Fifth Grandpa thought for a moment before speaking. “It’s a good idea, but it’ll take a lot of money. There’s no way to get everyone to chip in—no one will part with their money without seeing immediate benefits, and besides, they don’t have any to spare.”
“No need for that. I’m planning to set up a business for my Second Brother. My eldest brother will take the Imperial Examination route in the future, and my Second Brother loves brewing, so I’ll open a distillery for him and bring the whole village in on it. A distillery needs workers anyway—we could hire anyone, so naturally we’d help our own people first.”
She held up her hand to illustrate. “The distillery byproduct goods left over from brewing can also be made into food. Which of the aunties and older sisters doesn’t know how to cook a few signature dishes? The byproduct goods can be sold too.
And my grandfather used to make tofu—he stopped once the family was better off, but we can start it up again. I’ll teach everyone how to make stinky tofu, hairy tofu, and braised dried tofu.”
Fifth Grandpa’s eyes grew brighter and brighter as he listened. If that was the case, it wasn’t impossible after all.
“But where’s the money coming from? Building a distillery isn’t something ten taels of silver can cover. I’ve got five taels here for you to use. Just take your brothers and get it done.”
Fifth Grandpa was willing to put up money without a moment’s hesitation, and that trust filled Zhao Feng with immense gratitude.
“Then count your family as one share. You and I will work together on this—I’ll figure out the money. My brother won’t take the Autumn Imperial Examination until then, so there are still two or three months before that. That’s plenty of time for me to make things happen.
I’m thinking that one log can’t hold up a house alone, so I’ll have my Second Brother work with my uncle and the others. You’ll back us up and steer the ship. We’ll hire workers from the village, and we’ll voluntarily contribute a portion of our earnings to the village. Once we’ve saved up enough, how about we build a school?”
“That’s a good idea. Let me think it over carefully. You still need to make money, right? If you earn enough to get it off the ground, I’ll make the arrangements for you. But you’ll also need to bring in Eighth Grandpa’s son, your Uncle Yangzi—you can’t make this work without him.”
Fifth Grandpa immediately thought of who would be best suited to sell the liquor—undoubtedly Zhao Yang. In his early years, he’d worked as a shop hand and apprentice, climbing all the way up to second steward.
“He’s a second steward with a contract. I can’t show him any prospects this early on—would he even come?”
“No, his contract has expired. The rich merchant’s wife’s dowry steward is pushing him out to take his position. He’s stuck in an awkward spot right now, neither up nor down. We can find a way to get him out.”
Fifth Grandpa was close with Eighth Grandpa and knew quite a bit.
“Alright then, I’ll go talk to him later. You can give Eighth Grandpa a heads-up first. But what about my father’s situation? These days of them coming to cause trouble are hard to bear.”
Zhao Feng sighed. “They even dare to cause trouble here at your place. Once we move out, what will we do? Won’t they come curse at our doorstep every day?”
“Tonight. Let me discuss it and figure something out.”
Fifth Grandpa also felt this was a real problem that had to be dealt with.
“Alright, then I’ll get busy. Xiu’er, come help me make the herbal balm.”
“Coming!”
Xiu’er ran out of the house.
“Light the fire first, then wash the herbs and lay them out to dry. I’ll handle the rest.”
“Got it!”
Xiu’er got busy as well.
Making the herbal balm was fairly simple—just tedious with all the steps. It was a matter of practice making perfect.
Zhao Feng put the nearly dried herbs into the mortar and pestle and ground them up, teaching Xiu’er step by step as she went.
She demonstrated it herself, and boiling it on the stove was the final step.
In the kitchen, the aunties were busy cooking and occasionally came over to peek. The men had also returned from the fields.
As soon as they entered the courtyard, they caught a pleasant, fresh fragrance.
“Oh, Feng’er, what’s that smell? It’s lovely.”
“It’s herbal balm—for acne and scars. I’m making it to sell for money. Brother, I washed and laid out your brewing tools to dry. I’ll help you with the rest this afternoon.”
