Chapter 185 184. Troubled Times
Gui Fulang has many little flaws.
He is petty, greedy, greedy, sharp-tongued and likes to gossip, but as far as the job of a manager is concerned, he does a very good job.
All matters, big and small, were arranged in an orderly manner, responsibilities were clearly divided, and he had a good memory. He could remember who watered a certain acre of land on a certain day and at what time, and he strictly followed the requirements of Zhou Yi and Lei Li.
Gui Fulang comes to the tomato garden every day to inspect the work, and he goes to the tomato garden whether it is windy or rainy.
——Although Lei Li felt that Gui Fulang probably just liked to show off his position as a manager and flaunt his monthly salary of ten taels, which was why he came to the tomato garden every day.
It is also easy to shirk responsibility by doing things according to requirements. If there is any problem, you can say it.
"How should I know? I only did what you asked. It's none of my business! Go find whoever didn't do it right, and don't even think about deducting a cent from me!"
If Gui Fulang's money was really withheld, it would not be his problem. He would definitely make a big fuss and no one would be able to recover.
If someone wants to use connections to work in the tomato garden, Gui Fulang will not show any favors. Without Lei Li or Zhou Yi's approval, it will be useless for anyone to plead with him or use their connections.
"Everyone wants to come in and work, but this tomato garden isn't mine. Who do you think you should go to? You use my connections to get into the garden, and if something goes wrong, do you still expect me to plead for you?!"
"Bah! Wishful thinking!"
Gui Fulang spat fiercely.
He had earned this position by working as a subordinate for several years, and now just a few people want to get a piece of the pie by just talking. How could such a good thing happen?!
bribe?
He already earns ten taels of silver a month. If he works steadily as a steward, that's one hundred and twenty taels of silver a year. In two years, he will be able to buy a house in the county town and support his son Tiger to go to private school and take the exam for the scholar.
What's the point of asking for a small bribe? He's not crazy!
In short, Gui Fulang doesn't give face to anyone, and when asked, he just says, "It's none of my business if I can't make the decision."
This is exactly the kind of worker Lei Li wants.
Lei Li didn't want his own tomato garden to become someone else's network of relationships, with all kinds of relatives and friends squeezed in, eating his money but doing nothing for him. A pure employment relationship would be better.
If you don't do your job well, just fire them.
His family lives in the village, and he is related to most of the people in the village. If they are not cousins, they are distant relatives. They see each other every day and have received favors from them, so some exchanges of favors are inevitable.
He and Zhou Yi were fine, as they had a bad reputation and no one dared to ask them for help through the back door. His parents and Lei Jingsheng were more soft-hearted, and thought of helping out some relatives and friends, so they agreed after saying a few nice words.
What will happen if a bunch of relatives come to climb up from behind?
Even at my grandfather's house, Lei Li gave the chili business in Silihe Village to them because he knew his uncle and cousin's personalities well.
Otherwise, just like the villages in Liujiaopo, we can hire a special manager, give some dividends to my grandfather's family every month, and provide some support.
“Help in emergencies, not in poverty.”
Zhou Yi nodded, agreeing with Lei Li's approach. "Let those who are capable do what they can, let those who want to advance do so, and for those who don't want to work, just give them some money and ensure they have enough food and clothing."
"Giving them more would be harming them."
"That's right."
Lei Li curled his lips and said, "If he's a down-to-earth person who's willing to work hard, that's fine. If he's a little sloppy, that's fine. But he dares to tell his mother about it if he's cunning and treacherous."
"And Sanliuzi's mother, knowing that you found a job for her son, and... as you said, she's overflowing with sympathy, actually expecting me to give Li Chengcai a job."
"Letting Li Chengcai into my tomato garden is like letting a mouse into a rice jar. The rice jar doesn't even give money to mice, and you dare ask me to give money to Li Chengcai!"
"I was so angry I laughed when I heard that. I cursed the old lady and only felt relieved when she changed her expression and walked away in disgrace."
Li Chengcai was sent to prison last year and served more than four months in jail. He was released just after the spring plowing season this year. He has lost a lot of weight, but he looks much more energetic than before he went to prison.
It's a pity that a dog will always eat shit.
After Li Chengcai was released, he was forced to find some work to make a living, but he could not keep it for long. After earning some money, he became lazy and lived a idle life at home. He only went out to find work when he really had no food.
Sanliuzi's mother remembered the kindness that Li Chengcai's father had shown her when he was alive, so she wanted Sanliuzi to help her. Sanliuzi asked Li Chengcai to follow him to deliver food, but Li Chengcai was only doing it for a few days and was really hopeless.
Sanliuzi's mother set her sights on the work in the tomato garden.
The seedlings in the tomato garden are growing well, with lush branches and leaves and strong roots. Some of the early-ripening ones have already bloomed a few tender yellow flowers and revealed some shy little green fruits.
There wasn't much work to do in the garden at that time, just watering, fertilizing and weeding, which was relatively leisurely, but Lei Li paid a high wage, 600 coins a month excluding food and accommodation.
If they could save a little, they could save half a tael of silver, which would be a lucrative job for the villagers. However, they only recruited five people, with each person responsible for about five acres of land.
By May, when the fruits are abundant and red, they can be harvested and transported to the county town or made into tomato sauce. This is the busy and tiring time, and people will be hired to pick the fruits and make the sauce, just like in the chili garden.
