The pork butcher is smoother than a pig butcher!

Chapter 366 Year-End Summary
When the aroma of various kinds of noodles wafts from the local farmhouses, it's already New Year's Eve.

Manager Zhu came to report to Gan Minglan early in the morning.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder. After finally getting the baby to sleep last night, the couple worked up a silent battle in bed until the wee hours.

Before she even opened her eyes, she heard her mother-in-law's loud voice greeting Butler Zhu in the living room.

Gan Minglan had no choice but to get up quickly.

Looking at the other person's serious expression, she sighed and said, "It's really not that serious. We can talk about it after the New Year."

Manager Zhu insisted, "We must finish this year's work this year. How can we postpone the summary until next year?"

Row.

Tell me, what have you been busy with in less than two months?
"After you left, the young guards did not miss a single day of their daily training and literacy studies, and they were even more diligent than before. Also, because the food you provided was so good, they not only grew taller but also became much stronger."

"Hmm, they all seem to be in good spirits! I looked at their exam results this year, but one-fifth of them failed their academic subjects. It seems they're still prioritizing physical skills over academics!"

Don't you realize that they've only studied culture for a few months in total?

These kids' parents are already extremely satisfied with their exam results.

Martial arts training is something that should be done at the peak of one's energy and vitality.

Some of the boys aren't satisfied with just morning physical training; they've heard that night running has recently become popular, and Lu Ye from his family is one of them.

Lu Ye ranked fifth in the overall score of the year-end cultural and physical fitness exams!
His wife was extremely satisfied, but in his opinion, there was still room for improvement.

Steward Zhu continued:
"The busiest place in the last two months has been the snow boot workshop. At first, they wanted to make all the profits, but then the weather was getting worse! So the workshop manager asked for my opinion and recruited about two hundred women with experience in making leather boots from the families of the vanguard battalion soldiers."

Ganluchuan is only this big.

The snow boot workshop was clearly impossible to hide.

The wisest choice is to hire again before temperatures drop to their lowest point.

"This arrangement is quite suitable. How are the snow boots selling?"

"Hehe, patriarch, you don't know, at one tael of silver per pair, we alone sold 20,000 pairs in Ganluchuan. The remaining 100,000 pairs were divided among the garrison, with each garrison receiving more than 10,000 pairs, and they were all sold out in just three to five days."

"Is it all cash?"

"Yes! Half a month after you left, another group of immigrant merchants came to Guazhouwei. They originally brought their children to seek medicine and medical treatment. Later, even after the children recovered, they didn't want to leave. After seeing the snow boots we sent to Guazhouwei, they said they would place a big order with our workshop next year."

"Well, merchants can always find business opportunities in any environment. This year we're the only ones doing this, but who knows what the market will be like next year? According to what we agreed on, the 120,000 pairs of shoes should have generated 36,000 taels of silver in profit. Has it been paid out on time?"

“You left instructions before you left, and the workshop manager distributed the money according to their workload after collecting the last payment. There was one woman who received 129 taels of silver.”

Gan Minglan stared in disbelief.

Good guy.

You've earned this much in just over two months?

Manager Zhu nodded and then shook his head:

"It wasn't just her achievement. She has two daughters over ten years old. She was in charge of the leather sewing process. With the three of them working together, they naturally did more than others."

"That's already very good! This amount of money is enough to handle several important matters for the family."

“You’re absolutely right! Her eldest son is your personal guard, so his future is assured. Her two daughters will be of marriageable age in a few years, and she keeps saying she wants to prepare a decent dowry for them, and then build big houses for her sons and help them get married.”

Well then. With so many important matters to attend to, this amount of money is clearly not enough.

Manager Zhu smiled and said, "All the mulberry branches planted in the greenhouse have survived, and more than 90% of them have sprouted new buds."

So please don't worry about such a small matter.

Who knows what kind of astronomical price the silk fabric woven from raising seven-colored silkworms could fetch after a season?

Gan Minglan was not worried about the survival rate of mulberry branches planted in the field.

The temperature and humidity in the greenhouse are monitored by designated personnel.

She cheated before planting the rice seedlings.

Once the temperature in Ganluchuan stabilizes above 15 degrees Celsius, those mulberry trees can be transplanted.

With her special ability, the mulberry forest will grow into a grove next year.

The story is about how the silt from the river was used to build city walls and the Great Wall.

Gan Minglan affirmed this at the afternoon military meeting.

"We must make vigilance a constant practice! The East Snow Mountain is not only a natural barrier, but also the best passage for foreign enemies to invade. Defending Ganluchuan is to defend the rear of Hamiwei."

There was a surprise attack by the Russians.

His wife, children, and parents were behind him.

No one dares to be careless about border security, even though tonight is New Year's Eve.

Several centurions also reported at the meeting on the results of the literacy campaign and training conducted over the past two months.

If there are assessments, there will be elimination of the bottom performers.

General Gan, seeing the hesitant expressions of the several centurions, said sternly:
"Military regulations are military regulations, and there is no room for negotiation. If they can't even compete in such a simple internal skills contest, they'll be doomed sooner or later on the battlefield. Ganluchuan needs not only vanguard battalions that can charge to the front lines, but also its own people who can safeguard the peace of the rear."

How can they be the same?

Having grown accustomed to being at the forefront, who would be content to remain in the city?
Although the centurions didn't say it aloud, Gan Minglan could still understand the emotions on their faces.

"Don't want to defend the city? Do you even know who the current ruler of the Kashgar Khanate is?"

Everyone looked bewildered: "Can the ruler of a barbarian kingdom be changed so easily?"

"Yes! They changed hands twice in less than half a month. The first one was that Prince Zhongshun, but he was killed on the day he ascended the throne. Then they replaced him with Hasibaren, whom we had captured. He is an old general who has fought on the battlefield for half his life. If they are given a chance to prolong their lives, they will definitely bring their troops to Guanzhong again."

This is hardly good news.

"It can't get too bad! Anyway, I'm very familiar with the route to Shache now. As long as the opportunity for the western expedition is ripe, we'll take the initiative to strike."

Everyone got excited when they heard about taking the initiative.

"General, is that Hu people's palace incredibly wealthy? I heard that the grain they brought back this time was bought with gold coins from their treasury. After we attack Shache, will we still be able to make some profit?"

"Of course there are! Shache City is the largest oasis in the land of the Hu people. Hundreds of miles away, there is another city that produces Hetian jade. Their princes, nobles, and chiefs have passed down their titles from generation to generation."

so.

Their wealth is in no way inferior to that of the powerful families in our Bei State.

(End of this chapter)