CHAPTER 102: CHAPTER 102: SELLING LOTUS ROOTS

"Brother Chen, the half-month trial is over. During this time, Weimin has performed really well, and I plan to officially hire him. The salary is as we previously discussed, forty-five a month, including food and lodging, plus some holiday benefits. If there’s no problem, have Weimin come over to sign the contract and also report to the local police station."

The dock has a large flow of people, from all walks of life, and non-local residents who stay here long-term need to register at the police station for better management.

Chen Wenjun was overjoyed, jumping up to say, "No problem, definitely no problem! Brother Lv, wait here, I’ll have him come to you to sign the contract right away."

Chen Wenjun left the recruitment center and found Hong Weimin, who was carefully recording at the dock, not daring to disturb him until he was almost done with his work to share the news.

Hong Weimin was overjoyed, repeatedly saying, "I’ll go see him once I’m finished here. By the way, Wenjun, I’ve learned how to select seafood these past few days. Whenever you want something, let me know in advance, and I’ll keep an eye out for you and save some good items for you."

Chen Wenjun patted Hong Weimin’s shoulder, speaking volumes without words.

Having acquaintances at the dock comes in handy; every day, Chen Wenjun would ask Lin Qin to write down the amount of seafood needed for Hong Weimin, who always managed to save the best value for him.

Of course, such operations can’t escape Lv Lin’s notice, but Lv Lin didn’t mind. After all, selling seafood goes to anyone! Chen Wenjun is his important client, and he wishes to maintain a good relationship with him, so he turns a blind eye.

With Hong Weimin’s help, Chen Wenjun didn’t need to come early to snatch goods; it saved the couple a lot of trouble.

Meanwhile, the pigpen at Nanyu was finally completed.

The pigpen is situated near the slopes, adjacent to a hill, about fifty meters from their residence, built entirely of red brick, roughly three hundred square meters, spacious.

Because they installed a tap, they can use Nanxi’s water.

Lin Yi raised ten piglets in one go.

To raise these ten pigs, he had to clear land and plant lots of corn, cabbage, cucumbers, and fruits, even several acres of sweet potatoes and taro.

The entire Nanyu seemed like a construction boom.

Chen Wenjun, accompanied by Lin Qin, finished delivering goods and found Huang Yuezhen and Lin Yi had just finished work as well.

The two were a bit speechless.

Lin Qin advised, "Dad, sister-in-law, Rome wasn’t built in a day; housework never ends. How will you wake up tomorrow if you exhaust yourselves like this?"

Huang Yuezhen chuckled honestly, "I find deep satisfaction in working; those seeds need planting without delay, spring plowing is only this period, and you just returned as well. I’ll sleep till eight or nine tomorrow!"

Lin Qin was exasperated, "Sister-in-law, Brother has been hired by the dock recruitment center’s Boss Lv, forty-five a month, with food and lodging included. With Brother’s help, we can sleep an extra half-hour!"

Huang Yuezhen was too excited to speak properly.

Lin Yi laughed heartily, "Great, great! Once this job is in hand, the future is set. As long as he works diligently, he can keep going, forty-five a month, five hundred forty a year, with food and lodging included and nowhere else to spend. He’ll have quite a bit of money to bring home by the year’s end!"

Being his nephew, Lin Yi couldn’t be happier, feeling he could laugh even in dreams.

Lin Qin added, "Dad, don’t forget Sister-in-law’s share! This couple could bring home a thousand this year!"

That figure truly stunned Huang Yuezhen, who laughed naively, "Cousin, I can’t even imagine such things."

Lin Yi exclaimed loudly, "Everyone wash up and sleep, tomorrow we continue to work hard."

Heading into summer, Lin Yi and Huang Yuezhen together planted all sorts of fruit trees on the slopes of Nanyu, the ten pigs growing rapidly under their care.

Lin Qin didn’t recognize her family’s pigs after being away for two months.

They also fenced three large pieces of uncultivated land at the back for raising chickens, ducks, and geese.

Lin Qin discovered this during her rounds around the pigpen.

Now, anyone visiting Nanyu sees these sights and exaggerates, claiming they’re a "wealthy family."

Just when Huang Yuezhen thought she could rest on her laurels, the water lily harvest began.

Lin Yi was anxious, having planted seven or eight acres; the harvest filled him with nervousness, constantly anxiously suspecting the root quality or fearing poor market prices.

Lin Qin wanted to dig one out early for inspection, but he wouldn’t allow it.

More indecisive than a woman.

After several days, Lin Yi finally initiated digging, relieving Lin Qin immensely.

Harvesting water lilies demands techniques; brute force risks breaking the rhizomes, so force must follow growth direction to extract the roots.

The black, foul-smelling mud in the water contained many mudfish and eels, which Lin Yi and Chen Wenjun had released there, uncertain what’s become of them.

On the day of operation, Lin Yi led everyone to clean away the rhizomes, leaves, and pods above the water field.

Huang Yuezhen followed Lin Yi into the water and immediately stepped onto an eel, screaming loudly in surprise.

Lin Qin was just about to laugh at her when she encountered an eel herself, reacting even clumsier than Huang Yuezhen; eels and mudfish were indeed slippery.

Lin Qin didn’t feel confident catching them by hand.

Chen Wenjun handed them the prepared nets.

With nets, the three were empowered as they worked.

Seeing them gradually getting the hang of it, Chen Wenjun said, "Today I’ll go to South Port for goods myself, and Ah Qin can help upon return."

Lin Qin nodded to him, "With Brother here, more can be loaded with or without me."

After Chen Wenjun left, the three started working seriously.

Initially rattled by the scuttling eels and mudfish, shouting and screaming, they grew used to it, eventually ignoring them altogether.

Once an acre of water lilies was harvested.

Lin Yi and Huang Yuezhen concentrated on gathering the eels and mudfish inside.

Lin Qin connected the hose and started washing this pile of water lilies.

Upon cleaning, the water lilies were packed in fertilizer bags and stacked aside.

Once Lin Qin finished, she turned back to see Lin Yi and Huang Yuezhen already caught several buckets full of eels and mudfish.

Quite a number, but unfortunately, these had a heavy mud taste, requiring days of depuration before consumption.

Lin Qin decided to keep them at home for three to five days before selling, boosting the price a bit more.

Huang Yuezhen enthusiastically said, "Tomorrow I’ll take some lilies over to make dishes, to see if Boss Huang is interested in buying; these are all fresh."

Lin Yi was pleased with this, "Yuezhen, then I’ll leave it to you."

Huang Yuezhen thought nothing of it.

After cleaning up, she and Lin Yi together lifted the scales to weigh the water lilies one by one.

Ultimately, tallying the final count, the single acre yielded three thousand eight hundred fifty pounds of water lilies.

Without having sold these lilies yet, Lin Yi decided against further digging.

Chen Wenjun returned from wholesale seafood, and Lin Qin immediately reported their victory.

Chen Wenjun was astonished by the number, pondering, "Tomorrow, we’ll inquire around South Port to see if there’s demand, and also check the markets; if anyone wants to stock, we’ll wholesale for three cents a pound."