Chapter 94 Jiang Ji is back to buy taro, and Boss Yue is here again...
Zheng's grain shop still has more than 20,000 jin of taro.
After all, a batch was just shipped back in the last few days.
Based on previous years' experience, this batch is the last one this year, and it will be sold gradually until after the Lunar New Year.
Before taro paste appeared, people in Beiyang County used taro to cook dishes, which were salty.
Taro is expensive and its taste isn't particularly amazing, so it hasn't become very popular.
But things are different now; taro paste has appeared.
Given the popularity of taro paste, even if we bought all these taro, it would only last until the Lunar New Year.
Moreover, taro is a seasonal food, available only in autumn and winter.
If we don't stock up now, we'll have to wait until next autumn if we want to eat it again.
Yu Cai then suggested that the people from Zheng's shop go south again to buy another batch of taro.
Taro can be preserved for up to six months if buried in sand.
Zheng's Grain Shop relied on this method to transport and store taro.
He wanted to extend the supply period of taro paste as much as possible.
Ten coins per catty, so 40,000 catties would only amount to 400 taels of silver.
He can afford it.
He shared this idea with Manager Zheng, who was then faced with a dilemma.
Because Zheng's grain shop sold taro, it didn't actually make any money.
The taro sold at Zheng's Grain Shop was bought from a neighboring province.
Is it really that far?
But in this season, with good walking luck, one can only walk a hundred miles at most in a day.
A mule cart or horse cart can only carry about 1,500 catties of goods.
Moreover, one-third of the weight is sand – the taro has to be buried in the sand.
Based on this calculation, one vehicle can only transport one thousand catties of taro.
If you bring the taro back to Beiyang County, you can sell it for ten coins per pound, which will bring you back ten taels of silver.
But that's just the selling price.
In the neighboring province, a pound of taro costs three copper coins, and just buying taro would cost three taels of silver.
Adding in the costs of feeding the livestock and labor along the way, the final profit for a cartload is only a little over one or two taels.
Dozens of vehicles went out, and after working for more than a month, they finally earned a few dozen taels of silver.
This means we didn't make any money.
It's just that their boss had a taste for this kind of thing, plus the shop always needed to sell something, and in winter the carriage business was slow with many carriages sitting idle, so Zheng's Grain Shop started dealing in this.
Otherwise, why would the Zheng family go through all that trouble for a few dozen taels of silver in the dead of winter?
Now that Yu Cai wants to make another trip to Zheng's grain shop, it will cost extra money.
Moreover, even without heavy snow blocking the roads, it would still delay the New Year celebrations.
If there is heavy snow, it will take even longer.
Yu Cai wasn't angry after hearing these words.
He was also a businessman, and in business, he would only earn a few dozen taels of silver per trip, so he wouldn't even consider it a business, let alone one for the Zheng family.
So, after some haggling, he paid an extra hundred taels of silver to finalize the deal.
Forty thousand catties of taro, priced at four hundred taels.
Pay an extra 100 taels, then the total will be 500 taels.
After finalizing the deal, he also bought up almost all of the more than 20,000 jin of taro in the store.
Ten coins per catty, this cost another two hundred taels.
This was a last resort for him. If someone else bought taro to study it, regardless of whether they could figure it out or not, it would still delay Banxianju's business.
With a sudden expenditure of seven hundred taels, his small treasury shrank by more than half in an instant.
But when he went home and told his father and elder brother about it, they both supported him.
This business has great potential, and we really need to secure most of the taro now.
His father wanted to give him some more money in case of emergency.
But he refused.
Banxianju's repayments are quite fast.
He didn't have any urgent need for money, and he could slowly save up his savings from his small treasury.
He's also preparing to take the taro, which has been sitting idle for a while, off the shelves.
Taro is used in hot pot; one serving is half a pound and costs only twelve coins.
However, if it is made into taro paste, the profit can be increased significantly.
I bought the taro, and now all I have to do is wait for Ye Li to arrive.
Ye Li has been going to the county town every day for the past two days.
But he didn't go to find Jiang Ji.
He was helping Bao Beiyuan and Jiang Shun make taro paste.
