"There are some gaps among the cowboys, but nothing too serious," Robbins Garcia said to Jiang Hai after giving it some thought. "We mostly operate within the manor, and with the help of cattle dogs, things are manageable. If we can recruit a few more hands, great—but we don't need too many. Three should be enough."
He wasn't wrong. With over 20,000 cattle on Jiang Hai's estate, an intensive farming setup would require hundreds—if not thousands—of cowboys to manage the herd.
But here, things were done more loosely. The cattle roamed freely, the meat quality remained high, and the cowboy team, supported by a strong fleet of cattle dogs, could just about keep up.
Still, Jiang Hai's decision to recruit more people made sense.
"If we're hiring three more for the ranch, we should act quickly," Jiang Hai nodded. "I'll see if I can find suitable candidates tonight or by tomorrow. As for the fishery, I'll talk to Edward Anderson."
After parting ways with Robbins Garcia, Jiang Hai made his way to the dock. It was bustling, though not because a fishing trip had just finished or was about to begin.
His fishermen were known for working night shifts. To ensure peak freshness, they fished at night and sorted the catch early in the morning, around five or six. After that, deliveries were made to over a dozen restaurants using the F750 trucks. They hadn't started delivering to Pra Walton's Sam's Club yet, but Jiang Hai was already thinking about buying a berth at Boston Pier. That way, they could dock there directly, and buyers could pick up their fish on-site—more convenient, though admittedly more expensive.
At the dock, Edward Anderson and his crew were busy mending and drying the nets. Leaving them wet after a full day of fishing would ruin them, and these nets weren't cheap—some cost tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. They treated them with care.
Other crew members were tidying the boat and clearing garbage. Organic scraps like leftover rice or fish bones could go into the sea, where fish would eat them. But plastics and other waste had to be brought back to land for proper disposal.
When Edward saw Jiang Hai approaching, he waved.
"Hey, Boss—early start today?" he called out.
"Yeah, been feeling a bit tired lately," Jiang Hai replied with a chuckle. "But I see you guys are putting in a lot of effort too. I actually came to talk about recruitment."
At the mention of recruiting, Edward's eyes lit up.
"About time. Everyone's been stretched thin lately," he said with a sigh, glancing at the worn-looking fishermen behind him. Night work with little time to recover during the day had taken its toll. If it weren't for the excellent pay and food, many might have already burned out.
"Let's aim to start recruiting tonight or tomorrow," Jiang Hai said firmly. He wasn't stingy about wages, but overworking his people would only lead to bigger problems down the line.
"Let's meet tonight and finalize the salaries and benefits. Once that's done, we'll announce the openings. That way, we can attract more qualified applicants by tomorrow," Edward suggested, shaking his head at Jiang Hai's initial impulsive plan.
Jiang Hai paused, then nodded. Edward had a point. If they started scouting tonight without a clear proposal, they'd likely end up fumbling. The best candidates might not hear about it in time, or those approached might hesitate due to uncertainty.
After chatting a bit more, Jiang Hai took Xiao Huang and Xiao Bai home. As he arrived, he noticed Jiujiu swooping down from the sky with a rabbit in its claws, landing gracefully on the villa roof. Spotting Jiang Hai, it chirped a few times.
Jiang Hai waved. Jiujiu responded by gliding down and perching steadily on his arm. Since learning to fly, Jiujiu had grown wild and rarely stayed indoors—except during winter. But it always came home, and that was enough.
Its friend Ban Ya, however, had been a bit gloomy since. With no one to play with, Ban Ya had recently bonded with Baimao, the Greenland seal. Jiang Hai hadn't released Baimao into the sea but kept it in the swimming pool. Darlene and Marian took turns feeding it, often accompanied by the guinea pigs.
The pool provided ample space for swimming, and Baimao had become Ban Ya's new sidekick. If Ban Ya wasn't around, it was almost guaranteed to be by Baimao's side.
After spending a moment playing with Jiujiu, Jiang Hai returned to the villa. He began pondering a new idea: with the estate generating so much income, was it time to raise salaries for the cowboys and sailors? Although he'd been generous with bonuses, a more structured system of compensation and incentives seemed overdue.
Later that evening, when the lights came on and dinner was done, Edward Anderson and Robbins Garcia arrived at the villa. Since the cowboys and fishermen were still busy, these two came as representatives.
Jiang Hai greeted them warmly and got straight to the point.
"It's been nearly two years since I came to Winthrop, and I really appreciate all your support. I've decided to formalize our pay structure. I can't keep handing out bonuses on a whim."
Both men perked up instantly at the mention of wages and bonuses.
Unlike in some other cultures, where people might respond with polite refusals, Americans didn't hide their enthusiasm for money—especially not when a raise was on the table.
"I've worked out some new figures," Jiang Hai said, pulling out a stack of contracts he'd drafted and faxed to Moses Adams that afternoon.
"For the cowboys: Robbins, your salary goes up to $2,500 a week. Burke Dahler, Philemon Turner, Harriman Fells, and Bell Lester will each get $1,500. Bell's also handling manor security, so he'll receive a separate contract with $2,000 per week. New hires will start at $1,000."
Robbins Garcia's eyes widened. At $2,500 a week, he'd be earning $130,000 annually—before bonuses. The others, at $1,500 a week, would pull in $78,000. Even Bell's $2,000 seemed fair, considering the added responsibility.
"For the fishermen," Jiang Hai continued, "Edward, your weekly salary is also $2,500. Tommy Charles, Enol Ceci, Andrew Christian, and Maren Rupert get $1,500. Maren has a special contract—he's flying planes and helicopters—so he gets an extra $1,000."
Edward nodded. Although the cowboys saw a bigger percentage jump, he was happy with the raise. What mattered most to him was the bonus system.
"As for benefits," Jiang Hai went on, "room and board are included. You'll stay in the worker villas—two per room—and eat here at the manor. But the real highlight is the bonus. Each year, 0.2% of our total beef or seafood sales will be distributed equally among the cowboys and fishermen."
Both men began doing quick mental math. Most farms only offer 1% total, but that's because they barely earn anything—maybe a few hundred thousand annually.
But Jiang Hai's farm was different.
Even at $150,000 per head, with 20,000 cows, that's $3 billion in revenue. Two-thousandths of that is $6 million. With eight people, each could take home $750,000 in bonuses.
And if they scaled to 30,000 cows? That would be $4.5 billion in sales—$9 million in bonuses.
For the fishery, the numbers weren't far behind. Edward estimated around $2.5 billion in annual seafood sales. Two-thousandths of that is $5 million. Even if they hired four more people and had nine total, each would still walk away with over $500,000 in bonuses.
And unlike the cattle herd, the fishery had room to expand. The fish farm wasn't anywhere near capacity, and they could easily increase its area.
Realizing this, both men lit up with excitement.
"Boss, everything in the contract looks good," Robbins Garcia said. "But didn't you mention expanding the pasture after the cattle exhibition?"
Edward immediately chimed in. "That's right. And now that we'll have nine fishermen, maybe it's time to petition the state to include the open sea outside our current fishing grounds."