In just one morning, they recruited a hundred people. Lu Chi and Qing Yang led the hundred people in a grand procession toward Lush Mountain Lush Mountain. They were eager to dig out an ancient tomb there.
After digging all afternoon, they only found a few scattered copper coins. Some people wanted to dig elsewhere, but Lu Chi stopped them, as he held a high position and naturally exuded an air of authority.
He had his own set of methods for managing his subordinates, and he managed a hundred people perfectly well.
That evening, Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci gathered together to discuss countermeasures. " Anci, this trick will be exposed in two or three days. We need to think of another way."
Meng Anci sat cross-legged on the chair, thinking that if the workers abandoned their posts while the saplings were being delivered to Lush Mountain, all the saplings in his family would wither and die. No, he had to keep them on track.
"Sister, the money we save by hiring people can be divided into two parts. One part can be scattered by Lu Chi in the new area where trees are planted, and the other part can be buried in one place so that they can dig it up."
I come back every two days, getting small rewards regularly, and big rewards every now and then. I'm happy when I find something, and I'm disappointed when I don't.
Everyone thinks they'll be the next one to find the money jar.
This way, we can retain staff without increasing costs.
Meng Anzhi's eyes lit up. " Anci, how did you come up with this idea?"
Meng Anci, "People are both greedy and opportunistic; just take advantage of these two points."
When Lu Chi learned of the plan, he was almost furious. He was a respectable gentleman, and he was being asked to scatter coins on the mountain in the middle of the night. What a joke!
But he had no choice but to drink it; after all, he was a servant of the Meng Household, Gouya was no exception!
The next day, the workers were taken to a new area. They hadn't dug far with their shovels when someone exclaimed, "A copper coin! I found a copper coin! I knew there were copper coins in Lush Mountain!"
"I found one too! Let's dig quickly, there might be more underground."
Lu Chi sat on a tree branch, watching everyone work tirelessly for a few copper coins, feeling a mix of emotions.
For a moment, I didn't know whether to praise the two children for being smart or to scold them for being inhuman.
"Ahhh... I've struck gold!" the man exclaimed, drawing everyone's attention.
The small jar, no bigger than the palm of a hand, was stuffed full of copper coins, at least a hundred coins.
Someone noticed something amiss, pointing to the small jar and saying, "This is a new jar; someone must have buried it."
"I don't care who buried it, this money is mine... Haha, I've only been planting trees for three days and I've already dug up a hundred coins, I'm going to dig more."
Hearing this, everyone picked up shovels and started digging, hoping to find a small jar as well.
Jin Shanyao her fists tighter and tighter... You two little cubs had better laugh more now, lest you be at a loss for words when you cry.
And so, every two days a small jar would pop open, and the workers soon realized that the owner was up to no good.
There are no ancient tombs at Lush Mountain, but the money in the small jar is real.
Before long, the construction period arrived. Jin Shanyao came over in person to settle the accounts, and Qing He and Qing Yang unloaded the two large baskets from the oxcart.
One basket contained white porcelain bottles, and the other basket contained silver ingots weighing one tael each.
With Jin Shanyao, she said, "Everyone has worked hard these past few days. I made this pile of medicine myself."
The medicine is very strong, and it will sting a bit when applied to the wound. Please bear with it; it will scab over by tomorrow morning. I'll distribute some to everyone later.
Everyone was seething with anger, unsure of what to say to her. They wanted to curse the employer as a liar, but when they were recruiting, they were told there were no ancient tombs or copper coins here.
They said the food was good, with meat at every meal, and that the water they were given was sweet and delicious, making them feel refreshed after drinking it.
But their wages were low, so no matter how they calculated it, they all felt they were being taken advantage of.
They glanced at the medicine bottle, having heard that Anzhi Hall's medicine was very effective; they wondered how much it would cost.
Jin Shanyao saw through everyone's thoughts, then called Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci to distribute wages to everyone.
Meng Anzhi checked the ledger, then glanced at the five taels of silver in her hand. "Auntie, there's too much."
Jin Shanyao and said, "Planting trees on the mountain is not easy, and everyone has done a good job, so I've decided to double the wages."
