Since even the government was stockpiling, following in their footsteps couldn't be wrong. That reassurance filled the entire family with confidence.
After some discussion, Su Lanzhi put in 1,500 virtual coins for a 20% share. She also contributed another 1,500 virtual coins on behalf of her parents, giving her grandparents 20%. From then on, all profits would be credited under the elderly couple's names.
Jing Shu put in 1,500 virtual coins as well, but she was also responsible for all fuel, coal, natural gas, and electricity. That earned Jing Shu a 40% share.
As for her Eldest Aunt, she would handle the factory's labor and labor costs, as well as the management, giving her 20% of the shares.
The final responsibility for sales and storage fell to Jing Shu. In other words, her Eldest Aunt was only in charge of production, and didn't even need to worry about selling.
Her Eldest Uncle's jaw practically dropped. He couldn't believe Jing Shu's family could casually produce that many virtual coins. But then again, the pigs had come from them. If they didn't have a solid foundation, how would they dare give out pigs in the first place?
Her Eldest Aunt was flustered by the arrangement. "Labor is so cheap right now. If I shout once, people would line up around the county just to work for two bowls of paste or rice porridge a day. And all we're doing is collecting red nematodes and turning them into feed. How could that possibly be worth 1,500 virtual coins?"
What did 1,500 virtual coins mean? It was a civil servant's annual salary. If one ate a bowl of white rice every day, it would last two and a half years! In an apocalyptic famine, as long as the government stood, it meant survival was guaranteed.
"Eldest Aunt, the factory's feed might not turn a profit anytime soon. You'll have to put in a lot of grain every day, and since we don't have the time to manage the place, everything will depend on you. We don't trust outsiders. Only family can be trusted.
But business among family still needs clear accounts and contracts. As for personnel and management, you can handle them however you want, including wages. But your responsibility is to collect red nematodes, keep the accounts straight, and process them into feed. Every few days I'll send someone to collect a batch. Both sides need to do proper handovers and record details. Once there's profit, the money will be divided strictly four ways according to the records. That includes matching the red nematodes you collected against the virtual coins spent."
"You set the rules, I'll follow them. Don't worry, our parents' money is in this too. I won't dare cut corners. I'll just be in charge of collecting the red nematodes myself. I only trust my own hands. No one else." Her Eldest Aunt was genuinely touched that her younger sister-in-law had even included their elderly parents.
Jing Shu, Su Lanzhi, Grandma Jing, and Jing Pan signed the contract and pressed their thumbprints. The family efficiently chose a factory. Well, it couldn't even be called a factory, more like a simple prefab house, the kind that had been used to house the displaced people of Wu County after the flood.
Some of these prefab shacks were still standing. When Wu County's officials heard someone wanted to open a factory and hire workers, they couldn't have been happier. It was like a burden lifted from their shoulders.
"These temporary houses are empty anyway. You can use them rent-free. We heard you'll need feed machines too. We have them. Whatever equipment you need, we've got it. We'll sell the lot for 200 virtual coins."
It wasn't like making compressed rations for the government, which had huge costs. This was mostly feed for poultry. As long as it was cooked and dried enough to store, that was fine.
And so, for 200 virtual coins, they secured both the site and the machines. The next step was hiring workers.
"Once the New Year's second day passes, we can start work. That's when people can come to the factory."
"With the process in place, at least eight strong workers will be needed."
Her Eldest Aunt clenched her teeth. "Alright, then we'll recruit eight people. After the New Year, Qiao Lian's family will have to leave. We can't afford to feed them anymore."
The job required eight hours of work a day, no holidays, with two meals of paste or rice porridge provided daily. In Wu County, that was a very good offer.
Paste only cost 0.5 virtual coins if bought, but portions were always tiny. Her Eldest Aunt's portions could fill a stomach, which meant about 1 virtual coin a day in food costs.
The grain came from leftovers from last year and from the pigs they had raised this year. The cost was low, but running the factory for half a year would still consume about 1,600 virtual coins.
But the return was worth ten times that. Her Eldest Aunt's family wouldn't lose out. In fact, it was an excellent deal.
