The first assistant of the poor family

Chapter 203
Wang Shouwen was taken aback for a moment, and then said: "You can try this, if it really works, you can piss off the bird people in the Sun family!"

Drilling wells for water is indeed a good idea, at least for now it is the most realistic way.

After thinking about it, Xie Shen reached a consensus with Wang Shouwen and Xie Pi, and decided to try drilling a well near the test field first.

Seeing the tenant farmers moving huge stones together, Xie Shen felt a little sad.

He is also from a poor family, and he understands the hardships and dangers of ordinary people's life.

"Brother Shouwen, brother Pixian, do these tenant farmers pay extra for moving stones and building dams?"

Wang Shouwen nodded and said: "It's natural. To carry a stone, you need a bamboo stick. In the end, you pay according to the amount of bamboo sticks in each person's hand. A stone is five renminbi. If you have more strength, you can pay for it in a day." You can earn a hundred words if you talk less."

Xie Pi also said: "The price is not too low. The staff who unload goods at the Qiufengdu Wharf in the east of the city can only earn this amount in a day. They must have put in more effort than my tenant farmers."

The two explained one after the other, which made Xie Shen very embarrassed.

Xie Shen sighed in his heart, these two are the children of a wealthy family, so they naturally think from the perspective of the aristocratic family.

One hundred pennies a day is indeed a lot at first glance, but these are hard-earned money.Moreover, the construction of the embankment can take up to one month, and if it is faster, it will be completed in about 3000 days.This money can be earned for a month at most, and the full calculation is more than [-] Wen.

More than 3000 Wen is almost a month's work for a scholar to be a teacher.

The problem is that what scholars do is all about lip service, and they can't be compared with these hard-working tenant farmers.

Of course, from the point of view of the two aristocratic sons, this can be regarded as a kindness.After all, if they don't build dams and divert water to improve the quality of the tidal flats and grow cotton, even those tenant farmers won't get the 3000-odd cash.

With the more than 3000 Wen, the tenant farmers can at least pull a few bolts of cloth to make new clothes for their wives and children.
Hey, the social problems in the Ming Dynasty were actually very acute, and this was even more vividly reflected in the late Ming Dynasty.

But the young man is not capable of solving this problem now. He can't ask Wang Shouwen and Xie Pi to give these tenant farmers extra money.

This is the market price. Giving a price higher than the market will not only break the rules, but also arouse the envy of other foremen.

What's more, this is a common problem. If you can't be in a high position and just care about the gains and losses of one place, you can't solve the problem.

Maybe Xie Shen will go to the power center of the Ming court in the future and promote some reforms, which will have a good effect.

But these are things for later, let's not mention them for now.

"Well, but the weather is getting hotter. It's better to fetch more water to keep the tenant farmers from getting too hot."

You can say what you can say, and don't say what you shouldn't. Xie Shen can only help these tenant farmers here.

"Brother Shenxian, don't worry. These are tenant farmers of our two families. We can count on them to farm the land. Naturally, we don't want to see them fall ill."

Xie Pi said: "Brother Shen, the cotton should be planted after the dam is built. As for the diversion of water to irrigate the tidal flats, you can take your time. I'm afraid it will delay the farming season."

"Oh, I didn't think of that question."

Xie Shen couldn't help frowning.

The farming season must not be missed, otherwise it would be a great sin to delay the growth of crops.

"Well, when the farming season is busy, we will focus on that side first. Anyway, this time we are trying to grow cotton, and we don't need too many people."

Wang Shouwen nodded and said, "It's good to have brother Shenxian, I'm afraid you won't agree with brother Shenxian."

Xie Shen gave Wang Shouwen an angry look and said, "I'm such a hard-to-talk person. Besides, food is the most important thing for the people, and what is more important than food. If farming is missed, the county lord will not be able to do it." Fight me hard!"

The three of them laughed one after another, and the atmosphere was indeed very harmonious.

"Well, after the dam is built, leave dozens of people to dig the well. If it can be dug out, it can be directly pumped and flushed. If it doesn't work, we can discuss it. At worst, we can dig a diversion canal."

"Brother Shouwen's words are exactly what I want. It is enough to keep dozens of people here, and it would be a waste if there are too many."

Xie Shen's heart sank, it turned out that the two had discussed it long ago, but it was he who foolishly followed the quilt.

It's no wonder that Wang Shouwen and Xie Pi are well-known landlords in Yuyao, so the issue of farming cannot be avoided.

"Okay, we can't help if we stay here, we can only add to the chaos. Why don't we go to a restaurant to have a meal together."

The important matter was decided, Wang Shouwen was in a good mood, patted Xie Shen on the shoulder and said with a smile.

Just when the three of them were about to leave the deserted coastal beach together, an old man in ragged clothes and gray hair stumbled towards the three of them from the direction of the tidal flat.

"Third young master, third young master, please waive the old man's rent. The old man is just a grandson like Hu Zi. Hu Zi's father left early, and the old man is only a single seedling. The old man can't see him hungry. Die!"

The old man kowtowed repeatedly to Wang Shouwen, his hair was covered with mud and grass, which made people feel heartbroken.

Wang Shouwen quickly bent down to help the old man.

"Old man, what are you doing, you get up first, get up first and then talk."

But the old man didn't listen to this, he hugged Wang Shouwen's thigh tightly and wouldn't let go.

Wang Shouwen was a little anxious: "You can't solve the problem if you hold me like this. Didn't you say last time that your family's rent for three months will be exempted, why is it exempted for another year now?"

It's not that Wang Shouwen is cold-blooded and ruthless. Although he is a young master, his status in the Wang family is not high.

Although Mr. Wang Hua is far away in the capital, there is still his elder brother Wang Shouren in the mansion.

Although the second elder brother Wang Shoujian doesn't talk much, he is also the second elder brother. There is a difference between senior and younger, and there is an orderly hierarchy. Even if the elder brother is not there, he has to listen to the second elder brother.

Exempting the old man's family from renting for three months is already the limit of what Wang Shouwen can do.If he directly waived his family's one-year rent, he really has no authority.

Xie Shen frowned and said, "Is this old man your tenant farmer?"

Wang Shouwen sighed and said: "Yes, he is from Lianhua Village. He rented a few acres of Susukida from my house. He is really miserable. He finally got a grandson. Seeing that life is getting better, but his son was beaten to death by the neighbors. gone."

Xie Shen just wanted to ask how a well-behaved living person was beaten to death, but when he thought that it was too inappropriate for the old man to ask this question here, he had to swallow the words in his throat.

The people of Yuyao are tough, could it be that the old man's son was killed because of a weapon fight?

When Xie Shen studied the local chronicles in his previous life, he found that the villages under many states and counties along the southeast coast had a strong sense of territory, so some armed fights often broke out.

The fighting between these villages is usually to compete for water and land, and it is difficult for even the government to come forward to control it.

　ps: I recommend a book "Scholar's Counterattack" by the author of the same group. If you are interested, you can read it~
　　


(End of this chapter)