She led the whole village to prosperity by raising koi fish.

Chapter 45 Acquiring Osmanthus

With the proprietress's arrangement in mind, Su Yuning bid farewell to her newlywed husband and hurriedly returned to her village alone. This time, she decided to teach the villagers how to make soap and lead them all to prosperity.

After returning home, Su Yuning shared her thoughts, but the eldest son and his wife quickly tried to stop her.

“We support you in making money by making soap, but it’s not right for you to teach the villagers how. If they learn it and find other jobs, there’ll be nothing you can do.”

Su Yuning replied, "But making soap is a huge project. Not only are there many steps involved, but it also requires a lot of materials. Just the osmanthus flowers alone would require several hundred kilograms."

"Several hundred kilograms of osmanthus flowers? How much soap are you planning to produce?" the eldest son's wife asked in surprise.

“If we calculate it at thirty bars of soap per month, that’s three hundred bars a year. And osmanthus only blooms in autumn, with a flowering period of at most one month. Shouldn’t I stock up on more osmanthus?” Su Yuning counted on her fingers for her.

At this point, the eldest daughter-in-law suggested, "Instead of teaching the villagers how to make soap, why don't we let them go up the mountain to collect osmanthus flowers? You can charge them by weight, three coins a pound for fresh ones and five coins a pound for dried ones. By the time autumn is over, they should be able to collect at least several dozen pounds."

"Sister-in-law's idea is the best! Let's do it this way!" Su Yuning readily nodded in agreement.

At this moment, the eldest son of the Su family retorted untimely, "Didn't the village chief forbid us from going up the mountain to collect materials? What if we get criticized?"

“We can go to other mountains to collect them. Besides, there’s strength in numbers. We’ll go up the mountain together and we won’t be afraid of wolves or wild animals.” Su Yuning retorted directly, “Big brother shouldn’t be worried about me, but about yourself. When will you be able to work?”

"This..." The eldest son of the Su family was speechless after being rebuked.

Afterwards, Su Yuning gathered the villagers together and announced the purchase of osmanthus flowers. Although the village chief disagreed with everyone going up the mountain, the villagers suggested going to other mountains to collect them, so he had no choice but to turn a blind eye.

Su Yuning wasn't idle either. While the villagers were collecting osmanthus flowers, she went to the surrounding markets to buy straw. However, the straw was only available at the stalls selling pork and fish, and they simply refused to sell it to her. The straw was used to tie up food.

"Uncle, where did you buy your straw? Can you tell me? I really need this material," Su Yuning asked earnestly.

The fishmonger chuckled and replied, "I brought all this straw from my hometown; I didn't buy it. If you need straw, young lady, I suggest you go to the rice paddies in the south. People there basically just pile up the straw by the roadside; it's not much of a use except for burning for cooking. Just pick it up if you need it; no one will haggle over such cheap straw."

Su Yuning quickly thanked him, "Okay, thank you, Uncle. I'll go to the South when I have the chance."

"You're welcome. Would you like a fresh carp?" the hospitable uncle asked.

Su Yuning hesitated for a moment, "Uncle, how about you give me a crucian carp instead? I'll take it back and make soup for my sister-in-law."

The uncle smiled and nodded, then quickly tied the fish up for her, weighed it, and replied...

"Two coins per pound, but this fish weighs half a pound, so I'll charge you one coin."

Su Yuning readily handed over the copper coin, then took the fish. At that moment, she suddenly remembered that she needed seashells to make soap, so she mentioned it casually.

"Uncle, do you sell seashells here?"

The fishmonger shook his head. "I only sell fish; I've never sold shellfish."

Su Yuning then asked, "Do you know where I can find seashells? I'd like to collect some to take home."

The fishmonger kindly replied, "If you head southeast from our town, you can reach the Gold Coast in an hour. The beaches there have all kinds of seashells. Whether you use them to make wind chimes or grind them into powder to feed poultry, they are all good choices."

Su Yuning responded gratefully, "Thank you for your guidance, Uncle!"

The vendor smiled and waved his hand, replying, "You're welcome! Come again next time!"

"Okay!" Su Yuning replied readily, then continued strolling around town with the fish in her arms.

Afterwards, Su Yuning went to the pork stall and gently asked, "Boss, do you have pork fat? How much is it?"

The butcher replied, "Yes, we can press oil from this. It's one coin per pound. How much do you need?"

