Chapter 70 Establishing a Workshop for Elderly Care
Unable to indulge himself, Ye Li naturally stayed in bed the next morning.
Jiang Ji finished making breakfast before he slowly got up.
At this moment, the Ye family father and his two sons arrived.
Jiang Liu also finished grinding the beans with the mule—after Ye Li's persistent persuasion, Jiang Liu finally agreed to use his own mule to grind the beans.
Actually, Ye Li had suggested this when the mule was first bought.
But Jiang Liu disagreed.
If she makes a mule push the millstone, it's like she's doing nothing at all. How can she possibly accept ten coins a day for that?
Given the relationship between the two families, Ye Li could easily keep the mule at his own home and grind beans himself every morning by pulling the mule cart. Jiang Dahe would never refuse Ye Li's request.
Therefore, even though Ye Li repeatedly emphasized that he had a mule but was unwilling to do the job, Jiang Liu still disagreed.
She's already used to pushing it.
Furthermore, now that the family is better off, although they don't eat meat often, Liang Erxiang uses plenty of soybean oil and lard when cooking, and they can eat eggs every day.
She was so full of energy after eating!
She's not afraid of being tired!
She wanted to earn this wage!
Ye Li couldn't force Jiang Liu to make this request, so she could only comply.
Just a few days ago, Jiang Liu finished making her own jacket and wanted to make a new one for Ye Li. Ye Li offered to give her a fee for her hard work, but she refused to accept it. Only then did she agree to use a mule to grind the beans.
Mules grind beans much faster than humans, and Ye Li finished grinding them just as her family finished preparing breakfast.
With everyone present, the meal was served, and Jiang Liu was eating here again today.
Breakfast was simple: sweet potato rice soup, pickled vegetables, cornbread, and a steamed egg for each person.
I ate too much oily food yesterday, so I need to eat something light today.
At the dinner table, Ye Li brought up the matter of setting up a tofu puff workshop.
"A tofu puff workshop?" Jiang Liu was taken aback and asked first.
"Yes, let's set up a small workshop."
Ye Li nodded.
"What kind of workshop?" Jiang Liu pressed.
This is crucial to whether she will still have the job of grinding grain.
Actually, she has recently been thinking about quitting this job. Now she has a mule at home, and it is the off-season for farming, so the mule is idle all day long.
Under normal circumstances, the mule should be lent to Yeli so that Yeli can use it to grind grain.
She postponed it for so many days, which is equivalent to her getting paid for nothing every day.
So she decided to quit the job.
If Ye Lijian were to make tofu puffs, that would be wonderful; she could do other jobs.
She can do any job!
"Brother Li, what kind of workshop do you want to build?" Ye Liang asked hurriedly.
Ye Li swallowed the soup in his mouth and explained, "It's just setting up a shed on the west side..."
He pointed to the west side of the courtyard and began to explain in detail.
His initial idea was to involve the entire village, with everyone contributing funds to build a detached house in the village specifically for processing tofu puffs.
He couldn't afford to build such a large workshop on his own.
If the whole village wants a share of the profits, then the whole village has to contribute money.
But after listening to Jiang Ji's words last night, he suddenly understood.
There's no need to set up such a large operation first. Let's start with a trial run and get the fried tofu puff business out there first.
If the business is small, everything is easier.
Once the new house is built, we'll expand it to the west and build two large greenhouses.
The shed was built in a rather simple way, with one side leaning against the courtyard wall and the other two sides constructed of adobe bricks.
As for the front, there's no need for a door there; after all, a shed doesn't have doors to begin with.
The roof of the shed is easy to build. Just cut a few logs from the mountain, build a large wooden frame on the roof, and then put thatched mats inside the frame. That should be enough.
At that time, the roofs of the thatched houses of poor families were all covered with thatched mats.
However, their thatched huts are proper dwellings; they are not only covered with many layers, but also with thick layers, requiring several layers to be laid.
But our shed is only in trial operation, so it's just passable. Anyway, there's only snow in winter, no rain.
Even if it snows, you can just stand on the wall and sweep it with a big broom.
Therefore, keep everything simple.
One of these two sheds houses a stone mill.
One is placed on the stove.
The shed for the stone mills needs to be large because he plans to use livestock to pull the millstones, and three stone mills need to operate simultaneously.
The shed for the stoves can be a little smaller, with five stoves for making soy milk, curdling tofu, and frying tofu puffs.
So, all he needs to do is buy some more adobe bricks, five iron pots, and two stone mills, and that's it.