However, Bao Beiyuan's courtyard was really too small.
Taro, on the other hand, needs to be cooked in a large pot and on a large stove.
Boiling goat milk also requires a large pot and a large stove.
Cleaning taro is a tedious task. You can't touch it with your hands; you have to hold it down with one hand and slowly scrub it with a brush in the other.
Bao Beiyuan's small courtyard wasn't big enough; he couldn't really work out properly.
Also, making condensed milk is a skill that requires time and effort; you have to slowly stir and simmer it.
With all these reasons combined, Ye Li decided to cook taro and make condensed milk in the village.
Anyway, his family's several large iron pots were all idle.
In this way, Bao Beiyuan and Jiang Shun only need to prepare the tea and milk.
That morning, Ye Li finished making the taro paste at home and delivered it to Banxianju before noon.
He handed the taro paste to Manager Xing, who told him with a smile that the taro paste had arrived just in time, as there was a table of diners who had come specifically to taste the taro paste and were only eating the hot pot as a side dish.
Ye Li didn't expect that customers would come specifically for the taro paste so quickly.
He was pleased and chatted with Manager Xing for a while before going to Yu Cai's courtyard to finalize the daily supply volume with her.
In the future, there will only be more and more customers who come specifically for taro paste, and the popularity of taro paste milk green tea will definitely surpass that of soy milk rice mochi.
Yesterday, he, Bao Beiyuan, and Jiang Shun made fifty catties of taro paste, which was twenty-five catties per meal, and they sold out easily.
Those who arrive late won't get to taste it at all.
Therefore, the supply volume needs to be increased.
Yu Cai was looking forward to his arrival. When he came in, she immediately put down the account book in her hand and said with a smile, "I was just thinking about you."
"Talking about me? What's wrong?"
Ye Li sat down at the table and poured herself a cup of tea.
"I steamed some taro paste in buns when I got back, and it was really delicious."
"But the filling was only enough to taste, so I wanted to buy the taro paste recipe so I could slowly research different ways to eat it."
Yu Cai explained.
Upon hearing this, Ye Li stopped drinking water and pretended to be angry, saying, "Brother Cai, are you looking down on me by saying that? You don't charge me a penny when I come to Banxianju for meals, so how can I take your money for such a small prescription?"
Yu Cai hurriedly explained, "Weren't you saving money to buy a yard?"
"A wise man earns his wealth in a proper way. There's no rush to buy the yard; we can buy it next winter."
"Really?" Yu Cai was somewhat skeptical.
Ye Li nodded: "Of course it's true. After the New Year, when the weather gets warmer, I can pick Jiang Ji up from school every day. Living in the village is much more comfortable than living in the city."
"That's true."
This reason made Yu Cai give up on trying to persuade him.
Indeed, there is a new house in Yeligai Village, with family members, mountains, forests, and fields.
Moreover, you can pick up your sweetheart every day, how wonderful!
He smiled and said, "Since that's the case, then I won't refuse you, so as not to hurt our relationship."
"That's how it is. Friends share good food with each other, and talking about money will hurt feelings."
Ye Li kept a straight face.
"It was my fault. Here's what we'll do: I'll send someone to pick up Jiang Ji right away. You two can go to the third floor. I won't disturb your meal, okay?"
These words struck a chord with Ye Li. She had been busy making taro paste for the past three days and could only meet with Jiang Ji once in the evening.
There wasn't even time to eat a meal.
A smile immediately appeared on his face: "No need for that. We can just eat something on the first floor. He'll be on holiday in two days anyway. I'll teach you how to make taro paste after dinner."
"By the way, how much taro does Zheng's grain shop have left? If they're out, then we won't be able to make this taro paste."
When the matter was brought up, Yu Cai told him about the business deal that had been agreed upon the day before.
From now on, if Ye Li needs to buy taro, she can just go to him.
Ye Li never expected that the taro, which cost ten coins per catty, was actually a charity donation from the Zheng family.
In this day and age, it's really hard to satisfy your appetite.
But it's okay.
The cost will ultimately come from the consumer; if Zheng raises prices, Banxianju should follow suit.
