After arranging for the five households of servants, the other maids and boys were housed in a three-acre courtyard in the valley.
The dormitory layout consisted of single rooms and row houses. Three rooms, each 60 square meters, were reserved for management staff, while the rest were 20 square meters each. These were their dorm rooms, about the size of a master bedroom, but the kids were still incredibly happy.
To the north are three rows of male dormitories, ten rooms in each row, plus two east wing rooms, one of which is 100 square meters in size. One is used as a meeting room and classroom, and the other is used for storage.
To the south is a row of girls' dormitories, also ten rooms. Although the girl only bought six, the villa definitely won't be built this year. Xie Yushu plans to let the composer Xiaodie and the others stay temporarily, and also to settle the woman.
By the way, that woman's name is Su Hong. Xie Yushu has arranged for her to be the training aunt of the manor. She is temporarily responsible for teaching these people manners and etiquette, as well as recognizing some commonly used characters, and managing general affairs.
The land was allocated to them, the house types were specified, and blueprints were drawn up for them. They were then instructed that their main task for the next month was to build the houses they needed to live in.
The walls were made of stone and lime, and the roof was made of tiles. They were also given a blueprint for an earthen kiln and taught how to make one. They were also taught how to make the clay tiles. Fifty taels of silver were set aside for purchasing lime, building the kiln, and other necessary expenses such as buying more food when needed.
Wang Wu manages the money, and Aunt Su keeps the accounts; the two of them manage the accounts together.
As for wages, we will not pay them yet. There is not much profit this year, and it is good enough to feed and clothe them. So we will start paying wages next autumn.
They had no objection to this, because the slaves kept by the landlords were all poor. It was already good enough that they were given food, clothing and shelter. No one expected Xie Yushu to pay them any money!
I was quite satisfied to learn that a person could have two sets of single-layer clothes and shoes, one set of cotton-padded clothes and shoes, and one set of cotton-padded quilt and pillow!
Slaves in ancient times had absolutely no human rights. They were basically treated as commodities, and their treatment was essentially the same as that of donkeys in a production team. Although Xie Yushu would never treat them like that, she had heard stories told by the elders when she was young.
For example, Zhou Bapi would wake up the chickens in the coop before dawn so they would crow, thus fooling the farmhands into going to work in the fields in the dark.
There was also the steward of Heshen's household, who exploited the servants on the estate so much that the husband and wife were practically inseparable. If one of them went out wearing trousers, the other would have to stay at home covered with a tattered quilt!
Of course, not all slave owners were like this, but there were certainly quite a few. So Xie Yushu hardened her heart and said that she would not be paid for a year, and she felt very sorry. But these people were grateful to the point of tears because they could eat their fill, dress warmly, and have a house to live in!
It can only be said that different perceptions lead to different expectations!
Xie Yushu then instructed Aunt Su to take several women to quickly make the clothes she was going to wear.
She instructed Wang Wu to help the men tidy up the place and set up temporary accommodations, and told them not to skimp on food, but to eat their fill without wasting any. After giving these instructions, Xie Yushu left Nanxing there to learn the rules, while she took Qu Xiaodie and went back first.
It was already evening when Qu Xiaodie and her companion returned to the inn, so they stayed overnight. The next morning, Qu Xiaodie drove the donkey cart back.
To Xie Yushu's surprise, when she passed through Yonghe County, she found that Xiao Yuanhang, who should have been studying at the county school, was leisurely entering Cuixiang Tower with two dissolute men in satin robes.
Qu Xiaodie had obviously seen it too, and asked suspiciously.
"The one in the blue robe who followed the two men in brocade robes into Tianxiang Tower, could that be Xiao Yuanhang? Shouldn't he be at the county school?"
"Who knows! Maybe it's a day off today."
"He goes to Cuixianglou on his day off? He borrowed money from you!"
Borrowing money to go to brothels! The old folks of the Xiao family are still counting on him to bring honor to their ancestors! They have no idea what kind of person Xiao Yuanhang is outside?
They're all so bizarre!
"I lent him the money to shut the villagers up and prevent him from causing trouble again and again. With his character, I'll be collecting interest on this money sooner or later!"
What he does outside is none of my business.
But seriously, does this brothel open so early? It's only about 1:45 PM!
"Perhaps business is bad this year, so they opened early!"
"Do you really think Xiao Yuanhang is that talented?"
Judging from his demeanor just now, this wasn't his first time there. How could someone who frequents brothels possibly pass the imperial examinations and become a scholar?
"Maybe it was just a stroke of luck, who knows! We'll see! We'll find out next autumn when the imperial examinations are held!"
However, Xie Yushu was surprised by more than just this. After a thorough rain, the government distributed relief grain, and the families who had fled were gradually returning home. The Liu family, who lived next door to Xiao Yi's family, also came back.
However, the men of the Liu family died on the way to escape the famine, and now only the Liu family woman has returned with her two sons and one daughter.
The Liu family also had seven or eight acres of land, two sons aged ten and six, and a daughter aged twelve, all of whom were useless. Along the way, the Liu family's mother relied entirely on begging from one neighbor to another to keep the mother and children from starving to death and barely make it back.
Now a widow, Liu Niangzi is naturally struggling to raise three children on her own. When she returned home and saw Xiao Yi's house thriving with people building houses and renting kilns to fire tiles, she immediately had an idea.
At first, it was Old Mrs. Xiao who couldn't stand Xiao Dayong and Li Shi running around to Xiao Yi's place every day. She forced the couple to go with Old Man Xiao to weed Xiao Yuanhang's land. Without Li Shi, there was no one to cook lunch for the workers building the house.
Widow Liu volunteered to cook for Li and begged Xiao Yi to just feed her and her three children!
Although it was a bit unreasonable for one person to work and four people to eat, Widow Liu humbly explained how difficult it was for her to raise three children alone after her husband's death, and how much hardship she had endured. Out of consideration for their neighborly relationship, Xiao Yi agreed.
Now Widow Liu had a chance to prove herself. Not only did she cook delicious meals quickly, but she also took the initiative to wash the dirty clothes that Xiao Yi and his two sons had changed out of, and she even braided Xiao Haitang's hair in different ways every day.
Xiao Haitang, being a child at heart, casually said...
"My second aunt styled my hair into two cute buns, it looks so pretty! It's a pity she went out, I don't know how to do it myself!"
After washing the clothes, Widow Liu immediately styled Xiao Haitang's hair into a fairy bun. She even praised Xiao Haitang, saying she looked like a little fairy! This made Xiao Haitang overjoyed, and within a few days they became close friends, with Widow Liu calling her "Aunt Liu" all the time.
Although Xiao Yi kept a close eye on Xiao Jinyu and couldn't appease her, he still managed to gain a good reputation within the Xiao family.
When Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie arrived home, Widow Liu was chatting and laughing with Xiao Haitang as they prepared lunch. Her daughter, Liu Ye, was helping to start the fire. Xiao Jinyu, who was standing next to Xiao Yi, saw Xie Yushu from afar and tugged at Xiao Yi's sleeve, calling out...
"Donkey, and cart, Mother's back!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
