Qiao Ruichen was also unsure, although the Wuliangha clan had always been quite cooperative and had a good relationship with the Qiao family.
But the Wuliangha clan is a merchant, and merchants value profit, so they may not cause trouble at a time like this, but asking them to do good things is a bit too much.
Besides, the biggest losses suffered by the Xiban people when they set fire to the town were to the merchants. It is unknown whether they will still stay in Xining Town.
Ruan Jialin suggested quietly, "How about we exchange Ruan's other prescriptions with them? No matter what, we must get the people to wear thick clothes and live in houses with kangs as soon as possible."
Winter is almost here. The Ruan family, who came from the south of the Yangtze River, have the deepest understanding of how cold winter is in the northwest. It is really freezing here.
Compared to human lives, secret recipes are not that important.
Besides, the Ruan family now knows very well that it is Miao Wan’s secret recipe rather than Ruan’s. If she didn’t tell them, the Ruan family would not be able to get those recipes.
Miao Wan didn't want to waste time here. "I won't sell them the recipe anymore. If they don't abide by the contract now, there's no need to cooperate with them in the future."
She summarized what everyone had said. "The problems we need to solve now are nothing more than food, clothing, housing, and transportation. The first three, in particular, must be solved before the weather gets colder. I think work-for-relief is a better approach."
They are not saviors, nor can they make the people dependent. It is more reliable for them to save themselves by exchanging their own labor for houses, food and clothes.
But there are also problems. "We want to use our own strength to mobilize everyone to work, but we might encounter people who don't cooperate. Rich people who want to get rich might cause trouble for us. We need a suitable identity."
Not everyone is willing to let the disaster pass quickly. Those who cannot survive will inevitably sell themselves and their children. Some people may even take advantage of the situation to rob and get many servants with death indentures for free.
Qiao Ruichen obviously understood this as well. "I will go to the county capital again tomorrow and ask the Saint for a written order, ordering the Xiyong County Magistrate to cooperate with us."
Now that the new garrison has not yet taken office, the magistrate of Xiyong County is the most suitable person to govern Xining Town. As for those who have objections, Qiao Ruichen can discuss with the cavalry captain who cooperated with him last time and send some soldiers to take charge.
Who knew that even without Qiao Ruichen going to the county town, the saint was also worried about how the people in Xining Town would survive the winter. Just as they finished speaking, Sun Cheng came with the imperial edict.
"The Holy Lord has decreed that the former Minister of Revenue, Qiao Shengwen, was sentenced to exile for framing the Chen family. Now that the truth has been uncovered, Qiao Shengwen has been reinstated and is escorting the Chen family criminals to the capital.
"To the Guo Lieutenant Qiao Ruichen, for his meritorious service in uncovering evidence of Chen's treason, I hereby appoint him as a sixth-rank garrison commander of the Gubei Army, stationed in Xining Town, and temporarily replacing General Yunhui. His official position will be determined after General Dingbei assumes office. I decree this!"
General Dingbei was a third-rank military officer. When he was not in the northwest, his subordinate General Yunhui, a third-rank officer, was usually in charge of the Gubei Army.
Previously, this position belonged to Chen Sixu's second-oldest adopted son. Now, all twelve adopted sons have been arrested and escorted to Beijing, and there are not many people in the Gubei Army who can make the decision.
Now in the northwest, the saint can only trust Qiao Ruichen, so he lets him take over this position temporarily.
In fact, the saint was also considering Qiao Ruichen. Taking over temporarily represented the saint's attitude. Even if Cheng Shao wanted to place his own people to take charge of the Gubei Army after arriving in the northwest, it would give Qiao Ruichen the opportunity to be promoted.
After sending Sun Cheng away, Miao Wan breathed a sigh of relief. "This way, our worries are solved. Those merchants won't cause any more trouble."
In the future, Qiao Ruichen will at least be in charge of the finances and logistics of the two camps in Xining Town. The county magistrate of Xiyong County must listen to him. Even if the Wulingha and the two merchants from Jiangnan and Dengzhou have any intentions, they will definitely be suppressed.
