Transmigrated as a Stepmother: Time to Bring the Family to Prosper!-Chapter 368: Don’t Want to Do This Anymore

The two brothers drove their family’s ox cart, without worrying about the driver rushing them, maintaining a calm attitude, and swiftly removed the Lingzhi and deer that were covered under the oilcloth.

The Lingzhi was the size of two adult palms spread wide, with the largest piece having a diameter of about one foot (33cm). It wasn’t extraordinarily valuable, but it was rare.

Yang Er said, "If the factory recruits next year, you take our Fang’er in, and this cluster of Lingzhi is yours."

Qin Yao smiled, "First tell me how much silver you plan to sell it to me for."

Yang Er thought she was politely refusing, feeling a bit sorry for his niece.

That girl neither wanted to marry nor learn women’s work. She insisted on going into the mountains with them to learn hunting skills, to earn money herself so they wouldn’t have to support her, not rushing to push her out of the family, and even claimed she might be as formidable as Miss Qin.

But she didn’t consider her physique, naturally unsuited to martial arts, better suited for feeding wolves in the mountains.

Moreover, even if she dared to hunt, they wouldn’t dare let a girl go into the mountains alone!

Finally, after much fuss at home, his brother said if she could work at the Liu Family Village stationery factory, they would let her choose for herself, not force her into an early marriage. Only then did the stubborn girl settle down a bit.

Unfortunately, the Liu Family Village stationery factory recruited twice, and she didn’t get in either time. The first time because their house was too far and she was too young, so Manager Yun sent her straight back.

The second time was more pitiful; they wanted someone skilled in women’s work or carpentry, and she had neither.

Now, reluctantly learning a bit of embroidery, she hoped for an opportunity to take on the factory’s shoulder strap making work.

If not for his pity for his niece, Yang Er wouldn’t have rashly brought this up with Qin Yao at this moment.

Seeing that Qin Yao had no intention of agreeing, he helplessly picked up the wild Lingzhi and handed it to Qin Yao, "We’re acquaintances, if you want to collect it yourself it might be easier for you than us, we came across it by luck, if you’d part with four taels of silver, you can take it."

Four taels of silver could buy a medium-sized paddy field, and for the sake of his niece, he was prepared to use this to bribe her to open a back door. Qin Yao was a bit surprised and couldn’t help but re-evaluate Yang Er.

Compared to Yang Da’s tall and sturdy build, Yang Er was a bit thinner, average height, but he was sharp-eyed and quick-eared, a master at setting traps.

His face looked somewhat fierce, not as amiable as Yang Da, but she didn’t expect this fierce-looking man to be so affectionate towards his niece.

Yang Er felt uncomfortable under Qin Yao’s gaze, rubbed his nose, and buried his head to help his brother Yang Da saw off two pairs of deer antlers.

Soon, two long sets of antlers were tied with hemp rope, handed to Qin Yao, Yang Da said, "One pair is bigger, one smaller, we’ll just ask for five taels of silver total."

Originally, they sold the whole deer, but taking the meat off separately didn’t sell as well, so a single set of antlers cost at least three taels.

The price was quite fair, and Qin Yao readily took out ten whole taels of silver, handed it to the two brothers, and packed the antlers and Lingzhi into the net pouch tied to her saddle.

When she looked up, the brothers had already boarded the ox cart, ready to leave.

Qin Yao smiled and said, "I’m not taking advantage of you. When I get back, I’ll mention to Manager Yun to have Yang Fang come over after the new year, start as an apprentice under her, learn the skills well before entering the factory."

Fearing they wouldn’t understand, she added, "Being a lacquer worker is more stable and pays well."

The brothers immediately turned back to look, their eyes brightened, and Yang Da nodded eagerly, "Sure, sure, sure, there’s nothing much at home right now, should I have her go tomorrow?"

Qin Yao glanced at the overcast sky and sighed helplessly, "After the new year, I dare not be responsible in this weather, even if you’re willing."

Yang Da agreed, thinking the weather was indeed poor, and he’d worry about his daughter traveling in the dark.

Yang Er, smarter than his brother, thought it through quickly and immediately said, "Miss Qin, I can drive the cart to send Fang’er over and pick her up after work. Is that okay?"

Maybe, he could even take on the job of driver for transporting workers from Lower River Village, earning some carriage fees.

Qin Yao shrugged, "Do as you like, but let me be upfront, if anything happens on the road, neither I nor the factory will be responsible."

The brothers beamed a brilliant smile at her, watching her ride away before excitedly chatting as they headed towards the city.

Qin Yao, carrying the good things she bought, returned to the village, first stopping by the factory to inform Yun Niang about Yang Fang, and Yun Niang readily agreed, "Alright, leave it to me."

Qin Yao wasn’t randomly placing someone in there; it was that their lacquer workers had just let go of two slackers, and there happened to be vacancies.

Improving workforce management was already on Qin Yao’s agenda, and before the plant shutdown for New Year’s Eve, she planned to hold a full meeting, to give a much-needed warning, to encourage where needed, and then set new rules.

Now, with around a hundred people in the factory, when Qin Yao was not around, Liu the carpenter managed the entire factory alone, and it was quite taxing.

Although Qin Yao handled all the complex external affairs and sales, and he only needed to oversee the production efficiency and quality of book boxes and stationery gift boxes, with so many people, various minor issues kept emerging, and just acting as a judge dealing with trivial disputes was already consuming most of his energy.

Initially, Liu the carpenter’s idea was quite simple; he just needed to be a good carpenter and make book boxes.

At the start of the factory’s establishment, he braced through it with sheer passion, thinking things would improve once the factory was set up.

Unexpectedly, though he earned more money, there were more trivial matters.

The most critical issue was that he was illiterate, and even though the factory had set up literacy classes, his age made it hard to learn, increasingly feeling the strain.

Especially in these two months, his family was also building a new home, and with various affairs converging, Liu the carpenter quickly realized that his current abilities were limited, and he couldn’t manage the tasks Qin Yao assigned him effectively.

Just the day before Qin Yao was to leave for the Prefecture, Liu the carpenter suddenly came to find her, saying he didn’t want to continue.

"What do you mean?"

Qin Yao was sorting the belongings she needed to take, Liu Ji was at the Lotus Courtyard, the children were at school, Ah Wang was feeding the livestock and poultry in the back hill, and only she and Liu the carpenter were in the courtyard. The spacious courtyard echoed with only Qin Yao’s question.

Liu the carpenter swallowed nervously, unsure if it was an illusion, but he felt the air in the courtyard thin, making it difficult to breathe.

Taking a deep breath, he looked at Qin Yao emerging from the main house and repeated, "I want to withdraw from the factory, I’m just a carpenter, I really can’t handle the manager’s job."

Liu the carpenter looked apologetic but was resolute in his stance. He felt a bit exhausted and just wanted to hold onto the silver he had and return to his previous life.

Qin Yao’s heart skipped twice, the news was sudden, and she was very shocked, but habitually she quickly calmed herself down and invited Liu the carpenter inside to sit and talk.

The charcoal basin in the main room burned brightly, and once the door was closed, the cold wind outside was completely blocked.

As soon as Liu the carpenter sat down, he began to sweat from his forehead. In the closed space, he viscerally felt the strong pressure emanating from Qin Yao, feeling uncertain and uneasy in his heart.