Chapter 148 Three Houses Become One (Section Middle) 2

The horse driver wielded his whip and signaled to stop. A simple, blue- curtained horse carriage slowed down to a full stop in front of the gate to Qing Tian Private Mansion.

“Chief Manager, you really don’t need me to take you inside?” The driver got off the carriage and agilely prepared the stool and lifted the curtain. Worriedly, he looked at the woman step on the stool, carefully getting off the carriage.

“No need. I just want to take a walk around. Later on, you have to run to two other places. You should leave now!” Xin Lan smiled and waved her hand, signaling the driver to return to the city. She supported her plump, pregnant belly and slowly walked home.

The former Qing Tian Town was renovated and became Xue Li’s private mansion. When she and Jiang Heng got married, Xue Li had gifted them a beautiful courtyard house inside the private mansion as a wedding gift.

After Xin Lan’s marriage, Su Shuilian had asked her if she wanted to work as the manager of the pickle shop in Fan Luo City. She took the offer. That pickle shop belonged to He Yuan. The main materials of the pickled vegetables and hams in the shop were actually the meats and vegetables the farmers in the three private mansions had grown. If they sold them fresh, they couldn’t sell much, and the products could wither and spoil easily. Su Shuilian’s suggestion was highly-appreciated by the villagers. So, two years ago, the first pickle shop of He Yuan was opened in Fan Luo City, selling the pickled products He Yuan’s residents had produced themselves. She and Jiang Lin, one managed the documents and the other controlled the distribution of goods. They had hired three more staff in the town who were willing to work in the shop in the city. The shop’s business was well received.

So, before the Lunar New Year last year, He Yuan’s pickle shop expanded. They had bought the shop next to them, which sold the same products but couldn’t compete against them. The shop expanded from two to four rooms. There were more varieties of pickled products, so they had to hire two more staff to stack the products, welcome the customers, and do the cashier job…

From then, ‘He Yuan’s Pickle Shop’ had become the biggest pickle shop in Fan Luo City.

However, the producing process didn’t take place in the shop but in a two-acre workshop, located in the East of Qing Tian Private Mansion. If someone didn’t know it beforehand, he would think it was just a normal house since the place was fenced with a row of lush pagoda trees. The workshop had two rows of rooms, one in the front and one in the back. The front row had five rooms where they made different kinds of pickled products. The back row had five chambers built next to each other. Those were the storages where they stacked the pickled products that required different temperatures to preserve.

The staff working in the processing shop were the original villagers of the three private mansions. And workers with long-term contracts were mostly from Qing Tian Private Mansion.

The main reason was that Qing Tian Private Mansion didn’t have many good paddy fields that could produce great crops. Half of the people living in the town had other livelihoods like hunting, carpenters, constructors, or stone-miners… During the harvest time, they weren’t really busy. Especially when the kids went to Fan Hua School during the day time, the women had more free time.

As the workshop was there, it was more convenient for them to go to work daily. After every five days, some staff would come to the three private mansions to buy fresh vegetables, and once a month for chickens, ducks, pigs and other livestock. The price was set by the owners of the three private mansions beforehand. When the crops were good, the price would be a little lower. However, when the farmers encountered pests or natural disasters, which lessened their crops, the price would increase to the level the people accepted.

And that’s how He Yuan Pickle Shop had been working for two years and earned its reputation. Businessmen from other cities also came to buy their products. After a good negotiation, they would drive four big horse carriages to He Yuan’s gate and load the goods by the stone bridge.

After building the workshop to process pickled products, the living standard of people in Qing Tian Private Mansion improved significantly.

The twenty-three families that had been resolute in staying without being swayed by the thirty silver ingots all had smiling faces.

The men who hunted for living were now recruited as members of the patrol team in He Yuan. They had one day off after five working days. A patrol team had two members, checking around the areas of He Yuan and protecting the people. Of course, Guangci House also sent one of their staff daily to protect the entire He Yuan.

It also helped reduce bad habits created by people’s greed.

“Chief Manager, back early today?” Mrs. Xiao was leaving the workshop to get home and cook dinner. Seeing Xin Lian supporting her belly and slowly walking on the wooden cotton road, she smiled until her eyes narrowed.

“Yes,” Xin Lan nodded with a smile. From a maid, she had become a Manager, and now the Chief Manager. After three changes, she still felt bewildered sometimes. It wasn’t that she didn’t get used to it. It was her new identity as Jian Heng’s wife. Although they had been married for two years and the kid in her belly would come to this world in the next three months, her love and also shyness for him hadn’t reduced as time was passing by.

Perhaps their match had happened too suddenly. Two years ago, when she had tried very hard to give up on Jian Heng, he had come back from Blood Union out of the blue.

Not only coming back, he decided to stay from then one. A short time afterward, with Xue Li’s support, she married him, becoming his wife.

Standing in front of the locked gate, her eyes looked through the fence made of lush but neat thorny bush to see the beautiful small, square courtyard inside. The peach in the yard had so many bared many mouth watering fruits.

Pots of green orchids hung on the wall gently swayed in the breeze.

“What are you thinking about?” A low but warm voice arose behind her. Xin Lan turned around happily. It was Jian Heng, indeed. He was standing behind her and smiling at her with a simple bag on his shoulder.

“You’re back!” She muttered. During half a month he was out for work, she had missed him a lot.

“Yeah, I’m home.” He raised his hands to support her. “Why didn’t you let them help you in?”

“I like to walk more. Her Ladyship said that it’s good for delivering the baby if I walk more.” She shyly explained to him.

“Mnm, then you should take a rest inside. Later on, we’re going to Fan Hua to join the Dragon Boat Festival.”

“Ok!” She smiled and nodded and allowed him to gently support her back into their house.