Chapter 60 "Tearing up the contract is punishable by hanging."...
She had run so fast that sweat beaded on her forehead. When she arrived at the two women, still catching her breath, she hurriedly asked, "Are you two ladies looking to hire someone?"
Meng Yu and Yun An looked at each other and nodded subconsciously.
The peasant woman moved her lips, hesitated for a moment, and then asked awkwardly, "Young lady, is it alright for you to look at me?"
Upon hearing this, Meng Yu sized her up.
She was wearing a light gray cotton-linen dress, the original color of which was almost unrecognizable after washing. Her hair was a little oily, but it was neatly combed. At first glance, she was clean and tidy, and her gentle features made her seem like a troublesome person.
Seemingly unaccustomed to being scrutinized, the peasant woman was somewhat reserved, and dared not look Meng Yu in the eye.
After glancing at her twice, Meng Yu raised her chin slightly to Yun An, who immediately understood. She quickly set up a table and chair, sat down, picked up her pen, and asked, "What is your name, sister-in-law? How old are you?"
"My husband's surname is Yang, and everyone calls me Sister-in-law Yang."
Yun An was about to write it down when Meng Yu patted her and raised his hand towards the peasant woman.
Seemingly not understanding her words, Yun An paused for a moment, but still translated to the peasant woman: "What your husband's surname and given name is has nothing to do with us. We are asking for your own real name."
"Well!?"
As if she hadn't expected Yun An to ask such a question, the peasant woman paused for a moment. Although she didn't know what Yun An meant, she still answered truthfully: "My family name is Ren, and my given name is Ling. I just turned thirty-six this year."
"Where does Sister Ren live?"
After getting married, Ren Ling was no longer called by her original surname; everyone called her by her husband's surname. Suddenly being addressed by a different surname made Ren Ling feel a little uncomfortable. After a few moments, she realized what was happening and quickly replied, "It's not far. My home is just five miles ahead. Just turn left."
Yun An quickly jotted it down, then continued asking without looking up, "Including you, how many people are there in the current family?"
"There were four people: my husband, my mother-in-law, and a child."
"Have you ever tended to the fruit trees before?"
As if Yun An had finally gotten to the point, Ren Ling smiled brightly and raised her voice slightly: "Yes, when I was a young girl, my family also had two plum trees, which I took care of myself. They bore several baskets of fruit every year."
Yun An nodded: "Twenty copper coins a month for managing five fruit trees. Of course, if you want more money, you can take more trees. The more you work, the more you earn. There are three days off a month, which you can arrange yourself. If you work for a full year, you can share the profits of this year at the end of the year. The exact amount depends on the number of people on duty that year and all costs for that year will be deducted."
Ren Ling nodded repeatedly and asked with a smile, "Then when will I start my shift?"
"Come here promptly at Chenshi (7-9 AM) tomorrow, and we will arrange your shifts."
"You're on duty tomorrow, does that mean your wages will start from tomorrow?"
"Yes."
Ren Ling nodded repeatedly and thanked them profusely. She tidied up the table and chairs for the two of them, watched them leave, and then went home with a heart full of joy.
***
We managed to hire someone on the first day of setting up our stall, so it wasn't a wasted trip.
After a busy day, Yun'an was exhausted and her face was flushed. On the way home, Meng Yu bought a roast chicken and two pieces of fresh bamboo shoots and cooked a delicious meal to reward her.
Just then, the two old hens laid eggs, so I immediately made two bowls of steamed egg custard.
The curtain of darkness has been drawn low.
Meng Yu bought two rocking chairs and placed them in the courtyard. After eating and drinking their fill, the two lay on the rocking chairs, gently fanning themselves with palm-leaf fans and talking.
After resting for a while, Yun An suddenly asked, "What time is it now?"
Meng Yu raised his hand: "It's just past three-quarters past the hour of Xu (7:45 PM)."
Before she could finish speaking, Yun'an suddenly sat up, hurriedly putting on her shoes as she said urgently, "I have to go home. My brother is about to finish his shift at 7:45 PM. If he goes back and doesn't see me, he'll probably nag me a lot."
No sooner had she finished speaking than Cui Xun came knocking on the door, wanting to take her home.
