Qin Sang needed to make one hundred and fifty tubes of mosquito coils within two days, relying solely on her family was definitely not enough.
Hiring workers was inevitable. Since they had to hire people, it was natural to consider family first.
Where would Mrs. Tian Li not understand Qin Sang's intention? This was an offer to hire them, or people from their families, first. Otherwise, with work paying one jin of rice per jin of processed mugwort, which villager wouldn't scramble to do it once word got out?
Mrs. Tian Li's sisters-In-law were somewhat skeptical:
"Da Zhuang's Mother, are you serious? One jin of rice for one jin of processed mugwort?"
Qin Sang smiled: "Who would I dare lie to if not my own family?"
Mrs. Tian Li spoke up:
"What kind of question is that? If it weren't true, would the rice exchanged for the medicinal herbs collected outside the house be fake?"
The two sisters-In-law blushed slightly at her words:
"No, no, we don't suspect Da Zhuang's Mother is lying to us. I was just worried I misheard."
Qin Sang patiently explained again and Devilstrated the simple, albeit rough, method of rubbing dried mugwort leaves into processed mugwort. It was straightforward but hard on the hands.
"This really isn't difficult. Can I let my children do it too?" Mrs. Tian Li, still reluctant to give up gathering herbs and cutting mugwort on the mountain, ventured to ask.
Qin Sang didn't care who did it, only whether it got done:
"Sure, as long as the processed mugwort meets my requirements, even letting our Auntie do it would be fine."
Qin Sang's 'Auntie' referred to the village chief's wife, Mrs. Tian Li's Mother-In-law.
Mrs. Tian Li and her two sisters-In-law immediately exchanged glances and nodded in unison:
"Alright, I'll go tell the family right away."
Qin Sang added one more instruction: "Any amount finished today can be delivered first."
"Ah, yes, got it."
The three of them walked out briskly.
Si Jin had weighed and bagged the rice. Today, Mrs. Tian Li had gathered one hundred jin of mugwort in the morning, dug up two jin of isatis root, and also had some Motherwort. In total, she exchanged for five jin of rice. The two sisters-In-law also exchanged for about four jin of rice each to take back.
In such a famine year, five jin of rice was enough for a family to cook congee for over ten days. Of course, water was scarce now too, making even congee hard to prepare.
Qin Sang thought about it and decided to exchange for more flour next time to make flatbreads, which would save water.
The other villagers who had dug up medicinal herbs also had their own gains. Especially since news of Qin Sang buying herbs had spread, almost every household had sent someone to dig.
Plantain by the roadside was the first to be dug up. Other common finds were mugwort, Honeysuckle, Motherwort...
After toiling under the scorching sun for over an hour, they finally finished exchanging all the herbs collected that morning.
In total, they exchanged one hundred and thirty-seven jin of rice.
The courtyard was piled mountain-high with herbs. Thankfully, the weather didn't look like rain, otherwise half would rot if it rained.
Qin Sang certainly wouldn't give them a chance to rot. While moving them into the house, she sold quite a few herbs.
Not only did she recoup the mall coins spent today, but she also gained an extra thousand, bringing her current balance to nine thousand three hundred.
Si Jin, carrying herbs into the room, muttered somewhat puzzled:
"Why does it seem like there are fewer herbs?"
Qin Sang said seriously:
"Really? There can't be rats, right? In broad daylight, what rat would dare be so bold?"
Tian Sijin couldn't figure it out. Her Mother's room didn't seem large, yet it somehow never seemed to fill up.
"Maybe when collected fresh and messy, they take up more space. After drying and tidying them, they don't take up as much room."
Qin Sang offered an excuse. Seeing Si Jin still frowning, she pulled a stern face and said:
"Why are you still standing there? Trying to slack off? You'll get two fewer pieces of braised pork at lunch."
Seeing her Mother angry, Tian Sijin hurriedly put down the herbs and ran out to work.
After organizing the herbs, it was time for lunch.
Third Brother's Wife was generous. With three jin of meat, she rendered the fat for oil, then stewed the cracklings with a pot of green vegetable soup, glistening with oil. The remaining lean meat was stewed in another pot with cut potato chunks, filling a large earthenware basin.
The staple was Pumpkin congee because Qin Sang said it was too hot to eat solid food, and soupy things were easier to swallow.
Before eating, Qin Sang mentioned the need to increase mosquito coil production. Hearing the family had landed a big order, everyone was overjoyed.
"San Gui, when can your father-In-law deliver the Drying Racks?"
Tian Sangui swallowed his saliva: "He can deliver them this afternoon. He wanted us to stay for lunch, but Huan'er said we were busy at home, so we came back first."
Third Brother's Wife quickly added:
"My Mother had me bring back an old hen and a bag of dried vegetables."
Qin Sang nodded. Old hens are good, they're nutritious.
Counting that, didn't the family now have six hens?
She also mentioned hiring people to rub mugwort. Although everyone was somewhat reluctant to pay such high wages, they also knew that without hiring help, the family alone couldn't possibly finish so many mosquito coils.
Seeing their eyes glued to the earthenware basin, Qin Sang picked up her chopsticks:
"Let's eat. Be careful, it's hot."
The family ate, barely better than wolfing it down. Having had rabbit meat for a few days beforehand, they probably wouldn't get diarrhea from a bit of oily food now.
Qin Sang also ate a few bites, but having eaten something earlier, she wasn't hungry now. She drank a bowl of sweet Pumpkin congee and couldn't eat more.
"You all keep eating. I'll assign tasks. No naps these few days. The order is urgent, and we need to take advantage of the strong sun for drying. Everyone needs to work quickly.
First, crush the Charcoal Powder and sift it. Grind any large particles with the Millstone. Xiao Wu is responsible for this.
Eldest, you're in charge of mixing the powder. Third, you handle the Bamboo Tubes and packaging.
Eldest Brother's Wife is responsible for pressing. Si Jin handles shaping. Eldest Girl and Third Brother's Wife are in charge of trimming and sun-drying. Any questions?"
Everyone was eating hastily, swallowing before answering:
"Yes, Mother."
"No problem."
Qin Sang nodded, got up, scooped a basin of Pumpkin congee, and went to feed Da Huang.
Da Huang wasn't tied up outside. He had a bed made for him in the main hall. A dog's hearing is very sharp; even inside, he knew every movement outside the walls clearly.
Putting on her Bamboo Hat again, she went to the backyard to check on the mule and horse. She found the brothers' animal shed was better than the shack Tian Dazhuang lived in.
Humans living worse than livestock... that's hard to comment on.
While they were eating, Qin Sang followed the same procedure to wash and disinfect the mule. The wash water hadn't flowed far before being absorbed by the parched earth.
Qin Sang fed it a basin of water and gave it a handful of Beans.
For now, feed small amounts frequently. If it eats too much, even livestock can get bloated.
The same for the horse. After feeding, Qin Sang applied another layer of ointment, hoping it would recover quickly.
In the afternoon, the family was frantically busy, wishing they all had four legs and eight hands.
Now that everyone was familiar with the process and worked together seamlessly, their efficiency was excellent.
In one afternoon, they made seven to eight hundred coils. Combined with what Eldest Brother's Wife made at home in the morning and some existing stock, only drying and packaging was needed for one hundred tubes of mosquito coils.
Of course, this was also thanks to the In-laws delivering two Drying Racks promptly.
It must be said, Carpenter Zhao's craftsmanship was impeccable. The hastily made Drying Racks were level, sturdy, and sanded smooth without a single splinter.
San Gui's Second Brother-in-law also carried a bundle of mugwort on his back, saying it was for the family to make mosquito coils.