It was only five days before the New Year's Eve that Claude brought his sister Anna, her students, and Lady Sonia and her son back to Anna's ranch in the Amphiston Territory. There was no Chinese New Year in the Faslan world.
customs, but the New Year's Eve is similar to the Chinese New Year. The three days before the New Year's Eve and the four or five days before the New Year are like the Spring Festival in Claude's previous life. They have become a holiday for people to relax, visit relatives and friends, and go to the temple to pray.
The well-behaved and smart little Mark is very much loved by Claude. This is his first son, but he is an illegitimate son. He also takes the surname of Lady Sonia. When he grows up, he will inherit the family business of Master Bird and Lady Sonia.
.Compared with the two naughty and mischievous children in his own family, little Mark is simply a role model for other children. Even his sister Anna is full of praise for little Mark, especially for his magical talent. He is the only one with his sister Anna.
Quite the same genius.
If possible, Claude would like to stay at the ranch to spend this New Year's Eve with Lady Sonia and her son. But this cannot be done this year, because Claude's family has just moved out of the Veblen Manor and moved into the war zone for Claude.
The newly built Field Manor. He had to spend the first welcome night in his new manor in his new home. And if nothing else happened, many people would come to visit, and Claude would need to warmly entertain the guests at home.
....
I can't help it. It's not that the higher the status, the greater the power, the more freedom. More often, you are still bound by various human relationships. Claude can only say goodbye to Mrs. Sonia and her son reluctantly.
, took his sister Anna back to Field Manor in Lanhu Town to report to his mother, wife and children.
The newly built Field Manor is located in the villa manor area of Lanhu New Town. It should be the highest place in the city. Originally there was a small rocky hill here, but the top of the hill disappeared after the original residents of Lanhu Town dug out the rocks and built houses and roads.
When Lanhu City was expanding, the planners took a fancy to the remaining terrain of the hill. In addition, the war zone transplanted tall trees from the wild regardless of cost, turning this desolate small highland into a quiet and beautiful high-end residential area.
Following the spacious and flat carriage road, Claude and others soon arrived at the Field Manor on the shores of Orchid Lake. Since Claude's family loved the scenery of Orchid Lake, he chose the address of the manor to be built on the lakeside. Design
The engineer cleverly planned a path leading to the lake and built a small pier. Now there are two small wooden boats tied to the wooden piles of the pier...
The big snow dog that was half a man tall ran over excitedly and circled around Claude, lowering his head and sniffing his pants and body. When my sister Anna got out of the carriage and saw the big snow dog, her eyes lit up and she said "Xiao Xue"
"The ball", the big snow dog ran over to show its courtesy, abandoning Claude and ignoring it. However, several young black and white puppies ran up from behind, barking "bark woof" at Claude, trying to
The two-legged beast that invaded their territory was driven away.
This is the puppy born from the big snow dog Pluto and a black female hunting dog sent by Mr. Veblen. Claude has seen it in the letter home from Caifuni. Originally, Caifuni wanted to give
The big snow dog Pluto was paired up, but the female snow dog Pluto who was sent to find someone was not interested at all. He ignored, stepped on, and refused to let these female snow dogs enter the manor.
On the contrary, one time Mr. Veblen and others went rabbit hunting and brought a group of hunting dogs. They happened to meet Kaifani walking with her mother in front of the door. Mr. Veblen dismounted to greet her and chatted for a few words before he was about to leave.
The big snow dog Pluto kept circling around a black female hound and refused to let Mr. Veblen take it away. Mr. Veblen laughed and kept the female hound, and the female hound soon became pregnant and gave birth.
There are seven puppies, all with black and white fur.
These were all things that happened to Claude when he was on the front line. Kaifuni wrote these things as anecdotes to Claude. However, Claude was extremely busy after the war and did not stay at home for a few days.
These seven little guys were regarded as intruders. Claude thought these little guys were very funny, so he squatted down and teased them a few times. Sure enough, these little guys immediately forgot about Claude's identity as the intruder.
Playing with Claude happily.
"Wow, little Snowball, are these all your children? They are so cute..." The exclamation of my sister Anna came from behind, and her figure passed by Claude, hugging him with both hands.
The two puppies, who didn't understand what was happening, were held in their arms and teased excitedly.
After touching the head of Pluto, the big snow dog who was a little proud at his side, Claude straightened up, nodded to Butler Alec who came out of the house, and ordered: "Prepare hot water, I have to take a shower first.
Take a shower and prepare some food for me and the guardsmen."
"Okay, sir. The hot water will be delivered soon. Madam and the two young masters have just taken a nap. Do you want to wake them up?" Butler Alec led the way.
"No, you can just send the food to my study." Claude said: "By the way, Yarrick, there is a big box on my carriage. You can ask someone to send it to me too."
Go to the study room."
After taking a nice hot bath, Claude went to the study. There was an exquisite dining cart in front of the desk, filled with sumptuous food. Claude picked up two slices of white bread and sandwiched a piece of deer in the middle.
I started to gnaw on the meat. I came all the way and missed my lunch, so I was really hungry.
There is a large box on the ground, which contains a handmade cigarette rolling device invented by his sister Anna. Of course, this thing was also instructed by Claude. In his previous life, when he followed his boss to a private club to deal with customers, he saw
There is an antique hand-made cigarette rolling machine displayed in the club. It is said to be left behind by the famous Nanyang Tobacco Company in modern times. Sometimes the club will use this antique hand-made cigarette rolling machine to make a batch of cigarettes for guests to take.
After filling his stomach, Claude drank black tea while thinking about who should be responsible for the sale of cigarettes. Don't tell Claude that smoking is harmful to health. In this era, tobacco was still a popular luxury consumer product, and there was no certain financial resources.
I still can’t enjoy the pleasure of smoking. Even for some pharmacists, tobacco is a herb with refreshing and brain-clearing effects. It has a good effect on mental depression, dizziness and loss of appetite...
Mike? No, he has developed very well in the army. This time after the war, he can be promoted to colonel, and he will definitely become a general in the future. His younger brother Blovik Claude shook his head, this kid is definitely not
She is willing to retire from the military. Neither can her sister Anna. She needs to educate her students and let the Field family master a dark magical power. Mrs. Sonia is already in charge of the Blackstone Gun Manufacturing Workshop, and she simply can't get out.
Claude is not prepared to cooperate and share this hugely profitable business with others, so there is no need to consider Mr. Veblen and others. This tobacco business will accumulate a wealth of gold and silver for the Field family. In overseas jurisdictions
, Claude believes that with his status and ability, he can protect his family's monopoly on this hugely profitable industry, but what is needed now is a few executors who meet the requirements.
During dinner, my mother started her usual nagging, targeting her sister Anna. My mother said that Pluto, the big snow dog, had seven children. How come you and Michael have been married for several years and there is still no movement in your stomach?
Both of them should go to the pharmacist to check whether there is any physical problem. Some diseases should be treated and they should be treated. They cannot delay it like this...
With a black line on her face, her sister Anna looked at Claude in distress. Claude knew exactly what she meant. This was why her sister Anna disliked going home more and more. But Claude had no choice but to shrug.
Shrugging one's shoulders means that there is nothing you can do and there is nothing you can do to help.
However, Kaifani helped her sister Anna a lot and chatted with her mother about her younger brother Blovik's marriage, which changed the target of her mother's nagging. Claude believed that his younger brother Blovik would not be returning home for the holidays in two days.
Ke and Michael are both in trouble. One will be forced by his mother to go on a blind date, and the other will be forced by his mother to make love to his eldest wife...
After dinner, Claude invited Caifeni, Butler Alec, and the family's first retainer, retired Staff Sergeant Kuster, to the study.
"Yarrick, I remember that your eldest son Svenson is already thirty-one years old. Is he learning housekeeping skills from you?" Claude asked.
"Yes, sir, now I have given him the management of the stables and kitchen in the manor to train his ability to control the servants. Is there anything wrong with him?" Butler Alec asked with some worry.
"No, he did a good job." Claude shook his head and said, "But I am going to remove you from the position of housekeeper and let your eldest son Swenson take over."
Butler Yarick's face suddenly turned pale: "Sir, I am only fifty-three years old this year, and I can still work for more than ten years. And Svenson is not experienced enough, so it is easy for him to make mistakes if he is a butler now.
....”
"No, I'm sorry, Alec, you misunderstood. I didn't mean to drive you away." Claude stretched out his hand to signal Butler Alec not to be so excited. He forgot that Butler Alec once had a count who was served by three generations of his ancestors.
The adult has the experience of being kicked out of his family, so he is particularly sensitive to this matter.
"You have become the most trustworthy person in our Field family, Yarrick. I have always seen your loyalty and diligence in the past few years. You have become our family, and we will not drive you away."
Lord comforted him. Seeing that Butler Alec calmed down quickly, he nodded and continued.
"The reason why I removed you from the position of housekeeper and let your eldest son Svenson take over is because I have a more important matter to entrust you to take charge of. This matter is related to the fate of the Field family for a hundred years. I can't think of anyone other than you."
A candidate who satisfies me.”
Claude pointed to the big box in the middle of the study: "Sergeant Buster, bring the contents of the box to the desk."
Sergeant Kester, who was standing aside, stepped forward, opened the box, and moved the cigarette rolling machine contained in the box to the desk.
"You all come here." Claude called to Kaifni, Butler Alec, and Kuster to come to the desk, and then introduced: "This machine is called a cigarette rolling machine. It was just invented by Anna. It
Its function is to roll cigarettes. You still don’t know what cigarettes are, but you will understand after I demonstrate it.”
"The small wooden box above contains chopped tobacco. There is a switch here. When you break it, some tobacco will fall to the bottom, which is exactly the size of a cigarette. This thin white paper is cigarette paper.
To roll shredded cigarettes. We put this cigarette paper on this curtain and put it like this. Then apply the Qingmihu in this small bottle to the edge of the cigarette paper, turn the switch, and the shredded tobacco on it falls on the
In the middle of the cigarette paper. Now we turn the crankshaft of the curtain. You see, the curtain will automatically roll up, and then loosen it, and a cigarette will automatically be rolled..."
Claude picked up the cigarette: "You should be wondering why you roll tobacco like this. Sergeant Kuster, you like to use pipes, now you have a taste of this cigarette. By the way, I still have it here.
There is a cigarette holder, put the cigarette in it, light the other end with a match, and take a puff."
Sergeant Buster soon became intoxicated with the nicotine in the cigarette: "Sir, this is much more convenient than using a pipe, and the aroma of tobacco is very rich, intoxicating, and so enjoyable."
By this time, Kaifuni and Butler Alec had understood what Claude meant. Kaifani asked, "Claude, do you want Butler Alec to be in charge of this cigarette business?"
"Yes, this will become the biggest source of wealth for our Field family." Claude nodded and said: "Don't underestimate this tobacco business. Think about it, if it becomes a supply for the army, even one cigarette can earn a black
Iron penny, if one hundred thousand soldiers each consumes one cigarette a day, that is one hundred thousand cigarettes, but they cannot only consume one cigarette. Those who like it will smoke twenty or thirty cigarettes a day. So if you calculate, three cigarettes a year
How many cigarettes do we need to consume in one hundred and sixty-five days, and how much profit can our family get?"
The bodies of Kaifuni and Butler Yaric trembled involuntarily. They naturally calculated clearly how huge benefits Claude said contained. This could still become a supply in the army. If it is extended to the civilian population, smoking
The more people there are, the greater the benefits will be. On the contrary, because Sergeant Kuster is illiterate and not good at math, he just indulges in smoking.
"Here, how many cigarettes can such a cigarette making machine produce in a day?" Kaifani asked.
Claude replied: "Anna calculated it. If you adapt quickly, you can produce at least ten sticks in one minute, which is six hundred sticks in one hour. If you work ten hours a day, you can produce at least five thousand sticks. If you are skilled in the movements, you can even turn one.
times..."
In this era, there was no eight-hour work system and two days off a week. Generally, employees hired by private workshops had to work at least twelve hours. Only technicians would be given preferential treatment, but most of them worked about ten hours.
Like the workers at the Blackstone Gun Manufacturing Workshop, Mrs. Sonia originally wanted to work day and night, so just two shifts of workers would be enough. But Claude said it anyway, because long working hours make it easy to get distracted, which will reduce production efficiency, and will also hinder the future development of the workshop.
Reasons such as preparing skilled workers early for expansion persuaded Mrs. Sonia, and she hired three shifts of workers to implement an eight-hour work system. As a result, she was regarded by those workers as the most stupid and soft-hearted boss.
"I have the production drawings of this cigarette making machine here. I can find someone to copy it." Claude picked up the leather bag he brought and took out a folder. Opening the folder, in addition to the production drawings of the cigarette making machine, there was also a copy.
plan.
