After a comfortable sleep in his bed at home, Yan Liqiang got up the next morning, looking refreshed and wearing new clothes. He first went to greet Yan Dechang, and then the father and son had breakfast together at home.
As Yan Liqiang had more and more things to do, he had less and less time to spend with Yan Dechang, so Yan Liqiang cherished the time he spent with Yan Dechang very much.
The breakfast of both father and son is very simple, millet porridge with steamed buns. It was like this when the family was poor. Now that the family is rich, the breakfast is still like this. It is too rich. Yan Dechang and Yan Liqiang are still a little uncomfortable with it. They both think millet porridge with steamed buns is the best. The only difference from before is that now when the family has breakfast, they can add some sugar to the millet porridge as they like. Sugar is also a luxury. It is not found in ordinary families except wealthy families!
"It seems that you have gained a lot from this retreat. I feel that you seem to have changed a lot after coming back this time, just like a sword that has been tempered by fire..." Although Yan Dechang is not a cultivator, as Yan Liqiang's father, he still feels that Yan Liqiang's whole spirit has undergone very subtle changes after coming back this time. Yan Dechang just thought that Yan Liqiang's cultivation had improved, but he never expected that at this moment Yan Liqiang has advanced to the rank of Wu Zong and officially embarked on the road to becoming a strong man. Even in the northwestern states, people with such cultivation are rare and can be counted on one's fingers!
"Well, I have gained a lot from this retreat!" Yan Liqiang drank the fragrant millet porridge slowly while talking to Yan Dechang. He was still humble. Of course, he did not tell Yan Dechang about his current cultivation level, for fear of scaring Yan Dechang. "If I encounter anything again, I think I should be able to protect myself!"
"That's good, that's good!" Yan Dechang nodded, looking relieved. "During the past six months when you were away, people from the Lu family came several times, all of them gave me gifts and asked about my well-being. When you come back this time, if you have time, you can also visit the Lu family as a courtesy. I heard from the Lu family that Mr. Lu has now let Lu Beixin manage the woolen mill of the Lu family, and even the brothers of the Lu family can only help out on the side. That girl manages it in an orderly manner. The woolen mill of the Lu family has only been open for a few months, and there are many customers every day, and they have already made 70,000 to 80,000 taels of silver. I think that girl is also good at managing the household. Now that your relationship has been settled, you must not neglect her. You should still visit her when necessary!"
Thinking of the scene when Lu Beixin threw the gold hairpin on her head into the water for the boatman to fish out when they first met, Yan Liqiang laughed, "Lu Beixin is originally smart and clever. She has been spoiled since she was a child. Although she has a little temper, she also has a set of skills to control people. If she really works hard, it will not be difficult for her to manage a woolen mill where most of the workers are women. I think Mr. Lu has good intentions. By the way, I just came back last night, and I haven't asked how our family's No. 1 factory has been doing in the past six months and how much money has it made?"
"I heard from Manager Zhou that the family factory is doing very well. Once you came up with the franchise idea, our woolen cloth and woolen blankets are selling well. We sell as much as we can. People line up in Yan'an Fort every day to pick up the goods. I heard that we have made more than 400,000 taels of silver in just half a year!"
"Haha, good, good, it's pretty much what I thought. It seems that the output of the woolen mill should have stabilized, and the brand of the world's number one mill has also been established!" Yan Liqiang nodded with satisfaction.
"Who would have thought that wool could be so profitable? I heard that many places outside Pingxi County have people taking back their fields to grow grass and raise sheep. This is really unprecedented. They don't use good land to grow crops, but instead grow grass!"
Yan Liqiang's brows suddenly raised. The speed of fencing off land for sheep was much faster than he expected. He originally thought that someone would do this only next year, but he didn't expect that some brave people had already started this year. From a certain perspective, this was a good sign.
"How many people are there who enclose land to grow grass and raise sheep?"
"I heard from merchants going to Yan'an Fort that there seem to be quite a lot of them, because the price of wool is getting more and more expensive. What no one wanted before is now being snapped up everywhere. In the eyes of many people, the things that grow on sheep are not wool anymore, but like white silver!"
"Isn't wool worth pure silver now? If raising sheep can make more money than farming, as long as people are not stupid, someone will naturally do this business!"
"I just can't understand. If everyone stops farming and grows grass instead, sheep can eat grass, but people can't eat grass. The more I think about it, the more mysterious it seems," Yan Dechang said with a frown.
"When there are fewer people farming, the price of grain will go up, and more people will grow grain naturally. This world is bustling with people, but after all, there is nothing mysterious about it. It's nothing more than revolving around the word profit!"
Yan Dechang was still worried. "There wasn't much grain left in the world to begin with. There are hungry people everywhere. Now more people are using the land to grow grass, so there will naturally be less grain. If you grow grass on a piece of land, you can raise sheep, and if you grow grain on a piece of land, you can raise people. This is non-negotiable. If there are more hungry people, the world will be in chaos!"
Yan Dechang's idea is a typical small peasant economy idea. He only sees the difference between wool and grain, but not other things. Yan Liqiang doesn't find it strange, because this is a normal person's idea. The fact that Yan Dechang can say these things shows that Yan Dechang has thought about this issue seriously. Although there are some limitations, he still has some thoughts.
“Of course it is impossible for a living person to be suffocated to death by urine. If people are dead, what’s the use of woolen cloth? So father, you must believe that there must be a solution to everything in the end. At that time, countless smart people will naturally find a path with the least resistance to resolve this contradiction between starving people to death and causing chaos in the world and continuing to make money with wool. Woolen cloth is a trend, and this trend has been formed now, just like the flowing rivers. Even if you can block the river, the water in the river will naturally find another way with the least resistance and can continue to flow out, all the way into the sea…” When saying this, Yan Liqiang’s eyes flashed with a deep brilliance.
"I don't understand what you're saying!" Yan Dechang sighed with emotion, "When my father and I had no money, I wanted to make a little more money every day so that you could eat better, dress better, and not hurt your body. If I had more money, I would find you a good master. Now the money at home is like this, with gold and silver pouring into the house every day like water. The woolen mill, the manufacturing bureau, and the salt field, I'm a little scared of what you're making. Now the money at home is more than we can spend in ten lifetimes. I don't know what you want to do with so much money!"
"Money is what people want. When you have enough money, you can move mountains and fill the sea, creating a new world. Don't worry, father. Our family earns money honestly and spends it honestly. If you feel that the money in your family is not stable and you feel bored, you might as well go out more often, such as building bridges and roads, and caring for the orphans. Our Yan family's Shanyi Hall has been opened all over Pingxi County. It is estimated that there will be one in each county of Ganzhou next year. If father wants to do good deeds, the disciples of the archery clubs in Pingxi County will help..."
(End of this chapter)