Chapter 142: A Plan That Makes You Want to Turn Around and Leave

Mrs. Cai looked even more surprised. Just a moment ago, she had blurted out a thought without much consideration, yet unexpectedly received support from the family’s most learned eldest brother. This left her somewhat at a loss.

Wen Xiuyi casually picked up a stick and began drawing on the ground.

“Look, all our land is concentrated here. This is a branch of the Pingjiang River. I’ve checked the area in the middle—apart from a few families tending vegetable gardens, the rest is all unused.” As he spoke, Wen Xiuyi continued to draw. In truth, the land was barren because it was near the river, with poor soil unsuitable for crops, which explained why it lay fallow and unwanted. Otherwise, someone would have cultivated it long ago.

However, aside from privately owned land, the uncultivated wasteland belonged to the state. To acquire it, one must follow official procedures.

Several heads leaned in to observe Wen Xiuyi’s drawing. He went on, “This hillside, if you climb over, is our land. It’s close to our village and near the old residence, which is quite convenient.”

Wen Xiuyi looked up at everyone and continued, “If—just if—we want to raise ducks, as my sister-in-law said, we need a pond. Otherwise, where will the ducks swim? Should we drive them into the river? Even if we could, would they come back? And without fencing, where would you collect their eggs? Are you only thinking about the ducks themselves, forgetting that ducks lay eggs?”

Mrs. Luo slapped her thigh, “Right, duck eggs! How could I forget that? Raising so many ducks would mean lots of eggs.” No wonder she felt she had overlooked something important—it was the eggs.

Wen Yao raised her hand, “Duck eggs are good—preserved eggs, salted duck eggs—a whole new income source.”

Everyone looked at her blankly. “What’s a preserved egg? And a salted duck egg?”

Wen Yao quickly waved her hand, “That’s a story for later. First, listen to my father.”

All eyes turned back to Wen Xiuyi.

He continued, “The pond must be dug, and it must be large. I thought about it, and just raising ducks might be a bit wasteful. Father, mother, let’s raise some fish too.”

What he didn’t say was that it would be best to raise pigs and chickens as well. In just a moment, the professor’s mind had already devised a three-dimensional, cyclical farming system.

Seeing the reactions from Old Wen, Mrs. Luo, and the others, Wen Xiuyi worried that if he said it all at once, it might scare them. Being a filial son, he hoped his parents would live long and well.

Old Wen thought perhaps he had woken up the wrong way today or drunk improperly earlier—he must still be drunk. He chuckled, “Ha, you want to raise fish before even starting with the ducks? Why not say you want to raise pigs and chickens too?”

The professor’s eyes lit up—what a father! He hit the mark perfectly.

“Well, it’s not impossible.”

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Old Wen twitched at those words, shooting Wen Xiuyi a fierce glare. “You better shut up.” Those six words made his head ache.

Wen Xiuyi looked puzzled—what had he said?

Now Da Tou, the professor’s devoted son, immediately nestled close to Old Wen and began to coax, “Grandpa, just listen to what Dad has to say. What if it makes sense?”

His grandson’s charm softened Old Wen. “Alright, you speak first.”

“Yao Yao, how much money do we have left?” Wen Yao slapped the 500 taels of silver that Qiu Rongrong had given her today onto the table in front of everyone.

“Five hundred taels.” Now flush with cash, Yao’s confidence was high. This was an advance dividend Qiu Rongrong had given Wen Yao, anticipating that if they wanted to raise ducks, they’d need start-up capital. The dividend would be settled after three months, and this 500 taels deducted accordingly.

This suited Wen Yao perfectly.

The Wen family all gasped—they had never seen so much money, their eyes wide with astonishment.

Money brings confidence. Wen Xiuyi looked at his father and mother. “Father, mother, let’s buy this patch of wasteland, including that hill.”

Old Wen immediately stood up and turned to leave.

His eldest son must have gone mad.

“Sit down.” Mrs. Luo grabbed Old Wen and pulled him back with surprising strength.

Old Wen nearly fell backward.

Mrs. Luo ignored him and asked, “Eldest, continue.”

Bolstered by his mother’s support, Wen Xiuyi spoke with renewed confidence. “It doesn’t have to be huge. We can dig a pond of about two acres, channel water directly from the Pingjiang tributary, and build irrigation ditches here. Then, not only can we raise ducks, but also fish.”

“Uncle, but ducks eat fish—how can you raise both together?” Wen Jin couldn’t help but ask.

“Simple. Separate flows. Ducks in the upper pond, fish in the lower pond, divided by nets. The microbes generated in the water from duck droppings become food for the fish. This way, we can sell ducks, duck eggs, and fish.”

“This hill isn’t small either. We can plant some fruit trees and fence off the hill. The chickens can roam freely in the forest, and their droppings can nourish the fruit trees—a win-win.”

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“The remaining land can’t grow grain, but mother can grow beans or vegetables. Her soybean paste and pickles will definitely be useful.”

Wen Xiuyi rattled off his plan until the room fell quiet. Looking up, he found everyone staring at him with mouths slightly agape, astonished.

After a long silence, Old Wen quietly stood up. “I’ll just go back to bed. Listening to the eldest son too much really gives me a headache.”

Mrs. Luo was also about to leave. She could understand her eldest son’s ideas separately, but together, she wished she didn’t understand at all.

They were only talking about raising ducks, yet somehow it turned into buying land, digging ponds, and raising chickens and fish. She shouldn’t have stopped Old Wen earlier; she should have gone with him.

However, the two younger brothers and their wives looked at Wen Xiuyi excitedly. “Big brother, can all this really work?”

Wen Yao and Wen Jin exchanged a glance. The professor spoke up—how could it not work? This was precisely his expertise.

“Second uncle, second aunt, third uncle, third aunt, just listen to my father. I guarantee it won’t go wrong.”

The four all looked towards Old Wen and Mrs. Luo.

“Father? Mother?”

Old Wen’s eye twitched uncontrollably.

Unbeknownst to her, Mrs. Luo’s leg had been caught by Da Tou. She wanted to leave but couldn’t.

“Grandma…” Wen Yao and Da Tou looked at Mrs. Luo with pitiful eyes.

What a torment.

Mrs. Luo had no choice but to sit back down and said, “Right now, including the coffin money from your father and me, the family only has fifty taels of silver. If you really want to do this, those fifty taels, even if you and your brothers invest alongside your eldest brother, how you divide the profits later is your business. I’m just concerned with my pickle business.”

That included the occasional secret money Wen Yao gave her anyway. Since Yao Yao had brought in business for her soybean paste, just making that alone would be enough for her and Old Wen to start saving again.