After a busy day, Jiang Yaojie skillfully kept accounts and tallied losses in his notebook. Jiang Ling was very pleased to see Jiang Yaojie fiddling with the abacus.
She felt that she could hand over her little business to Jiang Yaojie completely after a while.
"Yaojie, don't settle accounts yet, Mom has something to tell you!" Jiang Ling beckoned to Jiang Yaojie and said.
Jiang Yaojie obediently put down the abacus and immediately ran to Jiang Ling's side to ask, "Mom, what's wrong?"
"You'll come with me to Yecheng tomorrow," Jiang Ling replied calmly.
"What, go to Yecheng? Why...why do we have to go there?" Jiang Yaojie asked Jiang Ling with some surprise.
Jiang Yaojie had only heard of the place called "Yecheng". It was said to be a very prosperous place, and some wealthy families even had gilded floor tiles.
Thinking of this, Jiang Yaojie shook his head repeatedly; he never dared to imagine anything too luxurious.
“I heard that Congxin’s father went there, so I thought I’d go and try my luck. I’ll also check out some new business opportunities!” Jiang Ling said.
Upon hearing that it was about "Chen Congxin," Jiang Yaojie immediately perked up. He nodded repeatedly and said to Jiang Ling, "Okay, okay, Mother, I'll go with you!"
Less than five minutes after Jiang Ling got home in the afternoon, the village chief walked in with a piece of paper in his hand.
Jiang Ling quickly poured a glass of water for the village chief and said, "Village chief, I have something to do and need to go to Yecheng tomorrow. It might take about half a month! Could you please take care of Suihe, Nianci, Congxin, and my younger brother?"
The village chief was somewhat surprised upon hearing this. Although he was curious about what Jiang Ling was going to do, he was too embarrassed to ask. He nodded and said to Jiang Ling, "Alright, be careful in everything you do. Ye Cheng is not as simple as our village!"
Jiang Ling nodded and smiled, her gaze falling on the rough paper in the village chief's hand. The village chief understood and unfolded the paper, revealing a large number of names written on it, but all of them had been crossed out by the village chief, leaving only about ten names.
Jiang Ling took a careful look at the names of the ten people. She recognized them all; they were honest, simple farmers.
"Were these ten the village chief's final selection?" Jiang Ling asked.
The village chief nodded and said, "Jiang, take a look at these ten people and choose seven more. After that, I'll have Gousheng write them down, and then we can start selecting land and construction! Don't worry, the village will cover the cost; the village can afford it!"
Looking at the names on the list, Jiang Ling crossed out three names based on the number of people in the household. She then said to the village chief, "These three households have few people but lots of land. If we really hire them, I'm afraid they might not be able to work diligently!"
After hearing Jiang Ling's explanation, the village chief stroked his chin in satisfaction, indicating his agreement.
Then Jiang Ling continued to say to the village chief, "By the way, village chief, there's one more thing. Taking care of the elderly requires patience. When you're hiring, you need to make it clear to them that if we find out they mistreat or abuse the elderly, then deduct all their wages and never hire them again!"
After hearing Jiang Ling's words, the village chief looked at her in disbelief. After a long while, he hesitated and said, "This...this isn't a good idea, is it? Besides, I think these people are all honest and law-abiding. Wouldn't saying this hurt their feelings?"
"Village Chief, I think we should make things clear first, otherwise some people might have ulterior motives. After all, you can know a person's face but not their heart!" Jiang Ling said firmly to the village chief.
The village chief agreed with Jiang Ling's point and nodded, saying, "Alright, let's do it your way. I've chosen a location behind Granny Cao's original residence. That spot just happens to be a new one bestowed upon us by the Emperor. What do you think?"
“That place is nice, close to the fields, and not too remote! Let’s go with that. You’ll have to worry about the rest, village chief. I’ll be away for at least half a month!” Jiang Ling replied.
The village chief nodded and chatted with Jiang Ling for a while before turning to leave.
Before dawn the next day, Jiang Ling took Jiang Yaojie on an oxcart bound for Guangping County. Before leaving, Jiang Ling gave instructions to all the children, including Jiang Zhishan, and gave Jiang Zhishan two taels of silver for living expenses for the next half month.
Jiang Ling was filled with anxiety throughout the journey, as this was her first time traveling so far from home.
The oxcart slowly arrived at the dock in Guangping County. Jiang Ling and Jiang Yaojie paid the money and boarded a large ship that looked quite luxurious.
After a short while, the ship slowly left the dock and headed towards Yecheng.
Jiang Ling, a modern woman, had hardly ever been on a boat before, so she found this ship very novel and enjoyed wandering around looking at it.
But Jiang Yaojie, who was standing to the side, seemed to be feeling unwell. His face was pale and his eyebrows were furrowed, making him look like he was in great pain.
"Yaojie, what's wrong?" Jiang Ling asked hurriedly.
"I...no...uh..." Before Jiang Yaojie could finish speaking, he covered his mouth and rushed to the deck, where he leaned against the railing and vomited uncontrollably.
Jiang Ling knew the child was seasick, so she bought seasickness medicine from the mall when no one was looking. After Jiang Yaojie felt a little better, she handed him water mixed with the seasickness medicine.
Only after watching Jiang Yaojie gulp it down did they feel a little relieved.
Jiang Ling looked at Jiang Yaojie's deathly pale face, then finally went to the boat owner, opened a good room, and led Jiang Yaojie inside.
The room, described as a superior one, was actually just a makeshift bedroom built inside a bed pod. The window was small and the ventilation wasn't very good. The bed also looked damp, but at least Jiang Yaojie could lie down and rest, which was not bad.
"Mother, I've caused you trouble!" The price of two taels of silver made Jiang Yaojie gasp, but when he saw his mother take out the money without a care, he was filled with guilt.
"Silly son, what are you saying? What do you mean you're causing me trouble! As long as you're not sick or uncomfortable, I'm happy and content!" Jiang Ling gently stroked Jiang Yaojie's head and said tenderly.
Jiang Ling turned to look at the bed and said to Jiang Yaojie, "Yaojie, lie down for a while. I'll call you when it's time for dinner!"
Jiang Yaojie nodded and lay down on the bed to rest with his eyes closed.
At dinner, Jiang Ling, worried that Jiang Yaojie might have an upset stomach, specially ordered a bowl of plain porridge and some pickled vegetables, and also ordered a plate of stir-fried vegetables and brown rice for herself.
The two of them leisurely spent three days and three nights on the boat.
Finally, the ship slowly docked at Yecheng's pier, and Jiang Ling led Jiang Yaojie off the ship.
Yecheng was indeed much more prosperous than Pingxi County and Guangping County, with as many as four or five inns.
Jiang Ling booked two premium rooms with Jiang Yaojie, and then began to inquire about Shen Qianhe.
The mother and son inquired for a whole day, but unfortunately, they found nothing about Shen Qianhe.
Jiang Yaojie returned to the inn dejectedly, while Jiang Ling wanted to go out for a walk.
A drunken man suddenly bumped into Jiang Yaojie, who stumbled and almost fell. The man looked at Jiang Yaojie with somewhat dazed eyes and mumbled, "Sorry."
He casually and unsteadily walked out of the inn.
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