Chapter 116
The lives of the inhabitants of Yichun Military Colony were much better than those of ordinary people in Yichun. However, not everyone could enjoy such a life. For example, the laborers in the southern area had a relatively poor life, but it was still much better than before.
Because Yao Chunnuan came from a laboring background and her status within the military settlement was growing, the entire labor district benefited from it. Although Chief Secretary Yao hadn't explicitly stated that he was looking after the laborers in the southern district, her presence was a form of support. The smaller leaders weren't as relentless in their beatings and scolding of the laborers as they had been before, but there were still instances of them being beaten and scolded for mistakes.
Today's laborers can also earn work points, but a day's work earns only half as many points as ordinary settlers. Ordinary settlers only need to work twenty fields a month on the public land to earn enough for a month's food. They would have to work non-stop for a month to earn enough for their own food, but compared to the frequent hunger of the past, this situation is much better. A diligent family can get by.
But sometimes, the laborers found themselves doing the same work as ordinary villagers, and when the work points were recorded at the end of the day, they only got five while others got ten. They couldn't help but feel a little envious, but also a little discouraged.
But this mentality completely dissipated when they saw the Diluo people captured by their military settlement being driven to work and only getting half a meal at each meal. Moreover, these captives were doing heavy work such as clearing land, which was very tiring.
Some of the clever laborers immediately realized that the military settlement had likely already been planning to reclaim the wasteland. It was simply that the higher-ups valued their labor, cherishing them, and not treating them like prisoners. Perhaps it was the contrast that brought happiness, and for a moment, these laborers felt both moved and heartbroken. Despite their status as laborers, the military settlement's leadership didn't treat them as inferior; on the contrary, they treated them with care.
Among the higher-ups, the only person who would think of them and consider them was Yao Zhubo. It could be said that, for a moment, Yao Chunnuan surpassed the general in the hearts of the South District laborers and became their leader. However, those clever laborers looked at each other and said nothing. If you love her, don't mention her.
Later, when Yao Chunnuan took command of an army due to force majeure, the capable laborers in the southern district stepped forward one after another and tried their best to join her army, charging into battle for her and risking their lives for her.
Compared to the laborers in the southern area who were relieved after visiting the prisoners' work, the prisoners in Di Luo felt that life was extremely difficult.
One day, a tall and strong captive approached the small leader who was responsible for supervising their work and said in broken Central Plains dialect, "Feed us well and we will work! Work hard!"
Hearing about the food, the young leader was about to whip the prisoner, but was stopped by his companion. The companion went over to him and asked the prisoner, "When you say more work, do you mean more than what you are doing now?"
The captive understood and nodded vigorously, "Yes, if you feed us well, we can clear an extra acre of land a day!"
The little leader, having understood, widened his eyes. "Oh, so you're hiding your strength?" He whipped them over, "You want to be fed? No way." "I'm feeding you so you can escape?"
"Also, even if you don't have enough to eat, you still have to work hard! From now on, you have to reclaim three acres of land for me every day, otherwise don't blame me for beating you!" You want to hide your strength, right? Then you have to squeeze! Fortunately, the little friend was alert, otherwise he would have been kept in the dark.
Dilo: ...
Why? Not only do they not feed themselves, but they also make them work harder?! The people of Daliang are horrible.
Many Diluo captives discovered that the Daliang forces that had captured them were different from those they had fought before. Those previous forces would have been beheaded if they were captured. This group, however, spared them their heads. Instead, they forced them to work and didn't even give them enough to eat. They were even more ruthless than the Zhou Ba Pi people of Daliang.
What’s even more terrifying is that a steady stream of tribesmen are captured by them.
Even those among them who were fluent in the Central Plains dialect heard their captor, the Daliang soldier, happily tell his companions, after handing over the prisoners, that he had captured two prisoners today, earned 100 merit points, and could treat them to braised pork in the small canteen. No wonder the Daliang soldiers' eyes lit up when they spotted them, and they rushed towards them with roars. So, could they really get a lot of braised pork by capturing them?
"Pa! Hurry up and work. Why are you daydreaming? Do you want to be lazy again?" The little boss's scolding voice rang out.
When the work was over, one of the Di Luo captives looked back. After so many days of work, they had already cleared a field for Daliang. For a moment, he felt a pang of sadness. He thought, he had never been so diligent in his life. When he didn't have enough food or supplies, he just came to Yichun to rob. After all, the Daliang people couldn't do anything to him. He imagined that most of his tribe felt the same way.
Unexpectedly, they were caught and forced to work! Will he be able to support countless people in Daliang with his own hands in the future? When he thought of this, tears streamed down his face.
