Seeing that Jiang Ji had agreed, Ye Liang was very pleased.

At that moment, he was sitting at the dining table with Jiang Ji, Jiang Mai, and Jiang Ya.

A bowl of dumpling filling sat at the corner of the table.

Next to the filling sat a steamer basket for the dumplings.

Ye Li grabbed a handful of rolled-out dumpling wrappers and placed them in the steamer. Seeing him grinning from ear to ear, he said, “Big Brother, don’t get too excited just yet. People in the town aren’t as willing to spend money as those in the county seat.”

“Besides, you used to only sell preserved eggs. People used to pay four wen for two preserved eggs, but now they have to pay seven wen.”

“Your business is likely to be worse than Gong Lisheng’s.”

Ye Liang picked up a dumpling wrapper and said with a smile, “Then let’s sell them for six wen a serving.”

Compared to Gong Lisheng, his costs were lower.

He didn’t need to buy preserved eggs from others; he could make them himself.

Earning one wen per serving, selling a hundred servings would bring in a hundred wen.

That hundred wen was extra profit on top of the two wen he made per preserved egg.

In other words, before, for every two hundred small preserved eggs he sold, he could only make a little over a hundred wen.

But now, by simply making a cold salad out of those two hundred small preserved eggs, he could earn an extra hundred wen on top of that little over a hundred wen!

Is a hundred wen a small amount?

Not at all!

Back in the day, when he carried heavy loads around town, even if he was lucky enough to work a full day nonstop, he could only earn forty or fifty wen.

Now he can easily earn an extra hundred wen.

How could he not grin from ear to ear?

Moreover, his family’s stuffed pancake business doesn’t rely entirely on the town’s residents.

Sometimes, if they got lucky and a large merchant caravan stopped in town to rest, they could sell out their entire daily quota in one go.

Summer was the peak season for travelers and merchants, so selling a hundred portions in a single day was absolutely no problem.

Ye Li hadn’t expected Ye Liang to lower the price by a single wen without a moment’s hesitation, and he couldn’t help but feel a bit moved.

He was so happy just to earn a single wen.

What simple, hardworking people.

He asked, “If we really start selling cold preserved eggs, wouldn’t Brother Yi be too busy to handle it all by himself?”

“We can have Brother Yu help out,” Ye Liang said, kneading the dumpling dough. “Ever since he came to live with us, he’s taken over all the household chores, so Father has had a lot more free time.”

“If he goes to town to help, Father will just handle the household chores as he always has.”

“That works,” Ye Li nodded.

He had a pretty good impression of Tang Yu.

Selling food in town was hard work, but when there were no customers, he could still take a little stroll around the stall, which was better than staying cooped up at home all the time.

Especially since Tang Yu was still young—only seventeen.

A young Fulang of that age would surely be eager to get out and see the sights.

He had heard Ye Liang mention earlier that ever since Tang Yu joined the family, the profit-sharing arrangement for the Ye family’s tofu puffs had changed.

Previously, Ye Liang and Liu Yi had handed over half the profits.

Now, the profits are split three ways: Ye Liang and Liu Yi take forty percent, Ye Wen and Tang Yu take forty percent, and the remaining twenty percent goes to Ye’s father.

Now that Liu Yi and Tang Yu are both doing business in town, it really couldn’t be fairer.

He added, “Big Brother, come to think of it, you should talk it over with Father and buy a mule cart or an ox cart first.”

“Running back and forth like this every day isn’t sustainable. Besides, if we had a cart, you could help Yi and Yu deliver food to town in the mornings.”

Ye Liang nodded. “Let’s wait until autumn. We’ll be busy for another month; we’ll see then.”

Although Ye Wen’s wedding was kept simple, it still cost nearly ten taels in total.

Their family’s financial situation was tight.

They’d have to wait a little longer.

But they weren’t far from being able to afford draft animals. If they included the income from the cold-marinated preserved eggs, earning two hundred wen a day wouldn’t be a problem.

That’s six taels a month!

