Heavenly Blessed Baby: Fleeing Famine, Busy to Prosper!-Chapter 190: You’re Still the Most Clear-Sighted
After dinner, no one in the family mentioned going back to their rooms to rest. Instead, they all looked at Yi Meng.
Wang Daya couldn’t hold back and asked first, "Meng Niang, how much did we make from the stall today? Tell everyone quickly."
Everyone else nodded eagerly in agreement.
They had all been busy the whole day, and while not everyone was out there working, everyone was definitely curious.
This was the third profitable venture the family had, apart from selling vegetables and firewood. It was hard not to be curious!
Yi Meng knew everyone wanted to know, so she didn’t beat around the bush and said directly, "The fish we sell are caught by our own family, so it essentially costs us nothing."
"As for the greens, they’re quite expensive generally, but we just put two leaves in each bowl for color, and they are grown by us, so that cost is also negligible."
"We do have to buy flour, which is expensive, but we only use about one ounce per bowl, plus seasonings, so the cost per bowl is kept at approximately six wen." 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦
"The dumplings cost a bit more, about eight wen, but we sell them for a higher price; one bowl of dumplings goes for twenty wen."
"Today, we sold fifty-four bowls of noodles and thirteen bowls of dumplings, bringing in a total of nine hundred and eight wen. Our profit, the net earnings, is four hundred and eighty wen."
With Yi Meng’s calculations, everyone let out a gasp of surprise.
In just one day, they made four hundred and eighty wen!
Yi Meng gestured for everyone to quiet down and continued, "But then again, sometimes no cost is actually a cost."
"For example, the labor needed to grow vegetables, catch fish, and chop wood, these are all costs. Just because it’s family doing the work, doesn’t mean we disregard it."
Wang Daya immediately objected, "Meng Niang, what are you talking about! It’s all family work; why count that?"
Ai Zhaodi also agreed, "Yes, Fourth Sister, I think what Big Sister said is right. We’re working for our own family, and any money made is also for us to use. Why worry about labor costs?"
Though others didn’t speak, some stayed silent, while others nodded.
Clearly, everyone felt there was nothing wrong with everyone working together for the family.
Yi Meng wasn’t surprised by their thoughts, but she patiently explained, "It’s great that we all put in effort together, but the calculations must still be made."
Just as she planned to continue explaining, Qi Zheng spoke up, "What’s all this noise about? If the Fourth Daughter-in-law wants to count, then count it. For now, your mother and I are still alive, and the family hasn’t split. That’s okay, but what about the future? The family will eventually separate, and when that happens, what will you live on if you don’t figure this out now?"
As soon as the old man said this, all the sons and grandsons were startled and quickly started shouting.
"Father!"
"Grandfather!"
The daughters-in-law were also shocked and called out to him.
Qi Zheng waved his hand, "We know you’re all good, but as the saying goes, even close brothers count their money clearly. I’m saying this today, Fourth Daughter-in-law, you come up with a plan to see how we should calculate these labor costs in the future."
"If we make money, figure out how to divide that money properly. In the future, if our family makes money, half will go to the family pool, held by your mother. The other half will be divided according to the plan the Fourth Daughter-in-law comes up with, with each household receiving their fair share."
After Qi Zheng finished speaking, he gave a signal to his wife.
Mrs. Qi immediately followed up, "That’s settled then. As for the family pool, besides the savings for your father’s and my burial, it will cover household expenses. If the children need money for marriage in the future, and if we’re still alive, we’ll help a bit, but the rest you’ll have to manage yourselves."
With both elders expressing their stance, no one else could say anything against it.
This was exactly the result Yi Meng wanted.
The family got along well before and do so now, but that doesn’t guarantee things will always be this way.
Some matters, especially those involving money, are best kept clear.
After all, the elderly can’t manage the household expenses forever.
Once they’re no longer in charge, that’s when each small family’s conflicts might arise.
"Let me share my thoughts, and you can say if there’s anything wrong, so we can work on it together."
Yi Meng explained the arrangement she had planned ahead of time.
It meant that everyone would receive a wage. For instance, the eldest’s house contributes the most labor, so a straight split of earnings wouldn’t be fair.
As the children grow and with the fifth and sixth families having more kids, there will be more labor, and it’s not good to keep the income constant.
The distribution of wages would be spread among everyone.
All the laborers’ earnings would be split from the remaining half of the income.
After hearing this, everyone agreed there was no issue and praised Yi Meng for her thorough thinking.
So the income distribution was decided this way.
"Let’s not split it daily; I’ll keep track of the daily income and we’ll divide it monthly. This way, you’ll get more money each time and can save it. How does that sound to everyone?"
Yi Meng looked at everyone.
Everyone nodded.
No objections.
After all, they didn’t have much to spend on anyways.
Qi Dafu scratched his head and said, "Let’s not divide the money now. We’ll talk about it after we build the house!"
This suggestion surprised Yi Meng, as she thought everyone would be eager to distribute the money now.
Qi Ercai added, "Yes, we need money to build the house, and since we are living together now, we’ll build it together, so let’s not divide the money yet."
After saying that, Qi Ercai asked the other brothers what they thought.
The remaining four brothers had no objection since the eldest and second brothers both expressed similar views.
Returning to their room, while Qi Quanjin washed his socks, he said to Yi Meng, "Wife, you’re actually doing the most work and coming up with ways to make money. We should let you have a wage; it’s unfair otherwise."
"There’s nothing unfair about it. I’m just helping out now, but once the house is built, there’ll be no need for this much hassle."
Yi Meng laughed, "Besides, we have three sons! Once Liulang, Balang, and Jiulang grow up, they will also earn money. We might even become the most well-off family around!"
"That’s true!"
Qi Quanjin nodded, very much in agreement, "Wife, you always think things through."