Qiao Shengwen and Qiao Ruichen looked at each other and thought that their daughter-in-law was still too young.
Qiao Ruichen said to Miao Wan, "Let's put aside the imperial decree for now. Let's go talk to Bayin and the others about how to proceed with this burned contract."
Miao Wan immediately understood and nodded, "Then let's go now!"
Work-for-relief cannot be started immediately. There are still many things to do. According to usual calculations, it may snow in less than a month. Snow was a good thing in the past, but it may not be so now.
"Let's eat something first." Geng said.
They had been running around outside all day, and Miao Wan hadn't eaten much.
Miao Wan is not as pampered as Yihua. When she has the conditions to be particular, she is willing to make trouble, but if she doesn't have the conditions, she will accept any compromise.
"Let's eat on the mule cart. If we go too late, Bayin and the others might be resting."
It was almost dark when they returned from Xiping County, and they chatted for so long that it was already the first watch when they arrived at Bayin and the others' tent.
Bayin's tent was very close to Washi and had been specially cared for by the Xiban people, so the outside was in a state of turmoil and it had completely lost its former prosperous appearance.
When she was welcomed into the house, Miao Wan found that Bayin also looked tired, with bloodshot eyes.
"Even if you don't come to see me, I also want to ask you about the situation." Maybe it was because of lack of sleep, Bayin's face looked very bad and his tone was not very good.
"Why would the Xiban people suddenly attack? Didn't you capture Chen Sixu? You didn't deliver the fugitive slaves from Northern Mongolia to the Wuliangha clan as originally promised. You were completely unprepared for this attack, which resulted in all of Northern Mongolia's goods in Xining Town being burned. You owe Northern Mongolia an explanation, don't you?"
Miao Wan raised her eyebrows. What the hell, they haven't even opened their mouths yet and they're already blaming them. It seems like they're planning to ask the Qiao family to compensate the Wuliangha family for their losses?
Qiao Ruichen didn't bother to be polite with Bayin. "It was Yu Maocai who led the attack. He grew up in Xining Town and has owned a street restaurant for over a decade. He's very familiar with Xining Town. As for why he brought the Xiban people in to attack, Brother Bayin should know it very well."
Bayin was stunned for a moment. He was wondering who the rich man was, but when he heard the name of the restaurant on the street, his heart sank.
The restaurant on that street was bought by his sister-in-law Su Rina who sent guards to the restaurant. Su Rina had originally planned to kill the witnesses to silence them, but Chen Zhisheng sent people to mediate and Su Rina finally gave up.
He didn't expect that there would be such a hidden danger. He couldn't continue asking questions if he wanted to.
At this time, Boss Zheng from Jiangnan and Boss Liu from Dengzhou were also invited over. Bayin's eyes flashed, and without saying anything else, he invited the two in.
"Master and Madam Qiao, are you here to discuss our contract?" Boss Zheng said straight to the point, his face mournful. "My goods and belongings were all in the house down the street, and most of them were burned. Needless to say, the losses were immense. The account books and many deeds were completely gone. Even the roast duck recipe and loom blueprints Madam Qiao gave us were burned."
Miao Wan raised an eyebrow, but didn't say whether she believed it or not. She just asked, "I've also burned the contract here. I asked the two bosses to come here to discuss what the next plan is. Should we sign a new contract, or..."
"To be honest, I have a pretty good business in Jiangnan. I had planned to do business there with peace of mind after this cooperation. This incident happened. Although the loss is huge, I am lucky to have saved my life." Boss Zheng smiled bitterly, with a hint of guilt on his face.
"But no one knows if this kind of thing will happen again in the future. I really can't afford to go through this anymore. I don't plan to come to the northwest again. As for this roast duck and loom, I don't plan to use them either.
Business people all believe in fate. This is God telling us that if we are not destined to do this business, it is better to do my original business. If so, I can only let down the Qiao family."
