Chapter 280 Workshop Gathering
On the tenth day in Luhua Town, Cui Qingyi heard the whistling of Snowball.
Guru was also taken away by Jing Wei this time because he was also an adult eagle, but the growth of an eagle is a very difficult process. Adulthood does not mean growing up. He still needs to undergo rigorous training. After all, no human arrows can fight alongside him in the sky.
Although Cui Qingyi was very reluctant, Jing Wei finally let her go after he repeatedly assured her that he would bring Guru back safely.
Now hearing the eagle's cry, Cui Qingyi subconsciously looked for Guru's figure.
It’s a pity that the newly-adult eagle is not yet strong enough to fly so far, but at least Snowball brought good news.
This was the first time that Cui Qingyi had experienced using the most ancient means to convey each other's latest news across a long distance. But since she first saw Snowball, Cui Qingyi began to look forward to hearing the cry of an eagle in the misty morning or in the sunny afternoon, which meant that someone she cared about had sent her news of safety.
mid-March
Cui Qingyi was planning to plant peppers on all the land in Luhua Town this year when the county government notified her to collect potato seeds.
At first, Cui Qingyi thought that Zhou Yanxiu had a change of heart, but when she arrived at the county government office and met Wang Xiaoqian, she realized that this batch of potato seeds was not what she thought.
Wang Xiaoqian was also puzzled. He was a member of the Zhou Yan sect, often exchanging goods with the capital. Last year, the potato seeds planted by farmers in Qinghe City had a barely satisfactory harvest, but there were more wolves than meat. Ever since the discovery of potatoes, countless officials in the Jin Dynasty had been eagerly awaiting them.
In addition to distributing seeds to counties in the south, a portion will be reserved for transportation to the north for trial planting. As far as Wang Xiaoqian knows, the neighboring Shanlin County did not receive any potato seeds. The county magistrate of Shanlin County submitted three memorials to the emperor to complain, almost saying that he was raised by a stepmother and that was why he got so little.
In this situation, not to mention Luhua Town, even Dongping County was lost. You know, Dongping County is where Lord Zhou made his fortune.
But it just so happened that the fief of Dongping Township Lord in Luhua Town only got this much. Although the amount was not much, it was enough to make Wang Xiaoqian jealous. He was the closest confidant of Lord Zhou, but he didn't even get it!!!
It had to be said that the position of county magistrate was indeed a challenging one. Even Wang Xiaoqian, who Cui Qingyi had once considered honest and dutiful, had learned to coax her into giving him a lie. "The village head is truly a heroine. She was able to snatch potato seeds from the hands of various dignitaries in the capital. I wonder which dignitary she relied on?"
Because of Cui Qingyi's reception of Captain Wu's family years ago, the old lady of the Wu family and Mrs. Wu praised the Dongping Township Lord highly after they returned, and Captain Wu also accepted Cui Qingyi as his friend from the bottom of his heart.
A few years ago, some wounded soldiers and veterans retired from the military camp. Captain Wu wrote a letter to Cui Qingyi asking if it was possible to accommodate some of them. Cui Qingyi naturally welcomed it.
Ever since she became the village chief and took over the mess in Luhua Town, she realized that it would be impossible to go out without some close friends, otherwise she would not be able to run the business.
Of course, there was no such thing as finding jobs for retired soldiers in this era, but there was an unspeakable deep friendship between those who had fought on the battlefield together, and many generals would find ways to find jobs themselves.
Cui Qingyi generously took over the resettlement of thirty wounded and veteran soldiers. Captain Wu was pleased and felt honored, so he praised the Dongping Township Lord again to his superiors. In a blink of an eye, Cui Qingyi's reputation in the Qinghe County garrison improved a lot. Everyone who mentioned her would say that she was indeed as capable as a man and much better than those old guys in the court who were just sitting in office and doing nothing.
Cui Qingyi didn't know about these things. She looked at her subordinates who were obeying orders and moving efficiently, and felt that they were worthy of being people from the military camp. They were so useful.
She directed her people to load their potatoes onto the truck, while looking at Wang Xiaoqian intently, "Anyway, this isn't Lord Zhou's way, and County Magistrate Wang, are you sure this is all?" She looked as if, "If you dare to hide my things, we'll have a fight." Wang Xiaoqian was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
"Auntie, what can I do with those potatoes?"
Cui Qingyi thought about it and waved her hand, leading her group straight away. Wang Xiaoqian looked on eagerly, feeling a bit envious. He felt that the village head lived a much more carefree life than he, the county magistrate.
Nong Hui returned to Luhua Town during the spring plowing season. I don't know how she convinced her family, but this time she looked more lively and cheerful than last year.
This was Nong Hui's first time seeing the new grain from Dajin. Holding a potato in her hands, she asked curiously, "Village Master, how do you eat this potato? Does it taste good?"
Cui Qingyi was always particularly tolerant towards lovely and beautiful girls. She pointed to a few carts of potato seeds and said, "These are delicious no matter how you cook them. Pick up a few for lunch and ask the kitchen to cook them for you."
Nong Hui touched the potatoes lovingly and said, "No, every time I eat one, the people will have one less seed. It won't be too late to try them again when Luhua Town has a good potato harvest."
Since Cui Qingyi now lives in Luhua Town, Chen Ma brought Man Yue along to take care of her diet.
It was hard not to be attracted by Chen Ma's noodle-making skills. At first, only those close to Cui Qingyi ate together. Later, as Cui Qingyi's team grew, more and more people came to eat here.
It was impossible for Chen Ma and Manyue to handle the work alone, so they hired several women in Luhua Town and set up a kitchen to prepare three meals a day.
Nowadays, more and more merchants from Dongping County like to go to Luhua Town. Not to mention anything else, the food problem of the village chief's subordinates alone supports an entire rice shop.
Not to mention, everyone is eagerly waiting to see what these factories built by the village chief will be used for.
Cui Qingyi didn't let the common people and those who came to inquire about the news wait too long. Soon, soy sauce shops, aged vinegar shops, tofu shops, and sake shops all listed their signs.
Everyone saw that this was nothing new, after all, the county had all these things.
Cui Qingyi only allows outsiders to see this lively scene. When everyone comes again, they will find that a guard post has been set up in Luhua Town. If they want to see the factory, I'm sorry, we cannot receive them.
The people of Luhua Town grew potato seedlings under the guidance of Nong Hui, and while waiting for the seedlings to be successfully grown, they hurried to the factory to sign up.
Since these factories were built by Cui Qingyi and the recipes were all her own, she only selected managers and workers from among the people of Luhua Town and paid them wages every month.
Of course, the manager of each workshop is her man, and Cui Qingyi cannot fully trust the people in Luhua Town yet.
Ordinary people usually know how to make soy sauce and vinegar, but when they enter Cui Qingyi's workshop, they find that there is a big difference between the vinegar they brew at home and that in the workshop. Not to mention anything else, the so-called work clothes alone are enough to open people's eyes.
But no one had any objections, because the village chief said that since we are doing business related to food, cleanliness and hygiene are the top priority. We can't let the caravans be scared away because they think it is unclean.
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