The pastries were well-loved by everyone.
This gave them plenty of confidence.
Even the Cheng family head and his wife had to acknowledge their abilities.
Therefore,
they officially embarked on the path of selling pastries.
During the day, Cai Shi and Xi Shi took the lead, guiding everyone in making pastries.
They even hired idle villagers from Shan'ao Village to help, paying them for their work.
Manpower was readily available.
The workers were all familiar faces, trustworthy, and worked diligently.
Upon hearing that they would be paid,
the villagers readily agreed, even suggesting their wages could offset their rent.
They would only accept the remaining money.
After all, living in houses rented by others made them feel uneasy.
Now, by paying with labor,
the houses felt much more secure. It was only reliable to depend on oneself.
The Cheng family naturally had no objections to this.
They agreed immediately.
Thus, they began full-scale production, moving the pastry-making location to the backyard.
The large kitchen could be fully utilized, ensuring sufficient output. Working together, everyone could make quite a lot in a day.
Next, Cheng Fengtai and Cheng Kaichun were tasked with selling them, using a mule cart.
Cheng Kaichun would stay at a fixed spot by the cart to call out orders, while Cheng Fengtai would sell by carrying a shoulder pole.
As for why these two were chosen,
firstly, Cheng Fengtai had experience as a traveling salesman and knew how to hawk goods, making him a reliable choice.
Secondly, the prices were fixed, making accounting simple. There was no worry about them playing tricks. Therefore, their profit margins were also fixed: they would earn based on how much they sold.
For example, a crispy cake sold for five wen, and a white date glutinous rice cake, regardless of the filling, sold for three wen per small piece. The prices were set.
For every crispy cake they sold, they would earn one wen. For every two date-sized glutinous rice cakes sold, they would also earn one wen.
If better pastries were introduced later with higher selling prices, their earnings would naturally increase. Do not underestimate these seemingly small differences, for if the volume is high, the earnings can be considerable.
Thus,
before setting out, Ji Bo, Laifu, or Jiawang would simply verify the number of pastries leaving, and they would know how many were sold and how much revenue was generated that day.
Their accounts were foolproof, with no room for any cunning schemes.
Previously, the women had been focused on managing the household and raising children, or else busy around the kitchen, doing laundry, farming, feeding chickens, and gathering pig feed.
Now, they had a new, exciting task that also brought in money. Everyone was thrilled, feeling like they had companionship. Consequently, they didn't feel tired while working, it was like playing, and their relationships quickly grew closer.
Su Miaomiao had prohibited them from sharing the pastry recipes, but she hadn't enforced it strictly, only issuing a verbal warning.
However, that was enough.
Besides,
she had many pastry recipes. New products would continuously emerge.
She wasn't worried about them being stolen or about others using the recipes to make a living elsewhere.
Judging a person by their recipes wasn't a loss.
But she also knew,
that they absolutely would not do such a thing.
And indeed, this was the case.
Everyone knew that following the Cheng family led to a good life. Therefore, they wouldn't dare to act against them. They were eager to please, so why would they do anything to harm the Cheng family? The Cheng family had also been very kind to Shan'ao Village!
Naturally, they dared not be disrespectful.
Su Miaomiao would not always be tied to the kitchen stove either. Even if she were willing, Cheng Hao wouldn't allow it. How could she be constantly exposed to the smoke from the firewood?
He strictly prevented her from spending too much time there.
Therefore,
in the large kitchen area,
Cai Shi and Xi Shi were primarily in charge of leading the pastry-making. With the young couple absent, the villagers felt less pressure.