After being exiled, I led my whole family to rebel.

Chapter 239 Migrant Work
Zhou Houfang and Qian Zhenniang were once worried that most of the first group of women who went out to work were relatives of officials and would spill the beans to others. However, Xu Zhenying said that the first group of women were the ones who opened up the situation, and the common people were all worried. Like to follow the trend, only the first batch of people have made money and come back safely, and other women have the opportunity to go out to work.

Before leaving, Xu Zhenying also informed Ms. Lian of the key points, and asked Ms. Lian to lead a team to protect their personal safety. The women must not be allowed to suffer rumors after returning from work.

However, Lian felt that Xu Zhenying was a little worried.

Look at these women, all of them are red-faced, loud and arrogant, and all of them are carefree and shrewd. They are clearly local snakes in the village, and they are not embarrassed to go out to work.

I saw them carrying their own little burdens and holding each other's little sisters. Sometimes they talked about which widow in the village had made love with a wild man, sometimes they talked about which child in the family was the most promising, and some even boldly took advantage of the break. During the break, he climbed up the tree to pick fruits.

This is a group of country women who have never seen the world. They are obviously bandits leaving the village——

Lian held his forehead and felt that the burden on his shoulders was a bit heavy.

When they arrived at Xingyuan Mansion, they immediately noticed the difference between Xingyuan Mansion and Jinzhou Mansion.

As soon as they entered Xingyuan Mansion, this group of women who were alone in a row immediately attracted the attention of the city people. They hid quietly in the corner and pointed from a distance.

The women, who had been chatting and laughing all the way, were not so happy for some reason when they arrived at Xingyuan Mansion.

But Lian couldn't help cheering them up: "Don't be afraid, everyone, we are here to work, and we are no shorter than anyone else. Do you remember what the city lord said before we set off? She told us that the rules outside Jinzhou Mansion are the same as ours It's different there. If we are scolded for being ignorant or immoral, etc., just think about our children. The girls in our place can serve as officials and soldiers. We can't be hungry or cold. We can rely on ourselves. Making money with both hands is a hundred times more glorious than them!"

Aunt Ma also said: "Sisters, what are you doing with your heads down? Keep your chests up! Don't forget the city lord's instructions. We are the women of Jinzhou Mansion, and the women of Jinzhou Mansion are not afraid of anything!"

Feng'er was already waiting for everyone at the city gate, waving to Lian from a distance.

Lian almost didn't recognize Feng'er!

Not seeing each other for such a long time, Feng'er has not only grown taller and fatter, but her skin has also turned white. What's more important is the aura of wealth and aristocratic look on her body. She is wearing a sky-blue and aqua-colored jacket, and a set of tube tops underneath. , with white trim and gold embroidery, it looks like flowers blooming every step of the way. Especially the swaying green hairpin on her head adds a touch of wealth.

Lian was stunned. Is this the disgraced Feng'er?
This... is not bad to say that she is a noble lady from a rich family in Bianjing City...

How can you tell that you were still working as a slave for someone a year ago?
Feng'er quickly ran to Mrs. Lian, slightly blessed, dignified, calm and generous, "Is Madam Xu San okay?"

Lian looked at Feng'er in front of her and felt a little complicated for a moment.

When Feng'er left, she was just a maid and housekeeper next to Xu Zhenying, but now that Xu Zhenying is in the spotlight, Feng'er will definitely take over the Ministry of Commerce when she returns, and will become Xu Yinxi's colleague from now on.

Even though Feng'er was once a slave, Lian Qiuzhi now didn't dare to show off in front of Feng'er. She quickly gave her a hand and said affectionately: "Miss Feng'er, I haven't seen you for a long time. She looks much prettier than before. This How was your year in Shouzhou?"

"Thanks to the city lord, everything is fine." Feng'er exchanged greetings with Lian, and naturally noticed the two hundred women working behind Lian. Seeing that they were all looking at her with some fear, Feng'er Smiling slightly, "Sisters and aunts, don't worry. I am the Minister of Commerce of Jinzhou Prefecture. You can call me Minister Xu, or you can call me Feng'er. Since everyone came to Xingyuan Prefecture, they are all unfamiliar with the place. We just have to work together, think in one place, work hard in one place, earn money happily, and then go home in glory, right?"

When the women saw that Feng'er was polite and easy to talk to, they felt at ease. With such a fierce and fierce girl leading the team, and the girl was already a minister at a young age, she must be very capable.

The women felt at ease and echoed a few words loudly. Feng'er pulled Lian away: "Miss Qi is waiting over at Zhuangzi. Let's go there first."

