174, Plans (4 more)
Carrying the spices bought for Xie Zhinuan in hand, two large hemp bags full.
Xie Zhinuan had also gotten up, gone to relieve herself with three others, and even jogged a lap, and was now back doing radio calisthenics.
She had drunk some alcohol last night, not enough to be dead drunk, but her head still ached. After running a lap and breathing in fresh air, she felt much better.
Returning to the courtyard to fetch water and wash up, she braided her hair and checked carefully for any stray hairs before going to the kitchen to wash her hands and prepare breakfast for Li Hengyi.
“We had too much greasy food last night, we need to eat something light today!”
Talking about eating light, Xie Zhinuan cooked some porridge, made some cold cucumber salad, and stewed some Bird’s Nest, and that was breakfast.
As for themselves, they brought out the leftovers from last night that were still edible, heated them up, and could eat them, too.
After busying with the kitchen tasks, Xie Zhinuan planned to go to the backyard to check on the melons, when she heard Yuan Liuwang calling out at the gate, “Zhinuan?”
“…” Xie Zhinuan turned her head, looking at Yuan Liuwang.
He was carrying two hemp bags.
Xie Zhinuan remembered she had asked Yuan Liuwang to buy some spices for her.
“Quick, take a seat in the shed!” She then shouted towards the kitchen, “Silly girl, brew a pot of tea!”
After inviting Yuan Liuwang to sit down, Xie Zhinuan couldn’t wait to open the hemp bags, revealing little packs of spices which she opened one by one, asking carefully and distinguishing their properties and scents, until she was certain what they were.
As expected, the products from the city were comprehensive, Xie Zhinuan said with a smile on her face, “These spices are very good, exactly what I wanted!”
“For cooking?” asked Yuan Liuwang, and he couldn’t help but add another question, “I heard from my mother that you opened a marinated meat shop in town and it’s doing quite well!”
“Hmm, yes, the business is going well. I plan to open one in nearby towns as well. I’ve already found Jiji Grass, and we can start with the collection of old clothes. The gentleman across the street gave fifty thousand tael of silver, I gave him a twenty percent dividend. You’ll be in charge of collecting old clothes, I’ll give you a ten percent dividend. As for the remaining seventy percent, it will temporarily belong to me. Later, if someone invests a large sum to buy shares, I will distribute some accordingly. With that large investment, we can share the profits!”
“…” Yuan Liuwang was somewhat surprised.
Surprised that he was only getting a ten percent dividend, and even more surprised that the gentleman across the street invested fifty thousand tael of silver and only received twenty percent.
Of course, without the Jiji Grass Xie Zhinuan found, this old clothes peddling business might not have been possible to start.
“Well, I don’t quite understand all this, just make the decisions, I reckon… with this ten percent dividend, I’ll be able to earn quite a bit in the future!”
Having traveled more, Yuan Liuwang understood the importance of not being shortsighted.
“It’s good that you think this way!” Xie Zhinuan said with a light laugh.
She then picked out the spices and asked Yuan Liuwang to specially buy these few when he went to the city, also inquiring if he had enough silver.
“I still have plenty of silver left, these spices aren’t as expensive as you think!” Yuan Liuwang hurriedly said.
The silly girl brought over the tea, and Xie Zhinuan carefully stored away the spices while inviting Yuan Liuwang to drink the tea.
She then discussed with Yuan Liuwang the considerations needed when collecting old clothes, stating that getting clothes from wealthy families would be ideal, as they typically have several sets of clothing determined for each season, including cotton-padded clothes that they renew every year. Some would be sent to relatives at home, while others would be kept aside. Nowadays, selling them for some money would be beneficial.
“I’m planning to take a trip to Fengping County to find a shop and buy a residence there. That’s where we’ll deal with cleaning and drying the old clothes!”
“…” Yuan Liuwang was puzzled, “What about here? What about Xiaohe Village?”
“Xiaohe Village…” Xie Zhinuan murmured softly, taking a long time before finally exhaling, “I might never come back!”
Chapter 175