Chapter 88: Off-Season Vegetables

When Old Ge was brimming with confidence, Chen Xie was in his study, gnawing on his pen. The human heart is the strangest thing; it always resists the unfamiliar, just like when Chen Xie first brought out the seeds, the people of Zhangjia Village were unwilling to plant them. Now, with this new thing, he had to plan carefully.

Papa, Papa, Yu Zhu's abacus was a marvel of skill. After a long time managing the accounts, she had become proficient. She glanced at the slender back of the head maid, and Chen Xie gave a lecherous smile, his mind filled with scenes unsuitable for children.

Not having a computer was truly a painful thing! Everything was the fault of Wu Qi, why didn't he let him bring a computer to the Ming Dynasty? Even without electricity, he could have used solar panels. When would the days of lighting candles at night come to an end? And these candles were so expensive that ordinary families used tung oil lamps.

Electrification in the Ming Dynasty was not something to think about; even the wires were not allowed to be brought over. What kind of electrification could there be?

He continued to solve problems with his pen. After writing for a while, Chen Xie's hand ached. Just then, Yu Huan entered, and he said, "Yu Huan, come over, help the master copy the documents."

Yu Zhu turned her head with a wary look, meaning it was her turn to be on duty tonight. The jealousy and rivalry between the two maids had not diminished despite their separate duties. Yu Huan ignored Yu Zhu, smiling and sitting on the master's thigh without hesitation.

"The master's handwriting is still so ugly!" she said bluntly. Chen Xie was long used to such criticism. It was hard to expect a modern person who spent all day typing on a computer to have good handwriting. Even Zhang Yao, after seeing Chen Xie's handwriting a few times, would shake her head like a drum.

Smack! A small slap on the buttocks, Yu Huan didn't cry out in pain but instead rubbed affectionately, and the master's intake of breath was truly pleasant to hear. How could anything get done? Were the maids in the Ming Dynasty so fierce?

Nonsense! This was all due to Chen Xie's indulgence! Which wealthy household didn't have a major steward? Letting two maids take charge was always a major point of ridicule for the people of the Ming Dynasty. Chen Xie didn't really have any official positions, and the male servants in his household were at most managers.

"Can you be a bit quieter? I can't do the accounts." Yu Zhu was annoyed, standing up and glaring. Yu Huan stood up and glared back without backing down. Seeing this, Chen Xie coughed and said, "Are you making a fuss in front of the master? Do you think the family rules are too good?"

They were all smart, and the confrontation was immediately defused, each returning to their positions. Master Chen was good-tempered, but that didn't mean the maids could go wild. This was the Ming Dynasty, where the hierarchy was deeply ingrained.

Yu Huan's handwriting was good, and Chen Xie asked her to record, which improved efficiency. Soon, a page was filled, and Chen Xie, looking at the outline, sighed unsatisfactorily, "Let's leave it at this for now?"

"Master, what is a professional manager?" Yu Huan asked, and Yu Zhu also stopped to listen. Every time such a situation arose, it was a good opportunity for them to learn. As the master, Chen Xie had many strange ideas, but they were very practical.

"A professional manager is like a shopkeeper, but this shopkeeper has too much power. If he has a bit of selfishness, it can cause huge losses to the owner. How to avoid this? This involves a system. The system the master is talking about is not to limit the shopkeeper's power in business, but to focus on supervision. Like the military supervisors in Dengzhou, the emperor's system of military supervisors was not a big problem. The problem was that the supervisors had no limits on their power..." Chen Xie spoke for a while, his mouth dry and thirsty, and Yu Zhu, taking the initiative, brought a cup of tea, just the right temperature.

Talking to these two maids, the reason was naturally to slowly cultivate two capable assistants. Don't underestimate these two maids; in such a large family, who could rise from being a servant if they weren't clever and adept at reading people?

It couldn't be denied that this was also a significant shortcoming for Chen Xie, lacking capable people, he could only cultivate them himself. The downside was that it constrained Chen Xie's development speed, but the upside was that he could use the people he cultivated with confidence.

Just as the hour of Si arrived, a group of villagers gathered under the old locust tree. This time was different; the old folks came, and there were also many young people. When Master Chen appeared at the door with a smile, the people who were squatting on the ground, chatting, all stood up, their expressions respectful, and greeted in unison, "Master, good day!"

"Um, everyone is well, and quite a few people have come." Chen Xie walked to the stone mill, usually going straight up, but this time he paused, slapped his head, and said, "How could I forget this?" The crowd was stunned, and Chen Xie was already standing on the millstone.