With his current savings, he can easily afford it.
As soon as Ye Li finished speaking, Jiang Liu breathed a sigh of relief.
That's perfect, saves her the trouble of quitting the job.
Moreover, her brother Li wants to set up five stoves!
We'll definitely need someone's help.
So she hurriedly asked, "Brother Li, since we're using animals to pull the millstone, what kind of work can I do?"
"Exactly, exactly. You're building five stoves, can you manage it all by yourself? What are you planning to do about making the tofu?"
Ye Liang also quickly asked.
This is the most crucial thing!
“I’ll hire someone. If you were nearby, I would definitely ask you. This is a job that needs to be done very early in the morning, and you can’t come over. So I’m planning to ask Xiao Liu.”
Ye Li pointed to Jiang Liu.
"Me?" Jiang Liu was taken aback, almost thinking she had misheard.
"Yes, I trust you, so I want to hire you to do this job for me. It's thirty coins a day, and you'll only be doing this one job. Are you in?" Ye Li asked with a smile.
"I...I..."
Looking at Ye Li's smiling face, Jiang Liu felt a lump in her throat, and her eyes instantly filled with tears.
She was like water that was to be poured out, but her brother Li never took precautions against her because of that.
Whether it's preserved egg or tofu puffs, trust her!
Thirty coins a day, that's nine hundred coins a month!
She's just an ordinary country girl, what merit does she possess!
Filled with emotion and joy, she nodded hurriedly, "I'll do it, I'm willing to do it, Brother Li, don't worry, I will never tell anyone the recipe, I won't get married! I..."
Suddenly remembering that Ye's father and son were also present, she stopped speaking immediately.
But then I thought that the Ye family father and son might not agree to this – with winter approaching, the number of tourists in Baxian Town has decreased significantly, and the Ye family could easily move over and do this work if they wanted!
Thinking of this, she disregarded her shame, wiped away the tears in her eyes with the back of her hand, and explained, "Brother Li, I'm not getting married. I've been planning to find a son-in-law to live with me for a long time. Don't worry, I will keep this a secret for you for the rest of my life. I will never reveal it!"
But Ye Li was stunned after hearing this.
He had originally intended to say a few words of comfort when he saw Jiang Liu moved to tears, but who knew that Jiang Liu would say such a thing.
His words caused a stir among everyone at the table!
The Ye family father and son also stopped chewing and stared at her in shock.
Jiang Ji frowned and asked, "Has your second uncle arranged another marriage for you?"
"No." Jiang Liu lowered her head, somewhat embarrassed.
She explained, "I've had this idea for a long time. My father always says that no one will take care of him in his old age. If I find a son-in-law, then someone will take care of him in his old age."
Ye Li: "..."
Jiang Ji: "..."
The two of them couldn't help but think at the same time that before the egg-changing business, given Jiang Liu's circumstances, the threshold for finding a son-in-law would have to be very low—
If there's no other way, what man would be willing to become a live-in son-in-law?
A girl who's only sixteen!
Ye Li suppressed her emotions, raised her face with a smile, and said, "Xiao Liu, your idea is ambitious! I support you."
“Now that our conditions are better, ever since we started selling preserved eggs, matchmakers have been coming to our village very frequently. Besides, you have a scholar cousin. You can choose carefully and you won’t have to worry about not being able to find someone.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Ji immediately chimed in, "Your brother Li is right. While you're still young, take your time to choose carefully. You'll definitely find a good one."
"You haven't told your second uncle yet, have you?"
"...No. I didn't tell anyone before."
Jiang Liu gently shook her head, her heart filled with even deeper emotion.
Both Brother Li and Brother Ji supported her without hesitation!
As for her father...
She would never have dared to say that before.
With her qualifications, she still wants to find a husband? If word gets out, she'll be laughed to death.
"Then I'll tell him later that we do have the confidence to choose people now, it's not wishful thinking, and he'll definitely support it."
Jiang Jidao.
"Yes, there's no time like the present, let's talk about it today. We can also mention the workshop project. It's in my second uncle's interest, so he'll definitely agree."
Ye Li also said.
Jiang Dahe had always worried that no one would take care of him in his old age, but now that Jiang Liu was looking for a son-in-law, it solved Jiang Dahe's biggest fear.
Jiang Dahe must be happy.
Jiang Liu: "..."
She mustered her courage, raised her head, and looked at Ye Li and Jiang Ji.
Seeing the two men looking at her with smiles or encouragement, tears welled up in her eyes again.
