The Blessed Farm Girl Has a Spatial Storage
Chapter 16: Ways to Make Money

Chapter 16: Chapter 16: Ways to Make Money

Upon hearing this, Sun Mei was somewhat moved. Although tofu wasn’t anything precious and wouldn’t make big money, a new product would be different.

But...

In her previous life, she had occasionally made tofu and tender tofu at home, but only sporadically. If she had to grind beans for tofu every day now, it would exhaust her.

Seeing Sun Mei still hesitant, Zhao Dong pressed her hand. "Don’t hesitate. If you do, you’ll miss the business opportunity. New things make the most money when they first come out. However, I know grinding beans for tofu is hard work. Don’t worry, I’ve planned it all out."

He continued, "There’s a water mill in Xiaoyi Village next door. It requires no human effort and can grind more than a hundred jin for fifteen coins a day. I’ll be responsible for grinding the soybeans into soy milk, and you’ll be in charge of making the tofu at home."

"We’ll start by trying to sell some ourselves. Once we establish a reputation, we can wholesale it to the villagers for them to sell. After we’ve made some money, we can even buy our own small donkey."

Seeing Zhao Dong already had a plan, Sun Mei didn’t say much more and nodded. "Alright, let’s give it a try. If you’re going to grind the soybeans tomorrow, we’ll need to soak them tonight."

"Mhm, I’ll listen to you." Zhao Dong nodded. Then he asked, "By the way, dear, how many soybeans are stored in our daughter’s space?"

When they were initially hoarding supplies, Sun Mei had stored a variety of grains. Soybeans were a good thing, and Sun Mei remembered hoarding quite a few of them.

"There should be about five hundred jin. Why?"

"I’m worried that won’t be enough. If selling tofu works out, I’ll go buy some more soybeans before the autumn harvest so we can earn more money."

Zhao Dong had already done some calculations in his mind.

"Let’s do this, dear. Tomorrow, let’s make some tofu and give some to the villagers who are on good terms with our family for them to try. Meanwhile, I’ll take the opportunity to go to Carpenter Wang’s house and order a batch of tofu frames and wooden barrels."

Sun Mei knew Zhao Dong was planning to get the villagers they were friendly with to help with free advertising, and she readily agreed. "Mhm, I think that’s a good idea. I’ll start soaking the soybeans now."

"There’s no hurry. Take a look at these," Zhao Dong said, opening a cloth bag and showing it to Sun Mei. "These are tea dregs, which can be used for washing hair, dishes, feet, and so on. Oh, I also bought some soapberry powder for washing clothes."

Sun Mei had thought he bought something good, but complained when she saw what they were, "You’re just wasting money! Don’t we have shampoo and laundry detergent in our space? We don’t need these."

Zhao Dong disagreed. He had a longer-term perspective. "We can’t always use those. We need to have these things at home too. What if someone comes over as a guest? You can’t use the things in the space then, can you?"

She had a point, Sun Mei mused, sighing. "I really can’t get used to washing clothes with soapberry; it’s not as good as laundry detergent. However, this reminds me that I should probably take the laundry to the river sometimes; otherwise, people will think our family never washes our clothes."

"Haha, that’s right." Zhao Dong put the items away, looking pleased. "Also, you’ve been complaining about dry hair and no conditioner lately. Washing hair with these tea dregs is said to make it dark, smooth, and shiny. When I was young, and we didn’t have shampoo, this is what our family used to wash hair. I bought you some extra. Aren’t I thoughtful?"

Sun Mei gave Zhao Dong a sideways glance, but the corners of her mouth twitched with a smile. "I think I’ve also heard that these tea dregs are good for hair. I’ll try them tomorrow. Coincidentally, Tongtong needs her hair washed too. I’ll use it on her as well."

Seeing the look in Zhao Dong’s eyes, Sun Mei couldn’t help but smile. "Since you’re being so thoughtful, you might as well try it too."

"Ah! So I’m just an afterthought? Alas, my devotion is truly wasted!"

...

After their discussion, they called over Zhao Zhitong, who was playing, and asked her to take out all the soybeans from the space.

There were three large hemp sacks, each holding about two hundred jin, totaling over six hundred jin.

Sun Mei poured some out, washed them with clean water, and left them to soak overnight. They would be ready to be ground into soy milk the next morning.

"Mom, what are you soaking the soybeans for?" Zhao Zhitong crouched beside Sun Mei as she put the soybeans in water, her curiosity piqued.

"To make tofu. Do you want some?"

Zhao Zhitong wiggled her little body and said in her sweet, childish voice, "That tofu is too tough! I don’t like tough tofu. I want to eat the tender tofu!"

Sun Mei couldn’t help but chuckle. "You little rascal, so you like tender tofu!"

However, Zhao Zhitong’s words gave Sun Mei an idea. Yes! They could make not only regular tofu but also tender tofu!

Sun Mei then shared her thoughts with Zhao Dong, who also thought it was feasible.

Wasting no time, they soaked a full ten jin of soybeans that night.

Early the next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Zhao Dong got up. His wife and daughter were still sound asleep.

Zhao Zhitong slept like a log, tossing and turning. By morning, she’d often spun around completely, her head where her feet had been, her little quilt kicked aside.

Zhao Dong gently covered her again and prepared to get out of bed.

Just then, Sun Mei seemed to stir awake. She slowly opened her eyes, rubbed them, and glanced at the still dim sky outside. "Dear, why are you up so early?" she whispered.

"Did I wake you?" Zhao Dong tucked Sun Mei in and whispered back, "I thought I’d go grind the soybeans while it’s early and no one’s around. We haven’t started selling yet, so the fewer people who see, the better. You sleep a bit longer with Tongtong. It’s still early. I’ll be back soon."

After saying that, he quietly got out of bed and left the room. He quickly freshened up, then took the ten jin of soybeans that had soaked overnight and headed for the village mill.

Their village also had a mill, but it wasn’t a water mill like the one in Xiaoyi Village; it was powered by livestock. It was shared by the entire village. Since he was only grinding ten jin today, he decided not to go to the neighboring village for now.

Because he arrived so early, there weren’t many people around. Only the Village Chief’s second son and his wife were there, having just opened the door.

Although the mill was for public use, it still needed someone to manage it. Otherwise, it could be misused or damaged.

The mill had always been managed by the Village Chief’s family. The donkey that worked the mill had also been bought by the Village Chief’s household. Therefore, villagers who came to grind their grain had to pay the Village Chief’s family. Ten jin cost one coin, which was considered payment for the donkey’s feed.

Just as Zhao Leiguang opened the mill door, he saw Zhao Dong arrive pushing a flatbed cart. "Hey, Brother Dong," he greeted, "here to grind grain so early?"

Zhao Dong smiled and replied, "No, I’m grinding some soybeans to eat."

...

After exchanging greetings and paying the fee, the donkey began to work.

Since he was only grinding a small amount, it didn’t take long. After letting Zhao Leiguang know, Zhao Dong loaded the ground soy milk onto his cart and pushed it home.

No sooner had he left than Zhao Leiguang’s wife, from the Liang Clan, started gossiping, "Do you think Zhao Dong’s family has run out of flour? Now they’re resorting to grinding soybeans! I heard Father-in-law lent them half a bag of flour not long ago. How could they have finished it so quickly?"