Chapter 146: Making Money by Selling Water? (Thanks to Emma and the two little fairies for coming up with names!)

Chapter 146: Making Money by Selling Water? (Thanks to Emma and the two little fairies for coming up with names!)

Mrs. Liu nodded.

"It was the family that lived in this courtyard before us," she replied.

Qin Xiaoyao was taken aback.

"Making money by selling water?" he asked.

He simultaneously imagined himself standing by the well, selling water and collecting money.

It seemed... this could be quite profitable...

"Yes!" Mrs. Liu confirmed.

Seeing her daughter-in-law's eager expression, she added, "At that time, this family sold a bucket of water for ten coins, which infuriated everyone in the alley. But they had no choice; their homes lacked water, so they had to buy it here."

"Although they made money, they also offended the neighbors nearby."

"During the severe drought, no one said much. But afterward, there were many complaints. For several years after that, almost no families in this alley interacted with them anymore."

Mrs. Liu looked at Qin Xiaoyao. "When we first moved here, didn't you say some neighbors were rather cold toward us? That's partly why."

Qin Xiaoyao was stunned.

"This... ten coins per bucket of water is a bit expensive. But it's a willing transaction. This family didn't force anyone to buy from them. Their anger seems a bit unreasonable, doesn't it?"

"You can't expect people to give away water for free, right?" Qin Xiaoyao disagreed with Aunt Sun's point.

"They don't have to give it away for free, but as neighbors, how could they do such a thing?" Mrs. Liu said.

"At that time, other parts of the city were also short of water, and some households with wells sold their extra water, usually for only five or six coins per bucket."

"Some people came to this family to discuss it, but they were chased away. The lady of the house even told everyone to buy if they wanted to, otherwise not to bother."

"Since every household was short of water, even if they could buy water elsewhere, they might not get a chance, and it would waste time traveling back and forth. So most people gritted their teeth and bought from them, but they held a grudge."

Qin Xiaoyao's eyes flickered.

So, it's not that they couldn't make money by selling water, but they needed to be more considerate?

"What do you mean, Mother?" Qin Xiaoyao looked at Mrs. Liu.

Mrs. Liu glanced at the well in the courtyard.

After a moment, she turned back to her daughter-in-law.

She said, "You're in charge at home. I'm just giving you a heads-up based on what I heard."

Qin Xiaoyao chuckled.

"Alright! I understand, Mother!" He smiled and took hold of Mrs. Liu's arm.

He led her towards the kitchen.

Just then, Song Yun and Wang Xiaomei came out of the kitchen with food, inviting everyone to dinner.

Thus, the Song family began their meal.

Due to the hot weather, the Song family's dinner tonight was simple.

Porridge, flatbreads, and some cold dishes.

Speaking of cold dishes, these had become the most popular dishes in the Song family recently.

Since they had plenty of seasonings, Qin Xiaoyao had tried making cold dishes once and shared the method with the family.

Cold dishes were easy to prepare, whether meat or vegetables. With the right seasoning, they were refreshing and delicious.

Therefore, every evening, the Song family now typically prepared cold dishes.

Everyone enjoyed them.

Even Song Que would eat an extra couple of flatbreads or drink another bowl of porridge when there were cold dishes.

After dinner, Mrs. Liu and Wang Xiaomei washed the dishes.

The others waited until they finished cleaning the kitchen before heading out together.

Qin Xiaoyao supported Song Que, and they quickly fell behind.

Seeing that Mrs. Liu and the others were almost out of sight, Qin Xiaoyao wanted to call out, but Song Que stopped him.

"Why are you holding me back? If we don't call them, we'll lose them," Qin Xiaoyao looked at Song Que.

Song Que rolled his eyes.

"Mother intentionally left us behind. Calling out won't help."

Qin Xiaoyao was taken aback.

He thought of something.

Then, a hint of embarrassment flashed across his face.

"Oh." He responded sullenly.

Seeing Qin Xiaoyao's reaction, Song Que's expression finally softened.

"Do you want to go with Mother and the others?" she asked Qin Xiaoyao.

"No, it's better if we go together," Qin Xiaoyao replied quickly.

A smile spread across someone’s face.

"Let's go." Limping slightly, they started walking forward.

"Wait for me!" Qin Xiaoyao laughed and hurried to support Song Que.

Catching up, she steadied him.

"Oh, Husband, I have something to tell you," the person said with a grin.

"Mm-hmm." Feeling reassured, she leaned on Qin Xiaoyao, her mood quite pleasant.

"It's about that well in our courtyard..."

Then, Qin Xiaoyao recounted the situation with the well at the street corner and what Lady Liu had told her.

"Given this situation, it seems like the city will run out of water in a few days. Should we sell the water from our well? If so, how should we price it?" Qin Xiaoyao asked.

After all, this courtyard was bought by her beautiful husband, and she wanted to discuss selling water with him.

"What do you think?" Unexpectedly, Song Que didn't answer but asked instead.

"Sell it. We can't possibly use all the water from the well anyway."

"Besides, there was a severe drought five years ago, and many people around here probably know about our well. Even if we don't sell the water, some might come asking."

"The only issue is setting the right price."

Song Que nodded.

"So, what price do you plan to set?" he asked.

"How about four coins per bucket?" Qin Xiaoyao replied.

"Ten coins would be too expensive; although it would sell, we'd end up with the same resentment from the neighbors as the previous household."

"If the market price is around five or six coins, selling at four coins isn’t much less, and it could earn us a good reputation."

Song Que turned his head to look at Qin Xiaoyao.

"Three coins per bucket," he suggested.

Qin Xiaoyao was surprised.

"Three coins? Isn't that too little?" she disagreed.

Seeing Qin Xiaoyao's almost pained expression, Song Que felt like laughing.

"That's plenty. The water from the well has no cost, so making money from it is already a pleasant surprise."

"Since you want to show goodwill to the neighbors, why not reduce the price by one more coin, making it even clearer how considerate we are?"

"If others sell at five or six coins, and we sell at three, who could complain?"

"Even if someone gets jealous, others will help to teach them a lesson. Believe me?"

Qin Xiaoyao thought about it and nodded.

Song Que smiled and continued, "Also, we need to set rules. Our water will only be sold to the people in the alley and on the street outside, and each household can buy a maximum of four buckets per day."

Qin Xiaoyao looked puzzled.

"This way, they'll feel that we're genuinely looking after them, rather than just trying to sell more water," Song Que explained.

Qin Xiaoyao instantly understood.

"This—brilliant! With a comparison, our kindness will stand out. This is a great idea, Husband!" she praised.

As expected, the strategist from the base is indeed very smart.

"With this approach, Mother won't have to worry about strained relations with the neighbors," Qin Xiaoyao said with a smile.

"In fact, the relationship might even improve."

That way, when the relationship improves, she could collect eggs and sell goods to them.

Although they lived in town, most households had courtyards where they raised chickens and ducks.