On the way, Feng'er asked about the changes in Lianshilan County again. When she learned that Xu Zhenying had done so many things in Jinzhou Prefecture, she was frightened and excited, "Hey, it's a pity that Xu Huiming has gone back first, otherwise I would have gone back first." I want to go back day and night to see our Jinzhou Mansion.”

"No," said Lian, who also picked out the best ones. "If only one kind of sweet potato is produced this year, at least the people of Jinzhou Prefecture will not go hungry in winter. If we make these cotton clothes and trousers, they will not No more cold."

"Speaking of sweet potatoes, I also found the potatoes that the city lord has been longing for on the ship coming from the port over there. Xu Huiming has already shipped them back. It is said that the yield of those potatoes is very large. I am afraid that we in Jinzhou Mansion will not have to worry about it this winter."

Although Lian had never seen what a potato looked like, the things that made Xu Zhenying worried were not simple. For example, the cement and cowpox were all extraordinary things.

"Yes, look at how the people in Jinzhou Prefecture live. I didn't realize it before. Now that I have come to Xingyuan Prefecture, I realize that our place is really a paradise!" Lian said with emotion when she said this. Most of the people on the streets of Xingyuan Mansion are skinny and skinny, with no life in their eyes. They wonder what kind of life the people outside are living, "Feng'er, if you go back, you will be surprised. The cement roads in Jinzhou Mansion are so fast." He went to Qianzhou for cultivation."

"Concrete road? I heard the city lord mention it many times, but I haven't seen what it looks like yet." Feng'er was also a little annoyed that she had been away for so long, but when she returned to her base, she became a bumpkin. "From the city lord's letter, I noticed that Jinzhou Mansion must have changed a lot, but I couldn't guess how. "

Lian Shi smiled slightly but gave it up, "You'll know when you get back."

The two hadn't seen each other for a long time, and they chatted with each other about daily affairs. Feng'er talked about the scenery and knowledge of Shouzhou, while Lian talked about the changes in Jinzhou Prefecture.

On the other hand, the women behind them kept looking at them all the way.

"That Minister Xu...God, he's so young. He looks about the same age as my youngest daughter!"

"Who among the people around our city lord is not young? It's better to be younger. Young people are bold and motivated, willing to work hard when doing things, and they don't have any official airs."

"But why haven't I heard of her Ministry of Commerce? It's in charge of that."

"Hey, you see you are lagging behind! Let me tell you, my daughter who is a propagandist in the next village came back and said that the city lord has recently made a big move to adjust many departments. It is different from the rules of the Zhou Dynasty. There are so many, such as the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Propaganda, etc. We ordinary people may not be able to find the threshold even if we go to do things!”

"Then what does the Ministry of Commerce do? The Ministry of Commerce, does it sound like it's for business? Why, these days there is a special department for those shady businessmen. Doesn't that mean collusion between government and business?" "Even if it's not As for, you see, aren’t the Propaganda Department and the Ministry of Commerce bringing us to work this time? The Ministry of Commerce doesn’t care about those rich people, but leads us to make some small money! Well, in my opinion! , I’m afraid it’s the Ministry of Commerce’s business to allow our people to do business and do some small business, so that the ordinary people below can also have money?”

The eldest son of this woman's family ranked among the top in the civil service examination this year. She said that she was going to a certain county to be the county magistrate. Naturally, everyone thought that she was more informed. When she spoke, everyone else thought it was reasonable and nodded.

"Sister Liu is right. Her son is working as a county magistrate in Xiaoshan County. Her information must be accurate!"

Sister Liu quickly waved her hands, and although she looked happy, she still said seriously: "Don't say it, don't say it, my son needs to keep a low profile, otherwise the boss will blame him!"

"Oh, what are you afraid of? Aren't you a real county magistrate? I have to call you old lady!"

Sister Liu felt extremely relieved when she heard the sound of "Old Madam" in her heart. She felt like her whole body was floating from head to toe. Isn't that the old Madam?
But when she thought of her son's entrustment before taking office, and that Xu Zhenying's yamen was very strict, it was common for him to be demoted and dismissed, and he might not be able to sit firmly, she was afraid of causing trouble to her son, so she quickly said with a straight face: "Who is this?" Old madam, have you ever seen an old lady who has to go out and run around for such a few copper coins? I am just a country woman. If my son becomes a county magistrate, I still have to feed pigs and cook - "

Someone said with a smile: "You are saving a dowry for your daughter!"

"If you call me Old Madam again, I will also call you Madam, Madam Ma, Madam Zhao, Madam Liao?"

The women laughed so hard, "God, please spare me, I can't be this lady. When you say madam, I get goosebumps all over the floor——"

Then Sister Liu exhaled and thought: If her son hadn't called on family members of officials to lead by example, she wouldn't have come.

