Chapter Thirty-Eight: Give Him a Pull

  The next morning, the stewards of the mansion each led their teams to set out and busy themselves with doing the things that the prince had entrusted them with. Several people were full of confidence, now as long as there was money, nothing could not be done, since the prince's move was worth tens of thousands of taels, things would be much easier.

  "Where are we going first?" asked the coachman from behind the curtain as they left the mansion.

  "Hmm, let's go to Dacheng Village first. The people there are poor and have a hard time every year. If we go to give them money, we'll definitely be able to gather the crowd in just one morning!" Zheng Fu patted the several bags of copper coins under his buttocks and said with a smile, he didn't believe that scattering a large amount of copper coins wouldn't attract anyone to work.

  "Yes, the great leader's kindness is really touching. Yesterday, the government distributed welfare and I brought back 10 kilograms of pork, 5 meters of silk fabric, and a few large strings of copper coins. My wife was so delighted that she couldn't close her mouth all night and didn't sleep. In all these years, I, Wang Laosi, have never felt my waist so strong!"

  "Haha, you two didn't sleep all night, and you're still so energetic! Must have eaten too much pork!" Zheng Fu said with a big laugh, rarely joking around with his subordinates today.

  "Where did you think I was going, I brought back the things, my wife insisted on cooking the meat overnight and even used those few feet of cloth to make a new dress for our daughter!" Wang Laoqi said with a red face and thick neck.

  "Ah yo!" The chief steward suddenly exclaimed, the car suddenly shook, and he hit his head on the top of the carriage without any preparation. "Wang Laqi, even if I'm wrong, you can't drive the car into a ditch!"

  "It's a big deal, the small ones aren't intentional, it's just that this road is full of potholes, and you can't avoid them no matter how hard you try!"

  "Never mind, let's just hurry up!" Zheng Fu knew that the driver was telling the truth, but the carriage was full of copper coins, and he didn't feel at ease getting off. The few guards who were following on horseback even envied him - this road was frozen solid in winter and still difficult to travel; if it rained in spring, the carriage wouldn't be able to move at all. He couldn't help but admire the prince's foresight.

  In the early morning, Zhao Chu finished his horse stance and practiced a set of Meng Tao's new boxing moves. After returning, he went straight into the small study room, where he even ate his breakfast. When Xi entered, she saw that the room was in disarray, with bowls and chopsticks still on the desk, and Wang Ye sitting on the floor flipping through books. In the corner, a low stool was placed next to the bookshelf, and it seemed like the book had just been taken down from the shelf.

  "When did Second Master change his taste?" Xi Jing remembered clearly that the bookshelf was filled with miscellaneous books that Wang Ye wasn't interested in, and they had been there since they were bought without being touched.

  "Second Master, don't sit on the ground. The high-ranking official has arrived and will teach you etiquette!" Xi rushed forward to pull Wang Ye up, letting a small yellow gate servant clean up the table, he squatted down to pick up the books on the ground.

  "Don't move, these books are all mine, don't mess with them!" Zhao Ye sat down again, inserting bookmarks into the open pages before letting Jian Xi move the books to the desk.

  "Second Master, aren't you the one who never touches these books? How come they're all out today?" Xi asked as he wiped the table clean and arranged the books neatly. He flipped through them and found that they were all about winemaking: "Wine Spectrum", "Wine Classics", "White Wine Formula", "Seasonal Wine Medicines", and "Secret Refining and Brewing Methods".

  "It's a pity that there are not enough books when they are needed!" Zhao Ke sighed and began to bury his head in the book again. After a while, he suddenly asked: "Jian Xi, do you know how to brew wine? Ah, your family is in the coffin business, how can you brew wine?"

  "Second Master, are you flipping through books to find a way to make wine? Although I don't know how, I do know who does. If Second Master lets me have another meal of hot pot lamb, I'll tell you!" Xian Xi said with a smile, selling him a riddle.

  "Oh, you've learned to make demands of me too? Well, I'll reward you with a stewed meat meal today!" Zhao Ye said, kicking Jian Xi in the foot.

  "Hehe, Second Master wouldn't dare to hit me!" Xiqi, who had dodged the Prince's 'shadowless kick', said with a smile. "Second Master, do you know what Old Duke used to do in the past? He was a winemaker and brewed wine. Now, who doesn't know about the 'Kunyi Wine' of the Duke's household? Even our family's stewards are sent from the Duke's mansion, so we must have someone who knows how to brew wine!"

  "Alas, I'm really muddled! Holding a golden rice bowl in my hands yet begging for food everywhere!" Zhao Ke threw down his book and sighed.

  "Second Master isn't confused, you're just blinded by your own biases, I'm just an onlooker seeing things clearly!" Xiqi scratched his head and said.

  "Has the manager gone out?" Zhao asked.

  "They've left. Early this morning, they loaded a large truck with copper plates and set off in the direction of Dachen Village with six guards. They'll definitely be able to recruit many people today!" Xijin hastily reported.

  "It's not necessarily so, if he went to our old village today, he might still be able to bring people back. But if he went there, I'm afraid this day would be a waste of time. Now I'm worried that the people from the old village won't dare to come either!" Zhao Ye said with a frown.

  "Second Master, don't be ridiculous! A crisp and shiny string of cash with no takers? I refuse to believe it!"

  "Don't you believe it?! Think about it, if someone is tall and strong, and every time they see you, they beat you up once. One day, that person suddenly sticks out their butt and lets you kick them twice, what would you think? Would you dare to kick them?"

