When Gu Yun arrived, Xiao Ping was already waiting in the courtyard. Meng Zhao introduced the two of them and then led them to find the village head.
When Meng Zhao arrived, the village head and three clan elders were already waiting for him.
They had already heard about the starch from the village head, but they didn't reveal the name of Chunfenglou to them. They only said that a merchant wanted to buy it, and the fewer people who knew about the cooperation with Chunfenglou, the better.
Upon seeing Meng Zhao approaching, the group quickly came to greet him.
The village head asked eagerly, "Qing'an's wife, has the contract been signed?"
Meng Zhao nodded. "Signed."
The group breathed a sigh of relief, fearing that their hard-won windfall would slip away.
"Qing'an's wife, we really don't know how to thank you. Your willingness to hand over this work to the villagers has been a great help to the village."
"Yes, this is really great news. Otherwise, many families would probably have trouble getting food this winter."
Meng Zhao said with a smile, "You're too kind, everyone. This is what I, as a daughter-in-law of the Shen family, should do. Let's not stand outside and talk. Let's get things done quickly."
Hearing Meng Zhao say this, the group quickly went inside, prepared paper and pen, and Meng Zhao dictated a contract to the village head, who then wrote it down.
Meng Zhao collaborated with the village, providing the formula and initial orders. He would then take a 20% cut of the gross profit from all starch sold by Shenjia Village.
The remaining 80% of the profit, after deducting all costs such as raw material costs, packaging costs, transportation costs, and labor costs, belongs to Shenjia Village.
This portion of the profits is managed by the village head, overseen by the three clan elders and Meng Zhao, and can only be used for the construction and development of Shenjia Village, such as building bridges and roads, caring for the elderly, the weak and the poor. If there is an opportunity in the future, a village school can also be established and teachers can be recruited.
After the contract was drawn up, the people signed and sealed it one by one, and each kept a copy.
Once all the preparations are complete, it's time to officially start building the workshop.
The first issue was the location. The village head suggested that it be temporarily located in the ancestral hall in the village.
First, the ancestral hall has a large open space, allowing for ample space to operate.
Secondly, there are few people living near the ancestral hall, and no one goes there unless there is something important going on.
Thirdly, since the ancestral hall was intended for frequent worship, and there was concern about potential fires, a well was dug in the courtyard. Moreover, it was only a few hundred meters from the nearby river, making it more convenient to fetch water.
When Meng Zhao first heard the suggestion, he was worried that the elders would disagree. After all, this was the ancestral hall of the entire clan, a very important place. If it were located here, the noise and commotion during daily work would disturb the ancestors.
Surprisingly, none of the clan elders objected; instead, they all agreed.
"People are starving, so how can the clansmen offer sacrifices? If our ancestors saw that we had a way to make money, they would only be happy and would never blame us."
"Yes, our ancestors will never be angry about this. Besides, once things are more stable, we can choose another place. We won't stay in the ancestral hall forever."
After the location was decided, the division of labor became a consideration.
Currently, the workshop only needs two departments: a purchasing department, which is used to buy raw materials or make the necessary tools.
The other is the production department, which is responsible for starch production.
The village head volunteered, "I know many people outside, so I'll take the lead and collect potatoes."
Meng Zhao nodded, so that left the task of production. The village head definitely preferred Meng Zhao for this, but Meng Zhao had her own things to do, so they had to find someone else.
So the position of production manager is temporarily vacant. We'll recruit someone first and then slowly select a suitable manager.
“If we need to hire people to work in the village, Qing’an’s wife, I’ll recommend someone to you first.”
"Who is it?" Meng Zhao asked curiously.
"Eldest daughter-in-law, come in," the village head called out.
Li Yumei, the eldest daughter-in-law of the village head, walked in and said to Meng Zhao with a smile, "Qing'an's wife, just tell me who you want. I know the women in our village best. I can find you whoever you need."
Meng Zhao had long seen that Li Yumei was a straightforward person. The two were quite familiar with each other because of harvesting vegetables, so Meng Zhao didn't stand on ceremony and directly stated his requirements.
"Those who talk nonsense when they're drunk, or those who are always loud and boastful, are not suitable. We need to keep this a secret."
“If a mother-in-law or daughter-in-law likes to help her own family and sends them everything, you can’t accept it.”
"And those who are addicted to gambling, if they owe money outside, it's best not to take in any of their family members either."
“If this method gets sold or spreads to other villages, our business will be in trouble.”
After saying this, everyone in the room nodded repeatedly. This was their livelihood, and they couldn't let anyone take it away from them.
The final decision was to recruit ten women and four men, plus Gu Yun and Xiaoping, who were brought by Meng Zhao.
The final choice will depend on the advice of Li Yumei and several other clan elders.
The reason for choosing more women was Meng Zhao's suggestion, since it's easier for men to find work, so we should prioritize finding work outside the home.
It's difficult for women to find work, and they're just idling around in the village anyway, so they might as well come to the starch workshop to do some work. Besides, women who are used to farm work are just as capable as men when it comes to physical labor.
Meng Zhao handed the village head a list of necessary items that he had made earlier, asking him to prepare them in advance.
He also put Li Yumei in charge of recruiting people, as the first batch of goods was needed urgently and it would be best to start as soon as possible.
Meng Zhao brought Gu Yun and Xiao Ping to the front of the building.
"These are my two cousins. They are both honest and kind. Please take good care of them when you are around."
The village head usually goes out and meets a lot of people. Now, going out with him and learning more about how to conduct oneself is better than directly following Meng Zhao to make starch.
In addition, he asked Gu Yun and Xiao Ping to come over, not only to help her keep an eye on things, but also because he didn't want the starch workshop to only have someone with the surname Shen.
When a group has only one faction, it will become very exclusive. It would be better to place two people from other villages in the group from the beginning, so that when recruiting workers from other villages later, there will be a legitimate reason to do so.
The village head looked at the two men. Gu Yun was tall and strong, while the other was rather thin, but he seemed to have a lot of energy. He nodded.
"Then let the two of them come with me to collect potatoes first. Once the villages we're collecting from are settled, we can do other things."
Meng Zhao was very satisfied with this. After making arrangements for the two of them, he went back to his lunchbox stall.
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