The carriage arrived at Daliushu Village in less than two hours.
The villagers saw a horse-drawn carriage coming from the village entrance from afar, and it didn't stop until it reached Old Man Ma's house.
Just as I was wondering who had become wealthy enough to afford a horse-drawn carriage, I saw Old Man Ma jump off the carriage, go home, grab a basin, and start banging on it.
"Fellow villagers, come out quickly! Great news! Great news!"
Song Ning was slightly taken aback, while Xiao Cui beside her chuckled, "This old man Ma is quite adorable."
The two stood at the door for a while and then saw Old Man Ma return with a group of people. There weren't many people; they were mostly children and the elderly, with very few young people.
Old Ma returned panting, pointing to the people behind him: "Young lady, these are all the people in our village."
All people?
This village looks quite large, so why are there only these people?
Xiao Cui counted and whispered in her ear, "Master, there are thirty people in total, not counting the children."
There are far too few people in the village.
"Uncle Ma, why is there only so few people in Daliushu Village?"
Old Ma sighed, "There are quite a few people now; there were fewer a few years ago."
“There’s no way out in the village. All the young people have left, only coming back once a year, leaving us old and young to fend for ourselves.”
Got it, this is what empty-nest elderly and left-behind children are like.
It turns out that this situation exists both in ancient and modern times.
"This place isn't too far from Huzhou, so why not go to Huzhou?"
The journey, less than two hours by carriage, was indeed not far in this era.
"Alas, young lady, you are unaware of this..."
There used to be quite a few people in this big willow tree village, and most of the young people stayed in the village to farm; very few went out.
However, the harvest was poor in the past few years, and when the government came to collect taxes, they could not pay them. As a result, the young people had no choice but to go out and find work.
However, within Huzhou, all those who had not paid taxes were registered, and they had to report their names and addresses when going out to work. If they were found to have not paid taxes, they would all be driven out.
I can only work in Huzhou once I've paid my taxes.
"The prefect said this was to encourage the people, but... if they don't work, where will the money come from?"
The villagers had no choice but to travel to even more distant places. The journey was long, and a round trip would take several days, not only delaying their earnings but also incurring travel expenses…
Xiao Cui grew angrier as she listened, "This Prefect Cao is such a scoundrel."
Judging from his protection of the Li family, Prefect Cao was not a good official.
Everyone lowered their heads and sighed, and Song Ning made a decision in her heart.
For a moment, everyone fell silent. When Old Man Ma saw that Song Ning was keeping his head down and not saying anything, he was afraid of spoiling Song Ning's mood and making him not want to buy it.
"Alright, we've made it through so many years, one more won't make a difference. Miss Song said she wants to buy the herbs from our mountain."
"Uncle Ma, what kind of grass is that on the mountain?"
"What other grass could it be? It's the kind we usually cut to feed the chickens and pigs."
Everyone doubted they had heard correctly. Even people don't eat the grass on the mountain, so why would they buy it?
Is this girl going to raise pigs too?
“I do want to buy these herbs, but I need everyone to extract the seeds from them. I will buy the seeds directly for ten coins per pound.”
Old Ma was taken aback. Before he came, it was said to be six coins, but now it had become ten coins. Miss Song was indeed a very kind person.
"Did you all hear that? From now on, if we cut more grass and harvest the seeds, we can make money."
"Everyone will take the seeds and hand them over to Uncle Ma for weighing. Then we'll send them to Xiangyun Tower in Huzhou City. If possible, we can also plant some ourselves, as many as we can get."
"We'll take as many as you want," was a phrase everyone loved to hear. They immediately forgot about chatting and went home to get their baskets and head up the mountain.
More people mean more to pick, even children can always pick something and earn a few more coins.
"Uncle Ma, I'll leave this to you. If you need anything, just come to Xiangyun Tower to find me."
"Hey, take care, young lady."
Once inside the carriage, Xiao Cui asked, "Master, should we get involved in this matter?"
What do you think?
Xiao Cui thought for a moment, then lowered her head and said sullenly, "I want to manage it... but I can't."
Ultimately, they are just ordinary people.
"Don't be discouraged, we can ask Lord Zheng for help," Song Ning said with a smile.
"Lord Zheng?"
Xiao Cui slapped her thigh: "Yes, Lord Zheng and General Xie are on good terms. If this matter is reported back, General Xie and Her Highness the Princess will definitely not ignore it."
Song Ning thought of Xie Linzhou again, and how he looked when he confessed his feelings to her.
Is it really appropriate to refuse someone's request and then ask for their help again?
But right now, besides the Duke's mansion, she can't think of anyone else.
When they returned to the restaurant, it was already afternoon. The customers had all left, leaving only a few scattered ones. Su Mingchao handed over the account book.
"Boss, this is the cash flow from noon today. Please take a look."
"Let's watch it together tonight. There aren't many customers in the store right now, so you can all take a break. You've worked hard today."
Su Mingchao smiled so much his eyes were almost closed, and said respectfully, "We're not tired. Seeing so many guests today, and the place so lively, makes me very happy."
“Following Er Ya will definitely lead to a bright future,” Stone said with a smile as he came out from behind.
Su Mingchao glared at him: "Such a disrespectful person, call him 'boss'."
"It's alright, everyone has worked hard. Tell Sister Hongxiu to cook some good food so we can eat our fill and work better tonight."
"Don't worry, my sister is already making it, so we definitely won't go hungry."
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