The Chen family doesn't have much grain left. They've brought so many people back, and they all need to eat. Now they're just eating whatever they produce.
Outside the city, the number of refugees was increasing, and Chen's wife would recruit a group of technicians every two weeks or so.
When Chen's eldest son's wife returned this time, she brought back good news: a Liu family shop had opened in the city, selling grain at reasonable and stable prices.
On the first day of Liu's shop's opening, the city people went crazy buying up all the grain, and they sold out in one morning. So they didn't open in the afternoon. They opened again the next day, but only for one morning.
However, Liu's shop was not doing well either, as other wealthy households in the city joined forces to suppress it.
However, the government was on the side of Liu's shop. It was rare for a shop in the city to open with normal prices and that it even sold grain, so of course they had to support it.
As a result, the county town split into two factions, who were openly and covertly fighting each other.
The people from Liu's Shop, Peach Blossom Village, and the government office are of the same faction.
The other wealthy households in the county town were in a different group.
That's right, Peach Blossom Village also got involved this time. The vegetable supply in Peach Blossom Village has stabilized. Although the output is not high, there is still some.
Peach Blossom Village had previously traded with wealthy households in the county town, and things went well at first. However, the wealthy households gradually began to send people to suppress them. Later, when they traded with other people, the wealthy households started sending people to cause trouble again.
Now that they see that Liu's shop offers stable and fair prices, they naturally want to side with Liu's shop.
Anping Village is currently engaged in a vigorous land reclamation effort. With the new sleds, the villagers are progressing much faster in land reclamation. Once all the old sleds in the village are replaced with new ones, their land reclamation progress will be even faster.
Anping Village also cooperated with Liu's Shop, selling Anping Village's vegetables and bracken root rice noodles to Liu's Shop.
Since Liujiazhuangzi wasn't far from their village, this saved them a lot of trouble, but it also meant they could exchange for fewer supplies.
Most of the bracken root noodles produced in the village were used to exchange for black flour, as were vegetables and other daily necessities.
With external resources and vegetable supplies from Anping Village and Taohua Village, Liu's shop managed to barely gain a foothold in the county town.
As more and more refugees fled to their area, several riots broke out, but the county government quickly suppressed them.
In order to dig up bracken roots, the mountains near Anping Village were all dug up, but this also made it easier for them to turn the soil.
If the Chen family wants to develop a tourist village, then the mountains near Anping Village will all need to be replanned.
Chen Kai found Old Man Chen and said, "Dad, the soil on the mountain has been turned over, so we can start planting according to plan. We should start recruiting people now, the more the better. If we progress quickly, we can open for business next spring."
Old Man Chen hesitated and said, "My dear son, we don't have that much grain!"
Chen Kai advised, "Father, our watermill is almost finished, and the food problem will be solved soon. With so many refugees fleeing here now, the hiring fees will definitely be low. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
Chen Lao Er's wife also said, "That's right, Dad, this is indeed a good opportunity. These days, the bold get rich and the timid starve. Since our family has chosen to do this, we might as well go all out."
When Old Man Chen saw that his second son's wife had said so, he agreed to hire as many people as possible.
News of the Chen family's recruitment of workers spread quickly, and before long, a large number of refugees appeared outside Anping Village.
With so many people coming, of course Chen's eldest daughter-in-law needs to be there to keep things in order.
Of course, the Chen family doesn't just hire anyone; they have assessments, and only those who pass the assessments can stay.
As for what the exam is about, it's mainly to retain those who are honest and hardworking.
The villagers knew that the Chen family was recruiting people to renovate Anping Village and develop tourism.
Of course, Chen Kai told them this information, and he also gave them a brief training session to explain why the Chen family was doing this and what benefits it would bring them.
The villagers also expressed their support. Although they didn't have much money, they were sure they would do their part when needed.
The village chief was quite aware of the Chen family's current situation. The Chen family didn't have much grain left, but they still had the audacity to hire people.
Seeing the Chen family's boldness, the village chief decided to take a gamble and join them in building a house!
Previously, the Chen family had already told the villagers that, in addition to the industries that Anping Village would develop in the future, those with savings could also invest in building inns.
With labor so cheap right now, it's a great opportunity.
Surprisingly, the village chief's family also joined the Chen family in playing a big game this time, which made everyone's minds race.
Thanks to the support of the Chen family's technical team, all the old-fashioned sleds in Anping Village have been replaced with new ones, and the villagers' land reclamation has sped up.
In addition, with the grain they obtained from Liu's shop, every household was careful with their food, using the surplus grain to hire people to reclaim wasteland. As a result, every household had one or two workers, something they never dreamed of. They were even able to experience what it was like to be a landlord.
Deeply influenced by the Chen family, some villagers have begun to form cliques and discuss recruiting people to build a guesthouse.
Chen Kai was gratified to see so many enlightened people in the village, and it was worth it for him to take the time to train them.
Seeing that he couldn't help much here, Chen Kai went to find the steward of Liu Family Village. Food was still a problem, even if it was temporary, it had to be solved first.
After finding the steward of Liu Family Village, Chen Kai got straight to the point: "Steward Liu, my family wants to cooperate with you."
Butler Liu asked in confusion, "What kind of cooperation?"
Chen Kai said, "It's a collaboration on bracken root rice noodles."
Butler Liu asked in confusion, "Aren't all the bracken root noodles in your village, including the ones from your family, purchased by my family?"
Chen Kai said, "What I want to talk about is long-term cooperation. You must know about the water mill. Before long, my family will become the largest supplier of bracken root powder."
Butler Liu was silent for a moment, then said, "You must have come here for more than just this, right? What else is it? Speak up."
Chen Kai said with a smile, "My family would like to borrow a thousand catties of black flour from your family. We will repay you in the form of an equal amount of bracken root noodles later."
Butler Liu said, "It sounds like my family is getting a good deal, but if your family can't pay it back, then my family will suffer a huge loss."
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