Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Chapter 414: Chapter 218: Attracting Business

’Of course this isn’t a loss for them,’ he thought. ’If anything, this could be a major coup!’

He then gave Manager Song further instructions, "Also, our primary customers are the wealthy families—they’re the ones we’ll make our profit from. For the machines sold to farmers, we need to minimize costs. The quality must be guaranteed, of course, but the price should be lower. The machines for the wealthy families, on the other hand, should be of the highest quality. We can even offer free, on-site repairs for two years, and the price should be much higher."

Manager Song nodded, reported on a few other matters, and then took his leave.

And so, a new stream of people began to flow into Xiatang Market—buying land, constructing buildings, hiring workers, and purchasing materials, all bustling about the small market town with great vigor.

When Qingmu learned the blueprints had sold for two thousand taels of silver, he was utterly astonished.

Juhua, however, was not the least bit surprised. Just as Old Mr. Fang had noted, she knew it wasn’t a huge sum, but it wasn’t small either. In the end, it all depended on who was running the business. Even if she had kept the blueprints to herself, it would have been hard enough just to keep them secret, let alone figure out how many years it would take to earn that much silver. Someone would have likely snatched them away by force, bringing a mountain of trouble with them.

You don’t take on a job you’re not equipped for.

These blueprints, and the sausages she planned for the future, would surely earn a fortune in Old Mr. Fang’s hands. But that success would largely be thanks to his connections, his capital, and his business savvy.

Juhua wasn’t jealous of the fortune he stood to make. All she wanted was to live her peaceful country life. Just having a rice-threshing machine to use was enough for her. While she hadn’t initially planned to make money from the invention, she wasn’t going to turn her nose up at it when it was handed to her. She gladly accepted it.

After receiving the money, she and Qingmu decided to take out three hundred taels for her cousin Laifu and his master, Wang Jinhua. Of the remaining amount, they set aside one thousand taels for savings and used the other seven hundred to buy land and build in Xiatang Market.

Since the busy farming season was fast approaching, Qingmu hurriedly bought twenty mu of land on the edge of Xiatang Market. They would leave it for now and begin construction after the autumn harvest. Juhua’s preliminary plan was to build some warehouses and shops there, which they could then rent out and simply collect the income.

Her idea was met with approval from both Zheng Changhe and Mrs. Yang.

Mrs. Yang said she had no interest in running a business, Zheng Changhe said he loved farming and raising pigs, and Qingmu added with a smile that he would be busy building a workshop in the village and had no time for such things.

Juhua beamed at her family and said with a playful pout, "Dad, I don’t want to deal with all that hassle either. I just thought we should take advantage of the cheap land prices and buy some to hold onto for now. If we wait until prices rise, we won’t be able to bring ourselves to buy it then."

Qingmu and Zheng Changhe went to buy the land together. They didn’t pick a prime location in Xiatang Market or fertile farmland nearby, just an ordinary plot of land. Still, it was much more expensive than wasteland at ten taels of silver per mu, and they bought twenty mu.

The location didn’t seem very promising for now. It was too remote for shops, and the soil was too poor for farming. But if Xiatang Market were to prosper, the land would undoubtedly become a hot commodity.

They hadn’t initially intended to buy so much land, but Juhua and Qingmu had discussed it. They realized that no one else in the village could afford to buy land in Xiatang Market right now. Since their family had the money, they decided to buy more. In the future, if the village needed it, they could sell or lease it to them.

Zheng Changhe had suddenly become a minor landowner, a title he was not at all used to. He looked at his daughter and son and said with a cheerful laugh, "It’s good that you bought it, very good. I wouldn’t have been able to rest with all that silver just sitting in the house. Buying land is like building an inheritance for you two. And if Xiatang Market doesn’t prosper, we’ll just farm that plot."

As ever, his only real interest was farming.

Mrs. Yang shot him a look and said gleefully, "That land is right next to Xiatang Market; it would be a waste to farm it. The market is sure to prosper. Haven’t you seen? Even Old Mr. Fang is building a workshop there."

She personally disliked business, but she still hoped Xiatang Market would flourish. That way, they could sell many of the goods they produced at home. Now that the family owned so much land there, she was even more anxious for the market to succeed and was delighted with Juhua’s plan to build shops for rent.

Qingmu and Juhua exchanged a smile. "We wouldn’t have time to farm it anyway," Qingmu said. "That land can only be used for shops. We should focus on farming our land here and raising more pigs. That’s what’s important."

Mrs. Yang nodded. "I also enjoy raising pigs, chickens, and ducks. It’s a little tiring, but as long as you work hard, you can have peace of mind. Business isn’t like that. Just working hard isn’t enough; you have to waste so much breath and wrack your brain."

Zheng Changhe nodded vigorously. The thought of haggling with people was terrifying to him. He turned to Juhua and said, "Daughter, I think you’re pretty good at negotiating. Do you want to be a businesswoman?"

Juhua smiled. "Well, if I did go into business, I certainly wouldn’t lose money. But I don’t want to. I think it’s lovely to be at home growing vegetables, raising fish, and feeding the chickens and ducks. It’s just like Mom said—it’s peaceful!"

Finding a kindred spirit in his daughter, Zheng Changhe eagerly chimed in, "Isn’t that right? At home, you can do as you please without having to watch anyone’s mood. It’s tiring when you’re busy, but during your free time, you can sit under a tree to chat and do needlework, or go pick flowers and gather mushrooms. And collecting fresh chicken and duck eggs in the morning is just the best!"

Juhua chuckled at her father’s rambling praise. Her father seemed to think she absolutely adored collecting eggs.

Qingmu couldn’t help but laugh as well. "Dad," he asked, "are we teaming up with everyone to transplant the rice seedlings again this year? If the others don’t join, we can just work with Huai Zi’s family. And Mom, you shouldn’t work in the paddies. Stay home and cook with Juhua so she won’t be too tired on her own."

Mrs. Yang said, "How could we not team up? Everyone wants to plant a second crop of rice, so we’re in a hurry. Besides, your Third Uncle Zhao and Uncle Zhang both have more land this year. If we work together, we can get the seedlings planted sooner and have more time for our other crops. Don’t the sweet potatoes and soybeans we just planted need tending? With you and your father in the fields, I’ll stay home and cook with Juhua!"

Juhua listened intently as her parents and brother discussed transplanting the rice. This was a task that couldn’t be treated carelessly.

Truth be told, teaming up to transplant seedlings didn’t actually reduce the workload; no one really got a better deal. However, working with a large group made the task feel more lively, and more importantly, it was psychologically easier. Standing alone in a vast, empty paddy, it felt as if the field could never be filled, and the days of toil seemed endless. With more hands, a whole mu of land could be finished quickly, which made a world of difference to one’s morale.

Let us now turn from the heartwarming family meeting at Juhua’s home. After receiving the blueprints, Manager Song moved to Xiatang Market to personally oversee the construction of the workshop.

At the same time, he hired both Laifu and Wang Jinhua for the Fang Family Workshop. He also worked without pause, contacting the villages near Little Qing Mountain to negotiate lumber purchases. The workshop changed day by day, and was soon completed and operational.

It’s amazing what money can do. Things got done with incredible speed!