stingy landlady

Chapter 54 Assigning Stewards

Guizhi and Dazhu hadn't walked far east on the road when they ran into Zhou Mingzhi.

Dazhu told him:

"Mingzhi! From now on, the Xiwadi area will be under your management! You need to check the height of the dikes and see if they are sturdy. You also need to oversee the division of the fields into plots. When digging irrigation ditches, make sure they run along the fields so that it's easy to drain the water!"

The irrigation ditch in the western depression is finished. You need to call them to hurry up and help weed the wheat field! With enough people, it should be done in a day or two!

The wheat is growing well, but the weeds are growing fast too! We can't lose sight of the bigger picture; we need to take good care of our wheat field as well!

I think Xiao Xing is a very hardworking kid! He's also willing to put in a lot of effort. You have to keep a close eye on him and not let him move big rocks! He can't just work like a madman! He's still young, don't let him hurt himself!

Zhou Mingzhi listened attentively, nodding as he took notes. He was deeply moved to hear that Dazhu cared about Zhou Xing.

"Sir! I will keep a close eye on them while they work! Thank you for remembering Xiao Xing!"

“Uncle Zhou! Since you’re in charge of Xiwadi, then you’re Manager Zhou!” Guizhi said playfully.

Dazhu thought Guizhi's words made a lot of sense, and chimed in:

"That's right! Guizhi is right! From now on, we'll call him Steward Zhou!"

The three went their separate ways. Guizhi and Dazhu arrived at the east end of the village, where Old Man Zhou was sweeping the yard. Keeping chickens and ducks in the yard meant frequent cleaning! Otherwise, you'd easily step in their droppings, and the stench wouldn't dissipate for a while.

The chickens grow quite fast; they're well-fed and have plenty to eat.

The ducks are even faster; they're already half-grown. I estimate they'll be ready to be slaughtered and eaten in another twenty days or a month.

Guizhi remembers that ducks are ready for slaughter in about 45 to 60 days! Of course, according to the elders, they can be eaten once their feathers and tails have fully grown!

Guizhi ran off to the vegetable garden to check on the piglets! Madam Zhou had just finished feeding the piglets and picked some celery; she was already at the old house making dumplings. The piglets were grunting and whining, wanting to sleep and ignoring Guizhi! Some of the more curious piglets would look Guizhi up and down! This stirred Guizhi's childlike heart, and she said to the piglets:

"You must eat well! Grow up quickly! No fighting! Those who behave well will stay and become breeding pigs!"

Whether the little pig understood or not, it responded with "uh-huh, uh-huh!" Guizhi herself giggled!

Dazhu was talking to Old Man Zhou.

"Uncle Zhou! Mingzhi will temporarily take charge of the Xiwadi area!"

The main task is to repair dikes and dig ditches! I took some time yesterday to check on the wheat field; the wheat has grown quite a bit taller, but the weeds are also denser. We'll need to hire someone to weed the wheat field.

The low-lying areas have been burned, so we'll plant rice this year! Therefore, we need to hire people to plow the fields deeply with oxen and then harrow the land. Seedling raising and transplanting also require manpower!

Then Dazhu sighed and said with heartache:

"Sigh! Uncle Zhou! We need people everywhere. We have a lot of land, and we have to spend money to hire people for every job we do."

Old Zhou thought for a moment and said, "Master! If our family needs people to do farm work all year round, we can buy a few servants."

Or perhaps we could hire long-term laborers, so that there would be a manager overseeing things and the master wouldn't have to worry about everything.

After considering it for a moment, Dazhu said, "Then let's try hiring a few long-term workers!"

Old Zhou suddenly remembered Old Mrs. Yang's two nephews and quickly told them about their situation.

"Whether to use it or not is up to you, sir!"

After considering it carefully, Dazhu slowly said, "Let's hire them as long-term workers first! If we find that they are indeed capable and good people, and they are willing to work for us, then we'll talk about it then!"

Old Zhou nodded in agreement, "Sir, a contract is required to hire a long-term worker!"

Dazhu asked, "I remember Uncle Zhou is educated! I wonder if he can write a contract? If he can write it himself, then we won't have to bother the village chief with everything!"

Old Zhou laughed and said, "Sir! I am not very talented, but I can write this employment contract. However, we are still lacking the Four Treasures of the Study."

Dazhu immediately chimed in, "Oh! The Four Treasures of the Study—brush, ink, paper, and inkstone! We have them! Ask Madam for them whenever you need them!"

Then he added:

"Have Mingzhi ask the workers again if anyone is willing to work as a long-term laborer! Then we can sign contracts together!"

Old Zhou nodded in agreement: "Your Excellency is wise!"

Dazhu laughed: "Uncle Zhou! I can't understand your fancy words! Haha!"

Old Zhou was embarrassed and quickly said, "Sir is right!"

Dazhu brought up the matter of building a house again.

"I'm going to go with my dad to find a feng shui master to look at the land, mark out an auspicious spot, and choose an auspicious day so we can start building a big house!"

Uncle Zhou, you should also help me out when you have time, and see how the house should be built! There are so many of us living here!

Old Zhou pondered for a moment before speaking:

"Sir! Building a house is a big deal! There are professionals who can draw up architectural plans. We can tell them our requirements, and they can draw up the plans for us! Then we can hire a professional construction team to build the house and yard according to the plans!"

We're not professionals, so it's best not to mess around! However, outsourcing has its advantages and disadvantages!

The advantage is that it doesn't require much attention; the master only needs to keep an eye on things! The disadvantage is that it costs a lot of money!

Dazhu pondered for a long time, realizing it would cost even more money. Finally, he made up his mind and said with a heavy heart, "Uncle Zhou! Whether we herd one sheep or two, it's all the same! So let's contract the house construction to a professional construction team!"

After saying that, Dazhu spoke up again before Old Zhou could say anything: "We must plant cucumbers, eggplants, peppers, green beans, and persimmons right now!"

"Uncle Zhou! We can't just keep spending money! We also need to earn some money from selling vegetables!"

Guizhi happened to come out of the vegetable garden. After overhearing a bit, she understood that Dazhu was determined to grow vegetables!

"Dad! All vegetables need fertilizer! We need to buy some more cow dung and put it in the fields. We still need to follow the path of planting early so we can harvest early, even if it means harvesting ten days or half a month earlier!"

Grandpa Zhou! Dad! Can you manage to arrange enough manpower?

Dazhu said nonchalantly, "Let your grandpa go! He knows the place and the way! Bring the cart for hauling cow dung over, and we'll pay him!"

Old Zhou quickly said:

"Sir! We can send Old Madam Yang's two nephews! The two of them can fill up the cow dung, haul it back, spread it in the vegetable garden, and then plow it again, and we can plant vegetables! As for cucumbers and green beans, we need to build trellises! Let them go cut tree branches! Whether it's vegetables or crops, there's always work to do all year round!"

Dazhu then said, "Uncle Zhou! Then I'll leave this vegetable matter to you! Hehe!"

Old Zhou nodded in agreement: "Okay, sir! Now that you've decided on the location for the house, we'll separate the vegetable garden from the foundation site by a distance. That way, we won't delay planting another crop of grain in the other areas."

Guizhi added from the side, "Grandpa Zhou! It's best to fence off the vegetable garden, especially the one near the main road. I'm afraid the livestock will cause trouble. Even chickens, ducks, and geese might bite it."

When the cucumbers and green beans are in season, villagers passing by will casually pick a few to eat, and we won't feel comfortable saying anything!