By Jia Xiuzhen

Besides, Yan Jun was very happy when he got the message from Nanny Yan, and his uncle was also happy for him when he heard it, but after a day or two, after handing over the affairs, he took his mother-in-law to pack up the package and went to the village.Nanny Xu and Peng Qiao had already gotten the news and had already cleaned up the house for them.

The current residence of Xu Mama, Peng Qiao and others was originally the residence of Zhuangtou, Wangfu.This area is the place where rice was first planted in Beijing, and Xishan tribute rice came from here.Surrounded by Huangzhuang or Wangzhuang, Xinwang Mansion has several big Zhuangzi here, this place is the smallest and it is in the southwest, and the Zhuangzi is mostly dry land and grassy slopes, so Zhuangtou built his residence here.First, it saves us from occupying good land elsewhere, and second, there are few farmers here and it is quiet.

Only the Zhuangtou rents here twice a year, and has his own family servants, so the Zhuangtou's residence also has a hundred or ten rooms, occupying more than ten acres of land.

After Yan Jun settled down, he didn't care about other people, so he went to the living room to talk to Madam Xu, Peng Qiao and others.On the contrary, his wife saw that it was not Zhuangtou's main courtyard, so she muttered.After Yan Jun and others said this, they lit the lamp and boiled the oil until midnight, and the tea was refilled pot after pot. Finally, Lin Lin always got a general idea, and Yan Jun also had a bottom line in his heart, so they left. They went back and rested without mentioning .

On the second day, Nanny Xu brought two little maids to Yan Jun's house to help with cleaning and cleaning, and sent a few other servants to work with Yan Jun, Yan Jun's family was overjoyed with smiles.Mammy Xu chatted casually for a while, and Yan Jun's family asked about Yueyin eagerly, and she was even more happy when she learned that the two of them could get five taels of silver a month.

In the early days, I didn't get any errands in the mansion, and I worked with Uncle Yan Jun's house. At the best, it was only one or two taels a month. Fortunately, I didn't have to pay for board and lodging myself, and I couldn't save a few after all.This time, the price doubled all of a sudden, and I got a waiter again. The dislike I had earlier disappeared in no time.What kind of person is Xu Mama, after several conversations, she already knew it in her heart, pointed out something and then went to work.

At first, Li Wan only knew that the village had fields and land, with a radius of ten hectares. Li Wan asked Nanny Xu to keep the land lease documents signed by the tenants, but he himself didn't even look at it.Now that I got Yan Jun's details, I realized that 37% of the village's upper grass slopes accounted for [-]%, and the remaining [-]% were dry fields, [-]% paddy fields, and some miscellaneous land.There are a total of [-] households living in one place, called Caotianzhuang.Because there are no special products in this village, and there are not many fertile fields, it cannot be ranked nearby.

Prince Xin's mansion has always been under strict control, Zhuangtou did not dare to be too domineering, there was never such a thing as a twitch or a big fight.It's just that in the past two years, there have been disasters, either drought or freezing, and the rent is very tight.Originally, I heard that there was a change of owner, and I was afraid that there would be a ruthless attack. Unexpectedly, the rent was lowered.

Needless to say, the paddy fields have been submerged several times since the beginning of summer. After soaking in the water and then exposing them to the sun, they are all pale and chlorotic.Besides, the dry fields have been drenched like paddy fields. The crops on this dry land can't stand the blisters, and the roots and leaves are rotten. Seeing that there is no harvest, they are worried and don't know what to do.

On the other side, among the fresh things that Peng Qiao planted, the jade wheat looks like a sputum head, with a dozen or twenty pieces scattered on a stick, which is not the horse-tooth-like row that Li Wan planted in the Pearl Realm. Are they neatly arranged? !The yams are not bad, but a total of slap-sized land is planted, so what's the use.

The most eye-catching thing is the sweet potato. Peng Qiao didn't know where he learned the ingenious method. He grew the seedlings, cut off the vine cuttings, and planted a full six or seven acres of land on the slopes. Now it grows very vigorously. .In addition, the red bean, mung bean, kidney bean and pinto bean are more deflated and less bulging.This Peng Qiao is just like the farmer, moaning and sighing all day long.

Seeing that this year's harvest is hopeless, and hearing that the master's family has sent a new head of the farm, which one is not excited?After getting along these days, I also know what kind of person Peng Qiao is, and I am thinking that maybe there will be a way out by then.Who knows, the master also knows this, so they sent powerful people down, it seems that if they don't die this year, they will have to peel off their skin.

