Chapter 122 Let's do it all at once!
The man who came was a yamen runner from the county government. He was running so fast that he almost fell off the ridge of the field.
"My lords, something terrible has happened! Two men have come to the yamen and are arguing with the magistrate. Magistrate Jiang has fainted!"
"She's fainted?!" Yao Shisan exclaimed anxiously. "Has a doctor been called?!"
The constable, panting, said, "I've already asked them, but those two... I can't explain it in a few words. Madam Yao, you should go back and take a look!"
Shuang'er immediately squeezed her sister's hand, "A-Xun and I will stay here to handle things. Sister and the young master should go back and see Lord Jiang."
Yao Shisan nodded uneasily.
On the carriage ride back, Zhou Congxian saw the anxiety in her eyes.
When she was in the capital, she rarely mentioned her brother, and she never spoke of her childhood.
I feel like I understand her, yet I don't understand her at all.
"Shi Yao, don't worry. Although Brother Jiang is just a scholar, he is not weak."
“This time, I explored the waters with him, and the few days we spent together made me admire him even more.”
Yao Shisan did not respond to him, but just clenched his fingers.
Her only childhood memory is of being with her brother.
She had almost forgotten what her mother looked like. Her father was very strict and didn't like to talk. If her brother neglected his studies, he would beat and scold him at the drop of a hat.
She seemed to have never been mistreated; there was only cold silence at home.
Therefore, she really liked following behind her brother.
Her brother not only protected her, but also taught her to read and write.
All of this came to an abrupt end because of a flood.
My father was in poor health, and my brother was sick. The family was already poor, which made things even worse.
The slave trader said she was pretty and could be sold for ten taels of silver, four taels more expensive than the other maids.
So she sold herself.
When human life was worthless, she used those ten taels to give her brother and father a chance to catch their breath.
Two years later, her father passed away. When her brother wrote to her, she didn't know why she felt no sadness at all, but only thought of the word "relief".
I guess it's because I heard my father talk about it too much when I was little.
The carriage arrived at the county government office.
Two people stood in the main hall, one burly and the other refined and cultured.
The two were arguing about something, but the moment they saw Yao Shisan...
Both of them were startled.
"She, she!—"
"Am I dreaming? I seem to see...see—"
Zhou Congxian stepped forward and blocked her way. "Who are you people?"
The two then came to their senses from the shock.
Looking at Zhou Congxian, who was standing protectively by his side, he said, "I am Guo Ziyu, an advisor under General Meng."
The other person clasped his hands in a fist salute, saying, "Guo Fang."
“General Meng.” Zhou Congxian’s gaze swept over the two men.
Then he turned around and looked behind him, saying, "You go in first."
Yao Shisan glanced warily at the two men surnamed Guo, then immediately headed towards the back office.
Jiang Xingyao has woken up.
He reassured his worried sister, "Don't worry, I'm fine."
"I didn't faint from arguing. I was exploring the waters with Lord Zhou. We spent many days outdoors, enduring wind and rain. On our way back, we lost the last bit of our dry rations, and we were hungry for almost two days before we returned."
“These two harassed me in Beijing last year. I managed to escape them, but they came back to me. In the heat of the argument, I lost my temper. Just ignore those two lunatics.”
Yao Shisan slapped his arm in an annoyance, "Didn't the imperial court give you a salary? Don't you know to buy a replacement if you lose it?"
"Even if there's no food in the middle of nowhere, you've all come to the city, don't you know to fill your stomachs first?!"
Jiang Xingyao said, "Since we're already here, why waste money?"
"Yes, yes, you're right. You're reluctant to spend money on food, but you're willing to give money to the doctor."
Yao Shisan rolled his eyes at him.
Jiang Xingyao was still thinking about the two people outside, "Have those two Guo-something guys left?"
She shook her head. "Not yet."
She paused for a moment, "But they both seemed shocked to see me, as if they recognized me."
Jiang Xingyao's eyes flickered slightly, then he shook his head and said, "Yao'er, we were born into a poor family, and we've already overcome the most difficult times. We don't need to pay attention to these unknown people anymore."
Yao Shisan didn't quite understand what his brother meant. Did his brother know them?
"I've never seen those two people before, and my childhood memories are quite vague. Could it be a feud between our parents?"
Jiang Xingyao just smiled and then said, "Yes, a pack of jackals and tigers."
Yao Shisan stopped worrying about it and said, "Alright, I'll listen to my brother."
"By the way, brother, do you still remember that piece of fertile land that the Cao family confiscated? Last year you promised a farmer woman that you would cultivate it."
Jiang Xingyao nodded. "That's true. She said it was land that her husband's family gambled away."
"She said she wanted to redeem the land, but she was short of money, so she wanted to cultivate the land and harvest the crops first, and then come back to redeem the land once she had enough money."
He threw back the covers, preparing to get up. "Did she come to redeem the land?"
Yao Shisan stopped her, "No! Just lie down!"
After watching her brother lie down again, she continued, "It's because you're too soft-hearted and easy to talk to. This peasant woman got greedy; she wanted to continue farming without spending a penny."
Jiang Xingyao frowned. "Does your lease include two plots of land, and she won't allow it? I'll go there tomorrow."
Yao Shisan shook his head, "Not for now."