After he finished speaking, there was a moment of silence in the tent. Miao Wan's expression was very similar to Qiao Ruichen's at this moment, both with expressionless faces and lowered eyes, making it impossible to tell whether they were happy or angry.
Bayin originally planned to deny it, but Beimeng had no way to move away from the northwest. Even if he went to the county town later, Qiao Ruichen was still in the Gubei Army. He did not want to completely sever the relationship, so he just wanted to cut the original contract in half on the grounds of compensation.
But now that Qiao Ruichen had already revealed the cause of the disaster, it was difficult for him to use the original method again.
Bayin exchanged a glance with Mr. Liu from Dengzhou before turning to Qiao Ruichen. "I still have the contract, but the Wuliangha clan has suffered considerable losses. I won't touch the loom for now. As for the down and ducks, we can still follow our original cooperation plan."
Boss Liu nodded and said, "I can still provide duck down, but we don't have enough silkworms and cotton for looms, so we really can't take care of them."
Qiao Ruichen's expression grew increasingly cold. He and his father were right. These businessmen were the best at assessing the situation.
Even if the Qiao family entered the capital, they would have no worries. If they stayed in the northwest, they would only be a seventh-rank captain. It would be more beneficial than harmful for them to pay the price they originally had to pay to make up for this loss.
As for what they said about not touching the loom? Even Miao Wanyihua, who always thought well of others, didn't believe a word of it.
These people are just determined to capture them. Even if they go to the officials, the Qiao family has no evidence. As for revenge in other ways, these three people are doing big business. Who doesn't have a few followers behind them? There is no need to be afraid of them.
This means he is determined to be a hooligan.
Miao Wan nodded and suddenly laughed. This was the first time she had laughed so brightly since the accident yesterday.
Good people are often bullied, so she always says that she is not a good person and does not want to be a good person.
But she had received mostly kindness in her two lives, and her methods were always too soft. She had forgotten how decisive she was when she was working outside and taking self-study exams at the same time.
Even Qiao Ruichen was stunned for a moment. Afraid that Miao Wan was very angry, he held her left hand calmly.
Miao Wan shook his hand back, still smiling. "What the bosses said makes sense. Let's just cancel our previous contract. As for whether the recipe and blueprints are really gone, I'll believe you. We've all suffered losses. We can talk about cooperation later. If you're willing to sell the duck down, then sell it. If you're not willing, I won't force you."
After she finished speaking, she pulled Qiao Ruichen up and said, "Anyway, I wish you all great success in the future. We have something else to do, so we'll leave first."
Bayin didn't know why, but Miao Wan's laughter made him feel nervous. He quickly stood up to stop her, "This is really too unfair to the Qiao family. No matter what, we still have to give them the duck down..."
"Second Master, there's really no need. I'm not being polite to you." Miao Wan interrupted Bayin and glanced at the three people present with a smile.
"We both know what's right and what's wrong, no need to explain. As long as you don't regret it later, that's all that matters."
After saying that, the couple quickly walked out of the tent and drove away in a mule cart.
The three people left at the scene looked at each other in confusion.
"Second Master, tell us the truth. Is this young lady planning to play dirty?" Boss Zheng also felt that Miao Wan's words sounded a little strange. "But we did suffer a considerable loss. Besides, words are not enough to prove anything. We were just trying to bargain..."
They wanted to get some advantage to make up for their losses, and they didn't intend to deny their obligations. Isn't this how business negotiations work, with both sides doing the back and forth?
Why did we end up breaking up while we were talking?
Bayin pinched his swollen forehead and said, "Forget it, let's wait and see. After all, Wuliangha has the support of Northern Mongolia, so they won't tear their faces apart with me. I will come forward if there is any problem in the future."
Even if the Qiao family really turned against them, Beimeng and Dayue still had an alliance, so Qiao Ruichen would not dare to do anything excessive.
"They are actually quite similar to the Xifan people. Now I understand the Xifan people's mentality." Miao Wan was also talking to Qiao Ruichen on the mule cart.
