It's hard for my elder sister. I rely on the mountains to farm and pay off my debts.

Song Zhi first apologized to the stall owner who had ordered jelly yesterday but failed to get the goods, and said that as an apology, she would not charge for the jelly delivered next time.

The stall owner was also a reasonable man. After listening to the discussions around him and the mess on the ground, instead of blaming others, he rejected Song Zhi's proposal.

If it’s free, then there’s no need for that. It would be nice if you could give me more jelly next time.

Song Zhi did not refuse and agreed.

After everyone packed up their things, Song Zhi led them straight to the place where they had agreed to meet with Li Wen.

At this time, six people led by Li Wen were already waiting there. Seeing Song Zhi approaching, Li Wen took the lead and asked, "Can we set off now?"

If what happened just now had not happened, Song Zhi might have just followed the person away.

But the servants of the Wang family bullied her directly.

How could she pretend nothing happened?

She bowed apologetically to Li Wen and said, "I have something to ask the county magistrate. Could Officer Li help me pass it on?"

Song Zhi knew that just because she said she wanted to see the county magistrate, the other party would not be willing to report to her.

She continued, "Just now I went to the Grass Market to look for my family. I don't know who was so rude. Not only could I not buy jelly, but I also smashed my stall."

"I believe that your Excellency's original intention in building this grass market was, firstly, to provide us poor people with an opportunity to support our families, and secondly, to provide convenience for the people in the city."

"This Grass Market has only been established for a few days, and already someone is so lawless, disregarding your efforts and wantonly trampling on your achievements. Their intentions are nothing short of vicious."

"My stall was smashed today, and tomorrow other stalls may suffer the same fate. To protect your efforts and the long-term development of the Grass Market, I have some personal ideas. I implore Officer Li to help convey them."

Li Wen and the officers behind him were stunned.

To them, this just sounded like their family members being bullied.

But she didn't say that she was bullied, but instead escalated the matter to a higher level.

But the county magistrate is very concerned about Caoshi.

Every day, he would question the guards who were guarding the grass market and check the account books in one or three places.

Therefore, these officers who had been questioned knew it very well.

Li Wen once again witnessed the other party's eloquence.

He sighed and was about to answer when a deep voice came from the door, "I'm right here. Please tell me what you think."

Song Zhi raised her eyes and saw a handsome man walking out of the county government office.

That person was none other than the county magistrate Zhou Yu.

When Song Zhi saw that it was the county magistrate, she knelt down and bowed.

Zhou Yu waved his hand, "No need to be so polite, just say whatever you want to say."

Song Zhi didn't mention the incident at the Grass Market anymore, and went straight to complaining, "Sir, someone tried to force a purchase at the Grass Market, but failed, and then wantonly damaged my goods, even openly threatening the freedom of my uncle and brother."

"Your Excellency, this person has disregarded the law and openly trampled on the Caoshi Market that you have painstakingly established. If this person is not severely punished, and others follow suit in the future, where will your dignity be?"

Zhou Yu raised his hand to stop Song Zhi from saying anything else, "I have learned about this matter and will definitely punish her severely."

"I'd like to hear what you just said. Do you have any ideas for making this market last longer?"

Song Zhi knew that if she didn't offer some constructive suggestions, the other party would think she was just flattering.

Thinking of this, Song Zhi spoke after careful consideration, "I'm not quite sure about the situation in the other two markets, but I do have some ideas about this grass market."

"Sir, the number of stalls in this market is gradually increasing. Although bamboo cards are issued to allow stalls to enter the market, everyone is on a first-come, first-served basis. There is no fixed schedule."

“There are not many people setting up stalls now, so there are many vacancies, so there have been no disputes yet.”

"But if this continues for a long time, unnecessary disputes will inevitably arise due to disputes over stalls."

"Therefore, I boldly suggest that the stalls in the Grass Market should be uniformly planned, with clear areas demarcated, and numbers engraved on wooden vouchers, with a numbered distribution system implemented."

"Before the market opens each day, vendors need to claim their corresponding stalls with their numbers. This ensures fairness among stalls and avoids disputes over positions."

"On the other hand, I believe that since stall fees are already being collected, a dedicated patrol team should be established to oversee the daily management of the Caoshi Market. This will maintain market order and ensure fair transactions between buyers and sellers, thus preventing the recurrence of the wanton bullying and arrogance seen today."

"In addition, the women also suggested that there should be judges and mediators who can intervene quickly and effectively to resolve disputes between stall owners and customers."

Perhaps this Caoshi market is not very eye-catching now, but Song Zhi believes that as it is an important channel connecting the north and the south, more vendors will flock to such a market.

Just improve the business environment here.

It's just a matter of time.

Zhou Yu really didn't think it through so carefully. His original purpose was to provide a place for people outside the city to set up stalls.

Now, after listening to what Song Zhi said, especially the matter of setting up fixed stalls, it really needs to be implemented, and it doesn't take much effort to implement.

And if it is implemented well, there will be many benefits.

It seems that it is just as my grandfather said, being an official is not something that can be achieved by taking it for granted. One still needs to get closer to the people, listen to their voices more, and understand their difficulties.

Look, it was a simple truth that even a farmer's daughter could see clearly, but he only realized the problem belatedly after being enlightened.

Zhou Yu collected his thoughts and nodded, "Okay, I've taken note of everything you said! I'll explain what happened at the stall later."

Song Zhi just wanted an explanation. She knelt down and thanked him again, "Thank you very much, sir!"

Zhou Yu waved his hand, turned around and went back to the county government office and ordered someone to call County Lieutenant Guo to come and listen to his instructions.

Li Wen originally thought that she was just angry about being bullied, so she made up an excuse to go see the adults.

Unexpectedly, what she said was meaningful, and my impression of her changed a lot.

His tone couldn't help but soften a little, "Madam Song, when are we leaving?"

Because of this incident, they had already been delayed for half an hour. Song Zhi did not dare to delay any longer and immediately said, "Excuse me, officers, let's go now."

The group marched out of the county town in a mighty procession. As soon as they left the town, Song Zhi immediately saw Song Guangyun standing by the official road, staring at the city gate.

Song Zhi trotted over and explained, "Something happened at the market just now. Sorry to have kept you waiting. Let's go now!"

Song Guangyun looked at the group of officials who followed him and swallowed nervously, "Azhi girl, are those officials also going to the Wang family with us?"

Song Zhi nodded. "I was worried that the Wang family wouldn't release us, so I asked the county magistrate to make the decision. Let's go quickly and don't delay the officers."