"I just wanted to tell you, brother, that now that you are the county magistrate, there are many things you can't set a precedent for. Otherwise, more and more people will follow suit in the future. Will you accept that or not?"
Jiang Xingyao smiled and nodded, "Yes, your brother's thoughts are not as far-sighted as your sister's."
"His Majesty has already issued an imperial decree to dredge the river and build dikes, so Ding County will no longer have to fear floods in the future."
"The dredging work will begin soon, and there will be many people involved. We also need to find a reliable person to handle the logistics and meals. Many people in the government are eyeing this and want to place their relatives in it. I'll have to trouble you with this, sister."
Yao Shisan immediately thought of his neighbor in the alley in Yuzhou.
When she came out again, the two men surnamed Guo had already left.
On the contrary, Zhou Congxian looked thoughtful.
He saw that Yao Shisan looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated.
Yao Shisan couldn't see his expression clearly because his beard was too thick.
“Our family has been poor since we were young. My brother is used to being frugal and can’t bear to spend more than a few cents on food. How can you be so reluctant to spend money on something as precious as the young master?”
Zhou Congxian thought she was feeling sorry for him suffering from hunger and hardship outside.
She raised her hand to cover her stomach, her voice filled with discomfort, "The coarse food outside is really hard to swallow, but it reminds me of the lotus seed soup you made one year ago."
Yao Shisan glanced at him. "So he's just a picky eater."
"Then the young master has come to the wrong person. He should go back to the capital and find the manager of Dexinglou Restaurant."
Zhou Congxian, “…”
After noon, Shuang'er and Wei Xun returned.
Everything has been taken care of.
Everything in Ding County is on track, and all that's left is for all the land to be cultivated before it can be recorded and registered.
Yao Shisan was more cautious this time.
Although Xiao Shu gave her full authority to handle things, her words were of no use at the crucial moment.
In the end, she was just a shopkeeper who worked for the Prince Cheng's mansion.
Therefore, she rented land and mixed it with the land of ordinary farmers in order to better confuse the public.
His Majesty ordered the establishment of a navy in Ding County, and there was also the little bit of information she knew in her previous life.
She has to start preparing now.
A few days later, she asked the county yamen runners to pass on a message, and Zhang's wife from the alley came directly with her two children.
I haven't seen the two children for two or three months, and they've grown a bit taller.
The happiest one was Fu'er, who immediately dragged the two of them to see her room full of little trinkets that her father and uncle had bought for her.
Yao Shisan said, "I thought my sister-in-law would need to think about it some more."
"After all, this job is not something that can be completed in one or two months."
Sister Zhang's face was full of smiles. "The mistress of the house is so thoughtful towards our family. Xiulian has now learned real skills, Xiuzhou is still young, and I can still contribute my efforts to earn some money. There's no reason for us to hesitate!"
Yao Shisan laughed and said, "There are foremen and accountants at the front, but logistics are also very important. Sister Zhang is diligent and efficient, and Xiulian is a master at accounting. You two are a perfect match."
Because there are so many trivial matters in the kitchen.
It is more prone to attracting woodworms.
If someone with ulterior motives were to try to bribe or frame someone, it wouldn't be impossible.
Yao Shisan could tell that Zhang Saozi was a kind person just by looking at how she was willing to defend Fu'er, even though everyone in the alley was gossiping and speculating about her identity.
Work on the river channel has not yet begun.
Zhang's wife and her two children have now settled down in the back courtyard.
The once empty back office of the county government is now fully occupied.
The sounds of children playing can be heard all the time.
Aunt Zhang is a very skilled cook. She can tell you the general taste and ingredients of any dish by simply describing it.
Although Zhou Congxian never mentioned the meals at the county government office, his appetite had noticeably increased since Zhang's wife arrived.
Jiang Xingyao went to get the third bowl of rice. "Now I finally understand why the powerful and wealthy are so obsessed with their appetites!"
"It's so delicious!"
Yao Shisan knew about his six-month agreement with He Ran and joked, "Then you'd better take it easy, or Miss He won't even recognize you in six months."
Shuang'er asked, puzzled, "Why half a year?"
Wei Xun added a piece of food to her plate. "Eat, and don't talk."
Yao Shisan wasn't about to let him off the hook. "Why don't you set a six-month agreement too, and we can just do it all at once then!"
It took Shuang'er a while to react, and she immediately blushed, "Sister!"
Zhou Congxian's lips curled up, "If Wei Xun sets a date, I, the young master, will certainly add a generous gift!"
Wei Xun's ears turned slightly red. "Yes."
After dinner, while Fu'er was playing, she accidentally tore her skirt again.
Seeing that she was already wearing a short dress, Yao Shisan simply took her to make a new dress.
Ding County is not large, and the county seat is not far from the garment workshop.
The mother and daughter walked over and everything was fine.
As she led Fu'er by the hand, Fu'er skipped and hopped along the way, chattering away.
A scene suddenly flashed through her mind.
A young but blurry profile speaks to her gently.
She seemed to be holding her mother's hand, just like Fu'er is now.
Although her memories of her mother were vague, she suddenly recalled scenes of her childhood with her mother.
Thinking of this, she looked down at her daughter and couldn't help but smile knowingly.
The moment she looked up.
That day, two men surnamed Guo stopped her at the county government office.
"Madam, may I speak with you in private?"
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