Chapter 166: Chapter 165: Casual Clothes Out of the City Chapter 166: Chapter 165: Casual Clothes Out of the City The noble ladies picked the fruit with their own hands, enjoying the fun of the activity and continually peeling and eating the fruit.

Ordinarily, they were quite attentive to their image, careful about their health, avoiding overheating fruits like lychees in excess.

But today, the fruit they picked was too tempting; they were used to being served by others and had grown tired of it.

Today was different, however; the fruit they picked themselves prompted a different mood.

Perhaps it was a mindset, an outing to relax, perhaps it was also a benefit to their wellbeing.

“Mrs. Meng, thank you for inviting us to visit. We’ve only heard that the fruits from the artist’s estate are delicious. Our household has been purchasing from the Ye Manor since it was established last year; eating their fruits really makes us feel invigorated.”

“Indeed, Mrs. Meng, this outing has brought us more than just these things; it has given us a wonderful mood of gathering and playing together.”

“That’s right, we had only heard of the Ye Manor and thought it was just a dirty and inaccessible place in the countryside, and curiosity wasn’t enough to bring us here, but this place is not what we imagined.”

Each noble lady felt very satisfied with this visit, continuously expressing their admiration in front of Mrs. Mu.

Mrs. Meng knew, this was her chance to speak up with a purpose:
“As inner housewives, we actually want to be our husbands’ wise helpers too. Have you ever thought about establishing such an estate? Even if not in Bushen Village, every mountainous area in the county is open for investment.”

“Mrs. Meng, you’re right. I will discuss this with my husband when we return and enhance our estate as well,” one noble lady responded.

“Mrs. Meng, this village only has the Ye Manor that’s successful, right?”

“Yes, indeed! We can manage an estate as long as it yields harvests. The grains collected from the tenants are better than what we could use ourselves, aren’t they?”

Among the ladies, some agreed and some disagreed. They didn’t understand the work of farming peasants; they only knew that investments needed returns.

The wives of the wealthy, who among them didn’t own several hundred acres of land? In this era, land was precious, and to achieve a quality life, one must cultivate and sell grain to make a profit.

Some had also engaged in trade, though business was only a part of it. Regardless of the era, people needed to eat, live, and travel, with food being of paramount importance. While they could eat fewer fruits, grains were a necessity.

Mrs. Meng had just spoken with Mrs. Li of the Ye family purposefully on this matter, now broaching this subject with the wives of the wealthy families.

“This visit was just to let you witness the prosperity of Ye Manor. This upper half of the season, they focus on watermelon and fruits as their main income, whereas in the latter half, they would focus on rice and vegetables.”

“Yes, their paddy fields and lands are very fertile. I just carefully observed that, astonishingly, around twenty acres of paddy fields are producing so much fruit daily, certainly thanks to the farmers’ skills,” one noble lady commented.

Others started pondering this issue. Success in estate cultivation was indeed the farmers’ achievement. To develop an estate, experienced farmers must be employed.

Some thought even deeper, considering to “poach” by offering high wages to hire farmers from Ye Manor as agrarian technicians for estate development.

The sharp-minded noble ladies all quickly grasped this issue. As inner housewives, certain actions were beyond their reach, hence planning to arrange for people to recruit these skilled workers upon returning home.

After Mrs. Meng finished speaking, seeing that the noble ladies were no longer opposed, she felt that the goal of this excursion was about to be achieved. She eagerly anticipated the actions these noble ladies would take upon returning.

Her task for this trip was almost complete. The rest depended on how their husbands guided these noble men in their visit and what those men thought about it.

County Magistrate Meng leading such a large group made a much grander scene than just their families.

They were no quicker than the inner housewife, because it took them a bit of time to assemble and they had to explain and speak to them.

Then, when they arrived at Bushen Village, they were received at the village entrance and disembarked at the wooden factory located there.

The true inspection team arrived, led by a richly dressed man, accompanied by some wealthy individuals. No one was informed that it was the County Magistrate leading the tour; they all thought the richly dressed man was just another wealthy person.

This time, the County Magistrate Meng had not worn the official uniform, opting instead for casual clothes with which he could blend in as a common spectator. This not only prevented giving others a handle against him but also served as a way to get closer to these wealthy individuals.

County Magistrate Meng walked in front, with the men of the Tang family playing host to the guests, which did not bother them.

The men from the Tang family were not just Mr. Tang and the Eldest Young Master, but also included Tang Xiyue’s father who was responsible for managing the estate.

It was always said that this time the Tang Family was cooperating with a farmer to run the factory. Previously, the wealthy had mocked the Tang Family, asking why give others the opportunity to earn money when they could monopolize all business and earn even more?

After over a year, some had sniffed out the details; the Tang family only provided manpower and resources, while the technical aspect was indeed contributed by that villager.

The whole family was extraordinary, everyone knew, and what was more unexpected was how capable a villager had proven to be.

To have gone from an ordinary farmer to opening a factory and a vast estate in collaboration with the Tang family within just over a year demonstrated a boldness not typical of an ordinary farmer.

Without seeing it for themselves, everyone would have thought they were just hearing a story.

The tour organized by County Magistrate Meng included not just the wealthy but also the village chiefs from all over the county.

Gazing at the wooden factory, they looked upon Bushen Village’s village chief with envy and admiration.

Everyone wanted to seek welfare for their own families and fellow villagers, yet their own areas lacked such capability.

They also hoped their villages could produce such talented individuals, as this was crucial in advancing towards a moderately prosperous society.

After inspecting the wooden factory, they set off for Ye Manor.

Hongji had been waiting at the front gate, finally welcoming the tour group led by the County Magistrate.

With so many people arriving, he estimated there could be hundreds.

With so many visitors today, there would definitely be a lot of eating and drinking involved.

Hongji was still troubled about how to host them for lunch.

Visitors could freely pick and eat the fruits in the estate, even take them away, but hosting them for a meal was more challenging.

How could the house accommodate so many from wealthy families?

There were no hotels or restaurants in the village, and although struggling internally, he kept his concerns unvoiced.

For others, hosting so many noble guests should have been seen as a fortune, yet he hadn’t anticipated so many people coming with the tour.

He even felt he was too naive, having never thought about how to host the visitors for lunch and only expected them to pick the fruits and leave; now, he didn’t know what to do.