The crowd was momentarily stunned. They had seen people withhold wages after finishing a job before, but this was the first time they had seen someone raise their wages after finishing a job.
The resentment I felt earlier vanished instantly.
Meng Anzhi was in charge of distributing the medicine, Meng Anci was in charge of distributing the money. Their two little faces were so smelly that they could kill mosquitoes.
A tree costs twenty coins, and with the addition of scattered and buried copper coins, the total cost is exactly thirty coins per tree, matching the expected cost.
My aunt's actions not only increased the price of a tree to sixty coins, but also included a bottle of medicine. Her medicine was incredibly precious; you couldn't buy it even if you had the money.
Meng Anci's hand was a bit too heavy when distributing the silver, and it happened to hit the worker's wound, causing him to hiss in pain.
Meng Anci looked over subconsciously and saw that the hands had large knuckles and the skin on the palms was already worn raw.
"This... was it done by digging a hole and grinding?"
The man, blushing, chuckled sheepishly, "The soil is hard, and the dead vegetation is tangled together, making it difficult to dig..."
Just as Meng Anzhi handed him the medicine bottle, the man was pushed away by another burly man.
The burly man's outstretched hand was still thick and cracked, a pair of hands worn out from years of hard work, with wounds on his palm.
Meng Anci's conscience, which had been at rock bottom, seemed to be slowly climbing back up. He carefully placed the silver in the strong man's palm, avoiding his wound.
"You're very lucky... dig for another two days, and you'll find the small jar."
He had barely finished speaking when he was hit hard on the head. He looked at Meng Anzhi in confusion.
Meng Anzhi gestured for him to be quiet and quickly hand over the money, hoping it might make amends.
The two little fellows carried a bottle of medicine on one side and five taels of silver on the other. The workers who received the money were all extremely grateful, constantly expressing their thanks and saying Jixiang words.
It was nearly evening when they finished distributing the tools. Only a few people from the family remained on Lush Mountain. Qing He put the tools on the oxcart.
"Master... Shall we return?"
Jin Shanyao, "You all go back first, I'll stay with them a little longer."
Qing He glanced at the young masters with concern. For the past two weeks, the two young masters had been working from dawn till dusk, staying in Lush Mountain almost every day. Their bodies and faces were covered in dirt, and there wasn't a clean spot on them.
Although they were tired, they were laughing happily. She wanted to say that there were only two children, so maybe they should forget about it... but before she could speak, Qing Yang pulled her onto the oxcart.
The two little ones clutched the hem of their clothes, watching the oxcart leave. Meng Anci secretly glanced at Jin Shanyao, wanting to reach out and hug her neck, but then held back.
If the enemy doesn't move, I won't move either; he still doesn't realize where he went wrong!
Meng Anzhi had a vague feeling that it involved hiring someone, but she wasn't sure.
This was the first time the two little cubs had done something, Jin Shanyao wanted to criticize them harshly, but she was afraid of affecting their mindset.
She became hesitant and timid in her actions afterward, so she decided to try persuasion first, and if they wouldn't listen, she would resort to martial arts.
Jin Shanyao patted their little heads and led them up the mountain. Dahuang and Xiaoli followed behind them, and they stopped halfway up the mountain.
The mountains were silent, with a slight, cool breeze.
Jin Shanyao sat on the rock, holding the two little cubs in her arms.
"You're really clever. I thought those guys would leave after a while, but you managed to keep them in check."
Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci exchanged a glance, not daring to speak easily. Jin Shanyao pulled out a handkerchief from her sleeve and wiped the dirt off their faces.
"The method was good, but it was used in the wrong place."
Meng Anci's eyes flickered, and her two small hands instinctively climbed onto Jin Shanyao's arm, saying in a soft, sweet voice, "Auntie, did we do something wrong?"
After saying that, he looked at her with his watery eyes, Jin Shanyao chuckled, pinched his little nose, and said, "You little rascal."
Seeing that she smiled, Meng Anzhi secretly breathed a sigh of relief and silently gave her younger brother a thumbs up in her heart.