. Xue is really capable. He manages such a big shop by himself. I just went over there to see it. The business of the shop is booming. I guess you, Mr. Xue, must be very busy managing the accounts on weekdays, right?" said Mrs. Li.
"The shop's accounts are all done by the manager, I just need to look at the general ledger." Shen Xuan said: "I'm not really proficient in accounting, I don't usually look at the shop's accounts in detail."
Madam Li was a little surprised when she heard this, and couldn't help asking, "Aren't you afraid that your subordinates will cheat or accept bribes? After all, it's such a large amount of money, even if they keep some of it every day, it's still a considerable amount!"
Chen Xuan smiled and said, "If the water is too clear, there will be no fish. If you employ people, don't doubt them. I have a lot of things to do besides this shop. I usually focus on the big things and let go of the small things. Otherwise, I won't be able to manage so many things."
"I only look at the general turnover, how much is shipped each month, and how much profit is made. Just keep it basically the same. The manager can get a commission based on the turnover every month. The more you sell, the higher the commission. If you can't make money, you can just hire someone else. There's no need to waste time. As long as you're not stupid, you can run the shop well."
"Let's say the shop manager in Pengzhou has earned a turnover of 200 taels of silver in half a month. If the turnover exceeds 100 taels of silver, he can get a reward of 1 tael of silver. If the turnover exceeds 200 taels of silver, he can get a reward of 3 taels of silver. If the turnover exceeds 300 taels of silver, he can get a reward of 6 taels of silver, and so on."
"The more money the shop makes, the more rewards he gets every month. Plus the monthly salary of five taels of silver, he makes more than ten taels of silver a month. Even in Beijing, this is considered a good income."
Mrs. Li was shocked when she heard this, and thought to herself that Mr. Xue was really generous. He was so magnanimous as to give so much silver to his own steward.
A business manager could earn more than one hundred taels of silver a year, which was more than the annual salary of a minor official of the seventh or eighth rank. No wonder he is so confident that the people under his charge will work diligently!
Most people in the Jin Dynasty bought servants and used them like cattle and horses. The work has to be done, but apart from food and drink, the monthly salary is very little.
Even if you were a housekeeper, earning one or two taels of silver a month was considered a very high monthly salary.
But after Shen Xuan came back from a trip to the modern world and received more than 20 years of humanities education, he couldn't really treat servants as cattle and horses.
Because Da Jin did not have so-called intellectual property rights, in order to prevent the leakage of secrets, the indentures of these people were still in his hands.
But Shen Xuan still paid their monthly salary based on the normal salary in the modern world.
In the modern world, a shop manager can be considered a senior executive. He has many things to worry about, so his monthly salary is naturally higher.
Even the lowest-level employees, such as Shengfu Shengcai of the theater's Xianwei, were never treated unfairly by Shen Xuan. Not only do we have meat for every meal, but we also eat well and dress well. After all the miscellaneous expenses in a month, they would get more than one or two taels of silver, which they could use as they pleased.
The carriage traveled for more than an hour before finally arriving in Sarawak.
However, the vehicle did not stop in front of the Xue Mansion as usual, but went directly to the seaside pier. Because Xue Fenglin wanted to take Li Zhizhou to visit the sugar factory.
"Mrs. Li, please look, I have leased a piece of sandy land next to this, about 500 mu, and planted bananas, pineapples and sugar cane. They will be harvested next year and used to make sugar."
Mrs. Li lifted the curtain of the carriage and looked out. She saw a large stretch of sand that had been neatly divided into small fields. Green seedlings had already sprouted on each field, and someone was watering and cultivating the crops.
"Further ahead, there are another 300 acres of sandy land, all planted with sugarcane. The sugar factory is located near the dock. When the dock is repaired in the future, it will be more convenient to transport goods, and we can export from here to various places in Dajin."
Mrs. Li listened to Shen Xuan talking about the scenery outside Sarawak, and she became more and more impressed.