Su Yuning replied, "If I buy 20 jin of pork fat every month, can you give me a discount?"

The butcher was both amused and exasperated. "This is already a great deal. But if you come to buy from us often, I'll give you some pig lungs, pig stomach, and pig bones for free."

Su Yuning asked another question,

"Boss, could you send me pig's blood and pigskin, or something like that?"

The butcher readily nodded, "Sure! Would you like to buy some pork?"

Su Yuning nodded, "Let's start with two catties of pork belly and a pair of pig's trotters. As for pork fat, we'll buy that later."

The butcher deftly sliced ​​a piece of pork, weighed it, then skillfully tied it with straw and handed it to Su Yuning. Next, he took a pair of pig's trotters from his basket and asked with a smile, "..."

"Do you need me to chop off the pig's trotters?"

Su Yuning waved her hand and declined, "Thank you, boss, but no need."

Then, the shopkeeper found some straw, tied up a pair of pig trotters, and handed them to Su Yuning, saying in a serious tone,

"It's thirty coins in total, but I'll take twenty-eight from you."

Su Yuning hurriedly took out her purse to pay, then looked awkwardly at the groceries she had bought, unsure how to take them home, especially since she had also bought fish.

The butcher noticed her thoughts and offered her a basket.

"Here's a basket. Put the ingredients in the basket and it will be easier to carry."

"This...isn't this inappropriate?" Su Yuning replied with a troubled expression.

"What do you mean by 'suitable' or 'unsuitable'? Just bring the basket next time you come to buy pork fat," the owner replied generously, and even gave her a few pieces of pork skin and pork bones.

"Okay, thank you, boss." Su Yuning replied with a smile, then put the ingredients into the basket one by one, and carried the basket home.

In the city, Ye Beichen wanted to manage his business peacefully, but several letters came from Mobei one after another, all asking him to return to work.

His guards asked him, "Your Highness, what are your plans next?"

Ye Beichen frowned and replied in an unhappy tone, "What else can we do? Go back!"

"But... your shops are all here. If you leave, who will manage the business?" the guard asked worriedly.

Ye Beichen considered several candidates: Su Muyang, who already had his own shop; Nangong Xue'er, who was recuperating; Su Yuning, who had returned to her hometown to make handmade soap; and Zhao Shouyi, his rival in love, whom he absolutely could not help take over Ni Chang Ge.

Suddenly, Ye Beichen thought of the man before him. He had followed him through countless travels over the years, always loyal and devoted. So he patted the guard on the shoulder and gave a reassuring reply.

"After I return to the northern desert, you will be in charge of managing the business of the Rainbow Pavilion. Do your job well, I believe you can do it."

The guard replied confidently, "Don't worry, Your Highness, I will certainly not let you down. I am willing to go through fire and water for Your Highness."

"It's not that exaggerated. As long as we get the goods in time and replenish them in time, it will be fine," Ye Beichen replied gently. "As for new styles of clothing, I will give you the blueprints from time to time. You just need to arrange for people to make them according to the blueprints."

"Understood!" the guard replied affirmatively.

Villagers from Xinghua Village, Lihua Village, and Taohua Village have all started going up the mountain to pick osmanthus flowers. After all, they can earn several coins per pound, enough to buy enough rice, flour, and vegetables for their families.

When Su Yuning saw the osmanthus flowers the villagers had brought, she was instantly dumbfounded. There were actually several kinds of osmanthus, including golden osmanthus, silver osmanthus, red osmanthus, and ever-blooming osmanthus. If she didn't accept them, the villagers would be very disappointed; if she did accept them, some of the osmanthus flowers, although fragrant, were really not pretty.

Just as she was hesitating, the villagers began to urge her, "Miss Su, hurry up and collect the goods! We're waiting to get the money to go back and buy grain."

"Alright, I'll accept all the osmanthus flowers this time. In the future, please try to collect golden osmanthus and red osmanthus. I won't accept other varieties of osmanthus." Su Yuning replied earnestly.

"Okay," the villagers replied in unison.

That day, Su Yuning harvested a total of thirty catties of osmanthus flowers, but they were all fresh. She estimated that after drying them, she would be lucky to get ten catties of osmanthus flowers.

Seeing that Su Yuning was unhappy despite buying osmanthus flowers, her sister-in-law asked her, "What's wrong, little sister? Why do you look like a wilted eggplant?"

