Hearing Huo Xi's question, Yang looked at Huo Erhuai.
Huo Erhuai didn't know what Huo Xi planned for the two Zhuangzi, and was afraid of ruining her affairs, so he looked at Huo Xi, and Yang also looked at her.
Huo Xi did have some thoughts in her mind.
The environment in Tangquan Town is better and there are hot spring pools. The three servants left behind seem to be more loyal.
But she had just built a sugar-making greenhouse in Mu Yan's village, and she had other ideas later. Her parents lived here and could help look after it in the future.
It's just that the servants in this village don't seem to be easy to control.
When Mrs. Yang saw that Huo Xi had not made up her mind, she said, "Xi'er, I listen to you. I will go wherever you tell me to go."
Huo Xi expressed her thoughts: "I want my mother to go to Tangquan Town to recuperate. The environment there is good. But we will still make sugar in Zhuangzi here in the future, and my parents will stay here in the future."
I'd also like to get some help to look after it. If the sugar greenhouse is built over there in Tangquan Town, I'd be worried about the crowds and the crowds. And..."
Bao Xia said from the side: "Is the owner worried about the servant here?"
Huo Xi nodded: "We will still make sugar in the future, and we need loyal servants."
"If the owner is worried, it's better to replace them all and buy a new batch."
Huo Erhuai nodded: "Yes, Xi'er, we are the master's family. We will hold their identities and sell them if they don't obey. My parents still live here and will help you in the future. That sugar greenhouse
The things inside cannot be demolished and rebuilt. From now on, it will be convenient for us to have two villages close by."
"Yes, Xi'er, Mom prefers to live here. Ji Zhuangtou's family and Mom can get along well. There are many noble people in Tangquan Town, and Mom doesn't feel comfortable living in the courtyard there."
Huo Xi thought for a while and nodded: "Okay. The mother will stay here in Zhuangzi first. I will take good care of the personnel in Zhuangzi."
When Wu Dongsheng returned to his yard, his mother, wife, children, younger brother and his family gathered around him.
Udonsheng's wife Lin asked: "Dad, do we want to redeem him? We have saved some money over the years. If we redeem him, we can become a good citizen."
Rong, Udonsheng's old mother, glanced at her daughter-in-law and said nothing.
Wu Dongsheng said nothing after hearing this. He turned to his old mother and asked, "Mom, what do you think?"
Mrs. Rong was silent and then said: "Son, don't forget why our whole family sold themselves into slavery in the first place..."
Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Mrs. Lin.
"Mom, it was back then, but things are different now. At that time, our family had a grudge with Xiang Kun, was bullied in the local area and couldn't survive, and was sold into slavery after suffering a disaster. But now our family has saved some money.
The master is also willing for us to redeem our lives, so why don’t we go out and be good citizens?”
"If you redeem yourself, where are you going? Going back to your hometown?" Rong was not very willing.
"Why are we going back to our hometown? I haven't been back for decades. Let's just buy a shop in the capital and do some small business. Or we can settle down in the village where Da Ya married and buy a few acres of land. It's better than giving it to others.
Become a slave. Besides, Youwen is still studying, and he is quite knowledgeable. If we redeem him, he can take the imperial examination."
"Is it so easy to take the imperial examination?" Rong couldn't help but choked her.
Wu Youwen glanced at his mother and said to Rong, "Grandma, I want to give it a try."
Rong's grandson actually said this, does he know how wide the world is outside? After being praised a few times by a private school teacher in a small village, he wanted to squeeze into the single-plank bridge that thousands of people cross?
When Mrs. Lin heard this, her face was filled with joy: "Yes, mother-in-law, if someone wants to try, we will let him try. We can't ruin his future. Besides, Daya redeemed herself and married into a nearby village. Every time I go back to see
She is looked down upon by her mother-in-law and looks down upon our status."
"You don't care about our status, but you still want to buy land and build a house in Daya's village?"
"Then how about we go to Beijing to buy a shop and do business?"
"Is business so easy to do?"
Mrs. Lin refused to give up: "My father has been a village head for so many years, so he always has some connections."