******
That day, Yao Chunnuan finished her shift, returned home, hugged her daughter, and then went back to the study to work.
Mother Yao made her a cup of tea and brought it into the study.
Yao Chunnuan realized that the person who came was Yao's mother. After taking the tea, she asked, "Mom, is there something wrong?"
Yao's mother said, "It's like this, your uncle has sent a letter."
Yao Chunnuan was stunned at first, then after thinking about it for a moment, she knew who she was talking about.
The uncle her mother mentioned was actually her cousin. But because her mother had no brothers, this cousin treated her very well before her mother got married. Later, when her mother got married and lived far away, every Mid-Autumn Festival and Spring Festival, this cousin would still send his son to bring gifts to the Yao family, just like a married couple.
Her uncle made a living by slaughtering pigs, and because of his good knife skills, he even served as an executioner in the government office.
When Yao Chunnuan got into trouble, her uncle was busy running around for several days. After she was released, her cousins took him home. Because she was in a coma, she didn't see him.
Years ago, when Yao Chunnuan sent someone back to bring the Yao family to Yichun, time was tight, the family was busy, and the two families lived far apart. Yao's mother had no time to visit her parents' home to inform them. In the end, she only left a letter and asked her nephew to help pass it on. It is unknown when her uncle and her mother contacted each other, but they kept exchanging letters.
Yao Chunnuan asked, "What did the letter say?"
"He said he also wanted to move his family to Yichun."
"Did you say why?"
Yao's mother shook her head. "The reason wasn't mentioned in the letter. They only said that this year's harvest was bad. Wasn't there a severe drought this year? The capital was also one of the drought-affected areas. I guess their livelihoods have been affected."
After hearing this, Yao Chunnuan understood. When the Yao family relocated, her uncle had expressed considerable regret, even complaining in letters to her mother that he hadn't been consulted. Clearly, her uncle valued their proximity to the capital—the emperor's feet. He firmly believed their place was under the city's protection. His desire to leave was likely fueled by the imperial relief efforts, which had made him realize that proximity to the emperor didn't guarantee his protection.
"By the way, the last time I wrote to you, I also wrote about the latest situation in the military settlement and told him that Yichun was less affected by the drought. I also told you that your uncle, Dr. Ba, has moved into the military settlement. Could it be related to this?" Mother Yao said a little nervously.
"Mom, please write back and tell him and his family to come without worry, but it's best to hire a group of escorts before they leave. Then, I'll send someone to meet them halfway. We'll prepare a house and other things for them."
Yao's mother smiled and said, "That's great."
When my mother was a child, she was taken care of a lot by her cousin. Her cousin wanted to move his family to Yichun, but she had no say in the decision, which made her very upset. Fortunately, her own daughter did not let her worry for too long. She agreed almost as soon as her mother asked.
She welcomed any relatives who came to her home in Yichun, as long as they weren't troublemakers. She even accepted so many poor people from Yichun who came to her military settlement, so how could she not accommodate a few relatives?
Furthermore, military settlements will enter a period of rapid development. By then, it is expected that necessary activities such as madam diplomacy will emerge to supplement and make up for the shortcomings of formal social interactions.
In fact, we already have wife diplomacy now, and it will become more and more important.
Her situation was unique, and she couldn't get along with the women in the family. It wasn't that they couldn't get along; she could please anyone as long as she catered to their preferences. But she didn't think it was necessary. The daily workload was enough to drain her energy, so why would she have to deal with all these women in the family? She hadn't worked so hard to live like this, but she couldn't let Qi Yingshan participate in activities like the Madam Diplomacy, could she?
So she needs one or two relatives to help her with her wife's diplomacy and make up for this shortcoming.
Her sister-in-law wasn't up to par; she wasn't sociable, and her brain wasn't bright enough. She couldn't bear to have her mother bothered. Her mother was a rough exterior, delicate at heart, and it was enough for her to avoid being exploited or schemed against. She didn't want her mother to be constrained because of her. If a hermaphrodite offended her mother, she'd just scold them. She'd take care of everything.
Her second sister-in-law was a suitable candidate. She would look at the other cousins' wives and pick out the good ones to train. If there were no taller ones, she would have to choose the taller ones from the short ones.
It would be good if her uncle's family came. She remembered that several of her uncle's cousins had been sent to private schools for two years. She could choose from among her cousins' wives and other female relatives. Maybe there would be someone more suitable than her second sister-in-law?
Therefore, when his family came to Yichun, Yao Chunnuan welcomed them with open arms.
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