A mule cart costs about six or seven taels.

Ox carts are more expensive, but oxen can haul more cargo than mules.

They would make a decision based on how much silver they had on hand when the time came.

“If you don’t have enough silver, come to me. I’ve saved up a little,” Ye Li said.

“It’s enough, it’s enough,” Ye Liang said with a smile, shaking his head.

“Brother Liang, Ya-ger, and I have money too. If you don’t have enough, we can lend it to you.”

Jiang Mai, who had been silently wrapping dumplings, suddenly spoke up.

At this, Ye Li, Jiang Ji, and Ye Liang all chuckled.

Ye Liang laughed, “Thanks, Xiao Mai and Ya-ger, but we really do have enough money at home. You two should just keep saving your own.”

“We’ve saved up nearly two hundred wen.”

Jiang Mai added.

It’s been hot lately, so Ye Li has been giving them both a heat allowance; their daily wages have gone up from one wen to two wen.

With higher wages, their savings have grown.

“You two are really hardworking!” Ye Liang couldn’t help but praise them.

Hearing this, Jiang Ya couldn’t help but puff out his little chest—he and his second-oldest brother were so hardworking!

He looked at Ye Liang with wide eyes: “Brother Liang, is your family really going to buy livestock?”

“We do have that plan,” Ye Liang nodded.

Upon hearing the answer, he immediately turned to Ye Li: “Brother Li, when are we going to buy livestock?”

“If we buy livestock, you and Xiao Mai won’t have a moment’s rest,” Ye Li said with a smile.

As he spoke, he placed another stack of dumpling wrappers on the steamer basket.

There were already about thirty dumplings in the steamer basket.

Jiang Ji had been quietly wrapping dumplings the whole time.

Ye Liang, Jiang Mai, and Jiang Ya hadn’t stopped either, so they were working quickly.

“It’s no big deal. We’ll just have to spend a little more time cutting grass,” Jiang Ya said.

Compared to playing around, he’d much rather cut grass to feed their own livestock.

“Now that you mention it, Brother Li, if you have some spare cash, you should use it to buy some livestock.”

“If you keep them at Uncle Er’s place, he’ll definitely be happy to take care of them.”

Ye Liang said.

Jiang Dahu’s family had plenty of farmland; if they had livestock, it would save a lot of labor.

“We’ll see about that later.”

Ye Li didn’t commit to it.

The main issue was that Jiang Ji had debts to repay; he had to settle those before even considering buying livestock.

Besides, in another month, Jiang Ji would be leaving to take the imperial exams.

“A poor home, a wealthy journey”—he would certainly need to set aside more travel expenses for Jiang Ji.

He had been in this world for less than three months, and combined with his love for eating and drinking—which kept his food expenses sky-high—he simply couldn’t afford an oxcart or a mule cart at the moment.

Furthermore, before buying livestock, he would definitely need to find another job for Jiang Liu.

Jiang Ji listened to Ye Liang and Ye Li’s conversation, silently wrapping dumplings.

He didn’t earn money; he only spent it. Major household decisions were left to Ye Li.

As the group chatted and laughed, the steamer basket was soon filled with dumplings.

It was time to light the fire and start boiling them.

But at this time of year, tending the fire was hard work.

So Ye Li said to Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya, “Xiao Mai and Ya-ger, which one of you wants to tend the fire? Whoever goes gets a coin from me.”

As soon as Jiang Ya heard this, he shook his little head: “I want to make dumplings.”

He doesn’t spend money anyway.

It doesn’t matter whether he earns this money or not.

He’d much rather make dumplings!

He was in the middle of shaping some rabbit-shaped dumplings.

Jiang Mai was a little older and understood the value of money better.

He had nowhere to spend it right now.

But there would always be a time to spend it.

So Jiang Mai patted his flour-dusted hands and stood up. “I’ll go stoke the fire.”

“Good boy, go ahead. I’ll give you the money once I’m done rolling out the wrappers,” Ye Li said with a smile.

