Miao Chu

Chapter 153 Same boat
Seeing that the person had walked away, Han Li packed up his things, walked to the table in front of Song Miao, looked at her and said, "Stadium owner Song's behavior makes me seem utterly useless."

His tone was somewhat complicated, seemingly helpless, and tinged with melancholy.

Song Miao couldn't help but laugh and say, "Hasn't Young Master Han always been helpful and put in a lot of effort?"

He then asked, "Young master, are you also going to Linghe Town tomorrow?"

Han Li nodded and said, "Grandma Li meant well and helped a lot. We can't rely on just one person. But since people can travel back and forth, grain and supplies should be able to too. Even if we can't transport much, as long as we can open this channel, things will be easier later."

He added, "Furthermore, since we have recruited so many people, whether it was done spontaneously by the people or not, we should at least inform the local government to avoid causing unnecessary trouble for them."

At this point, he added, "Tomorrow I will go and urge that clerk Qian Zhongming to speed up the manpower allocation. From what I've seen lately, he's always been good at making excuses and giving perfunctory responses. If you press him too hard, he'll probably give you something to get rid of you. I'll ask him to bring over the kitchen staff first, but most of the people who come will probably not be whole people."

“I have already spoken with Kong Fuyang. If the manpower is finalized in advance, before I can return, he will arrange for you to be led to the place where the tents are set up. You can try it out first and see if it suits you.”

Song Miao thought for a moment and said, "As long as we put some effort into managing it, it can always be used, but it may not be convenient. But I think that after all, it is something that goes into our stomachs. We can only be thieves for a thousand days, but we can't guard against thieves for a thousand days. If it is not suitable, it is best not to use it. I wonder what you think, young master?"

Han Li immediately replied, "That's right. You can never be too careful with anything that goes into your stomach. If anything goes wrong, don't force it. Just wait for me to come back and deal with it."

After the two finished speaking, Song Miao took out the two drafts she had prepared that day and handed them to Han Li, saying, "I was thinking of taking a look at them in a couple of days, but you're going out tomorrow..."

Han Li carefully took it, opened it and glanced at it. Seeing that the ink was dry and wouldn't smudge, he placed it on top of his original document, gently rolled it up, and held it in his hand, saying, "I'll read it tonight."

After finishing the business, Song Miao smiled and said, "I heard from Granny Li that the journey is quite troublesome. First, you have to travel by land and water, then cross a mountain, and then travel by water before you can reach a main road. Since it's a small boat, mules and horses are not convenient, and you have to rely entirely on your own two feet. Shall I make some dry food for you to take with you?"

Although Han Li tried his best to suppress it, it was still hard for him not to turn up the corners of his mouth.

He cleared his throat and asked, "Wouldn't this... be too much trouble?"

Song Miao smiled and said, "That is a bit troublesome. Shall we postpone it for now and talk about it another day?"

Seeing the astonished look on the other person's face, Song Miao didn't rush to speak. Instead, she stood up, first tucked the chair back into the table to avoid obstructing people's passage, then smiled, glanced at Han Li, and went to the backyard.

She took a few steps, then turned around and saw that Han Li had already stood up as she had moved, but he stood still, looking like he wanted to chase after her but didn't want to make a move.

Song Miao's smile remained unchanged as she raised her eyebrows and said, "I think you love being polite, young master. Now you're saying such polite things again—if you keep doing this, I might take it seriously."

After speaking, she didn't give him a chance to make amends, and walked away briskly without looking back.

Upon hearing this, Han Li pondered the tone and content of the words for a long time. He felt his heart was light and heavy, as if he were worried about gaining something, as if he were worried about losing something, as if he had both, and as if he had neither. In the end, he only felt a slight soreness, a soreness that made him feel bloated.

The bloating wasn't uncomfortable; rather, it made his heart feel soft and yielding, as if it were soaking in a little white vinegar.

The person had already gone far away, and their demeanor just now clearly indicated that they were intentionally not letting me chase after them. Even if I did catch up, it would be too late to say when.

Even so, for some reason, he seemed to have inexhaustible strength.

After packing his things, Han Li returned to his room.

As soon as I entered, I saw Kong Fuyang put down his pen and stretch.

Upon seeing Han Li return, Kong Fuyang hurriedly asked, "Did you chase that guy surnamed Xiang away? Did you teach him a lesson? He won't dare to come back again, will he?"

He added regretfully, "If I had known, I could have left my things here and gone to support Miss Song before coming back to work!"

Han Li shook his head and briefly explained how Song Miao had scared Xiang Yuan away.

Kong Fuyang couldn't help but cheer, but after thinking about it carefully, he couldn't help but say, "I think this person is still a persistent ghost. He's scared away now because he didn't suffer a big loss, but I'm afraid he's still up to no good and might come out again at any time!"

