Chapter 80
There was no need to rush to pass on the message to the Wu family. Since the old man said to switch from wheat to rice, there would be an extra twenty days of breeding time.
The Zhou family didn't rush around searching for wheat seedlings, and Mrs. Yu stopped sighing and simply went to buy rice seeds. Besides the rice seeds, Ye Jia also showed Mr. Zhang the bag of black seeds that looked like rapeseed.
Zhang Changli recognized many crops. He glanced at them and said, "This is Brassica. The seedlings need to be grown before the end of April and planted around the same time."
Ye Jia didn't ask what rapeseed was, but from what Old Man Zhang said, it was clearly rapeseed. Ye Jia spread the large bag of miscellaneous seeds that Yu had bought on the table and asked the old man to identify the ones he didn't recognize.
Zhang Changli was so amused by Zhou Jingchen's wife's behavior that he immediately became angry: "What do you think of me, little girl?"
Ye Jia chuckled and politely poured tea for the old man, saying, "Isn't it because you are so knowledgeable, old man? No one in the family knows this, so they're counting on you to give them some pointers!"
Old Master Zhang snorted. If he weren't so old and had no tail, he'd probably be so proud of himself. Not only did he explain exactly what each seed was, but he also explained exactly how to plant it, when to plant it, and how to maintain and manage it over time. Ye Jia was amazed, thinking to herself, no wonder Zhou Jingchen had brought him back. Isn't this a walking agricultural textbook?
Even the most impressive agricultural texts couldn't withstand the whims of someone who didn't know their worth and could easily be jailed. To demonstrate his affection and protection for his beloved, the man in Yanjing dismissed Zhang Changli, a veteran of two dynasties, and exiled him to the northwest at such an advanced age.
It’s better not to mention this matter. Zhang Changli feels disheartened when he mentions it.
Ye Jia listened, taking notes, and then handed the old man the "pebble" Yu had found at the tile market. The old man's arrogance was dampened by the stone-like seed. He stared at it for a long time, unable to explain its meaning. But not recognizing it didn't stop the old man's eyes from shining with interest. Wasn't this what he came here for?
"Where did you get this thing?" Zhang Changli carefully took one and looked at it under the light. He had indeed never seen it before.
Ye Jiazhi said that he bought it from the tile market, "Teacher, haven't you seen it either?"
Zhang Changli didn't recognize it, and he didn't pretend to know. He held the unusual seed in his hand and examined it for a long time, the more he looked, the more curious it became. He couldn't claim to recognize every plant in Dayan, but he knew more than 90% of them. He had even handled and planted some seeds from foreign countries through his position, but this one was truly new to him. He shook his head and asked Ye Jia if he could give him a few to study.
Ye Jia glanced at Yu Shi, who seemed uninterested in all this. She meant to let Ye Jia make the decision.
"Of course you can." Ye Jia agreed without hesitation.
Zhang Changli was delighted to have obtained new seeds, and he enjoyed Ye Jiawen's wine in the evening. Ye Jia, thinking that the food issue had been resolved, felt relieved. As for the low-priced fragrant soap on the market, there was no rush. He could only wait to find out the situation and then launch a targeted counterattack.
After dinner, Old Man Zhang and Old Man Sun returned to the house in the backyard.
Ye Jia comforted Yu and brought the large bag of seeds into the house. He stared at the 'pebbles' for a long time, then thought about it and went to the back of the house to get a small shovel and go to the open space in the backyard. This open space was already divided into several crops.
The first, of course, was chili peppers. Thanks to Ye Jia's frequent introductions to spicy food, the Zhou family's women all had a fondness for it. They'd set aside more land than last year to plant chili peppers, and cucumbers were planted all around the yard. Cucumbers can climb easily on a trellis, and they'd produce a ton of fruit. They also planted some winter melons and cantaloupes. Besides these, the rest of the planting consisted of leeks, cabbages, radishes, eggplants, and other common vegetables and fruits.
Ye Jia strolled around the edge of the vegetable garden, picked a clearing, and planted a small row of vegetables there. She didn't know it wasn't the right way to plant, but plants need soil to thrive. Plenty of water and fertilizer were always a good idea.
Ye Jia didn't dare waste all the seeds in the small packet, so he planted a small handful and wrapped the rest in paper.
Old Man Sun came out to get some water for washing. Seeing a figure in the vegetable garden, he was so frightened that he almost reached for a stick to hit it. But then he thought about how high the Zhou family's courtyard was, and the gate was locked with three layers of bars, making it impossible for outsiders to get in. His fear settled back into his stomach. He figured it was probably someone from the house ahead using the toilet and passing by the vegetable garden to take a look, so he came over to take a look.
