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

Chapter 226 We're Rich! We've struck it rich!
The only thing that troubles and gives headaches to the cheerful people of Liangjia Village is the increasing number of relatives and friends visiting their homes.

Everyone started calculating their finances quickly. They knew they had to keep their own offspring, and their in-laws had to provide some—not for free, but to be bought. Even close brothers kept clear accounts. At this point, it was better to avoid in-laws who wanted to take things for free.

As for the price, it depends on what Lord Lu's purchase price is. A slightly lower price would be enough to show our kinship.

So everyone started anxiously waiting for news from Lord Lu.

On the second day after Lord Lu and his party arrived, Master Qin and Madam Qin personally paid a visit to Xu Zhichun's home.

"I've sent the profits from the threshing machine, windmill, and watermill to Madam Xu. Although the autumn harvest is over, there are still quite a few orders, many of which are for next year. As long as there are orders, Madam Xu will always have a share of the profits. How about I have the accountant settle accounts with Madam Xu every three months?"

Xu Zhichun understood that threshing machines, windmills, and watermills were all things that could be used for many, many years once they were made. Once everyone who needed and could afford them had bought them, there wouldn't be much of a market left.

Moreover, there is no shortage of skilled craftsmen in any era. A clever carpenter can buy a threshing machine or a windmill, take them apart, and work on them repeatedly.

Xu Zhichun didn't believe that Master Qin was unaware of this principle; the couple must have come today for the sweet potatoes and potatoes.

Xu Zhichun then said, "Let's talk about this later. After everyone has done what they were supposed to do, there won't be any more business. When that happens, Master Qin can give me a reasonable amount to buy out the blueprints, which will also give an explanation to Lord Lu. After that, the business will belong to Master Qin."

Master Qin felt quite pleased, secretly praising Madam Xu for being a straightforward and sensible person. However, on his face, he waved his hand hastily with an expression that said, "How can this be? Wouldn't I be taking advantage of this?" He said, "This is not appropriate, this is not appropriate. I would be taking advantage of this. Let's listen to Madam Xu and talk about it later, haha. Only when everyone discusses things can the cooperation last, right?"

Xu Zhichun couldn't help but smile and nod: "Master Qin is absolutely right."

Madam Qin then smiled and said, "By the way, I wonder if Madam Xu would like to buy some fertile land?"

Xu Zhichun's eyes lit up. "Is there any news about Madam Qin?"

The news that reached Madam Qin's ears must not be about small plots of land, but rather a large-scale transaction.

But it doesn't matter, Xu Zhichun can afford it now.

Didn't Master Qin and Madam Qin just send over the profits from the threshing machine, windmill, and watermill? Tomatoes can no longer be supplied in such large quantities every other day; there are only a few bits left, and the same goes for strawberries.

When it comes time to settle the bill with Manager Tang, it will inevitably be a large sum of money.

She still has so many sweet potatoes and potatoes in her hand; they're all money.

Madam Qin smiled and said, "Not far from the county town is Loujia Village. There is a local gentry family there who has suffered a misfortune and is preparing to sell a farm. The farmland is all good land, totaling 300 mu, with a small courtyard with two courtyards and another 30 to 50 mu of land. If Madam Xu is interested, you can go and negotiate the deal."

"That's wonderful, thank you so much, Mrs. Qin!"

Xu Zhichun was very grateful, but she understood, of course, that this wasn't something she could negotiate just because she liked it. Even if she had money, it wouldn't work.

After all, no matter how rich she is, she can't compare to the Qin family, or even the Zeng family.

No wealthy family would complain about having too much fertile land; such a good opportunity is so good that even if you lined up, it wouldn't be her turn.

However, if Master Qin personally intervenes and makes the arrangements, then it's a done deal.

Without waiting for Master Qin and Madam Qin to ask, Xu Zhichun took the initiative and said, "Master Qin and Madam Qin must already know about the sweet potatoes and potatoes in our village. However, Lord Lu has already instructed that they be kept for the government to purchase. Each family, apart from keeping enough for seed, has to sell the rest to the government. Even if we could keep a little more, it probably wouldn't be much. How about I keep three thousand catties of sweet potatoes and one thousand catties of potatoes for you? I'll talk to Master Shao at the government office. If you want more, we can give you more. However, I can't control the price at the government office." "Good, good, good, that's enough! This much is more than enough," Master Qin laughed heartily and thanked him.

It was better than he expected.

Whether it's sweet potatoes or potatoes, Master Shao can sell him as many as he wants. Sweet potatoes can be planted by cutting the vines, and it doesn't matter if you keep a little for yourself. You can take the rest to the provincial capital and sell them for several times the profit.

It depends on the situation; if the price is good, he doesn't mind selling more potatoes.

After all, with such high production, prices may not be as good next year.

The most worthwhile thing is to have the money in your hand.

Xu Zhichun had a pretty good idea of ​​what Master Qin was planning, but she had no intention of getting involved; she had already earned enough.

Master Qin hurriedly pulled out an account book and a palm-sized box containing silver notes. "Madam Xu, please take a look. This is the money earned from selling the blueprints and the threshing machines and windmills that were made."

Fearing she wouldn't understand the blueprints, Mr. Qin calmly and deliberately explained the important points while she looked at them.

Only ten blueprints were sold. The threshing machine and windmill were bundled together, and the watermill was a free gift. However, it was not 1,800 taels per set, but rather 1,800 taels was the lowest price, and the highest bidder won.

Master Qin was the type who believed in making money through peaceful means and didn't want to push things too far. Besides, these farming tools were beneficial to the country and its people, and he was thinking about bringing good fortune to his son. Therefore, he didn't go through the auction process. Instead, he used his connections to organize a gathering of more than thirty merchants. The minimum price was 1,800 taels of silver, and each person had one chance to bid based on their own wishes and judgment. Finally, the top ten highest bidders were announced.

Each of these ten blueprints costs more than 1,800 taels of silver, with the highest price reaching 8,500 taels and the lowest being 5,500 taels.

Master Qin was a shrewd businessman. He reduced the highest bid of 8,500 taels by 500 taels, making it the same price as the second highest bidder. The highest bidder was very happy and did not feel cheated at all. On the contrary, he felt that he had gotten a good deal and thought that Master Qin was very generous. He was very willing to befriend him.

Of course, the five hundred taels that Master Qin reduced was done privately, and he made up the difference out of his own pocket. The account still showed eight thousand five hundred taels, and he did not tell Xu Zhichun and the others about it.

The ten blueprints were sold for a total of 67,800 taels of silver.

After deducting the various costs of the event, which amounted to 300 taels, there were still 67,500 taels left. According to the calculation that Lord Lu would take four parts, and Xu Zhichun and Master Qin would each take three parts, Xu Zhichun would also receive 22,250 taels.

Xu Zhichun was overjoyed at this share alone.

Looking at the sales figures in the county and several neighboring counties, they were also quite impressive, with several hundred units sold in each county. After deducting costs, the total profit was over 11,000 taels of silver, of which over 3,300 taels were distributed to Xu Zhichun.

Xu Zhichun anticipated that the profits from this collaboration would be substantial, but he hadn't expected them to be this high.

She appeared somewhat dazed, as if she couldn't understand the ledgers and was lost in confusion. In reality, however, she was going mad.

"I'm rich! I'm really rich!"

"Get rich overnight! Get rich overnight!"

"Ahhhh!"

(End of this chapter)