"Even our own merchants in Dayue are like this, which shows that burning, killing and looting are also human nature."
Qiao Ruichen hugged Miao Wan tightly without saying any words of comfort. It was a good thing to let his wife face the true side of human nature and stop blaming herself.
Miao Wan quickly suppressed the discomfort in her heart and snorted softly, "Isn't it just being a hooligan? Do you really think I can only flatter you? Hooligans are not to be feared, but educated ones are. I'll give them a hard time if they know more than me!"
Qiao Ruichen watched his wife grit her teeth and utter harsh words, and then heard her puffing up her pale little face and calling him "mom", which made him want to laugh and kiss her cheek.
Thinking so, she did so. His voice was as gentle as ever, "Then you should take care of yourself first, and then play with me first. You just need to teach me and then order me around."
Miao Wan: “…” So I can only play tricks on you and not on others, right?
Thinking that this man was even jealous of duck tongues, she nodded in understanding. With such a considerate Qiao Bailao, Miao Shiren must satisfy him.
The young couple cuddled together on the mule cart, digesting the nausea they had felt outside. When they got home, they looked much more relaxed, which made Geng and Qiao Shengwen, who were packing their luggage, feel relieved.
"Are they still willing to keep their promise?" Qiao Shengwen asked.
Miao Wan shook her head. "They probably want to bargain, but I'm too lazy to waste time talking to them. You guys call me the God of Wealth for nothing. If they want to get money out of me, they might not look good, but they have beautiful ideas."
Qiao Shengwen: “…”
"Then what are you going to do?" Geng asked while patting the drowsy Qiao Rui and Taotao.
Miao Wan went over and kissed Taotao, who was refusing to sleep with her eyes open. She was afraid that she would go out again, so she smiled and said, "I plan to learn from my second aunt. Since they are unwilling to make money properly, then we should not make any money at all."
If every household can afford a loom and raise chickens, ducks and geese, does she still need these people?
In the past, Miao Wan only thought about how to make money to give back to her fellow villagers. Now, she thinks, wouldn’t it be better to make money together with her fellow villagers?
Qiao Shengwen was a little worried. "I'm afraid these merchants will unite to make trouble. Without Chen Sixu, if these merchants are unwilling to donate to the military pay, the Gubei Army will be in trouble in the future, and it will be difficult for you to act then."
Even if there was an imperial edict, the soldiers in the army still had to eat and drink. Chen Sixu did not do anything good. At least he did not treat the soldiers unfairly in terms of military pay.
Miao Wan understood her father-in-law's concerns. "The common people can support themselves, and the Gubei Army can certainly do the same. The sage has given my husband a good official position."
As long as the garrison can afford the food and supplies of the Gubei Army, and even allow the soldiers to live better than before, there is no need to worry about the new general's lack of support.
However, these are things that are easier said than done. Miao Wan cannot move her right hand, so she can only ask Qiao Shengwen and Qiao Ruichen, father and son, to write down her plan.
Because Qiao Shengwen would soon be returning to the capital with the saint, no one dared to waste time. The three of them stayed up almost all night before they finally finalized the plan.
Early the next morning, Qiao Ruichen went to the garrison to take over the garrison duty. Geng continued to pack her luggage, and even Ruan Qin and his wife were packing their luggage.
The eldest Li was to follow the sage to the capital to testify for him in front of the royal family, making it impossible for the empress dowager to rise again.
Instead, Ruan Qi came to find Miao Wan and said, "I've thought about it. Let your eldest cousin go to the capital with your father-in-law. The rest of us will stay and help you."
"But mother told me that she plans to clean up the Jingyang Marquis's Mansion after returning to Beijing, and the Ruan family can actually return to Jiangnan in the future." Miao Wan didn't want the Ruan family to suffer with her in the northwest.