She nodded gently: "Okay."
"Then hurry up and eat. After you finish eating, go home. Your second uncle will be here soon."
Ye Li said with a smile.
Jiang Liu quickly nodded and picked up the pancake again.
The three members of the Ye family, father and sons, stared blankly at the scene, wanting to say something, but not knowing what to say.
They had no say in Jiang Liu's life-changing marriage.
As for having Jiang Liu make the tofu...
For the past six months or so, Ye Da had mostly come over in the afternoon, which coincided with Jiang Liu's grinding time, so he hadn't seen Jiang Liu grinding beans many times.
But he knew how tiring this job was. Jiang Liu, a young girl, had persevered for more than half a year, which was enough to show that she could endure hardship.
Although being able to endure hardship and being able to keep secrets are not directly related, the young lady was already working so hard, and this business didn't belong to the Ye family, so Ye Liang kept quiet.
Ye Li has already made her decision, what else can he say?
No matter what he says, Ye Li won't listen.
Even so, he's still not disliked.
But clearly, relying solely on Ye Li and Jiang Liu would not be enough to handle the situation.
He coughed and asked, "Li-ge'er, there are five stoves. With just you and Xiao-liu, you can't manage, can you? Your father has nothing to do at home. Why don't you ask your father to come over?"
"Father?" Ye Li asked in surprise.
“Yes, once winter comes, there’s no work in the fields, and Dad and Xiaowen are both at home, so Dad suddenly has a lot of free time.”
“Besides, once the warm pavilion is built, you will move in, and then the main room will be empty. When Father comes, there will be a place for him to stay.”
Ye Li: "..."
That's really true.
If Father Ye were to come, then the three of them—himself, Jiang Liu, and Father Ye—would be enough.
Moreover, given Ye's personality, he'd probably even take over the job of frying tofu puffs.
As for Jiang Tong, he could do the work of grinding soybeans, since his original plan was to rent Jiang Tong's ox to pull the millstone.
"Brother Yi and Brother Yu won't have any objections, will they?" he asked.
Upon hearing this, Ye Liang and Ye Wen shook their heads simultaneously: "We have no objections."
"There will be no objection."
After winter sets in, fewer diners come to town, and business isn't as busy.
With some free time, Liu Yi and Tang Yu had time to do housework.
Ye Daji also said, "Let your father do it; he can handle this job."
“Alright, let Father come. He’s my own father, and I’ll pay him a higher wage.” Ye Li agreed.
"It's fine if you don't pay," Ye Daji said.
He didn't bring Ye A-die over for the wages; he felt most at ease having the recipe in the hands of his own people.
The more outsiders who know, the greater the risk of leakage.
“How can I not pay? Even brothers keep clear accounts. Father isn’t just my father.”
Ye Li persisted.
“Yes, Father, he came to help me and Ye Li, how can we let him do all this for nothing.”
Jiang Ji also said.
"What's saved still belongs to the two of you," Ye Daji said.
"Once this workshop is built, I won't be short of money. If I can make hundreds of kilograms of tofu puffs a day, wouldn't I be rich?"
Ye Li said with a smile.
Ye Liang, standing to the side, was perfectly aware of the situation.
You can earn six coins for a pound of tofu puffs. If you can make three hundred pounds, you can earn eighteen hundred coins a day!
However, making so many tofu puffs can't be done with just these few people.
In particular, Ye Li just emphasized that Jiang Liu only needs to make tofu.
So he said, "Give it to me if you want. But besides Xiaoliu and Father, are you planning to hire anyone else?"
Ye Li nodded matter-of-factly: "Of course, there are five stoves. I'll just make tofu and leave everything else to myself."
Ye Liang: "...Then who else do you want to hire?"
"Let Brother Datong and Second Uncle grind the grain, and Xiaoliu and Father make tofu. If we're going to fry tofu puffs, then..."
Before Ye Li could finish speaking, Ye Liang couldn't stand it anymore and immediately interrupted him: "You want to hire more people? Datong and Second Uncle can also fry tofu puffs, plus me, isn't that enough people?"
Jiang Liu calmed down a bit at this moment. After listening to Ye Liang's words, she immediately said, "Brother Li, I can also fry tofu puffs. You pay me so much, I can't be ashamed to only work for a short while in the morning."
“You still have to make preserved eggs. Your second uncle also has to drive his mule cart into town to buy eggs from time to time,” Ye Li said.
"With Mother and Yu-ge here, I don't need to worry about the egg-changing matter."
