Han Zhongyu, who was usually calm and collected, was momentarily at a loss when Xie Yushu gave him a red envelope.
"Do I still have any red envelopes?"
"Of course, it's Chinese New Year! It's for good luck! Put it in your pocket!"
"Oh, thank you!"
Han Zhongyu hadn't received a red envelope for many years. He hadn't received one since he was about seven years old and moved to the outer courtyard. This year, he suddenly received a big red envelope, which made him feel a little strange. The feeling was hard to describe. He carefully stuffed the red envelope into his sleeve pocket and patted it to make sure it wouldn't get lost!
Xiao Haitang eagerly opened the red envelope and shouted with joy.
"I have silver peanuts and copper coins!"
Chu Jinyu followed closely behind.
"What I have is a silver bamboo staff and copper coins!"
Xie Yushu said
"Keep the silver peanuts and bamboo sections in your little treasury, and use the copper coins to buy snacks on the street!"
"Yay! That's great!"
With the two little ones leading the way, Han Zhongyu also had the urge to take out the red envelopes to see what was inside. However, thinking that he was a dignified third-rank governor, such behavior would be too childish, so he suppressed the urge to open the red envelopes on the spot and pretended not to care!
Xie Yushu didn't notice his series of micro-expressions, but instead addressed the others.
"It's the first day of the lunar month, and it's customary to go to the temple to burn incense and pray to Buddha. Everyone who wants to go can go, but don't go alone. It's best to go together and come back together."
Alright, everyone, you can all go home now! Go do whatever you want!
"Thank you, Master!"
After receiving their red envelopes and thanking them, everyone dispersed, chattering about what they were going to do!
Xie Yushu gave out red envelopes containing at least 666 copper coins to any worker on duty, hoping for good luck.
An ordinary guard receives 888 copper coins, while a captain receives one tael of silver.
Nanxing and Zhao Hu's team had been through thick and thin with her, and their performance was excellent. Nanxing and Zhao Hu each gave a five-tael red envelope, and each team member gave three taels.
Zhou Shuo, Zheng Dacheng, and Sun Chongren each received five taels of silver, and their families each received five hundred copper coins.
The Sun family father and son arrived last and worked for a total of seven or eight days, so they were each given three taels of silver.
Qu Xiaodie, the manager of the manor, gave her a special package of twenty taels of silver, while Aunt Su and Wang Wu each gave her five taels.
The children, who had no work to do, ran all over the mountain and each pocketed two hundred copper coins.
Although the resort didn't make much profit this year, these people had built the resort to a certain scale and had done their best. The big red envelope on the first day of the Lunar New Year can be considered as a reward for them!
In just a short while, more than a hundred taels of silver were distributed. Aunt Su felt sorry for Xie Yushu and kept complaining that she was too generous!
Xie Yushu felt that everyone had endured hardship for two or three years, and since they came here, they had put in their best effort no matter what they did. She couldn't let a few dozen taels of silver discourage them. Only when they had silver in their hands could they see hope. To put it bluntly, if you want a horse to run, you have to feed it grass.
Only when you have tangible benefits in your hands can you have hope for the future.
Indeed, just as Xie Yushu said, when everyone returned and saw the silver or copper coins in their red envelopes, they were all overjoyed and excited. They had thought that the manor had hardly made any money this year, and that Xie Yushu would be lucky to give them a hundred or two copper coins as a token of appreciation. However, the amount exceeded their expectations by two or three times!
Everyone was filled with enthusiasm and secretly vowed to serve this place well, for there would never be such a good master again!
Xie Yushu's actions made everyone who was with Han Zhongyu extremely envious!
"Hey! Look at other servants, we're all the same!"
"Different people, different fates!"
Han Zhongyu seemed to sense something as well. He swept his gaze over everyone, and they all stood up straight, eyes fixed straight ahead. (Speaking of which, although we didn't get red envelopes, our holiday perks were actually pretty good!)
Actually, Han Zhongyu was also embarrassed by the fact that he was so focused on spending New Year's Eve with her that he completely forgot about giving her a red envelope. It was also because he had never given a red envelope before that he received Xie Yushu's red envelope and then realized that he hadn't given her one in return. He was so embarrassed that he was sweating profusely!
Seeing that Xie Yushu had finished her work, he awkwardly spoke.
"I... I didn't prepare a red envelope, but I did prepare a New Year's gift for you. Today I'm probably busy receiving officials, so I'll come and give you the gift tomorrow or the day after!"
Xie Yushu chuckled and spoke.
"It's alright, I don't care about the money in the red envelopes (I'm short of big money!) Do as you please! Anyway, I'm free until the fifth day of the new year."
"Okay, I'll head back now!"
After Han Zhongyu finished speaking, he left with his guards.
Qu Xiaodie and Nanxing both wanted to visit the temple to worship Buddha and do some sightseeing at the same time.
Xiao Haitang and Chu Jinyu also wanted to go.
Xie Yushu thought that it was a rare moment of leisure, so she agreed to go with them.
They went to the largest temple in Tai'an Prefecture—Heshun Temple.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, many people came to burn incense. From the entrance of the temple to inside, there were vendors selling incense, candy, fortune tellers, fortune-tellers, and various auspicious items, children's toys, and so on. It was very lively.
Nanxing and Qu Xiaodie each bought a Buddhist prayer bead bracelet, and didn't forget to get one for Xie Yushu as well.
Xiao Haitang and Chu Jinyu, on the other hand, mainly bought food and toys.
Xie Yushu had no interest in any of these things. In the past, she didn't believe in anything, but now that such a bizarre thing as time travel could happen to her, she felt that she should go and pray that the original owner could also find a good place. After all, he was living a smoother and smoother life here through his own efforts!
She hoped that the original owner could also be safe and happy in places she couldn't see.
There's nothing else she can ask for. She just does her best and leaves the outcome to fate.
After playing for most of the day, everyone except Xie Yushu returned home with lots of goodies.
Xie Yushu wasn't without desires; rather, what she sought wasn't in these small things. Considering that the glass would officially go on sale, she would inevitably have to ship goods out and guard against anyone trying to intercept them. She felt that she needed to add another batch of people to train first.
Moreover, the manor's defenses were ultimately weak. If it were just a few petty thieves, it would be fine, but if the business took off and attracted a large group of robbers, her few men would be like meat on a chopping board, at the mercy of others.
Therefore, we also need to upgrade our weaponry.
After much thought, Xie Yushu decided to draw the repeating crossbow and hand it over to Zheng Dacheng to manufacture a batch.
Without hesitation, Xie Yushu returned from the temple fair and stayed indoors for two consecutive days. Based on her memory, she drew an improved version of the Fifty-Catch Repeating Crossbow, which was more powerful than the original Zhuge Repeating Crossbow and more suitable for defending the city.
The blueprints for the repeating crossbow and the hidden arrow have been drawn up. They will be equipped with them for Zhao Hu and Nan Xing, the secret guards, to provide double protection.
The sleeve dart is a single-shot weapon, yet it is quite powerful. If it hits a person within thirty meters, the effect is similar to being shot with an arrow. Moreover, a sleeve dart quiver can hold thirty small arrows, which is equivalent to carrying thirty concealed weapons. Even if one is outnumbered in a dangerous situation, there is still a chance to retreat.
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