When he saw that it was Ye Jia, he patted his chest and breathed a sigh of relief: "Why is the boss coming to the vegetable garden so late at night?"
Ye Jia had just come up with this idea on a whim, so he didn't explain it to Old Man Sun. He just pointed to the row of plants he had planted and said to Old Man Sun, "Tell Junzi to be careful when watering. Don't step on this. I just planted a row of seeds."
Old Man Sun didn't know what seeds were, but he was naturally relieved when Ye Jia said that. He nodded and sent Ye Jia back to the front yard. When he returned to the house, he told his eldest grandson, Sun Jun, about this matter. Speaking of which, Sun Jun was seven years old after the New Year and was already old enough to understand what people said. On weekdays, Old Man Sun would go out with Ye Jia, and Sun Jun would also help with small chores at the Zhou family. Things like watering and fertilizing the vegetable garden were all done by him. The fertilizer used was the chicken manure and sheep manure from the chickens raised in the front yard, and it was quite effective.
"I saved it." Sun Jun was much more sensible than other children, so Old Man Sun didn't need to explain much, just one sentence was enough.
The room was limited, so Old Man Sun and Zhang Changli were now sharing a room. Yu had set up a separate bed by the window of Old Man Sun's room for Zhang Changli, an elderly widower, to rest. Although it was a bit crowded, the old man didn't stay in the room all day, so he could still sleep at night.
While the grandfather and grandson were talking, Zhang Changli just listened in.
He didn't interrupt at the time, but the next morning he got up and walked around the vegetable garden with his hands behind his back. Not to mention the old man's curiosity, Ye Jia arranged for Qiuyue to visit the Wu family tomorrow to discuss with Yu about how to buy rice seeds tomorrow.
In reality, not many families in Kashgar County grow rice; most people grow crops like wheat, sorghum, and corn. This isn't to say there's no rice; if that were the case, Ye Jia wouldn't be able to buy any at the grain store. Rice seeds are sold in grain stores, but these seeds are very particular. Ye Jia alone knows of over ten different varieties of rice in later generations.
She couldn't quite explain why, but she knew how to eat. She knew Northeast China's rice was superior, knew Ningxia's pearl rice was fragrant, and had even tasted Jiangxi tribute rice. There were certain rules for determining which rice was best grown in this part of the world.
"Why don't we plant some of both?" Yu knew there were many varieties of rice; she'd always eaten Rouge rice. She didn't know how difficult it was to grow, but she knew it was the best. "This is our first time planting, so let's see what seeds we can buy."
Ye Jia actually smiled when she said that. It was true. Planting crops for the first time, even with all the considerations, required experience before making a judgment. It was a bit too much to dwell on these things before even starting. Besides, there weren't the testing instruments of later generations, so many judgments required field experience.
She immediately stopped worrying about it. If all else failed, she could just take Zhang Changli with her to the grain store.
The two of them discussed for a long time, and Ye Jia was tired. He said goodbye to Yu and went back to his room to rest.
At dawn the next day, Ye Jia and Yu invited Zhang Changli to go to Tachibana together.
Although the grain store had rice seeds, since they were going to buy them, they bought a variety. There were four or five varieties of rice seeds on the market, and Ye Jia bought a stone of each. Fearing they wouldn't have enough, they not only bought a lot of rice seeds, but also rapeseed seeds, white sedge seeds, and even grapevines—everything they could find was available. Besides the rice seeds, which needed to be cultivated and transported back home, the grapevines and the seedlings that had already been grown on the market were all shipped to the farm.
Zhang Changli was also the type who didn't need to eat when working. He ran around all morning, returned to the yard, drank a sip of water, and hurriedly asked Old Man Sun to drive him there. The food wasn't at home, so Ye Jia had someone bring it to him later.
“Spring plowing waits for no one.”
…
At the same time, the Wu family did not wait for Ye Jia's arrival early in the morning and only received a word from the Zhou family's servants, feeling somewhat uneasy.
Mr. Wu originally didn't take Ye Jia, the young woman, seriously.
Firstly, Ye Jia was young, barely a teenager. It was said that before she married, she was the daughter of a village student, and possessed a rather unruly temperament. Mr. Wu secretly considered country folk to be unsophisticated and easy to fool, so while he put on a show, he didn't really put much thought into it. Secondly, the Wu family harbored resentment towards the Zhou family, and even if he cared about her official status, his actions would reveal it to some extent.
