Five days later, a lot of people came to Zhuangzi from the Zhang Family and the Wang Family. They wore hemp clothes and held sickles in their hands as they went into the paddy fields to harvest. The harvested paddy fields were immediately threshed. A few people from the Zhang Family and the Wang Family came out of Zhuangzi to help weigh the paddy fields.
Elsewhere, the busy farming season was almost over. Only some winter wheat needed to be planted in the soil. The market was once again bustling with people. What was different from usual was that at this time, the stalls selling tea and snacks in the market were charging several times more than usual.
The people who came to work had already agreed that all the water and food would be taken care of by the people who hired them, the owners of the grain stores. This time, the people who did business in the market were going to make a fortune.
"They did it on purpose. They must have done it on purpose. The shop owner sent the news back at noon today. They paid the money and started to raise the prices of things in the market. Zhuangzi is so big, but they even want to calculate such a small amount of money. I really don't understand."
In the restaurant Between the Clouds and the Water, in a private room where one could see the paddy fields through the window, one of the owners was drinking tea and looking around while complaining.
"This is not a small amount of money. A bowl of tea usually costs one copper coin and a few snacks. Now, without snacks, it costs three copper coins. We hired two hundred people, and they drink the tea like cows. Including the three meals in the morning, afternoon, and evening, they will earn more than ten taels of silver a day. According to this situation, they will earn at least fifty taels of silver in three days."
The other owner was very clear. Just this amount of money was enough to buy several ships to transport grain back and forth. Zhangjia Zhuangzi was not willing to suffer a loss at all. They calculated everywhere and bought more than half of the seeds in the fields. They bought twenty-four shops in the capital, and even a two-story restaurant.
"You two, don't talk about it. We got a lot of money. A catty of seeds cost sixty-five copper coins in the end. When we bought the shop, we deliberately increased the price by ten percent. The seeds are not even worth sixty copper coins per catty. Planting seeds is more profitable than planting grain. It is more than a hundred times the price."
Lu Dong Jia estimated that the seeds they bought this time were actually worth more than 14,000 taels of silver. As for the rest of the seeds, if they were to find someone else to buy them, they would still not be able to sell for more than three or four thousand taels of silver. If they were to exchange them for ordinary grains, they would only be able to sell for about 300 taels of silver.
Jin Dongjia, who was also waiting for his subordinates to work faster, agreed. "Brother Lu is right. Of the twenty-four shops, only the two-story restaurant is a little more expensive, four thousand taels of silver. the other shops only cost about nine thousand taels of silver. We paid more than one thousand taels of silver. how much can we hire people to eat? We can't let them bring their own dry food and drink the water from the river. "
"Brother Jin, you are wrong. Steward Zhang personally said a few days ago that we should make a profit by selling them food. They will pay for half of the transportation. But they are stingy everywhere. They have to specify the ships. I have already asked people to find out, and they are half of the price.
The carriages and horses to be shipped to Zhuangzi are also fixed, and they asked for half more. We have to stay here and watch. The wine they give is not sold at Between the Clouds and the Water. The dishes they cook are also the same. Don't they need to spend money? Plus, they don't need to harvest, which saves some manpower. I heard that they went to the mountains to build other places. "
The boss who spoke first felt uncomfortable as he recounted the events one by one.
Jin Dongjia shook his head. "We also eat normally. When did we not choose the best food? This table only costs about thirty to fifty taels of silver. Counting everything, it is only a few hundred taels of silver. We still made a profit. "
Jin Dongjia also felt uncomfortable. They did not have a lot of money. If they divided it among a dozen people, they could get some. The main reason was that they were constantly being schemed against. People who did business always wanted to scheme against others.
"Look, the people from the Zhang Family and Wang Family in Zhuangzi have all returned? Why are there so many people? There are about three hundred people. They are all holding sickles. What are they doing? Could it be that they want to help us harvest? "
Just as everyone was eating snacks and tea, a person standing next to the window pointed down and asked curiously.
Everyone stood up and looked down. Wasn't that right? There were quite a few people there, and judging from their similar clothes, they were undoubtedly the Zhang and Wang Family's villagers. Only they would be so generous as to specially make the same clothes for the villagers.
Those people rushed to the fields with sickles and started harvesting. After watching for a while, everyone was relieved. They were not harvesting the high-quality crops they had drawn, but their own.
"Fast, it's really too fast. Look at their farmers. One of them is comparable to the two we found." Wang Dongjia said enviously when he saw the speed of the people on both sides.
"We can't compare. If the farmers are willing, they can eat meat every two or three days. We found people from other places. Where did they get so much money? They didn't harvest earlier or later. Why did they also harvest the people we found here? "
Lu Dongjia's eyes were a little far-sighted. He could see the difference between the two people's bodies. The Zhang Family and Wang Family were also shirtless. Their bodies were full of meat. Looking at the people they found, they were only a little stronger than skin and bones.
