TFS – Chapter 88 Lord Shi

The continuous harvesting of goji berries led to a final income that even Tang Chunming found astonishing, let alone Li Feng. Who would have thought that such an inconspicuous wild fruit could be so profitable? The return was truly beyond expectations. Furthermore, as the mountain’s planting area continued to expand, the income from this single crop alone would be quite substantial in the future. The few hundred taels of silver initially invested seemed insignificant in comparison.

Because the goji berries had been transplanted last autumn and carefully watered, they grew exceptionally well. The berries were plump, and even after drying, their color remained bright and appealing. The quality was excellent. In the end, through Elder He’s recommendation, they were sold at a high price to a medical clinic, bringing in nearly a hundred taels of silver. The family kept a small portion for personal consumption and gifting.

Now, many of the tasks on the mountain were being managed by Dashan and a few men from the village. Comparing this to Zhang Changming’s situation, Li Feng and Tang Chunming decided, after some discussion, to allocate a share of the mountain’s produce to Dashan as well. In the future, once the orchard yielded a full harvest, the income might rival that of the Lamb Restaurant. Of course, this share did not include livestock; otherwise, it would have far exceeded the income of the restaurant. The revenue from the sheep and chickens was currently the biggest contributor.

At first, Dashan wanted to refuse. He felt that he was already earning a good monthly wage, which was much easier than working outside the village, and taking an additional share seemed excessive. However, after hearing Li Feng’s reasoning, he had no choice but to accept and even assured Li Feng that he would take good care of everything on the mountain.

In the end, Li Feng and Tang Chunming also allocated shares to the families raising chickens and sheep. Although the shares weren’t large, they were enough to encourage the families to be more diligent. While Dashan wouldn’t talk about his share openly, over time, if others found out, it might create comparisons and resentment. No one could guarantee that financial interests wouldn’t affect people’s attitudes.

The memory of the Dragon Boat Festival wheat harvest was still fresh, and those who had grown wheat could still recall the fragrant aroma of fresh grains. In the blink of an eye, it was now autumn harvest season. Every household was sharpening their sickles, ready to charge into the fields. Over at the distillery, all the necessary tools were in place, and the village head was grinning from ear to ear—once the grains were harvested, the distillery could finally start full production.

Families who had planted sorghum were the first to harvest it. After drying, the sorghum was immediately sent to the distillery’s grain warehouse before they proceeded with harvesting other crops. The enthusiasm was so high that the tax collectors who came to the countryside found it puzzling. In previous years, while farmers were happy during the harvest, they were distressed when it came time to pay taxes since a large portion of their grain would be taken by the government.

However, this year was different. Most households had prepared silver to pay their taxes instead of handing over grain like before. This unusual situation led the tax collectors to quickly stop the incoming transport carts, realizing that bringing them would be pointless. Some officials had already caught wind of the changes in Pingshan Village, and upon arrival, they greeted the village head with beaming smiles and without their usual authoritative airs. This left the village head and the clan elders feeling both surprised and flattered.

“Haha! Isn’t this all thanks to the Rong family’s protection? Now that these grains already have a designated use, naturally, we can’t hand them over to you,” the village head said with a laugh as he explained the grain’s destination. Even if the tax collectors had thoughts of forcibly seizing the grain, they hesitated upon hearing the Rong family’s name. It seemed Pingshan Village truly had ties to the Rong family.

Naturally, members of the Rong family also arrived. Seeing the government officials, they immediately revealed their identities, further confirming the village head’s words. Those who had some inside knowledge quickly recalled the incident that had taken place in the county earlier that year. While the details hadn’t been publicly disclosed, sharp-witted individuals had pieced things together. The households that had originally planned to cause trouble for Pingshan Village had all been taken care of by the authorities and had since gone into hiding.

In other words, these officials needed to adjust their attitudes as well. They could no longer treat Pingshan Village like any other mountain village they could easily manipulate. However, the village head was a smart man. While the officials were in the village, he made sure they were treated to good food and wine, and when they left, they didn’t leave empty-handed. Everything that needed to be handled was taken care of.

During the autumn harvest, even more households made money than during the Dragon Boat Festival. Some families were already planning to renovate their homes before winter arrived. In the past, financial constraints had forced them to endure poor living conditions, but now that they had extra money, they no longer wanted to suffer.

Of course, the top priority was brewing the liquor in the distillery—this was a matter that concerned the entire village. Even those who didn’t have shares in the distillery understood that as long as the business ran smoothly and liquor sales remained strong, they could continue growing sorghum every year and sell it to the distillery for a steady income. This was an excellent financial opportunity, not to mention those who actually had shares in the business.

The village head even went as far as selecting an auspicious day for the first batch of brewing, hoping for good fortune. To celebrate, firecrackers were set off for a long time outside the distillery, and Tang Chunming was invited to oversee the steaming of the first batch of grain.

“Add water!”

“More firewood!”

“Get the steaming baskets ready!”

…

Seeing the crowd eagerly peering into the pot, Tang Chunming couldn’t help but laugh. “What’s the rush? Brewing liquor is a long process. You won’t see anything just yet. Aren’t you all feeling the heat? Go outside and cool off.”