He added, "With your eloquence, why don't you give him a good scolding? With your reputation, it'll surely have some effect!"

Han Li placed what he was holding on the other side of the table and shook his head, saying, "It's not the right time yet."

After saying that, he moved his chair and sat down.

Kong Fuyang was puzzled and looked at him blankly.

Han Li didn't offer any further explanation, only saying, "You don't understand."

After saying that, he carefully unfolded the detailed rules and regulations made by Song Miao and began to read them carefully.

Kong Fuyang, who had been stretching his shoulders and neck, was now completely disregarding his neck and tilting his head, waiting for an answer. However, he was simply left aside by the other party. As for what he didn't understand or why he didn't understand, there were no more answers. Instead, he pretended to be concentrating on his work.

He wanted to interrupt, but fearing he would disturb Han Li's work, he had no choice but to give up and obediently go to wash up first.

However, as he wiped his face, Kong Fuyang felt more and more that something was wrong—

When did Han Zhengyan learn to be more discreet when he insults people?
They scolded me back then, whether it was the middle of the night or half a day, I was always full of energy and never cared!

When Kong Fuyang finished getting ready, he hurriedly came out, about to ask questions and insist on getting an answer. However, before he could even utter the word "Zhengyan," he heard Han Li call out to him and hand him several documents, saying, "Take a look first!"

Kong Fuyang looked down suspiciously, and after just one glance, he let out a soft "Eh," swallowing back the words he was about to say.

This is a management method for the kitchen that supplies daily meals to the laborers. It is divided into three parts. The first part is the management regulations, and the second part is the specific implementation method. Since there are five people in a team, each team has a captain. The four people under each team are paired up to fill in for each other. If there is a vacancy, the captain will fill in. If the captain is vacant, someone else will be assigned to fill in. It makes arrangements for everything from personnel allocation to food procurement and storage, from night shifts to kitchen utensils and food cleaning. It is written in great detail.

The third part, however, was specifically for cooks, containing forty rules, each written in plain language. For example, it specified what time to start and finish work, how many times to wash vegetables, the proper cutting and trimming methods, how many types of firewood to split, their sizes and thicknesses, the different types of fire (high, medium, low, and strong), how many pieces of firewood to add, and what constituted a good fire, and so on. Kong Fuyang, who had cooked during his studies abroad and considered himself somewhat knowledgeable about culinary arts, was still greatly surprised by this document. He realized that not only cooking had its intricacies, but also splitting firewood, starting a fire, washing pots and placing knives, and so on, all had their own set of rules.

Another remarkable aspect is that all three documents are written in a concise and comprehensive manner: the outline of the charter, the detailed rules with appropriate emphasis, and the standardization, though written in plain language, is not verbose at all and is very clear, while also including some mnemonics to make it easy for people to remember.

All content is practical, applicable, and clear; you can use it right away.

After reading it, Kong Fuyang couldn't help but ask, "Where did this come from? It's really something!"

Han Li said, "It was made by stall owner Song. You should read it carefully tomorrow. Although it's not the same thing, it's still about managing people and affairs. There are many things worth learning from it. You can learn from the framework of the regulations I gave you earlier and improve upon it."

He had originally picked up paper and pen to help with additions and deletions, but after reading it once and then looking it over again, he felt there was nothing that needed improvement. Based on his understanding of the kitchen, he couldn't offer any suggestions on paper, so he could only pick up his pen and offer some advice on management methods.

When Kong Fuyang heard that it was Song Miao who did it, he was very surprised and said, "Everyone says that governing a large country is like cooking a small fish. I originally thought it was just an analogy, but who knew it was actually true!"

He couldn't wait until tomorrow; he picked up his pen now, summarized the points that could be referenced, and took out the draft he had just finished to carefully examine it.

The two didn't go to sleep until midnight.

Even though he had already lain down, Kong Fuyang still unconsciously turned around and asked Han Li in the next bed, "Zhengyan, do you think that young lady Song is a natural talent? I always thought I was very smart, but it turns out there are always people more capable than me, and there are always higher levels of intelligence. It's not just in the court or in schools that there are many talented people in the common people. If it weren't for this opportunity, her talent would probably have been buried!"

Han Li said, "It's partly innate, partly acquired. Look at her, she's naturally intelligent, meticulous, methodical, and learns things extremely quickly. Her temperament..."

He was praising Kong Fuyang so much that he almost couldn't stop, but he finally managed to shut up and urged Kong Fuyang to go to sleep. He told Kong Fuyang that if he wanted to express his feelings, he should do so when he wrote a memorial to Song Xiaoniang in the future, and not to ramble on here.

