Chapter 20 There are no more landlords in this world...
The next morning, Lu Xiaoqi was woken up by her alarm clock.
She sat on the bed, looking at the unfamiliar surroundings, feeling a little lost. After a few seconds, her mind cleared, and she remembered that she had just found a hotel in town last night and was now in a hotel room.
When the ancient town still had a flow of tourists, some shrewd people in the county opened a few hotels and guesthouses. However, with the closure of the ancient town, most of them eventually failed miserably, with only one or two barely surviving on low-cost operations. However, don't expect good environment and living conditions; they are dilapidated. Fortunately, the owners are clean, so the hygiene is passable.
Zhao Feiyan had already woken up and was combing her long, waterfall-like hair by the window.
"Xiao Lu is awake?" Seeing Lu Xiaoqi get up, she turned around and looked at her with gentle eyes, her whole person shining in the morning light. "Fifth Sister-in-law has already gone downstairs to buy breakfast. She said she would take a lot to the ancient town and asked me to wait for you in the room."
Lu Xiaoqi nodded haphazardly, completely captivated by her beauty, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Your hair is so beautiful!"
It's as smooth as satin.
Zhao Feiyan smiled and then sighed, "It's a pity it's so hard to maintain. I'm thinking of cutting it off."
Maintaining beauty comes at a price. She used to have a large group of maids around her, three or four of whom were dedicated to taking care of her hair, so naturally she could maintain such good hair quality and never had to worry about her hairstyle. But now, however, her long hair seems to have become a burden.
"No, don't cut it!" Lu Xiaoqi blurted out, many thoughts flashing through her mind. "Please don't cut it, um... I haven't thought of the specifics yet, but I might need your help with some publicity later."
Zhao Feiyan was taken aback, then laughed, seemingly very happy: "Okay, I'll listen to you."
After tidying up, Sister-in-law Song Wu returned: "I ordered three buckets of porridge from the breakfast shop. The owner said he could deliver them to the entrance of the ancient town. They've been hungry for so long, so they can't eat anything too dry right away; they have to take it slow. I also brought you some steamed buns."
She is naturally warm and cheerful and easily gets along with people: "The boss also asked me about the ancient town, so I told him, as we had agreed before, that some workers had already moved in."
Lu Xiaoqi gave her a thumbs up: "Fifth Sister-in-law is getting more and more amazing."
Of the three, Song Wu Sao is probably the one who has adapted the best. She now looks no different from the smiling middle-aged women in the county town, and even her tone of voice and word choice are slowly becoming more modern.
She truly deserves to be called an extraordinary woman who was able to start from scratch after surviving a great escape!
After a simple breakfast, the three of them embarked on a shopping spree in the county town—buying daily necessities like toothbrushes, toothpaste, combs, and washbasins, as well as clothes, shoes, and even personal items like sanitary napkins. By the end, almost every shop knew that a wealthy young man had come to the county and was connected to the ancient town, so they all welcomed him warmly, leaving Lu Xiaoqi feeling flattered.
Even the hotel owner gave her a 20% discount, then cautiously leaned over and asked, "Miss Lu, will Qinghe Ancient Town really reopen soon?"
Lu Xiaoqi smiled and said confidently, "It will open! We're already in closed-door training for our staff, and we'll start repairs soon. However, the opening date isn't set yet; it might be six months to a year." She paused, then added, "And I think this opening will definitely be a hit!"
She is currently facing a multitude of troubles, but her confidence is growing stronger.
The hotel owner was taken aback for a moment, then laughed and kept saying, "That's good, that's good! Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to keep my hotel running... At my age, having to go out to work, I'm afraid no one would want me!"
Upon hearing this, Lu Xiaoqi couldn't help but offer a few suggestions from a guest's perspective, "Your room is very clean, but if you could repaint the walls..."
Song Wu Sao and Zhao Feiyan listened from the side.
Sister-in-law Song whispered, "Xiao Lu is a kind-hearted young lady!"
