In earlier years, his father had valued his eldest brother and Jiaxing, thinking they were good at everything, while viewing him as a pile of dog excrement, despising him beyond measure. He felt truly stifled inside.
If he hadn’t wanted to achieve something to make his father see him differently, he wouldn’t have become confused and made that grave mistake. Being beaten with a paddle in front of the servants was truly the height of humiliation.
These past two years, he had gone to Huizhou, working tirelessly and desperately, also hoping to show his father that he, Ye Hongrong, wasn’t completely useless.
Now, with the opportunity to step over his eldest brother, what did a little hardship matter?
Seeing him silent, Madam Zhang quickly added, “If you don’t agree, Yaming will ask Jiaxing to do it. Jiaxing would certainly be happy to run around.”
Ye Hongrong immediately asked, “Then shall I go reply to Yaming?”
“Go!” Madam Zhang’s words were firm and resolute.
So Ye Hongrong turned around and returned to the hall.
Inside, Old Lady Ye was asking Ye Yaming what those words meant. She was most fond of Ye Hongrong and naturally hoped her youngest son could stay by her side, not going to a place as far away as Huizhou.
To put it bluntly, at her advanced age, who knew when she might pass away? With her youngest son so far away, if something happened to her, they might not even see each other one last time.
Ye Yaming understood the old lady’s thoughts.
And although Ye Chongming didn’t say anything, these past two years Ye Hongrong had known to improve himself, and his father had increasingly valued this youngest son. Moreover, growing old, he also hoped his sons would be nearby, or at least in closer proximity.
Ye Yaming patiently explained to the old lady, “We can’t completely hand over the businesses in Huizhou and Minzhou to stewards if none of us go there. Over time, problems would inevitably arise. So when there’s business, we need to send someone, and even when there isn’t, we should go once or twice a year to remind them who owns these businesses. At the same time, we need to maintain relationships with local officials and gentry.”
Ye Chongming spoke up, “It may seem like just running errands, but Yaming’s methods in business and handling affairs are considerably better than mine. If Hongrong can learn by her side, it would be greatly beneficial for him.”
“But don’t interfere in this matter. Let Hongrong choose for himself. If he can’t understand this much, forcibly keeping him here would only breed resentment.”
Old Lady Ye was about to speak when she heard the maids outside paying respects: “Fourth Master, Fourth Mistress.” She quickly closed her mouth.
Ye Hongrong and Madam Zhang appeared at the doorway.
Ye Hongrong entered without wasting words, getting straight to the point: “Father, Mother, Yaming, I’ve just thought it over. Yaming wants to keep me here to work shows that she values me, and I’m very willing to stay.”
All three in the room were pleased.
“Thank you, Fourth Uncle,” Ye Yaming said with a smile.
Ye Chongming nodded, “Then do your job well, and don’t pull rank on Yaming just because you’re her uncle.”
“I understand, I understand,” Ye Hongrong said with a smile.
When Ye Hongchang and Madam Tao learned of this news, it was during the family dinner that evening.
Madam Tao nearly changed expression right on the spot.
Only after finishing dinner and returning to the courtyard of the first branch did she angrily say to Ye Hongchang, “What does Yaming mean by this? You’ve already returned to Lin’an, and Jiaxing is also here. Why does she still need to keep Fourth Brother at home?”
When she heard that the fourth branch would be going to Huizhou, she couldn’t have been happier. She and Madam Zhang didn’t get along at all, and she also greatly disliked Ye Hongrong. The farther this family could go, the better.
With the fourth branch gone to Huizhou and the second branch in the capital, their first branch would remain in Lin’an, and life would be incomparably smooth.
Yet in one evening, those who had said they were about to leave suddenly weren’t leaving—it was Ye Yaming’s mischief.
Ye Hongchang glanced at her and said, “Didn’t you hear what Father said? Yaming wants Fourth Brother to stay here to run errands.”
“Run errands? Can’t Jiaxing do that?” Madam Tao said irritably.
“If Yaming asked Jiaxing to run errands, you definitely wouldn’t be happy, saying it’s either too cold or too hot, or worrying about him falling ill on the road. If Yaming asked him to run errands, would you be willing?”
These words silenced Madam Tao.
She had only this one son. Madam Guan had given birth to a daughter last year, but their branch still had no grandson to continue the family line. If something happened to Ye Jiaxing on the road, how could she go on living?
“I’ve been to Minzhou and have traveled between the capital and Lin’an these years. I know how hard it is to eat and sleep on the road. The hardship is one thing, but there’s also the constant worry of encountering bandits.”
Recalling that time he nearly lost his life to bandits, Ye Hongchang still felt fear lingering: “Even if you’re willing, I’m not willing to let Jiaxing go. But Father makes sense—when there’s business in Huizhou and Minzhou, we can’t expect Yaming to go, can we?”
“If not Yaming, it should be Second Brother who goes. Doesn’t their second branch take sixty percent of the family assets? It’s only right that Second Brother works harder. They push all the laborious and dangerous work onto others while enjoying life in the capital, and then they still take sixty percent of the family assets. They’re too calculating.”
Hearing this, Ye Hongchang became angry and raised his voice: “Then what about tea production? Whether it’s Longjing, black tea, or Tieguanyin, both father and daughter have to make it. By your logic, I might as well do nothing with Fourth Brother, directly take ten percent of the family assets, and enjoy life at home.”
After Ye Yaming was confirmed as the next family head, she introduced a profit distribution plan—
She and Ye Chongming would oversee everything, each taking five percent of all business revenue, for a total of ten percent. Major stewards like Ye Hongrong, who managed all affairs in Huizhou, would take ten percent of Huizhou’s business revenue. Minor stewards who only managed certain tea gardens or teahouses would take ten percent of that tea garden or teahouse’s revenue.
In other words, the greater the responsibility and the broader the management, the greater the benefits. If one’s ability was insufficient or if one didn’t want to worry too much, managing fewer matters would naturally result in fewer benefits. This profit distribution plan applied to everyone, whether they were members of the Ye family or stewards under the Lu, Qi, or Ye families.
Once someone was found to be managing poorly, with the area under their management showing poor returns, they would be removed and replaced with someone else.
All business managers were evaluated solely on performance, not status. Whether it was Ye Hongchang or Ye Hongsheng, once they proved inadequate, they would be removed without sentimentality.
This avoided the situation of occupying a position without doing the work, thereby harming everyone’s interests.
This management model was applied to both collaborative businesses and the Ye family’s businesses.
After dinner tonight, Ye Yaming had mentioned that Ye Hongrong would serve as her second-in-command steward, receiving two percent of the total revenue. This would come directly from her five percent, leaving her with only three percent, without increasing personnel costs.
Originally, there were only teahouses and tea shops in the capital, which fell under Ye Hongchang’s management, but the revenue wasn’t particularly high. When the tea house opened, Ye Yaming had asked him if he wanted to manage it as well, but Ye Hongchang knew he couldn’t handle dealings with the powerful and didn’t dare to agree.
Now that he had returned to Lin’an, being able to manage these businesses that originally belonged to the Ye family was quite good. The revenue was higher than before in the capital, and Ye Hongchang was fairly satisfied.
Most importantly, Ye Hongchang had realized that he wasn’t as capable as he had imagined, and his two younger brothers weren’t as incompetent as he had thought.