Sarawak now looks like a wasteland, but in Shen Xuan's words, it seems to have the outlines of a booming development. Somehow it makes people feel very credible.
Shen Xuan's insight, planning, and eloquence are much better than many men Madam Li has met.
She was just a housekeeper, but after listening to Shen Xuan's introduction, her heart was filled with excitement.
Especially when he talked about the planning of the wharf, Mrs. Li couldn't help but think of the private property she had. She thought that if she also invested in a shop on the wharf, wouldn't she be able to get a piece of the pie after the wharf was built? It would also be a good idea to leave more dowry for my daughter!
The carriage finally arrived near the sugar factory. The vehicle stopped, Xue Fenglin led Li Zhizhou down, and Shen Xuan and Madam Li also followed from the carriage.
"Mr. Xue, where is the pier you mentioned?" Mrs. Li looked around. Apart from a large sugar factory, there was nothing but wasteland and beach as far as the eye could see. ”
"It's over there." Chen Xuan pointed to a small pier made of wooden piles in the distance and said, "Although it has not been repaired yet, when the sugar factory's production increases in the future, it will definitely be renovated and turned into a shop, just like the Pengzhou pier."
"By that time, it will become a bustling place where every inch of land is worth a lot of money."
Madam Li: “…”
Originally, under Shen Xuan's encouragement, she had made up her mind to invest in a shop at the Sarawak Wharf. But now seeing this desolate beach, she couldn't help but back down.
"Madam Li, please come in with me." Shen Xuan saw the change in Madam Li's expression, but did not say much. He just smiled and asked her to follow him into the sugar factory.
In the sugar factory built of bricks and tiles, all the workers wear the same uniform, with turbans on their heads and gauze masks on their faces, looking particularly neat and clean.
"Why are the workers dressed like this?" It was the first time Mrs. Li saw such attire, and she asked in surprise.
"A business related to food must be clean." Shen Xuan said, "Workers have to go there to change clothes and wash their hands before going to work every day to ensure hygiene. This way, the cloud candies they make can be guaranteed to be clean and can be sold everywhere with confidence."
Upon hearing this, Mrs. Li secretly admired the sugar factory for its meticulous work, and she would feel more at ease eating the sugar in the future.
On her side, she followed Shen Xuan around the sugar factory and visited the workers' sugar-making process. Except for the key secret recipe of Yunduo Sugar, every other factory building open to her for a visit was spotlessly clean, and the raw materials used were also very clean.
After visiting the entire sugar factory, Mrs. Li said she wanted to buy some cloud candy.
Shen Xuan naturally refused to accept the money, and only told the steward to send someone to pack it for Madam Li and help her move it to the carriage, as a gift to Madam Li to meet her.
At this time, Xue Fenglin and Li Yuran seemed to have finished their conversation. They walked out one after the other, with a look of satisfaction on their faces.
Li Yuran saw that the worker who was helping Madam Li move the cloud sugar was a female worker, so he stopped her and asked, "Just now I saw that many of the workers in this sugar factory are women and men. Do you recruit workers without distinguishing gender? Or is it because the men in the family are out fishing?"
The woman was Yingniang. She was suddenly stopped by an adult in official uniform and felt very nervous. She stammered, "To answer your question, my husband has passed away, leaving me with only my mother and I. The governor's husband took pity on me and hired me to work in the factory so that I could earn some living expenses."
Li Yuran was stunned and glanced at Shen Xuan. Then he nodded and let her go.
It was already late, so Xue Fenglin invited Li Yuran and his wife to his house. After dinner, they rested for the night and took a carriage home the next morning.
After leaving Xue's house, Madam Li hesitated for a while before asking, "My husband, do you think the construction of the wharf in Sarawak is reliable?"
Although Madam Li is the housekeeper on weekdays, she has never been involved in political affairs. I specifically asked Li Yuran today because I was still thinking about the investment and didn't know whether I should put my own private money on the line.
