Chapter 393: Barriers, Low-Price Salt
"Potion."
Carrying the empty bottle into the main room, Shen Xiangwan sat down and said, "Isn't it time for you to write big characters?"
Every day the little cub had to write a long essay after coming home from school, but as he was still young, he could only write relatively simple words.
"oh."
After taking a reluctant look at Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai, who had no time to pay attention to him, the little cub ran to the small desk in the corner and sat down. He grinded the ink skillfully, took out the rice paper, spread it on the table, and picked up the pen to practice calligraphy. His attitude was still very correct.
During this period, Wei Chengyi has been in the provincial capital, and the strategy of work-for-relief has been implemented. In order to improve their efficiency and build taller and stronger city walls, their cement workshop has started operating again. At present, all refugees have been resettled in the three border counties to build city walls. The government provides three meals a day for each person and gives them five copper coins to buy cloth and make clothes. Those women who are weak and unable to do anything are responsible for washing clothes and cooking for them, and doing some lighter work.
After entering October, the temperature suddenly dropped, and many children in the school caught a cold. In order to avoid falling behind in their studies, they still insisted on going to school every day. Shen Xiangwan was afraid that those children who did not have a cold would also be infected, so he specially prescribed a prescription and asked the servants at home to boil the medicine and send it to the school. He also asked them to tell Wei Jingyi and Wei Jinghan to make sure that every child drank a bowl.
“It’s time to harvest.”
In mid-October, Shen Xiangwan personally went to the field to check the grown cabbages. From the size of each cabbage, it can be seen that the yield per mu will definitely not be low.
"Let's go find Uncle Zhao."
After walking around the fields again, Shen Xiangwan took Yuan Yue to the village. At this time, Zhao Dashan was usually in the workshop. Their workshop had long been on track, slaughtering fifty to one hundred pigs every day. Sausages and bacon had become familiar foods for the people of Datong County. It's not that no one had coveted their business, but they kept the recipe very secret and had not leaked it out until now, so this was still their unique business.
"Wanwan? Why are you here?"
Seeing Shen Xiangwan from afar, Zhao Dashan's second brother Zhao Dahe hurriedly put down what he was holding and went to greet him. Others who noticed also looked over. Ever since the incident with Chen, everyone realized that the Wei family was not an ordinary farmer. If they really regarded their kindness as weakness, then Chen would be their fate. Therefore, now they are more or less wary, and even have some resistance in their hearts. Their attitude towards him is not as natural as before.
"I'm here to look for Uncle Zhao. Is he not in the workshop?"
With Shen Xiangwan's eyesight, how could he not see the attitude problems of others?
Since they insisted on digging a gap between each other, she would not try to please them. She would just move closer to them and pretend that she didn't notice anything.
"Yes, please wait a moment, I will go call..."
"Wanwan."
Before Zhao Dahe could finish his words, Zhao Dashan's voice rang out, and soon he strode over to them: "Wanwan, why are you here? It's very bloody here. Come with me to my house and sit down."
As he spoke, Zhao Dashan was about to take them out of the workshop. He was not blind. Seeing that the villagers did not dare to come forward to greet Shen Xiangwan, he knew that there was already a gap in their hearts. In order to prevent her from noticing anything, he tried his best to invite her to his home.
"No need, Uncle Zhao."
Having said that, Shen Xiangwan still left the workshop with him, but did not really go to his house. He just stood outside and said, "Uncle Zhao, I just went to the field to check. The cabbages are ripe and can be harvested. The weather is getting colder. Let's harvest them as soon as possible."
"Okay, I'll let everyone know later. The harvest will start tomorrow."
Zhao Dashan agreed without a second thought, and then asked, "What about buying snowflake salt to pickle kimchi..."
He didn't finish the rest of the words. He believed that with Chen Xiangwan's intelligence, she should understand.
"The government will allocate quotas of snowflake salt based on the proportion of your tax payments. You can buy as much as you want when the time comes."
In order to prevent some people from taking the opportunity to hoard snowflake salt and sell it outside, each village will be allocated a share based on the amount of tax paid, and people can only buy less, not more.
"Okay, we will pay the taxes as soon as possible."
Nodding, Zhao Dashan thought for a moment and then asked, "How much is the low-priced salt the government sells us per pound?"
At present, there is no inferior coarse salt in Chenzhou. All it has is white snowflake salt. It costs eighty cents per catty when purchased outside, and the government sells it at a low price. It should only cost about half the price, right?
"One penny per pound."
"What? One penny per pound?"
Zhao Dashan's eyes widened in disbelief. The finest snowflake salt cost one penny per pound? Did she say it wrong, or did he hear it wrong?
"You heard correctly. The government's price is indeed one cent per pound, so the quantity is strictly controlled."
Seeing through his thoughts at a glance, Shen Xiangwan curled the corners of her lips slightly. She believed that when the government officially announced it, all the people would be shocked. Snowflake salt at one cent per pound was no longer just a low price, it was basically the same as giving it away for free.
"My goodness, this is too cheap."
After getting her confirmation again, Zhao Dashan patted his chest exaggeratedly, and then said seriously: "It is indeed necessary to strictly control it. The government sells snowflake salt at such a low price for the sake of the people. We can't let some unscrupulous merchants take advantage of it."
"Isn't it?"
Raising an eyebrow, Shen Xiangwan continued, "According to the information I received, the government will also issue relevant bans this time. If anyone is found to be privately purchasing or selling snowflake salt at a high price, they will be severely punished, and they may even lose their lives."
Don't underestimate those merchants. They have plenty of ways to buy snowflake salt from the people at low prices and then sell it at high prices. In response to this, they have also discussed many ways to deal with it and are determined to prevent merchants from making profits from it.
“It should be.”
Zhao Dashan nodded in agreement. Just for the price of one cent per pound of snowflake salt, the government should impose stricter control.
The next day, just after daybreak, Yong'an Village began to harvest cabbages in full swing. In order to finish the harvest as quickly as possible so as to pay taxes and buy low-priced salt from the government, all the villagers, regardless of gender or age, who had no work to do went to the fields. In just three days, they brought all the cabbages home.
Zhao Dashan did not delay and went to the county government office to find the yamen runners that day and actively paid the taxes. The next day, carts of snowflake salt were brought back to the village. After the villagers got their share, they began to pickle kimchi. Because many people had helped the Wei family pickle kimchi last year, they didn't need to be taught by the yamen staff.
This year, the Wei family only had a few acres of land from the Yan and Zhou families. In just two days, Shen Xiangwan and her servants pickled all the cabbages. Because everyone liked to eat it, she made most of it into spicy cabbage this time.
[End of this chapter]
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