Traveling through time as a peasant girl to turn things around

In one night, the Chai family had watered all twenty acres of land. Facing the sun, the wheat seedlings were lush and green. Everyone in the Chai family went to the fields, including the bodyguards. They had never seen such a good harvest. At this rate, they wouldn't go hungry, and there would even be surplus food. The people had hope for a better life. Chai Ping'an said, "Let's reclaim more land at home." Little Milk Bag spoke up, "Grandpa, let's go reclaim the sandy land by the river and plant it. Sandy land can be used to grow many crops: peanuts, watermelons, cantaloupes, sweet potatoes, potatoes, and so on." "Okay," Chai Zhen said, "Go home for dinner. Except for Jiahe, who's going to do carpentry work, everyone else will go to the river. I'll tell Sun Gui right away. Let's go!"

Chai Zhen came to Sun Gui's house and told him he wanted to reclaim land on the riverbank. "Okay." "We'll have a village meeting soon, and everyone's going to reclaim land. Whoever wants to can do it wherever they want. Uncle, we can set up a system. Farming is free for three years. After three years, the land will be measured, registered, and owned by the family. But they have to pay the public tax, and I'll report it to the county. It's good for both us and the country. I'll give the county a heads-up in a few days. This needs to be reported." "Okay, I'll do it."

Chai Zhen returned home, had a quick meal, and asked the fourth son to tell Chai Xin that the whole family had to bring farm tools and go to the river to open up wasteland. He led his family, young and old, and twenty bodyguards, took sickles and hoes, and headed to the wasteland by the river.

Arriving at the riverbank and the sandy beach, Chai Zhen looked around. A broad road opened up to the north, the path used to transport bricks and soil. He left a wide path, marking it with tree trunks, marking the eastern edge. The road to the west, to the river, was uncultivated. The wasteland was about thirty or forty feet wide. Two or three miles to the north was the brick kiln, and the wasteland ended there. Chai Zhen told everyone, "This is the area to be cleared. Let's get moving!" "Okay."

Little Milkbag cheered. Wangwang, Mumu, Huanhuan, Hengheng, Xiaodong, and Chai Ye all joined in, shouting, "Ahhhh," jumping up and down. The adults worked enthusiastically, some mowing the grass, some collecting roots with hoes, some digging with picks. Then... the village bell rang, "Ding-ding, ding-ding..." Chai Zhen put down his hoe, dusted himself off, and said, "I'm going to the meeting. Everyone get on with the work."

Chai Zhen picked up the little one and left for a meeting, leaving a long line of children behind him. Xiaodong wanted to stay and work, but Chai Zhen also called him away to help his great-grandfather look after the children.

In the school square, Sun Gui was already seated on the stage, a row of tables and stools lined the grounds. Tea was poured. Old Wang, the gatekeeper, had prepared the water. Sun Gui had bought tea leaves and teacups from his last trip to the county. They were perfect for the meeting. Chai Zhen arrived and sat beside him, offering Guoguo some water first. Chai Ye was thirsty, too, so Xiaodong drank first, only offering him a drink once the water was cleared. Several other children lined up to drink, laughing and joking.

After a while, when most people had arrived, Sun Gui spoke, and everyone fell silent. He said, "Hello, fellow villagers! I've called you all here today because I have something to tell you. First, as you've all seen, our village now has a waterwheel. We can farm without relying on rain, and even in droughts, we'll have water to irrigate the land. This is great news. Second, from now on, every household must reclaim more wasteland and grow vegetables or grain. You won't have to pay the public grain tax for three years, and you'll earn nothing from it. After three years, the land will be measured and you'll pay 30% of the public grain tax per mu." Third, now that we have water, our village has a shipment of rice seeds. We can plant rice, and everyone can enjoy delicious rice. If you want to plant rice, come to me later and buy it. You'll have to exchange it for money, which I've asked someone to buy it for you. If you can't plant it this time, you can exchange it with the villagers next time. Fourth, our village needs wood to make a waterwheel. Anyone interested in woodcutting or carpentry work can sign up and get paid. Fifth... Don't get excited, everyone. Just listen to me. Fifth, if a child passed the imperial examination and became a scholar, the village would support him or her in continuing education, while Sun Gui would only provide living expenses. A roar of applause erupted, and the shouts were deafening. "That's great!" "I was just worried. My son is a good student, but I couldn't afford to support him or her. Now everything's fine." "Thank you, Village Chief," Sun Gui said with a smile. "This isn't just my achievement; it's everyone's hard work."

