The remaining workers dared not slack off and hurriedly sped up their work. Even so, the herbs they handed in were still of uneven quality, with weeds and mud all over the place.
Clearing these weeds alone takes a lot of time and greatly increases costs.
In the evening, the two little cubs, carrying the account book, went to Jin Shanyao.
Meng Anzhi, "Auntie, they're too cunning. They slack off when they can't see clearly, and they don't do their work carefully."
Meng Anci nodded, "He only does what he's told, it's all just a matter of grinding."
The two little ones dejectedly kicked off their shoes, climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), and sat cross-legged in front of the kang table, sighing and lamenting.
Meng Anci, "Auntie, I've racked my brains, but I still can't find a solution. How can we get them to stop slacking off and work properly?"
The Jin Shanyao, "When you encounter a problem, you must find its root cause."
The two boys exchanged a glance, Meng Anci spoke first, "They get paid for each day's work; the longer they work, the more they earn."
Meng Anzhi, "Besides, the quality of the herbs has nothing to do with them. We've thought of all this, Auntie, but we don't know how to solve this problem."
Jin Shanyao in satisfaction, "It's already great that you've thought of these two points, so let's start from these two points."
Upon hearing this, Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci immediately sat up straight, their eyes sparkling as they stared at Jin Shanyao.
Jin Shanyao up the oil lamp and casually said, "This problem is simple: tie their interests to the outcome you want."
"How do we tie it?" the two little ones asked in unison.
Jin Shanyao and said, "Starting tomorrow, we will change the daily settlement to a pound settlement."
We don't accept items with mud or soil on them; items with weeds are 1000-2000 yuan per pound. Items that are cleaned and in good condition are 3000 yuan per pound.
Give them a standard, don't let them do things blindly.
The more they dig, the more they earn. If they only dig one pound a day, they'll only earn three coins.
Meng Anci's eyes lit up. "I understand! If they want to make more money, they can't be lazy, and they'll keep the medicinal herbs spotless!"
Meng Anzhi suddenly realized, "That's right! This way we can save time on cleaning and also get good medicinal herbs!"
Jin Shanyao "Wow!" with an exaggerated expression, "My goodness, you guys are really smart, you understand so quickly!"
Whose baby is this? Is it mine? Oh my god...
It would be even better if you could help your aunt sort out today's expenses.
"No problem, Auntie, you can leave it to us."
The two little ones were so flattered that they agreed to do anything without thinking. They only came to their senses when they returned to the study with the account books.
Whose five-, seven-, or eight-year-old child is writing account books? Meng Anci, rubbing his forehead in frustration. "Just keep living like this," he thought, his vision blurring, "It's like living in complete darkness."
If anyone asks him again what they play at home, he'll say it's mind games, the kind where nine out of ten gamblers lose.
After organizing the ledgers, the two little ones began to analyze the plan provided by Jin Shanyao.
Meng Anci's eyes flashed with calculation. "Sister, you said you'd follow Auntie's method, linking all work to money, the more you do, the more you get."
His eyes lit up as he spoke, "Doesn't that mean we can make them work for as long as we want?"
Meng Anzhi nodded, "There's a word, what's it called again..."
Meng Anci quickly said, "Knock and peel."
The two siblings became interested and immediately started flipping through the book. They found Koupi and understood its meaning. Then they saw Zhepi. After understanding it, they saw Coso again and started to read the meaning of Coso again.
The next day, the two little ones came out with dark circles under their eyes.
Jin Shanyao couldn't help but laugh out loud, "Didn't you guys sleep all night?"
Meng Anci weakly, "Auntie, I think I've attained enlightenment..."
Jin Shanyao, puzzled, "What do you mean?"
"Yesterday I didn't understand a word, so I looked it up, which led to a whole string of words and phrases that I didn't understand either."
It's like, "One begets two, two begets three, three begets all things."
Meng Anci looked up at the Jin Shanyao, "Auntie, do you think I have the aptitude to become an immortal?"
Jin Shanyao heartily, bent down and cupped his little face in her hands, "In this state, you're more suited to be a wandering ghost than an immortal."
After washing up, Meng Anzhi felt much better. She took a cold handkerchief, walked up to Meng Anci, and slapped it on his face, making Meng Anci's small body shudder.
"Go eat quickly, we have important things to do later."
Meng Anci, recalling the plan he had come up with last night, instantly perked up, hastily washed his face, and began eating breakfast.
After the meal, the two rode in an oxcart and arrived at Lush Mountain early. Workers were already waiting there, and when they saw the two little ones coming, they quickly got up to greet them.
"Hello, boss."
Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci in return, waiting for everyone to arrive.
Meng Anzhi climbed onto the oxcart, her face serious, and said, "I discovered many problems during yesterday's harvest."
A hard worker can dig seven or eight baskets a day, while a slow worker can only dig one, but the pay is the same.
Everyone had their own thoughts, and no one knew what the young master wanted to say.
Taking in everyone's expressions, Meng Anzhi declared righteously, " Anzhi Hall will never allow hardworking people to suffer losses, so we must change the settlement method."
Some people couldn't contain themselves, asking, "How will it be changed? Will they deduct wages?"
"No, starting today, we'll buy by weight. If you dig up fifty pounds of herbs a day, at three coins per pound, you'll earn one hundred and fifty coins."
The crowd gasped... "That's more than eighty coins!"
"You can dig up fifty pounds?"
"Why not? Just mix some soil into the herbs when weighing them, and the weight will go up..."
"Quiet, quiet..." Meng Anci picked up the gong and banged it loudly. "There's a condition for paying by weight: if the herbs have soil on them, we won't accept them; if they have weeds, it's one coin for two pounds."
"What? Two catties for one coin... Young master, you must be joking."
Meng Anci said coldly, "Do I look like I'm joking? If you don't know the standards, you can look at Uncle Qing's family and see how they handle herbs."
Someone muttered under their breath, "The two Qing Household girls work as servants at the Anzhi Hall, but they don't work hard at all."
Meng Anci's eyes flickered slightly as he spoke of last night's plan, "During this period, Anzhi Hall will select the top three who gather the best and fastest medicinal herbs, and each will be awarded one hundred coins."
"What... one hundred coins?"
"Yes, and the rewards can be stacked. For example, if you get first place three times in a row, you can get a reward of Five Hundred Wen at the end."
"My God... Five Hundred Wen!" The whispers among the crowd turned into loud discussions.
Jin Shanyao sat on a rock to the side, watching in astonishment. As the saying goes, the master leads you through the door, but the cultivation is up to you.
They've improved so quickly; they can even apply what they've learned to other situations. They've truly mastered the art of manipulating human nature.
Dong dong dong... The gong sounded, Meng Anzhi shouted, "Since it was Anzhi Hall that changed the rules, Anzhi Hall who don't want to work here can be compensated with half a day's wages."
If you want to continue, you can go up the mountain to dig for medicinal herbs now.
"I'll participate... I'm a diligent and meticulous worker, and I've long disliked those who try to cheat and shirk their duties. At three coins a pound, I can earn a hundred coins a day."
"I'll join too, so we can dig more thoroughly, right?"
"Yes... we should all participate, and we'll be paid according to the amount of work we do. That's fair..."
Groups of two or three workers, carrying tools, began to go up the mountain to dig for medicinal herbs.
Some people left after receiving only half a day's wages. Whether they left or stayed, they all praised Anzhi Hall for its benevolence and righteousness.