But it didn't matter if she came here, she had never been out of the county town in her life, and she was happy to have walked so far, chatting and chatting with her old sisters along the way.

I just don’t know what the procedures are for making cotton-padded clothes?
Feng'er and Lian took the women in a carriage out of the suburbs of the city. After walking for about half a quarter of an hour, they came to a hilltop in the suburbs. They looked at the entire mountain as white as clouds, with heavy cotton weighing on the branches. It looks like kapok trees are blooming all over the mountains and plains.

"God, what did I think it was? It turns out to be kapok from my hometown! Can this thing be used to make clothes?" A woman who got off the bus first immediately shouted.

"Why does the city owner grow so much kapok? Can it really keep you warm when you make cotton clothes?"

"Hey, why are there so many words? Let's settle down as soon as it comes. Let's listen to what Sister Lian and Minister Xu have to say first."

"Hey, look, why are there so many women over there?"

The women followed the man's point of view and found that there was a large courtyard in front of them. It was extremely busy. Women were coming in and out, and they were obviously busy working.

I saw Miss Qi Er walking out of it. She was dressed in aqua-blue trousers, her hair was combed delicately, and she had a white magnolia emerald hairpin in her hair, which made her look slim and graceful.

She had never met Mrs. Lian, but when Feng'er mentioned that Xu Zhenying's aunt was leading the team this time, she immediately stepped forward to pay her respects.

But Lian did know Miss Qi Er.

It was Miss Qi Er who helped the third family of the Xu family earn their first pot of gold. The Lian family was no stranger to this, but they didn't expect that Miss Qi Er was younger than expected.

However, Lian's ears and eyes were sharp, and it was obvious that Miss Qi had great respect for Feng'er.

The cotton business should undoubtedly belong to Xu Zhenying.

It's just that Xu Zhenying was just a first-class prisoner at that time, but he was able to take someone like Miss Qi Er into his pocket, which shows his ability and ambition.

Feng'er got the signal and spoke first: "Sisters and aunts, we have planted nearly ten thousand acres of cotton and are in urgent need of manpower, so they also recruited five to six hundred people from Jinzhou Prefecture. This is Miss Qi Er, everyone calls her It’s good for her to be the second lady.”

Miss Qi Er smiled and nodded slightly to everyone.

Feng'er continued: "Basically, more than half of our cotton has been picked, and the rest needs to be made into cotton clothes. In addition to the 500 people who have already come, we have a total of more than 700 people. According to the division of labor on the assembly line, one group of tailors The basic wage is thirty cents per day for fabric, one group for stuffing, and one group for sewing. The more you do, the better. If you have no doubts, we can start work now!"

Of course there are questions!
Sister Liu was the first to ask: "What is the division of labor? Are the commissions for tailoring, cotton stuffing, and sewing all the same?"

"It depends on everyone's specialties. Those who are good at sewing will sew, those who can endure hardship will stuff cotton, and those who can make clothes will cut clothes. Sewing is the slowest, so the commission is two cents per piece, and the others are one cent."

"What does that cotton coat look like? Can it really keep you warm?"

Miss Qi Er also ordered someone to display some ready-made clothes for everyone to see, "please see, our cotton-padded clothes are divided into three grades. One is worn by ordinary people and plays a role in keeping out the cold. This There are no requirements for the different types, just enough cotton. The second type is suitable for people with a certain amount of money. Not only must the cotton be sufficient, but the stitching must be fine. The third type is for ladies, and the amount of cotton must be appropriate. Dress carefully, too bulky will lose the sense of beauty, so you don’t need to stuff too much cotton, but the stitches should be dense and the patterns beautiful. If you are good at tracing flowers or are good at embroidery, you can also take the initiative to ask for a job. Easy to discuss.”

Miss Qi Er made it clear. The women were clever and ingenious. They knew what the cotton coat and trousers were as soon as they saw the sample clothes. From time to time, they touched and opened the clothes, and then said: "This is simple, but it is exquisite. Who knows?" I can imagine that cotton can be used to make clothes! This thing will definitely sell well. It’s very cold in Jinzhou Prefecture, so even I have to spend money to buy some cotton clothes!”

"That's not true!" Someone couldn't wait to try it on, and then received constant praise from his companions, "Don't tell me, apart from being a little bloated, it looks pretty good, and it will definitely be warm if you wear it next to yours!"

"Warm! Warm! It's so warm! Come and touch it, what a good thing it is. That... Minister Xu, how do we sell our cotton clothes? Can we, working girls, buy more of them at a cheaper price?" Some?"