  "I don't dare, I'm afraid that if I kick him now, one day he'll kick me back twice as hard!" Jian Xi thought for a moment before saying with some embarrassment.

  "This is all they can get, the people of Dacheng Village have been bullied by that son of a bitch Zhang Yan for too long. They went there and gave money, would anyone dare to ask for it? I'm afraid they'll think the money is biting their hands!"

  "What's to be done, Second Master?"

  "What's to be done? Cool-headed, one must use their brain when doing things. Go and get Zhao Ren and the others!" said Zhao Er, with his legs crossed.

  That day, the Xia courtyard was bustling with excitement, and bursts of laughter could be heard from time to time. Passersby thought they were listening to a theatrical performance, but it didn't quite sound like one. The Second Master had never been known for this hobby. By afternoon, someone with sharp eyes reported that more than ten beggars in tattered clothes and disheveled hair emerged from the Xia courtyard. He hastily informed San Guan Shi, but after searching for half a day, the guards couldn't find any trace of the beggars.

  When the sky turned dark, someone came back to Da Guan with a dejected look on his face. He then went to the inner courtyard, but no one knew how he managed to carry several bags of money out and back in again without being detected. Soon, news came from the inner courtyard that Er Ye didn't even see him and just told him to go back and rest well.

  The next day, as soon as the sky brightened, Zheng Fu had already gotten up early and was strolling around in the courtyard. He hadn't slept all night, his eyes were bloodshot, and a big blister had grown on the corner of his mouth. As he walked, he sighed that he had lost face yesterday.

  "Alas!" The steward sighed again, and he found the village head to beat a gong in the village for half a day. Only an old man with a crutch came over, didn't even ask any questions, and left. He himself was frozen all day and drank a bellyful of northwest wind. Not one person was recruited back. He was worried about whether to go or not today. If he went, how would he explain it? If he didn't go, how could he recruit people and report back to the king?

  "The steward, the steward!" At this time, the gate child hurriedly ran over and shouted.

  "What's the panic? Have you forgotten all the rules?" Zheng Fu scolded with a sullen face.

  "Yes, yes, the big manager, someone outside the door is asking to see you!" The gatekeeper swallowed his saliva and replied.

  "What's the point of signing up?" Zheng Fu asked irritably. He was worried about signing up and got annoyed when he heard it.

  "Are you going to repair the dam or not? There are already 180 people waiting outside, and more are coming this way. What do you say, boss?"

  "Then why not? Hurry up and inform the Zheng's house to prepare the money, I'll go right away!" Zheng Fu suddenly felt like it was really raining meat pies from the sky, this is what they say about getting what you lack!

  When Zheng Fu arrived at the entrance, the crowd burst into laughter. "Old Man Zheng, are you looking for someone to repair the dam? You'll have to pay a month's wages first!" a man asked, stepping forward.

  "Yes, not only is the pay for a month in advance, but also two meals are provided every day after work begins. However, we only recruit tenant farmers from our own estate, which village are you from?" Zheng Fu replied.

  "Old Zheng, I'm from Zhao Village. You're not trying to cheat us, are you? The money should be paid first, and do we still have to pay interest? In the past, working was all in vain, and we even had to bring our own tools and dry rations!" the man said cautiously.

  "It won't, just sign and stamp, you can get three taels of silver immediately to go home for the New Year. After the New Year, come to the construction site to listen to the arrangement and work. Absolutely no interest will be collected, and the wages in the future will all be calculated once a month, no arrears!"

  "Old Zhang, don't ask this and that, I heard they're recruiting 200 people. If you're not going, I'll go, don't block my way. I trust the government won't cheat us!" At this time, a person came over, pulled the man to one side, squeezed in and said.

  "This is the Wang's mansion, they won't cheat us out of that little money. The master is a good person, my second son even went to the mansion to perform a play, and when he left, the master gave him some pastries as a gift, I'll go too!"

  "Lei Ge, don't pull me, I'm just asking, I also want to sign up, staying at home is also idle!"

  "Hurry up, you guys in front! There are people coming from behind. If there are too many people later on, we won't be able to report!"

  "Everyone, make way! Don't be disorderly, line up one by one!" At this time, more than a dozen people came out of the mansion carrying several large baskets of glittering copper coins. The guards opened up the area and shouted loudly.

  "Everyone, those who haven't had breakfast can come over here to have a bowl of bone soup and two pancakes!" As he spoke, several servants brought out more food and set it up on two tables.

  A few people at the front really received the money and sat down to drink soup and eat buns, then the people in the back believed it and rushed forward to sign up. "Second brother, stop eating, hurry home and call third brother, let him come quickly, maybe he can still make it!"

  "Hu Zi Ge, when you return to the village, shout out loud and ask the eldest of my uncle's family to come too. They can't even afford to cook a meal at home!"

  "Alright, alright, I'll give you a shout when I pass by Dacheng Village, just worry that there won't be enough people to rush over!"

  "They had it coming! Yesterday I went to their village to recruit people, but nobody dared to come!"

  "They're the ones who let Zhang Yan that son of a bitch get away with it, now they don't even dare to believe in good things!"

  "If it weren't for those little rascals speaking up yesterday, we wouldn't have known and the good thing would have been taken by them." People were discussing this, those who received money first couldn't stop smiling, while those in the back might have had enough or their turn to receive money was over, they all urged hastily. After hearing the news, more people came rushing from behind.