Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 70 Involution
Feng Chang was quite ambitious and made a good impression as soon as he arrived in the village.

Pei Qinghe gave Feng Chang an approving look: "Okay, you give it a try first."

Feng Chang was thrilled to receive Pei Qinghe's permission. The next morning, before heading to the fields, he gathered more than twenty refugees together and solemnly announced the assessment rules: "I will record your daily farming performance. We will count every seven days, and the top three will be rewarded. The bottom three will be punished."

The refugees had eaten their fill for several days and were full of energy; no one objected.

Only the bearded man muttered, "Someone as weak as me is at a disadvantage from the start."

Feng Chang, with his sharp ears, immediately said, "There are indeed natural differences in strength. As long as someone does their job conscientiously, everyone can see it, and they won't be punished."

Feng Chang then carefully assigned tasks to everyone, with each of the refugees receiving a plot of wasteland to work on. Soon, they were working enthusiastically.

Gu Lian frowned as soon as she saw the scene: "This Feng Chang is more cunning than a beehive. He's only been here two days and he's already starting to pull stunts, trying to outdo us. Humph! He won't get away with it!"

The women, who had originally gathered together to work, dispersed at Gu Lian's command. Having spent several months in the village, they were well-fed and strong, familiar with farming, and pulled the oxen and iron plows with remarkable speed.

Pei Jia quickly noticed something was wrong: "Huh? Why is the plowing speed so much faster today?"

Pei Yi was more astute than Pei Jia, and whispered, "Last night, Feng Chang went to see the Sixth Miss, and this morning he gave a lecture to the refugees. I think this Feng Chang is no ordinary person. We two have to be careful, lest we be outdone by someone who came later."

Pei Jia puffed out his chest: "We two were the first to follow Sixth Miss, and we even changed our names. What does Feng Chang have to compare with us!"

By evening, when Feng Chang took out the work report, Gu Lian's eyes practically popped out of their sockets, and Pei Jia and Pei Yi's faces turned ashen.

Feng Chang, without glancing to the side, presented the page to Pei Qinghe: "Today, my team of twenty-five people cultivated a total of forty-eight mu of wasteland. I have listed the three who worked the hardest at the beginning. The last three were not deliberately lazy, they were just a little less strong."

Pei Qinghe looked at Pei Jia, Pei Yi, and Gu Lian's dark faces and found it amusing. She first praised Feng Chang. Feng Chang was not arrogant or smug, and said that this was all part of his duty.

Feng Changmai walked with steady steps to queue for dinner.

Pei Jia and Pei Yi hurriedly stepped forward, each reporting on their day's farming progress. Gu Lian, not to be outdone, also stepped forward: "Sixth Miss, starting tomorrow, I will also assign work to the women in the team."

Is it really that impressive to be literate and able to write?
She was literate from a young age, later married and had children, and then traveled with her husband when they encountered bandits. Her husband was killed, and she was taken to a mountain stronghold, where she endured years of a life worse than that of animals. Now, she has a new life, able to hold her head high, and she cherishes it dearly.

No one can outdo her.

Gu Lian not only assigned work to the women, but also brought two oil lamps to teach them to read in the house at night. Some women complained, "We've been working in the fields all day, so tired we can barely keep our eyes open. And now we have to learn to read and practice at night? I can't take it!"

Gu Lian glared at her and said, "Sixth Miss is a person with great ambitions. In the future, she will continue to recruit refugees. Everyone can do farming. Reading and writing will broaden her horizons and increase her knowledge. Only in this way can she gain Sixth Miss's respect."

“Pei Yun and Pei Yan practice martial arts during the day and study at night. We must try our best to keep up with them.”

The woman scoffed, "I don't have such grand ambitions. As long as I have enough to eat and can find a son-in-law to live with me in the future, I'll be content."

Gu Lian spat, "You're hopeless! Is there nothing else in your mind but men? I don't care what you do in the future, but for now, you have to listen to me and learn to read and write."

Pei Qinghe focused on the major issues and didn't concern herself with trivial matters. These dozen or so female bandits were all under Gu Lian's control.

The other women all began to berate their unambitious companion. The woman, not daring to offend the crowd, slunk away and shut her mouth. The village was so small that news of Gu Lian teaching reading and writing quickly reached Pei Qinghe's ears.

Pei Qinghe was quite satisfied with this and specially praised Gu Lian in front of Feng Chang, Pei Jia and others.

Feng Chang snorted inwardly.

Does he teach reading and writing? He's a proper private tutor!
Pei Jia and Pei Yi were at their wits' end. When they returned to their thatched hut that night, they looked at each other and sighed together.

Zhao Hai had become a son-in-law and moved out long ago. Four men now lived in this house.

Seeing Pei Jia and Pei Yi's appearance, Doctor Bao was somewhat surprised: "What happened to you two? Did you do something wrong and were punished by the Sixth Miss?"

Pei Jia sighed with a bitter face: "That's not it. Pei Yi and I work in the fields every day, just like always. But the new Feng Chang is a scoundrel. He's like he's drunk chicken blood. During the day he's supervising the new refugees to work, and at night he's teaching them to read and write."

“Gu Lian is the same. She’s fiercer than a man during the day, and at night she’s reading with a bunch of girls.” Pei Yi couldn’t laugh anymore, and he held his chin in his hands, looking worried: “What are Pei Jia and I going to do? We can’t read a single word. Aren’t we going to be overshadowed by the two of them and never be able to lift our heads?”

While feeling sympathetic, Dr. Bao secretly rejoiced. Fortunately, he was the only miracle doctor in the village.

Fang Datou's eyes darted around, and he came up with a terrible idea: "If you want to learn to read and write, go find Sixth Miss. Sixth Miss teaches the Pei family military books every night. The three of us all have the surname Pei, so why can't we go?"

Pei Jia immediately corrected him: "My surname is Pei, and Pei Yi's surname is Fang."

Fang Datou declared confidently, "I already told Sixth Miss that I will be called Pei Bing from now on."

The three of them spat together.

Fang Datou chuckled: "Whether it works or not, let's go and try it first. If Sixth Miss chases us away, we can just come back."

Dr. Bao was intrigued. Since he had nothing better to do, he shamelessly went along.

Inside Pei Qinghe's thatched hut, the candlelight was bright.

After delivering gifts to the Beiping Army at the county government office, Pei Yun went to Shijiabao again and hasn't returned yet. Pei Yan and a group of women sat cross-legged, intently studying military texts.

This military treatise was a family heirloom of the Pei family. It was burned during the raid on their home, Pei Qinghe thought to herself. Pei Xuan, Pei Feng, and the other children practiced calligraphy during the day, copying copies of this military treatise. Now, each of them had a copy.

Four grown men stood outside the door, huddled together, stammering. The more confident they had been in the thatched hut, the more weak and guilty they became now.

Pei Qinghe immediately knew what was going on: "You also want to study and learn to read?"

The four of them nodded in unison.

“It’s good to have this idea.” Pei Qinghe thought for a moment and smiled. “I don’t have time, so I’ll have my mother take half an hour each evening to teach you.”

(End of this chapter)