Anyway, taro paste doesn't make money off ordinary people.
He had no choice.
After discussing this matter, Yu Cai sent someone to pick up Jiang Ji and Peng Ximing.
After confirming that Ye Li didn't need a private room and didn't want to eat hot pot, Yu Cai asked the chef to make stir-fried dishes.
On the other hand, Peng Ximing hitched a ride again today, and he was quite happy.
It saves effort and allows you to work a little longer!
Arriving at Banxianju, he put on his robe and hurried away.
Jiang Ji went to have dinner with Ye Li.
The three moved to the first floor of the semi-secluded residence, where Yu Cai ordered dishes: stir-fried mutton with scallions, stir-fried dried bean curd, braised pork belly with vermicelli, and stir-fried cabbage with vinegar.
This food was just as good as hot pot. Jiang Ji ate three flatbreads in one go with Banxianju's flatbreads.
Afterwards, he returned to the county school with Peng Ximing, while Ye Li stayed behind to teach Yu Cai how to make taro paste.
The most important step in making taro paste is making condensed milk. Once you learn this, you'll know how to make taro paste.
Yu Cai had studied cooking before, and Ye Li only demonstrated the method once before he mastered it.
This made him unable to resist praising Ye Li for being so clever.
That's way too easy!
But it was Ye Li who came up with the idea.
Ye Li definitely deserves to make money!
He excitedly went home to prepare delicious food, while Ye Li also drove his oxcart home.
Based on the sales of taro paste this noon, Yu Cai asked him to deliver 70 jin of goods tomorrow, and then increase the amount according to the sales situation.
Seventy catties a day.
That's easy to explain. After the taro is cooked, it will absorb water and its weight will increase slightly.
Moreover, condensed milk and goat milk are added when mashing the taro paste. To make seventy catties of taro paste, you only need to cook seventy catties of taro.
This task isn't too difficult.
After entering the village, he drove the oxcart to Jiang Dahe's house.
First, the oxcart must be placed at Jiang Dahe's house.
Secondly, he wanted Jiang Liu to cook taro for him.
Jiang Yu was put in charge of making condensed milk.
Neither of these tasks is strenuous; even including the time spent milking the sheep and washing the taro, it can be done in an hour.
I can spend an hour getting ready before or after breakfast, but that won't stop me from filtering the soybean pulp and making tofu.
He can be paid ten coins a day for his work.
The main reason is that Jiang Ji is about to have a holiday.
During this holiday, the two of them were going to visit Master Han.
To show their sincerity, he also plans to make Sichuan peppercorn chicken this time.
Moreover, Jiang Ji rarely comes back, and he probably won't be able to get up in the morning...
After considering all these factors, he decided to entrust the task to Jiang Liu and Jiang Yu.
Jiang Liu and Jiang Yu were happy to help, but they didn't want any wages.
Bringing up wages would be too hurtful to our relationship.
This job isn't heavy; it's easy.
But Ye Li insisted on paying.
This isn't just a one-day favor.
This is something I do every day.
Helping someone for a day is a favor, but helping someone for many days requires payment.
Jiang Liu and Jiang Yu couldn't dissuade him, so they agreed.
So the two of them arrived early the next day, one washing and cooking taro under Ye Li's guidance.
One of them was making condensed milk under Ye Li's guidance.
After the two finished making the taro paste, they delivered it to Banxianju along with the tofu puffs.
Ye Li went along today to greet Manager Xing.
The day before Jiang Ji returned, he did not go to the county town again.
Hehe, Jiang Ji is coming back, so I need to do a thorough cleaning. I've been so busy making taro paste these past few days that I've neglected the cleanliness of the house.
He, Jiang Mai, and Jiang Ya all had to be rinsed in hot water.
Before he knew it, it was time for Jiang Ji to return. After making taro paste in the morning, Ye Li wanted to take the oxcart to the county town to pick him up, but before he could even leave, Boss Yue arrived.
When Boss Yue left last time, he said he would come back before the twelfth lunar month.
It was almost December, and Boss Yue kept his promise and came over.
This time, he brought a horse-drawn carriage and ten oxcarts, and he planned to buy more than 50,000 worth of goods!