"Why are you back so early?" Yun An asked hesitantly when she opened the door and saw Cui Xun.
Cui Xun said calmly, "I finished today's class early and came back early. My mother told me you were still here, and I thought it wouldn't be safe for you to go back tonight, so I came to pick you up."
Upon hearing this, Meng Yu reminded the two to be careful. Yun An smiled and waved to her, "Yun He, I'll head back now. See you tomorrow."
Meng Yu nodded with a smile and watched them leave, but after taking only a few steps, Cui Xun suddenly turned back and said to her seriously, "Miss Xi, Yun An and I will be getting married in two months. She has a lot of things to do, so I'm afraid I won't be able to come and help you tomorrow."
He spoke quickly and urgently, seriously and earnestly. Before Meng Yu could react, he turned around hastily after finishing his sentence, grabbed Yun An who was still about to ask something, and left.
Meng Yu felt extremely angry.
She wanted to catch up and ask Yun'an for her opinion, but from afar she saw Yun'an turn back to look at her with a disappointed expression, move her lips as if to say something, but in the end she hurriedly looked away.
Yun An lost both her parents at a young age and was raised by her older brother. She heard that her brother, like Cui Xun, was a rigid and taciturn person who was very strict with her.
Meng Yu sighed and closed the door.
Without Yun'an's help, it will be difficult to hire people tomorrow. Most of the villagers near Zhuoshan are illiterate and they don't understand sign language. How will they communicate?
After pondering for half a day, Meng Yu still couldn't come up with a solution, so he had no choice but to give up and take things one step at a time.
The next day.
After having breakfast, she carried her small stool to the foot of Zhuoshan Mountain. Just after turning the corner, she saw Ren Ling waiting there in the distance.
Upon seeing Meng Yu, Ren Ling quickly took the things from her hands and asked in confusion, "Miss Xi, why are you alone today? Where is Miss Yun?"
Yun'an had introduced her to him before she left yesterday.
Meng Yu smiled and raised her hand.
She didn't understand the other gestures, but when she saw Meng Yu touch her fingertips together to make the shape of a house, she suddenly realized and laughed, "Are you saying she stayed at home?"
Meng Yu sighed, nodded heavily as if utterly exhausted. This couldn't go on forever, so she quickly took out a pen and paper and hastily wrote down a sentence.
Ren Ling was illiterate and couldn't understand it even after looking at it for a long time.
One was unable to speak, and the other was illiterate; they stood facing each other in the wilderness, speechless.
Ren Ling suddenly had a flash of inspiration and hurriedly said, "The teachers at the school are on leave these days, so it just so happens that my son doesn't have to go to school. He can read, and he was the one who told me yesterday that you were hiring someone. Why don't I bring him along?"
Finally, someone who could read appeared. Even though the person was a child, Meng Yu didn't care anymore and just nodded hurriedly.
Ren Ling quickly brought her son over. The boy, named Yang Yang, was about ten years old. He was handsome and had been in school for three years. He knew quite a few characters and had a scholarly air about him.
With his help, Meng Yu breathed a sigh of relief. In one day, he managed to hire four people, both men and women. Judging from their appearance and speech, they were all honest and simple people.
In the following days, when no one came to inquire, Meng Yu wrote down her thoughts in sign language and had Yang Yang read them to Ren Ling.
Although Ren Ling was a peasant woman, she was quick-witted and learned things fast. In just a few days, she was able to understand most of the sign language and had no problem communicating with Meng Yu.
When Yang Yang returned to school, Meng Yu, having been able to communicate with Ren Ling, calmed down and set up her stall for two more days, finally hiring enough people.
End of March.
Spring breeze blows for miles, and the bright sunshine is beautiful.
Construction began on the first day in Zhuoshan.
Meng Yu had a tent set up at the foot of Zhuoshan Mountain to store farm tools and for resting along the way. After receiving their farm tools, the group was about to go up the mountain to weed and pick flowers.
"Clang!"
Just then, a sound of overturned debris suddenly came from outside the curtain. Immediately afterwards, the curtain was lifted, and three fat, burly men appeared in the tent. While looking around, they said in a rough voice, "Who gave you permission to set up a tent here? Zhuoshan belongs to the township. Who gave you permission to take it for your own use? Take it down and get out."
