Chapter 269: They Really Dare to Think Big

Chapter 269: Chapter 269: They Really Dare to Think Big

Ji Huan named her spice workshop Baiwei Square, a name she’d agonized over for quite some time.

She had originally come up with a series of backups, like "Spring Bliss," "Spring Dawn," "Scent Sense," and "Tasteful." For someone terrible at naming things, this was the best she could do after racking her brain.

In the end, though, she didn’t use any of them, settling on "Baiwei" instead.

When she asked the Hu Family for their opinion, they unanimously chose it, feeling it sounded impressive—like it had a lot to offer.

Ji Huan’s reaction at the time was a mental ellipsis. ’It’s a good thing I didn’t suggest Thousand Flavor Workshop or Ten Thousand Flavor Workshop,’ she thought.

As for why she didn’t reuse the name of her family’s spice plantation from her past life, it was partly because her maternal grandparents hadn’t been very creative with names, but also because of the surname involved.

Old Wu Plantation? Old Wu Spice Workshop?

If she actually dared to use those names, the villagers would invent a thousand and one wild stories about her.

Or she could modify it to Old Ji Plantation? Or Old Ji Spice Workshop?

Those didn’t sound too bad, but she was worried the main Ji Family would try to freeload off her success.

So in the end, she settled on Baiwei Square. It was simple, memorable, and had a nice ring to it. It was, at the very least, the most meaningful name she had come up with so far.

After settling things with Ji Xuelan and Ji Mingfang, Ji Huan took two more contracts over to the Hu Family.

She hadn’t initially thought to have Widow Xie sign one, but she changed her mind after her conversation with the siblings.

Since she had announced that every employee would have to sign, Widow Xie naturally had to be included. If you’re going to establish a rule, you have to apply it completely.

Ji Huan had already explained the employment contract to Widow Xie back when she was first drafting it, so Widow Xie pressed her thumbprint on it without asking a single question.

After she was done, Widow Xie suddenly thought of something.

"I get that this is mainly to scare people. After all, common folk are afraid of getting the authorities involved. But what if someone who isn’t afraid of trouble sneaks into the workshop to steal the secret recipes? Or what if someone gets swayed into being a mole? If we take this to the government office and try to sue them, will they even recognize it?"

The government office naturally wouldn’t.

This so-called employment contract Ji Huan had created had no legal standing in the current era.

But ancient times had their own rules. A document in black and white, sealed with a thumbprint, could still prevent a lot of unnecessary trouble if a dispute ever arose.

Ji Huan explained her reasoning.

"...That’s why I decided to make signing the employment contract a mandatory rule. Everyone has to sign it, with no room for negotiation. If I make a single exception, the contract becomes just a piece of waste paper... Aunt Xie, I hope you don’t think I’m being too cold."

"Don’t be ridiculous!" Widow Xie glared at her. "Your own cousins signed it. Why would it seem cold for me to sign it too? I may be illiterate, but I know how to follow rules. If you have rules, we’ll follow them. It sets an example for anyone who comes after."

She held the contract, carefully turning it over in her hands.

"You know, in the past when you worked for someone, you came when they told you to come and left when they told you to go. It was all up to the workshop owner. There was none of this formality. Pressing my thumbprint on this makes it feel like we’ve sealed some huge business deal. It makes me feel more secure."

Hu Ximei, Hu Dacheng, and the others also gathered around, curious to see what was happening.

Only after Widow Xie put the contract away did Ji Huan bring up the matter of wages, which she had already written into the document but deliberately saved for last.

Widow Xie’s reaction was just as expected: she was utterly against it.

"Twenty cents per person, per day? No! Absolutely not! If the villagers find out, your courtyard will be so packed with people it’ll collapse, believe me!"

Ji Huan had her take a seat.

"Don’t get worked up, Aunt Xie. I’m not a fool. How could I possibly pay everyone twenty cents? For now, and for the foreseeable future, Baiwei Square will only have three employees: you and my two cousins. You’re the ones starting this business with me, sharing in all the hardship and exhaustion. My own abilities are limited, so I have to rely on you. Compared to the work you’ll be doing, twenty cents is actually on the low side, but it’s all I can offer at the moment."

"Then don’t pay us yet! Wait until we’ve harvested and processed the spices. Don’t you still have to mix those strange and wonderful recipes of yours? Once we’ve made some money, we can talk about wages. Who’s going to argue with you about it then?" Aunt Xie suggested.

"I don’t need to stand on ceremony with you, of course, but my cousins... You know their family’s situation. How could I ask them to come work for me for free?"

Aunt Xie thought about it and agreed. "Then just pay the two of them for now," she said. "You don’t need to pay me. My family still owes..."

"Let’s keep things separate," Ji Huan cut her off. "I just said I’m treating everyone equally, regardless of our relationship. Aunt Xie, you can’t be the one to break my rule on the very first day."

"You’ve got an answer for everything."

All Aunt Xie could do was glare, not knowing what else to say.

Ji Huan smiled and stood up. "Well, I’ll be heading back then. Dabao is waiting for me at home. Remember to be on time for work tomorrow, Aunt Xie."

As she left the Hu Family’s home, she heard a group of women chatting in a nearby alley. Her ears automatically picked up on certain words, and she paused for a moment to listen.

"So when is that Scholar exam finally over? How come we haven’t seen Ji the Fourth come back yet? I wonder if he passed."

"I’d say it’s practically a sure thing. Haven’t you seen how Aunt Kang has been walking around with a swagger lately, grinning from ear to ear? That smug look on her face!"

"Oh, if Ji the Fourth really passes and becomes a Scholar, Aunt Kang is going to be ecstatic!"

"Tell me about it. She’s already spreading the word that as soon as the results are out, she’s finding a wife for her fourth son. The minimum requirement is another Scholar’s daughter. But if it’s a young lady from a wealthy family with a large dowry, she said she’s willing to negotiate..."

The listeners were all stunned. "She’s certainly aiming high!"

Someone scoffed, "A few years back, they had a marriage arrangement with a family from West Village all but settled. But then Ji the Fourth passed the child student exam, and Ji Qingshan and Aunt Kang went back on their word. They’ve been dragging their feet for years, refusing to let their precious son get married. And for what? To find a better match and climb the social ladder, of course!"

But another sounded envious. "If you ask me, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to find a better match. A child student is impressive, but it’s still a bit of an awkward position—not quite at the top. It was the right call not to get him married then. But a Scholar is a different story. All the good girls for miles around will be his for the picking. He probably won’t even give them a second look. He’ll need a young lady from the city to be worthy of him!"

"Whoa! You don’t think they’re really trying to marry him off to some rich heiress, do you?"

"That just shows how little you know! Let me tell you how valuable a Scholar is. If Ji the Fourth passes, forget about just marrying a rich young lady—there are tons of other benefits!"

"Wow! Looks like the main Ji Family is really about to hit the big time!"

"You bet. Haven’t you noticed more and more people visiting their house lately? They’re all trying to suck up to them!"

"You’ve got some nerve talking about other people. I saw your husband just yesterday, carrying a basket of eggs right through the Ji Family’s front gate..."

"Th-that... we borrowed those from the Ji Family a while ago! We were just paying them back! We’re not trying to suck up..."

"Sure, sure. Whatever you say."

"You...!"

"Hey, hey! Nothing’s even happened yet and you two are already at each other’s throats. Calm down. My father-in-law said the results should be out in the next few days. We’ll see then whether the Ji Family strikes gold or silver."

"Don’t forget, he’s not the only one from our village taking the Scholar exam. There’s also Song Jing..."