Stepmother in charge: Making a fortune through farming and raising her children to fight back

evening.

Just as the sky was getting dark, the village chief returned with a pile of dishes and chopsticks, looking very happy. "Niece Yun, this is all thanks to you. Lord Liu was very satisfied with the meal and said that he would eat these dishes for the next few days. This is the extra meal allowance given to you by the county magistrate."

He was holding a silver ingot in his hand and put it on the table as soon as he entered the room.

"But I'm sorry to bother you. After all, you are the Seventh Peace Lord canonized by the Emperor. I feel really bad for asking you to cook for Lord Liu yourself. It's also our fault that we can't cook delicious meals and can't satisfy the people above us..."

"It's not a big problem, it's just a piece of cake." Yun Zhenzhen nodded. It's just a matter of making a few more dishes when eating every day. The family can also eat it, which doesn't waste much time. It can also improve the meals for the kids at home.

The first day since Lord Liu arrived passed peacefully. Compared to the hustle and bustle of the past, the whole village was exceptionally quiet tonight.

At noon the next day, County Magistrate Wang summoned all the villagers and announced the order from above.

For safety reasons near the salt lake, that area was expropriated by the imperial court. In order to compensate Qinjia Village, the two thousand acres of land nearby were allocated to Qinjia Village as compensation.

Hearing this, everyone in the village burst into laughter.

Although the land of the salt lake was expropriated, the maximum area was definitely no more than one thousand acres. Now that such a large area has been rewarded from above, it seems that Qinjia Village is the one that has benefited.

Has anyone ever seen a village with such a large area? When they go out and say they are from Qinjia Village, others will probably be envious to death.

"Oh, those nearby lands were all given to our village. The neighboring village is Chenjia Village. So, our village's area is right next to theirs."

"Ever since Sister Yun came, our Qinjia Village has received so many rewards. The land we occupy is probably larger than that of the surrounding villages combined."

"That's right. They were worried about the refugees having nowhere to live before, but we've already taken in hundreds of them. At this rate, we'll be able to accommodate even a few dozen more."

"That's great! We've been given so much land. Will it be cheaper to buy land in the future?"

"..."

Yun Zhenzhen was also very curious and followed the village chief to calculate the new territory of Qinjia Village. The yamen runners from the city were very considerate and drew a map overnight. Not only was the salt lake marked on it, but even the newly allocated land was included. It was very thoughtful.

"After the salt lake is under government management, a bureau will be built not far away to house and manage the area for officials from above." Yun Zhenzhen carefully explained to the village chief according to the map: "It's most convenient to exit from here. It won't affect anyone else and it's also very safe. If we build a main road connecting to the main road outside our village, we can directly transport the salt out. The merchants coming and going may even boost our village's economic development."

The village chief himself didn't understand, but after listening to Yun Zhenzhen's explanation, he felt that it made a lot of sense: "Niece of the Yun family, I'm a rough man and can't figure out the twists and turns here. Just tell me your ideas directly. Anyway, I think that as long as you express your ideas, they must be novel and can be implemented."

"This salt lake won't be mined out in a short time. During this period, how much manpower and material resources do you think it will take, Village Chief?" Yun Zhenzhen said with a mysterious smile, "We have thirty or forty people working diligently in the woolen yarn workshop every day, but we only produce a small amount. This is a huge salt lake. If we want to increase the output, I'm afraid we won't be able to do it without hundreds of people. So where will these workers come from? Besides people from several nearby villages, there must be outsiders as well. Plus, there are quite a few managers to manage these people... After all the calculations, this Meishan can accommodate at least five hundred people. As long as the flow of people increases, Village Chief, what can we do?"

"This doesn't even include the transportation of workers along the way. Doesn't it cost money to feed, house, and transport them?"

The village chief was confused at first, but gradually, his thoughts followed Yun Zhenzhen's and he began to figure it out.

"Yes, these people all need to eat. If they don't have enough time, they will have to sleep here." The village chief slapped his head with sudden realization: "Look, if people from our own village and neighbors come to work, they can still go back in the dark at night, but if lunch is short, they can't always go home to eat before coming back. Some people may bring dry food or biscuits, but if we can offer affordable and suitable meals, I believe they will be happy to buy them... Then those workers coming from afar will need to find a place to stay. We can build a large bunk bed, and the price of accommodation will be cheap. There will definitely be many people willing to stay. Compared with the inn in town that costs a hundred coins, our village will definitely make a lot of money."

"Oh my God, niece of the Yun family, what's wrong with your head? Why didn't I think of these things?" The village chief said this and then patted his head embarrassedly.

No matter what era, food and shelter are always the first needs. They have to plan these things before officially recruiting workers in the salt lake, so that the economy of the whole village can keep up.

In addition to these, they can also sell some small items, such as shoes and socks that are most easily worn out, which can be made by themselves. This not only saves costs but also makes them affordable and increases sales.

"This matter is still in the initial planning stage. Don't make it public for now, or too many people will know about it." Yun Zhenzhen hurriedly reminded the village chief, "Right now, our own people have the upper hand. If it gets out accidentally and gets to those businessmen, they will definitely come to our village to buy land and build houses. Then they will live under their control, and our village will be gone."

"That's right, we need to use this short period of time to come up with a set of rules." The village chief nodded repeatedly. "I'll go door to door and tell everyone about this. This matter concerns the development of our village, and I'm sure they'll keep their mouths shut. I'll also inform the patrol team that during this time, no strangers should be allowed into the village to pry around."

"Okay, please ask the village chief to notify the patrol team to keep a close eye on the area during this period and not let any outsiders in to disrupt things."

Yun Zhenzhen had just finished speaking and was about to discuss the details with the village chief when she saw Qin Zheng rushing in with a swollen face: "Dad, Sister Yun, something happened over there, you two should go over and take a look."