Rong didn't want to speak and glanced at Udon Sheng: "What do you think?"
Wu Dongsheng still has fresh memories of the time when his family sold themselves into slavery. In these years, he joined the officialdom and received the care of his master's family, which is why his family lived so well. It was much better than the farmers in the surrounding villages.
Many times, when he walks outside, he is respected by people everywhere.
If the new master is still an official, he will naturally be happy to stay under the protection of the master.
It's just that the new owner's family is worse than their previous ones. They started as fishermen. Now they only have a small amount of money.
But he had been running this village for more than ten years, and once he let it go, he felt a little reluctant to let it go.
Rong only glanced at the eldest son and knew what he was thinking. Then he looked at the second son and his family: "Qiu Shui, tell me."
Wu Qiushui and his wife looked at each other. His eldest daughter was married to the Qi family, who was also a servant of the village. His second son and youngest daughter were still young. There were four members of his family. To quit, he would have to pay at least dozens of taels of silver.
The money saved at home may not be enough to redeem one's life, and they are not the eldest brother. Even if it is enough, there will only be a few taels left after redeeming one's life. How will they live?
Before I could think about it, my relatives came running over with their whole family: "In-laws, do you want to deregister?"
What will they do if their in-laws deregister their citizenship?
Like his in-laws, Qi Da also has three children. Although his daughter is married, the old parents, his wife and their two children, six people in the family, will have to pay a lot of money to withdraw from the country.
His family is not like the Wu family. Because they are the head of a village, they have been rewarded by their master and have earned extra money over the years, so they have saved a lot of money. The few silvers his family has saved are not enough for the family to leave the country.
Besides, where will you go after you leave your citizenship?
The next day, Huo Xi found out that there were only six households that wanted to deregister. There were originally fifteen households of farm servants, but nine households were left.
Wu Dongsheng of Zhuangtou wanted to take his family out of the country, and his old mother Rong and his second brother separated from him and stayed in Zhuangzi.
Huo Xi raised her eyebrows.
Without saying much, the deeds of those who wanted to secede were released. Male laborers were redeemed for sixteen taels each, female laborers were thirteen taels, half-grown girls were redeemed for eighty taels, and those under ten years old were redeemed for sixty taels.
It's only one tael higher than the market price. After all, if she buys another person, she still has to pay the entrance fee, the carriage fee, and the lost work fee. She also has to pay the money at the Yamen.
How can you do a loss-making business?
There is enough for the remaining nine households. If there is not enough, we can hire long-term workers or tenants. We will not buy people for the time being.
As for the choice of the village leader...
Wu Qiushui seemed capable, but Huo Xi didn't want to use him.
Looking at his relative, Qi Da, he was an honest man. After some thought, he promoted Qi Da to be the acting head of the village. He would be given a trial period of half a year. If he did well, he would be directly promoted to the position of head of the village.
Qi Dadu was shocked. How could he be the leader of a village because he could only work hard?
I didn't wake up for a while.
It wasn't until Qi Da's wife knelt down with her parents-in-law and children to thank him that he thanked her with both hands and legs, saying that he would listen to his master's words.
Huo Xi burst out laughing: "It's hard for you to manage such a big village by yourself. Pick some useful ones from these households and let them take care of one share, and they can help you share the burden. It won't be a problem.
It's all on your shoulders, just be the boss and assign work to them. Let your son help with the accounting. I heard you sent him to school for how many years?"
Qi Da nodded while listening: "Yes, yes, he has studied for several years and can read, write and take notes."
He secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, his boss asked him to find someone to help him do things together, instead of letting him do everything. He was dizzy and didn't know where to start.
Huo Xi nodded: "Then let him be your accountant. Just take care of the land and the people in the village. If you have nothing else to do, ask Mr. Ji next door for advice on how to be a good village owner."
"Yes, I must listen to my master and take good care of this village."
Huo Xi took care of the personnel in Zhuangzi, and asked Huo Erhuai and Yang to arrange for people to renovate the courtyard. Let them get in touch with the people in Zhuangzi. From now on, they will live here for a long time, get along well with others, and get along well.
