These past few days have kept Da Bao extremely busy. The white sugar became an instant hit in Qingshui Town and Anyang County as soon as it was launched.
As a result, several surrounding towns and villages have come to know about this rare commodity, white sugar, and the daily order volume has been increasing exponentially, to the point where supply cannot meet demand.
After finishing his delivery today, he wanted to tell Chen Qingqing the good news.
Upon arriving at Jishetang, they saw Chen Qingqing examining a child, so they remained silent.
Only after the woman left with the child did he smile and approach Chen Qingqing.
"Sister Qingqing, our new white sugar is selling like hotcakes. Not only in Anyang, but also in several surrounding counties, people are buying from Manager Jiang. Our sugar mill is working overtime and still can't keep up with the demand."
Chen Qingqing smiled and nodded; this outcome was entirely within her expectations.
Seeing that she didn't react much, Da Bao frowned, somewhat puzzled, "Sister Qingqing, aren't you happy?"
“Dabao, there’s nothing to be happy about. I’m handing the sugar mill over to you. You should be thinking about how to increase production and expand the scale of production, instead of being complacent about this small achievement. There’s still a long road ahead.”
"Sister Qingqing, our business is already very big and profitable, why do we need to expand it further?"
“Dabao, you only see the immediate benefits, but you don’t see the long-term development.”
Chen Qingqing smiled and patiently began to explain.
"That's right, our sugar mill is indeed making a lot of money right now. Don't be complacent. You must always strive to surpass yourself in order to make continuous progress."
Think about it, right now, all the towns and villages around Anyang County are getting their goods from Manager Jiang. But as word spreads, our sugar mill's reputation will grow, and the demand will increase accordingly.
If we don't expand production scale and increase output in time, wouldn't that be a huge loss?
If we could produce more white sugar, wouldn't we be able to sell it to farther places, even throughout the entire Great Ning Dynasty?
Chen Dabao nodded repeatedly. He was thrilled and a little excited as he listened, but he quickly calmed down.
In the past, Chen Qingqing would always be at the forefront, paving the way for him, and he only needed to follow the steps.
But now that such a large sugar mill has been entrusted to his management, he feels somewhat uncertain about his capabilities.
He was afraid of failing, afraid of letting Chen Qingqing down.
"Sister Qingqing, even if we expand production now, we still won't have enough sugar beets."
"You can rest assured about these things. Don't forget, our village grows a lot of sugar beets. Once they taste the benefits, you won't need to tell them; many people will naturally rush to plant them."
Hearing Chen Qingqing's words, Chen Dabao immediately understood. "Sister Qingqing, you are amazing. I never understood why you wanted to get the villagers to grow sugar beets. Back then, when Liang Fugui opened the sugar mill, I secretly complained to you, thinking that it was your sugar beet planting in the village that caused the trouble. I didn't expect you already had a solution."
Chen Qingqing chuckled softly, "Humans are very good at imitating. If you don't want outsiders to know the secret of making sugar, you'll have to stop hiring outsiders altogether."
But once hired, someone will inevitably learn the skills. Human desires are limitless, and no one will give up a chance to make a lot of money out of loyalty or gratitude.
I knew someone would eventually start their own business, but I never expected Liang Fugui and his wife to be so impatient, actually trying to buy Zheng Zhong's beets at a high price, leaving us without any ingredients. Luckily, Zheng Zhong is a decent person, otherwise we would have been left with nothing.
"Yes, Uncle Zheng is indeed a rare good person."
Da Bao nodded in agreement, and then spoke again.
"Sister Qingqing, when I came out of Liu's Grocery Store just now, I saw Liang Fugui and his wife. Guess who they gave the brown sugar they made to?"
"Li's General Store is right across from Liu's. Could it be that Manager Li is the one who got them to make sugar?"
"Yes, that's him."
Upon receiving an affirmative reply, Chen Qingqing frowned. She hadn't expected Liang Fugui to have gotten in touch with the man surnamed Li. It seemed that Manager Li harbored resentment towards her for not cooperating with him. Such a petty person had to be guarded against.
"Dabao, you must remember to keep the ingredients for making white sugar safe and not let anyone know about them."
"Don't worry, Sister Qingqing. My uncle was worried that storing the raw materials at the sugar shop wouldn't be safe, so he took them all home to store. We even made a secret room in my uncle's room overnight, so no one will find out."
"That's good." After saying that, Chen Qingqing paused for a moment, then changed the subject, "Dabao, now that you can handle things on your own, you will be in charge of the sugar shop. From now on, you will be the second manager of the sugar shop, and we will split the profits 20/80."
Upon hearing this, Da Bao quickly waved his hand in refusal, "No, no, no, Sister Qingqing, I'm already very content with earning three taels of silver a month. How could I dare to split it 20/80 with you? I don't think I can accept this money..."
Chen Qingqing didn't make this decision on a whim. She knew that when a person becomes wealthy, their desires also swell.
As the business grew, Da Bao handled more and more money.
If you give him back three taels of silver as wages, he will definitely feel unbalanced and may try to embezzle it. It is better to give him a share generously.
"Don't refuse. You deserve a reward for your efforts. I've seen all the hard work you've put into the sugar shop. I'm giving you 20% because I hope we siblings can work together to make the sugar shop a success, so we don't fall out over profits. You should understand the reasoning behind this."
"Sister Qingqing, you saved my life. I will never forget your kindness. Even if I only earn three taels of silver a day, I will never betray you or do anything to wrong you."
"I believe you, so don't refuse anymore. It's settled then. From now on, you'll be the second-in-command of the sugar mill. Manage the sugar mill well and strive to make it bigger and stronger."
"Don't worry, Sister Qingqing, I will definitely live up to your expectations."
At this moment, Chen Dabao was filled with excitement. With a 20% profit margin, based on the current daily sugar production of 500 catties, he could earn 150 taels of silver a month. As the sugar mill expanded, that would be making a fortune every day.
He secretly vowed that as long as Sister Qingqing needed him in the future, he would do anything for her, even if it meant going through fire and water.
"When I get back, I'll recruit workers and buy a few more donkeys. Once Zheng Zhong arrives, I'll increase our order volume and strive to make our Chen Family Sugar Mill the most famous sugar mill in the Great Ning Dynasty."
"Okay, go for it!" Chen Qingqing gave a thumbs-up...
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