However, the pepper garden actually involves the Lei family buying peppers from various households. They charge three cents for a pound of peppers, and those of poor quality are not accepted. Lei Jingsheng is responsible for checking the quality of the peppers. She is very strict and ruthless in this regard, and she also hires people to work in the pepper factory.
The tomato garden is the private property of the Lei family, and they hire workers by paying wages. Therefore, there are far fewer workers in the tomato garden than in the pepper garden, and they are all strong men who often work in the fields.
When the news of the court's peace talks reached Sanlihe Village, Lei Li and Zhou Yi were also in the tomato garden, looking at the small tomatoes that were just beginning to bear fruit.
"How strange..."
Lei Li touched the juicy little tomatoes and felt like laughing, but he couldn't. "We're still worried about the growth of this year's tomatoes and the quality of the rice, and Dongyuan has already put aside the murder lawsuit and started peace talks."
"So many people died, including civilians and soldiers, and yet the imperial court wanted to negotiate..."
"That's not surprising."
Zhou Yi was silent for a moment, then slowly shook his head and said, "Although I don't know much about the current situation in the court, I have read some history books and serious dramas... similar to dramas, there will always be people who oppose going to war."
"Do you think that going to war is a waste of money and manpower? Or is it for our own benefit? Anyway, in various aspects..."
After a pause, he suddenly thought that the Dayou Dynasty seemed to have not fought a war for a long time.
The officials and people here have become content with the status quo. A sudden outbreak of war might cause panic among many people and cause too much unrest in society.
"Peace talks are not a good idea."
Lei Li frowned and said, "If I were an outsider, seeing how weak the Dayou Dynasty's court was, I would definitely become ambitious and want more things, such as gold, silver, treasures, food, and medicinal herbs. I might even want to capture a few cities."
"Especially Dongyuan. They have a long-standing conflict with the Dongyuan people. If they take Dongyuan..."
Both of them were silent.
No one commented on the result because they all knew that even if the peace talks were successful, it would only be temporary and a bigger war would definitely break out.
—
Cicadas chirp in May.
The tomato garden is green and red.
The aunt and her husband who were picking tomatoes had a basket on their arms. They stared at the tomato branches and leaves, and lifted the tomatoes lightly with their fingers, cut them and put them in the basket.
The bright red and plump tomatoes are like red lanterns, covered with dew. With a gentle sniff, you can smell the fresh, sour and sweet aroma unique to tomatoes.
It is much more fragrant than the tomatoes Zhou Yi eats in modern times. It has a strong natural plant aroma, is sweet and sour, and is delicious and juicy. It makes people's mouths water and they want to eat more after eating one.
Zhou Yi kept some for his family, and most of it was sent to the county town, to the kitchens of "a Sichuan restaurant" and "a home-style restaurant", and turned into various delicacies.
The remaining part is made into tomato sauce, of which a very small portion will remain in Qingmi County, and most of the tomato sauce will be sent to the prefectures of Xiling, Baihui, Dongyuan and Nanjiang, because fresh tomatoes are difficult to transport.
The village is bustling with activity.
Everyone had a hopeful smile on their face, and everyone had a gratifying harvest, whether it was the sweet and sour tomatoes or the lush green rice with green ears.
at the same time.
The news of the successful peace talks reached Lei Li and Zhou Yi, and it was Meng Luo who delivered the message.
The Meng family has some rice shops in Dongyuan, and a series of products are also being developed in Dongyuan, so the Meng family is well-informed about the news in Dongyuan.
Unfortunately, it's not good news.
The imperial court would pay the foreign tribes one hundred thousand taels of silver, hundreds of carts of grain and cloth, a large amount of medicinal herbs and tea, and other exorbitant conditions, which made the people of Dongyuan extremely dissatisfied.
"When the Second Prince returned to the court in Dongyuan, he was pelted with vegetable leaves and rotten eggs by local people. However, the accompanying guards stopped them and did not throw them at the Second Prince."
"The scholars of Dongyuan were filled with righteous indignation and wrote poems criticizing the imperial court and the Second Prince. Many scholars were arrested, and some businesses, dissatisfied with the imperial court's actions, closed their businesses in protest."
Meng Luo paused and added, "We in the Meng family have also closed some stores."
"It won't help."
Lei Li shook his head and said, "The imperial court has already decided on peace talks. Even if Dongyuan is dissatisfied, it's already a done deal. Protesting at this time might be charged with disturbing public order and used as an example to scare others."
"You're right again!"
Meng Luo was surprised and indignant and dissatisfied. "We closed the shop and the government took notice. The shopkeepers were scolded and scolded. We had no choice but to keep the shop open."
As he spoke, he sighed. He also knew that closing the store in protest was not a good idea. Sooner or later, he would have to continue to open for business. He was just unhappy that the government was so weak that it would rather attack its own people than go to war.
He continued, "The Second Prince's popularity among the people has also taken a sharp turn for the worse, and his situation at court is even worse. He has no powerful outside family to support him, and his reputation is not good at this time. I'm afraid he will have no chance of becoming emperor."
"The Fifth Prince is kindhearted. He proposed providing more compensation for the fallen soldiers, and he received a lot of praise."
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