The road to wealth of a peasant widow

Chapter 108 Mrs. Zhang

After Chen Cui entered the flower hall, she felt that this place was just like the scenes from the costume dramas she had seen in movies and TV shows. The furnishings were all exquisite, the furniture was all carved with patterns, and even the curtains had embroidered patterns. There were ice basins placed all around, making the place feel particularly cool.

Here, she also saw the first fat person she had ever seen in ancient times!

Perhaps due to the limitations of today's living conditions, ordinary people are lucky to have enough food to eat, and the diet is not rich. Most people are slim, and few can eat themselves into a chubby body.

After Chen Cui traveled through time, she went to the county town and the provincial capital many times and seldom saw fat people. However, the woman sitting in front of her could be described as "fat" whether in ancient times or in modern times.

Even though the robe she wore was loose, you could still tell she had a lot of flesh on her body. She probably weighed at least 160 pounds.

From what she was wearing and where she was sitting, Chen Cui determined that this person was the county magistrate's wife, Mrs. Zhang, whom she wanted to meet.

After Chen Cui bowed to Mrs. Zhang, she began to look at this most prestigious lady in the area calmly.

The woman sitting on the main seat was about twenty-three or twenty-four years old, with a plump figure, fair face, delicate makeup, and a gorgeous headdress, exuding exquisiteness in every way.

Well, she is the daughter of a wealthy businessman in Shu. Her family has been in business for generations. She has been living a life of luxury since childhood, so it is natural for her to be so particular.

But Chen Cui felt that although she was dressed well, she looked indescribably tired.

Mrs. Zhang looked at Chen Cui with a smile, her eyes revealing a hint of curiosity. She gently said, "You must be Mrs. Liu, right? I heard that you have lychees to send over. Is that true?"

Chen Cui quickly handed the jar in her hand to the maid beside her and replied, "This is a method I discovered by chance. The canned lychees can preserve fresh lychees for several months without changing color or taste. These two jars were made about 20 days ago. Please taste them, Madam."

Mrs. Zhang glanced at the maid and said, "Go, pour it out for me to see if it is really as she said."

A moment later, the maid came over with a gold-painted white porcelain bowl, looking surprised. She placed the bowl on the table in front of Mrs. Zhang and whispered something to her.

Mrs. Zhang looked at the white and smooth lychee flesh in the bowl with a look of surprise on her face.

All the lychees from her hometown in Shuzhong were off the market a month ago. The last time she ate lychees was more than ten days ago. They should have been gone from the market by now.

But the lychees in this bowl looked no different from those just peeled. She could even smell the sweet flavor of lychees.

Mrs. Zhang couldn't help but pick up a spoon and scooped a lychee into her mouth. After taking a bite, she felt the lychee juice bursting between her lips and teeth. Yes, that was the taste.

She couldn't help but reveal a satisfied look on her face. Although this kind of lychee was not as fresh and tempting as the ones picked from the branches, it tasted different.

Mrs. Zhang couldn't help but speed up the waving of the spoon. This bowl was originally a small dessert bowl, and even if it was filled, it couldn't hold much. Soon, she finished the whole bowl of canned lychees, including the soup.

Putting down the empty bowl, she pressed the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief, then took a good look at Chen Cui.

She was dressed simply, like an ordinary peasant woman, but when she entered the gorgeously decorated flower hall, she didn't look around and didn't look restrained, which was a bit contradictory.

"Sister-in-law, you said that you made these canned lychees. How did you make it? Can you tell me about it?" Mrs. Zhang asked.

Chen Cui smiled at first, but then she showed an embarrassment on her face: "Madam, I did it. Since you asked, I should have told you the truth, but I have a stupid idea, and I don't know if it will work, so I want to tell you first."

Mrs. Zhang couldn't help but become more curious: "What's your idea? Tell me about it."

Chen Cui looked at her expression and said carefully, "What do you think of this idea? When the fruits are ripe, we can make them into canned food and sell them in winter?"

After all, Mrs. Zhang's family was in business, involved in many industries, so she understood this method as soon as she heard it.

Not only did she understand it, but the more she thought about it, the more interesting it became. She felt that this was a good idea and that if it could really work, she would definitely make a lot of money.

Mrs. Zhang's face flushed with excitement, and she quickly asked, "What kind of fruits can be used to make canned food from fresh fruits, and how long can the canned food be preserved?"

Chen Cui hesitated for a moment and replied seriously, "Lychees, apricots, cherries, oranges, peaches and the like can all be made. If you follow my method, operate strictly and store carefully, they should be able to last for more than half a year."

After listening to this, Mrs. Zhang calculated in her mind that so many kinds of fruits could be canned. Three months would be enough to sell them all over the country, and a shelf life of half a year would be enough!

She was thinking about the advantages of this business in her mind, but then she changed her mind and realized that the method of canning food was still known to others and she didn't even know about it. This was the most critical and core part!

She glanced at Chen Cui and thought to herself, is this woman trying to sell me this canning method? How much should I pay for it?

According to what she had just thought, this business was very profitable and this method was quite valuable, but could this peasant woman really see the value in it?

Mrs. Zhang looked at Chen Cui with some suspicion and decided to give it a try first.

She cleared her throat and said seriously, "As you said, I plan to do this canned food business and want to buy the method you have. Do you agree?"

Chen Cui had expected this question, and she had already prepared the answer, so she calmly replied, "Madam, I can give you the recipe, but I won't sell it to you. Instead, you can participate in this business by investing in it. If there is a profit in the future, you can get dividends in proportion. What do you think?"

After Chen Cui said this, her heart started pounding and her fingers even trembled slightly with nervousness.

This was in ancient times when royal power was supreme. It was not an exaggeration to say that the county magistrate was the local emperor of the county. He had great say in this land.

The person in front of her was the county magistrate's wife, the most noble woman in the local area, and she was now negotiating terms with her.

Thinking of this, Chen Cui lowered her head even more and lowered her posture even more, for fear of angering this seemingly amiable official's wife and causing something to go wrong in what she was going to do today.

Mrs. Zhang didn't say anything for a moment, as if she was looking at him, or maybe thinking.

The longer Mrs. Zhang remained silent, the colder Chen Cui's heart became. Her body became more hunched over, and cold sweat broke out on her back.

Just when the sweat on Chen Cui's forehead was about to drip down, Mrs. Zhang, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke.