Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 169: Chapter 165, time to lay the cards on the table: I found you a stepmom, do you have any objections?

Luo Shang also understood what Yang Zhenshan meant. After thinking it over, he said, ”I can give it a try, but I can’t say for certain how much I’ll be able to achieve.”

Yang Zhenshan took another sip of tea and said, ”Before you go to Jing’an Prefecture, make a trip to Anning County. Take my letter and pay a visit to the Lu family and Luo Jin!”

Jing’an Prefecture is not Yang Zhenshan’s main stage, but it is his hometown.

Although the Lu family is in Anning County, it is considered a prestigious family in Jing’an Prefecture.

And although Luo Jin is just a County Magistrate, he has some connections in the prefectural city.

With support from these two parties, Luo Shang didn’t dare to predict how much he could achieve, but he wouldn’t come back empty-handed, right?

Yang Zhenshan was sending him to Jing’an Prefecture, of course, he would have some strategies planned to assist him.

”I understand. I will visit the Lu family and County Magistrate Luo first!” Luo Shang visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

If he relied solely on himself, an outsider trying to extend his reach into Jing’an Prefecture was almost an impossibility.

Purchasing a shop and conducting minor business might be feasible, but achieving anything noteworthy was utterly out of reach.

”As for the third matter, actually, I would like you to find some livelihoods for the military households of An Yuan City. The military households live in such poverty, I hope you can provide them with some stable jobs to improve their lives a bit!”

This was Yang Zhenshan’s main objective.

To alleviate poverty, one cannot do without agriculture and commerce.

In terms of agriculture, Yang Zhenshan didn’t have much room to maneuver; it was through commerce where Yang Zhenshan could make use of Luo Shang’s business.

When he was in Yinghe Castle, the prosperity of Yinghe Castle also developed with the help of Luo Shang.

And now, Yang Zhenshan needed Luo Shang similarly.

This was also why Yang Zhenshan was willing to support Luo Shang.

It wasn’t really about how much silver Luo Shang could bring him; Yang Zhenshan didn’t care about that. He needed silver, but he could earn it himself. Once the horse farm was established, he definitely wouldn’t lack silver.

By comparison, the commercial activities brought by Luo Shang could allow the military households within his jurisdiction to live better lives, which is what’s most important.

It’s just like poverty alleviation in the past, where large enterprises were encouraged to assist, because they could invest, provide a large number of job positions, and help a location develop.

”But I only need shopkeepers and assistants, can they do it?” Luo Shang asked.

”Shopkeepers might not, but assistants just need a bit of training!”

”In addition to assistants, you also need embroidery girls!”

”What do you think about setting up a school for embroidery girls?” said Yang Zhenshan.

Giving a man a fish is not as good as teaching him to fish.

In a typical civilian family, an embroidery girl is considered a high-paying profession; a skilled embroidery girl can earn several dozen or even a hundred pieces of silver a year, which is quite normal.

If a military household had an embroidery girl, it meant one less impoverished household.

Back when he was in Linguan Castle, Yang Zhenshan established a needlework workshop, and now there are quite a few qualified embroidery girls there. Although these women were not spectacular embroidery artists, they could still make ends meet.

”An embroidery school?” Luo Shang was a bit stunned.

Can embroidery girls attend school too?

He found it hard to wrap his head around the concept.

Seeing Luo Shang’s perplexed look, Yang Zhenshan could only explain in detail.

In fact, this embroidery school is akin to a vocational school; it doesn’t need to be large, just a few dozen students at a time would suffice, and the training won’t take too long—half a year would be enough.

Once they had mastered the basics, they could enter Luo Shang’s Jinxiu Workshop and continue to intern while furthering their education.

However, there are some issues involved. Firstly, these people would need concentrated training, which would require them to be sent to the city of An Yuan State; with the backing of the garrison office, there shouldn’t be any major problems.