Meng Yu remained calm and composed, stepping past the crowd to retrieve a rental contract stamped with the official seal. With a cold expression, she raised her hand to the group, saying, "I have already rented it from the government..."
"Ah... Miss Xi..."
Caught off guard, the words abruptly stopped. Ren Ling, who was translating, suddenly cried out in surprise and quickly helped Meng Yu, who had been knocked over, to her feet.
"If you're a mute, don't spout nonsense here. Be smart and get out of here, or I won't be polite." The leader's voice was hoarse and gruff as he frowned and shouted.
Although the ground had been swept, there was still a lot of fine sand. When Meng Yu was pushed so hard by the man, her arm hit the ground and the burlap was torn. Faint bloodstains instantly appeared on her skin. The stinging pain made her frown.
Seeing the men's unreasonable and overbearing attitude, Ren Ling threw the lease agreement in front of them and shouted angrily, "Open your dog eyes and look! This is a lease agreement with the official seal. The government has already leased Zhuoshan to us. Who are you? What right do you have to kick us out?"
The lease deed was thrown in front of him. The man's face darkened. He didn't pick it up, but instead picked up his hoe and pointed it forward as a warning, coldly shouting, "I've lived here for so many years and I've never heard of anyone who owns Zhuoshan. You think you can take it over with a piece of waste paper? Keep dreaming. Get out of here, and don't make me say it a second time."
Someone seemed to recognize the man in the lead, and muttered to himself, "I recognize him. He looks like Zhang Dajiao from the next village."
Those around them widened their eyes in surprise, their voices dropping even lower: "Zhang Dajiao? Wasn't he imprisoned for assaulting someone a couple of years ago?"
"I heard it came out a couple of days ago."
"Boss, there really is an official seal on it." A short man picked up the rental deed, pointed to the seal on it, patted the man on the shoulder, and stammered.
Without turning his head, the man abruptly flung his hand, picked up a large hoe, and shouted fiercely, "It's just a fake stamp, why would I believe her? Get out of here!"
Although Meng Yupin's people included both men and women, they were all honest and kind-hearted people who were usually good to others. How could they have offended such a fierce and ruthless village bully?
Seeing this scene, they dared not step forward rashly.
Only Ren Ling stood in front of her, coldly saying, "We signed the lease with the government openly and legally, in accordance with the laws of Daqi. What right do you have to drive us away?"
Seemingly amused by her words, Zhang Dajiao laughed heartily, then suddenly leaned forward, grabbed her hair, and dragged her out forcefully: "Why? Because my fists are bigger than yours! You stinking woman, daring to block my way, you're asking for death! I'll make you my target today, and see who dares to act arrogantly in front of me... Ah..."
Just as he dragged Ren Ling outside the curtain, a sharp pain shot through his wrist. Zhang Dajiao let out a piercing scream, abruptly releasing his grip. Without even glancing at his bleeding wrist, he turned around, hoe in hand, his face contorted with rage: "Who the hell dares to..."
The blood-stained sickle pointed straight at him, less than half an inch from his nose, and the words that seemed to be spitting poison from his wide-open mouth suddenly stopped.
Meng Yu's expression was sharp, his face, though etched with fine lines, showed no fear, and his lips moved slowly.
At that moment, everyone seemed to understand her lip movements: "Do you think it's faster for your hoe to take my life, or for my sickle to hook your nose?"
Zhang Dajiao seemed genuinely intimidated by her, standing there without daring to move an inch.
Seeing that Meng Yu had the upper hand, the crowd dared to brandish their hoes and say, "We have the lease agreement as proof. If you dare to vandalize again, we will definitely report you to the authorities."
Zhang Dajiao glared at Meng Yu, took two steps back angrily, snatched the rental contract from the short man's hand, and was about to tear it up when Ren Ling stood up from the ground and said coldly, "The rental contract is stamped with the official seal. According to the laws of Daqi, tearing up the contract is punishable by hanging."
Meng Yu looked surprised, yet felt that her words were within expectations.
All the lessons she had taught her over the past few days had come in handy.
Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Dajiao suddenly stopped what he was doing, glared at everyone through gritted teeth, crumpled the lease agreement into a ball, threw it back angrily, and turned to leave.
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