It was hot, so after boiling soy milk in the kitchen that morning, Jiang Ji moved the large iron pot to the stove in the courtyard.

By the time Jiang Mai had brought the water to a boil, Jiang Ji, Ye Li, and Jiang Ya had filled another steamer basket with dumplings.

So Ye Li stopped rolling out the dough and picked up the steamer to drop the dumplings into the pot.

Vegetable-filled dumplings cook quickly, but because the wrappers are thin, the heat mustn’t be too high, or they’ll easily fall apart.

After the water in the pot had come to a boil three times, the dumplings were done.

The group picked up their bowls and began to eat.

Ye Li’s filling was, of course, impeccable—perfectly seasoned. The thin dumpling wrappers held the filling tightly; with one bite, the texture was slightly firm yet filled the mouth with savory flavor.

Delicious!

Jiang Ya was the first to finish. He set down his bowl with a hint of reluctance, patted his round little belly, and, seeing how plump it was, deliberately lifted his thin, short jacket to show it off to Ye Li: “Li-ge, Li-ge, doesn’t it look like a watermelon?”

Ye Li was sitting under the shed eating dumplings. Seeing this, he curled his finger and tapped his little belly a few times: “It does! Judging by the sound, this melon is ripe. Can I have a bite?”

After saying that, he tickled his little belly a few more times.

Jiang Ya immediately laughed and backed away: “It’s not tasty, I’m not sharing.”

Ye Liang laughed at the sight: “I’ll bring over a watermelon tomorrow; they sell them in town.”

“No need, they’re too expensive,” Ye Li hurriedly said.

There was little arable land in Beiyang County, and most of the limited land was used to grow grain.

As a result, fruits like watermelons and other cultivated varieties were very expensive.

Not to mention that watermelons were huge—buying just one was practically like buying a piece of meat.

“It’s not like we eat them every day.”

Ye Liang had already made up his mind.

He came over every day to eat and drink for free. Just yesterday, Ye Li had asked him to come early to help make dumplings and specifically told him not to bring anything.

As the older brother, he was now eating until his mouth was dripping with grease—he definitely had to show his appreciation.

Seeing that Ye Liang really wanted to buy one, Ye Li didn’t stop him anymore.

He was craving watermelon, too.

Soon, lunch was over, and Jiang Ji went to fry the tofu puffs.

Ye Li and Ye Liang were busy finishing up the remaining dumpling filling.

The two little ones hadn’t slept well last night, so they went back to their room to catch up on some sleep.

After finishing the dumplings, Ye Li brought out a small stove and boiled a pot of cold water.

He set the pot of water on the stove to cool slowly, then took out some walnut kernels, black sesame seeds, and rice to roast.

Just then, a mule cart pulled up at the gate.

Immediately afterward, Bao Beiyuan’s voice rang out: “Jiang Ji!”

Jiang Ji immediately put down the long chopsticks he was holding, stood up from his stool, and walked toward the gate.

Ye Liang, who had been tending the fire, also stood up.

Ye Li set down the walnut kernels she was holding and walked toward the courtyard gate as well.

At the courtyard gate, Bao Beiyuan walked in carrying a piece of pork.

Jiang Ji asked curiously, “Why did you come at this hour?”

After all, he hadn’t come even when called yesterday.

Bao Beiyuan smiled and pointed to Gong Lisheng behind him: “Brother Sheng’s preserved eggs are all sold out. He was afraid it would interfere with his evening business, so he asked me to come along.”

For this reason, Gong Lisheng had specially arranged for a mule cart to help him deliver the goods.

That’s why he finished work early today.

Just then, Gong Lisheng appeared at the courtyard gate.

He was carrying two baskets, each filled with watermelons.

As soon as he saw Jiang Ji, he smiled and said, “With the preserved eggs all gone, there wasn’t much business at the shop, so I came over with Xiao Yuan.”

“Did I interrupt you guys?”

“Not at all, not at all. Come on in and sit down.”

Jiang Ji smiled and gestured for Gong Lisheng to come inside, then introduced Ye Liang to him.