Kong Fuyang mumbled a few words, turned over, and soon fell asleep, emitting soft snores.

Han Li, however, was stirred up by his words. Lying down, he couldn't help but recall how he met and got to know Song Miao, and all the subsequent interactions. The more he thought about it, the more energetic he became, and he was no longer sleepy. He even thought of several ways to discuss things with the prefect when he arrived in Weizhou the next day, and just waited to act according to the circumstances the next day.

The next morning, Han Li took several students who were going out together to the yamen, and also brought Granny Li with him.

The group first took out a map and made a route map according to what Granny Li had said. Then they divided up the work, each taking a piece of land, and discussed and agreed on various details together.

Upon arriving at the yamen, Han Li went straight to Cen Dezhang, explained his plan, and said, "Last time I mentioned to the prefect that we should recruit two types of refugees, one for the exchange of laborers and the other for the same purpose. However, due to the impassable roads, it was temporarily put on hold. Now that Qian Kongmu is too busy and the roads are open, I have come to ask the prefect for a document."

He then took out the prepared document.

Without a word, Cen Dezhang glanced at the document a few times, signed it immediately, and had it stamped. While waiting for the stamped document to be returned, he said, "Zhengyan, everything else is fine, but the subsidy for non-labor laborers, since it's funded by the prefecture, should ideally be used for the conscripted people within our own prefecture..."

Han Li said, "I would prefer to use the people of the prefecture even more than the prefect, since they are close by and it would save the effort of communicating between the two prefectures. But right now, isn't it Qian Kongmu who said that he can't spare any resources?"

"If we wait any longer, it will really be too late."

Cen Dezhang fell silent immediately.

The subsidy for a single person per day is not much, but when there are many people and the time is long, the total amount is still very painful, even though Huazhou is a place with well-connected waterways and roads, and the government office is not a remote county with a much larger treasury.

What's even more painful is that the money isn't just spent on its own people, but might also end up going to the neighboring country.

Han Li comforted him, saying, "If it succeeds, it's hard to say every year, but it certainly won't change course as frequently as it has in recent years. I wonder how many merchants and goods will pass through here then."

"Once things return to normal, the commercial taxes alone will easily cover today's expenses—the prefect doesn't need to worry too much. Even if it doesn't work out in the end, he can simply go back to teach with Elder Min."

He said that for a while, Cen Dezhang was still sighing, but when he heard the last sentence, he finally laughed and said, "Go! Go! Just like you said, doing something is better than doing nothing. The worst thing is to go and teach! You can see if there's anything else that I need to negotiate with!"

Han Li then asked him for several letters, preferably ones that detailed the current situation, and also asked him which official in Weizhou he was acquainted with.

He then said to him, “The prefect can urge them to hurry up. The notices for recruiting manpower in the prefecture should have been posted long ago, and the stalls can be set up first. Is it possible that the lower-level government offices don’t have enough manpower to conscript laborers, and the city can’t even spare the manpower to set up a stall?”

While Cen Dezhang was writing a letter, Han Li remembered something and went out to find Granny Li and asked, "You left early today, did you bring breakfast with you?"

Grandma Li hesitated for a moment.

Han Li took out the money, called over a servant, and instructed him, "Take this Granny Li with you to buy some breakfast. None of us have had time to eat."

After saying that, he turned to Granny Li and said, "Granny, you are assisting the government with its affairs today. The government has taken care of your food and travel expenses for the day. Please don't be shy."

The latter naturally thanked him profusely and went out with the servant. Soon after, however, he returned empty-handed and rushed back alone to find Han Li.

"Scholar! Scholar!" she called out several times, hurriedly saying, "I met someone on my way out who came on the same boat as me this time. He's also here to sell vegetables, but he was stopped by the rain yesterday too—he's from Linghe Town, and he often goes to Weizhou City, so he knows the way very well..."

Han Li was just thinking that once they arrived at their destination, Granny Li would be leading people to recruit others, and he would need to find another local to guide him. Upon hearing this, he immediately perked up and hurriedly asked, "Where is he? Did he come back with us?"

Grandma Li looked a little embarrassed and said, "He hasn't sold all his stuff yet, he's still setting up his stall."

So, about half an hour later, Granny Li, along with her fellow villager, carrying two cages containing a total of five ducks and a basket of lettuce, returned to the official post station and delivered them to Song Miao at the back.

"That scholar Han bought some ducks and lettuce from my fellow villager and asked them to be delivered to the young lady. He also asked me to send this over..."

As she spoke, she handed over a small cloth bag.

When Song Miao opened the cloth bag, she found nothing of value inside except a single copper coin.

(End of this chapter)