"Master, I feel a little dizzy after smoking." Sergeant Kester said.
Claude knew at a glance that this was a drunken cigarette. In the past, Sergeant Custer would put some tobacco in his pipe and take two puffs, but he couldn't smoke such a cigarette in one breath like today.
"This is Anna's refined tobacco. You idiot, Kester, this puff is as good as the pipe you usually stuff. Of course you will get dizzy if you smoke more than ten pipes at a time. You will be fine if you lie down for a while.
"Claude could only shake his head. He just wanted Sergeant Kuster to take a few sips, but he didn't expect that he would finish the whole cigarette silently.
Clicking on the plan in the folder, Claude said: "There are five tobacco formulas here, all tested by Anna. There are mint flavors, suitable for women to smoke, and there are four tobacco qualities, from
From high to low, we can produce five kinds of cigarettes. The highest quality tobacco can be used to produce cigars, which is what it looks like. It is purely handmade. This kind of green bark paper needs to be customized, and the wrapping shape is different from that of cigarettes, but this
It can be sold at a high price and sold as luxury consumables.
The next four types can all be made into cigarettes, with a pack of twenty cigarettes and different prices. Cigarettes made with tobacco residue are the spiciest, have the strongest flavor, are the lowest priced and have the least profit. However, these cigarettes rely on volume.
I believe it will be very popular among people at the lowest level. Some medicinal herbs can be added to the production of the other three types of tobacco to reduce the smell of smoke and make the smoker's breath fragrant. The formula proportions have been written here, just follow this formula to make it."
Claude handed the plan to Butler Alrick, who was very excited: "Sir, am I really responsible for this?"
Claude nodded: "Of course, you are the most trusted person in our family. This business is related to the prosperity of our Field family for the next hundred years. If it is not left to you, who will be responsible for it?"
"Sir, madam, I promise to do my best to complete this mission and not let you down." Butler Alrick expressed his determination.
"Kafni, how much money do you have left at home?" Claude asked.
Kaifani replied: "There are still more than 34,000 gold crowns."
"I will go to the bank tomorrow and transfer 70,000 gold crowns to you. To prepare for this cigarette production workshop, our family will invest 100,000 gold crowns first." Claude thought for a while and said, "You are responsible for the finances, and Butler Alec is responsible for it.
Coordinate and arrange the production management outside, and all necessary fund allocations will be reviewed and processed by you. Kester asked him to be responsible for the security of this cigarette production workshop. By the way, there is also the old man named Zachary Larson, what is he doing at home now?
"
This Zakarason was the old man who was the envoy sent by the governor of Tiersim to persuade Claude. As a result, he received three big slaps from the big man Gemi, and was tied up by Claude and taken to Tiersim.
Directly-administered territories. After the three direct-administered territories were brought under the jurisdiction of the war zone, the old man saw the opportunity early and defected to Claude. He was also considered successful in the purification operation that forced the Nikancha people from the three direct-administered territories to go north.
Some credit.
Later, when Claude left the Tiersim Direct Territory, he wanted to make this old man Lakarason an administrative civil servant in the Tiersim Direct Territory based on this credit, and planned to let him eat a public meal and be more stable. But it didn't happen.
Thinking that this old man only relied on his mouth and had no ability in his hands, and he kept making troubles in his official duties, he soon couldn't stay any longer, so he resigned and went to join Claude. Because he could talk, he could chat with his mother.
Damn it, Claude should just think that he has a Qingke, and he is not a poor person anyway.
"Sir, Zach Karassen is teaching the eldest young master how to play chess these days." Butler Yarick replied.
"Tesore has the temperament to learn to play chess?" Claude said in surprise: "You can just say that old man Zach Karassen is playing with Tesore. Tomorrow you ask Zach Karassen to report to you, this old man
If you are a good talker, ask him to go to Arturas to buy tobacco. By the way, I remember that there is still a lot of tobacco stored in the dock warehouse area of Decopichus Port. Ask Zach Karason to find General Skree and ask.
Are you willing to sell the tobacco in the war zone..."
"Okay, sir, I'll let him do some work tomorrow," Butler Yarick said.
Claude waved his hand: "That's not necessary. Just let him spend the New Year's Eve before going to work. The same goes for you."