Gong Lisheng hurriedly greeted Ye Liang warmly and pulled a watermelon out of the basket, intending to cut it open and eat it right there.

After some back-and-forth, Ye Li fetched a kitchen knife from the kitchen and sliced open the basketball-sized watermelon.

The watermelon wasn’t very sweet, but it was crisp and juicy.

It had a distinct watermelon flavor.

Fruit in ancient times couldn’t compare to modern fruit, so Ye Li was quite satisfied just to have a taste of watermelon.

After taking a couple of bites of watermelon, he wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and got down to business.

This morning, Jiang Ji greeted Jiang Liu.

Jiang Liu had also informed Jiang Tong.

In a little while, Jiang Ji could take Gong Lisheng to these two households to buy preserved eggs.

The Ye family’s batch of preserved eggs would also be delivered tomorrow.

Since Ye Liang goes to town every day, it’s convenient for the Ye family to buy eggs. Therefore, for now, the Ye family has the largest operation in this small preserved egg business.

This batch alone has over 1,200 eggs.

There are also over a thousand more that have been sealed in jars but haven’t finished fermenting yet.

However, once this batch is sold to Gong Lisheng, there won’t be another one.

Although the situation was awkward, Ye Li chose to speak up directly to avoid any misunderstandings.

After all, Ye Liang hadn’t signed any agreement with Gong Lisheng to begin with.

Upon hearing this, Gong Lisheng immediately replied, “That’s only fair. I’m already very grateful that you’re selling this batch to me.”

“Actually, I came here today to discuss this matter with you and Jiang Ji.”

“The cold-served preserved eggs are really booming. It’s quite possible that some villagers might want to go to the county seat to sell themselves. So I was thinking, could we draw up a contract with the villagers first? If they’re willing to sell the preserved eggs to me, I’m willing to pay an extra 150 wen for every 500 eggs.”

Five hundred preserved eggs, two per batch—that’s two hundred and fifty batches.

He earns two wen per batch; two hundred and fifty batches would net him five hundred wen.

Just thinking about that figure made him grin from ear to ear.

But just as he could see it, Ye Li could do the math too. To ensure this business would thrive for the long haul, he was willing to give up 150 wen.

That way, for every 500 sold, his profit would be 500 wen minus 150 wen, leaving him with 350 wen.

With the current craze for preserved eggs, selling a hundred a day would be no problem. That’s a profit of two hundred wen a day—six taels a month!

Of course, that’s assuming he has enough preserved eggs to sell.

Pushing aside his daydreams, he said to Ye Li, “And as for that batch I bought from you earlier, I should reimburse you those one hundred and fifty wen.”

As he spoke, he reached into his back basket.

He placed the copper coins under the watermelons.

Ye Li hadn’t expected him to have already made up his mind; he was somewhat surprised that he’d willingly given up a third of his profit—what a generous gesture!

However, after a moment’s pause, Ye Li immediately stopped him: “Brother Sheng, there’s no need to be so polite. You’ve bought so many watermelons today.”

“Forget about that previous batch. From now on, we’ll just stick to this price.”

“Don’t worry, I don’t have the energy to go sell them in the county town myself. Whatever I make, I’ll definitely supply to you.”

Gong Lisheng said with a smile, “I’ve already counted them and strung them up. Just take them. Business is good; I’m not short on these 150 wen.”

“Exactly, Brother Li, just take them.”

Bao Beiyuan also chimed in to persuade him.

Both he and Brother Sheng relied on Brother Li for their livelihood now; it was only 150 wens, and they couldn’t let Brother Li feel uncomfortable over such a small sum.

Since Gong Lisheng was genuinely offering them, and Ye Li considered the profit from the cold-served preserved eggs, he accepted them.

Since Gong Lisheng was being so open and honest, not playing dumb, he was definitely going to lend a hand.

So he said, “Brother Sheng, I’ll go see the clan chief right away and ask him to gather the villagers to tell everyone about your decision.”

