After the Lantern Festival, Kang Yueran took people to Fengtou Village.
Kang Hong calculated that there were 257 men aged 15 to 45 in the village.
Cotton had to be planted in early March, and reclaiming wasteland was very laborious. Kang Yueran was afraid of missing the deadline, so he asked someone to invite Guan Jishan, the head of Beiguan Village, to come over.
She told him about her cotton planting. "Guan Lizheng, I'd like to hire some able-bodied men from your village to help me clear the wasteland. I'll pay them one or two taels of silver a month, with no food or lodging provided. You can bring your own farm tools, is that okay?"
This is a good thing! Guan Jishan nodded repeatedly, "Of course, definitely! How many people do you want to hire? There are more than a hundred able-bodied men in our village."
"Go back now and ask how many people are willing to come. If you are willing, please come and tell me your name. I only want people between the ages of fifteen and forty-five."
Guan Jishan agreed and ran back to the village to call people.
Someone from Fengtou Village asked, "Yueran, why are their wages only one tael?"
"I can also give you one tael of silver as wages!" Kang Yueran paused, "But after the cotton is planted in March, you won't have to work anymore. In five years, you won't even have a share of the land. Do you still want one tael of silver as wages?"
She should scare the villagers! "I'm sure you've heard a lot of rumors about me. I don't tolerate any injustice and I work hard. I'm also willing to consider the feelings of my fellow tribesmen.
The steward will live in Yuan Chen's house and keep an eye on you all the time. If anyone cheats or acts slyly, the steward won't have to report it to me, he'll just fire them. If they still make trouble after being fired, I'll break their legs and make sure they can never leave the house again!
Song Zhao, the new manager of the cotton fields, was Kang Yueran's new servant. He had a fierce appearance, a long scar on his face, and a sinister smile. "I've taken note of the young lady's instructions."
He clicked his fingers until they made a crackling sound and said to the villagers, "So you know, I've killed people before, and I'm not afraid of breaking off limbs."
The villagers were so frightened that they dared not speak.
Kang Yueran scolded, "Why are you trying to scare them? I asked you to be the manager because you can grow cotton, not to be a door god."
That scar was left when Song Zhao took refuge in Qingping Mountain and was forced by Tu Da and Tu Er to go down the mountain to rob. Before that, he had always been an honest farmer.
After getting that scar, many people were afraid of Song Zhao's appearance, so he pretended to be fierce and no one dared to bully him anymore. After a long time, he got used to it.
He shrank his neck, looking frightened, and said, "Girl, I'll remember it!"
Kang Yueran had already discussed with Song Zhao in advance that the two of them would perform a double act. She deliberately asked Song Zhao to come in order to suppress the villagers who were overthinking.
Kang Yanshun and Kang Hong looked at each other. They vaguely guessed what Kang Yueran was thinking, but they both agreed.
The two men stepped forward and bowed to Song Zhao, "Manager Song, we'll trouble you from now on!" This was a statement of their attitude, accepting Song Zhao as the manager.
Song Zhao politely returned the greeting, "I'm sure I'll cause you two more trouble in the future."
Having achieved the desired effect, Kang Yueran said to everyone, "If you think you can do this job, come and sign the contract!"
Kang Yuanzhao was the first to come forward and sign his name. "There are five people in my family who meet the age requirements, and all five of us are willing to come and work."
Most of the villagers were satisfied with the conditions given by Kang Yueran and went to register their names one after another.
As soon as we finished registering here, Guan Jishan came over with a large group of people.
Song Zhao repeated the wages and said that he would work for three months first, and would continue to be employed if he did a good job.
There was not much work to do right after the Chinese New Year, and three months would earn three taels of silver. The villagers of Beiguan Village all had smiles on their faces and lined up to register their names one by one.
Zhang's son recognized Kang Yueran and asked, "Aren't you the girl who came to my house to ask for water during the New Year?"
Kang Yueran nodded, and caught a glimpse of Guan Laosi from the corner of his eye. He asked, "Is the debt settled?"
Zhang's son shook his head. "No, there are so many people in our village that they don't dare come to our house anymore. They said they would come back when the money is due."
Kang Yueran said to Song Zhao, "Remember to deal with the matter of Guan Lao Si."
Song Zhao agreed without asking why.
Guan Lao Si was still confused. Zhang's son pushed Guan Lao Si and said, "Thank you, Master!"
"You're welcome!" Just think of it as a good deed she does every day.
There were too many people, so registration was not completed until the evening. Kang Yueran led Song Zhao and two other managers to Kang Yuanchen's house.
When I was leaving the village, I happened to meet Kang Youping and his family of three.
The three members of the family looked away at the same time as if they had discussed it beforehand, pretending not to see Kang Yueran, and walked past her quickly.
Kang Yueran stopped, looked at the backs of the three people and smiled. Meeting without knowing each other is the best ending for them.
She jumped on her horse and rode away from the village. By the time they passed Liu'an Town, it was already completely dark. She led her horse into the space and spent the night there.
Kang Yanshun and Kang Hong were watching over the cotton field, so she ignored it and thought nothing serious would happen.
An Yuan has arrived in Anzhou with the three tea farmers he bought, and Kang Yueran has focused all his attention on building a tea garden.
It was all wasteland, and no matter what to plant, it had to be reclaimed first. She took more than ten people to Qiaonan Village, which was closest to Tianqiao Mountain.
Gai Dayong, the village head of Qiaonan Village, frowned after hearing Kang Yueran's story. "The villagers are definitely willing to work for you, young lady, but young lady, is it really possible to grow tea near Tianqiao Mountain?"
"My family's veteran tea farmers, who have been growing tea for decades, have already checked it out and say it's fine. Don't worry, Gary, just follow instructions and do your work. Whether the tea trees survive or not is none of your business."
Gai Dayong's heart sank back into his stomach. He was just worried that if he didn't work, he wouldn't be paid. "I feel relieved now that you said that, young lady. I'll go call all the villagers here right now."
When Gai Dayong returned with the villagers, the village heads of the other three villages also arrived with seven or eight people.
Kang Yueran gathered everyone together and said loudly, "My last name is Kang, you can call me Master Kang. I bought the sloping land on Beiqiao Mountain and plan to grow tea.
I'd like to hire able-bodied men from your four villages to open up wasteland. The wages are one tael per month, with no food or lodging provided. You must bring your own hoes. If you'd like to take this job, please register your names there."
Someone asked, “When will the wages be paid?”
"We will pay the previous month's wages before the fifth day of each month. We guarantee that there will be no delays. As long as you follow the instructions and work hard, you will get your wages. Whether the tea trees are well planted or not is none of your business."
Everyone whispered for a while, and then Gai Dayong brought his two sons to An Yuan and was the first to sign up.
With the first one, there will be the second, the third...
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