Although there was no large-scale publicity, and Yan Liqiang did not deliberately intend to make a big scene, the day when the first woolen mill of the Han Empire officially opened, the entire Pingxi County was still in an uproar. It cannot even be said to be a sensation, but it was a sensation.
At noon on April 8, nearly sixty four-wheeled horse-drawn carriages loaded with goods departing from the Huanglong County Manufacturing Bureau arrived at Yan'an Fort like a long snake. The first batch of carriages pulled the first batch of spinning machines, looms and wool washing tools used by the wool spinning mill. From the moment these carriages entered Yan'an Fort, in the next two days, a steady stream of spinning machines, looms and other things were pulled from the Manufacturing Bureau to Yan'an Fort, and then placed in the factory buildings built in Yan'an Fort.
At this point, everything was ready, and Yan Liqiang no longer asked the Manufacturing Bureau and Yan'anbao to keep any secrets, so countless people saw the cars coming out of the Manufacturing Bureau and the unloading and storage process after arriving at Yan'anbao.
Because the wool purchase by the Yan and Lu families had caused such a big stir, countless people with sharp noses and quick minds in Pingxi County had been keeping an eye on the movements in the Manufacturing Bureau and Yan'an Fort. The news that a large number of mysterious tools and equipment were produced in the Manufacturing Bureau and shipped to Yan'an Fort was known to almost everyone in Pingxi County on the night of April 8.
On April 9th of the following year, the news that the Yan family of Yan'an Fort was recruiting spinners in Yan'an Fort and Qinghe County once again caused a sensation - it was not uncommon for those wealthy families or workshops to recruit spinners, it was very normal, but there were two shocking points. The first was the number of spinners recruited in Yan'an Fort this time, a total of 680 female workers, aged 16 to 50. As long as they were women in Qinghe County and could spin and weave at home, they could come and try. You know, in the entire Pingxi County, the largest weaving workshop had recruited less than 100 spinners so far, and that workshop was in Huanglong County. The number of spinners recruited by the Yan family was 600 to 700 at once. How big a workshop was they going to run
What is even more puzzling is that there are not many cotton and ramie grown in Qinghe County, and the Yan family has not been seen involved in the textile business before. Why is the Yan family making such a big move this time
In addition, the treatment of spinners given by the Yan family was also jaw-dropping - as long as the spinners were hired by the Yan family, they would receive a minimum of four taels of silver per month. Four taels of silver per month was a very high salary, not to mention in Qinghe County, even in the entire Pingxi County. You should know that in other workshops, a skilled spinner could get less than two taels of silver per month, and an ordinary spinner could get one tael of silver per month. In this world, there were not many jobs that could make money for women. The salary of a criminal in the Qinghe County Criminal Investigation Office was less than three taels of silver per month, which was enough to support a family. This job that could earn four taels of silver a month was legitimate and could be done by women. It was definitely the first of its kind in the world. If the news had not been released by the famous Yan family of Yan'an Fort, people who heard the news would have thought someone was joking.
But this was no joke, because early in the morning of April 10, several managers and aunts of the Yan family had already set up a battle array in the square of Yan'an Fort and began to recruit spinners openly. The recruitment point had written in black and white on a notice board the requirements for recruiting spinners, and also stated the treatment after recruitment - four taels of monthly salary, one lunch, and one day off every seven days. In addition to the recruitment notice in black and white, there were more than ten spinning machines and looms lined up in the square, as well as piles of cotton. Women who wanted to apply had to show their skills in public - starting with cleaning the cotton, then carding, strip rolling, combing, drawing, coarse yarn, fine yarn, winding, twisting, reeling, baling, warping, sizing, drawing in, putting on the machine, and the whole process of weaving...
As long as your skills are qualified, you can be hired on the spot and your monthly salary will start from tomorrow.
These weaving processes are definitely a headache for men, but for many women of this era, especially those living in rural areas, most of them lived a life of men farming and women weaving. Men took care of food and women took care of clothing. They had been exposed to skills such as weaving since childhood. Many families had spinning and looms, and there were really too many people who knew how to do it.
At the beginning, because there were too many people watching in the square, and there were people crowded around and everyone was talking, many women were too embarrassed to go up and just watched from the side. To show their skills in such a noisy occasion was like going on stage to perform a show, which was a challenge for many women.
As a result, housekeeper Zhou, who was in charge of the recruitment, was very anxious. This was the task assigned to him by Master Yan. You have to know that the Yan family is no longer what it used to be, and more and more people rely on the Yan family for their livelihood. Many of his managers and servants have gradually emerged. As a housekeeper, if he can't even do such a small task, how can he stay in the Yan family? How will Master Yan look upon him
"Dear fellow villagers, the Yan family is recruiting textile workers this time. All the benefits have been written down in black and white. With the reputation of Old Master Yan and Young Master Yan, they will certainly not lie to you. If you can't read, I will read it again for you. As long as you can weave, have good skills and obey the instructions, it doesn't matter who the girl or daughter-in-law is. Once hired, you will have a lunch every day, and the minimum income is four taels of silver per month. If you perform well and are promoted to a team leader, the income will be even more. This is four taels of silver per month. In addition to the money in our Yan An "Fort, you can't find a second job as good as this one even if you travel the world with a lantern!" Steward Zhou, with a layer of tiny beads of sweat on his forehead, was holding a large loudspeaker made of rolled-up iron sheets in his hand, and he shouted at the onlookers around the square with all his might, "But the number of spinners we recruit this time is limited. Once the number is full, we will not recruit anymore. It's first come, first served. If you miss this opportunity, you will regret it for the rest of your life. Men who have wives and daughters at home, ask your women to give it a try. In the future, maybe your women will earn more money every month than you do now..."
"Butler Zhou, what you said is true. Four taels of silver a month. I heard the news yesterday. I have also met Mr. Yan and Mr. Yan. Last time I went to the Yan family to help in the kitchen. If you talk nonsense here, be careful or I will report you to Mr. Yan!" Finally, after Butler Zhou finished speaking, a woman in a bright red dress, who was a little fat, in her thirties, and looked a bit fierce, finally squeezed out from the dense crowd of onlookers and spoke loudly.
When housekeeper Zhou saw this woman, he realized that she was none other than Wang Laoshi's wife. Although Wang Laoshi was an honest man, his wife was a strong-willed woman in the town. She was capable and good at housekeeping. It was also said that she was a skillful woman, good at spinning and embroidering. Wang Laoshi's two little daughters were dressed in colorful clothes all day long, all because of this woman's craftsmanship.
"Once you get the money, you will know whether what I said is true or false!" said Butler Zhou.
“Okay, I’ll give it a try. It’s just weaving cloth in public. I can do it with my eyes closed. What’s so shameful about it…” Wang Laoshi’s wife said as she walked over and started to clean the cotton skillfully, showing off her craftsmanship under the gaze of a group of people.
Needless to say, the result was that Wang Laoshi's wife, relying on her excellent craftsmanship, immediately became the first successful applicant of the day.
With this example, the young girls and wives who were watching on the side of the square were no longer nervous. Many of them wanted to give it a try, and the second, third, and fourth people came out one after another and began to show their abilities.
Of course, those who dared to come up at this time were capable, so they were recruited one after another. Later, the square became more and more lively, and more and more women came to try. By the afternoon, those women who came from all over the country to try had already lined up in the square...
(End of this chapter)