"Today, I have two things to say. The first thing is that the master wants to plant some green vegetables in winter. Otherwise, every meal is either Chinese cabbage or radishes, and the mouth is as bland as a bird. If any family is willing to plant with us, just send one person. We won't plant too much, for fear of being too busy, so half an acre per family. The land should be contiguous, so the master doesn't have to run around. If you're willing to plant, just raise your hand." As soon as Chen Xie finished speaking, a sea of hands went up, and every man raised his hand.

"Alright, this afternoon, we'll go to the eastern field, and the master will give a demonstration. Everyone can come and see how it's done and help out." This matter was settled, and interestingly, as long as Chen Xie was speaking, everyone listened intently, and no one interrupted or tried to show off. The reason was mainly that Chen Xie's authority was too high, and everyone was afraid of missing out on the benefits for their families.

"The second thing, is there a stonemason in the village? Someone who can make a stone mill, a few times larger than this one?" Chen Xie asked, and someone eagerly stood up and said loudly, "Master, I am Shi San, a stonemason. I can do what you asked. If you want to open a stonemason workshop, I can gather a few brothers for you."

Shi San, nearly forty, looked excited, as if he had finally waited for this day. This reaction was exactly what Chen Xie wanted to see. As long as a consensus was formed in Dengzhou that whatever the master doctor asked for would bring great benefits, the craftsmen would naturally flock to him.

"Good, that's all for now. Everyone go back, Shi San, stay, I have a few words to say." Chen Xie smiled and waved, and the crowd dispersed, with many people telling Shi San, "Shi San, if the master has a good task, don't forget your brothers." "Shi San, your skills are finally useful, I should have learned a craft back then."

Everyone left, and Shi San, nervous, approached Chen Xie, wiping his hands on his clothes. Before this, three craftsmen had prospered because of Chen Xie: a bricklayer named Wen Bajin, a potter named Yao Laoliu, and a blacksmith named Zhao Tietou. Now it was the stonemason's turn, and it was a consensus that the master liked to use craftsmen.

"Like this, do you know where there are stones to quarry?" Chen Xie asked with a smile, and the eager Shi San replied straightforwardly, "Yes, there's a quarry on the back of Long Mountain. Stones were quarried there when the fort was built."

"That's good. The farming season is about to start, and we need to find something for everyone to do to supplement their income. The master plans to build a road. You go to the quarry and make a stone mill. If you do a good job, the master will give you a stone quarry to manage. You'll have a 30% share, and the quarry will specialize in making small stones for the road. Once the road is built, you'll see, the quarry's business will flourish." Chen Xie said this calmly, and Shi San had no doubt, nodding and saying, "Alright, whatever the master says, I'll do it. I may not have other skills, but I can follow orders and do things reliably."

Chen Xie then got off the millstone and said to Mengzi, "Take him to find Yu Huan, and give him 20 taels of silver as wages. This matter needs to be done quickly, or it will be too late."

"Master, rest assured. I know where there are large stones by the nearby sea. With a few brothers, we can chisel out a shape directly. It will take no more than a month to make a large stone mill."

Hearing this, Chen Xie realized that there were many large stones by the sea, left there by the ebb and flow of the tides. This meant that the road construction could be advanced. Well, it might damage the natural environment, but human development has always been about damaging the natural environment, hasn't it? Talking about environmental protection in the Ming Dynasty was a bit too idealistic.

"I don't care how you do it, just make sure you do it well." Chen Xie patted his buttocks and left.

Just after lunch, at the eastern field, Chen Xie hadn't arrived yet, but people were already gathered. Watching Chen Xie walk over slowly, with Gu San and a few servants carrying split bamboo strips and some ropes, the villagers were curious. Chen Xie led by example, demonstrating how to build a greenhouse for off-season vegetables. The land had already been tilled and left to dry for some time, with wood ash and manure spread. These tasks were assigned to the servants, and the villagers had been curious, but now they finally saw the results. The bamboo was bent and heated to set its shape, then placed at both ends of a row of land, with a straight bamboo strip in the middle. With many people working, the frame of the greenhouse was quickly built.

The final step was to bring a wheelbarrow with plastic sheeting, which was a powerful tool.

"Did everyone see how it's done?" Chen Xie asked with a smile after laying the plastic sheeting. "We saw!" the crowd answered in unison. Chen Xie clapped his hands and said, "Let's be clear, the plastic sheeting is free, but the vegetables grown in this field, the master will take half. If you don't want to do it, speak up now, because there will be no regrets later."

"Only a fool would regret it!" someone said, and the crowd laughed joyfully.

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