The worker recruitment process lasted a full two hours before finally concluding. The 150 female workers who were selected joyfully ran home, some laughing as they ran, some crying as they ran, and others laughing and shouting, as if possessed.
Those who were not selected looked like frostbitten eggplants, their spirits drooping almost instantly. Some even burst into tears on the spot, while others were so distraught they could barely walk.
This scene is no exaggeration, at least for this era.
After all, the benefits Van der Linde offered were simply too good, so good that they could directly make their families prosperous and comfortable from then on.
Even the entire family, young and old, could live a decent life on the thirty dollars a month.
If Ms. Alice hadn't seen the chaotic situation and called in some police officers to maintain order, there might have been angry killings on the spot.
These long-oppressed poor people had suffered to the extreme, and the ray of hope that finally appeared could make them fight with bloodshot eyes to seize it.
Van der Linde recorded the names of all the recruited employees and once again made a promise to the women who were not recruited.
"Ladies, ladies who were not recruited this time, please do not be disheartened, do not be disappointed. Our recruitment is not a one-time event; our factory will continue to expand in the future, and relevant personnel recruitment will still take place again! So please go back and wait for some time. When we recruit again next time, Ms. Dorothea, Ann, and Ms. Alice will still be the ones to notify you. Please pay close attention to the news from the Women's Association. Our factory's recruitment news will be released on the Women's Association's platform!"
Van der Linde delivered another blow of benefit.
It directly stunned Ms. Dorothea, Ann, and Ms. Alice.
Damn it! The news will be released on the Women's Association's platform! Who could imagine the implications of this?
Van der Linde's recruitment conditions are so superior that today's events will surely spread rapidly in Saint Denis, Rhodes, and even throughout Louisiana.
And by then, countless women will be paying attention to the Women's Association every day, watching for news from the Women's Association, and for the release of Van der Linde's recruitment news.
And this will undoubtedly bring enormous exposure and massive support to the Women's Association!
If printing the deeds of Ms. Dorothea and the other two ladies on the clothing labels was a huge sweet reward for them, then this news gave them a huge cake, as big as the Earth.
It made their minds completely dizzy, almost uncontrollable.
Their eyes looking at Van der Linde were utterly fervent. They couldn't imagine why this man always had such brilliant ideas!
He had made them incredibly rich with seemingly little effort; it was hard to imagine how sagacious he was!
Ms. Dorothea and the other two ladies completely turned into Van der Linde's fangirls, following him around and showering him with compliments.
From the beginning, they felt their status was much higher than Van der Linde's, then they felt they should be equals with Van der Linde, and now, they had completely regarded Van der Linde as an idol, as God, as an omnipotent deity.
Van der Linde truly was a god, because every idea he had proposed to them from the beginning until now was a classic! It was a textbook operation!
Not only did the three ladies feel this way, but everyone in the Van der Linde Gang also looked at Van der Linde with fervor.
If the old Van der Linde relied on chivalry to make himself charismatic and become the elder brother of the Van der Linde Gang, then the current Van der Linde relied on his intellect to completely become the deity of the Van der Linde Gang!
Ms. Camille, standing nearby, watched Van der Linde with an unceasing sparkle in her eyes, her face full of interest.
However, she still had some issues to deal with during this period, so she made no further moves.
On the other hand, Ms. O'Shea genuinely had a good relationship with the three ladies of the family, and they spent an afternoon shopping in Saint Denis.
Time slowly passed, until five o'clock in the afternoon.
"Choo-choo-choo-choo…" The train whistle sounded, and black smoke billowed from the chimney.
With a piercing sound, the train slowly started, carrying one hundred sewing machines, various raw materials, and one hundred and fifty new employees towards Valentine.
Van der Linde stood on the train and waved goodbye to Ms. Dorothea, Ann, Alice, and Ms. Camille, who had come to see them off.
The factory had not yet started operations, and the clothing store had not yet opened, so they would not be going this time. However, they had already agreed to go to Valentine for a ribbon-cutting ceremony when the clothing store opened.
This was at Van der Linde's request. Since he had given Mr. Sheriff of Valentine something to look forward to, he naturally wanted to ensure that anticipation was fully realized, lest Mr. Sheriff be disappointed.
A person's integrity is the most important thing. Since he made a promise, even if it's a pipe dream, he has to at least sketch it out for people to see.
A long train, carrying the hopes of an entire carload of families and the future of the Van der Linde Gang, slowly advanced towards Valentine.
After almost an entire night, the train finally pulled into Valentine's train station.
"John, Charles, go and book all the carriages in Valentine. Also, have these female workers and their families help transport the sewing machines onto the carriages.
Hosea, old friend, let's go. We two will go to Valentine Police Station and borrow some police officers from Sheriff Malloy.
Arthur, bring some of the gifts we brought back from Saint Denis."
Van der Linde got off the train and stood on the station platform, directing everyone.
"Okay, Van der Linde." Arthur stood up and picked up a pile of small gifts placed nearby.
These small gifts were not bought by them, but given by Ms. Dorothea and the other ladies. They were all kinds of high-end tobacco and alcohol, given in especially large quantities. Arthur only took two cartons of high-end cigarettes and two bottles of liquor, then followed Van der Linde off the train.
John and Charles received their orders and first went to the stable to rent carriages. It would likely take at least a day of round trips to transport these sewing machines and the ladies back.
A police officer patrolling near the post office saw Van der Linde and his group and jogged over to greet them.
"Oh, Mr. Arthur! Good morning, sir!"
Van der Linde smiled and returned the greeting.
"Good morning, officer."
"Hey, buddy!" Arthur, following Van der Linde, called out to the officer, then threw him a box of high-end cigarettes.
"Ah, thank you, Mr. Arthur, thank you, Mr. Hosea!" The officer beamed, jogging over to act as Van der Linde's subordinate.
"Oh, officer, where is Sheriff Malloy now? I would like to ask him for a little help."
"Here, sir, I'll take you there!" The officer nodded and bowed, fawningly leading the way, looking at the exquisitely packaged cigarette in his hand, which he had never even seen before, wishing he could kneel on the ground to serve.
He even felt exceptionally proud.
Mr. Arthur, the recently famous gentleman in Valentine, treated him with such courtesy; this was simply too prestigious for him!
Van der Linde and the other two followed the officer towards Valentine Police Station.
Along the way, every police officer they saw jogged over to greet Van der Linde, after all, this was the god of wealth for their police station, the god of wealth who would give them a set of clothes every year after the clothing store was built!
Van der Linde smiled and responded to each one, while Arthur distributed cigarettes box by box behind him, giving away one carton of cigarettes he had.
This carton of cigarettes was for them, and another carton of cigarettes and two bottles of good liquor were for Sheriff Malloy to show off with.
Valentine would be their base of operations, and in this place, they needed to be willing to spend money, at least to win over the hearts of the entire Valentine community, only then could they ensure stability in the later stages.
Van der Linde believed that merchants always prioritized harmony, and using small gains to exchange for large gains was the essence of a merchant.
If one is unwilling to part with small gains, then large gains are simply out of the question.