Word Spirit Farming System

“To raise one’s wife.”

After returning home that day, the two of them quickly freshened up and went to bed.

In the following two days, Cheng Yun took Yang Hongjin to the store to help out. The workload in Liu Wen’s place was too much to handle, so he temporarily closed the shop in Tengyun Town and moved everyone to Nanming City. Once they became proficient, they would return to their roles as managers.

The new shop was as popular as ever, and it was packed every day for several days in a row. There were so many people waiting outside the door that it was overwhelming. However, due to insufficient food supplies, the restaurant could only distribute a hundred number cards each day. As a result, the first question people in Nanming City asked when they met was, “Did you manage to get a number card for Yueqiong Tower?”

The scarcity of number cards led to some people rushing to grab them early in the morning and then reselling them at high prices. Although this situation indirectly reflected the popularity of Yueqiong Tower and created a rare scene in the city, it also harmed the interests of genuine customers.

Cheng Yun didn’t expect to encounter scalpers even in ancient times. If this happened in the modern era, it would definitely become a famous and popular restaurant. He thought about it and introduced a ‘real-name system’ approach.

In the current era, there were no identification cards, and people relied on signing or stamping when depositing money or pawning at the pawnshop. But everyone assumed that this method was enough to identify a person and didn’t suspect any impersonation.

Therefore, Cheng Yun came up with the idea that people who wanted to get a number card had to stamp their handprint and sign their name. When they were called inside to eat, they had to provide their name and confirm their identity.

Initially, when this approach was proposed, Liu Wen was concerned that customers might feel disrespected when they had to sign and stamp even just to have a meal. It seemed a bit excessive. However, when this method was put into practice, everyone showed their support.

There were many wealthy households in Nanming City, and they would send their servants to Yueqiong Tower early in the morning to line up for a number card. However, some people, driven by the desire to make money, endured the cold weather and slept at the entrance of Yueqiong Tower overnight, waiting until the next day when it opened. If you confronted them, they would claim that they just wanted to try the hot pot and couldn’t give up their number card.

Although many people wanted to eat at Yueqiong Tower, it wasn’t worth it to make their servants wait in line all night just for one meal. In the end, many people had to choose to pay and resolve the situation.

After all, spending a dozen or so yuan to buy a number card was not a big deal for wealthy families living in the city.

Apart from these people, there were also many food enthusiasts who came because they had heard about the new novelty of “hot pot” at the new Yueqiong Tower. Based on the name alone, it was impossible to tell what kind of new dish it was, so many people traveled long distances to explore it.

However, the scarcity of number cards and the emergence of scalpers discouraged these genuine customers. It even escalated to the point of bidding for the number cards, with some reaching a price of one or two taels. Many people who wanted to eat couldn’t afford it.

These scalpers harmed the interests of genuine customers, and even the government officials came to understand the situation and tested whether Liu Wen had a solution.

The popularity of the new Yueqiong Tower was expected by everyone, but it exceeded everyone’s expectations. In the end, Liu Wen had no choice but to accept Cheng Yun’s suggestion of implementing the ‘real-name system.’

After this measure was introduced, number cards could no longer be transferred to others. Wealthy merchants who spent a lot of money but couldn’t match their numbers were stopped at the door. Regardless of who they were, everyone in the waiting area of Yueqiong Tower was treated equally. This made many customers who couldn’t get a number card feel relieved, while the scalpers were held accountable and had to compensate. Gradually, this trend faded away, and genuine customers who wanted to eat at Yueqiong Tower could finally relax.

Nanming City was a distance away from Tie Village, and once the operation of the new shop was on track, Cheng Yun no longer needed to help out at the restaurant.

He and Yang Hongjin stayed at home, diligently researching new dishes. Now, Yueqiong Tower was also a part of him. He was no longer just working for someone else, and Cheng Yun became more dedicated than before.

However, in the past two days, Yang Hongjin seemed to be always running around for some reason. Sometimes, he wouldn’t come back even when it was time for lunch, causing Cheng Yun to worry.

Perhaps it was like the rebellious phase that every child went through. Cheng Yun comforted himself in his heart that as a semi-parent, he shouldn’t be too strict. So, despite the worry, he was happy to see Yang Hongjin grow and hoped he could have more exposure to the world.

Recently, there was talk in the village about road construction outside the city. Cheng Yun had heard a few remarks from people at nearby tables when he was dining in Nanming City before, but he didn’t pay much attention to it at that time. However, as more and more people talked about it recently, Cheng Yun gradually understood some of the details.

But it was the news passed on to him by Liu Wen that truly made him realize the importance of this matter. It turned out that the previous speculations were correct. Some high-ranking officials from the capital were planning to visit, and it was precisely because of the bustling Yueqiong Tower that had recently gained fame.

Previously, when operating in Tengyun Town, Yueqiong Tower had already gained quite a reputation. Some people even bought several jars of Sauerkraut as gifts when visiting relatives. It was fresh, decent, and presented well.