"Furthermore, although Uncle Jun is not in good health, frying tofu puffs should not be a problem for him."
Jiang Liudao.
"That's right, our own people are enough, so don't even think about looking for anyone else."
Ye Daji made sure to emphasize this point.
If all else fails, he'll come over too.
Anyway, winter is a quiet time, and even his old bones can get a lot of work done.
Ye Daji's words resonated with Jiang Liu. She quickly reached out to Ye Li to count the number of people in her family, Jiang Tong's family, and Ye's family. There were nearly twenty people in total. Couldn't they afford to run a small workshop?
Even so, I'll be so busy I won't have time to rest.
It's good to be busy; I get anxious when I'm idle!
It's still better to make money.
The Ye family, father and sons, and Jiang Liu all insisted on using only their own family members. However, considering that they also had to make preserved eggs and that frying tofu puffs would take an entire afternoon, Ye's father was too old to suffer like that just to save on labor costs.
Also, since we're going to set up a workshop, shouldn't we at least involve Jiang Fuzheng?
It's still necessary for Jiang Fuzheng, the clan chief and village head, to cultivate a closer relationship with them.
As everyone was talking, they finished their simple breakfast, and Jiang Dahe, Jiang Tong, and the hired bricklayers and laborers arrived.
At that moment, the sky was just beginning to lighten.
The three members of the Ye family, father and sons, asked Ye Li to reconsider.
Ye Li nodded in agreement, but in her heart she had no intention of changing her mind. She decided to leave the task of frying tofu puffs to an outsider.
After he finished cleaning the kitchen, he filtered the soybean residue with Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya.
The two little ones no longer need to go out to cut grass, but Jiang Ji is busy with work and doesn't have time to teach them to read, so he sends them up the mountain to collect firewood and tells them to play in the afternoon.
The two little ones went out, and after Ye Li pressed the tofu down, he returned to the west room.
He needs to calculate exactly how many people he needs to hire.
First, three millstones require three animals.
But two people are enough to look after the livestock.
The livestock will walk around the millstone on their own; there's no need to lead them around.
This task will be assigned to Jiang Tong and Jiang Dahe.
Both of them owned livestock.
The third animal was rented from a villager.
The step of setting the tofu was done by him, Jiang Liu, and Uncle Ye.
To fry tofu puffs, you need five stoves, so you'll need five people.
Jiang Dachuan, Liang Erxiang, Jiang Yu, Ye Liang, and one more person from Jiang Fuzheng's family, that's it.
Moreover, with so many tofu puffs, it would definitely have to be sold to small restaurants in the city first, just like preserved eggs, and then delivered daily.
This job will probably fall to Jiang Tong.
When you do the math, it really is true that this workshop could be set up using only family members.
Excellent!
To be honest, he also prefers to use his own people whenever possible.
Having made up my mind, the next step was to call all three families together for a family meeting.
Open tonight!
On the other side, Jiang Ji and his group were busy until almost noon. Seeing Ye Li go into the kitchen to prepare lunch, Jiang Ji said to Jiang Dahe, who was carrying blue bricks to build a wall, "Second Uncle, we're raising the roof beam tomorrow. Why don't you go buy some offerings and snacks for the worship this afternoon?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Dahe immediately agreed: "Okay."
"Then let's go find Ye Li and discuss what to buy. We're young and don't know much about this."
Jiang Ji pointed to the kitchen.
Jiang Dahe was pleased to hear this; he liked feeling needed. He nodded and said, "Okay!"
Now that they had finished discussing it, he decided to go to the county town during lunchtime so that he wouldn't miss his work in the afternoon.
So the two of them came down from the wooden scaffolding—the main walls of the house were now taller than Jiang Ji, and if they built any higher, they would have to use scaffolding.
The two walked toward the kitchen.
Upon entering the kitchen, Jiang Jixian began to discuss the sacrificial offerings needed for the Liang sacrifice.
According to custom, when the main beam of a house is installed, a ritual must be performed to pray for good fortune and a smooth process.
This roof-raising ceremony is extremely important and cannot be taken lightly. Even poor families have to prepare offerings. Now that his family is doing well, the offerings must be even more plentiful.
It looks like a pig's head; this is a must-have.
Other pastries, candies, peanuts, etc., should also be prepared in sufficient quantities, as all the villagers will come to witness the ceremony, and these will be distributed to the villagers.
Jiang Ji understood, but he pretended not to, and listened to Jiang Dahe talk about these things with great interest.
