kingnovel Chapter 441 There's a Way Out
Chapter 441 There's a Way Out
Chapter 441 A Way Out
Fang Da and his two brothers were so happy that they all showed off their two front teeth. They never imagined that one day they would become famous figures on this road.
The next day, Miao Qian was so excited when he heard from Yin En that the people of Linxun Town had a way to make a living that he almost fell off his stool.
"Hey, Miao Li, slow down!"
Yin En's eyes were full of smiles, and she felt a little sorry for the young man in front of her who seemed to have aged a lot these days.
He had complained before, but considering that Miao Qian was so young and had been thrown here, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he was left to fend for himself.
These past few years have been wasted in their poor, remote place, where they can't do anything they want.
"Mayor Yin, please tell me quickly, what is this way of making a living?!"
Miao Qian grabbed his hand and asked anxiously, but Qi Shu estimated that it would be a while before they arrived, so he had to wait patiently, as impatient as a kitten scratching an itch.
Just as he was about to lose his composure, Qi Shu finally arrived, and with someone helping him, he walked very quickly.
When they arrived, Yin En mentioned that Wen Luozhi had come to talk to him about planting Sichuan peppercorns that morning.
Miao Qian only recently learned about Sichuan pepper. He only knew that a merchant from out of town who came here temporarily needed it, so he reclaimed some fragmented land and recruited people from the desolate town to grow it.
But Linxun Town has at least a hundred people, not counting those who can't work. Can they all eat?
He voiced his concerns, and Ian reassured him that he would know in a couple of days.
The three of them talked until evening before parting ways, still feeling reluctant to leave. Yin En slept soundly, while Miao Qian and Qi Shu had a sleepless night.
Two days later, the Wenluozhi people went directly to the place where the people of Linxun Town were being settled.
She and the able-bodied men in town have taken charge of cooking; now it's the men from outside town's turn.
When Yin En and the others arrived, Wen Luozhi had already explained what the job entailed and the wages and benefits twice. The rest was up to them to see if they were willing to do it.
"Anyone who dares to say they're not willing can get back to Linxun Town right now. Anyone who's willing to cheat or shirk their duty should also get back to Linxun Town."
Qi Shu shouted in a clear and resounding voice, and thankfully these people were determined to do it and would not let him down.
Wen Luozhi divided them into several groups and had Miao Qian and his group lead people to the fragmented land they had previously scouted.
After she finished preparing the ingredients for lunch and brought them over, she suddenly felt a little worried when she saw the small plots of land in front of her.
This place is so fragmented and desolate, it's as if no one has ever cared about it since the beginning of time.
She felt that she definitely wouldn't be able to continue doing it, but the people of Linxun Town were working on it with great enthusiasm.
Although Qi Shu had to keep an eye on them, he wasn't idle either; he was also tidying up the ground and occasionally tapping them.
"Mayor Qi, all the ingredients for today's lunch are here. The aunties will be here soon."
Qi Shu stared blankly at the cart full of things, not yet able to react. Is this how you manage to provide a meal?
This……
Looking at the meat and vegetables, he thought to himself that this was far too extravagant.
He remembered that Wen Luozhi had already given him the money for the next five days' meals, and that they should go buy the groceries themselves, for a total of one hundred and fifty taels.
She estimated that there were enough people, and she thought it should be able to finish in five days, but she would still have to work on the pepper seedlings for a while.
Qi Shu nearly dropped the bag of silver. Realizing what he had done, he quickly grabbed a handful and tried to return the rest, saying, "No need for so much, Boss Wen. Let's just have some porridge to tide us over."
Besides, everyone gets paid, so if they get hungry they can buy something to eat.
Wen Luozhi shook her head. "Since everyone has worked for me, I can't treat you unfairly. Miao Li said to go to him if you need any help."
She gave a few more instructions, which were nothing more than telling everyone to eat their fill, not to cause trouble, and to work hard.
As the carriage slowly drove away, Qi Shu watched it recede into the distance, clutching the silver in his arms, tears streaming down his face.
"Mayor, what's wrong?" a woman who had come to cook asked, her eyes widening as she saw the meat and vegetables in the field.
"Is this...is this what we're supposed to do?" she asked naively, ignoring the fact that Qi Shu's face was covered in tears.
Qi Shu clutched the silver tightly to his chest, nodded to the women, and instructed them, "The master treats us well, so we mustn't waste a single bit of these things. We should save on oil and other condiments wherever possible."
The women understood and quickly got to work, while the two little children they had brought along also helped start the fire.
After the meal, no one mentioned taking a break, even though Wen Luozhi had told them earlier that they could rest for half an hour after lunch.
With something to look forward to, no one wanted to be idle. As a result, exceeding Wen Luozhi's expectations, Miao Qian cleaned up the broken pieces of land he had found in just three days.
She led the pepper seedlings over there, and when she arrived, she found that the temporary thatched huts they had used before were gone, replaced by several large "houses" made of mud and pebbles.
It wasn't piled up very high, but the top was covered with a thick layer of weeds, probably for rain protection.
The mud houses were covered with weeds on several sides, and the piles of weeds were neatly arranged. If you didn't know they were made of mud, you would think they were straw houses.
Wow, the people of Linxun Town are incredibly skilled with their hands.
Come to think of it, someone who can live among a group of strange rocks for so long must have some skills.
She was surprised; she hadn't expected that besides cleaning up the mess, they would have time to figure out where they could live.
Upon hearing the sound of the carriage, Qi Shu darted out of a mud house, his hands still covered in mud.
"Mr. Wen, please sit over there. We haven't finished everything here yet."
Qi Shu wiped his hands and led her to the largest mud house. When she went inside, she found it was a completely different world.
The places to sit and sleep were actually made of mud, but covered with weeds.
She carefully and gently sat down, afraid that she would break the mud stool.
Qi Shu laughed and said, "Boss Wen, don't worry about this mud thing being weak. It's a family heirloom, it won't collapse!"
He looked confident, and Wen Luozhi, hearing this, felt reassured and sat down without worry, thinking that at worst she would fall on her bottom.
The mud stool under her bottom didn't react at all, which reminded her of the house games she used to play as a child.
They used to make things with mud back then, but it would crumble after it dried, but this one didn't!
She gave a sincere compliment before getting down to business.
The pepper seedlings we got this time are taller than the ones planted by the people in the desolate town before, and they have more roots, so we have to be careful when planting them.
Qi Shu called everyone together to listen to her explain the precautions, and then waited for her to teach a few people before dividing them into groups to teach the rest.
Fearing that the pepper seedlings wouldn't be as vigorous if planted overnight, they would light torches at night to finish planting them that day.
When Wen Luozhi heard Yin En talk about it, she was both amused and exasperated. She had to admit that these people were really enthusiastic about their work, and they didn't even think about earning an extra day's wages if they failed the next day.
Hmm, not bad, they were all great, except when they robbed their stall...
On her last trip to the Black Mountain Mine, Wen Luozhi brought everything she could think of.
Remembering the enhanced version of the bad luck charm she posted last time, she had been eagerly anticipating what this shameless, greedy ghost would look like this time.
Hehe, after all, she's the first person to use the enhanced version, so she wants to see how effective it is.