Although Wei Laosan said that the residual poison from the chickens and ducks had basically returned to normal, Yan Qingqing was still worried.
So he called Li Xiang'an over and said to him, "When you have time tomorrow, go and catch a couple of chickens and ducks, and then go to Doctor Zheng's Renshantang and have him check if there are any remaining toxins on them."
Li Xiang'an quickly agreed and then asked, "Mother, if those chickens and ducks are cured of the poison, can our shop open for business?"
Yan Qingqing nodded and said, "It's time to open for business after all this delay."
Li Xiang'an said angrily, "It's all Tie Tou's family's fault. Otherwise, none of this trouble would have happened. They are truly ungrateful."
Seeing his cynical look, Yan Qingqing comforted him, "As the saying goes, people die for money and birds die for food. Some people's hearts are corrupt and there's no way to save them. Fortunately, we got compensation from Chen's restaurant, didn't we?"
Li Xiang'an felt a little better after thinking about the two thousand taels of silver that Chen Ji had compensated him. He then said, "Then I'll ask Wang Dong to go to the city with me tomorrow, and we can clean up our shop while we're at it."
"Mom, you have no idea how worried Wang Dong has been lately. He keeps coming to our house to ask when the shop will reopen. I told him to go home and wait for news, but he said he couldn't just sit around and collect wages for nothing, so he went with Uncle San and the others to plant trees for our family."
Yan Qingqing laughed and said, "So you see, there are still more people with a conscience."
The mother and son chatted for a while longer before Li Xiang'an left.
The next day, Li Xiang'an returned from the city with a beaming smile, and it was obvious that something good had happened.
Sure enough, Li Xiang'an said to Yan Qingqing, "Mother, Doctor Zheng said that these chickens and ducks are no longer poisonous and can be eaten without worry. In addition, we have already cleaned the shop."
Yan Qingqing was naturally happy to hear this. Their shop had always been very successful, and most shops had reopened after the New Year. If their shop remained closed for an extended period, it would negatively impact their business.
Li Xiang'an thought for a moment and then said, "Mother, when we went to our shop today, there was someone peeking around. Wang Dong and I caught him. He said he was looking for you because our shop is closed and he's been waiting there every day."
Yan Qingqing was somewhat surprised. She had hardly ever been to the shop, so who would go there to look for him? Could it be Chen Liu? That was the first person she could think of, but then she thought it didn't make sense. If Chen Liu wanted to find her, he would definitely come to her house. Besides, Li Xiang'an knew Chen Liu.
Seeing that Yan Qingqing couldn't remember who he was, Li Xiang'an reminded her, "He said his name was Xue Xiaowu, and he used to be a clerk at the jewelry store."
After Li Xiang'an's reminder, Yan Qingqing instantly remembered that it was the young shop assistant who had his order stolen by the manager at the jewelry store.
Yan Qingqing initially wanted to recruit him to her shop because of his eloquence, but she genuinely didn't know his name was Xue Xiaowu. It seems he can't stay at the jewelry store any longer.
Yan Qingqing asked, "Did he say what it was about?"
Li Xiang'an shook his head and replied, "No, I just said I came to see you, and I even helped us clean the shop for half a day."
Yan Qingqing thought for a moment and said, "Next time he comes, ask him if he would like to work in our shop. The pay is better than others."
Li Xiang'an knew that his mother had a good eye for people, and that Xue Xiaowu must have something special about him, so he immediately agreed.
Just two days later, the shop in town opened. Yan Qingqing thought business wouldn't be as good as before the New Year, so she figured Li Xiang'an, Li Xiangbao, and Wang Dong could manage with the shop.
However, to everyone's surprise, business was exceptionally good on the first day of opening. Although it was not as good as before the Lunar New Year, it was still a standout on Buhou Street.
When Li Xiang'an returned home, he happily handed over the eighty taels of silver he had earned to Yan Qingqing and said, "Mother, the shop is really too busy. Why don't we ask my elder brother to stop what he's doing and do business with us for a few days?"
Li Xiang'an originally wanted Li Xiangjian to go, but he knew that his mother had made special arrangements for his third brother. His third brother was now practicing martial arts and studying like his life depended on it, and his mother had even specially arranged a training place for him on the mountain. He couldn't see Li Xiangjian at all.
Yan Qingqing readily agreed, knowing that the three of them would be too busy. Then she added, "You can put up a job posting in the shop and hire a few assistants. Our family isn't short of money right now; I'm also planning to buy a few servants."
When you have some free time, go to the brokerage firm and see if they have anything suitable.
Li Xiang'an had never imagined that his family could afford servants. It was only after Yan Qingqing reminded him that Li Xiang'an realized that his family was truly different from what it used to be.
Having a few servants at home is a good thing, at least his mother won't have to work so hard. Besides, they do have a lot of work to do, and maybe buying servants will allow them to expand their business.
It has to be said that Li Xiang'an understands Yan Qingqing best when it comes to business; she does indeed have such plans.
Li Xiang'an asked, "Mother, how many servants do you plan to buy? What kind do you want? Please tell me so I have a direction. It will be easier to explain to the broker later."
As for how many Yan Qingqings to buy, I haven't actually calculated it, but since there are quite a few people in the family, I can't buy too few. So I said, "We definitely need a cleaning lady or servant in each courtyard. Also, your sister-in-law has to manage the housework and the embroidery workshop, so we definitely need to assign her a capable helper."
Xin Niang and Yue Niang are both grown women, so we need to assign them maids. Also, Xiao Qi is too young. If I want to free up my hands, she definitely needs a capable person by her side.
Silang and Mochen are both quite young, so they need a page to accompany them. Also, since you're always traveling around doing business and often need to buy things, we can't have you do everything yourself, so we also need a groom.
In addition, we also need to train a few servants and maids who can help with both business and personal matters.
Yan Qingqing rattled off a long list, leaving Li Xiang'an dumbfounded. How many people would that mean? Probably dozens! And judging from her tone, that was a reduction.
Li Xiang'an took a deep breath and asked, "Mother, are you sure you want to buy so many people? Buying these people will be a considerable expense."
Yan Qingqing knew this all too well, but she still said with certainty, "These are all things that must be bought; this is a process that a family must go through to develop."
Actually, they should have bought it a long time ago, but they had too many people in the family and were too busy, plus they had always lived in the village, so they never thought of it.
After hearing Yan Qingqing's words, Li Xiang'an no longer hesitated and said, "In that case, I'll go to the brokerage tomorrow and ask. Then you can choose one yourself, Mother."
Yan Qingqing knew that Li Xiang'an would be quite busy since the shop opened, so she told him to go and rest.
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