Ruan Jialin interrupted his uncle, "We'll still do this business when we return to Jiangnan, but Awan, you know that with just the people in our family...it's a bit difficult to expand the business. On the contrary, it's only by following your lead that we can build up our family fortune, whether in Jiangnan or Northwest China."
Ruan Qi was tongue-tied and didn't know how to say this, but he nodded immediately after his nephew said it, "As long as my family is here, anywhere is home."
Miao Wan knew that her uncle must have considered her as one of the family. Her nose felt sore and her eyes felt a little hot. She tried hard to suppress her tears.
Her grandmother told her that if people cry all the time, they will cry away their luck, and people who love to laugh will have better luck.
So she chuckled and praised her uncle and second cousin, "I knew my uncle and cousin were good at judging people. If they follow me, the Ruan family will definitely become the richest in the northwest... my uncle's family!"
Ruan Qi and Ruan Jialin: "..."
Since the plan had been made, no one had time to chat and everyone got busy.
While Qiao Shengwen and Geng were still there, Geng and her uncle Geng's family of three were needed to pack their luggage. Miao Wan asked her parents-in-law to draw up and write the rules for her, and she was busy until Qiao Ruichen returned from the garrison.
"Qin Mao has tidied up the garrison very neatly. Although it was ransacked, the house is more convenient than here. We and the Ruan family will move into the garrison, and this place will be left for the Zhang family to live in. When the Zhang and Ruan families' houses are rebuilt, we will return this house."
Logically speaking, this house was awarded as a reward for being a seventh-rank Zhiguo captain. Now that Qiao Ruichen has been promoted to garrison commander, the title deed must be returned.
But Miao Wan was reluctant to part with the beautiful house she had built. "Can't we just buy it? We can let the Ruan family live here, and leave our original house to the Yu and Yang families. Then we can all live closer together and work more easily."
"Do we have any extra silver?" Qiao Ruichen had thought about it, but his current salary was only ten taels of silver per month, and he had to rely on the money in Miao Wan's hand to buy it.
Miao Wan calculated that the 150,000 taels she got back would be divided proportionally between the Zhang and Ruan families, with 10,000 taels each, and the remaining 130,000 taels would be used to rebuild Xining Town.
This was definitely not enough, so she had no money to waste.
We still have to seize the time to make money.
She suddenly remembered that she still had two shops in Xiping County. Although the deeds were gone, the government had changed the registration. Both shops were under her name, and Bayin could not take them back.
"Is it feasible to exchange this house for a shop in the county town?" Miao Wan asked, "If so, we can just keep the shop."
This time she doesn't plan to expand everywhere, her business will mainly be in Xining Town.
The shops in the county town can now be used to sell goods. After Xining Town is built, it will become a pickup station for orders placed by shops in the county town.
This time she had to be cautious, otherwise they wouldn't have enough manpower.
Qiao Ruichen nodded and said, "Okay, I'll ask someone to take care of it when I go to the county town."
After solving the house problem and finishing their meal, Miao Wan pulled Qiao Ruichen out and said, "Let's first have the leaders in the military camp, the Xining Town Chief, and the village heads come to the garrison. The work-for-relief program will require a lot of manpower. We shouldn't do it ourselves, so why not let them do it?"
There was nothing for Qiao Shengwen to do at home. Now that he had been reinstated, he was the highest-ranking official, so he followed his son and daughter-in-law to support them.
With Qiao Shengwen's title of third-rank assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and the fact that the garrison was the money bag of the military camp and the current manager of Xining Town, the head of the village who lived in the village outside Xining Town and the others soon arrived at the garrison's office.
Miao Wan had asked her cousin Ruan to copy a few copies of the charter and distribute them to the people who were coming.
"My husband, as the garrison commander, must be different from the previous Qin garrison commander. Xining Town is now in ruins, and many merchants have left. Xining Town's tax revenue will definitely be affected. The first priority is to restore Xining Town."
Xu Bin, the cavalry captain of the Northern Camp who was very close to the garrison, and Zheng Yuan, the Ningyuan general of the Western Suburbs Camp, both took the drawings and examined them carefully.
