Travel to the mountains and make a fortune in silence

"I've eaten mulberry fruit before; it's very sweet, but my mother won't let me eat too much," Qin Miaomiao said with some regret.

"It's true that you shouldn't eat too much of this fruit, but it can be used to make wine, dried fruit that can be steeped in water, or made into jam."

Wang Qing'er patiently explained to Qin Miaomiao, but she didn't mention that it could also be added to soap.

"Oh? It has so many uses? Then all those mulberries in our mulberry grove are going to waste, what a pity." Qin Miaomiao slapped her forehead and said it was a pity, feeling more and more like she had met Wang Qing'er too late.

"I'll go back and write down the recipe for mulberries for you, so we won't waste them starting next year."

"How could I accept this? Can I really have these recipes? Don't you need these things to make money?" Qin Miaomiao felt that if someone wanted to use these recipes for business, then she couldn't accept them.

“I don’t rely on these. You can take them. If I ever go into the pastry business in the future, I will definitely ask you and Yun Jing to open a shop together. After you take these recipes, give them to someone you trust and don’t tell anyone else.”

The idea of ​​opening a pastry shop only came to me recently, mainly because I discovered that white sugar, rock sugar, milk, and all kinds of dried fruit were sold in the county town.

Although white sugar and rock sugar were ridiculously expensive, costing 500 coins per pound, they were simply unaffordable for ordinary people.

Anyway, her business is all about the high-end market, making money off the wealthy, and she doesn't care about the cost.

"You want to cooperate with me and Yun Jing? Why? You can open a shop on your own." This news was too sudden, and Qin Miaomiao was somewhat incredulous, looking at her with a puzzled expression.

“We’re best friends who hit it off immediately. Let’s make money together, right? You guys will also contribute. You’ll be in charge of the shop and its management, and I’ll be in charge of making the pastries. How about we divide the work reasonably and work together?”

Wang Qing'er chose to cooperate with the two women mainly because she trusted their character.

Secondly, it's good to have a powerful backer. Currently, the Mu family lacks the power to resist certain external factors, so she can only seek a powerful patron.

Her plan for the pastry shop was not only to open in the county town, but also to open in the capital, and even in various prefectures and counties. This would require relying on the influence of the Shang and Yun families.

"I need to think about it carefully; I can't just take such a big advantage of you for nothing."

"Qing'er, our Mu family doesn't actually have many businesses. My father-in-law is an honest official. If we can really open a pastry shop together, Mu will have an extra source of income, and the family won't have to live frugally anymore. We really have to thank you."

Qin Miaomiao didn't want to take such a big advantage, but considering the situation of the Mu family and her own family, they really needed a business that could earn money to survive, so she was still tempted.

Although the Qin family owned a silkworm farm, they lacked the technology to weave and dye fabrics, so they could only sell silkworm cocoons to the Yun family. They did own several farms, but farming depended entirely on the weather, and they didn't make much profit in bad years.

The Mu family was in an even worse situation. Mu Zhicheng's father and mother were both military officers and did not know how to run a business.

Therefore, although Mu Jiaguang possessed immense power and a glamorous exterior, he was actually penniless inside.

They lived frugally every month, owning only three teahouses and two silk shops, and only survived thanks to the Yun family's supply.

A teahouse only makes two or three hundred taels of silver a month, and a silk shop makes about the same.

A general's mansion as large as this couldn't possibly support a few hundred taels of silver a month. It was only after Qin Miaomiao married into the family that she brought two farms with her, which helped supplement the household income.

Wang Qing'er was shocked when she heard the news. She never imagined that the Mu family was in such a state. She had thought that the Mu and Qin families were as wealthy and powerful as the Yun and Shang families.

Unexpectedly? She was secretly plotting how to help the Mu and Qin families, after all, they were powerful and influential figures, a formidable backer.

After some thought, and considering the businesses of the Mu and Qin families, she immediately came up with a way to help them, and said to Qin Miaomiao:

"Miaomiao, the Mu family's teahouse business and your Qin family's farm are actually things we could work together on."

"Cooperation? How do we cooperate?" Qin Miaomiao asked, puzzled.

"Miaomiao, let me ask you, how is the Mu family's teahouse business currently operating?"

"Yes, it's mainly about drinking tea, eating pastries, and watching opera."

“That solves it. I have tea leaves, I know how to make pastries, and I can also sell mulberry jam at the teahouse.”

Wang Qing'er originally wanted to say that she could even write storybooks, but after thinking about it, she decided against it, knowing that she should know how to hide her talents.

They already knew about the tea and pastries; they couldn't hide it anymore.

"Qing'er, how do you want to cooperate?" Qin Miaomiao's eyes lit up when she heard this. If Qing'er's tea leaves and pastries were sold in teahouses, wouldn't the Mu family's teahouse be booming? These things were unique in the entire capital.

After considering for a moment, Wang Qing'er said, "I can sell the tea directly to you. Currently, my family can produce about ten catties of dried tea per month. You can sell it in limited quantities at the three tea shops. Next year, there will be more tea, so you can sell more."

"As for pastries, we can divide them up. I'll just provide the recipes, and I won't worry about anything else, just like the dishes at Shang Congjian's restaurant. What do you think? You don't need to rush to answer me. Go back and discuss it with your husband."

Wang Qing'er explained her thoughts in detail and asked Qin Miaomiao for her opinion.

“I agree, no need to discuss it, I can make the decision.” Less than a month after Qin Miaomiao married into the Mu family, Old Madam Mu handed over the management of the household and several shops to her daughter-in-law.

Madam Mu was really not good at managing a household or running a shop, and had long wanted to get rid of this hot potato. So as soon as her daughter-in-law entered the house, she handed over all the big and small affairs of the house to her daughter-in-law and went off to enjoy her leisure.

After Qin Miaomiao became the housekeeper, she discovered that the Mu family was in dire financial straits. In the end, she had to contribute her own dowry to barely maintain the household's expenses.

After arriving in the county town, they continued to live in the government office. They couldn't afford to buy a small courtyard, but they did manage to buy a small farmhouse.

The eighty mu of land was mainly used to grow grains and vegetables for the consumption of the household.

"In that case, I will send the tea over when I go back this time and sell it to you at the price of tea in the capital. As for the pastries, we will have to wait a while. I need to think about the recipe carefully. I can give you the recipe for the jam first, and you can sell it for now."

"Qing'er, your tea must be priced higher than other teas in the capital. The most expensive tea in the capital right now costs our teahouse eighty taels of silver per catty. How about I buy yours for one hundred taels per catty?"

Qin Miaomiao didn't want Wang Qing'er to suffer too much of a loss. To be honest, she didn't know what price Wang Qing'er's tea could actually fetch, so she added twenty taels of silver per pound.