Tao Yuanyuan and Second Brother Shen left the capital, and Yan Bao was still a little reluctant to let them go, and looked eagerly at First Assistant Shen.
Shen Shoufu pretended to be blind, so he would not let Yan Bao go to Taining Island with him.
I've only been back for a few months and I already want to run away.
Which good girl is not at home every day?
No, absolutely not!
Shen Shoufu refused to budge, so Yan Bao had no choice but to give up.
Holding Tao Yuanyuan's hand, he said, "I can't go to Taining Island with you. If you're too busy to handle it, you can go to my orphanage and pick a few people to go with you."
Yan Bao couldn't use so many people by himself, so he wanted to find a way out for them.
It just so happened that there were not many available people around Tao Yuanyuan, so they would not suffer any loss by following Tao Yuanyuan, as Tao Yuanyuan also had her own people.
Tao Yuanyuan and Yan Bao hit it off immediately, and they harnessed their carriage and went to Yan Bao's orphanage. After a few years, her farm had become like a school, and it covered a large area!
Outside Beijing, the land is cheap and the terrain is vast, so Yan Bao can build whatever he wants.
There are more girls in this orphanage, but there are boys as well.
The first group of people who came were a little younger than Yan Bao and were about to reach the age of marriage this year.
They didn't have to take the imperial examinations, as they had already learned to read and write. Now they are all busy with their own things. Yan Bao had people teach them many skills, and now they all have some abilities when they go out into the world.
As soon as Yan Bao arrived, they all bowed and greeted him earnestly.
The eldest one in the group was named Haiyan, a name she had given herself: "Meet the Princess."
Yan Bao nodded: "This is my second sister-in-law, the wife of General Ping Kou."
Haiyan brought people to pay their respects to Tao Yuanyuan and waited for the princess to speak. She knew that the princess was very busy and seldom came over. Basically, when she came over, she had something to arrange.
For example, every time I came before, I would bring them something new.
The only good sanitary napkins they can use are given by the princess.
The nanny who took care of me said that they had never dared to think about this thing before. They made their own menstrual belts with wood ash. How could they use such a luxurious thing? It was like a dream.
Only then did Haiyan realize how valuable sanitary napkins were.
It is said that the noble ladies in the capital cannot use it. This is for the princess herself, but it is given to lowly people like them.
That's right, Haiyan knew that if the princess hadn't taken them in, they would have been slaves and had no way to survive. It was the princess who took them in, fed them well, and provided them with three meals a day, two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and one soup.
There are clothes for all seasons.
She doesn't have to get frostbite in winter, and the girls in the nearby villages are very envious.
There are also many people who secretly put their unwanted daughters at the door of the orphanage and ask the farmers to raise them for free.
After Yan Bao found out, he sent someone to investigate. If no one claimed the baby, he would take her in and put her in an orphanage. If there was no breast milk, she would drink goat milk. There were many small animals raised on the farm, including chickens, ducks, fish, pigs, cows and sheep.
Goat milk is very suitable for babies.
If all else fails, I'll hire a wet nurse.
Yan Bao basically delegated authority for these matters, set a standard, and made the dean responsible. She would conduct regular inspections and also send people to keep an eye on the dean to prevent him from abusing the children or doing anything shameful.
After Yan Bao dealt with the incident before, the dean took it as a warning and didn’t dare to act recklessly anymore.
Yan Bao explained his purpose: "Today, I am here to select twenty people to follow the general's wife to Taining Island. From now on, you will be her people and work for her. The benefits and treatment are good, and you will still be free. You don't have to be slaves. I will only hire you."
Haiyan was a little moved when she heard this.
The others looked at each other, with confusion, surprise, excitement, and anticipation in their eyes.
Yan Bao noticed their expressions and knew that they all felt they had grown up and didn't want to live in the orphanage for free. They wanted to go out and find something to do. But she kept refusing to give in because she thought they were young.
Also, Yan Bao is not very career-oriented and has not developed his career well during this period, so he has no use for them at all.
Now Tao Yuanyuan wants to open a factory and a shop, so she definitely needs people.
Their job opportunities have come.
Yan Bao said, "The people selected this time are between thirteen and fifteen years old. Those who meet the requirements can choose to go to Taining Island. Only twenty people will be selected, and the rest will continue to stay in the orphanage. We will make arrangements for you when you grow up."
Those girls and boys under the age of thirteen who were eliminated looked lost.
The shortlisted candidates secretly clenched their fists and looked at Yan Bao with excitement and anticipation.
Yan Bao glanced at the people who were full of expectation and said, "Those who want to go to Taining Island, raise your hands."
Dozens of hands were raised, their eyes shining, and their little faces flushed red with excitement.
Haiyan also raised her hand. She looked at Yan Bao eagerly, hoping that she would be selected.
Yan Bao saw Haiyan's thoughts and continued, "Those who are coming of age this year, please step forward."
Haiyan and several other girls who had reached marriageable age stepped forward. Yan Bao counted them and found that there were only nine people in total.
Twenty is not enough.
Yan Bao asked Tao Yuanyuan to choose the rest: "These are the ones who will be coming of age this year, you can take them with confidence. You can choose the other eleven. After all, you were the one who picked them all. I almost picked them all."
Tao Yuanyuan laughed: "You can choose."
Yan Bao waved his hand: "You choose it yourself, I'm afraid I won't make a good choice."
Tao Yuanyuan can only choose for herself.
The older ones had all been picked, so she thought it would be okay to keep one younger one, so she said, "The one who will be coming of age next year will step forward."
There will be quite a few girls who will reach the age of marriage next year, seven in total, and four more missing.
Tao Yuanyuan can only choose from those who are thirteen years old. Their selection criteria are to choose from the older ones and cultivate the younger ones.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com