Transmigrated into a Grandpa, Embracing the Laid-Back Life

Chapter 45: An Appetite Bigger Than the Sky

The air in the main room seemed to have solidified.

The morning mist outside the window hadn't dispersed yet, and the light filtering in was gray and murky, casting an indistinct shadow on everyone's face in the room.

Only that piece of rough yellow paper lying quietly on the table seemed like the still center of a vortex capable of swallowing everything.

Zhao Dequan did not sit down.

He paced back and forth in the small open space with his hands clasped behind his back. His cloth shoes made almost no sound on the compacted earth floor, yet with each of his footsteps, Su Shan's heartbeat thumped heavily against his chest, once, then again.

Su Shan's hand, without him realizing, had once again gripped the tobacco pipe on the table, his knuckles turning white from the force. He had never been this nervous in his entire life, not even when facing the county yamen's tax collectors.

Su Ming stood ramrod straight, breathing slowly and deliberately, his eyes fixed on the tip of his nose, his mind focused inward.

"Steady, disciple." Lin Yu's voice rang in his mind, carrying a hint of leisurely observation. "Don't be intimidated by this old fox's aura. Right now, his mind is more chaotic than yours. Half of him sees a gold mountain, the other half sees a pit of fire. He's weighing whether he has the capability to hold this bowl of rice. Every step he takes is a calculation of gain and loss."

Su Ming understood in his heart. His master was right. Whoever spoke first now would lose the upper hand.

Zhao Dequan paced about seven or eight times back and forth before finally stopping.He didn't look at the Su father and son; his gaze remained fixed on the piece of paper on the table, as if trying to bore a hole through it with his stare.

"This method," he spoke, his voice hoarse as if rubbed by sandpaper, "is it easy for others to learn?"

This was the first question, striking directly at the core.

Su Shan's heart leaped into his throat.

Su Ming took a step forward and replied respectfully, "Uncle Zhao, it's not easy. That old book I found mentioned this is called 'Heavenly Craft and the Creation of Things.' It looks simple, but in reality, each step is intricately linked. When to cut the bamboo, what heat to use for boiling, how to filter the plant ash, what proportion to dilute the filtered lye, and finally how to scoop and form the paper pulp—every step has its intricacies. If you're off by even a hair, what comes out won't be paper, but a puddle of mud. I was just a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse; it took me dozens of attempts to barely produce this one passable sheet."

His words were nine parts truth and one part fabrication, packaging all the chemical principles Lin Yu had taught into the mysterious and profound "ancient method intricacies."

"Well said!" Lin Yu praised. "Keep the key information vague, exaggerate the technical barriers! Let him know this technology is our family's unique secret skill, something others can't steal or learn! You are the indispensable pillar of this workshop!"

Zhao Dequan turned around, his sharp eyes finally looking directly at Su Ming. "Kid, you've thought this through thoroughly."

He walked to the table and began tapping his fingers lightly on its surface, producing a "tock, tock" sound.

"Second question. If we really do this, how many people, how much money, and how much land will we need?"

This was assessing feasibility.

Su Ming felt a wave of relief in his heart, knowing the other party was already interested. He immediately answered, his speech not fast but clear and logical, obviously the result of deep prior consideration.

plenty of strong laborers and masons; it won't cost many copper coins. For land, that barren riverside area is most suitable, convenient for fetching water and doesn't occupy good farmland. For people, cutting bamboo, burning lime, pounding paper pulp—these are

he spoke,

land, using the village's idle labor force, the startup

noticeably grew heavier. He stared at Su Ming, his gaze no longer

remained silent for a moment before

you father and son... how exactly

these words left his mouth, the atmosphere

looked at

knew success or failure

any adolescent timidity, "this formula belongs to my Su family. But this immense fortune, my Su family dare not and cannot

is, this can't be just the Su family's business. It must be the business

"Su Family Village" struck Zhao Dequan's heart like a heavy

incredulous light

while the

manpower, handling official matters. In the future, if any fool dares to cause trouble, you'll be the one to deal with it. This is called the stabilizing pillar. The workshop's net profit—you get

fingers

just based on his

carrying water, tending fires, pounding pulp—pay them according to their work, daily wages. Besides that, from the remaining net profit of the workshop, take out another fifty percent to distribute among all the

his eyes becoming incredibly complex. He understood

everyone this paper-making craft exactly as it is, ensuring the workshop can be established and produce paper that can

Thirty percent!

a formula, moving their lips, they want

eyes. The temperature in the room seemed to

a long time before slowly speaking, his tone carrying a dangerous edge. "Thirty percent? Kid, do you know how much thirty percent is? I, as the Village Chief, bearing immense responsibility, only get twenty percent. The entire village, over a hundred people working themselves to the

a

Shan's forehead. He instinctively wanted to say, "That's too

percent is the value of the technology, not a single coin less!" Lin

his fists, his fingernails digging deep into his

Zhao, you can't calculate it that

formula, the bamboo on the back

bamboo into gleaming silver! We provide the opportunity for the entire village to get a taste of meat soup! We take thirty percent, leaving the remaining seventy percent entirely for the village, for you! Isn't

took a step forward, his voice suddenly rising. "Furthermore, I am the only one who understands this technology! Once the workshop is up and running, how do we improve the paper's quality? How do we increase production? What do we do if defective or waste products appear in the future? All of that falls on me! My thirty percent is payment for the technology,

forceful, left Zhao Dequan

the core! Without Su Ming,

usually only knew to bury his head in books and was somewhat shy around people? These words, this boldness—he could probably say them

chest

shrewd, calculating mind

percent management shares, thirty percent technology

distribution plan, on the surface, seemed to give the Su family the lion's share, but in reality, he, Zhao Dequan, was the biggest winner! Not only did he gain twenty percent profit out of thin air, more importantly, he turned the entire village