Mo Susu gazed at the tender green branches in the courtyard and sighed. “I wonder how A Ruo is doing.”
Su Zhenxue flipped through the simplified-character dictionary, occasionally jotting something down. “I heard they’re currently attacking Donghu Commandery. A Ruo must be off earning glory and establishing herself.”
Yan Ke nodded. “Exactly. With A Ruo’s abilities, there’s no need to worry too much about her. Have you decided what kind of business you want to start?”
Mo Susu shook her head. “I originally wanted to go into the tea business, but with the war going on, hardly anyone is growing tea. That business definitely won’t get off the ground for the time being.”
“Based on what I’ve learned about the three counties of Gofeng recently, I think there are two businesses we could pursue. The first is ready-made clothing. We can buy stock directly from the industrial district, so it would be simple.”
“The second is making carriage bodies. No one is doing that yet, and once Lord takes the entire Donghu Commandery, the demand for carriages will certainly increase. However, that business would be more troublesome. We’d need to negotiate for all kinds of raw materials, find suitable craftsmen, rent a workshop, and so on.”
Su Zhenxue did not even look up. “If you’re really determined to go into tea, I suggest you do ready-made clothing for now as a temporary measure. The costs are low, and the returns come quickly.”
Yan Ke nodded. “That’s right. Our starting capital isn’t large, so we should save it for the tea business. After all, it takes at least several years for tea to become profitable, and it requires a great deal of money and effort.”
Mo Susu nodded. “All right. However, Gofeng is overcrowded now, and shops are difficult to rent. There are already three ready-made clothing stores here, too, so I’m thinking of going to Donghu Commandery.”
Su Zhenxue looked up at her. “It’s still uncertain when Donghu Commandery will be conquered.”
Mo Susu lowered her voice. “You haven’t heard? The Jinyang Army is already attacking Dancheng in Donghu Commandery.”
The Jinyang Army’s night raids on the coastal counties had been a secret operation, so few of Gofeng’s residents knew about them. But the attack on Dancheng was out in the open, and quite a number of people had heard about it.
What the people still did not know was that the Jinyang Army had already taken the entire Donghu Commandery.
The Jinyang Army had simply moved too quickly. They attacked Dancheng during the day and captured Heichun County that very night.
The defenses of the Quzhao Army were practically a joke in front of the Jinyang Army—utterly incapable of putting up a fight.
At present, the three counties of Gofeng were under Quzhao’s control. Because of the war, few people in the cities ventured outside, and the main source of information from beyond the cities was generally the Jinyang Times.
Yan Ke rubbed her chin. “That’s true. It’s just a pity that we don’t have any channels for getting news, so we have no idea how the fighting is going.”
Mo Susu was not in a hurry. “The Jinyang Army was able to seize three counties in the midst of Quzhao’s territory and develop them so successfully. Their strategy and strength must be extraordinary. I believe it won’t be long before they take Donghu Commandery.”
“Besides, we haven’t even finished learning simplified characters yet. We can barely understand the newspaper, so there’s no need to hurry.”
Su Zhenxue smiled. “Sorry, but I’ve already mastered them. I recognize most of the three thousand or so characters.”
Mo Susu: “...You’re something else.”
Su Zhenxue had always been the top student among them. She learned quickly, remembered everything quickly, and had an exceptional enthusiasm for research.
Sure enough, she continued, “Three thousand-plus simplified characters probably aren’t enough. I suspect there are already more characters, but they just haven’t been widely introduced yet.”
She had guessed correctly. Over the winter, Jiang Jin had taught Chen Xi and the others more than two thousand additional characters.
Unfortunately, Lord’s territory had expanded too rapidly. Chen Xi had been busy training more teachers for the literacy campaign and had not yet had time to revise the textbooks and simplified-character dictionary.
Su Zhenxue smiled modestly. “I’m only average.”
Mo Susu: “...As if I can’t tell you’re showing off.”
Yan Ke burst out laughing. “Susu, she’s right that there’s no need to rush. We still have enough money for now.”
Mo Susu’s expression grew solemn. “If possible, I’d like to grow tea in Donghu Commandery as well.”
Su Zhenxue had no objection. “The money is all in your hands, so use it as you see fit. If it isn’t enough, you can borrow more from the government.”
Yan Ke suddenly thought of something. “I support you going into tea, but with the war going on, I’m afraid tea won’t sell well.”
Mo Susu shook her head. “You’ve forgotten about Fenggexuan’s glass. As long as the product is good, there are plenty of wealthy people willing to pay. I can sell it outside the region.”
“Besides, just look at Gofeng. It’s developing so well. In the future, there will certainly be many people who can afford tea.”
“And who says tea has to be expensive? I can make some varieties that ordinary people can afford.”
“As long as Lord takes Donghu Commandery, its future development will certainly be promising, given the current trend. Once the people have enough to eat and wear, isn’t it only natural that they’ll want to drink some tea?”
Yan Ke smiled. “You really do have foresight. I support you.”
“Dean Chen Zi is truly amazing. You could say that every one of us is her student,” Su Zhenxue praised.
Yan Ke: “...Weren’t we discussing tea?”
Su Zhenxue nodded. “Yes. The two of you are discussing tea, while I’m discussing simplified characters with you two. There’s no conflict.”
Yan Ke: “...That makes sense.”
Mo Susu laughed. “It’s true that we’re all Dean Chen Zi’s students, but simplified characters were created by Lord. If you trace it back, Lord is the founding master of us all.”
The Chen Xi they were talking about was still writing furiously. She had been extraordinarily busy lately.
Fortunately, preparations had been made in advance. During the several winter months, large numbers of teachers and students had been recruited and trained, so there was no need to worry too much about teaching the people of Donghu Commandery to read and write.
However, there were countless miscellaneous tasks involved in running the academies. She also had to add the simplified characters Lord had recently taught them to the textbooks, dictionaries, and other materials.
The newspaper required supervision as well. Luo Qingci had once been able to help review it, but now Luo Qingci was even busier than she was and was frequently away from Gofeng.
“It’s already noon. Why are you still working?” Feng Qingzhu walked in.
Chen Xi did not even look up. “In a few days, once things have settled down in Donghu Commandery, the literacy campaign will begin. We need to finalize the arrangements for the various academies, and the next issue of the newspaper is almost due as well.”
Feng Qingzhu handed her a small object. “Take a look at this.”
Chen Xi raised her head. Feng Qingzhu was holding a round object, and her reflection could be seen clearly inside it.
“A mirror?”
“Mm. Lord mentioned how to make mirrors a long time ago, but we were too busy before. I’ve only just started working on them recently.”
The industrial district focused mainly on making everyday necessities. Although glass was sold as a luxury item at Fenggexuan, in Gofeng it was actually a practical commodity. Very few people bought it as a luxury simply to admire.
She had only recently found some free time to study mirror-making. Since glass could be sold for astronomical prices in Sizhou, she believed mirrors would sell even better.
Chen Xi gazed at the exceptionally clear reflection of the beautiful young woman in the mirror. “It’s so beautiful.”
Then she bared her teeth in a grin. “My teeth are so white, and my skin is so fair. Why am I this beautiful?”
Feng Qingzhu: “...”
The bronze mirrors they normally used gave everything a slightly yellowish tint.
She silently took the mirror back and looked at her own reflection. “I’m beautiful too.”
