The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 562: Names Appear on the List Like in the Imperial Examination
After witnessing the division of the family property between Gu Fengnian and Gu Xiaoxue, Tong Huaqiong immediately threw herself into the preparations for the weaving workshop.

Liu Tong was extremely efficient and quickly led his construction team to complete the renovation of Old Master Gu's old house.

After the roof was repaired, it stopped leaking. The house was cleaned spotlessly, and a separate area was set up for the storeroom and the looms.

After Gu Daqiao assembled the first loom and cotton gin, Tong Huaqiong recruited some skilled craftsmen who, under Gu Daqiao's guidance, built twelve more looms and cotton gins.

A worker must first sharpen his tools if he wants to do well.

With twelve machines lined up in the room, Tong Huaqiong had a surreal feeling that the Industrial Revolution was about to begin.

Gu Daqiao definitely has the talent of an engineer. In the process of assembling the cotton loom, he further improved the loom.

This batch of looms is even more efficient than the looms in Huating County.

With the production tools in place, the production materials were naturally also ready.

The cotton pickers hired by Tong Huaqiong were extremely capable and quickly finished harvesting the cotton from the thirty mu of land.

Clusters of snow-white cotton were piled up in the warehouse.

In addition, Tong Huaqiong had ordered Gu Dashu to stockpile 200,000 tons of cotton in Ningcheng. In Tong Huaqiong's eyes, the pure white cotton was pure white silver.

At first, the villagers didn't know that Tong Huaqiong was going to open a weaving workshop; they just thought that Tong Huaqiong was growing so much cotton in order to sell it.

The cotton-picking women from the surrounding villages were reluctant to leave after the cotton harvest. Tong Huaqiong paid them the same wages as the men, and the wages were settled on the same day without delay. In addition, they were provided with lunch every day, which included meat and vegetables.

For the vast majority of cotton pickers, this is the first time they have ever earned money.

During the two months that Tong Huaqiong picked cotton at her home, she didn't have to cook or do housework. Her mother-in-law became more friendly towards her, and her husband also started to show her care and concern.

Although picking cotton is hard work, everyone is full of energy and doesn't feel tired at all. On the contrary, they feel that life is full of hope. The young women, wives and grandmothers chat and laugh and the day passes by.

I wish these good days could last forever.

However, cotton picking is only available for these two months in the fall, and it's impossible to do it every day.

I thought I could only work and earn money for Tong Huaqiong again next autumn, but I never expected that Tong Huaqiong's cotton planting was actually a weaving workshop.

Not to mention Qinghewan, there are only a few weaving workshops in the entire Pingchuan County. Some are family workshops with one loom, where the whole family works together and there is no need for outside workers.

Therefore, when the news of Tong Huaqiong's weaving workshop recruiting hired workers spread, the surrounding villages were in an uproar, especially the female workers who picked cotton, who spread the word far and wide.

Unlike cotton picking, which is seasonal, weaving workshops rely on seasonality. Since Tong Huaqiong runs a weaving workshop, she must be ginning cotton, spinning yarn, and weaving cloth every day. As long as there is work to do, she can make money.

Tong Huaqiong's weaving workshop was quickly surrounded by a large crowd.

Not only did young women, wives, and older women from Qinghewan come to apply, but even young women, wives, and older women from surrounding villages came to apply.

When Tong Huaqiong's Jufulai Supermarket opened, she recruited female employees in the village, but most families were unwilling to let their daughters or wives apply.

They felt that it was inappropriate for young women to show their faces in public, as they were expected to be busy greeting and seeing off customers. They worried that it would be shameful if a lecherous man abducted them.

But the weaving workshop is different. The weavers sit in the room fiddling with the looms. They don't need to meet male customers or negotiate business in person. They can just bury themselves in their work.

Moreover, the weaving workshop explicitly required only female workers, ensuring that women wouldn't gossip about each other. Plus, being located in Qinghewan Village meant that family members could arrive immediately in case of any trouble. In other words, they believed that young women and wives in Qinghewan couldn't escape their control and could earn money to supplement the family income.

Only a fool wouldn't let them apply.

Tong Huaqiong made it clear from the beginning that the job application process would be fair and impartial; firstly, applicants must be skillful, and secondly, they cannot be lazy or cheat.

Song Qiaoniang and Gu Xiaoxue acted as "interviewers," and the two of them did their best not to let Tong Huaqiong down, determined to help Tong Huaqiong select the best female worker.

Among the maids that Tong Huaqiong bought, Su Qing, the daughter of an official who was assigned to Man'er, came in handy this time. Tong Huaqiong asked her to assist Song Qiaoniang and Gu Xiaoxue in taking notes.

Su Qing demonstrated her skills, not only recording the data but also working with skilled worker Song Qiaoniang to develop assessment criteria, assigning scores to each item.

"Master, with this setup, it will be immediately clear who is suitable and who is not, saving those who didn't pass from feeling it's unfair and having to waste their breath explaining."

Su Qing handed the rating sheet to Tong Huaqiong to look at.

Tong Huaqiong nodded and said, "You've come to the right place."

Encouraged, Su Qing continued, "When the time comes, it will be like an exam results announcement. We'll post the names of the hired female workers on the wall and trees by the door. It doesn't matter if they can't read; those of us who can read will stand in front of the list and read their names aloud in front of everyone. Boss, think about it, how many times in their lives will their names have the opportunity to appear openly on a list? If we treat the hired female workers with such solemnity, how excited and proud they will be! They'll definitely be more motivated to work in the future."

Tong Huaqiong glanced at Su Qing, filled with admiration.

As expected of a daughter of an official, her knowledge and mind are truly different from others.

Tong Huaqiong patted Su Qing on the shoulder and said, "Let's do as Miss Su says. You can assist Gu Taohua in the weaving workshop from now on. Oh, and take Man'er with you. Let her learn from you. She will also be involved in the family business in the future."

Gu Taohua had already matured through her experience at Taohua Dessert Shop and had spent two months at Jufulai. Tong Huaqiong then decided to send her to the weaving workshop for further training.

After all, the weaving workshop is full of female workers; this is the place where Gu Taohua should be.

Su Qing's eyes welled up with tears of excitement.

She thought that because of her sins, she would be sold into prostitution and forced to serve men, but she met a wise ruler.

"Master Su, come and see if my scoring is correct." Gu Xiaoxue waved to Su Qing.

Su Qing wiped her eyes and ran to Gu Xiaoxue's side, leaning over to talk to her.

"Jingzhe, what do you think of that Miss Su? How skilled is she?" Tong Huaqiong asked Gu Jingzhe, who was standing to the side.

Gu Jingzhe had a relatively long autumn break this year and stayed at home for a few extra days. He worked with Tong Huaqiong to prepare for the weaving workshop.

Gu Jingzhe said with a smile, "Not inferior to men."

Tong Huaqiong sighed and said, "Miss Su comes from an official family. Her father and brother were both officials. Because her brother committed a crime, the men were beheaded and the women were enslaved and sold."

This is what Tong Huaqiong finds unreasonable: Su Qing is currently officially classified as a slave, and she cannot even grant her free status as a free citizen.

Seeing Gu Jingzhe pause for a moment, Tong Huaqiong continued, "So you see, Miss Su clearly did nothing wrong. She can neither take the imperial examinations nor pursue an official career. Perhaps before her family's troubles, her marriage was even paving the way for her brother. How much of her brother's glory could she enjoy? When her brother committed a crime, she was implicated, going from a free citizen to a slave. If I hadn't bought her, she might have ended up in a brothel or become a concubine in a wealthy family. Don't you think that's fair to her?"

Gu Jingzhe's face turned pale.