He wanted to buy more.
However, his family can only make 1,000 bowls of preserved egg and lean pork porridge per day at present.
Instead of buying them and storing them at home to resell slowly, it's better to make a trip to Beiyang County and Yeli to connect with them.
Over the past month, several groups of people have come to him to inquire about this business.
But big businessmen don't care about this business, and they also know that Yezaopo can't supply the goods.
Small vendors might be interested, but he repeatedly emphasized that Yezaopo couldn't supply the goods—this wasn't a lie; the frequency of hens laying eggs decreased significantly in winter, unlike in hot weather.
In addition, heavy snow in winter can easily block roads, so most people don't like to travel far. As a result, no one has found Yezaopo yet.
But that might not be the case after spring.
Therefore, he needs to run more frequently.
Moreover, the diligent bird catches the worm!
And now, Ye Li has come up with a new thing called taro paste.
The texture is absolutely amazing, so delicate, so milky, even better than the century-old pastries from the old town.
Unfortunately, Ye Li herself doesn't even have enough of this stuff to sell.
He wants to pursue this idea, but he'll have to wait until at least next autumn.
Mr. Yue is always very courteous. This time, he bought half a pig, a cleaned sheep, two bolts of cotton cloth, and several packages of pastries—he came to deliver New Year's gifts.
Therefore, Ye Li could no longer enter the city.
He then asked Jiang Tong to go and pick up Jiang Ji.
The county school closes for the day at noon.
These goods, worth over 50,000, can be found at Yezaopo.
It has been a month since Boss Yue left. In this month, we can make two batches of preserved eggs.
Wild Jujube Slope has plenty of stock.
But Boss Yue only trusted himself and his brother-in-law, so only the two of them could handle the counting of the eggs.
So, when Jiang Ji got home, the two had just finished counting the eggs.
After counting, they still had to load the truck, and it wasn't until late afternoon that Boss Yue and his group finally embarked on their return journey.
Boss Yue and his party kept the courtyard lively for most of the day. After they left, the villagers also left one after another.
The courtyard suddenly fell silent.
Liu Yi, Ye Liang, and Ye Adie went to the workshop.
Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya, the two little ones, circled around Jiang Ji.
With these two little light bulbs around, Ye Li couldn't even have a chance to be alone with Jiang Ji, let alone kiss or hug him.
Ye Li then said, "Check Xiaomai's homework and get a feel for the situation."
Before Jiang Ji could even speak, Jiang Mai puffed out her chest and said, "Big brother, go ahead and ask!"
He looked confident, which made Ye Li laugh: "Looks like you've been working hard."
Jiang Ji laughed, raised his hand to rub his little head, and then looked at Ye Li: "Then shall I check Xiaomai's homework first?"
"Okay, go ahead and check."
Ye Li said, and sat down at the table.
The round table in his small living room had already been set up.
As a result, the small living room felt a bit cramped.
When guests come again, they no longer have to sit on small stools like before.
Jiang Ji then sat down with Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya.
This month, Jiang Mai is learning the "Thousand Character Classic". He asked Jiang Mai to memorize the original text first.
Ye Li sat to the side, her hand supporting her chin. Her eyes seemed to be fixed on Jiang Mai, but in fact, her gaze would occasionally sweep over Jiang Ji.
He had never memorized the Thousand Character Classic, so how would he know if Jiang Mai had memorized it correctly?
His thoughts were all on Jiang Ji.
In fact, he met with Jiang Ji almost every day this month, but this frequency of meetings did not alleviate his longing for Jiang Ji.
Even though he didn't understand, he still wanted to sit next to Jiang Ji and spend more time with him.
In no time, Jiang Mai finished reciting.
The little guy looked at Jiang Ji with anticipation.
He'll memorize such a difficult article within a month!
Moreover, Master Ji could only give him guidance every few days, not teach him every day.
Jiang Ji ignored the little guy's pleading look and turned to Ye Li: "Why don't you go prepare dinner?"
"Huh?" Ye Li was taken aback.
"It's cold, eat dinner early and go to bed early."
Jiang Ji said in a very serious tone.
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