Good Days Are Still Ahead
In the end, Xiao Lingyan still wrote a letter to Zhao Ruxi.
The letter was about something else.
His subordinates, whom he had sent to the south to search for Feicui, had returned with news that they had purchased several mines and extracted a large quantity of Feicui rough. They asked if they would be responsible for transporting the jadeite back to the capital.
Xiao Lingyan wrote to Zhao Ruxi to inquire about this matter.
Liu Zongyao's movements were obvious, and the Jia Family father and son spoke without any attempt to hide their conversation. Not long after Xiao Lingpu received the news, Wu Zong also discovered it.
He told Zhang Changshen the news. Because it involved the struggle for the throne, the two discussed it and decided not to tell Zhao Ruxi the truth.
Wu Zong said he was going to investigate Liu Zongyao, but nothing came of it, and Zhao Ruxi guessed the truth.
Just as Xiao Lingyan had thought, there was nothing she could do even if she knew. The Crown Prince was beyond her reach. Fortunately, she didn't suffer any loss. On the contrary, she used Liu Zongyao as a scapegoat, which intimidated the trainees in the training class, making them all extremely obedient.
She's too busy right now to care about any of that.
Upon receiving Xiao Lingyan's letter, she began organizing people to head south.
Feicui hasn't gained much attention yet, and Xiao Lingyan's people in the south are only making small cuts in the rough stones. As long as they cover the cut areas with a layer of skin, it looks like individual stones during transport. Therefore, her people only have to endure the hardship of the long journey to the south, with little risk.
This is a long-term business; she needs to cultivate her own people and can't rely too much on Xiao Lingyan.
Therefore, this trip is necessary.
"Miss, I'll go myself," Ma Sheng volunteered.
"It's tough and risky," Zhao Ruxi said truthfully.
At that time, medical care was poor, and even catching a cold on the road could be fatal; although the Great Jin was peaceful, there were still mountain bandits and thieves. Not to mention that when Ma Sheng and his group returned, they had to transport stones by water, and the risks on the boat were self-evident.
"I know. But if I don't go, those newly bought guards won't be able to handle it," Ma Sheng said.
Zhao Ruxi was deeply moved. She stood up and bowed to Ma Sheng, saying, "Thank you, Uncle Ma."
There aren't many people who are both capable and trusted by her. If Ma Sheng hadn't volunteered, she really wouldn't have been able to send anyone.
At Ma Sheng's suggestion, Zhao Ruxi swapped her new bodyguards with the old ones from the Earl of Suiping's Residence, selecting three men from the old ones. She also tried to choose men with wives, children, and other commitments from the newly recruited group. Zhao Ruxi also selected fifteen men from the estate, forming a team of twenty-eight men, and set off for the south.
To avoid the cold weather and hardship on the way back, and to save time, they would travel by land on the way there and by water on the way back.
That day, Zhao Ruxi had just returned to Green Plantain Courtyard from the training institute when an old man stood up from the gatehouse and bowed to her. "This old servant, Qian Duoduo, greets you, young lady."
"You've arrived, Manager Qian? Perfect timing! I was just about to send someone to fetch you," Zhao Ruxi said with a smile. "Come on, let's go inside and sit down."
Some time ago, Zhao Ruxi bought some tenant farmers who were struggling to make ends meet and put them on the estate. As soon as the new farmhands arrived, the autumn harvest came. The people on the estate were busy for a long time before they could collect all the grain, dry it, and store it in the granary.
Zhao Ruxi turned to Zhaoming and instructed him, "Go to the workshop next door and call Steward Zhou over."
Zhaoming agreed and ran off like the wind.
Qian Duoduo followed Zhao Ruxi into the hall and, at Zhao Ruxi's instruction, sat down, taking up half of her body on a chair. At this moment, Zhou Chun also entered the room.
"Tell me first, what brings you here?" Zhao Ruxi asked.
"Nothing much. I just wanted to ask you, miss, now that everything's finished at the estate, shouldn't we start organizing people to build houses for the new family?" Qian Duoduo said.
The newly purchased servants arrived just in time for the autumn harvest, so they naturally had no time to build houses. Zhao Ruxi had them stay in the servants' quarters of the manor on the estate.
"Also, regarding the chickens, ducks, pigs, and sheep raised on the estate, would you like them delivered to your residence all at once during the New Year, or in batches? If in batches, when would be the best time to deliver them?"
"Go ahead and build it. You can decide on the house construction. As for when to send the chickens, ducks, pigs, and sheep, I'll give you an answer after I've considered it," Zhao Ruxi said.
The Earl of Suiping's Residence's manor also owns estates, and these estates produce their own goods. Zhao Ruxi would certainly take some of the produce from the Egret Manor back to the manor. However, the Marquis's manor doesn't have many masters, so they can't consume much. Zhao Ruxi has her own servants, so naturally she wouldn't take the produce from her own estate back to feed the servants of the Earl of Suiping's Residence's manor.
She still needed to ask Lady Zhu about how to allocate the funds and think it over carefully.
Seeing that Qian Duoduo had no further questions, Zhao Ruxi handed Qian Duoduo the blueprints that Dianjiang had taken out of the room.
"I'm going to dig a pond here," Zhao Ruxi said, pointing to the location marked on the map. "I also need to cut down some trees on the mountain. I plan to plant fruit trees on the mountain next spring, so I'll be cutting down a lot of trees. I'll allow you to use the felled timber on credit to build mud-brick houses. The credit will be deducted from future profits."
"Auntie, young lady..." Qian Duoduo's voice trembled upon hearing this, "Are you serious? You're really going to give us timber on credit to build a house?"
After saying that, he came to his senses, shook his head, and looked dejected. "But our annual income is barely enough to make ends meet, and we really can't save any money to fill this gap. Maybe... forget it."
They barely managed to make ends meet, subsisting on meager rations and wild vegetables, often half-starved. In bad years, when harvests failed, people would starve to death. How could they possibly earn money to pay off their debts?
Zhao Ruxi was very satisfied with Qian Duoduo.
Since she said that, greedy people will definitely try to take advantage of the situation first, and they don't care if they can't pay back the debt later.
Anyway, she couldn't force Zhuang Nu to starve to pay off the debt, since Zhuang Nu was considered her property. Besides, she clearly displayed saintly qualities, and by exploiting this, she could probably get away with the debt by playing the victim.
But Qian Duoduo didn't try to take advantage of the situation by delaying payment; instead, she explained things clearly, which shows she has really good character.
She said, "Don't worry, if I dare to extend credit to you, I'm confident I can make you pay it back. As long as you follow my instructions, do whatever I tell you to do, and work hard, there's no way you won't be able to pay back the money."
Zhou Chun understood what Zhao Ruxi meant.
He hadn't been by Zhao Ruxi's side for long, but one thing after another made him deeply convinced of her Zhao Ruxi. He had faith in Zhao Ruxi's words.
He also said, "Money shop manager, don't worry, don't you know how capable our young lady is? She started from scratch and has already built such a large business."
Military training involves not only standing at attention, but also brainwashing.
Ma Sheng boasted extensively about Zhao Ruxi's glorious deeds. As a result, not only the newly purchased servants, but also the people on the estate, learned of their master's prowess.