Chapter 63 - 63 If You Don't Lead a Team, You Would Work Yourself to Death

63 If You Don’t Lead a Team, You Would Work Yourself to Death

Zhou Yu also nodded. “Your mother is right. How can work not be tiring? Besides, we can earn a lot of money here.”

Then, he said to Zhang Lan, “But our daughter is still young. We can’t tire her out. We have to do more.”

Zhang Lan nodded. “That’s for sure. Previously, both of us were sick, and it was hard on our daughter. As the eldest sister, she supported the entire family. Now that both of us have recovered, I have to pamper her. How can I bear to let her work?”

Zhou Xiaoli covered her face. It wasn’t like she didn’t want to work.

“No, Father, Mother, listen to me. It’s not just a matter of exhaustion.”

“We’ve just discovered how to make sugar with beetroots. When we earn money, I’m afraid it will make people jealous. At that time, we’ll be alone and helpless. I’m afraid they’ll force us to hand over the method to make sugar.”

Both of them were stunned when they heard that.

“You don’t say. Our daughter is still the smartest. I forgot about these powerful connections.” Zhou Yu’s face was filled with pride, but his words were filled with self-blame.

Then, he asked, “So, Missy, what do you think?”

Zhou Xiaoli pursed her lips. “There was once a famous person who said, ‘If you don’t lead a team, you would work yourself to death.'”

Zhou Yu and Zhang Lan looked at each other in confusion. “What famous person said that?”

“My little lamb.”

“Huh?” The two of them were even more confused. “Little lamb? Can sheep talk?”

Zhou Xiaoli laughed. “It’s not important, it’s not important. What’s important is this sentence, ‘Leading a team’. We have to learn how to lead a team.”

Zhou Yu and Zhang Lan remained silent as they listened to Zhou Xiaoli continue.

“Father, who is your best friend in our village?”

Zhou Xiaoli emphasized, “One who is especially good to you, one who is trustworthy.”

Zhou Yu said without hesitation, “Brother Liu must be one.”

Zhou Xiaoli nodded. She could tell that the two of them had gone through life and death together.

Moreover, after interacting with him, she found that Liu Liangcai had a good character.

“Anyone else?”

Zhou Yu thought for a moment. “Also, the village chief has always taken good care of us.”

Zhou Xiaoli nodded. The village chief was an impartial person. It would be great if he could join them. No one in the village would dare to have any ill intentions on them.

Hence, she said, “Then Father, please invite Uncle Liu and the village chief to our house tomorrow night.”

After a simple discussion, they made one and a half kilograms of sugar overnight.

Early next morning, Zhou Xiaoli and Zhang Lan brought the sugar to sell in the county city.

Unexpectedly, just as they were going to the sugar shop to sell sugar, they met the village chief’s wife and Old Madam Ma.

Hence, they found out that the Zhou family was selling sugar. They also found out that the Zhou family had made the sugar from beetroots.

“Sigh, as you know, the Lu family scammed us into buying the vegetables. I thought of making them into food to sell, but I didn’t expect to be able to make sugar. I’m lucky.”

Zhang Lan explained casually to the village chief’s wife.

This was what Zhou Xiaoli had told her family. When someone asked, this would be the reason why they had sugar to sell.

The village chief’s wife and daughter-in-law did not know what sugar was, but they were sincerely happy for the Zhou family. “Good people would be rewarded. If you can make it into sugar and sell it, you won’t have to waste it.”

“Yeah.”

The few of them chatted for a while more. Because the village chief’s wife and Old Madam Ma were on their way to buy cotton, the two of them bade farewell and left.

At this moment, the shopkeeper of the sugar shop walked out.

“Are you looking for me? What can I do for you?”

The shopkeeper sized up the two of them, but his eyes were very calm. He did not look down on them because of their clothes.

This made Zhou Xiaoli have a better impression of him.

He smiled and said, “Shopkeeper, I have a business deal with you. Does your shop accept sugar?”

The shopkeeper raised his eyebrows. He did not expect them to sell sugar.

He couldn’t help but shake his head. “Our sugar has a fixed source. We don’t accept odd sales.”

Zhou Xiaoli was not discouraged. “Shopkeeper, why don’t you take a look at my sugar first?”

Hearing Zhou Xiaoli’s words, the shopkeeper stroked his beard and laughed. “Haha, it’s nothing more than malt candy. The dried fruits and sweets of my Qing Tao Workshop are imported together. They don’t accept odd sales. Miss, you should go to the market on West Street and set up a stall over there.”

Zhou Xiaoli also smiled. “Shopkeeper, I’m not selling malt candy. Have you heard of cane sugar?”

With that, she opened the bag and handed it to the shopkeeper.

When he heard about cane sugar, the shopkeeper was shocked. When he saw that there was indeed a large piece of sugar in the bag, his eyes widened.

“Where did you get this? You have to know that this sugar was invented by Prime Minister Sun’s granddaughter in the capital. The production is very limited and very expensive. Our Qing Tao Workshop has a branch in the capital, and that was the only way we managed to get a few kilograms of it.”

At this point, the shopkeeper of the sugar shop realized that he had lost his composure. He quickly adjusted his emotions and invited Zhou Xiaoli and Zhang Lan into the shop.

After hearing Zhou Xiaoli say that she made these sugar herself, the shopkeeper’s eyes lit up. “Miss, I’m willing to pay 100 taels of silver for the recipe in your hand. What do you think?”

Zhou Xiaoli naturally refused.

“Forgive me for not agreeing to that. I can cooperate with you and provide sugar only to your shop. Shopkeeper, would you consider it?”

“Also, if we develop any new desserts in the future, we will prioritize cooperation with the shopkeeper. How about that?”

The shopkeeper of the sugar shop was very regretful when he saw that Zhou Xiaoli would not sell the recipe.

However, seeing how Zhou Xiaoli had promised to prioritize cooperation with him, he nodded in agreement.

Although he did not think that Zhou Xiaoli would have any new desserts thereafter.

After all, based on their clothes, it is clear that they came from poor families. It was probably just luck that they could make cane sugar.

In the end, the two of them happily signed a cooperation agreement.

Only then did Zhou Xiaoli bid farewell and leave.

After that, they drove the cart back to the village.

The news of how the Zhou family were scammed to buy the beetroots by the Lu family but managed to turn them into treasures and sold them, spread throughout the village.

When the news spread, Zhou Xiaoli was not surprised at all.

Old Madam Ma was the loudspeaker in the village. Whatever she knew was equivalent to the entire village knowing about it.

When they entered the village, many villagers were still discussing it.

“I told you the Zhou family was lucky. Look, the beetroots were originally in the hands of the Lu family but it was trash that no one would want even if they were to throw it away. In the hands of the Zhou family’s eldest son, it became a treasure!”

“Haha, she had wanted to cheat them, but who knew that she had sent them a treasure instead? Sigh, the old woman of the Lu family is probably so angry that her mouth is crooked!”

…

The old woman of the Lu family had naturally heard the news too. At this moment, she was listening to the discussions and sulked.

Zhou Xiaoli didn’t want to care about this, so she drove the cart home.

This afternoon, Zhou Yu went to the village chief’s house and the Liu family to invite them.

At night.

Liu Liangcai was the first to arrive at the Zhou family.

As soon as he entered, he saw the dishes on the table and could not help but say, “Brother Zhou, it’s so late at night. Why did you ask Sister-in-law to prepare so many dishes?”

Zhou Yu smiled and led him into the house.

“Have a seat. You’ll know later.”

After the two of them sat down, the village chief arrived not long after.