“Come back in a couple of days. If any villagers are willing to sign the contract, just pay a deposit to seal the deal.”

“No problem!”

Gong Lisheng was delighted and agreed immediately.

Although this move would cost him some money, there was no other way—after all, the preserved eggs were from Yezaopo.

If they refused to sell to him, he’d be completely helpless.

Yezaopo was close to the county seat, so it was quite convenient for the villagers to set up their own small stalls.

Besides, even if he offered a discount, he’d still make a decent profit.

Hehe, six taels a month!

However, earning six taels depended on the villagers of Yezaopo being willing to sell their preserved eggs to him.

In reality, even if he was willing to offer a discount, there would certainly be some who refused to sell to him.

But for now, he only wanted to offer that figure.

There were definitely villagers who didn’t have the time to go sell cold preserved eggs.

Perhaps some villagers just find it too much trouble and would rather sell everything at once to get their silver.

Besides, setting up a stall in the county town isn’t exactly easy.

To push a handcart into town to do business, you have to pay a few wen in entry fees first.

Once inside, the stalls along both sides of the main street have long been occupied by regular vendors; ordinary villagers don’t have the connections to set up shop there.

Villagers can only hawk their wares along the streets or set up stalls in less crowded areas.

At that point, how the business will turn out is anyone’s guess.

When villagers come into town to sell vegetables, chickens, ducks, or carry baskets and mats, the townspeople don’t look down on them.

But if they’re selling food directly, at the same price, many people would definitely prefer to go to a cold noodle shop.

Therefore, for now, he only wants to offer this price.

He’ll start by gauging the market.

If the supply of preserved eggs is too low, he’ll be willing to lower the price further.

In truth, he’s already being quite generous.

If he wants to make money from preserved eggs, he needs to sell in volume.

Someone has to buy and wash the cucumbers, right?

Someone has to peel and mash the garlic, right?

Not to mention, the couple still has to make the cold noodles.

Ye Li also felt that Gong Lisheng was being reasonably sincere.

According to Ye Li’s plan, he would sell each serving in town for six wen, making a profit of one wen per serving. If he sold five hundred preserved eggs—that is, two hundred and fifty servings—he could earn an additional two hundred and fifty wen on top of his original profit.

Now that Gong Lisheng was offering an extra 150 wen, the difference amounted to 100 wen.

100 wen was certainly no small sum.

For the villagers, it was a huge amount.

But setting up a stall in town was quite a hassle. Running a mobile stall was hard work—selling a little here and there every day. After toiling for many days, the end result was just an extra 100 wen.

If it were him, he certainly wouldn’t go to all that trouble.

However, he wasn’t living in ancient times, and besides, he was calculating the profit margin based on Ye Liang’s selling price. If the villagers also sold them for seven wen each, he could make two wen per serving, bringing the total profit to three hundred and fifty wen.

Therefore, he couldn’t make any guarantees to Gong Lisheng.

While Jiang Ji led Gong Lisheng and Bao Beiyuan to the homes of Jiang Tong and Jiang Liu to buy preserved eggs, he had Ye Liang fry some tofu puffs, grabbed a watermelon himself, and headed to Jiang Fuzheng’s house.

It was sweltering outside, so Jiang Fuzheng’s family was all sitting under the locust tree by the gate to cool off; none of them was out in the fields.

He first explained the purpose of his visit, then ran the numbers for Jiang Fuzheng’s family: if they sold all the preserved eggs to Gong Lisheng in one go, the loss would be at least one hundred wen, and at most three hundred and fifty wen.

If they wanted to make a profit on the price difference, they’d have to go into town themselves and set up a stall to sell them.

No one could guarantee what the final profit would be.

After listening, Jiang Fuzheng nodded and said, “Alright. While everyone’s still at home, I’ll have Mantang bring a gong to call everyone together.”

“How they choose is up to them; we won’t force the issue.”

It was a hefty sum, and he was somewhat tempted.

But he was, after all, an official; having his family hawk goods on the street would be beneath his station.

Sigh.