Chapter 105 Steady as an Old Dog
It started to drizzle again in the morning. Qin Yao put on a straw raincoat and a bamboo hat, took a few simple tools and a set of paper and pen, and went out early without having breakfast.
When passing by his own fields, he took a look at the rice in the fields. There was nothing to do, so he quickly walked towards Jinshi Town.
At about 8:30 in the morning, Qin Yao arrived at the home of Manager Wu in the town.
Before leaving, they bought two multi-grain pancakes on the street to fill their stomachs. When they arrived at Manager Wu's house, the two of them went straight to the place where the water mill was to be built.
In the entire Kaiyang County, most of the towns are built along the river. This river is the same body of water, but due to different terrains, it has formed many styles.
In this section of the river in Jinshi Town, it is wider and deeper than that in Xiahe Village, but relatively flat.
There are streams and small waterfalls on the nearby mountains, and there is plenty of water.
The location chosen by Manager Wu was a river beside the official road leading to the county town. There was a stone bridge here, which was more than two meters above the river surface. The water mill was located on the relatively flat river beach under the bridge.
Qin Yao looked at it and felt that this location was not very good. Although the transportation was convenient, if the water level rose, the water truck would be flooded.
Moreover, the ground on the river beach is very soft, and there is a risk of collapse if a mill is built on it.
These topographical factors are also one of the important reasons why Qin Yao is not worried about the waterwheel technology being copied.
This ancient feudal dynasty with backward agriculture was not a modern technological country with an industrial system like later generations. The river channel was basically in its original state, and any waterwheel could not use the water in the river.
However, Qin Yao was determined to make this deal, so after obtaining the consent of Manager Wu, the two walked for a while and finally decided to build the water mill one hundred meters away from the official road.
The river here is narrow and the water is fast-flowing, but the key point is that there are natural stone embankments on both sides, so all factors are relatively stable.
The only trouble was that Manager Wu had to widen the road himself to make it easier for ox-carts and horse-drawn carts to pass through.
But it's only a little over a hundred meters and less than two hundred meters, so it won't cost much money.
Shopkeeper Wu didn't want to give up this business either. After thinking for a moment, he ordered three sets of small waterwheels from Qin Yao.
"I'll take one-third of the deposit first, and I'll write you a receipt. When the installation is complete and you're sure it's working properly, I'll settle the balance."
Qin Yao took out a pen and paper and glanced at Manager Wu.
Shopkeeper Wu nodded, and she wrote a simple deposit receipt, and they both pressed their fingerprints on it.
This simple receipt has no legal effect, but it has a certain restraining effect between clans.
Ordinary people don't want to go to the government office, so many people write receipts and contracts in private. As long as both parties have no problem with it, it is assumed to be feasible.
After giving the receipt to Shopkeeper Wu, Qin Yao asked again, "When do you plan to install it?"
"Within ten days, maybe." Shopkeeper Wu asked a little worriedly, "Can you guys get it out?"
Qin Yao: "This time is fine, the main thing is that you have to prepare the venue first."
Shopkeeper Wu patted his chest and guaranteed that he could level the land in four or five days.
He had also thought about the interpersonal relationships. Since the project was going to use the town's public river, in order to avoid trouble, he would give the people living in the town a higher discount, so Qin Yao could just focus on doing her job and come to install it on time.
After all this was settled, Qin Yao left with peace of mind.
I returned to Liujia Village at noon and gave the size design drawings to Carpenter Liu before going home for lunch.
After lunch, I couldn't take a break and picked up my tools to go mine stones.
She could finish the three small grinds by herself, but Qin Yao didn't plan to work so hard now, so she found a helper.
In the Liu family's old house, as soon as they saw Qin Yao coming in with tools, the whole family knew what she was here for. The three Liu brothers, who were repairing farm tools, got up without saying a word and left with her.
This time, Qin Yao and the other three took a few more stones and left them there for use.
The shed we built last time is still there. I took the stones and moved them into the shed. After pounding them for two or three days, three small millstones with a diameter of 70 cm were made.
Carpenter Liu was also quite quick, because he had asked his father-in-law to cut the wood and keep it at home when he had time, so he could just carry it back this time and use it.
After the waterwheel is finished, painted and dried, its service life can be extended.
The three water wheels are exactly the same size, and the same goes for the stone mill, with only slight differences in the texture. Both parts are inscribed with the words "Liujiacun Water Mill".
During the time when the water mill for Manager Wu was being made, Shunzi brought three groups of people from Xiahe Village, and Qin Yao successfully negotiated two small sets for private use by families.
Last time, Qin Yao paid Shunzi 150 coins for the order from Xiahe Village. This time, the ratio was the same, 30 coins for each of the two small orders, giving him a total of 60 coins.
There were more orders, but Qin Yao's stone mill was fine. The four people were not affected at all and the speed was about the same.
Carpenter Liu was not able to do that, so he urgently found two helpers in the village to help make the waterwheel blades.
As long as the measurement and data are consistent, anyone who knows a little about carpentry can do this job.
At the end of the month, a total of five sets of small combination water mills were delivered. When Qin Yao handed over a hundred coins to the clan leader in front of the whole village, the whole Liujia Village was boiling!
After hearing Qin Yao say that villagers could also act as brokers and get a commission of 1% of the transaction price after a deal was concluded, everyone became interested.
The women who married out of the family would return to their parents' home together to tell their families about the benefits of the water mill.
When you go out to a banquet, you can also mention it and ask the other party to remember to mention your name when they go, so that you can get a cheaper price.
With this operation, he actually brought back a few small orders to Qin Yao's manufacturing plant.
They would take five or ten cents from the commission Qin Yao gave them and give it back to their relatives who ordered the water mill.
The situations of each family are similar. No one is particularly wealthy, and not all villages have the strength of Xiahe Village. So three or five families buy one house together, which spreads the cost and is very cost-effective.
And in this matter, Qin Yao discovered that the women in the village really have great potential as salesmen, and those who can bring in orders are all women.
Especially in this small peasant economic system based on the family as the unit, women are responsible for almost all housework in the family except farming, logging and chopping wood.
This water mill brings more benefits to women and is more motivating.
However, the women have a smaller range of activities, and it is very difficult for them to develop outside the town. They still have to rely on peddlers and peddlers who go out to do business.
Qin Yao didn't have any big expectations. She was more practical. She planned to expand the market in the county in the early stage, do maintenance in the middle stage, and sell replacement parts in the later stage to maintain a relatively stable income.
In modern times, it is very difficult for a product to be exported, let alone in the ancient times with strict hierarchy. As a farmer, it was already good enough for her to earn some money for daily living expenses and bring a little economic development to the village.
Even Carpenter Liu knew that the moment they touched the interests of the nobles, they would no longer be able to earn a penny.
So, while Qin Yao and Carpenter Liu were eagerly promoting the business to the villagers in the hope that their families could also rise to prosper, they were as steady as old dogs, checking the accounts and dividing the money.
(End of this chapter)