“Ah, this…”

It was rare for Zhang Mingtu to see Ruihai in such an embarrassed state. He suddenly felt like teasing him and deliberately put on a stern face.

"This silver..."

Ruihai looked at Zhang Mingtu's expression and felt more and more embarrassed after hearing these words.

"This silver... is a bit too much."

"If that's not enough, I'll go sell a few more paintings, okay?"

Ruihai reacted only after he finished speaking. He saw Zhang Mingtu's originally serious face suddenly turned into a smile. He understood that he was being fooled by Zhang Mingtu, and he couldn't help laughing for a moment.

But after a moment, Rui Hai immediately reacted and asked, "Is three taels of silver enough to buy everyone in the county government a good meal?"

Zhang Mingtu was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "If we treat officials in other areas to a meal like we would, three taels of silver would definitely not be enough. But if we treat them to the same standard as we did when we entertained the Inspector last time, it would be enough to treat everyone in the county government to a meal..."

Ruihai nodded without showing any expression, but Zhang Mingtu knew him very well and knew clearly that he was greatly relieved in his heart, and his temperament was very different from before.

"It's enough to have that standard. That's fine. That's fine."

Rui Hai suddenly frowned halfway through the conversation and asked, "You're not going to pay for it yourself, are you?"

"That's not the case!"

Zhang Mingtu chuckled.

"My Zhang family is famous for our craftsmanship. Whether it's silver carp, bighead carp, grass carp, or carp, they used to be worth very little. They were only eaten by fishermen along the river and poor households. The price was very low, and you could buy one for two or three coins."

"Pork is more expensive, about ten coins per pound. Some small items like eggs cost more. The majority of the meat dishes don't cost that much."

"As for wild game from the mountains, it's not oily and has a strong smell. Ordinary people lack spices, so it's difficult to prepare. Even if it's sold in stores, it usually doesn't fetch a very high price..."

Zhang Mingtu was not talking nonsense. In such ancient times, foods rich in fat were surprisingly popular.

As for pigs, if there is a lot of fat, many people will buy it. Fatty meat is more expensive than lean meat, which is very different from Zhang Mingtu's previous life.

However, Zhang Mingtu could also understand that the material resources during this period were far less abundant than those in later generations.

Daily work is quite physically demanding, and high-calorie food fats and oils are readily available and are easily sought after.

Crabs, fish and shrimps, which were very popular in later generations, were actually not very popular during this period because they were high in protein, low in calories and low in fat, as they could not satisfy people's hunger.

During this period, there was no such comprehensive nutrition science, but simple people would vote with their feet, and they knew very well what to eat to fill their stomachs.

Ruihai often conducts research in various places, so he is not unaware of the situation. However, he is used to seeing some of his colleagues having extravagant and wasteful banquets, so he is a little confused for a while.

“That’s right!”

Thinking about the fact that the main meat dishes at the last banquet were fish, Ruihai slapped his head and felt that he was too naive.

After learning about this situation, Ruihai felt more confident and relieved than before.

"Since we're making these string vegetables in the county government's kitchen, the cost of the sprouts, oil, salt, and the like should all be included in the bill. We can't let personal matters override public ones. After all, this is a celebration of my promotion, and the dishes are richer than usual. You could say I took the initiative to add them, but the extra oil, salt, spices, and the like still need to be included..."

Zhang Mingtu nodded to show that he understood.

He had long anticipated Ruihai's integrity, but he did not expect Ruihai to calculate it so clearly.

From this perspective, Ruihai’s integrity is a bit too much, and it is somewhat out of tune with the entire era.

However, although Ruihai has high demands on itself, it never holds others to such standards.

He always knows how to grasp the main issues and will not be too harsh on others in these minor aspects.

Zhang Mingtu was surprised to see someone like Ruihai in such an era.

But at the same time, he felt very comfortable. Some of Ruihai's ideas were similar to those of many people in later generations.

To use his previous life's words, Ruihai's three views are closer to his. Ruihai firmly believes that all people are born equal. Because of different destinies or backgrounds and environments, everyone's circumstances are different, but in terms of personality, everyone is equal.

Ruihai never thinks that being born in a poor family or a noble family makes one superior, nor does he think that martial arts masters are different from others and should be given special treatment.

After giving instructions on the relevant matters, Ruihai thought about it on the spot. Feeling that there was nothing wrong, he nodded, turned around and walked back to the county government office with his hands behind his back.

He has only been working here for a short time and will be promoted soon, so he needs to arrange the work in all aspects. There is actually quite a lot to do.

Zhang Mingtu, on the contrary, relaxed a bit. He even leisurely strolled to Ximen Vegetable Market to prepare various cooking ingredients.

Ruihai would definitely not do such a thing as slacking off during working hours, but Zhang Mingtu did it without any psychological burden. He had completed the entire work and done it quite well.

Then he can use this free time to do his own things or do other people's things without feeling too much guilt.

After all, he only gets a small salary a month, and he already worries enough about this country.

Destroying secret bases left by spies from other countries, hunting down demons on a daily basis, and investigating people's livelihood, he is simply too busy to stop.

In this case, my main work has not been delayed, and I have even done my main work very well. In this case, what's wrong with me slacking off during working hours?

Go sue me!

Sorry, he is the person responsible for investigating corruption among officials and monitoring the people's livelihood in various places.

Besides, how can you say you're slacking off during work hours? Going to the market to buy groceries is also a way of investigating the local living standards and consumption levels.

Zhang Mingtu really didn't have too much psychological burden, and he also observed it by the way.

Compared to before, Ximen Market has become much more prosperous overall.

There are more people coming and going to barter or trade goods, and you can see all kinds of rare wild delicacies, various special mushrooms, and some special game, such as rabbits and pheasants.

This suggests that people were better fed and had more free time for activities like hunting.

Many people had smiles on their faces. There were fewer transactions of rice and other grains in the market than usual, but there were more novel things.

Ruihai's reforms were quite successful. At least in terms of land and food, many people now had access to land.