The winter in Gaoliang County this year is exceptionally cold.
Ji Ying bought two new cotton-padded clothes for both Xu Nian’an and Xu Nianhua, and also got Nianhua new trousers and shoes.
Now that the household is doing better, Ji Ying is so eager to let the children eat well and dress well, she wants to make up for all that they lacked before.
Of course, having provided for her youngest son and daughter, Ji Ying also didn’t neglect her eldest son and daughter-in-law.
Zhou He is able to bring home a salary of fifty yuan every month, and Xu Nianji, who goes around buying chili peppers, has also made some money, on top of selling bean sprouts.
The cold January has passed, and February has arrived.
February 15th is New Year’s Eve, and the food factory has decided to take a holiday.
After being busy for several months, the capital Pei Yicheng initially invested has all been doubled and earned back.
Taking a half-month holiday in advance was something both families agreed upon.
When they first purchased the factory, the building was only simplified. Now, as the factory’s profits are getting better, there’s naturally a plan to renovate it thoroughly, especially the floor. They intend to replace the dusty cement floor with polished surfaces so that using a mop would keep the floor clean.
Another thing is to make the functions within the factory better differentiated.
The operation room is right in the central warehouse, and another warehouse has been built specifically to store the finished chili sauce.
Beyond the internal area of the factory, they also plan to make the outside yard’s cement smoother.
There is not much inventory of chili sauce in the warehouse, and they plan to deliver another batch before the New Year’s Eve to clear out the warehouse.
Pei Yicheng and the Xu family have not slighted the workers at the factory. In addition to their deserved wages, each person was given a box of chili sauce, containing ten bottles: five of regular chili sauce and five of fish chili sauce.
Just this box of chili sauce alone is worth nearly two months’ salary, not to mention that each person was also given two kilograms of meat.
Xiong Xihua and the others carried their items home in high spirits, heads held high and chests puffed out, proud to work at the factory.
Though they weren’t in office jobs, their salaries and benefits were beyond reproach.
February 10th is Little New Year’s Eve.
Xu Nianhua’s school has also started their holiday, and the family happily gathered around the table for a reunion dinner, filled with joy.
Especially since the family made money this year, unlike last year when the Xu Family couldn’t even scrape together two hundred yuan.
Smiles adorned everyone’s faces.
"Dad, Mom, let’s build a house next year," Xu Nianhua had been thinking about this for a while, she wanted the villagers to see that their life has been getting better since leaving the Xu family.
"Yeah, let’s do it," Xu Nian’an was the first to agree.
Now that the family was earning money, Nian’an too hoped they could build a new house.
In the current house, if you sit in the living room and don’t close the door, even with a fire warming you, you’ll still feel a cold draft on your back.
The gaps in the door panels are two fingers wide.
That’s just during winter when it’s only a bit chilly; come springtime, the rainy season, he really fears leaks everywhere.
Xu Qinghe had once patched up a leak, but with the family cat climbing on the roof and the old tiles failing, it’s really time for them to "retire."
"I agree with building a new house, too," Xu Nianji chimed in, he hadn’t been slack in earning money over the past six months either.
"Regarding building a house, I think there is no need to rush," Xu Qinghe, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up.