Li Kaishan was especially pleased to learn that Yan Qingqing had signed so many orders, because the better Yan Qingqing's business was, the more wages the villagers would earn. This would make his position as village head even more deserved.
Naturally, Old Master Li was even happier. Yan Qingqing was their daughter-in-law, and ever since she became wealthy, the villagers had looked at him with more respect.
After Yan Qingqing and the other two finished expressing their joy, they asked, "Uncle Village Chief, what are your plans for the future of our Canghe Village?"
Li Kaishan was a little confused for a moment. What kind of plan could he have? He just wanted to make life a little better for the villagers by relying on Yan Qingqing's many workshops.
Seeing this, Yan Qingqing sighed inwardly. It seemed that Li Kaishan was still limited in his knowledge and had only the mindset of a commoner.
Although Li Kaishan lacked knowledge, he was quite adept at reading people. So he stood up and said sincerely, "Qingqing, you know that your uncle hasn't read many books and has limited knowledge."
But I know you're capable. Just tell me your ideas, and I'll take them on as long as they're good for the village.
Seeing that Li Kaishan was genuinely seeking advice, and also because she truly wanted to contribute to Canghe Village, Yan Qingqing stopped hiding her intentions.
Yan Qingqing smiled and said, "Then I'll share my thoughts, and Dad and Uncle Village Chief can take them as a reference and see if they're feasible."
Upon hearing that Yan Qingqing actually respected his opinion, Old Master Li nodded excitedly. But in reality, he had already made up his mind that he would strongly support whatever suggestions Yan Qingqing gave later.
Yan Qingqing thought for a moment and said, "I signed a lot of contracts in the prefectural city this time. In order to catch up with the schedule, we will definitely recruit more workers. It can be considered as doing my part for our village."
Li Kaishan nodded repeatedly. Many people wanted to work in Yan Qingqing's workshop, but the workshop was just starting out and the number of people they could recruit was limited and unstable.
With so many orders coming in, even if we don't know if we'll need to hire more workers, the existing staff won't be idle for a while.
Yan Qingqing paused for a moment and continued, "Right now, recruiting workers is a minor matter; the real goal is to help everyone get rich together."
Li Kaishan was well aware of this principle, but making everyone rich together was not so easy.
Yan Qingqing glanced at him and advised, "At the latest, those big merchants will come to the workshop to transport goods in two months. They will be tired from their journey, so they need to rest and have food and lodging."
If they weren't in our village, we would definitely have to go to the town or county seat, which would be very inconvenient.
Why don't we take advantage of this opportunity?
Li Kaishan seemed not to quite understand, or perhaps he understood but couldn't quite believe it. After a moment's hesitation, he asked, "Xiang Pingniang, what do you mean?"
In his excitement, Li Kaishan called out to Yan Qingqing and Xiang Pingniang again. Yan Qingqing smiled and said, "What I mean is that we can build an inn and a canteen in Canghe Village to provide food and lodging for those merchants."
As for the peonies and roses I planted, I plan to promote them extensively to attract students and ladies of high social standing—these are all excellent potential customers.
"The money earned will be distributed as dividends to all villagers at the end of the year."
Upon hearing this, Li Kaishan stood up excitedly and said, "If things can really be done as you say, then our Canghe Village will be on the verge of becoming rich."
Although Old Master Li was also very excited, he remained calm and asked, "Where will the money for building the inn and canteen come from?"
"Those mud-brick houses built in our village, no wonder the rich people wouldn't even look at them."
Old Master Li's words successfully calmed Li Kaishan down. Yes, the idea was good, but building an inn definitely required brick and tile roofs. Where would all that money come from?
Yan Qingqing found it somewhat amusing to see Li Kaishan's mood swings, sometimes happy and sometimes worried.
However, the concept of fundraising doesn't exist these days, which is something Li Kaishan couldn't have imagined.
So he asked, "Uncle Village Chief, how many households are there in our village?"
Li Kaishan seemed to know this very well, and replied, "There are a total of 296 households, but 13 of them have no sons, and 3 are elderly people living alone."
Yan Qingqing nodded upon hearing this and then asked, "Approximately how much silver would we need to build fifty inns?"
Li Kaishan thought for a moment and replied, "A single brick and tile house would cost about ten taels of silver, so fifty houses would cost five hundred taels."
In addition, renovations will be needed, and buying a bed and other bedding will also cost about five hundred taels, bringing the total to approximately one thousand taels.
Yan Qingqing nodded and said directly and clearly, "Even if we exclude those sixteen special households, there are still two hundred and eighty households. Each such household would only amount to a little over three taels of silver."
Of course, not every family can come up with so much money, but some are wealthy. However, the final dividends are based on the initial subscription ratio.
I can make a promise to Uncle Village Chief: if the village can't raise that much silver, I can make up for the rest.
Of course, other villagers who are willing to contribute more are also welcome to do so.
Li Kaishan's eyes lit up as he listened, thinking to himself that Yan Qingqing was really clever, she could even come up with such a solution.
A thousand taels of silver is indeed a lot, but when divided among each household, it amounts to only three or four taels. As long as everyone is willing to squeeze together, they can all contribute.
Finally, Li Kaishan slapped his thigh and said, "Then let's do it this way. I believe our Canghe Village will definitely become rich."
Grandpa Li was also quite in favor. He was already calculating how much money the family had left, and he was determined to seize this opportunity to make money.
Li Kaishan couldn't sit still any longer. With such a good opportunity, he quickly rallied the villagers to take action.
After Li Kaishan left, Yan Qingqing thought of her peony garden and rose garden. She wondered how their construction was going during the few days she was gone.
Thinking of this, Yan Qingqing couldn't sit still any longer, and hurriedly headed over there with Ruyi in tow.
From afar, Yan Qingqing could see a patch of bright red roses swaying in the wind, a truly beautiful sight. The peonies nearby were equally stunning, with several already showing signs of budding.
Yan Qingqing thought to herself that it was time to promote the rose garden and peony garden.
Li Xiangping, who was busy in the garden, saw Yan Qingqing arrive and quickly came over and said, "Mother, what brings you here?"
You just got back yesterday, why didn't you stay home and rest for a couple more days?
Grandpa Zhang and I are enough here. You should go home and rest.
Yan Qingqing smiled and shook her head, saying, "I'm not that old yet. I just finished talking with your village chief and thought I'd come over to check on things here. The progress is good."
But how come there are so many flowers? Old Zhang shouldn't have this many, right?
Li Xiangping smiled upon hearing this: "Relying solely on Uncle Zhang's resources is definitely not enough. I know that the flowers in these two gardens are of great use to you, so I obtained a large portion of them through other channels."
Yan Qingqing looked at Li Xiangping with satisfaction; this child had indeed not wasted her efforts.
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