Transmigrated into a female county magistrate during a famine, leading her country to prosperity

A day later, each village brought the selected apprentice craftsmen to the county government office.

Together with two craftsman apprentices in the town, there were fourteen people in total, ten men and four women.

Fourteen people stood upright in front of Shen Zheng and Old Qiao, all with excitement on their faces.

The four women's faces became even more excited. They had never expected that they would be able to surpass the men in the village and be chosen by the head of the village.

Shen Zheng nodded at them and gave them an encouraging look.

Although the ratio of men to women among these fourteen people is somewhat unbalanced, it is at least a good start. After all, some women will not take the initiative to participate in the selection. Some women, like Lotus, who are good at embroidering flowers, will naturally not participate in the selection to become an apprentice craftsman.

The existence of these four women also shows that the villages have listened to her words and given everyone a fair chance to compete.

Seeing Shen Zheng's satisfied expression, several village heads were secretly happy in their hearts. They did not mess up the task assigned by the county magistrate!

What surprised Shen Zheng and Mr. Qiao was that each of them was holding something in their hands.

Or pork, or wine, or tea, eggs and vegetables.

Although Mr. Qiao didn't want to accept these items, he was still happy in his heart.

After all, whether he accepts the gift of becoming a disciple or not is a different matter from whether these disciples bring it up or not. At least they have the intention.

He cleared his throat and said to the fourteen apprentice craftsmen, "I've received your kindness. Please take the items back."

After saying this, Old Qiao looked at Shen Zheng again, his eyes seemed to be saying: This old man understands the rules of your Tongan County, and he will not accept things if he can.

The fourteen people looked at each other, and the woman standing on the far left hesitated and said, "The one in my left hand is a gift for you, and the one in my right hand is for the county magistrate."

Shen Zheng was stunned when she heard this. She didn't expect that she would have a share.

After hearing this, Mr. Qiao coughed lightly and said it was too early to speak.

Shen Zheng looked at his somewhat embarrassed expression, chuckled, and said to the apprentices: "I can't accept what was given to me. I just did what a county magistrate should do. As for the gift to your master, it depends on whether he accepts it or not."

Upon hearing this, Master Qiao quickly waved his hands to refuse the apprentices, "No, no, it's enough as long as the intention is there. After today's business, you should take the things home and have a good meal with your family."

Are you kidding? He doesn’t even want a girl, so how could he want one?

Besides, the girl had said before that he taught these people in the county school, and he received monthly wages just like other teachers!

When the apprentices heard that neither of them wanted it, they became a little anxious.

"Master, it is not reasonable for me to not accept gifts when I become your disciple. These things are the love of my disciple and my family. I brought them here today and will bring them back in the evening. I wonder how my mother will scold me!"

The others responded one after another: "Yes, you and the county magistrate should accept it. I am learning a craft from you, so how can I not give you a gift as a disciple?"

"That's right, those scholars still have to pay tuition every month. Although we are not scholars, we are still your disciples!"

Seeing that they looked anxious and sincere, Mr. Qiao felt a little embarrassed.

There is indeed some story behind this gift of apprenticeship. Some people who want to learn a skill will take the gift of apprenticeship to become apprentices. If the master accepts it, he will recognize you as his disciple.

If the master refuses to accept your gift, there are two possibilities: one is that your gift is not big enough, and the other is that the master does not like you as a disciple.

But no matter which possibility it is, it would not sound good to say it out loud.

Seeing this, Shen Zheng said, "Please accept it. It is also their kindness."

She turned to the apprentices and said, "It is only natural for your master to accept a gift for becoming a disciple, but it is really unreasonable for you to give me a gift. Besides, if I accept this gift, it will not sound good if it gets out."

The apprentices were about to argue, but she continued, "You were chosen because of yourselves. You really don't need to thank me."

One of the women heard this and said loudly, "Sir, this gift from me is indeed a thank you gift, but I am thanking you for the changes you have brought to our county. Thank you for teaching us to grow rice, thank you for giving us enough food, thank you for opening the county school so that students can study, and thank you and the master for making the textile machine so that we can become your apprentices!"

Another man felt the same way and immediately responded, "She's right. I have the same idea. Without you, there would be no Tong'an County today. I have always wanted to meet you and thank you in person, but I didn't dare to come to the county government rashly. Now that we have been selected and can meet you, we must express what we think in our hearts. These things are actually not worth much money. You and the master should accept them!"

Shen Zheng's heart trembled. These words were not embellished with fancy words, but every word hit her heart.

She knew that everyone had seen what she had done for the county, but hearing it with her own ears still made her feel shaken.

She looked at what they were holding, and it was definitely not worth a penny as the man said.

Just talking about the pork and alcohol, aren't they the ones they usually reluctant to eat or drink?

How could she accept it?

Shen Zheng looked at them for a long time before he said seriously, "What I have done is what a county magistrate should do, so I really cannot accept these things. I appreciate your kindness, and take them back to eat with your family."

"grown ups!"

The apprentices wanted to persuade her again, but Shen Zheng turned and left.

She said without turning her head: "What you said today is the best thank you gift to me. Follow Mr. Qiao and learn well. Once you become a master, the county's fabric workshop will rely on you!"

Everyone looked at her from behind. She was obviously still a little thin and frail, but for some reason, they felt that the county magistrate was carrying the entire Tongan County on her shoulders.

They stood straight and said in a loud voice: "We will not let you down!"

Shen Zheng turned her back to them and waved at them.

After Shen Zheng walked into the study, she sat down and breathed a sigh of relief.

She reached out and touched her heart, which was beating very fast.

My back view must have looked very cool just now, Shen Zheng thought.

As she thought about it, she started to laugh. These people were being so sentimental that she almost moved her to tears again. She had just cried two days ago. How would it look if she cried again today?

She poured herself a cup of tea and calmed down.

Yesterday, Wang Guangjin volunteered to be responsible for the renovation of the county school.

It is equivalent to Wang Guangjin being the contractor, and Mr. Qiao being the construction engineer who draws the blueprints and teaches his apprentices how to make some simple tables, chairs and benches.

Tongan County is really developing now, and hiring people will not be as embarrassing as before.

The issue of lunch was even easier to solve, with many people taking the initiative to join the public kitchen and cook meals for everyone with Uncle Lai.

After Shen Zheng calmed down, she stood up and smoothed her clothes.

Although Wang Guangjin was watching her, she still wanted to go and take a look at the scene.