At noon, her Eldest Aunt gathered everyone. "Qiao Lian's mother, after the first day you'll need to head back. Once the factory opens, all our grain will go to the workers. If we feed the workers, we can't keep supporting you too."
Qiao Lian's mother smiled with her wrinkled face. "Why say such distant words? I've already made plans. Once the factory opens, you'll be busy, my husband will be busy, even Wei Zheng will be busy. I'll stay and take care of Qiao Lian. My husband and three sons can all help at the factory. Add in your second sister's family too, and we won't even need to hire outsiders, right?"
Qiao Lian kicked her mother hard. How could she say something like that!
Jing Zhao perked up at the idea. The job was easy, food was free, and if you got tired you could rest. And it was her own siblings' factory. "That's great, Sister. Don't let fertile water flow into outsiders' fields. Let us work instead."
Jing Shu narrowed her eyes, curious how her Eldest Aunt would handle this. Was her Eldest Aunt truly worth the investment? It wasn't about the money. Her family didn't lack virtual coins. What mattered was proving their worth and strengthening themselves.
Jing Pan chuckled. "The factory doesn't just belong to me. It belongs to our parents, my sister-in-law Su Lanzhi, and my niece Jing Shu. We have to follow the contract's division of labor. The machines are all manual. As long as you can grind red nematodes for eight hours a day, cook them, and press them into cakes, anyone can do it. But if you can't complete the daily quota, not even one meal will be given."
"Who wants to work?" Jing Pan asked.
Qiao Lian's maternal family couldn't endure hardship, but the eldest son stood up. He said he would do it and would definitely meet the quota. Jing Pan agreed. "Among brothers, only the work counts, not the relationship."
Her cousin Li Yun shoved his mother. "Mom, you have to do it. Otherwise, we'll starve."
Her Second Aunt glared at her useless husband, then finally gritted her teeth. "Fine, count me in."
That still left six more workers to hire, which her Eldest Aunt would need to decide on carefully.
Dinner that evening was unexpectedly rich, since it was prepared by Jing Shu's family.
It was supposed to be rice porridge, but her uncle had specially brought out last year's pickles, frozen pears, and a cold dish. Unfortunately, with so many kids around, everything was snatched up before her side even saw it.
"Well then, let's cook our own dinner," Jing Shu said with a wry smile.
===
From this point on, I'll start using personal names for some of Jing Shu's relatives instead of constantly referring to them by relationship titles (like how the Author's write) especially in narration. For example, 大姑 (dà gū, eldest paternal aunt) will be written as Jing Pan, 二姑 (èr gū, second paternal aunt) as Jing Zhao, and 大伯 (dà bó, eldest paternal uncle / Jing Pan's husband) as Wei Chong. This is similar to how I've already been handling her parents—静爸 (Jìng bà) became Jing An, and 静妈 (Jìng mā) became Su Lanzhi—because those were their actual names.
As for the rest of the extended family, I'll keep their relationship titles as-is until their names come up clearly in the text. From Jing Shu's mother's side, we already know:
大舅 (dà jiù) → Su Yiyang (elder maternal uncle)
His wife → Wang Fang
There's also Su Meimei (though not a blood sibling).
From Jing Shu's father's side, there's Grandma Jing and Grandpa Jing, plus three elder sisters: Jing Pan, Jing Zhou, and Jing Lai. We know Jing Pan's husband is Wei Chong, and Jing Lai is divorced. I can't recall if the name of Jing Zhou's husband (the "Second Uncle") was given earlier, so for now I'll keep him referred to by relationship until I find it in the earlier chapters or was properly introduced by the Author.
That said, because Jing Shu is about to start a business and put family members in charge of the factory. If I only write things in narration like "second aunt" over and over, it gets repetitive. And if I just translate something like 大舅妈 (dà jiù mā, wife of maternal uncle) as "Aunt" in the narration, it's not clear which aunt is being referred to.
It might feel a little awkward at times when I mix a name (like "Jing Zhao") with a relationship title (like "Second Uncle") in the same scene. But until all the names are properly introduced, that's the best balance for clarity. I'll also keep an eye out when reviewing earlier chapters to catch references I may have missed, so this switch will be gradual.
Thanks for understanding, and I hope this makes things clearer as the family gets more involved in the story!