Chapter 267 Employee Benefits
The next morning, Chen Dashan, Lu Erlang and others came with a few carts and were still loading goods. Old Mrs. Zhao came with a chicken in her left hand and a basket of eggs in her right hand.
Ever since the provincial school began recruiting students, several private schools have been opened in Shezhou City. The annual tuition is certainly not cheap, and the cost of books, pens, ink, paper and inkstone is even more unaffordable. Letting children learn to read and write is something that most families dare not even think about.
Because she knew this clearly, Mrs. Zhao found it particularly difficult to speak after seeing Sang Luo. She stuttered several times before she finished speaking. She also hurriedly said that if it was inconvenient, she could ask Liu Yaer and Xiao Jiu to teach their brother and sister at home.
Sang Luo was surprised: "Are you willing to spare this labor?"
Sang Luo was still clear about the situation of the Zhao family. This was the first family she hired. The family thought the wages they offered were high in the first year. The older children of the Zhao family came to their home to help cultivate the fields for a few days in the twelfth month of the third year of Wuding. Later, she donated the plow, and the brothers of this family came to help cultivate the mountains and delivered saplings. Sang Luo had a deep impression of all these.
Of those six or seven children, the oldest one should have grown up and been allocated land this year, and the other six or seven are now strong laborers in the family. How could you bear to give them up?
"We dare not deceive you. Liu Ya'er and Xiao Jiu were attending classes here yesterday. It happened that your caravan came back. We heard that they only took a few hundred or even a thousand coins from the commission they collected after running around for a few days. We are also interested. If the children can learn some literacy and accounting skills from you, then if you need someone in the future, you can see if you will consider our children. Of course, even if you don't, it doesn't matter. It's always good to learn something. Whether it's working as a waiter in the city or something, it's better than just digging for food in the fields. I think it's only an hour a day, and the adults at home can grit their teeth and do the work, so I came to ask with a smug face."
Just as these words fell, before Sang Luo could say anything else, two other women came along. They were none other than the wives of the other two farmhands in the family.
Sang Luo saw that the two families were carrying a chicken and a basket of eggs each, as if they had discussed it beforehand. Without asking, Sang Luo guessed their purpose.
Sure enough, the two women greeted Sang Luo first, and then looked at Old Lady Zhao and the chickens and eggs that the old lady put aside, and asked Old Lady Zhao with an embarrassed smile if she also wanted to send a few more children to learn to read and do accounting?
Seeing this, Sang Luo had to explain the matter more clearly, saying, "It is true that the commission from yesterday's business trip was several hundred to nearly a thousand coins, but this was the first time I went to find a distributor. The goods they want may take a month or two to sell, so I can't always get this much money."
The three families actually discussed this matter last night. Old Mrs. Zhao said, "We know about it."
Sang Luo nodded: "Studying is good, but it's not as easy to make money as you think. But it's a good thing to let children learn to read and write. You guys can take your things back first. Let me think about this matter carefully and give you an answer in two days."
After these words came out, the three of them felt a little embarrassed. Old Lady Zhao said, "If it's not convenient, please don't be embarrassed by this matter. It was rude of me to bring this up. In fact, it's the same to ask the older family members to learn from the younger ones."
How can it be exactly the same? If it were, there would be no need to make this trip.
Sang Luo smiled and said, "It's not a difficult matter, but for us country folk, farming is also a top priority. Let me think about whether there is a way to have the best of both worlds. If it is possible, I will let you know then."
The best of both worlds?
Mrs. Zhao and the other two farmhands looked at each other, then they all thanked her and said, "Then we will wait for your letter."
Sang Luo smiled and sent the three people out. None of them were willing to take back the things they had brought. Sang Luo knew how much income this was for the farmer, so she didn't bother to take them and just stuffed them back into her hands one by one.
"We have some at home. It's not easy to save this much. Don't spend it. I'll keep this in mind. I'll give you a reply in the next few days whether it succeeds or not."
After sending the three people away, Sang Luo called Chen Dashan who was still loading the goods to talk.
"How about I give the workers in my workshop or my shop, as well as their children, a chance to learn to read?"
Chen Dashan was stunned: "That's a lot of people, right?"
Old Mrs. Zhao had been talking to Sang Luo earlier, and she had heard everything about Chen Dashan going in and out to move goods. When she heard Sang Luo say that she needed to think about it again, she thought it was just inconvenience because there were too many people collecting goods, but she didn't expect that she actually wanted to take care of the workshop and the shop as well.
"Besides, it's ok for children, but how much time do adults have to attend classes?"
Sang Luo said, "Study at night. Young children can come and study for half an hour during the day. Older children who can do farm work can come and study for half an hour at night if they are willing to learn. What do you think?"
Chen Dashan finally realized that this was the same as his and his wife's. The difference was that he and Zhou Ge were learning from their younger brothers and sisters at home.
