Chapter 577: Breaking the Bridge After Crossing It!

olar... have come fromA beautiful woman coughed incessantly, looking quite ill. The middle-aged scholar was very anxious and stepped forward to bow to Li Laosan and the others."Fellow countrymen, are..."How big of a workshop is my stepfather planning to open, and how much silver will he be investing" Jia Yin's eyes were shining with excitement.

It's not that this matter is about making a profit, but she has always wanted to help her stepfather, and now she finally has the opportunity!

Everyone couldn't help but smile at her enthusiastic appearance.

Li Laotai rubbed her granddaughter's hair and said with a smile, "Another day, Hongying, think carefully about this. When this child was born, did she have silver in her hand Did we get too busy back then and not see it!"

"This is simply a money-obsessed soul reincarnated, indifferent to everything else. But the moment silver is mentioned, their eyes practically gleam with avarice."

Tao Hongying also smiled and agreed, "I think this child was born with a bowl of rice in hand. He's been greedy since he was little!"

Jia Yin was teased by her grandmother and mother, but she didn't get angry. She grinned, showing her small front tooth gap, and said: "Grandma and Mother are right, I was born to carry a rice bowl. And there's even a big silver ingot in the bowl!"

"Bah, bah, that's a beggar!" Li Lao Tai glared at her granddaughter, causing everyone to laugh even harder.

Only then did Jia Yin sit down opposite her adoptive father and press him, “Father, you haven’t said yet, how big of a workshop do we need, and how much silver will it take”

The lord pondered for a moment, then said: “Of the wounded soldiers brought back from this campaign, those who chose to return home and those settled in our village have been removed, leaving over two hundred. Among them, more than eighty were seriously injured and could not move easily.

"The best jobs at the workshop are those they can handle, and the pay is enough to keep them alive. As for the investment… no more than a thousand taels!"

Jia Yin heard this and her small face blossomed into a smile, "Father-in-law, I really have two ways here, just wait a moment."

She got up and ran back to the backyard, quickly bringing over two things: a folded large piece of paper and a bundle of dried noodles.

Everyone was curious. Jia Yin held out the dried noodles to the Marquis and said, "Uncle, you should know this kind of noodle, right Our family always sends a lot to the wharf. You and Father took some with you when you went on campaigns. As long as you have water and a pot, you can just cook it. If you add meat sauce, it's even more delicious, isn't it"

The Lord nodded, guessing, "This kind of noodles, not afraid of spoiling, eating is indeed convenient, are you thinking of opening a noodle shop"

"That's right, godfather. This noodle takes a lot of effort to make. From making the dough to drying it, it takes at least three days. It requires quite a few people, and doesn't require much movement; you can just sit and do it."

"As for selling, it's bound to be good business. After all, Xin Du is connected to various states in the south, and many people travel between them every day. Even ordinary families would bring along two kilograms of dried noodles as a good gift during festivals or when visiting elderly relatives or women who have just given birth."

Mrs. Li couldn't help but chime in, "Fu Niuer is right. Ordinary people don't live easy lives. It's hard to even afford a bowl of noodles normally. If you're visiting someone, bringing two jin of dried noodles would be a really good gift. Just cook them in the pot and they're ready to eat, no need to roll out your own noodles at home, it's convenient and affordable!"

Tao Hongying also said, “This dried noodle dish is best paired with meat sauce. And you’d need to open a farm-style sauce workshop, which would also require manpower.”

Jiayin grinned and praised her grandmother and mother, "Grandma and mom are amazing, that's all there is to it!"

Tao Hongying then said, "Lord Hou, leave this to me and my mother. We'll make dried noodles tomorrow and see how many we can get from a jin of flour. Then we'll calculate the cost and figure out how many people are needed for each step of the process. Finally, we'll give you a concrete answer."

"This little rascal, Fu Niuer, has only seen us do it but never actually done it herself. She can't manage any of these things."

"Mother, you're acting like you're crossing a river and then dismantling the bridge! I came up with this good idea, but you abandoned me and even scorned me!"

Jia Yin pouted and complained, but was scolded by her mother, "You're my own child, what do you mean you dislike yourself Do you have an opinion"

"No, I'm glad you're happy."

Jia Yin shrank her neck and quickly hid beside her stepfather, causing everyone to laugh.

The lord opened the large sheet of paper and asked, "Funiu'er, is this a map"

"Yeah, it's just a map, a simple map!" Jiayin perked up, her voice brimming with enthusiasm. "Uncle, look, this map only shows the route along the canal to Quanzhou. The prefectures, counties, and towns on both sides are simply marked by my brother and his team."

She pointed to several places where steamed buns were drawn, "My uncle's fleet would buy things at these places every time they went there. Last time, I saw someone ask my uncle to bring a package to one of them for his uncle-in-law. He even had to treat my uncle to a drink to thank him for the help!"

"Foster father, you said those people who don't know Uncle, if they have letters or things to deliver, how do they do it Do they also need to find another caravan What if they can't find one, then can't they send messages"

If we were to station our veterans in the new capital and at these piers, sorting and labeling all the packages and letters collected from various places before sending them out. Then, delivering each letter or package individually to its recipient would certainly require a considerable number of people.

"And this job can be done even with a shortage of manpower. You can travel far and even buy a donkey cart. Once the news spreads, people might come to your doorstep without having to collect them everywhere…"

Jiayin said excitedly, pointing to the southwest on the map, "Also, godfather, if anyone doesn't want to sit in the workshop or send parcels, they can go exploring.

"For example, there's a medicinal herb here called Sanqi. I've always wanted to try it, but my uncle's fleet only goes as far as Quanzhou, they never come here. There are also lots of delicious fruits here that I want to taste!"

Having said that, she pointed at the location of Jiangbei and said, "Foster father, these veterans are most familiar with Jiangbei."

If this were in Xindu, any wealthy household who wanted to retrieve something valuable, rescue someone, or even like the Guo family, definitely wanted their descendants' remains back. They would probably be willing to spend a lot of money to hire people...

Jia Yin hadn't even had a chance to speak before she was suddenly lifted up by the Marquis and spun around in circles.

"Funiu'er is really amazing, you've helped your godfather solve a big problem!"

Jiayin was dizzy from being turned around, but seeing her stepfather so happy, she couldn't help but giggle along.

Li Lao'er was also smiling so widely that his eyes were nearly closed, "It still takes Fu Niu'er to do it! Even the Marquis has been frowning for a whole day. He even scolded that Miss Wu away..."

"Who is Miss Wu" Old Madam Li asked first.

The crowd's gossip fire immediately ignited. Even Jiayin grabbed her adoptive father's collar, joining the onlookers at lightning speed. "Father, who is Miss Wu Could she be my future stepmother"

"No, don't listen to your second uncle's nonsense!" The Marquis coughed and put down Jia Yin, saying, "You all sit down. I'll write down what Fu Niuer said and organize it."

Having said that, he strode back to the next room.

Everyone couldn't help but steal a glance and giggle at his appearance. In the end, they pulled Li Laoer aside to inquire about it in detail.

Li Lao Er didn't know much either, he could only say: "This afternoon, I was supposed to have dinner with the Marquis at his mansion and discuss the placement of the wounded soldiers. As a result, just as I arrived at the gate of the Marquis's mansion, I was stopped by a young lady."

"The young woman said she was from the Jiangning Hou Mansion and that she had liked the Marquis since she was a child. She asked the Marquis why he was unwilling to marry her"ts, “Funiu, your uncle is not as good as your father. I haven’t captured anything good to give you as a birthday present, so I can only buy this small thing for you. You can wear it and play.”Li Laota...