Su Yuning told the truth, "Half of the osmanthus flowers we received this time were substandard. The color was not nice, but the taste was okay."

My sister-in-law smiled and replied, "Then you can use it to make osmanthus honey. I'll make it and mix it with water for you. It's fragrant and sweet, and it's also good for your health."

“But I don’t know how to make osmanthus honey,” Su Yuning said frankly.

"You forgot? Your sister-in-law is a dessert chef. I'll make you some osmanthus honey dessert later," Yang Yuyan replied with a smile.

"Okay then, thank you, sister-in-law."

"Don't mention it, we're family. Besides, you bought me pig's trotters and crucian carp, I don't know how to thank you enough. Having such a thoughtful younger sister is my blessing as your sister-in-law," Yang Yuyan replied gently.

"You flatter me, sister-in-law." Su Yuning smiled and then asked, "I'm leaving for another city tomorrow. Would you like to come with me?"

"Why go to another place?" Yang Yuyan asked, puzzled.

“I’m going to collect seashells and straw to make soap,” Su Yuning replied.

"Do you really have to go outside to collect seashells and straw? Can't you find substitutes here in the mountains? I think you're just thinking about going out to play all day long; you can't stay home properly at all." The eldest son of the Su family had just returned from outside and retorted in an unhappy tone.

At this moment, Su Yuning's face darkened, and she looked like she was about to cry. She didn't know what was wrong with her older brother; he would scold her every now and then.

At this moment, the tactful sister-in-law smiled and replied, "Little sister, are you going to take your brother and me on a trip?"

Su Yuning nodded quickly and said yes.

Yang Yuyan and the eldest son of the Su family exchanged a smile and agreed to go on the long trip with her.

"By the way, what will happen to Xiaobao if all of us go out?" the eldest son of the Su family asked worriedly.

"Let Mother help take care of them!" Su Yuning and Yang Yuyan said in unison.

The eldest son of the Su family nodded in agreement, "That's good too. It will save the child from crying and fussing all the way, and it's windy outside. It wouldn't be good if he caught a cold."

In the camp in the northern desert, Ye Beichen and his father were talking face to face, and neither of them was in a good mood.

"You brat, are you being treated unfairly by coming back to learn how to do things?"

Ye Beichen curled his lips. "Yeah. Doesn't Father know I'm running my own clothing business?"

"I know, but that's not a long-term solution. Father is getting old, and he'll have less and less time to manage the northern frontier. That's why we need you here."

"Then Father could choose someone else as his successor, why does it have to be me?" Ye Beichen replied with a dissatisfied expression.

"Because of this, I am the father and you are the son. It is only natural for you to take over the Northern Desert!" The Northern Desert Lord was clearly enraged, but Ye Beichen didn't care about his feelings at all.

“My wife is still in the Song Dynasty, and my shop is there too. What’s the point of me coming back alone? I might as well stay there and settle down.”

"You! You're unreasonable!" The father was so angry his face turned red, and he wanted to slap him twice.

"No matter what, you're back now. Starting tomorrow, you'll be in charge of all my affairs," the Northern Desert Lord said solemnly.

"Then what will you do?" Ye Beichen retorted defiantly.

"I'll teach you how to be a person and how to do things! Also, I'm going to go out for a trip and find a wife to settle down with," the Northern Desert Lord replied.

"Good heavens, how old are you? Still thinking about getting married? You seem to enjoy being bossed around, don't you?" Ye Beichen directly ridiculed his father. "If my mother knew you were like this, would she be happy?"

"This..." The Lord of the Northern Desert was speechless after being rebuked.

"In two years, Su Yuning and I will have a child. Shouldn't you help take care of the child? Or are you going to get married and have children, and then have Su Yuning and me take care of the stepmother you found?" Ye Beichen asked with a frown.

"So, according to you, I can't have my own happy life?" the Northern Desert Lord asked, looking aggrieved.

"There's no need for that. You have plenty to eat and drink, so you can just help us take care of the kids from now on," Ye Beichen replied.

"What if I disagree with you?" The Northern Desert Lord was still making a futile struggle.

As a result, Ye Beichen immediately poured cold water on his enthusiasm.

"If you dare bring back an old woman, Su Yuning and I will simply stop supporting you in your old age."

"Uh, that's not a good idea. I'll listen to you, though." The Northern Desert Lord replied obediently. "You two should try harder and let me hold my grandson soon."

"Oh, I see," Ye Beichen replied.