The headman of Xining Town was named Chang. He was an old scholar who had never been promoted to an official. After the officials picked up the drawings, he slowly took them and started to look at them.
Miao Wan didn't write too much for them to understand for the time being. She only wrote about what everyone can do now from the four simple aspects of food, clothing, housing and transportation.
First of all, as for housing, the wealthy area west of Xining Town was not affected. At most, there were some places on the roadside that were blackened by the fire. They just needed to repaint the walls and there was no need to replace the bricks and tiles.
However, the south side, where the largest population lived, and the east side, where Wa Street Market was located, were both severely burned, so Miao Wan only included the reconstruction of the south side in her plan.
Since the houses were to be rebuilt, the dilapidated earthen brick houses were thrown away and replaced with blue brick and tile houses. The layout was also replanned, with houses built in rows based on alleys. This not only looked neat and beautiful, but also allowed for the installation of alley management in the future, making management easier and accommodating more people.
"A house made of blue bricks and gray tiles? Where do the blue bricks and gray tiles come from? This would be a considerable expense. I'm afraid Xiyong County and the state government won't pay for it."
Mr. Chang knew Xining Town best, and he raised his doubts gently. Although Xining was suffering from a disaster, the state government would allocate silver to each household as reconstruction costs, but it would not be too much. It would be good if each family could give five taels of silver.
Five taels of silver was barely enough to buy a house made of mud bricks, let alone blue bricks and gray tiles.
Just then, several village heads came in, and Miao Wan explained loudly, "I have people here who can make bricks and tiles. The money allocated by the state government is only needed to build a brick kiln near Beiying. Let the smart people sign up to learn how to make bricks and tiles. We can make bricks and tiles ourselves, and the cost is not high. If the cost is insufficient, the Qiao family will pay for it."
Mr. Chang calculated that Xining Town had developed quite rapidly in recent years, and there must be at least 500 households in the south.
The blue bricks and tiles needed by a family would cost about twenty taels of silver even at the lowest price, which adds up to ten thousand taels of silver, not including labor and tools needed to build a house.
Is the Qiao family planning to do good deeds?
Before everyone thought she was stupid and rich, Miao Wan quickly explained, "It's true that the Qiao family can afford this money, but it's not given away for free. The town was burned down so easily this time because Xining Town is well connected, and the places guarded by the neighborhood guards are not well guarded.
So we invited the village heads to come here to get more people involved in the construction of the city wall. Anyone who works can get work points. Only when you accumulate enough work points can you buy a house."
These work points interested Xu Bin and Zheng Yuan somewhat, but they were most concerned about taxes, as they affected military pay.
Xu Bin politely asked, "May I ask, Madam Garrison, what are you going to do with that street and Tile City?"
Miao Wan blinked. "No, the shops in Xining Town are all owned by wealthy people. Even if they don't have money and need to support their families, if they save enough work points, they can open shops for them in the South District. As for the renovation of the streets and Tile Market, they either need to provide manpower or money, otherwise they can just leave them alone."
Zheng Yuan frowned, "But if that happens, merchants won't come to Xining Town anymore. Xining Town's business will be affected, and tax revenue will probably shrink significantly."
"Oh, if the merchants don't come, we in Xining can replace them." Miao Wan smiled and pushed the blueprint. "Everyone, please read it carefully."
Work-for-relief, of course, does not only refer to burning bricks and tiles, building houses and erecting city walls. There are always elderly people, children and women who cannot do physical work.
So the second item involves clothes, which also requires people to sign up. Jialai will teach them how to make parts in an assembly line manner, and Jialai will be responsible for the assembly.
Everyone can register and take the loom and cotton home in exchange for work points, and use the woven cloth to settle the centimeters.
By then, the products produced can be sold, and the military pay will not have to be donated by merchants.
If there are any elderly people or children who are unable to do these things, we will need to ask the village heads to come and help.
