PFC Chapter 227 Soap Workshop Suspended
Chapter 227 Soap Workshop Suspended
"Dad, do you think it's okay?" Seeing Xiaoman didn't say anything, Lin Jingzhe asked Lin Dajiang again.
"I think it's okay!" Lin Dajiang nodded. "Your mother and I have been relieved recently because we haven't prepared steamed buns and dumplings. Before, we had to steam steamed buns and fry dumplings, and we were really busy when there were many customers."
Lin Jingzhe saw that Lin Dajiang was looking at a fellow traveler and agreed with him. "Yes, although grinding rice slurry is troublesome, we have a large family and can grind it quickly. But it is more convenient to steam the Longkan Ci on site. Dad, you and Mom can save a lot of effort."
Seeing that the two were in high spirits, Lin Xiaoman said, "How about we try it first and see if the customers like it? If they like it, we can introduce the Longkan Ci."
The three hit it off immediately.
Lin Dajiang went to Li Taohua to discuss it with great interest.
Lin Xiaoman stayed in the kitchen to steam the glutinous rice and pork ribs, and began to prepare to make crispy meatballs.
With a chopping board and two kitchen knives, Lin Xiaoman wields the flying knife in front of Lin Jingzhe.
Lin Jingzhe was stunned watching from the side.
"Xiao Man, when did you become so good at swordsmanship?"
"Bring a kitchen knife with you when you go out next time. That way, your parents and I won't have to worry about your safety."
Lin Xiaoman snorted twice in protest, "Which young lady would carry a kitchen knife when she goes out? It doesn't look impressive at all."
"You should bring a short blade anyway..." Lin Xiaoman turned around with a smile and looked at Lin Jingzhe, "Brother, how about you buy one and give it to me?"
"Go away, your brother has no private money. The last time I went to Lin'an Prefecture, I used all my private money to buy things for you. Besides, why should a girl be so pretentious?"
"Why can't a girl show off her power? Brother, you've become more and more pedantic since you studied with Brother Ci'an. You weren't like this before. You went up the mountain to get bird eggs, and went down to the river to catch big fish. You didn't care about the little things. You just did what you wanted and had fun."
"Lin Xiaoman, you are such a heartless kid. Wasn't it for you that I sneaked out of the fields to steal bird eggs and catch pheasants? You were jealous of your uncle bringing chicken legs to Lixia, and you drooled all over the floor. You looked at him eagerly and shouted that you wanted to eat roast chicken. This time, I begged Brother Erli to go up the mountain."
"You don't know, pheasants are very agile. Even if you find their tracks, it's hard to catch them. I took a lot of effort to catch them for you."
Lin Xiaoman apologized immediately, "I was wrong! I was wrong! You are definitely the best brother in the world. When I was little, you caught pheasants for me to eat. When I grow up, I will make delicious food for you. We will always be loving siblings."
Lin Jingzhe was satisfied now. He raised his head and chest, proud as a peacock, "Well, this is pretty good."
-
Lin’s breakfast shop has launched new products.
There is something called "Longkanci" which is crystal clear, smooth and glutinous. It looks a bit like cold skin, but tastes completely different.
You can add your favorite ingredients to Longkanci, and you can also choose different sauces, some are spicy and some are salty.
Longkanci made with rice milk and with minced meat or eggs costs three cents per serving, and four cents for both.
The portion given by Li Taohua is quite large, and one portion is enough for breakfast.
Regular customers of the breakfast shop came one after another to take care of the business.
Who knew that after taking care of him like this, he couldn't stop at all.
Later, Li Taohua chopped the sour beans and pickles at home into small pieces, and added a spoonful of fried pickles to the Longkanci, which gave it a unique flavor, spicy and sour. A bowl of Longkanci in the morning would make one feel full of energy.
Li Taohua would leave a portion for Manager Tong every day.
Shopkeeper Tong's mother is very old. After eating Longkanci once, she couldn't forget it and would mention it several times every day.
Longkanci is made of rice milk, which is easy to digest. Adding egg liquid and minced meat, it is delicious and nutritious, and is most suitable for the elderly.
-
"Sir, this is a secret letter from Madam Zhuang."
The trusted yamen runner handed over a small cylindrical gilded bamboo joint for him to play with. County Magistrate Zhen took it, pressed it with one hand, and with a "click" the mechanism was released. The gilded bamboo joint split into two halves, revealing a piece of paper.
Unrolling the rolled-up letter, County Magistrate Zhen's face grew increasingly gloomy. "No wonder they are getting bolder and bolder, with wolfish ambitions and collusion from within and without..."
After reading the letter, County Magistrate Zhen burned it and remained silent for a long time.
The current emperor is not the empress dowager’s biological son, so he married her niece from her maiden family as his queen.
Two queens in one family, it was an honor. The Wang family had always been low-key. Even the father-in-law, Lord Wang, retired at the age of fifty on the pretext of illness, and his eldest son took up the post of a sixth-rank official in the Ministry of Personnel, in charge of the selection, promotion, and appointment of all officials...
