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Chapter 142: A Letter from the Capital
Chapter 142: A Letter from the Capital
After all the fish were caught and pickled, it was already 11 p.m.
Zhou Chenglei stepped into the room after a refreshing shower, and Jiang Xia was busy keeping accounts.
She meticulously recorded the financial details of this batch of fish: the cost of hiring people to catch the fish, the time spent, the expense of buying salt for pickling, and the overall monetary and time costs.
She even used a new notebook to record the fish-cleaning speed of each person she hired that night.
Zhou Chenglei approached her, his body exuding a crisp, icy aura. He glanced at her, then picked her up and placed her on his lap, embracing her and giving her a kiss.
Jiang Xia leaned comfortably against his sturdy chest, keenly aware of the chill on his skin.
This was a unique sensation from his recent shower with cold well water.
Both spoke simultaneously, "I have an idea."
They laughed at the coincidence.
Zhou Chenglei kissed her neck gently.
Jiang Xia turned to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Their eyes met, both filled with laughter.
Jiang Xia's eyes sparkled as she smiled, her gaze softening as she looked at him. The curve of her lips as she smiled was exquisite, and her entire face was breathtakingly beautiful.
Zhou Chenglei couldn't resist giving her a light peck on the lips, their foreheads touching, noses almost brushing, "You go first."
"I want to purchase fresh squid, eel, small yellow croakers, various small fish, and different types of dried fish from the villagers in the long term..."
In a couple of days, it would be September, and in a few more months, it would be the New Year. Jiang Xia wanted to buy some squid, eel, small yellow croakers, and various small fish to make various snacks. She planned to test the market and believed that by the end of the year, they would sell well.
As for the dried fish, she simply wanted to wait until the end of the year when prices would rise, and then sell them at a profit.
Every fishing household would dry some fish, but not in large quantities, and most of them were small fish.
She could also buy small fish, and by collecting them from different households and categorizing them, they would no longer be just small fish.
Jiang Xia believed that if she spread the word that her family was buying dried fish, everyone would start drying them.
Usually, villagers didn't dry fish because selling them in the city was troublesome, but if there was a buyer, she believed everyone would dry some, as dried fish were more profitable.
Most importantly, autumn was approaching, and it was the perfect season for drying fish. It wasn't as troublesome as in summer, and at least, with the cooler weather, there was less worry about the fish going bad.
With the clear autumn weather and sunny days, drying things became much faster.
Jiang Xia shared her thoughts, "What do you think?"
Zhou Chenglei kissed her, "It's a good idea."
"For the snacks, I'll need to buy some ingredients, and it might require a significant initial investment. Are you worried about potential losses?"
"No, there won't be any losses."
"How do you know?"
"Your cooking is delicious, so the snacks you make will be too. Even if there are losses, we can make up for them. Money is something you earn, and it's not like it's gone forever if you lose it. There's nothing to fear."
Jiang Xia was speechless.
His reasoning was so sound that she couldn't find a word to refute it!
Jiang Xia asked again, "What about you? What were you about to say?"
"I want to lease a sea area and try fish farming in cages."
Jiang Xia's eyes lit up instantly, "What kind of fish?"
"In the magazine you translated, there was an article about the successful farming of red snapper in the Island Nation. Plus, I've seen how others farm fish before. So, I want to start with red snapper, also known as Kajiki. We can try multiple species, like red snapper, golden yellow croaker, and grouper. We'll see which one works and focus on that. I think..."
Zhou Chenglei believed that the government would eventually restrict fishing, as the number of fishing boats was increasing, and some fish in the ocean were already dwindling. Take the golden yellow croaker, for example; its population had noticeably declined in the past two years, and its price had risen. Other fish species were also showing a decreasing trend, so he predicted that future seafood consumption would rely mainly on aquaculture.
Even now, Zhou Chenglei is aware that many places have fishermen attempting to farm fish in the sea, and there have been numerous successful cases.
Of course, the fish farmed in the future will undoubtedly be less valuable than wild ones, but the advantage lies in their abundance.
Small numbers can grow into large profits over time, as long as the quantity is sufficient.
Moreover, he wasn't solely focused on fish farming; he wasn't going to give up on fishing at sea. He merely wanted to lease the suitable fishing grounds first, seizing the opportunity. He intended to fish at sea while simultaneously farming fish.
Zhou Chenglei shared his plan to do this with Zhou Chengxin.
He held her in his arms and shared all his thoughts with Jiang Xia.
"What do you think?"
Jiang Xia: "I think it's a great idea, but when leasing the fishing grounds, don't just do it for five years. The lease period can be longer, like twenty or thirty years."
"What about doing it together with Big Brother? Do you have any objections?"
"No, Big Brother is great. Right now, we're taking turns using the fishing boat, so there's no other way. Moreover, when the business expands in the future, having Big Brother help with management will put your mind at ease."
The deeper meaning behind her last sentence was understood by both of them.
Zhou Chenglei knew she would agree; she understood his ambition.
Some things didn't need to be said; she understood, and he felt fortunate that she did!
He kissed her.
His hands didn't stay idle.
Jiang Xia trembled slightly and grasped his wrist, pulling away. "It's too late. You're going out to sea tomorrow."
"I know."
He knew, but he had no intention of stopping.
Didn't she say she wasn't going out to sea tomorrow?
The next day, Zhou Chenglei, Zhou Fu, and Zhou Chengsen still went out to sea at around four in the morning.
Jiang Xia didn't go out to sea. There were so many fish to dry, and she stayed home to help, fearing Zhou Mu would be overwhelmed.
Since she didn't have to go out to sea, she slept until six in the morning. After breakfast, she joined Zhou Mu in drying the fish.
Zhou Ying woke up early and sat on the swing under the grape arbor, reading English. Jiang Xia corrected her pronunciation when she heard her mispronounce a word.
Zhou Ying repeated the word, following Jiang Xia's pronunciation.
After hearing Jiang Xia correct Zhou Ying's pronunciation several times, Li Xiuxian couldn't hold back. She hated people who pretended to know more than they did and misled others. She told her daughter, "That's enough reading. Go and play with Zhou Zhou to find your big brother!"
Delighted, Zhou Ying put down her book and went to play with Zhou Zhou.
The 2000 jin of dried fish filled their own roof and courtyard, and even after using Ta Nainai's roof and courtyard, there was still more. Zhou Mu took some to the new house to dry, finally finishing the task.
After drying the fish, they had lunch. Jiang Xia took the money and tickets, rode her bicycle to town, and bought jars, oil, sesame, and other seasonings. She also needed to purchase fishing nets, fishing lines, wire, and other items to make fish farming cages.
The jars could be delivered, but the other items had to be carried back.
On her way back, her bicycle was loaded with goods. As she passed by the production team, someone called out to her: "Jiang Xia, there's a letter and package for you."
All letters and packages were now delivered to the production team.
Jiang Xia went in and collected her letter and package. The letter was from Zhang Fuyan, and the package was from Jiang Dong, a large box.
Upon returning home, Jiang Xia first opened Jiang Dong's package. Inside were some high school review materials, a letter, and several pounds of wool yarn in off-white, gray, and camel colors.
Why send her wool yarn? She didn't know how to knit sweaters!
But in Jiang Dong's letter, he asked her to knit him a scarf?
She didn't know how to do that either!
She wondered if Zhou Chenglei could knit.
Jiang Xia then read Zhang Fuyan's letter, and her eyes lit up.
Money was coming!
There's one more chapter, around 11:30!
(End of Chapter)
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