Zhao Feiyan smiled and nodded.
......
"Miss Lu is truly a living bodhisattva who saves people from suffering!" Old Lady Xiang, who had just crawled out of her warm sleeping bag, couldn't help but say, and then devoutly prostrated herself on the ground and kowtowed three times to the heavens.
The people of Xiangjia Village also got up.
These sleeping bags, along with the tents, were found by Lu Xiaoqi last night at a labor protection supplies store in the county. She practically emptied the store's inventory. Half of her reputation as a "generous spender" is thanks to the store owner, who was so happy that he told everyone he met about her promotion.
The villagers, exhausted and hungry after their escape, fell into a deep sleep as soon as they learned how to use the tents and sleeping bags. The tents were windproof, and the sleeping bags were light and warm; many even found them more comfortable than sleeping at home. The cotton quilts they used to wear at home had become heavy and stiff after a while and were not very comfortable.
After recovering from their initial panic, the group realized just how incredible their luck had been – they had not only arrived in a world hundreds of years in the future, but had also been fortunate enough to find people willing to shelter them!
Many villagers approached Xiang Ming, excitedly asking:
"Village head, can we really stay here?"
"Aren't we going to be sent back? They're just leaving us with such a nice house like this?"
Someone else asked the crucial question: "If we're going to stay here, how will we make a living? We can't just let Miss Lu be supported like this, can we?"
Xiang Ming reached out and pressed something in mid-air, and the surroundings immediately fell silent.
A smile appeared on his face: "I asked that gentleman yesterday, and from now on, our Xiangjia Village will stay in this Qinghe Ancient Town. We can't go back to our old home, and we don't need to go back anymore!"
After receiving this affirmative answer, the villagers surrounding him showed expressions of both joy and sorrow.
They escaped their predicament and arrived in a place that seemed even better than their former hometown. But as the saying goes, there's no place like home, and the thought of never being able to return to their hometown brought a touch of melancholy.
Xiang Ming continued, "From now on, we'll live in the ancient town and do things for Miss Lu. Miss Lu will provide us with lodging and food..."
Xiang Dali couldn't help but ask, "So, we'll be Miss Lu's long-term employees from now on? Is it a fixed contract or a flexible one?"
If possible, he would prefer a living contract. However, if Miss Lu was unwilling... he gritted his teeth and decided on a dead contract if he wanted. Miss Lu was so kind; she must treat her servants extremely well too.
"A long-term worker?" At this moment, a clear yet slightly anxious female voice came over: "No, absolutely not! We only have an employment relationship, not an exploitative one!"
Lu Xiaoqi, who had just arrived, felt as if the sky was falling and was speechless. How could she, a model socialist youth who grew up under the red flag, suddenly transform into a feudal landlord who employed servants and farmhands?
Heaven knows this is absolutely unacceptable!
All the villagers bowed respectfully when they saw her: "This humble subject greets Miss Lu!"
Lu Xiaoqi scratched her head and decided to have them all sit down. She then chose a place to sit herself and said, "Let's have a meeting and explain the current situation clearly. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have."
“First of all,” she said righteously, “I am not a landlord, nor am I some master, mistress or lady. I am just Lu Xiaoqi, an ordinary citizen just like you. You can call me Miss Lu or Xiao Lu. Secondly, there are no landlords in this world anymore. Moreover, in this world, everyone is equal... well, generally speaking.”
The villagers were in an uproar, clearly not expecting her to say those words.
How can there be no landlords? Then who owns the land?
It can't all go to the farmers, can it?
When Xiang Ming asked this question, Yuwen Kai, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up: "It belongs to the state and the collective."
His expression was incredibly complex; only a genius could know how horrified he was when he saw the slogan "Down with the landlords and distribute the land" in the book. In the history he had studied and in his time, the change of imperial power and dynasties was often closely related to land ownership, yet no one had ever dared to utter such a phrase—if anyone had, they would have been nipped in the bud by powerful clans in the bud, or they themselves would have evolved into powerful clans owning thousands of acres of fertile land.