Now I think that the loving mother and filial son shown in front of others are all pretended.
As for the prisoner who confessed to the code name "Zhu Yin" last time, I'm afraid he is also related to those people.
County Magistrate Zhen was silent for a long time, picked up his pen to write, but just as he was about to start writing, he put it down again.
"Forget it. I'll send the letter to the capital after verification."
"Sir, Madam Lin Yumantang also wrote in the letter that the Lin family has come up with a new delicacy called Longkanci."
"Longkanci?" County Magistrate Zhen smacked his lips. "What is that?"
“It’s similar to Liangpi, but softer.”
County Magistrate Zhen became interested when he heard this. "The Lin family has always been very creative in handicrafts. I wonder how the dragon shrine glutinous rice cake tastes this time?"
The square-faced yamen runner was worried that the young master had been too busy with official business recently and his brows were never relaxed. He immediately suggested, "Sir, the weather has been sunny for the past two days, why don't you go out for a walk and try the new dragon shrine rice cakes made by the Lin family?"
County Magistrate Zhen raised his eyebrows and said, "You make the arrangements."
The square-faced yamen runner was delighted when he got the OK. "I'll go get it ready right away."
When he was sent to the young master's place by the lady, she repeatedly told him to take good care of the young master's daily life.
Ever since Jin Yumantang's rouge was covered with soap made by the Lin family of Shanglin Village, Zhuang Shiyi, a marginal figure who was almost forgotten, began to become active, and secret letters arrived one after another.
The young master's face has never relaxed since then.
"Why, have you eaten Longkanci before? Why are you so happy?"
The square-faced yamen runner shook his head and said, "Sir, if a family can make such delicious juicy steamed buns, I think the Longkan Ci won't disappoint you either."
County Magistrate Zhen laughed dumbly, "That's true, it's a pity that my mother is far away in the capital, otherwise she would definitely like to eat these snacks."
"Last time, the Madam said she was going to Lin'an Mansion, but she was stopped by the Master. After a long time, I think the Master can't stop the Madam, and then the Madam will be able to eat."
"Lin'an Prefecture is too chaotic. What are you thinking of coming here, mother?"
County Magistrate Zhen felt his scalp tingling instantly.
My mother wrote to him many times to ask about his lifelong affairs, but he always answered her perfunctorily. I thought she had given up any plans, but who knew she was actually planning something big.
No, I can’t let my mother come over.
Not only is the county government small, but there is also the daughter of the county lieutenant's mansion who is eyeing him covetously. If his mother comes, what if she randomly matches him up with someone else...
Not to mention solving the case, even deciding the case is a mystery.
County Magistrate Zhen was so frightened that he quickly picked up his brush and wrote a letter home. "Hurry, send the letter back to the capital as fast as you can."
-
In mid-November, the temperature dropped sharply.
Low temperature is not conducive to saponification reaction, so Lin Xiaoman placed four charcoal basins around the warehouse.
The charcoal basin needs to be burning all the time to keep the temperature in the soap drying room balanced. Charcoal is very expensive at this time of year, so Lin Xiaoman reluctantly spent the money to buy the worst quality one.
Fortunately, the windows were left when the workshop was built without cutting corners, otherwise the smoke from the charcoal burning would have made it impossible for the villagers working outside to stay.
But even so, Lin Xiaoman still felt it was a bit choking. In another month, when the weather gets colder, he would need to add more charcoal stoves to burn more charcoal, which would make it even more choking.
In addition, Lin Xiaoman also found that even if a charcoal stove was added to maintain the temperature, the saponification reaction would still be affected due to uneven temperature.
She thought to herself, charcoal is so expensive, burning it like this is no different from burning silver, it's not cost-effective!
In addition to being uneconomical, she was also worried that the soap made due to unstable temperature would be of poor quality.
So Lin Xiaoman decided to close the soap workshop this year after using up this batch of lard.
It just so happens that there are not enough rose petals in the space. Wait until March next year when spring comes and all kinds of flowers bloom all over the mountains and fields. Then I will teach the villagers how to dry the petals, and they will no longer have to worry about lack of raw materials.
As for her, this period of time is just right for her to speed up the propagation of the rose branches in the cutting space. When spring comes, she will transplant all the roses that were propagated earlier to make room for the newly propagated roses.
The rose cuttings we get this year are only enough for our own planting. Next year, I will try harder to get more seedlings. Then I will ask my four uncles if they want to plant some.
Five days later, the last batch of lard was used up, the last batch of soap was packed into bamboo tubes, and Lin Xiaoman's soap workshop announced to stop production.
It is now the 20th day of the 11th lunar month, and there is still more than a month to go until New Year's Eve.
When the villagers who were working heard that the workshop had to stop working so early, they thought that business was bad and their faces were all gloomy.