"That's fine, but I'm afraid there aren't many people who are interested in learning it."
Like him a few years ago, he didn't think it was necessary for him to learn to read and do accounting. It was not until the two families went into business together and had to sign a contract that Chen Dashan realized that it was not enough to just know how to hunt and farm. After this business trip, he realized this more deeply. If he hadn't brought Shen Jin and Ershan with him, and it was only him, Lu Erlang and Zhou Sanlang, I'm afraid they wouldn't be able to sign the contract properly.
He was relatively an early learner, like Lu Erlang, who only realized this problem during this business trip. When he went out today, he hung a cloth bag on his empty car, which contained the Thousand Character Classic that Ah Xu used when he was first enlightened.
Even Mrs. Zhao and her friends saw the future that those who were literate and good at accounting could have with Sang Luo, so they dared to bring out their grandchildren who could be used as laborers, right?
Most people don't realize it until things get closer.
Sang Luo nodded: "That's right, but we'll just ask them all, and we'll take whatever we can get. Just treat it as a benefit for our work, and it will be cheaper if we really need to hire someone in the future."
In fact, Sangluo now has only two shops, a workshop and a caravan, and the demand for talent is a bit tight. For example, Xin Niang, who works at the Daxingzhuang Specialty Shop, doesn't know many words. All the products in the shop have price tags, but when the shop first opened, she could recognize less than half of the words, and she had to memorize the prices at first.
It's fine if there aren't too many categories of goods in the shop, but how can it be so easy if there are too many? Because of this, in the first few months, Shen Ning had to spend more time on daily account checking and reconciliation.
Mrs. Zhao's words reminded Sang Luo that the Zhao family wanted the children to work for her in the future. Conversely, if her business grew bigger in the future, it would be necessary to train staff in advance. Even if the business did not expand, this would strengthen the loyalty of the current group of staff to the workshop.
Chen Dashan obviously came to his senses and said, "That's right. I'll go to the workshop later and let my grandma ask."
Sang Luo did not agree immediately, and said, "Let me think about it carefully. If there are fewer people, I can just teach them as they go. If there are more people, there must be a rule. There must be a limit on how many quotas a worker can have. One person cannot work in Daxingzhuang, and the whole family will come over. Not only will it be messy, but there will also not be enough space."
Although Sang Luo felt that the possibility was very small and cases like Old Lady Zhao were actually a minority, it was always better to think more before doing anything.
"Okay, you're the one who takes care of this matter. Just tell us if you need us to run errands."
After a few people moved the goods, they went out in groups of four to deliver the goods to several counties in the north and south.
…
Sang Luo seriously brought up the matter of running a school, and during the day she and Shen Ning discussed how to allocate the places.
Sang Luo now has more than fifty people working as longtime workers in workshops, shops and caravans.
Just as Chen Dashan said, not everyone is willing to read, learn to read and do accounting, so if a few of the fifty or so people can come, they can be considered ambitious. However, if the quota is given to children in the family, the older ones who can serve as laborers may not be willing to do so, but the younger ones may be able to do so.
"One quota per person?"
"What if she is motivated and her children also want to learn?"
Finally it was decided to give it to two people, regardless of whether it was for adults or children, and the minimum age was limited to seven years old.
"Sister-in-law, the students admitted at different times have different learning progress. Do we need to add another class?"
Sang Luo thought for a moment and said, "Let's divide it into three classes: literacy class, basic class and advanced class. The literacy class focuses on the simplest literacy and arithmetic, and there will be night classes in the evening. The basic class will still be the class you led before, and the advanced class will mainly be the small class that your eldest brother and Yun Zheng and the others take."
After thinking for a while, he said, "Since it is a welfare for the workers, I will not charge tuition fees in the future. You young teachers who teach the basic and literacy classes can also come to me to collect your wages."
Shen Ning's eyes lit up: "Is there still a salary to be collected?"
"Why not? Have I been asking you to work for nothing?"
"When has sister-in-law ever asked us to work for nothing?"
Even before, there was a tuition fee. Although it was not much, it was a great sense of accomplishment as a teacher. Now that I have a salary, it is even more different. Chen Ning's eyes curved: "I will tell Wen Yin and Xiao Ya to go later."
The four little money-grubbers now all have their own small treasury. Sang Luo gave the money earned from making brushes to Chen Ning for her own use, and Shopkeeper Xu gave it to Xu Wenyin for her own use. After hearing about it, the Chen and Shi families also let Chen Xiaoya and Shi Qiaoer manage their own share of the money.
It was not convenient to hold the classes at Shen's house at night, after all, there were two children. Finally, after discussing with Shen Yin, the three brothers would live here from time to time, so they simply cleaned up a room there and used it as a classroom. The matter was settled.