The pig's head must be fresh. Today's trip was mainly to greet the butcher so that I could go to the city to pick it up early tomorrow morning.
Today I mainly bought some candies and snacks.
After listening to Jiang Dahe's words, Ye Li smiled and asked, "Second Uncle, is two strings of cash enough?"
"That's enough, we definitely won't use it all."
That should be fine as long as it's consistent.
"Okay, I'll go back to the room and get you the money," Ye Li said, heading out of the kitchen.
"Let Xiao Ji go, the copper coins are too heavy," Jiang Dahe said, pointing at Jiang Ji.
Jiang Ji chuckled: "Second Uncle, I have something else to say to you."
"What did you say?" Jiang Dahe asked curiously.
Ye Li took this opportunity to leave the kitchen.
Although taking in a son-in-law was beneficial to Jiang Dahe and a joyous occasion, Jiang Dahe had always hoped that Jiang Ji would support him in his old age.
He wasn't sure how Jiang Dahe would react, so he went back inside first and let Jiang Ji have a proper talk with Jiang Dahe.
As soon as Ye Li came out of the kitchen, Jiang Ji did not hesitate and said the most important thing first: "Second Uncle, ever since my father passed away, you have treated me, Xiaomai, and Ya Ge'er as if they were your own children."
“Although you are not our father, you have done no less for us than our father. Therefore, I have long made up my mind that I will take care of you in your old age.”
Jiang Ji spoke these words with a serious expression, and they were his true feelings.
Jiang Dahe has done so much for the three brothers, and he must repay them.
However, his words came as abruptly to Jiang Dahe.
Jiang Dahe was stunned.
Jiang Dahe had always hoped that Jiang Ji would take care of him in his old age, but over the years he only dared to think about it in his heart and never explicitly mentioned it to Jiang Ji.
When his eldest brother passed away, Jiang Ji was thirteen years old, Jiang Mai was two years old, and Jiang Ya was only three months old.
If he openly says that he will only raise Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya if they take care of him in his old age, that would be nothing short of blackmail and taking advantage of their vulnerability, showing no mercy and only seeking a transaction!
He genuinely loved his nephew Jiang Ji. His nephew had just lost his parents, and it would be too hurtful for his uncle to be so ugly.
Furthermore, even if Jiang Ji doesn't support him in his old age, he can't just stand by and watch Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya die.
So he didn't say anything back then.
As Jiang Ji grew older, he not only grew taller but also became more composed and decisive. Whenever he saw Jiang Ji's somewhat sharp eyes and brows, he became even more embarrassed to say it.
He is not Jiang Ji's biological father.
Now that Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya are grown up, if Jiang Ji really doesn't support him in his old age, there's nothing he can do.
Fearing that saying these things would anger Jiang Ji, he could only keep his thoughts to himself, waiting for the day when he was really unable to work anymore before going to Jiang Ji to play the victim and beg for help.
Later, Ye Li married into the family, and she did say that Jiang Ji would take care of him in his old age.
But Ye Li wasn't Jiang Ji himself, so he was still a little uneasy.
But who would have thought that Jiang Ji would bring it up on his own initiative!
After a moment of stunned silence, he was overwhelmed with joy. He was so happy he couldn't stop smiling. He wanted to raise his hand to pat Jiang Ji's shoulder, but when he got halfway up, he saw that his hands were covered in mud, so he put his hand back down.
He said with undisguised joy, "Xiao Ji, I knew you were a good person! Your second uncle was right about you!"
"I didn't misjudge you! Hahahaha..."
He burst into laughter, truly overjoyed.
My long-cherished wish has come true!
Seeing this, Jiang Ji smiled.
Before his father was still alive, his second uncle was worried about his future care and often talked about it.
Later, after his father passed away, his second uncle wanted to raise Xiaomai and Yage'er, and also wanted to support his education. He was deeply moved.
He really wanted to say, "Second Uncle, I'll take care of you in your old age."
But if he were to say it, it would make him seem like he was full of scheming and trying to coax his second uncle into treating Xiaomai and Yage'er more attentively.
So he kept those words to himself.
He only intends to prove his feelings through concrete actions.
Now that the uncle and nephew have finally spoken their minds, he is happy.
Taking in a son-in-law would indeed be beneficial to Jiang Dahe, but he wanted Jiang Dahe to know that if the son-in-law was not of good character, he would definitely take responsibility.
He is genuinely willing to support Jiang Dahe in his old age, and he will not shirk this responsibility.
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