Wang Xiaogou couldn't stay idle and asked the question in his heart: "Boss, I think the soap business is doing well this year. Why are you stopping it so early? There is still a month before the Chinese New Year."
Lin Xiaoman didn't even mention to Lin Chunhua when the work would stop.
I don't intend to hide it this time, so as to prevent the villagers working below from having wild thoughts.
"Mrs. Zhuang from Jin Yu Man Tang in the county town comes to get the goods every month. Everyone should know that, right?" Lin Xiaoman said with a smile, "It's just that the weather is too cold, so the soap is not easy to take shape, and the soap we make is not as good as before. The soap we make is sold to Jin Yu Man Tang, and the people who go to Jin Yu Man Tang to buy soap are all dignitaries. If the quality of the soap is not good, it may affect the reputation of our workshop in the future."
"Everyone can continue to come to work for me in the spring of next year." Lin Xiaoman reassured everyone and took out the copper string he had prepared in advance. "Since the workshop stopped working before the New Year, this year's wages and red envelopes will be paid together today."
When they heard that they could get paid, the villagers who were working stood up straight and became excited.
Staring eagerly at the bamboo basket in Lin Xiaoman's hand.
There were a lot of copper coins inside, and quite a few red paper packages. I guess they were red envelopes prepared for them during the Chinese New Year. It makes me excited just thinking about it!
"Come up to collect your wages and red envelopes when I call your names later. Go to Lin Chunhua to get your New Year gifts after you get the money."
Someone said, "Boss, it's not New Year yet!"
"You are stupid! Don't you want to take what your boss gave you?"
Lin Xiaoman smiled and said, "Since we have stopped working and are on holiday, let's rest peacefully and put our money in the bag. Have a good New Year this year, and cheer up and continue to work in the workshop next spring."
"Thank you, boss!"
"Of course, as long as the boss doesn't mind my slowness, I will definitely come next year!"
If you don’t come, you’re a fool. There are so many people in the village trying their best to get in.
Seeing that everyone was in high spirits, Lin Xiaoman added: "Next year, if you work hard, you can get a raise if you do well!"
When they heard about the salary increase, everyone was overjoyed.
It seems that the workshop is doing good business, otherwise why would the boss take the initiative to increase the wages?
I was worried that the boss would find an excuse to trick them that the soap would be difficult to form in the cold weather, but now I am finally relieved.
The better the boss's business is, the more red envelopes and wages they can get.
Lin Xiaoman called out the names one by one, and the villagers who received their wages and red envelopes went to Lin Chunhua to get their New Year gifts.
Each person had a bamboo basket filled with a two-pound piece of pork, ten sausages made in a sausage workshop, ten preserved eggs, a bag of brown sugar, and a small can of lard.
There is lard and brown sugar!
There are also Chinese sausages. They had the opportunity to taste the Chinese sausages once when the Lin family held a buffet. They tasted so good. One bite was full of oily and salty fragrance, and it went especially well with rice!
The villagers who received the New Year gifts were dumbfounded. They heard that last year there were pork and sausages, but this year there was a whole basket!
A basket of things would cost at least two hundred coins, right?
The villagers didn’t know how much the sausages and preserved eggs in the baskets could be sold for, but after all, they were given by the employer, so they kept them for their families to satisfy their cravings.
Once the money and New Year gifts were handed down, the villagers refused to leave.
Since September, they have been working more hours in the workshop than at home.
I had long considered the work in the workshop as a formal long-term job. Now that I was leaving, even though I had received the salary, I still felt empty inside.
Lin Xiaoman probably knew why everyone was reluctant to leave, so he smiled and advised: "Don't worry, I will ask Lin Erniu and Wang Xiaogou to call you when work starts in the spring of next year, which is next March."
"Boss, please tell us when we will start working, and we will come and clean up the workshop in advance."
Lin Erniu was not good at cleaning, so he rushed to do his specialty, "Yes! I'll take care of all the water in the water tank!"
Lin Xiaoman was moved after hearing this. The villagers were simple and honest, and although they sometimes had some small thoughts, they were harmless in the end.
This will create a rush to perform and also prove that everyone really needs this job.
After all, there is not much work in this area.
Most wealthy families employed servants who had sold their indentures, and only landlords would hire temporary workers during the busy farming season.
But when the landlords were busy with farming, the villagers also had land to farm, and the time they had to work for the landlords was very short, so they didn't make much money throughout the year.
"Everyone knows that flower petals are needed to make soap. Next spring, if you have some free time, go to the mountains to pick flower petals, wash them, dry them, and sell them to me."
"Boss, which petals do you want?"
"Wash it with water and then dry it in the sun?"
"Boss, if you want, we can help you pick them when we are free. It's all hard work, so how can we sell them to you?"
Wang Xiaogou said, "That's right, Boss, you are being too polite. Flowers grow on the mountain. If we don't pick them, the petals will fall off by themselves when the time comes. Boss, tell me how much you want. I have a big family, so I won't charge you any money!"