He'd noticed it the other day after meeting Ye Jia. Seeing Ye Jia's polite manner, his thin-skinned demeanor had given the Wu family considerable confidence. Knowing Ye Jia's good nature, the Wu family naturally put on a show of authority. He'd originally thought of venting his anger by initially refusing. Then, after the Zhou family came several times to ask for favors, he'd pretend to be giving away a batch of rice seedlings for them, thus taking advantage of the opportunity to do them a favor.
The business world is always like this: only those who put down their pride and beg for favors will get the best deals. The Wu family was prepared to have the Zhou family come to their door three times, but after only two days of this, the Zhou family's young wife changed her tune.
Suddenly, someone came and said they didn't want his seedlings. This was completely different from what he had expected. Breaking expectations, wouldn't that make people panic?
Wu En and his son recalled what they had said to Ye Jia that day, their brows furrowed. "Dad, what do you think the Zhou family means now? They were all fine yesterday, but today their attitude suddenly changed. They said they won't come, so they won't come."
Wu En had no idea. He had never dealt with the Zhou family before. "Have the three elders arrived?"
"The third old man went to the workshop to keep an eye on it. He left early in the morning."
Wu Min was also a little upset when she talked about this. Why did the Zhou family do things differently from others? The young wife spoke softly, but her actions were so unpredictable. "I just sent someone to call him back. He should be back by now."
"Send someone to wait outside, and clean up your mess!"
Wu En had been able to maintain his family's power in Dongxiang Town for so many years, so he must have a hidden weapon. While he didn't take a small lieutenant seriously, he didn't want to cause trouble. After all, his family was here, and a powerful dragon couldn't overpower a local snake. Zhou Jingchen was in Dongxiang Town, close by, and commanded tens of thousands of soldiers. If he got really angry, even the powerful Wu family wouldn't be in trouble. A wise man knows that jade doesn't compete with rubble.
"Dad, you're just too cautious. The Zhou family is just a bunch of orphans and widows. How big a storm can Zhou Jingchen cause on his own?"
How long had the Zhou family been on their feet? Less than three months.
In Wu Min's opinion, the captain surnamed Zhou was a clueless young man who couldn't grasp the situation. He didn't try to gain personal advantage when presented with a good opportunity, but instead, he hung out with the scoundrel-like magistrate of Kashgar County. He set up checkpoints one day, built a fortress the next, and helped the powerless magistrate establish himself, stirring up trouble with his own strength. Even though he had gotten the captain's position by sheer luck, it was unclear how long he could hold it. Did he really think the captaincy was that easy? Look at Chen Hai and Niu Buqun, who managed things for twenty years and were still killed off...
When talking about this, Wu Min felt very upset.
That lunatic Guo Huai is an official for no reason, but he insists on issuing some new decree. It sounds nice, but in reality, it's nothing more than exploiting others. The untouchables are exempt from taxes, and their corvée labor is reduced. But do you think that will make their lives any better? He's targeting the wealthy local merchants, specifically imposing exorbitant taxes on them. Aren't they afraid of being overthrown by a coalition?
Besides, what good would they gain from doing this? The Zhou family is also in business, and this would only hurt others and not benefit themselves.
The fact that the rouge and powder business collected a 30% commercial tax was like a needle piercing the Wu family's heart, unable to swallow it or spit it out. Besides being a large local landowner with 400 acres of fertile farmland, the Wu family's rouge and powder business was their primary source of income.
"The Zhous have been staying in Libei Town for several months, trapped there and unable to return. Now there's only one woman in charge of the family. These two are both confused and there's nothing to worry about. Not to mention that they're unlikely to find out about our affairs, even if they did, what can a house full of women in the Zhou family do to us?"
Wu En was also unhappy, but he didn't say that: "You're mistaken. That young woman from the Zhou family looks easy to talk to, but in fact she is not so soft-hearted. If she really is a soft-hearted person, why are you and I bothering each other today?"
“…” Wu Min choked.
He opened his mouth, feeling unhappy. Subconsciously, he retorted, "How can it be hard to fool? I think that little woman is easy to fool."
Wu En glanced at him and saw that his son was still stubborn. He shook his head and said, "Never mind. I don't think this matter is that simple. We should be more careful. I'll find time to go to the Zhou family tomorrow. Putting aside other things, I should have just rejected the rice seedling issue. Now we have offended someone in an awkward way and made them hate us for no reason."
Wu Min was unhappy, and actually regretted that he had added unnecessary words, which was indeed a bad thing.
