Stepmother in charge: Making a fortune through farming and raising her children to fight back

Early winter.

There were mostly fallen leaves on the mountain, and there was almost no green to be seen. Yun Zhenzhen carried a backpack and set foot on the wild mountain, preparing to find more plants on the mountain to dye the wool.

At this season, the mountain is basically barren, and some green plants are not suitable for dyeing. After searching for a long time, I couldn't help but look worried.

Xiao Nan followed behind him, worried: "What should I do, mother? There is not much grass on the road, and I can't find any green grass to dye the clothes."

Her words actually gave Yun Zhenzhen a hint. Yes, who said it has to be dyed green? Other colors will do too.

"Come on, let's go find a pine tree."

Xiao Nan didn't know why Yun Zhenzhen suddenly laughed happily, but she still followed behind silently. No matter what, she would do whatever her mother said.

Along the way, Yun Zhenzhen put on her backpack and explained to her, "The inside of the pine tree is a little reddish-brown, and the water you boil it in is also slightly reddish. It can be used for dyeing, and it also has a unique fragrance."

"We don't have any other colors right now, so a slightly reddish color will do. By next spring and summer, we can pick more fruits and flowers to use for dyeing."

There was no shortage of pine trees on the mountain. Yun Zhenzhen picked up the knife and directly peeled off a large piece of bark, but she couldn't go too far. She only took a little from each tree, and it would grow again next year.

On the way down the mountain, the soil was still a little slippery because it had rained a few days ago. Yun Zhenzhen took Xiaonan's hand and walked down slowly. At this moment, Xiaonan suddenly spoke.

"Mother, what do you think of Uncle Ningshan?"

"Huh? Why are you asking this?" Yun Zhenzhen was a little curious: "He is good at martial arts and hardworking. He sees work as an opportunity. When the eldest brother is not at home, he basically takes care of all the physical work in the family. Why are you suddenly asking this?"

"enmmm..."

Xiao Nan hesitated and refused to speak for a long time.

Yun Zhenzhen smiled and touched her head: "Just tell me what you're thinking. I'm your mother, how can you hide it from me?"

After hearing this, Xiao Nan finally mustered up the courage to speak: "Uncle Ningshan is very good at martial arts. I want to practice martial arts with him, but I will definitely fall behind in my studies. But I really like it..."

As Xiao Nan spoke, he carefully observed Yun Zhenzhen's expression.

So that's what happened. Yun Zhenzhen looked at her with a smile and said, "I'll tell your Uncle Ningshan about it when I get back. If you like it, you can choose to do it. Don't be bound by other worldly opinions."

Xiaonan nodded heavily.

She had thought about this matter for a long time, and only dared to tell her mother today when she went up the mountain alone with her mother. She was worried that her mother would think she was a bad child because she didn't like studying and would no longer like her, so she hesitated and didn't dare to speak.

Yun Zhenzhen planned to put this matter on the agenda after the wool workshop situation stabilized.

The wool workshop was located in the middle of the village. Yun Zhenzhen took the pine bark and went straight home. It was already past midnight and all the workers had gone home.

Before leaving, he would lock the warehouse and the main room in the rented house, but the eldest brother was worried and would check them again before locking them every time.

A special inner room was built here, and the family sent an older child to look after it every day.

After returning home, Yun Zhenzhen prepared to try pine bark with the existing wool yarn. The water boiled with pine bark has a unique flavor. If the color is controlled well, a light brown can be produced.

If concentrated, it will turn into a reddish-brown color with a very mature flavor.

Yun Zhenzhen tied her sleeves to her arms with a rope and worked hard in the kitchen with everyone.

Every time one is made, Awen will record all the data.

Boil one pound of pine bark with two buckets of water for half an hour, then put it into wool and soak it for a full hour. Then add the prepared alum and soak it for another hour.

Record the data well and ensure that the time of each subsequent batch is strictly controlled. This is the only way to ensure the quality of the goods produced is consistent, so as to avoid inconsistent color depth in the same batch. Such things will inevitably be said to be immature when sold.

Since we have decided to do this business well, we must ensure quality control at every step so that it can last.

When she was too busy, Yun Zhenzhen would carve a wooden stick, dip it in ink, and help write.

Seeing her writing very enthusiastically, Wanniang also became interested. She walked over and drew a few strokes, and couldn't help but exclaimed that it was amazing.

"This is much easier to use than a brush. It's perfect for beginners who don't have a firm grip on the pressure. You don't have to worry about the ink just turning into a mess."

Yun Zhenzhen looked at her with a smile. There was nothing she could do. She really couldn't learn calligraphy in such a short time, so she could only resort to this last resort.

"If you think this pen is useful, then I'll carve one for you too. Everyone in the family can learn to write."

"I?"

Wanniang was stunned.

Can she, a girl who is almost twenty years old, still learn to write?

Although the school was built, the villagers would only send their boys there to study. As for the girls, they had to help with housework and would not be sent here to waste time.

"Yes, when the business gets bigger and we're too busy, everyone will have to help keep the accounts. You and Xiao'e should learn more and record how many blankets each person has made, whether they've slacked off, and how much they've paid. That way, you'll have a deeper understanding of the business."

After that, she leaned over to Wanniang's ear and whispered, "You guys just follow along and learn well. When you do more, I'll secretly give you some processing money."

When Wanniang heard about the processing fee, she quickly waved her hands. She was so happy to be able to learn to read. Besides, twenty cents a day was already enough now, and the work was simple, so how could she ask for more wages?

"That's settled. Let's get busy and go to bed early after we're done." Yun Zhenzhen didn't wait for her to refuse and went to the other side to get busy.

Wanniang could only clear her throat and express her determination towards that side: "Sister Yun, don't worry, I will definitely study hard."

In the first few days of the wool workshop's operation, Yun Zhenzhen followed it around every day, fearing that there would be mistakes if she hadn't noticed any step.

Now most of the family’s money has been invested in buying wool, and the business has already been negotiated with Zhang Ronger, so I really dare not be careless.

When she saw the finished products appearing in front of her one after another, she slowly breathed a sigh of relief, and then distributed the trademarks she had made a few days ago, asking everyone to embroider them in the lower right corner.

No one knew what Yun Zhenzhen meant by trademark, but they all did as she was told. She had a good brain, so naturally the things she came up with were excellent.

That evening, Yun Zhenzhen returned home and saw her big cow, Xiao Hei. She was delighted and walked around it twice, touching its furry head.

"Xiao Niu, Xiao Niu, thanks to you for going out on business with the boss recently, just wait and see, I'll give you something good to eat in the next couple of days."