"We need ten lumberjacks now," Sun Gui said. "They've signed up." Chai Zhen said, "Those who want carpentry work, go to Mr. Li's. He'll be there tomorrow." Huo Hua stepped forward to help. "Those who want seeds, come to me." Those who wanted rice seeds gradually went home to collect their money, putting their bags away. Huo Hua said.

Soon, the sound of horses' hooves echoed, followed by the urgent "clack, clack, clack" of carriages. A long procession of people approached, dismounting as they approached. Many people descended from the carriages, some clutching bags and others carrying heavy loads. Sun Gui stood up and greeted them with a smile. "Dad's here," Zhang Qingshan said. "Take your mother home." Sun Gui, noticing another carriage following behind, stepped forward and said, "Xiao Xu greets my father-in-law." "Go home." Sun Gui took the carriage home to settle his mother first.

Zhang Qingshan said to Chai Zhen, "Old man, these people are carpenters we found from various villages in Taohua County to help build waterwheels. Our county wants to promote waterwheels in our county first, so that every village can have water to irrigate the land and grow crops. We will also send another one to the capital. We will send more people to speed up the process." "Okay, the county magistrate is thoughtful." "Our county can't let our village work for nothing. The court will soon make arrangements and rewards. The county will first take out a part of the wages and do it first." "The clerk took out the money and gave it to Mr. Chai." The clerk took out a purse and handed it over, saying, "One hundred taels of silver." Chai Zhen said, "Let's give it to the village chief, and the village will manage it collectively"! "Okay," said Zhang Qingshan, "you take it first." "Okay, I'll give it to the village chief later." "Let's go to the carpentry office first

Look, arrange these craftsmen."

Li Dong's family was already hard at work. When Zhang Qingshan arrived, he saw many people bustling about. Everyone stopped and knelt to greet the county magistrate. "Haha, everyone, stand up! Li Dong has sent you some carpenters from the county. You're here to assign them tasks. From now on, you'll be the village's head carpenter. You'll be responsible for any carpentry work you can do. The county will supplement your monthly wages with five taels of silver to build more waterwheels for supply to the surrounding areas." "Okay, I'll obey you, sir." Li Dong led everyone in kneeling and kowtowed in gratitude. Gao Gaoxin returned to work, and the newcomers followed suit. Li Dong instructed everyone to work on a specific component, which would speed things up. Wood was delivered daily, significantly increasing production. Li Dong's family set up a shed on the east side of the yard, creating a streamlined operation. While working alongside Li Dong, Jia He also kept track of the accounts, keeping a clear list of who worked each day, including the names of the skilled and unskilled workers. The village set a wage: 20 wen a day for each apprentice, and a raise after three months of work. Experiencing work, 10 taels of silver a month. When the wages were set, the carpenters from other villages were stunned with their eyes wide open. They had never earned so much before and were so happy that they made up their minds to do a good job and not give up the job.

Sun Gui and Chai Zhen discussed carpentry as the village's main business, with Jia He as the manager and Li Dong as the technical advisor. They would each receive 15 taels of silver per month, with skilled workers receiving 10 taels and laborers receiving 20 wen. Their wages would increase after three months. Chai Zhen also gave Sun Gui the 100 taels of silver the county magistrate had given him. The village chief managed the village's finances.