Li Yuran had no idea of Mrs. Li's deeper meaning and thought it was just a casual question. He said to her, "This Magistrate Xue is a capable man. I've seen that all his plans are well-founded and well-planned, not just something he came up with randomly."
"Her husband is also very capable, helping him to handle many matters, and he is no less capable than a man. The most valuable thing is that I saw him taking in the widow to work yesterday, which shows that he is a kind and righteous person. The actions of such people are reassuring. As long as the people are willing, I think this matter can be accomplished!"
Li Yuran's words stirred up new waves in Mrs. Li's heart.
Jianzhou’s coconut oil is sold to Huadu thanks to the connections with Mrs. Li’s family. Mrs. Li’s family is engaged in the coconut oil-related business, and coconut oil, coconut soap, etc. sell well.
Mrs. Li also opened a small shop in Jianzhou selling coconut oil-related products, getting the goods from her parents' home. Although her daily business was not booming, it was still good. With an annual revenue of seven or eight hundred taels of silver, it was already one of the best among the officials' families sent out to other places.
Although Li Yuran came from a merchant family, he became an official and the family property was inherited by his brothers.
Being an official is respectable, but how can you make as much money as a businessman? Although Li Yuran had financial support from his family, he was not rich after all.
The only land in the family was left for his son to marry, and for a bastard son who was born a concubine! There isn't much left to leave for my daughter!
As a woman, Madam Li knows that if a woman wants to live a good life after getting married, she must have money in her hands!
She wants to leave the shop she owns now to her son. If the shop at Sarawak Wharf is successful, she can leave it to her daughter, so that she will have some confidence after she gets married.
Thinking of this, Mrs. Li’s mind began to echo the words that Shen Xuan said to her in the carriage yesterday. So I gritted my teeth and made up my mind to give it a try!
When she returned to Jianzhou at noon, Madam Li wrote a letter to Shen Xuan. The letter mentioned the shop at Sarawak Wharf that Shen Xuan mentioned, and stated that he also wanted to invest in it.
"This Madam Li, her family runs a coconut oil business in Huadu." Shen Xuan said to Xue Fenglin holding the letter she sent, "I was chatting with her in the carriage, and when we talked about the affairs of the sugar factory, she told me about her family's financial situation."
"You are quite good at asking questions." Xue Fenglin smiled when he heard this. Although Shen Xuan usually looks serious, he is actually a smart person. After chatting with Mrs. Li all the way, I got to know the path behind Jianzhou's development.
"Mrs. Li wants to open a shop at the Sarawak wharf to sell coconut oil and coconut soap." Shen Xuan said to Xue Fenglin, "But I think opening a shop is just a small thing and not very meaningful."
"Since she has coconut oil resources, why not use them to open a coconut oil-related workshop and produce skin care cream made from coconut oil? Wouldn't she make more money?"
"Isn't your Xuanzifang in Beijing planning to make skin cream?" Xue Fenglin asked in confusion, "This is obviously a profitable business, why do you want to bring in outsiders to invest?"
"I'm not a jack of all trades, so how can I have the time to keep an eye on so many businesses?" Shen Xuan said helplessly, "I'm already very busy, so I haven't had time to work on the Jingzhong skin cream. I think Madam Li is also smart and capable, so why not let her take some shares and help me keep an eye on this business."
"When the products are ready, they will still be sold under the Xuanji brand. The shop in the capital will still be mine, but the shop in Sarawak will be given to her. I will just take a share of the profits."
Xue Fenglin knew that while he was busy outside, Shen Xuan was not idle either.
Now that I hear him say in person that he is too busy, I still feel a little sad. Then she hugged him and said, "Whatever you say, if you are really tired, just forget about it and have a good rest at home!"
"No, I can't sit still." Shen Xuan deliberately said, "You don't know how much we spent a few days ago. Silver is like running water. Thousands of taels are invested in the fields and then they are gone. It's only after the Yunduo sugar is sold these days that we start to make money."
"I have to help you build Sarawak as soon as possible and get back the capital we invested!"
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