Everyone was puzzled. They could only sit back and drink tea again. They talked about some business matters. In a flash, the sun was in the middle of the sky.
"Time to eat, time to eat." The owners had just found a waiter to order the food and wine when they heard someone shouting loudly.
The people near the window looked down and saw many people coming out of the market. Some were pushing carts, some were carrying poles. They shouted and waved at the people hired by Tanaka and the others.
"It's time to eat. The people in the market are not bad. They sent the food here." The owner turned around and explained to the others who looked over.
"Oh, that can save us a few steps." Several owners said at the same time.
"Let me see." Lu Dongjia saw that there were only a few cold plates on the table. He didn't plan to eat immediately. He also came over to take a look.
After looking for a while, he said, "There's a lot of food. Look at those carts. It's enough to feed five or six hundred people. Oh, I understand. The farmers of the Zhang Family and Wang Family are also eating together."
As soon as he finished speaking, the people who gathered to eat suddenly became chaotic. Some of the people hired by them quarreled with the people who delivered the food. They were far away, so the voices were mixed. It was impossible to tell what they were arguing about. They could vaguely hear voices like "why?", "do the same job", and "quit."
"What's going on? Didn't they deliver the food? Waiter, go and ask. "Lu Dongjia didn't understand. He shouted at the waiter who was waiting at the door to serve at any time.
The waiter responded, turned around, and ran. After a while, the people of the Zhang Family and Wang Family were eating. When the people hired by them were still quarreling, the waiter ran back.
"Sir, they quarreled because of the difference in the food. The people hired by you feel that the food is not as good as the food of the Zhang Family and Wang Family."
The waiter panted and said.
"You, did the food that the market made for our people go bad?" One of the owners asked.
"No, there's rice, steamed buns with sorghum noodles, egg drop soup, and fried chives with eggs. These are all well made." The waiter counted the food and said.
"They still think it's not good? Is it not as good as what they usually eat? I think they don't want to ask for their wages. "The owner who asked the question was so angry that he slammed the table.
"Don't worry, waiter. Let me ask you, what do the Zhuangzi and Zhang Family eat?" Boss Jin waved his hand at that person and asked the waiter again.
The waiter also counted, "Thin pancakes, shredded pork with scallions, sliced chicken, blanched bamboo shoots, minced pork with eggplant, and a bowl of soup made with dried shredded tofu and pork. The soup is served with chopped wood ears, and spicy sauce. There are two dishes that can be eaten with spicy sauce in the pancakes. The other two dishes can be cooked however you like."
When the waiter's voice fell, the other owners didn't know what to say. No wonder the people they found were unwilling. When they were working together and waiting to eat, they only had one dish and one soup. The staple food was also worthless, while the waiter had the staple food of fine flour pancakes and four dishes and a soup that were several times better.
When the two sides were compared, the difference was obvious. Of course, the people who worked were not willing. Why should they be treated differently just because they were all sent from the market?
"Waiter, is the food that the Zhang Family and Wang Family eat also prepared by the market?" Boss Jin thought for a while and asked.
"In reply to your question, no, it's just a stove over there. They are all harvesting rice and making a fire at the side. They are afraid that it will catch fire. When it was done, it was just in time for the market. The food was also ready, so it was sent over together." The waiter answered respectfully.
"Just in time? Okay, then let me ask you, do you know how much those four dishes and one soup cost? "
"I really don't know. It's estimated that it would cost two taels of silver per person. After all, the soup has wood ears and they eat a lot. The spicy sauce is also not cheap. There's also the meat and so on."
The waiter shook his head awkwardly. After thinking for a while, he gave a price that he thought about.
The owners looked at each other and sighed at the same time. The one who spoke first in the morning said, "I'm right, right? They don't intend to let us transport the seeds back properly. Two taels of silver per person. Two hundred people, four hundred taels of silver. Can we afford it? Two days is eight hundred taels of silver. "
This time, everyone nodded in agreement. If they really forced the people below to eat the food prepared by the market, they would also eat it. However, it was hard to say how much effort they put into the work. If they also ordered the same food and sent it over, wouldn't they lose money?
"Big Brother Jin, what should we do?" One of the owners asked.
"Waiter, you go down and ask the market to add a meat dish. Add ten taels of silver per person and some rice. Add three taels of silver per person." Boss Jin didn't have a good idea and could only do this.
However, the waiter said, "Boss Jin, how much to add depends on the number of plates. It's based on the portion. What if they eat a lot? Don't tell me they can't eat anymore? Also, the original food that was already prepared can't be returned, right? "
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