When the village chief came to deliver the goods again, he didn't see Xichun. Only after learning that she was in the courtyard did he lead the donkey to the front of the courtyard.
"Village chief, you're here! Come in quickly, Xichun said he needs to talk to you about something." Qiangzi opened the door and warmly welcomed the village chief in.
"Qiangzi, why didn't you go to the restaurant? Are you taking a day off?" The village chief didn't know that he had already left the restaurant and thought that he had a day off.
"I no longer work at the restaurant; now I work for Xichun."
"Village Chief, come quickly. I have something to discuss with you. Let Brother Qiangzi unload those vegetables first." Xichun also came out of the house and invited the village chief to sit on the stool in the courtyard.
"Xichun, what brings you here this time? Is there something wrong with your business? Why aren't you at your stall? You're always busy when I come here," the village chief asked anxiously, worried that something had happened.
“This is good news, village chief, wait a moment, I’ll show you something nice.” Xichun went into the house but came out carrying a stall.
"What is this?" The village chief looked at the stall with a puzzled expression. It looked similar to the pickle jars at home.
"This is a canned peach made from peaches I brought from the village. With this method, the fruits on the mountain can be preserved for longer and can be sold. Village chief, why don't you try it and see how it tastes?" Xichun opened the stall, took out a bowl, and scooped a spoonful into it.
The village chief saw that it was indeed a peach and couldn't help but taste it. It tasted really good; there must have been sugar in it, making it even better than the original.
"It's really delicious, but I see there's sugar in it. Sugar isn't cheap, so if it's sold, this stuff definitely won't be cheap either, right?" The village chief was a knowledgeable man, so he didn't get excited right away. Instead, he started to think about the possibility of selling it.
"Indeed, this stuff needs sugar. If you don't add it, it won't keep for long, and it won't taste as good, so it won't be very appealing. That's why I was thinking that if this stuff can be preserved, it can be sold for a high price when fruit is scarce. If everyone in the village does it, and we work together to sell this stuff in the prefectural city, I think everyone can make money."
“Xichun, your idea is very good, and I’m glad you thought of the village. However, although everyone has some extra money from their business, I’m afraid it won’t work if we try to persuade them to spend money to buy candy.” The village chief also had his own concerns.
“Village chief, you can go back and ask the villagers first. If there are any willing people, I will teach them how to preserve the fruit for free. However, if there are no willing people, I can pay them to buy the peaches and hire people to make fruit preserves. If we lose money, it will be on my own.”
Xi Chun was confident about the project, but she had no reason to force others to follow suit until she saw it profitable. Besides, if she didn't make money, the villagers would probably come after her.
"Really? That's great! At least the villagers can earn some money from this income. Don't worry, I'll arrange it when I get back. When do you want to go back to the village?"
"I'll be back in a couple of days. Village chief, could you please help me spread the word about this in the village? I want to get this over with quickly, as I need to get back to my business here," Xichun said after thinking for a moment.
"Okay, don't worry about it. Those peaches all grow on the mountain. We really need to find a way to prevent the villagers from having any more conflicts over this."
Two days later, Xichun and Qiangzi returned to the village. Their car was loaded with rock sugar and salt. As for the jars, they had already ordered them from the shop, but they wouldn't be delivered until tomorrow.
The peaches on the mountain are only plentiful during this period, and they will start to spoil in a few days. That's why Xichun didn't come to collect them before confirming the shelf life of the canned goods. Every year earlier is a year's harvest, and she also has some extra money on hand.
The village chief knew that Xichun had returned when he heard the sound of the mule cart. He had just stepped out when he saw that many villagers were already gathered around Xichun on the road.
"Xichun, I heard you're buying peaches. Is that true? How much are they per pound? We heard you came back today, so we've already picked them and are waiting for you to come and collect them."
"Yes, we got up early this morning to collect them. Look, they're still fine, not spoiled at all."
"Xichun, I heard you're going to hire people to do the work. What conditions do you want? Can we meet them?" Many aunties had already gathered around before Qiangzi had even parked the car.
"Please make way for Xichun. She's already back, she won't be going back right away." The village chief came over to help Xichun out of the predicament. Seeing that Xichun wasn't going to leave, everyone made way for her.
"Dear uncles and aunts, I've come here to buy peaches. Don't worry, what I told the village chief is true. However, I only have a limited supply, so the price I'm offering for peaches isn't high. Please don't pick any yet; listen to the price first. If you're willing, then you can sell them to me."
"Xichun, what price are you offering?"
"Here's the thing, I'm planning to buy them at a price of one coin for five catties. If you agree, you can bring them over. There's another thing. This time, I'm planning to recruit thirty people, whether they are women or girls, as long as they can work. They will be paid eight coins a day. They need to be clean. If you think you meet the requirements, you can come to the village chief to sign up."
Xi Chun laid out her conditions, leaving it up to them to decide whether they were willing.
"That's alright. Anyway, we don't need to invest in the peaches on the mountain. We can just pick them and sell them for money. Who wouldn't want to do something like this? I'll sign up right now." Hearing that only women were being recruited, the aunties present all excitedly stood up.
It's rare for a company to specifically hire women, so this time they actually had a job opportunity. Although it was only for a few days, it was enough to excite them.
Wang, holding Xiaofeng, stood with Old Lady Ma. She also wanted to work so she could earn money. She glanced at Old Lady Ma, who said directly, "Why are you looking at me? Go if you want. You're still Xichun's mother. Give me Xiaofeng and you should sign up now."
"Mother, then I'll have to trouble you for a few days." Upon hearing this, Wang placed Xiaofeng in her hands and ran off to register.
When Xichun saw Wang Shi coming over, she stopped her directly: "Mother, you don't need to go over and register."
"What? Xichun, can't your mother come to your place to work? Don't worry, I'll take care of your younger brother. She has time." Grandma Ma thought she was worried that no one would take care of the child, after all, Xichun had previously shown that she liked this younger brother.
“Yes, Xichun, I have time, and I also want to earn money.” Wang Shi thought so too.
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