Shen Ning went to the vermicelli workshop to inform Mrs. Chen about this matter, and Mrs. Chen passed it on. Before others could react, the two daughters-in-law of the Zhao family were so happy that their eyebrows and eyes were almost flying.
"My lady, this is what you want."
The eyes of some families with children also lit up.
Granny Chen smiled and said, "On the two days you plan to go, go to the farm in the evening after work and sign up with Aning. But before signing up, you should first ask your own children if they are willing to go. Don't let them go in and make noise and disturb others from learning. That would be inappropriate."
The women all agreed with a smile. As soon as Mrs. Chen left, the workshop started to discuss: "Can our children really be sent to learn to read?"
The eldest daughter-in-law of the Zhao family nodded and said, "How can what Madam Sang said be false? The children in Daxing Village are all literate. My family has been working for Madam Sang for a long time. My sixth daughter and my little nephew have been studying in Daxing Village for half a year and can recognize many words now."
"Send the maid to school as well? How much will it cost to buy books, pens, ink and paper? And don't the maids help with housework?" a woman asked.
The eldest daughter-in-law of Zhao glanced at her and said, "What's wrong with you, girl? The teacher who teaches my little girl has several young ladies. The youngest one is only ten years old this year and was nine last year."
"Ah?" The woman was stunned. "You can be a teacher at the age of nine?"
"Anyway, they are more than capable of teaching my Liu Ya and Xiao Jiu. They are very good at studying. Many adults in the village cannot compare to those young ladies."
"What about pens, ink and paper? Don't they cost money?" another person asked.
Zhao Da's wife said, "No need for paper. Just make some bamboo slips at home, buy some pens and ink and ask Madam Aning to help copy the book. On weekdays, use a sand table to write, and in summer, use water and a slate. Just read for half an hour during the day, and it won't interfere with much of the family's work. Knowing how to read and write is very useful."
What's the use? Mrs. Zhao shut up and said nothing.
You can learn or not, and you look down on girls. Aren't the shop assistants in Daxingzhuang Specialty Shop female shop assistants? Isn't Madam Sang a young lady? She is now a county lady appointed by the emperor; isn't Madam Aning a lady? She manages everything at home and outside and this pile of property so clearly.
Zhao's eldest daughter-in-law has already decided that there are eight places in the family, and she will have to register one for her eldest daughter in addition to one for her son.
There were also two young women working in another process nearby. One was Zheng Danniu, who had never gained weight in all these years, and the other had two faint scars on her left cheek. She was Gan's sister-in-law and Gan Erlang's wife.
The two listened to what Zhao Da's wife said. Zheng Danniu asked Gan Erlang's wife in a low voice: "Gan Ersao, did you report to your mother Pan?"
Gan Erlang and his wife now have a son and a daughter. The son is still young, born after he came out of the mountains, and the daughter is eight years old.
"I report it. Pan Niang envied her cousin the most. I copied the book and learned a little from her. Not only did I report it to Pan Niang, I also reported it to myself."
"You're learning too?"
Gan Erlang's wife nodded and said, "I think the business of Ms. Sang will be bigger in the future. Now the workshop is recruiting female workers, what about in the future? Learning is always beneficial, I advise you to learn it too."
Zheng Danniu has not remarried in the past few years, and she directly rejected every matchmaker who came to her house. No matter how well her parents and brothers and sisters-in-law treat her, she still has to be able to stand on her own.
When Gan Erlang's wife thought of this, she couldn't help but raise her hand and touch her left cheek. She was pushed into the wolf's mouth that year and half of her face was ruined. Even if she learned to read and do math, could she still be a female waitress?
She was not sure, but she thought that if she learned well, it would be good for her to teach her husband and children.
…
When the vermicelli workshop finished work in the evening, others might go home to discuss whether their children could come out to learn to read and who should get the quota, but Gan Erlang's wife and Zheng Danniu went directly to Shen's house.
Gan Erlang's wife registered for herself and her daughter. Zheng Danniu also registered for herself and asked Sang Luo, "I heard that each person has two places. Can I give the other one to my nephew?"
"You can do it yourself. As long as you are seven years old or above."
"It's full. My oldest nephew is old enough."
She happily asked what preparations she needed to make, then thanked Sang Luo and left the Shen family with Gan Erlang's wife.
As the two of them were walking, on the other side, Lu Dalang was coming down the mountain carrying a hoe. The two met each other. Gan Erlang's wife had a scar on her face, so Lu Dalang took one look and looked away. But Zheng Danniu looked very unfamiliar, so he stopped and looked at her for a few more times.
Zheng Danniu was sensitive to gazes, and she saw Lu Dalang when she turned her head. She didn't know who he was, and just felt uncomfortable being stared at. She frowned, and pulled Gan Erlang's wife and quickened her pace.
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