Zhenfubao waved his hand and the warehouse was full of grain, and the whole family regretted it

Fifteen turned over and said, "If you're not afraid, why don't you hide in the mountains?"

Gu Sinian was also helpless. Qin Biao was like a mad dog, biting him non-stop.

The people he sent out were all brave and good at fighting. They could hold off a dozen or so, but he couldn't handle hundreds or thousands of them!

Fortunately, Qin Biao is also reasonable and at least he won't touch Bai Wanwan.

When Bai Wanwan woke up, she felt full of energy.

Bai Wanwan looked at the others and said, "Let's have breakfast first!"

The yamen runners did not go back either. Lexi started to cook porridge. The stove was built temporarily.

One stove is used to cook porridge, and the other stove is used to cook instant noodles, with dried seafood also placed in it.

Bai Wanwan's favorite dish was this one, which came with two fried eggs. She patted her full belly and said, "My mother really understands me. This whole cart of instant noodles is enough to keep me going for ages. There's also some dried seafood, which will last me a long time too."

Le Xi smiled and said, "Madam naturally knows about Miss. The clean room has been prepared today."

Bai Wanwan has always been picky about the places for toilets and bathing. Although the county government office is simple, she still found a way.

There was originally a large bedroom with two rooms in the backyard of the county government office. She asked someone to vacate the inner room.

First, find some local bluestone slabs and spread them flat on the ground. Then use the chiseled stones to build a half-person-high wall to enclose a small world.

A narrow opening was left in the corner of the wall, and a bamboo pipe was connected to the drainage ditch outside the yard. A thin wooden board was placed on the top to prevent dust.

This is the place for bathing. You can boil hot water and pour it in. It is clean and convenient.

The other side was converted into a toilet. She had a deep pit built with bricks and stones in the corner, with two stone slabs placed on top as stepping stones and a wooden trough placed underneath.

A large wooden barrel was hung on the beam, and a bamboo tube with a piston was connected to the bottom of the barrel, facing the wooden trough.

When you need to use the toilet, you step on the stone slab and pull the rope on the wall when you are done.

The rope is connected to the piston at the bottom of the wooden barrel. When the piston is pulled open, the water in the barrel rushes into the wooden trough along the bamboo pipe, flushing the dirt into the deep pit. It is much fresher than an ordinary toilet.

After finishing these, the carpenters replaced the door frames in the room and laid bluestone slabs inside, and it finally looked presentable.

Bai Wanwan finally breathed a sigh of relief and took a shower directly in the evening.

After digging for the day, they only managed to dig a small pond. Zhiwei said anxiously, "If we keep digging at this rate, when will we be able to dig two large reservoirs?"

Bai Wanwan chuckled and said, "Keep hiring? What's the rush?"

"But where do we get so much food?"

Bai Wanwan thought for a moment and said, "There's always a way. I remember there are many wealthy businessmen here. Let's call them to the county government tomorrow."

Zhiwei whispered, "They're not stupid, how could they fall for such a trick?"

Bai Wanwan said calmly, "Just call them over, and I'll take care of the rest."

The next day, dozens of wealthy businessmen came to the county government office.

Some of these people have round bellies, some are skinny, but their eyes are shrewd.

They knew that the county was short of food, so they hid all the stored food in the valley they occupied.

Bai Wanwan was sitting on the chair directly above. When these wealthy businessmen saw her when they entered the room, they were stunned for a moment, then couldn't help laughing: "Oh my, the one who asked us to come here was a five-year-old baby? How did such a little kid become a county magistrate?"

The people around also laughed:

"That's right! If I had known it was a child, I wouldn't have come!

I say, Master Magistrate, what on earth did you ask us to do?"

Bai Wanwan raised her eyes to look at them and said in a crisp voice, "Please sit down first."

Turning to Zhiwei, he said, "Make some tea."

Then Zhiwei came in with four or five little maids with double buns, and the rules of serving tea were not ambiguous at all.

The little maids all lowered their eyes, and their hands were very steady as they held the tea trays.

These wealthy businessmen were still putting on airs, but when they caught a glimpse of the tea bowls out of the corner of their eyes, their smiles froze.

The water in the celadon bowl was a translucent light green, with a few tea leaves stretched out and standing upright in the water.

A wealthy businessman wearing a jade ring picked up his tea bowl and said:

"This... is this the Rain Sparrow Tongue? Last year I asked someone to go to Jiangnan to look for it, but I spent ten taels of silver and only found a handful.

It's said to be a rare treasure only found in the capital, and you can't get such a premium drink anywhere else!"

The people nearby also hurried to taste the tea carefully. The tea soup slid into their throats, and the aftertaste was sweet and refreshing. They immediately put away their previous indifference, and there was more surprise and doubt in their eyes.

Bai Wanwan sat at the head of the table, her cheek resting on her hand, smiling broadly. When they had almost finished tasting the tea, she spoke crisply, "Boss Wang really knows what's good. This tea was brought from Beijing last month. It's new tea from the Imperial Tea Garden, and it's hard to find in ordinary shops."

Someone said, "Master Magistrate... your tea is truly a precious treasure."

Bai Wanwan stood up and spoke crisply:

"I know you. There are people selling grain, rice, and cloth here. Bosses from all walks of life are here.

Now that the county has suffered such a great disaster, you can't just sit there and do nothing, can you?

The common people are suffering, and you, as bosses, should at least show some understanding."

The wealthy merchants all had helpless smiles on their faces. The tall and thin rice merchant spoke first:

"County Magistrate, we understand what you're saying, but it's difficult for us too! Take me for example, I was trading rice last year, and it seemed okay.

But this year, with the disaster, all our supply routes have been cut off. The little food in the warehouse is so scarce that our family members have to save on food. It’s not that we don’t want to help!

A fat cloth merchant nearby also nodded:

"That's right! In previous years, at this time, all the country women would come to buy cloth to make clothes. This year, there's no harvest, so who has the spare money to buy cloth?

My shop is about to close, and I don't have any extra money or food to spend!"

For a moment, several people in the hall echoed each other, saying that their own businesses were difficult, they were short of money, and they really couldn't help.

Bai Wanwan suddenly curled the corners of her lips and glanced at everyone with a half-smile: "Since everyone is here, I won't beat around the bush."

She paused, her voice suddenly becoming clearer. "Our Great Qi laws have always stipulated that the sons of merchants are not allowed to enter the government. You all know this."

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall fell silent. These wealthy businessmen had accumulated a fortune, but this was the thing that frustrates them the most.

No matter how much money he had, the child could only work as a shopkeeper and would be three inches shorter when he saw someone in official uniform.

Sure enough, someone couldn't help but look up at her, with anxiety in their eyes.

Bai Wanwan continued slowly:

“But today, I can break this precedent. If you are willing to donate grain and cloth to relieve the county’s urgent needs, I will guarantee it in the name of the county magistrate.

In the future, I will find a way for your children to qualify for the imperial examinations. Even if they start as students in the county school, it is better than being trapped in the merchant class for the rest of their lives."

She took a step forward and her eyes fell on several older wealthy businessmen:

"No matter how much money you have, how many generations can it be passed down? But if your family has an official, who will respect you when you travel around the country?

You should be able to settle this account, right?"