"I'm thinking of buying a batch of chicks, ducklings, and piglets from each village. I also want adult pigs, chickens, and ducks, as well as grain. I'll buy them at the market price. If the whole village sells their goods to the garrison, the garrison will promise to build a road for the village."
The six village heads who were invited in were originally a little confused about why they were asked to come for the affairs of Xining Town, and were worried whether they were going to forcibly collect grain. Unexpectedly, they became excited when they heard these words.
"Are you really going to build a road?"
"Are you really buying it at market price?"
“I wonder when the road will be repaired?”
"Can we sign up for kiln-firing and carpentry lessons?"
"And the looms and cotton, can we also pay them in exchange for work points?"
…
They asked a lot of questions at once, and Qiao Ruichen wrote them down and handed them to Miao Wan.
Xu Bin and Zheng Yuan looked at each other and were a little surprised that this man was so quiet and let his wife take care of the defense. Usually, men are responsible for the outside and women are responsible for the inside.
Their new garrison commander actually let his wife take the lead and was very cooperative, just like... a gigolo.
Miao Wan didn't know that she had become a rich woman in the eyes of the two military officers, but she was indeed very generous.
"As soon as the houses and city walls of Xining Town are completed, we can immediately begin building roads to the villages. Village residents can sign up to learn kiln firing and carpentry, just like the people in town, and even blacksmithing and cooking. We can also provide you with looms and cotton. However, settlement cannot be based solely on work points; you must also guarantee a certain amount of cloth sold to the garrison each year."
Several village heads thought about it and realized that this was clearly a guarantee that someone would buy the things they made. How could they not agree to such a good thing?
They were very happy and had already planned to go back and call the village heads to come and quickly send livestock and food and sign up so that the jobs would not be snatched away by others.
On the contrary, Mr. Chang was somewhat unhappy. "But there are many people in the surrounding villages. Shouldn't we prioritize the people in Xining Town who have suffered from the disaster?"
The village heads all looked at Miao Wan eagerly.
Miao Wan shook her head. "Temple Chief, you know that a little kindness can be rewarded with a little resentment. What if the people of Xining Town don't feel any pressure at all, and they think no one will watch them freeze or starve to death, then what should they do?"
She thought that the garrison, or more precisely, the Qiao and Ruan families were the ones who arranged things. Anyone who was not stupid could see that they were doing this to help the common people.
She used to think too simply about human nature, but now she would rather plan for the worst and make the best preparations, so that at least she won't be disappointed in human nature.
If there are people who take advantage of the rescue and just lie down and think of taking advantage, then I'm sorry, the villagers who have not been affected by the disaster can also exchange things with their work points.
By then, the diligent ones will have houses to live in, clothes to wear, and money to earn, while the lazy ones won’t even have enough to eat.
She is not a saint. She can't even help herself up. She won't care if someone wants to freeze to death.
Mr. Chang knew what Miao Wan meant. He was silent for a long while and said nothing else.
Next is the food part. Miao Wan regarded this as a pure good deed. After a disaster, people were afraid of epidemics, especially when the weather was about to turn cold. She was most afraid that someone would get sick.
So she bought the ingredients and also allowed people to sign up to learn how to make soup and big pot dishes from Sun Laohuo and Ruan Qi's apprentices.
Those who are able to move can get food by using their work points. Elderly people aged 50 and above and children under 6 can get food for free.
Ginger soup every day, four-ingredient soup every other day, and boiled hot water are all free and available at any time.
Miao Wan looked at Xu Bin and Zheng Yuan. "I'm afraid we'll need your help. Send some soldiers to maintain order to prevent any robberies. The garrison will be responsible for all the soldiers' food, lodging, and wages."
Xu Bin and Zheng Yuan also looked down on this little money. They agreed to accept it, but the issue of military pay had to be resolved.
The two looked at Qiao Ruichen and said, "Sir, the military pay for the two battalions can only last until the end of September at the latest. May I ask how the rest of the military pay will be paid before the New Year?"
