Yang Chuxia first went to Ye Zi’an’s house. Zi’an, since he stopped frequenting Shopkeeper Li’s bar, would spend his free time studying at home or checking the account books sent from Artistry Pavilion.
Seeing Yang Chuxia enter, he said, "Xiaxia, your timing is perfect, there’s something I wanted to discuss with you."
Ye Zi’an pointed to the ledger in his hand, "This is all the orders we’ve taken since the shop opened. All prepaid, with delivery dates on the back. But we’ve run into a problem. We have too many orders. The latest are already scheduled for delivery in August. And that’s not all. There are many large items, like tables, including the one Shopkeeper Li ordered, and additional ones placed by some wealthy families in town."
Listening to his explanation, Yang Chuxia understood, "So we’re understaffed. A few people alone can’t possibly finish all this, and we’re likely to miss the delivery dates. That would be bad for the reputation of our shop."
"Exactly, so we either buy more labor from the labor market, or recruit villagers." Ye Zi’an stated, "Personally, I suggest hiring a couple of reliable villagers, and selecting a few from the labor market."
"Your idea is good. We should support the village. Otherwise, my grandfather’s position as a land officer will become awkward. After all, he always hopes that everyone in the village is well-off. And we’ve been quietly making money that can rouse envy from the villagers. We should leave some morsels behind while we feast on large chunks of meat." Yang Chuxia thought for a while and continued, "I need to visit my grandfather anyway, I will discuss this with him."
Only after settling the main issue, did Ye Zi’an look at what she brought, "Are these roasted pine nuts? They’ve even been shelled."
He knew about unripened pine nuts, their shells were really hard. Biting them was out of the question, they had to be cracked open with rocks.
"Of course, they need to be shelled. Otherwise, people can’t eat them once they buy them." Yang Chuxia laughed, "Moreover, shelling them is a craft in itself. This way, we’re not worried about others selling the same product."
"Try them. What do you think of the taste of these pine nuts?" Saying this, Yang Chuxia put a handful into Ye Zi’an’s hand.
Ye Zi’an tasted one, then another, finally nodding after several, "Delicious."
He subsequently added, "Their saltiness is offset by a hint of sweetness, and they’re crunchy. However, Xiaxia, everyone has different tastes. I think we can provide these pine nuts in both numbing and spicy flavors, as well as the original flavor, just like the shrimp paste."
"Hehe, that’s exactly what I was thinking." Yang Chuxia laughed again, "Speaking of the shrimp paste, do you think we could lease the beach area there to catch crabs and shrimps? We surely buy the large ones, but there’s no need to buy the small ones, right?"
Ye Zi’an shook his head, "There’s no need to lease. If you truly want to lease something, you can consider the hill after the nut shop opens. Concerning the raw materials for the pine nuts, it’s not that we’re afraid of villagers picking them, we’re afraid that others will try to profit from this. As for the beach, haven’t you always wanted to help the village? Let the villagers collect the seafood, you can buy the fresh produce every day at a fair price. This way, you’d save effort and earn good will."
"Right, your considerations are indeed thorough." Yang Chuxia clapped her hands in delight upon hearing this, "Let’s go to see my grandfather. We’ll discuss this with him, so he can notify villagers to pick pine nuts tomorrow, and help me find three hard-working, honest villagers to hire. As for the rest, we’ll talk it over later."