This Yan Jun first invited the heads of the farm households to talk about this year's farming work, but it was just a matter of trying to figure out what to do to make them look familiar, but it scared the farm households a lot.After talking about the farming, they asked about the population situation of their families, and all the farmers thought to themselves: "It's hard, the head of the farm is here to beat his sons and daughters."

Yan Jun raised his eyes to see that everyone's expressions were wrong, and said: "It's not for nothing. The master's meaning is that the harvest in this field is not good. The weather is like this, and manpower is difficult to reverse it, so I want to open a small workshop for everyone. There is a way to supplement the family. It’s just that the work is delicate, I’m afraid it’s difficult for us men to do it, but women and children who can sit still can do it.”

After everyone heard this, they were dubious, and a man asked, "I don't know what the master's family does for a living, but he wants to work in the city?"

Yan Jun laughed and said, "Whether I'm a flower dealer or a human trafficker, the place is in our village. For a living, it's just spinning, weaving, and embroidery." After hearing this, everyone hurriedly said that they didn't dare.Yan Jun already had the approximate number of people in his hand, and he said this in public, just to let everyone know the number in their hearts.

At Li Wan's place, Nanny Xu had already used the money to find someone to make a loom, but it was the size of a fist and one foot high, so it was naturally incomparable to the serious looms before, but it was a simple thing for knitting a sock.

A few people tried it in their own yard, and even though they had to do it by hand, it was much faster than knitting with two or three pieces of bamboo.Biyue likes these new gadgets, and Li Wan saw what she was thinking, so he rewarded her with one.Let the craftsmen follow this and make a hundred pieces in one go.

Nanny Chang laughed and said, "Grandma is supposed to be in our house, and there are a lot of idlers. How can there be so many people in the village who have the time to do this?"

Li Wan said: "I'm afraid that the bamboo and wood are not strong, so prepare a few more, so that it will not break down and delay things."

Yan Momo didn't think of this, and asked: "Grandma has made these machines in a hurry. According to the method we tried, a person can make four or five ordinary hands and feet a day, and maybe three or four pairs if he is proficient. If this machine is fully used, there will be three or four hundred pairs of socks a day. This month, even if the family has something to do with the land and work, if it lasts for [-] days, it will be seven or eight thousand pairs a month. How does grandma plan to sell it? these things?"

Li Wan said with a smile: "Mama's calculation really surprised me. But I thought about it, there are only thirty or forty households in Zhuangzi, and if fifty or sixty people come to the house, it will be enough. This month will probably be enough. There are two or three thousand pairs of socks. Let’s not talk about it, there are thousands of people in our house, how many socks does one person get? Besides, the capital is so big, how can we sell it.”

Nanny Chang nodded and said: "Mommy Yan is still careful, this thing is not unclear, it is quite scary to calculate. Grandma is doing a big business too smoothly, so I don't take it seriously. Speaking of these socks, grandma Do you think everyone is dressed? Grandma can’t compare with our house, how many people in the world can compare with our house? People in the countryside are so poor that the whole family has only a pair of trousers left, what about socks.”

Li Wan was stunned when he heard this, and asked, "Is there anyone who doesn't wear socks? How can he wear shoes without socks?"

Nanny Chang laughed out loud, and said, "Grandma, why doesn't she eat minced meat? The farmer's family has a pair of straw sandals, what kind of socks do they wear, and they have worn out their feet, so they don't need those socks."

Yan Momo also said: "I don't know how grandma will sell these many socks, and at what price, there must be an explanation for this." Li Wan didn't scratch anymore, how could she know this?

Fortunately, lazy people have lazy blessings, and Li Wan has nothing to worry about, such as Nanny Xu.Having settled the accounts earlier and set the price, I wanted to go directly to Li Wan, but changed my mind temporarily and sent a letter to Ji Liang first.Coincidentally, I made an appointment for Spring Tea in Jiliang, and I happened to be in Beijing these few days, but I got a reply within two or three days.

Nanny Xu took the letter and read it, she couldn't help but feel sorry for Li Wan, this kind of talent had to be let out abruptly.How did she know that Li Wan really wished that they could all be free, so that's what she wanted.After tidying up, he brought some fresh fruits and vegetables from Zhuangzi, and went to the mansion to explain the matter to Li Wan in detail.When Li Wan heard that it was Ji Liang's handwriting, she just nodded and said nothing, and Mother Xu naturally followed the rules.

In the past few days, the girls and daughters-in-law of Caotianzhuang had a lot of talk when they were washing clothes and vegetables in the pond by the well. It was the small workshop that Zhuangzi's master wanted to open.There is no rule in the peasant family that those women in the capital are not allowed to show their faces. If you want to follow this, how can you still eat? !A woman who was choosing vegetables said: "My old man is always worried. I said, don't let my girl go. I am afraid that it is really a business. If I miss it, I will be thrown out. Let me go and see this afternoon. Look."