Ye Jia, who was sighing at the Wu family, didn't know about this. She only wanted to solve the issue of the seedlings as soon as possible.
The seeds wouldn't just sit there after purchase; they naturally needed to be planted or raised as soon as possible. A group of people were waiting at the farm in the valley. Old Man Zhang directed them to soak the rice seeds in water while they worked in the fields. Before sowing them in the nursery fields, the seeds needed to be soaked in a high-temperature environment for a full twelve hours. This helped the rice germinate faster.
When it has soaked enough, choose a seedling field and sow it there. Sprinkle a layer of rice husk ash on it.
When Zhang Changli said this, he was accompanied by two young men, who had also been brought over from the West Field by Zhou Jingchen. One was surnamed Shu, Shu Peisheng, and the other was surnamed Zeng, Zeng Wang. They looked like they were highly regarded by Old Man Zhang. Seeing Ye Jia scrutinizing them, Old Man Zhang simply introduced them: "These two were implicated by me, and they are both my students."
Ye Jia looked them up and down. They were still considered young in Ye Jia's eyes, but they weren't considered young these days. Shu Peisheng was in his thirties, and Zeng Wang was a bit younger, probably around twenty-seven or twenty-eight.
"It's Yun'an's family, so don't worry about raising the seedlings."
Zhang Changli watched Ye Jia follow him around, his face tanned. "If there's anything, I'll find you. Don't run around all the time. You're a good girl, but you've got yourself covered in mud. Don't worry, I'm keeping an eye on things. How can I let anything happen to your fifty acres of rice?"
Ye Jia laughed when he heard this: "Teacher, look at what you said. I'm not worried about you, I'm just worried that you'll run into problems and no one will solve them."
"Alright, alright. I'm old, and I've been through a lot. Can I expect you to solve every problem I have growing these crops?" Zhang Changli stroked his beard. "If there's any problem, I can find a solution myself. Just wait and see."
Since he said so, Ye Jia didn't stay in the valley for long.
That day, after watching them soak the seeds, Zhang Changli ordered people to turn over the soil, and then Ye Jia returned home in the dark.
As soon as Bu Yi returned to the yard, Yu Shi immediately put down what she was doing and came over when she saw her.
Ye Jia went to get some water and entered the house. Seeing that she seemed to be busy, he immediately asked what it was. Yu then told her about the Wu family's visit today. When Ye Jia heard about the Wu family's behavior, his brows immediately raised. It seemed that what Old Master Zhang had said before was just a deliberate trick to deceive her. Seeing that she was not cooperating, he lowered his posture.
"What did mother say to the Wu family?" Ye Jia started talking to Yu while washing up.
Yu sneered, "Of course I'll send him away vaguely."
Ye Jia nodded. Regardless of the Wu family's motivations for this incident, she now understood the rules of conduct in this era. It seemed she had to maintain her official wife's dignity.
After Yu finished speaking, she left. Ye Jia simply washed up and changed her clothes before coming out.
Fourth Sister Ye was cradling her children, coaxing them to sleep at the stone table at the front of the house. Little Seven and Little Eight had grown considerably. They used to only eat and sleep, but now they could yelp and cry. They were chubby, their skin as white as snow. Even Ye Jia, who didn't particularly like children, couldn't resist the sight of them; they were truly adorable. Qiuyue, clacking away at her abacus, looked up at the noise.
Since their previous trip to Libei Town, Qiuyue and Ye Simei had been running Xishi's shop. When they saw Ye Jia return, they had wanted to talk to her about the shop, but because Ye Jia was too busy to spare the time, they had given up. Seeing Ye Jia sit down, they hurried over to report.
Xishi's shop had been doing very steadily, with a net profit of around eighteen to twenty taels per month. The two of them settled their accounts, and the money was roughly the same. They put the money in a box and gave it to Ye Jia all at once.
Ye Jia listened to what he had said and nodded: "Sort out the account book for me tomorrow, so there's no need to bother with it today."
After reporting the accounts, Qiuyue sat there, hesitant to speak, facing Ye Jia.
Seeing that Fourth Sister Ye was struggling to coax two children alone, Ye Jia reached out and held Xiao Ba in his arms. Just as the fingers of his right hand were grasped by the little claws, Qiu Yue frowned and said, "Boss, I've found out about the fragrant soap."
Ye Jia's smile faltered, and he raised his head: "What do you mean?"
"This fragrant soap is imported from the local area, not from Luntai."