As a result, jars of Sauerkraut bearing the name of Yueqiong Tower circulated in major towns and eventually reached the capital.

Approaching the year-end, the officials in the capital usually inspected the local situation in various regions. In the past, they would send only three or four people to each place. However, this year, due to the fame of Yueqiong Tower, it was rumored that nearly ten officials were coming!

Early in the morning, Liu Wen received a message from the Lord of Nanming City. This time, the banquet for the officials from the capital would be held at the new Yueqiong Tower, so they needed to prepare in advance.

That’s why Cheng Yun started paying attention to the road construction outside the city.

The information Li Fan brought to him was that the preparations for the road construction were currently underway in the city. It was estimated that in five days, all the materials would be ready, and they could begin.

During this period, many people in Nanming City registered to participate in the road construction. The project was expected to last for ten days, but due to the recent bad weather and occasional heavy snowfall, they tried to shorten the duration as much as possible. However, the compensation for the entire project was fixed, which meant that regardless of the actual number of days worked, each person would receive five hundred yuan as remuneration.

Being able to earn so much money in just ten days, several of the new recruits hired by Yueqiong Tower had already left. Although working at Yueqiong Tower could earn them over a hundred yuan of silver in a month, compared to the government’s job, being able to earn five hundred yuan in a short time was tempting. Many people chose to work on the road construction to have a better New Year.

Liu Wen asked Cheng Yun to come up with a solution and presented him with a challenge.

Sauerkraut jars were relatively low-cost items. They were suitable for ordinary families as gifts, but they wouldn’t be impressive enough for officials. Liu Wen asked Cheng Yun to come up with something more precious. The gifts presented to the officials could open up a new industry chain in the future.

Therefore, in the past few days, Cheng Yun had been secluding himself at home, researching new products and not even having time to attend to Yang Hongjin’s matters.

After thinking for a long time, Cheng Yun finally came up with something that wasn’t too expensive but still elegant.

There was a maple tree in the back mountain. Last time when he and Yang Hongjin were cutting trees in the back mountain, Cheng Yun initially didn’t pay attention. But later, when they cut down the trunk, white liquid flowed out from inside. Before he could stop him, that idiot used his finger to taste it.

Cheng Yun had been angry about this matter for a long time, but he discovered that it was the sap of a sugar maple tree.

He had seen documentaries before about how to collect sap and make it into syrup. Before, he had no money and no conditions to do it himself, so he kept it in mind. But now, with Liu Wen as his strong backing, he could directly put making maple syrup on the agenda.

He collected a small bucket of sugar maple tree sap from the back mountain and when he got home, heated it according to his memory of the steps.

Since he didn’t have a thermometer, Cheng Yun could only estimate the temperature during the heating process. Fortunately, he succeeded on his first attempt, turning a bucket of tree sap into a cup of syrup.

He used chopsticks to taste it. The thick and sweet syrup was a bit like honey, but it had a unique fragrance. It was sweet without being cloying, refreshing.

Cheng Yun stored half of the maple syrup, while the other half was poured into pre-made molds, forming candies of the same size. He then placed them in the ice cellar for refrigeration.

Now that the weather had turned cooler, the cooling process was much faster compared to using the underground cellar.

Soon, the syrup began to solidify. Cheng Yun took one out, tapped it, and the surface was firm. He tasted one, and the outer layer was crispy. When he took a bite, the syrup inside hadn’t completely solidified, creating a soft texture.

However, Cheng Yun knew that during transportation, the candies might melt or solidify even more. It was beyond his control. As long as the candies had the desired shape, it would be enough.

He packed the syrup and candies together and planned to have Li Fan take them back to Liu Wen when he came next time.

Just as he finished his work, Yang Hongjin finally returned home.

Cheng Yun heard him entering and sighed inwardly. He had planned to scold him, as it was already past noon, and he had just returned home. If he didn’t talk to him properly, who knew when he would remember that he had a wife at home?

However, before Cheng Yun could say anything, Yang Hongjin rushed in with great excitement. He gave Cheng Yun a big hug.

“W-What’s going on?” Cheng Yun was startled by his sudden action and took a small step back.

Yang Hongjin couldn’t hide his joy and excitement. He easily lifted Cheng Yun by the waist, spinning around while excitedly saying, “Wife, I’ve made it!”

“Made it in what??” Cheng Yun was confused by his actions and forgot to be angry.

Yang Hongjin gently put him down, laughing stupidly for a long time. His foolishness made Cheng Yun unable to get angry.

Cheng Yun pinched Yang Hongjin’s face, intending to scold him, but the next words from Yang Hongjin made him freeze in place. His smile gradually disappeared, and his mood instantly plummeted.

“Wife, I’ve already discussed everything! In a few days, I can join the people from the village and start working outside the city! Hongjin wants to earn a lot of money to support his wife and let his wife live a good life!”