A daughter-in-law nearby hurriedly said: "If my aunt goes, I will go too."

Another woman in patchwork said: "I want to go, who will cook the meal at home?" Then she said to the woman who had spoken before: "Old sister, I think your old man is very worried, your girl That look, tsk tsk, it’s better not to go out yet. Who knows who this Zhuangtou is! At the Baijiayuan, there is a girl named Shui Ling who was taken by Zhuangtou’s son. Alas, a good kiss will not be possible, What a crime."

The woman who picked the vegetables heard this and asked, "What happened to the girl after that?"

The old woman said: "What can I do, I can't afford to provoke and hide, so I have to send it in, and I don't have a name and no explanation. It's really pitiful."

A young daughter-in-law who just came over to wash clothes with a wooden basin heard it, and said with a smile: "Sister-in-law is bluffing people again, that family is doing well now, this year they rented ten acres of fertile land, and even the cattle are white. I borrowed it, that girl is now a concubine, and she will be called Mrs. Ru when she returns home."

When everyone heard this, they talked again.A daughter-in-law who was patching clothes and patching her clothes on the side heard so and had to ask: "Is there any aunt who has been to the workshop? What can you say?"

On the one side, an old woman who had been silent for a while heard this, and said: "Miss Qiao, what do you ask for? Our old man has found out clearly. He is doing needlework there, and he will pay for each piece. It's just that this job can't be done immediately. Yes, someone needs to teach it for a day or two. I'm fine with it. Miss Qiao, what do you do with this? How can your family be away from you? "

After hearing this, the daughter-in-law smiled at the old woman and said, "In this year's situation, it's good to earn a few pennies, and the family can always find a way to deal with it."

The old woman showed sympathy, nodded and said: "That's right, the third and fourth boys of your family can also help a little."

This clever lady finished washing her clothes and a handful of vegetables, then picked up the basin and went back.Before reaching the door of the house, a six or seven-year-old child led a three- or four-year-old kid with a baby boy on his back and came out. When he saw Mrs. Qiao, he shouted: "Mom, Xiaoqi is hungry." , humming." Qiao Niang hurried forward, looked at the baby boy, touched the face of the child who was talking, and said softly: "Xiao Wu is so good, let's go home first." After entering the room, Qiao Niang hugged Picking up the baby boy to nurse, Xiao Wu took the wooden basin and went out to dry clothes, and Xiao Liu followed Xiao Wu like a follower.

Qiao Niang looked at the three mud houses with almost no furniture, and thought of the workshop that the women had mentioned before, and her heart seemed to be on fire.There are seven children in this family, all boys of one color, and the youngest is just over five months old.The eldest and the second will be able to work in the field with his father, the third and the fourth are only ten years old, and they are probably going to catch fish in some ditch pond now.The father-in-law suffered a serious illness, and the family, which was not well-to-do, survived for only a year or two and became destitute, but relied on their strength to live on rented land.

For a few years, I put in a lot of effort, but I couldn't keep up with the food. Last year, I vomited blood when I was pulling the plow.The doctor looked at it, and only said that it must not go on like this any longer, and that he had to rest and eat fish and meat to fill his stomach.He didn't even prescribe a prescription, but he said it bluntly: "For this problem, the prescriptions prescribed are all medicines that are great tonic. It's better to save the money on the medicine and eat some meat to make up for it."

Where is it willing to eat?Youdao is a middle-aged man who eats poor old men.The eldest and the second are just growing up, and there is no oil or water in their stomachs, so they eat a lot.And of the seven babies, except for Xiao Qi who is still a little fat, the rest are all as thin as bamboo poles.Where a father is willing to eat, he will save every bite he can.There is another milk baby, this mother can't eat, where did she get the milk.If there is no milk, there is no rice at home to cook rice milk and rice cereal for him to eat.

Xiaosan and Xiaosi heard that eating fish can increase milk, so they went to the ditch and pond every day, but three or four of the small fish that were only a finger long were considered treasures, and they made soup for Mrs. Qiao to drink.The mother brought the soup and shed only tears.Now I heard that such a job can be done, even if it can earn a few pennies a day.Not to mention, the rent for this year, the rations for the family, and the clothes for this winter have not yet been settled.

Xiaoqi in her arms had already fallen asleep, and Mrs. Qiao put him on the bed lightly, and was busy cooking again, thinking about going to see the workshop in the afternoon.