“No need. Huzi, you two work with Xiao Yi. Xiao Yi, teach them.”
Fifth Grandpa chimed in.
“Alright, then you two can assist me. We’ll work on it together later—Feng’er promised to open a distillery for me.”
Zhao Yi had long received his sister’s assurance, and if she said it, it would happen.
“Really? That must cost a fortune, right?”
“I don’t know, quite a bit, but my sister will definitely make it happen.”
Zhao Yi had absolute faith in his sister. Countless times from childhood to now had proven that listening to her was never wrong—good things always followed, and nothing ever fell through.
“Alright then, we brothers will work with you.”
As they talked, the herbal balm was finished after half a day’s work. Zhao Feng and Xiu’er packed the product into the small jars they’d bought.
Everyone gathered around to smell it. “That smells wonderful.”
The fragrance was pleasant and light—fresh and clean. Xiu’er dabbed a bit of what remained at the bottom of the pot onto her hand and also applied some to her mother’s hand.
She spread it gently—it was smooth and silky, absorbing quickly, leaving the skin feeling moist and supple.
“Really nice. I haven’t seen many fine things, but I can tell this is good. I think you can sell this for money.”
“Auntie, do you know how much a jar of this herbal balm costs in the city?”
“How much? Should be a few dozen wen, right? I heard the peony one is quite expensive.”
Auntie Qian thought for a moment before answering.
Zhao Feng smiled. “I’ve seen that one. The cheapest is thirty-five wen a jar. There are better ones at fifty wen a jar, and some especially fine ones at ninety-five wen a jar.”
“What? My goodness, such a small jar costs this much? Can you even eat it?”
Aunt Li exclaimed in surprise.
“I’ve been to the provincial capital once. Two hundred wen for a jar, three hundred wen for a box of face powder, three flower sticks, and the price of rouge varies depending on the color and ingredients.”
Everyone was astonished.
“Feng’er, you were right not to let this slip before. If your grandmother found out, she’d come and make trouble for you.”
Aunt Li pursed her lips and reminded her with a serious expression.
“I’ve already looked into it. These are all ancient formulas from books, and I know how to make all of them.”
Zhao Feng looked at Fifth Grandpa with her chin raised, indicating that she could earn the money to build the distillery.
Fifth Grandpa glanced at her without saying a word. Come back when you’ve actually earned the money, little girl. Trying to outsmart me, huh!
“So Feng’er, are you going to sell them tomorrow?”
“No rush. I still need to make two more types of rouge, and also make some hand ointment for my brother.”
“If you know how to make it, why buy it? Isn’t that a waste of money?”
Xiu’er tilted her head in confusion.
“My brother’s medicine isn’t bad, but we need a comparison to see how effective it is. I plan to make the ointment and sell it in the provincial capital—that’s where the big money is.”
Zhao Feng had already planned this out in her mind. Uncle Yangzi was a second steward in the provincial capital. He wasn’t an indentured servant—he was from a good farming family and had signed a long-term contract, ten years as an apprentice.
“You’re amazing.”
Xiu’er was utterly impressed.
“Alright, let’s eat. Xiu’er, you and I each get one jar of this ointment. There’s still plenty of medicine left, enough to make a few more jars. We’ll give one to each of the aunties too.”
“Oh my! No, no, we don’t want any. You should sell them. This child has no sense of what things are worth.”
Aunt Qian shook her head and hurriedly refused.
“It’s fine, Auntie. Even if I take them to sell, it’s only these few jars. Once I go there, they’ll definitely want the secret formula—they won’t let me keep making money forever.”
“Then wouldn’t you be at a loss?”
Aunt Qian felt a bit sorry for her.
“No worries. I have a way to make them come begging me and bring me money. Xiu’er, study hard. You can make them this afternoon.”
Zhao Feng gave Xiu’er a pat.
“Ow, easy there! I’ll learn.”
Xiu’er was now motivated.