Chapter 5 Chapter 5 Principal [Revision]
1.5 million catties of grain have been received.
The surrounding disaster victims were overjoyed.
Very good!
We have enough food!
And they borrowed so much at once!
What surprised everyone even more was...
Su Qing immediately disposed of the grain.
The soup kitchens continued to operate, and additional stalls were set up in each village, with village chiefs and respected elders responsible for collecting and cooking the soup.
The relief food distribution center then distributed the food according to the number of people in each household, providing only enough to survive.
The two conflicting items above can only be chosen as one, and the government will register and compile the statistics.
The final part, however, drew quiet approval from many.
That was that the government opened grain stores, and grain was sold at a fair price, which successfully suppressed local grain prices.
Once all this is done, if any unscrupulous merchants are found to be deliberately raising grain prices, the government can directly arrest them and imprison them, and return their illegal gains.
The speed with which Su Qing issued his orders showed that it was not something that could be accomplished overnight.
Aside from the fact that her decrees needed to be copied out again, there were no other flaws.
Gu Congsi copied and polished the text as he went, and then asked what the character was and why he didn't recognize it.
The scholar did not recognize Su Qing's handwriting.
It can only mean that the character is written incorrectly or is written very poorly.
Or perhaps these are simplified characters, which is perfectly normal if you don't recognize them!
Su Qing silently complained.
When Mei Niang brought over tea and snacks, she smiled at them.
Su Qing felt awkward and said, "Mother, why is the main hall of the yamen in such a chaotic state?"
"I was just about to tell you, a few clerks and runners want to come back to work." Mei Niang said with some worry, "They had some trouble before and couldn't come to work, but now that they have some free time, they've come back."
Su Qing and Gu Congsi exchanged a glance, and the answer was in each other's eyes.
I came back because I had some free time.
They clearly think the government has the money, but they want to come back to collect their salaries.
In Nanjiang County today, finding a suitable job is harder than climbing to heaven.
The Nanjiang County government office had no superiors, only orphans and widows.
I still have money; these are all good places to go.
Gu Congsi made a cryptic sound, waiting for Su Qing to make a decision.
Su Qingxian asked, "Mother, what are your thoughts?"
Given the current situation, Mei Niang is the one in charge of the yamen's affairs.
To be precise, before the imperial court appointed a new county magistrate, the official seal was in Mei Niang's hands.
The entire government office has to listen to her.
Mei Niang naturally believed that they really had something to do.
But the fact that she was able to borrow grain from the local gentry Wang without paying interest was thanks to her daughter's abilities.
On this point, Mei Niang naturally trusts Qing Qing and wants her to make the decision.
Su Qing nodded: "Mother, the yamen is indeed short-staffed and needs to recruit some people."
"But whether it will work depends on their performance."
Mei Niang was already very happy when she heard the first sentence: "Then I'll listen to you."
"I still need to cook porridge. If anything comes up, I'll discuss it with Cong Si."
In Mei Niang's opinion, the two were about to get engaged, so there was nothing inappropriate about it.
After Mei Niang left, the study fell silent. Su Qing broke the silence: "Shall we go and see the main hall?"
Gu Congsi followed behind Su Qing with no expression.
In the main hall and side hall, there were already five or six people waiting.
Two were scholars, and four were dressed in short clothes.
Gu Congsi explained, "These two used to be clerks in the workshop and the criminal justice department."
"The four behind him are Wu the Constable's men."
As they were talking, Constable Wu rushed over and looked at his four subordinates with a rather helpless expression.
They ran away when something happened at the government office.
Now that we have money, you've come.
Su Qing looked at them and said, "My mother said that you are delayed at home and cannot come. What's going on at home?"
Su Qing took the seat of honor, and invited Gu Congsi and Constable Wu to sit as well, while the others continued their responses.
Her movements were so natural, as if she were the natural owner of this side hall.
That's true, though. As the daughter of the county magistrate, she was indeed the master of the house.
The two clerks were the first to reply, their faces showing obvious unease, but their words were almost identical.
“My home is in the countryside. After the rebels entered the city, I went home to visit my parents.”
"I never expected my house to be looted and my crops to be burned."
One of them added, "My younger brother is sixteen years old. He was forcibly conscripted into the army by the rebels, and there has been no news of him since."
At this point, tears welled up in her eyes.
Su Qing and Gu Congsi exchanged another glance.
So it turns out there are some true ones too.
The remaining four constables also had something to say, but they were all pretty much the same. After they finished speaking, they looked expectantly at Constable Wu.
Unfortunately, when Officer Wu heard that the rebels were forcibly conscripting soldiers, his face turned pale.
His two sons, however, were not forcibly conscripted by the rebels.
Instead, he joined the army and his whereabouts remain unknown.
Su Qing knew the reason, and then looked at the four constables; their words were half true and half false.
But to say there is any truly great evil, there really isn't.
It is human nature to seek advantage and avoid harm, and Su Qing will not comment on that.
Su Qing nodded and went straight to the point about the current situation of the yamen: "The monthly salary will be converted into grain and distributed, starting from July; previous months will not be mentioned."
"There is a two-week trial period. If you do well during this period, you can stay. If you don't do well, you will be sent home."
The six people looked at each other in bewilderment.
For the sake of having food, they all nodded in agreement.
However, upon meeting her, they knew that Su Qing, the daughter of Magistrate Su, was not someone to be trifled with.
It's unclear who spoke first, but someone cupped their hands and said, "We'll follow Steward Su's orders."
Manager Su?
Su Qingxiao, that's a good name.
In the following days, many of the former clerks and runners came to the yamen.
Based on everyone's opinions and Su Qing's investigation, some stayed and some left.
Those who remain have been screened and are willing to address Su as "Master Su".
This means obeying her orders.
This behavior has a somewhat autocratic feel to it.
But Mei Niang didn't care; this was her own daughter.
Gu Xiucai didn't care. In his opinion, Su Qingyuan was more capable than everyone imagined.
Seeing this, the remaining people knew their place.
By the ninth day of the seventh month, the Nanjiang County government office already had six clerks and twelve runners.
When Magistrate Su was in office, the yamen had about a hundred people in total.
Now there are only twenty or so left, which is heartbreaking.
There's nothing we can do about it.
Having survived so many hardships, the fact that the team was able to reorganize is already quite an achievement.
Su Qing, on the other hand, encountered a major problem.
Can someone tell him how to read these ancient official documents?
Not only is it verbose, but it's also all in traditional Chinese characters!
Is that right?!
Su Qing pushed aside the official documents that hadn't been processed for months, looking completely dejected.
When I was a corporate slave, I made PPTs every day.
Now that I've traveled through time, I still have to approve official documents every day.
After a while, Su Qing brought the official document to her again.
Learn on the job.
As the person in charge, she refused to believe she couldn't learn it.
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