However, in this society, this land policy is a national policy, and it appears to be functioning well, leading to social stability.
He doesn't know how this was achieved?
"These things are too complicated to explain, and it's a long story, so I won't go into it now." Lu Xiaoqi waved her hand. "When you learn to read and write in the future, you can find the answers in the books yourself."
A thought crossed her mind: perhaps she could build a library in the ancient town open to these time travelers.
It has been included in the plan.
"In short, our relationship is just a normal employer-employee relationship. You work for me, and you work for this ancient town," she continued. "And I pay you the corresponding wages, or rather, compensation, so that you can live a decent life in this world. It's that simple. Here, you have absolute personal freedom, and I won't interfere. However, for your own safety, you must stay in Qinghe Ancient Town for the time being. If you want to leave the ancient town to see the outside world later, or even if you want to leave Qinghe City to make a living on your own after your freedom increases, I won't stop you."
When interacting with Yuwen Kai and the other two, Lu Xiaoqi only saw herself as a "hostess." She felt relatively more at ease with the three of them—one elderly man and two women.
But the villagers of Xiangjia Village were different. They had traveled through time collectively, so it was natural for them to stick together. In addition, a large portion of them were young adults, who might not even be literate... making the situation even more complicated. Therefore, Lu Xiaoqi decided to change the way she interacted with them, temporarily placing herself in the position of manager.
The first priority is to manage them well and prevent any trouble. We can't let them wander around outside Qinghe Ancient Town right now. Let them integrate into society later, and become familiar with what they can and cannot do, before letting them go out.
The system had already told her that all transmigrators were forbidden from revealing their true origins due to relevant restrictions, so she wasn't worried about that.
She thought the villagers would be happy to hear this, but to her surprise, they were extremely terrified.
"Miss Lu Xian... Miss Lu, you saved us, how can we accept any reward from you?!"
"Yes! We should repay even the smallest kindness with the greatest gratitude. If word gets out, won't our Xiangjia Village be seen as ungrateful?"
Lu Xiaoqi was dumbfounded. For a moment, she almost succumbed to her own despicable thoughts. Not paying them was great, or even just thirty yuan a day would have been enough to hire such a group of laborers to work for her—it was an absolute steal!
But... never mind, she didn't want to be associated with that group of people who had to hang lampposts.
Lu Xiaoqi said through gritted teeth, "Yes, of course we want it! Not only will there be a basic salary, but if the business performs well after the ancient town opens, there will also be bonuses and profit sharing. In short, I definitely won't let anyone suffer a loss!"
She glanced at the still dilapidated town around her, feeling a pang of guilt, like a heartless capitalist who only knew how to make empty promises to his employees. But the villagers only saw her as even more dignified, practically radiant.
These are the good days they never dared to dream of before.
Some even sobbed, secretly shedding tears: "Husband, why did you leave us so soon? If you had lived just a few more days, you could have enjoyed such blessings..."
Xiang Ming maintained order, tapping his cane: "Alright, everyone quiet down and let Miss Lu continue."
Lu Xiaoqi understood their feelings and waited for them to calm down before speaking: "As for food and lodging during this period, you will stay in this area for the time being. This area is called Zone 4. All the houses are empty. You can register as a family and then we will assign you a place to stay. You can register with the village head in a little while."
Last night she had a brilliant idea—what if these real ancient people were allowed to live as NPCs in the residential area of Qinghe Ancient Town, continuing their original lives, with carpenters continuing to work as carpenters, tofu sellers continuing to sell tofu, and blacksmiths continuing to forge iron... and then modern tourists were allowed to stay there, wouldn't that allow people to experience the atmosphere of real ancient life?
Visitors can even role-play one of the characters.
It's like a large-scale immersive interactive experience game, truly entering another time and space in the ancient town.
It should become popular, right?
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