They've all separated, so what does it matter to me if they get poorer and poorer?

Chapter 114, Village Head Uncle, do you have something to say?
The konjac field will continue to expand in the future, and it will definitely need someone to manage it. Xu Zhichun carefully considered and decided to hire the father and son, but actually preferred Yang Xiaoan.

Yang Xiaoan was insecure, shy, and unsociable from a young age due to family reasons, but he was a down-to-earth person. Xu Zhichun had been secretly observing him these past few days and found that he was also meticulous and methodical in his work. With some experience, barring any unforeseen circumstances, he would surely be of use in the future.

Uncle Yang Ming is a very honest man, so it's the perfect person to entrust this matter to them.

Xu Zhichun anticipated their agreement and, seeing this, smiled and said, "Why don't we go to the village head's house now and settle this matter?"

"Good, good, that's perfect! That's perfect!"

Xu Zhichun then called Liang Mingxuan, locked the door, and the four of them went to Liang Lizheng's house.

Upon hearing Xu Zhichun's words, Liang Lizheng was happy to act as the middleman, nodding repeatedly with a smile: "Good, good, very good! Since Zhichun is willing to hire you, it means he trusts you. Work hard, and you'll have a stable income from now on. That's great, very good, hehe!"

Uncle Yang Ming nodded: "Yes, yes, we will definitely do our best."

Yang Xiaoan nodded, his expression solemn and grateful.

Xu Zhichun then went on to explain in detail the items where he could get extra money, starting at a minimum of thirty coins, with no upper limit. For example, if they needed to hire people to do the work, they would receive thirty coins per person for each day of supervision, without having to do the work themselves, only needing to supervise and manage the others.

Both Yang Mingshu and Yang Xiaoan were startled by this.

Uncle Yang Ming hesitated, "Oh, what if others don't want to listen? What then?"

Xu Zhichun laughed and said, "You keep an eye on them. Anyone who dares to disobey will not be hired."

Uncle Yang let out an "Ah," hesitated, and nodded, still somewhat uneasy. He had been honest and dutiful for half his life, never caring about anyone, and knew in his heart that no one looked up to him, thinking him useless and incompetent—his wife had even run off with someone else because she disliked him, so what use was he?
He was really afraid of managing people, and he couldn't bring himself to scold anyone who disobeyed him.

Yang Xiaoan was a little anxious. He had made a lot of money during this period, and his spirits had gradually improved. Although he was still silent, a flame of unwillingness was secretly burning in his heart.

He wanted to live a good life and no longer see contemptuous looks in other people's eyes.

There are few opportunities for the father and son to change their past and live a better life; if they miss this chance, they may never have another.

We could clearly see hope, and it was within reach if we just stretched out our hands.

"Dad," Yang Xiaoan finally mustered his courage and said softly, "If anyone slacks off, the others who are working together can't stand for it. It's not that hard to say."

So, there's no need to worry about offending anyone.

Xu Zhichun secretly praised herself, realizing that she hadn't misjudged him.

“Xiao An is right. Besides, I will also carefully select people when hiring. Those who are lazy, cheat, or shirk their responsibilities will naturally not be hired.”

Uncle Yang Ming breathed a sigh of relief, and his smile became more genuine: "Ah, yes, yes, that's right, that's right."

Xu Zhichun continued to recount the other items one by one. By the end, both father and son were somewhat dizzy. It turned out that good things really do fall from the sky and land on their heads. It really was true.

According to Xu Zhichun's calculations, how much money would they earn in a year? They couldn't calculate it; they couldn't calculate it.

Excited as if his whole body was filled with energy, and wishing he could run to the konjac field and walk around it three times, Uncle Yang Ming couldn't help but say, "Zhichun, do you want to plant more konjac fields? We can manage dozens or even hundreds of acres more, and we won't charge you extra." Liang Lizheng couldn't help but laugh and say, "What you say is true. If you manage the current ones well and gain experience, even if Zhichun adds more in the future, you won't be caught off guard."

Uncle Yang nodded quickly: "That's right, that's right."

Liang Mingxuan wrote the contract, Liang Lizheng read it to Yang Mingshu, and both parties signed and sealed it.

As Yang Mingshu left with the contract in hand, his steps were unsteady. Yang Xiaoan, his eyes bright and his face filled with suppressed joy, followed behind his father as if he were embarking on a broad and promising road.

Liang Lizheng kept Xu Zhichun and Liang Mingxuan behind to talk.

He wanted to say something, but then smiled helplessly, hesitating to speak.

Xu Zhichun found it strange.

The village head was truly a prominent figure in Liangjia Village. Whenever something happened, he was decisive and ruthless, and no one disrespected or feared him.

His expression was even more unusual than when his own steady and precocious child showed a look of surprise and disbelief.

"Local official, do you have something to say?"

"Oh dear! It's really hard to explain."

I don't know how to say it, but I have to say it eventually. After all, this is not a small matter.

"This morning, someone from the Zeng family came. It was sent by Madam Zeng. She was a head housekeeper. The head housekeeper was very rude. She said that Xiao Yan stole the Zeng family's recipes, the recipes for gray tofu, gray bean shreds, and braised meat. She told the Liang family not to be ungrateful and not to covet what is not theirs. She told us to hand it over immediately."

Liang Lizheng chuckled sarcastically, "I was thinking, when did that prescription become Xiaoyan's? Wasn't it yours? The Zeng family's nanny simply doesn't believe it, implying that if we don't return the prescription to them, we're disregarding our kinship, and they'll report us to the authorities. This is truly—haha!"

Liang Lizheng told Xu Zhichun everything in detail.

They naturally didn't know the cause; it was all Fang Zhengduan's doing. Fang Zhengduan angrily complained to his sister, insisting that Zeng Xiaoyan was a traitor who deliberately lied about the prescription, claiming it belonged to someone else. He said that when he asked her directly, she denied it and refused to give it to him. She also claimed that Zeng Xiaoyan was very close to the Lotus Restaurant, clearly trying to disgust her own family.

Madam Zeng was furious and scolded them for "betraying the family," then sent Granny Fang to the Liang family to ask for the prescription.

She didn't care how Zeng Xiaoyan obtained the recipe, whether before or after her marriage. Since it was a business recipe, it should belong to the Zeng family.

What use would the Liang family, a bunch of foolish villagers, have for the prescription? Did they even have the ingredients?
If she were a dutiful daughter, she would have obediently handed it over without the Zeng family even asking.

What an unfilial daughter!
When Granny Fang arrived, Liang, the village head, was not actually at home.

When Aunt Liang saw the head maidservant from her daughter-in-law's mother's side arrive, she thought something had happened and was startled. She quickly and warmly invited the maidservant into the house and asked her daughter-in-law to boil water and make tea.

Aunt Liang felt embarrassed and thought she hadn't been hospitable enough. Granny Fang couldn't even wait to make tea; while the water was boiling, she launched into a haughty and condescending tirade.

"The recipes for gray tofu, gray bean shreds, and braised meat originally belonged to the Zeng family. When the Third Miss was at home, she was always very clever and extremely daring; there was nothing she wouldn't dare to do. But no one expected her to be so bold as to steal the family recipes! Now it's causing quite a stir in the city. Madam specially sent this old servant here to take the recipes back. Please ask your mother-in-law to fetch them and give them to me. I'll go back and report, and hopefully clear things up for the Third Miss and put an end to this mess. Otherwise, with the Third Miss bearing the reputation of a thief, and being accused of stealing from her family to support her husband's family, even your reputations will suffer."

(End of this chapter)