There are 3,200 people in the North Camp and 2,900 people in the West Suburbs. The monthly salaries of the soldiers and the military supplies would cost at least 20,000 taels each month.
However, the provincial government only allocated half of the military pay, and the rest was previously the responsibility of the garrison.
Qiao Ruichen had been reminded by Miao Wan a long time ago, and said with a smile, "Military supplies can be solved by the things made by the people of Xining Town. But in addition to training, the soldiers can also participate in work-for-relief. From now on, the salaries of the military camps guarding Xining Town will be divided into basic salary and work point commission.
Not only can they earn work points by doing work for relief, but their daily training and guard duty will also be graded and calculated by the higher-ups. When the time comes, they will receive the remaining salary based on their work points. As long as they are not those who try to take advantage of the situation, I can guarantee that the silver they receive will be more than half of what they originally received."
Xu Bin and Zheng Yuan were shocked. Any change in the salary distribution would require the approval of General Dingbei.
After all, the Gubei Army has 150,000 soldiers, and they are on duty in rotation. If this is the case only on their side, more and more people will be dissatisfied when the shifts change in the future.
Qiao Ruichen probably knew what they were thinking. "I'm temporarily taking over the position of general. I've thought it over carefully. Those who have objections will shut up when they find that military supplies and salaries are better than before. Those who still want to cause trouble..."
He gave the two of them a meaningful look, and Xu Bin and Zheng Yuan immediately understood.
No one knows whether there are any forces left by Chen Sixu in the Gubei Army. They may not dare to rebel, but they have many ways to do bad things in secret. No one can guarantee peace in the army.
Moreover, the Gubei Army suffered a lot in the northwest. It was okay when the weather was warm, but when the weather got cold, most people would become lazy, mainly because they were freezing.
If everyone has work points, they can eat and dress warmly, and the enthusiasm of the soldiers will be much higher in the future. This will be a good thing in the long run.
If they continue to cause trouble, then needless to say, everyone knows what they are thinking. Even if they are not the remnants of the Chen family, it will not prevent them from being cleared out as remnants.
The two men hesitated for a while. After all, the Gubei Army was now under the command of Qiao Ruichen. They said nothing and only planned to secretly tell the people in the county city about the matter. At least they had to let the saint know what happened here.
If the saint does not say anything, then they can only obey orders and there is no need to go against this garrison commander and General Yunhui.
The two of them are not Chen Sixu's direct subordinates. If they really wanted to cause trouble, they would not have come so happily today.
Miao Wan spoke when she should speak, and listened quietly when she shouldn't interrupt. As for the village head and the pavilion chief, if they had any questions, they would ask Qiao Shengwen in a low voice.
Qiao Shengwen no longer has to worry about someone watching the Chen family. As the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, his vision is far-reaching, even comparable to Miao Wan's. He can make the village heads and village heads nod their heads with just a few words.
The most anxious ones are the village heads. Although the harvest in the fields has not been affected, the villagers can only fill their stomachs a little. It is still a daydream to want to live a comfortable life.
So for the country people, the inferior craftsmen in the town and the city are also their envy.
Now they have the opportunity to learn a skill without affecting the family's livestock and grain to make money. They are also from humble backgrounds and no one can sit still.
A braver person spoke up first, "Then let's go back and send out the notice. I wonder when registration will start?"
Miao Wan then looked at Qiao Ruichen with a smile, "Of course the sooner the better."
Qiao Ruichen looked at Xu Bin and Zheng Yuan again and asked, "I wonder if you two could each send two hundred soldiers to come here early tomorrow morning? We can start calculating work points from tomorrow."
Although Xu Bin and Zheng Yuan were still hesitant about reporting the matter, they nodded without delay. It was not a difficult task for them to arrange only two hundred people.
Miao Wan stood up, her dimples showing in her smile, "Then starting tomorrow, Xining Town will be open to welcome everyone who signs up!"
The author has something to say:
Qiao Bailao: My wife can only take advantage of me. Only I can take advantage of my wife. You guys can forget about it.
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