Looking back now, it seems she was worrying unnecessarily.
Thinking she would get paid soon, she happily pressed her fingerprint on the document and handed it to the bald-headed man next to her, only to see him staring at the document without taking any further action.
If they lingered too long, people would start looking their way, Zheng Quchi urged him, "What are you doing?"
With a furrowed brow, Shan Bian suddenly raised his voice and said, "So the magistrate summoned us here to repair the city wall in Fu County called the Thousand-Person Tomb?"
Upon hearing the phrase "graveyard for a thousand people," Zheng Quchi's nerves immediately jumped. Looking at the red handprint she had just affixed to the official document, she asked in a trembling voice, "What does 'graveyard for a thousand people' mean?"
Could it be that she thinks it is?
Unexpectedly, a single sentence from Bian caused a huge uproar, startling the stonemasons who had not yet been tempted by money.
"What are you building? The walls for the Thousand Graves?! Is it on that Ghost Ridge?"
The locals immediately realized what was going on.
"How is that possible?! How could we possibly repair it?"
Zheng Quchi looked left and right, then tugged at Shan Bian, who clearly knew the inside story: "What exactly happened? Why are they reacting so strongly?"
Dan Bian glared at her: "Are you really unaware or just pretending? Building the city wall on that terrain of Guixu Slope is like sending the craftsmen on a journey to the underworld. You have no idea how many craftsmen fell to their deaths back then."
“Building a city wall in such steep and uneven terrain is simply an impossible task. I’ve heard that at least a thousand stonemasons died before it was even finished. And now we have to rebuild it. Guess how many of us will die this time?”
The others looked grim: "No wonder the government was willing to pay so much money; it turns out this is our money to buy our lives."
"I quit!"
Seeing the crowd below so agitated and unable to accept it, the magistrate seemed to have anticipated this and calmed them down, saying, "Don't get agitated, don't get agitated. If you want to leave, I won't stop you. But first, I need to explain two things."
"First, although it is said to be repairing the city wall near Guixu Ridge, it is just rebuilding the old site, which is naturally not as difficult and dangerous as land reclamation. Second, this time our county has specially invited two master craftsmen, Yuan Sui and Yin Xiao, from Jixia Academy. These two are good at the planning and defensive works of the city wall. Everyone can just follow their arrangements. There will definitely be no large-scale casualties among the craftsmen like before."
His words of persuasion were exactly what was needed, and calmed down the previously agitated stonemasons considerably.
Dan Bian was also weighing his options and hesitating.
Zheng Quchi nudged his side: "What is Jixia Academy? This is the second time I've heard of it. It sounds pretty impressive."
Shan Bian was well aware of Zheng Quchi's "ignorance".
"The Jixia Academy is an academy jointly established by the seven kingdoms, specializing in seven major professions. Any craftsman who comes out of here must at least be a second-class master craftsman."
"What level does a second-class craftsman represent in the Kingdom of Ye?"
In Ye? Shan Bian looked disdainful: "Ye can't keep people. The talented ones have all gone to other countries. Of course, the Jixia Academy is amazing. Countless uniquely crafted palaces and magnificent temples were built by their students. Have you heard of Gongshu Jiruo?"
Oh, this name wasn't unfamiliar to her; after all, she had met him just a few days ago. He had wanted to buy her tiger skin, but the local bully Yuwen Sheng had intercepted it.
"I've heard of it."
"The master craftsman studied at the Jixia Academy."
What is a master craftsman?
“These things can’t be explained to you in a short time, but anyway…” He said in a guilty voice, “Our Mohist school and Gongshu Jiruo are not on good terms. Be careful, Gongshu disciples are all over the world. Anyone you meet with the word ‘craftsman’ embroidered on the corner of their clothes is a Gongshu disciple.”
ha?
Zheng Quchi looked completely bewildered.
The Mohists and the Gongshu family are at odds, and is that related to her?
She hadn't done anything, yet she'd become an accomplice? The Mo family was simply a place of utter evil. Never before had she been so determined to sever ties with this organization and never have anything to do with them again.
She said, "We country folk probably wouldn't have the chance to meet those extraordinary people."
"That's not necessarily true. Your family... well, never mind, these things are indeed none of our business for now. Let's listen to what they have to say."
Why would he suddenly mention "your family"?
What exactly was he trying to say? Did Shan Bian also know some of the truth about Sang Xuanqing's family feud with the Mo family?
After the magistrate's persuasive words dispelled most of the stonemasons' concerns, their eyes were now fixed on the gleaming copper coin, and they were completely unable to move their legs.
They certainly knew this project would be risky, but in their line of work, you can't just take on safe, stable jobs if you want to make big money.
"Since we have the Jixia Academy backing us up, what's there to be afraid of? Let's do it!"
"Yes, this job pays much more than the previous job of traveling all over the country."
In the end, eight or nine of the stonemasons were kept, but a few whose families simply couldn't afford the risks, so they gritted their teeth and chose to leave.
This time, in addition to the skilled stonemasons recruited, several thousand laborers were also conscripted from the surrounding counties. Naturally, they had no money; only those who were rated as craftsmen would receive special treatment in Ye Kingdom.
Such people will be forcibly conscripted if there are construction projects in the county, but they will be paid. If it is another county or prefecture and they are not subject to the service conditions of their local household registration, then it depends on their personal willingness.
Therefore, stonemasons in Fuxian County had to work, while stonemasons recruited from other places with money could have a way out.
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