Flowers in full bloom

Chapter 154: More and More Expenses

"Then what should I do next?" Liang Xiangyi was a little confused.

"Besides the fleet and the Lotus Garden, do you have any other assets? Do you have any other income? Did you sell all your mother's dowry?"

"Not really. I have a shop in Gusu City, a two-story house, and a one hundred-acre farm in the countryside, but my mother said that I can't sell them. I rent out the shop, and the annual rent is only one hundred and fifty taels. The house is vacant, and I have a few servants to look after it. As for the farm, I just collect some grain every year, and the income is not that much." Liang Xiangyi counted the farms and shops he owned one by one.

Hualei nodded. "Then can you borrow at least five thousand taels of silver? The kind without interest?"

Liang Xiangyi shook his head. "Although my uncle's family might be willing to lend me money if I ask, but as you said, we are going to cancel the engagement, so it's not appropriate to lend me so much money. Forget about other relatives, they can't lend me so much money.

"Then there is only one way left, selling the Lotus Garden or selling the fleet, choose one of the two," said Hua Lei.

"This..." Liang Xiangyi was a little hesitant.

"This is just my suggestion. You should think about it yourself. Or discuss it with your mother. Consider several things together." Hua Lei gave her suggestion and said no more. After all, you have to live your own life, and no one else can take care of it.

"Okay, I'll think about it carefully when I get back. Sister Hua, I'm glad to see you again today. Let's keep in touch in the future. In this way, I'll have friends in Shangjing City in the future." Liang Xiangyi stretched out her hand, and Hua Lei gently held her hand. "I'm also glad to see you again today. I'll have good friends in Shangjing City in the future."

"Yeah," the two smiled at each other.

Later, Liang Xiangyi came to Hualei many times again. Every time he came, the two of them would chat for most of the day about everything under the sun.

After nearly a month, Liang Xiangyi sent a message saying that he had sold Lotus Garden. In the following six months, more news came that he had bought a two-story house in Xicheng District, a 100-acre farm, and a shop in Nancheng District. He also moved his mother and younger brothers and sisters who were staying at his uncle's house to the newly purchased house in Xicheng District.

He listened to Hua Lei's advice and did not confront the Liang family directly. He used the remaining silver to buy silk, brocade, defective products, semi-finished products, and the most common linen and cotton cloth in Jiangnan Prefecture. He used his own ship to transport them to Shangjing City and sold them to the common people in Nancheng District in his own shop. Business was surprisingly good.

He also sent a large amount of fabrics to Hualei, including silk brocade fabrics suitable for Hualei and her brother, and ordinary defective cotton and linen fabrics, so that Hualei could use them for the farmers in the village. Hualei offered money, but Liang Xiangyi refused to take it. This saved Hualei a lot of money.

In addition to transporting fabrics from various counties in Jiangnan Prefecture, their own fleet also bought some fresh items from Shangjing City on the way back and sold them in various counties under Jiangnan Prefecture. If there were customers who wanted the fleet to carry people or things, the fleet would also take the orders.

The fleet's income was now enough to cover the crew's monthly wages and the maintenance of the ships, so Liang Xiangyi didn't need to invest any more money. She also told Hualei that if she needed to use a ship for transportation in the future, she could ask her for a discount.

Hua Lei smiled and thought that she might really need a boat in the future, so she made a note of this matter.

The days passed smoothly. A few days later, Hualei came back from Qingyun Lane and brought back a locked wooden box.

After returning from the girls' school in the morning, I had lunch at Qihuayuan and took a short rest. Then I took the locked wooden box to Songhetang.

In Songhe Hall, Madam Pei had already woken up from her nap. Only Nanny Chen was by her side. She was serving her a bowl of bird's nest. When she saw Hualei coming, she asked Nanny Chen to serve Hualei a bowl as well. Hualei didn't hesitate. After thanking her, she took the bird's nest and drank it slowly.

Old Madam Pei looked at the wooden box next to Hua Lei. It was square, one foot square, and locked. She was a little curious and asked jokingly.

"Lei'er, what do you have in here? Silver ingots? Silver notes? Did you earn too much? Are you worried about leaving it in Qingyun Lane? Do you want to leave it with me? You have to pay the deposit fee."

Hua Lei put down the empty bowl in her hand, glanced at Old Madam Pei, and said coquettishly, "Grandma Pei is teasing me again. If I really had so many banknotes, I would wake up laughing in my dreams. I will definitely give them to Grandma Pei to keep for me. I have no problem paying you 10% of the storage fee."

As he said that, he took out a key from his sleeve pocket, inserted it into the lock, and opened the lid. Mrs. Pei looked inside and saw two cloth bags with their mouths tied tightly. Hua Lei opened the cloth bags and placed them in front of Mrs. Pei. In one cloth bag was a square piece of rice cake about half an inch long, and in the other cloth bag was a rectangular piece of rice cake about an inch long and half an inch wide.

"This is rice cake, and it's made differently? Does it taste different? Is it for me?" As he said that, he picked up a piece of rice cake from the cloth bag and prepared to put it into his mouth.

"Hey, this is not edible, Grandma Pei, when will you be like Rong Jue, thinking only about eating it." Hua Lei took the rice cake from Grandma Pei's hand and put it back into the cloth bag.

"You bad girl, you're laughing at me too." Old Madam Pei pretended to flick Hua Lei's head.

"Grandmother Pei, this is the yeast for making rice wine. Do you remember that before the provincial examination this spring, my farm launched the Tanhua wine and the Zhuangyuan wine? They were made with this yeast.

In early June, when I bought the swamp land of Yuanying Manor, I accidentally got a lot of Polygonum aviculare, the raw material for making wine yeast, from the manor. So I made this wine yeast while the temperature was right.

I know the Marquis' Mansion is not short of money, but they won't mind having too much silver, right? So I want to ask Grandmother Pei if the Marquis' Mansion should open a winery to brew rice wine. The Marquis' Mansion has a lot of land, so it shouldn't be difficult to get approval from the government.

Besides, making this rice wine is not difficult. Just keep it clean and control the temperature. If Grandmother Pei is interested, Aunt Fu and I both know how to make it. We can teach the people in the Marquis' Mansion when the time comes."

Old Madam Pei's face straightened, she sat up straight and glanced at Nanny Chen. Nanny Chen went out quietly, sent the maids at the door to the yard, closed the door, and stood behind Old Madam Pei.

"Lei'er, do you know what you are saying? Brewing wine is a highly profitable business. How many aristocratic families want to do this? However, because they don't understand the craft of brewing wine, let alone making the yeast, very few people can do this. You can do this? And you want the Marquis' Mansion to follow you to do it?" There was a hint of shock on Old Madam Pei's face.