Free Web NovelChapter 465: Chapter 244: Wordless Communication
Liu Xiaomei and Juhua chatted for a while. Seeing it was nearly noon, she put away her needlework and said her goodbyes, arranging with Juhua to go to Xiatang Market together in a couple of days.
Juhua continued her needlework until she finished a pair of gloves for Zheng Changhe. Only then did she rise to prepare a meal. Just as she looked up, she saw Zhang Huai walking in through the courtyard gate, a large package in hand and a smile on his face.
The big Black Dog was lying in the middle of the courtyard, sunbathing with the new little gray puppy. Hearing footsteps, it shot to its feet with a WHOOSH and charged toward the gate. The chubby little gray pup followed close behind, its short legs churning as it tumbled along like a rolling gourd, its whole body quivering as it ran.
The big Black Dog met the visitor warily, but upon realizing it was Zhang Huai, it wagged its tail and relaxed. It even nuzzled its head against his leg, clearly not treating this frequent guest as an outsider.
Zhang Huai had just returned from Xiatang Market and brought a package for Juhua. Or, to be more precise, he’d brought it for Qingmu. It was from Liu Yunlan, who had asked Laixi to deliver it to Qingmu. Inside were shoes.
Huai Zi was now at the sausage workshop, in charge of all external business. Sales, of course, fell under his purview. He also supervised procurement, though the specific responsibility for that was Li Changyun’s.
Now that they had a proper workshop, they could no longer operate on a small scale like last year, buying pork only from their own village. To that end, the workshop had set up a dedicated purchasing point in Xiatang Market to buy pork from all the surrounding villages. The finished sausages were also shipped out from there. One portion went to Li Changyu to sell in Qinghui County, another was sold to the Qinghui Restaurant, and the remainder was distributed and sold by the Fang family’s Hongfa Inn.
Back in August, Juhua and Qingmu had sold the sausage recipe to Old Mr. Fang for just 500 taels of silver. They claimed it was to thank him for his support with the rice thresher project and that they couldn’t ask for more. In truth, Juhua hadn’t planned on asking for any silver at all. But business is business; if she hadn’t accepted any payment, Old Mr. Fang might have become suspicious. So she asked for 500 taels, certain the price was lower than what he would have offered. By doing so, she quietly earned his goodwill and, more importantly, reinforced his impression of the villagers’ simple honesty.
Sure enough, the price stunned Old Mr. Fang, who had been prepared to offer two thousand taels. He had assumed that, like last time, they would let him name the price. He never expected them to set their own low price instead.
The amount of silver was negligible to him, but it truly deepened his favorable impression of this honest rural family. He faithfully honored his promise not to enter the sausage business in the Huzhou region. Instead, just as he had with the rice thresher workshops, he established the Fang family’s sausage workshops in various other locations outside of Huzhou.
Moreover, he instructed Manager Song to have Hongfa Inn act as the sole distributor for Qingshan Sausages throughout the Huzhou region. This saved Zhang Huai and Li Changyu a great deal of trouble. The market was so large that the village workshop’s current output was not nearly enough to meet the demand.
And so, Li Changyun had moved to Xiatang Market to handle the pig procurement, which was why Zhang Huai also had to run to the market so often.
Juhua had been busy all morning, and her fingers were ice-cold. She put away her sewing supplies, rubbed her hands together, and tucked them into her sleeves to warm them. Looking at the package Zhang Huai held out, she asked, "What’s this?"
Though she asked, she didn’t reach out to take it.
Seeing how she was trying to keep warm, Zhang Huai smiled and opened the package for her. "It’s from your sister-in-law," he said. "Laixi brought it. Looks like shoes. Whoa! So many pairs!" His eyes went wide.
Inside the bundle were four pairs of cotton-padded shoes in various sizes and two pairs of unlined shoes. One look at the sizes made it clear there was a pair for everyone in the Zheng Family. The two pairs of unlined shoes were for Mrs. Yang and Zheng Changhe.
Juhua’s eyes lit up as well. This would save her so much work! Sister Yunlan had actually made so many pairs; she wouldn’t have to stitch any more soles. Overjoyed, she pulled her hands from her sleeves and picked up the shoes one by one, inspecting them carefully. The more she looked, the more delighted she became. ’They’re much better than the ones I make,’ she thought. ’Look how neat and even the stitching is!’
Zhang Huai watched her looking over the shoes, a happy smile on her face. She paid special attention to her own pair, holding them and examining them nonstop. It looked like she wanted to try them on.
He stood quietly to the side, watching her with a faint smile, saying nothing. ’Look at that,’ he thought. ’Your sister-in-law made shoes for your brother, and even for you, Uncle Zheng, and Aunt Zheng. Can’t you make a pair for me, too?’
Juhua examined the shoes for a moment before she noticed Zhang Huai had fallen silent. Looking up, she saw him watching her with a smile, not saying a word. She glanced from the shoes in the bundle back to his face. He just kept smiling, one eyebrow slightly raised, a glint in his eyes. And yet, she could read his expression perfectly. It was as if he were saying, "See? She made so many pairs. How come you won’t make a pair for me?"
