Chapter 525: Will You Sell Me Your Factory?
Qiu Qianfan simply abandoned his own work. After all, his job was to improve the livelihood of Puzhou, and this harbinger of prosperity was essentially public welfare. Therefore, sticking close to this harbinger of prosperity was tantamount to performing his official duties.
Qiu Qianfan walked beside Gao Yiye, smiling as he introduced, "Lady Li, please look. That textile factory over there is the most impressive one in Puzhou. It has over fifty looms, easily rivaling those in the Jiangnan region. It's just that, ah... for the past two years, there's been no cotton to process, so it's been sitting idle. But the looms are still there. Next year, once cotton is available, the owner just needs to clean them up, and it'll be ready to restart operations."
Gao Yiye nodded with a faint smile and followed Qiu Qianfan inside the textile factory for a tour.
The factory owner stood to one side, forcing a smile. After years without production, he was actually on the verge of bankruptcy, his modest life barely scraping by. He looked as if he'd aged a decade. Yet, facing the Magistrate, and a wealthy lady whose origins he didn't know but who clearly belonged to an affluent family, he dared not show the slightest disrespect, diligently plastering on a smile.
Just as he was beaming, he heard Gao Yiye remark, "These looms are far too outdated. The technology is a generation behind; the efficiency is simply not acceptable."
The factory owner's smile froze. "..."
Gao Yiye turned to the factory owner. "How many more factories like this are there? How many looms are there in total across the entire city?"
The factory owner replied, "Only mine is of this scale. Other places have fewer looms than me. All the factories combined probably only have six or seven hundred looms."
Gao Yiye then asked, "Can these six or seven hundred looms handle the workload during a bumper harvest of cotton?"
Gao Yiye smiled. "Sir, it seems your textile factory isn't doing very well. Why not sell it to us? Although Puzhou has had rain now, it's still autumn. The new year's cotton won't be sown until March or April next year, and it will take another six months or more to harvest. In other words, your factory will remain idle for another year."
Her words made sense, and with the Magistrate himself present to witness, there was no fear of encountering fraudsters. The factory owner didn't hesitate long and immediately nodded. "Alright!"
So, both parties promptly drew up the deed, exchanged silver, and in the blink of an eye, the textile factory had a new owner. The current proprietor was Qiu Ju.
Qiu Qianfan watched from the side, thinking, *Lady Li truly has grand airs. She bought such a large textile factory, yet she didn't put her own name on the contract, but rather that of her maid, Qiu Ju. This clearly shows that the Li family's holdings are vast; a mere textile factory isn't even worthy of her name. Having a maid manage it is more than enough.*
The factory owner took his silver and left.
Gao Yiye smiled at Qiu Ju. "Well, now you've established yourself here. I'll miss you terribly when you're not by my side anymore."
Qiu Ju seemed a little wistful. "I'll miss you too, my lady. At least Dong Xue will still be with you."
Gao Yiye smiled. "Now you have a textile factory. What are your plans?"
Qiu Ju chuckled. "First, I'll calculate the production efficiency of these outdated looms. Then, I'll compare that with the efficiency of our advanced looms. That way, I can figure out how many new-style looms we'll need to handle the cotton when next year's yield doubles. Then, before next year arrives, I'll commission carpenters to custom-build enough new-style looms."
Qiu Qianfan's heart fluttered with surprise. *Hmm? She's calculating based on cotton yields doubling? Where does she get such confidence that our cotton production will double next year?* He thought, *I should speak up and advise these young ladies not to invest blindly and waste their money.*
Just as he was about to speak...
He heard Dong Xue say with a laugh, "Sister Qiu, where will you commission the new-style looms? If we order them from Shaanxi, it'll be quite troublesome to transport them by boat."
Qiu Ju replied, "What's so difficult about that? We'll just bring over a few senior master carpenters from back home, open a huge carpentry workshop right here in Puzhou City, and have the masters train some apprentices. Then, the new-style looms can be manufactured right here."
Qiu Qianfan heard this, and his heart gave a jolt. *They're even setting up a supporting carpentry workshop! Should I still try to advise them?*
He was still hesitating.
Qiu Ju continued, "We'll need at least one or two hundred carpenters. We'll have plenty more things to make in the future."
Dong Xue added, "Yes, we should pay them well and urge them to work quickly. Oh, and won't we need to prepare a lot of porters? Loggers? Building looms isn't just about wood; there are many iron components too. We'll also have to hire some blacksmiths to make the small parts."
Upon hearing this, Qiu Qianfan fell silent.
*How many related industries would their textile factory stimulate? As the local magistrate, he certainly couldn't jeopardize something that would benefit the local populace. Fine, young ladies, invest to your heart's content. Whether you lose money or not, I can't worry about that; prioritizing the well-being of the local people is the proper course of action.*
Just as he was thinking this, a bailiff suddenly rushed in from outside, shouting, "Magistrate, terrible news! An accident has occurred at the Jiguanshan Iron Mine near Shuiyukou. The mine shaft has collapsed, and it's said that over fifty miners didn't make it out!"
The news startled Qiu Qianfan. "Oh dear! We must quickly organize laborers to dig them out!"
The Jiguanshan Iron Mine, near Shuiyukou, was Puzhou's most crucial source of iron ore, boasting excellent shallow surface deposits.
Of course, while these deposits were shallow relative to the surface, they were certainly not shallow for humans. The government had operated this iron mine for centuries, digging deeper and deeper, long since burrowing into the earth's depths.
Once a collapse like this occurred, the consequences were dire. Even in modern times, miners trapped inside would face a slim chance of survival, but in ancient times, it was certain death.
Although Qiu Qianfan spoke of organizing a rescue, in his heart, he had already written off the trapped miners as dead.
Gao Yiye, upon hearing this, couldn't help but frown. Just then, she heard the faint voice of the Heavenly Lord emanating from her left collarbone: "Let's go save them."
Gao Yiye looked down at the embroidered image of the Heavenly Lord near her collarbone, then nodded. Raising her head, she said to Qiu Qianfan, "Magistrate, where is the Jiguanshan Iron Mine near Shuiyukou? I'd like to go and see if I can lend a hand to save some miners."
Qiu Qianfan shook his head. "Since the iron mine has already collapsed, the area around it is very dangerous. Lady Li, it would be best if you didn't go to such a perilous place."
Gao Yiye gestured to the hundred guards behind her. "I have quite a few people here; perhaps we can be of some assistance."
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