The Story of a Destitute Noblewoman Farming

Lu Linlang spoke to everyone one by one to judge their interpersonal skills and cleverness.

After asking questions such as whether they could read and do accounting, they asked a few more questions, all about emergency situations encountered while working in the shop, to test their ability to respond.

In the end, six people stayed temporarily, including the Manyin couple from the clan leader's family.

"Please wait patiently at home for a few days. Once I have the general preparations, I will assign you to oversee the renovations. Aside from the smaller shop, which I've already decided to use for selling vegetables, I'm still considering the others. However, starting with you overseeing the shop renovations, I will pay you a fixed monthly salary."

Hearing this, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Just by watching people work, they could earn money. What a great thing! After the people left, Manyin and his wife said to Lu Linlang, "Boss, we don't want any wages before we even start working. You've given my father so much money, how can we ask for money? We'll get paid after we actually start doing business."

His father had warned them before they came that they should not call Lu Linlang "sister" in the future. If they succeeded in working here, they should call her "boss" and not lose sight of their own status.

"How can this be possible? Business requires integrity. If I ask you to guard the shop every day without making any money, wouldn't that be a waste of your time? I've already thought about this matter. Don't worry, second cousin. I know what to do."

It’s not that Lu Linlang doesn’t have the money to buy people, but she doesn’t want to make a big deal about it at the moment. She invites the villagers so that, on the one hand, she can unite with the villagers, and on the other hand, if anything happens, the people in their village will not be bullied. If everyone joins the battle together, anyone who dares to bully them will have to think twice.

Doing business also blocks other people's way to make money. If Lu Zhan already had real power and was an influential official, she wouldn't have to worry about anyone in this small Chongshui County. However, Lu Zhan only had a title and no other say. She could only scare some people who didn't know much about the business.

As soon as Lu Linlang came back, she began to plan the business of the three shops. She planned to use one shop to sell grain, one shop as an inn and sell food, and the small shop would sell mountain products, vegetables, fruits, etc. collected from the village. The place was close to the residential area and many people passed by every day. Although this was a small business, if the shop sold other things, it would not be able to expand. It was just right to use it to sell vegetables and make money.

As for the grain shop, it ostensibly sells grain, but in reality it is hoarding grain under the name of a shop. Next year's war is still ambiguous, so she needs to be adequately prepared.

Moreover, she had heard from Zhang the broker before that part of the grain in those grain shops was collected from the people, and part was bought with the help of some merchants in the rice-rich Jiangnan area. Some of the more powerful ones had been in the grain business for generations and had their own channels.

If Lu Linlang went directly to the grain store to buy grain, firstly, the price would be higher. Secondly, buying a lot of grain but not selling it would easily attract attention. If she really encountered a chaotic world, those people would first point the finger at people like her who hoarded grain.

Although opening a grain store will also attract attention, it is not as attractive. By protecting the grain, you can also gather a group of young and strong people in the village for training to enhance your military strength.

The food and inn shops are used to collect intelligence. Only by turning it into an inn can the news coming from all directions be more informed. Moreover, she is confident in her cooking skills. When the time comes, she can buy a chef who can cook to work in the store and give him her recipes. There is no need to worry about betrayal.

The three shops in the town have the same configuration, but they are relatively smaller in scale. There are not many people in the town, so the business will not be very good. It’s just that there is an excuse.

Lu Linlang continued to perfect the plans for several shops. At this time, Xing'er came over and said that the villagers had already started drawing lots and were waiting for her to come over.

Lu Linlang appeared with her younger brothers and sisters. Before the villagers started, everyone saw the new clothes that Dahua and Erhua were wearing. The girls all looked at them with envy, and the boys were envious too. However, they were envious because Dahua and Erhua, as girls, could actually go to school.

Ever since Dahua and the others started studying, Lu Linlang noticed that there were many more children from the village around her yard. They would lean against the wall and eavesdrop on the reading sounds inside. If they saw someone coming out, they would run away like birds and beasts.

The clan leader and elders stood in the middle, surrounded by onlookers and participating villagers. When they saw Lu Linlang coming, they automatically made way for her, their actions showing a hint of respect.

"Miss Linlang is here, let's get started. Here are the wooden sticks selected according to the number of people who signed up. Fifty of them are marked, and the rest are not. This is a public drawing in front of everyone, so there is no possibility of cheating.

Now I'll ask Miss Linlang to personally shake these sticks again. You will draw lots in the order you signed up. You can't regret choosing the one you choose. If you don't get picked, don't be discouraged. Miss Linlang said that if we need more people in the future, we will give priority to those who signed up. As long as Miss Linlang has many farms, our village will never lack work.

"Okay, Chief, let's start quickly. We can't wait any longer." Someone shouted this in the crowd, and the others followed suit.

Lu Linlang stepped forward and rearranged the wooden sticks, and then people began to come forward to draw lots.

When someone draws a lottery ticket, the others crane their necks to look. If they see a mark on it, they say congratulations but worry in their hearts that they won't get it.

The drawing of lots made some families happy while others worried. In the end, fifty candidates were selected and they all laughed excitedly.

Lu Linlang and her brothers and sisters looked at the excited and disappointed crowd, and their hearts were also stirred.

If she had not returned home, she and these villagers would be people from two different worlds. They might never know each other, and would not feel sad for the joys and sorrows of strangers.

Although the clan had the silver money given by Old Man Lu, after discussion, they decided to exchange the money for sacrificial land. It would only be used for future sacrifices in the ancestral hall, when the elderly and weak in the village needed help, or when someone had no money to take the imperial examination. The direct benefit they had obtained was that the clan used the remaining silver money to buy some farm tools for each family to open up wasteland and cultivate the land.

Now, Lu Linlang's move can be said to have provided most families in the village with a way to make money, and they are even more grateful to Lu Linlang's family.

The clan leader's eldest son, Brother Manjin, did not need to draw lots. He was the manager of the farm selected by Lu Linlang from among those who registered. The farm not only needed people to work, but also needed a manager who could manage the long-term and short-term workers.

Lu Linlang had observed the clan leader's sons before, and she also found that Brother Manjin was the most educated person in the village. Although he did not have the talent to take the imperial examinations, his prestige in the village was second only to the clan leader and several elders, and he was the most suitable one to manage the villagers.

Lu Manjin brought the selected people to pay a visit to Lu Linlang, the new boss. From today on, they all had to call Lu Linlang the boss.