The initial steps were actually the simplest—it was just about steaming the grain until it was half-cooked, letting it cool, and then mixing it with fermentation starter. The fermentation process was the most critical part, especially in terms of temperature control.

“Haha, we’re just too impatient. We can’t wait to see the liquor come out,” the village head said with a hearty laugh as he led the others outside. The clan elders also shook their heads, amused at their own impatience.

The village head had specifically chosen a few people to learn the brewing process alongside Tang Chunming. Among them were Shen Fulang and Zhang Xiu. Wang Mo also wanted to learn, but he couldn’t even step into the distillery now—he was pregnant again, and neither Zhang Changming nor his family elders would let him do any work. This made Zhang Xiu extremely envious. Ever since giving birth to his second child, he hadn’t been able to conceive again. Now that they had enough money, he wanted another child more than ever.

Aside from Shen Fulang and Zhang Xiu, there was another ger and two careful, detail-oriented men. Tang Chunming had already said that not everyone could master the craft. So, he preferred to train more people at first and later select the most skilled ones to take over his role.

At this moment, Tang Chunming was acting as the master brewer. In this era, such a position held great prestige, but he had no interest in formalities and rituals. He even discouraged them—he found them exhausting. The better his apprentices learned, the sooner he could step back and relax. After all, if the liquor turned out well, he would also benefit.

Hearing Tang Chunming’s words, Shen Fulang joked, “This is just like how you can’t eat hot tofu in a hurry. But we can’t wait to master everything you’re teaching us. That way, we’ll have something to brag about in the future!”

“Yeah, right. Who knows if we’ll even succeed? It’s not like you can just learn it by wanting to,” Zhang Xiu laughed.

“But there are plenty of people outside who envy us for having the chance to learn from Ming ge’er,” one of the men chuckled.

“Just keep practicing, and soon enough, you’ll be able to take on apprentices yourselves,” Tang Chunming encouraged.

None of them left the brewing room. The stove area was kept meticulously clean, just as Tang Chunming had insisted. He had emphasized that the brewing space had to remain spotless —any dirt could affect the fermentation process and, ultimately, the quality of the liquor. In reality, what he was referring to was bacteria, but since no one would understand that, he simply called it “dirt.” The moment he mentioned cleanliness, everyone took it seriously. They even changed into clean clothes before entering the brewing rooms.

Tang Chunming had also started brewing liquor for his own household. Elder He was more than happy to take care of most of the process, with Li Feng helping out. Since they were producing a small batch, it wasn’t too labor-intensive—only the temperature control during fermentation required careful monitoring.

Tang Chunming found himself constantly moving between his own brewing setup and the village distillery. Unlike other master brewers who hoarded their skills, he was eager for his apprentices to learn everything as quickly as possible—he much preferred being a hands-off boss.

“This won’t do. The temperature is too high. Remove one of the fire pits and open the windows for ventilation,” Tang Chunming instructed after testing the air with his hand. The others immediately followed his orders.

He took great pride in this skill. Though he had no inner strength, his ability to sense temperature changes was as precise as a thermometer. The longer he spent in this environment, the more refined this ability became.

What came naturally to him, however, was much harder for others. He couldn’t explain this sensitivity in words, so the only solution was for his apprentices to practice over and over until they developed their own sense of touch.

Even those who weren’t naturally talented found their own ways to learn. Their determination impressed Tang Chunming. They heated water over the stove and took turns testing the temperature after he judged it. This way, they could develop their own accuracy as quickly as possible. Through practice and experience, they would eventually master the skill.

Meanwhile, Li Feng was just as busy. The village head assigned him the task of training a group of young and strong men who would serve as guards for both the village and the distillery in the future.

Tang Chunming found this situation quite fascinating. Compared to rural villages on Earth, the power of village heads and clans here was much stronger. The village head’s words carried significant weight, and his authority was substantial. Tang Chunming didn’t see this as a bad thing—if anything, it helped ensure the smooth operation of the distillery and kept outsiders from interfering.

While the distillery was busy, Rong Yue returned to Pingshan Village once again.

This time, unlike his previous quiet visit, he arrived with a grand display. When Tang Chunming was notified and hurried over, he saw Rong Yue dressed in an official uniform. Standing beside him was a man in his thirties, wearing the robes of a county magistrate, showing clear deference to Rong Yue. Behind them stood a group of constables and accompanying guards.

Seeing Tang Chunming arrive, Rong Yue smiled and waved him over. Tang Chunming noticed Li Feng standing nearby, maintaining a calm and composed demeanor before the county magistrate. This reassured Tang Chunming somewhat, though he dared not be as casual as he was during Rong Yue’s last visit. He quickly stepped forward and greeted both Rong Yue and the county magistrate with a formal bow.

Before he could even finish the gesture, Rong Yue reached out and pulled him up, saying, “Why are you being so polite with me? Come, let me introduce you. This is Lord Shi, the county magistrate. Lord Shi, this is Tang Fulang, the one I told you about. He is also Brother Li Feng’s husband.”