Qiuyue knew quite a few people due to her past experiences. She had ways of finding out things that others couldn't, so she said, "I heard that the workshop is in the alley behind West Street. I haven't found out who owns it yet, but since they can run a workshop in town, they must be from here. Boss, who has the ability to have connections with several rouge shops in town?"
"Has there been anything unusual happening in our workshop lately?" Ye Jia frowned. It was no wonder she was being conspiratorial. If this truly was a local workshop, and if it had been produced later than the Zhou family's soap, Ye Jia had reason to suspect someone was stealing their skills.
Ye Simei held her child and listened. She was still slowly understanding the business matters and could not get a word in.
"I don't know about this." Qiuyue was in charge of Xishi Shop, and after all, Yu was in charge of the workshop.
Ye Jia naturally understood the situation, but he didn't discuss it with Qiuyue. He stood up and went back to the house to find Yu. Yu was looking through the workshop's account books for the past few days and looked up when she saw Ye Jia approaching. Ye Jia certainly didn't suspect Yu of any mistakes that would attract competition to the Zhou family workshop. Although Yu wasn't particularly knowledgeable about business, she had experience managing a household and was more perceptive than most.
"But what did you find out?" She had been fretting over the rice seeds for the past few days, while at the same time sending people to investigate the soap issue. The combination of these things was making her feel a bit annoyed.
"Yes." Ye Jiayu told her Qiuyue's words and asked her, "Mom, have any outsiders come to our workshop during the past few days when I was away? Or are the people we hired in the workshop not clean? Do they have connections with outsiders?"
As soon as the words fell, Yu's expression changed slightly.
In reality, the Zhou family wasn't familiar with the individuals they hired; they were hired through a brokerage firm. While Ye Jia had thoroughly inquired about the brokerage firm's backgrounds, he hadn't conducted any on-site background checks. After all, hiring a few female workers wasn't a specialized occupation, so a separate background check wasn't necessary. However, if these individuals had a weak legal awareness and a lack of understanding of property rights protection, they could be bribed and leak information.
Ye Jia's brows knitted together as he thought about it: "Did mother find out?"
"It's not that anyone is dishonest. The women in the workshop are all quite obedient," Yu said with a sullen look. "Now that you mention it, it reminds me. Three days after you left, a man claiming to be the owner of a rouge shop in the next town came to our workshop and said he wanted to see our scented soap. I heard he was sincere about buying it, so I took him inside for a look..."
Yu sighed and recalled, "But after looking around, the man didn't say how much he wanted to order and just left."
Ye Jia's heart skipped a beat. "Where did Mom take him to see it?"
"It's in the warehouse behind the workshop where we dry the fragrant soap. That's where we keep all the fragrant soap we make," Yu said. "I knew we shouldn't let anyone see our raw materials, so I deliberately kept them out of sight. They probably didn't see it when they came in."
"It shouldn't be this matter." Ye Jia's heart was boiling with anger, but his voice was calm. "From making the fragrant soap to drying it for use, it takes at least fifteen to twenty days. I've only been at my husband's place for ten days. You said you saw fragrant soap in someone else's shop just two days after I left, which means this workshop has been making fragrant soap since at least the beginning of February. And considering that my mother visited several shops and saw fragrant soap, it seems like business deals take time. In other words, this workshop must have been preparing since at least the twelfth month of last year. It could have been even earlier, perhaps in October or November."
Yu Shi also thought it made sense. She held her breath in her heart, "According to what Jia Niang said, this workshop has been set up a long time ago. Maybe they didn't steal our recipe. After all, we have only been making scented soap for more than half a year..."
At this point, Yu and Ye Jia suddenly looked at each other, as if they were thinking the same thing: "It can't be the Wu family."
From the very beginning, Ye Jia had made a contract with the third young master of the Wu family to get the fragrant soap.
They've been supplying the Wu family for the past few months. They used to make scented soap in their yard, buying ingredients without hiding from others. If the Wu family had been eyeing the Zhou family long ago, they would have known what ingredients they were going to use. If Ye Jia remembered correctly, the Wu family was in the rouge and powder business. The Wu family's third young master was also quite knowledgeable about scented soap...
Ye Jia pursed her lips, a layer of frost on her face: "Mom, tell me, is this the reason why the Wu family is so sneaky?"
Yu's expression was not much better either, she said gloomily: "It's not impossible."
"We haven't investigated thoroughly yet, so don't jump to conclusions." Ye Jia didn't want to make random accusations. He believed that evidence was essential. If the Wu family was behind this, then they had to find evidence to prove it. "The town is small, so it won't be difficult to find out about the workshop. Let's check it out."
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