Zheng Zhong was incredibly excited as he looked at the piles of silver, bowing repeatedly.
"Thank you so much, Miss Chen, for your help. I thought I would lose everything on this trip, but I never expected to meet such a kind and compassionate person as you."
To be honest, Miss Chen, this is my first time going out to do business, and I've staked everything on it.
If this batch of goods doesn't sell, not only me, but my wife, children, and elderly parents won't survive. You're our family's savior!
Chen Qingqing knew all too well how difficult it was to go out and do business in ancient times when transportation was underdeveloped.
Waterways rely on rowboats, which are an important means of transportation on rivers. However, due to poor communication, goods that are resold may not be able to be sold.
Another possibility is that the goods are not easy to preserve. Although these sugar beets are not easy to spoil, they are very easy to rot and deteriorate if they are not sold in time and left together.
Therefore, it takes great courage to go out and do business, and for that reason alone, she admires Zheng Zhong in front of her.
Chen Qingqing smiled and said, "Uncle Zheng, you're too kind. It was just a small favor."
Furthermore, I did have other uses for accepting these beets.
As I just mentioned, we'll be working together long-term. I just don't know if the price will change.
"Don't worry, Miss Chen, if you still want it, the price will definitely not change."
Zheng Zhong secretly did the math in his mind: this trip sold 5,000 catties of sugar beets for 15 taels of silver, which was enough to buy 5,000 catties for 2.5 taels of silver in the local area.
A boat costs 1000 coins per 100 li. It costs 600 coins a day to travel 600 li from his home to Qingshui Town. It would take 10 days to travel 6 taels of silver.
After deducting expenses for food, drink, and lodging along the way, the trip netted them a little over three taels of silver.
If you deliver goods every two months, you can earn about twenty taels of silver a year.
Isn't this a sign of getting rich? Good luck is here and you can't get rid of it.
He was overjoyed, his pride evident in his expression. "Miss Chen, when will you need beets again?"
Chen Qingqing had already planned it out. She could clear 200 jin of beets a day, and in less than a month, she could have finished clearing them all.
To prevent supply shortages, the supply of raw materials must be guaranteed.
Thinking of this, she smiled and asked, "Uncle Zheng, when is the earliest you can come next time?"
"A round trip takes about ten days, plus the time spent on the acquisition, so it would take at least a month."
"Okay, let's go with this schedule. From now on, you will send me 5,000 catties of sugar beets every month."
"Okay, no problem, I guarantee on-time delivery." Zheng Zhong never expected such a windfall; it seemed like they were trying to make him rich!
Although Chen Zhanshan trusted his daughter in his heart, he still found it a bit outrageous that she had Zheng Zhong supply her so regularly, and couldn't help but ask again.
"Qing girl, we don't even know when we'll finish these 5,000 catties of beets, why are you insisting on supplying them long-term? Where are we going to put so much of it?"
"Yes, have you thought this through? Our family eats beets every meal, and we probably won't be able to finish them in a year. Why are you still having them sent home?" Madam Lin frowned, looking equally bewildered.
Chen Qingqing smiled slightly, "Dad, Mom, don't worry, I'll tell you the details when we get home."
Seeing the worried look in Lin's eyes, Chen Zhanshan quickly advised, "Xiumei, our daughter doesn't do things she's not sure of. We should trust her."
Lin sighed helplessly, "Alright!"
Not wanting to waste any more time, Chen Qingqing quickly gave Chen Zhanshan some instructions, and then said to Zheng Zhong, "Uncle Zheng, I'll go first and have my father take you back with me."
"Alright, Miss Chen, don't worry, I'll have someone find a car right away, and it'll be there shortly." Zheng Zhong agreed and turned to start arranging for people to load the car.
Chen Qingqing briefly explained a few more words to Chen Zhanshan, then left the dock with Lin Shi, found Liu Laohan, and got into an oxcart to head home...
The Chen family's old house.
After leaving Chen Qingqing's house, Old Mrs. Chen and the others went back inside to change into clean clothes, packed a few cornbread buns into their bundle, and then urged Old Mr. Chen, who was standing to the side, to hurry up.
"You should hurry up and get ready so we can get going."
"We're going to report to the authorities, what's the point of fussing over this? Let's hurry up and get going!" Old Chen was already getting impatient. "If we dawdle any longer, we probably won't even get to the county office by tomorrow morning."
"You don't know anything. We'll be the parents of a scholar in the future. No matter what we do, we have to pay attention to our image. We can't bring shame to the Chen family."
"Alright, alright, this is still nothing, so don't go around bragging about it. I can't afford to lose face like that."
"Look at you, acting like a jerk!" Old Mrs. Chen gritted her teeth and glared at him. "What do you mean by 'nothing to be true'? Your third son will definitely pass the imperial examination next year. Just wait and see."
"Alright, alright, I believe you." Old Chen didn't want to argue with her about these things, after all, he couldn't win. If she said a few more words, she would definitely get angry. He stepped forward and took the package. "Let's go, old woman."
"Let's go, I need to say a few more words to Ruolan,"
As soon as she finished speaking, Chen Ruolan walked in from the outer room, holding two eggs in her hand. "Grandma, the journey to the county town is quite long. Take these two eggs with you and eat them on the way."
"Oh, my good granddaughter, you're so thoughtful." Grandma Chen was so happy that snot bubbles came out of her nose. "Grandma brought some dry food, so you can keep these two eggs for yourself."
Hearing him say that, Chen Ruolan stopped being polite. After all, she was just putting on an act. Although eggs weren't very tasty, they were still better than coarse flour buns.
To ensure the elderly couple could successfully report to the authorities, she added a few more words of advice.
"Grandma, to prevent any unforeseen complications, once you arrive in the county town, no matter how late it is, be sure to find the county government office first and explain to the magistrate that Chen Qingqing murdered someone for money. Try to bring the officials back as soon as possible so that they can be caught red-handed."
"If they manage to move that person away, Chen Qingqing might turn around and accuse me."
Grandma Chen nodded repeatedly, “Ruolan, don’t worry. With my physique, I’ll be able to reach the county town before dark. As soon as I find the county government, I’ll beat the drum to appeal for justice, and they’ll definitely arrest that damned girl.”
Chen Ruolan concealed the smug look in her eyes and urged, "Alright, then you and my grandfather should hurry up and go!"
"Okay, you eat and drink well at home, we'll be back first thing tomorrow morning."
After giving her some more instructions, Old Mrs. Chen and Old Mr. Chen left the house.
He had only taken a couple of steps when the village head came walking towards him.
Seeing that the elderly couple still had bags slung over their wrists and looked like they were about to go out, Wu Baoan quickly called out, "Auntie, where are you going?"
Grandma Chen was taken aback at first, then her heart tightened. How did she end up running into him?
Wu Baoan is the village head; if he finds out about this, it'll be a real problem.
You can't judge a book by its cover. After all, that's a reward of over a hundred taels of silver. Who wouldn't be tempted?
If he steals the credit, the loss would be huge. It's better to do it quietly and without anyone noticing...
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