The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty

3716 words

People have been searching for something since they were born. — Quotes from Zhang Yinghao

Zhang Yinghao then said, "If you have any questions, you can talk to me privately. Now, starting with Zhang Feng, let's talk about the good and bad aspects of this operation in turn."

As for the battle summary, we had conducted it many times before during training in the mountains and traveling back and forth to Dunhuang, and everyone knew what to say.

Zhang Feng said directly: "This operation should be considered very successful. The spoils should be quite large. It's a pity that Comrade Erzhu sacrificed his life. I was very scared when I rushed in. I kept thinking about the order of the platoon leader to try not to shoot, so I used what I learned in the mountains, which is to thrust hard. Moreover, no one in Zhang Landlord's family had any weapons. Later, we rushed back and forth in Zhang Landlord's house. I didn't feel tired at the time, but once I relaxed, I didn't want to move at all. I think our training is not enough. We need to increase continuous and long-term training in the future. We also need to increase physical training..."

......

After everyone had spoken, Zhang Yinghao concluded, "It seems everyone has acknowledged some shortcomings, and we must correct them in the future. From now on, no matter who is involved, we must hold a summary meeting like this after each action. We must establish this meeting as a rule, summarize the lessons learned, and share them with those comrades who did not participate in the action. You've seen me write down what everyone says every time and summarize it afterwards. You've all seen it. This is our working method."

We are currently short of educated people, so you are not yet qualified to serve as secretaries. However, we must keep minutes of every meeting. This will become a regular practice. Furthermore, by taking minutes, you will learn a lot, improve your handwriting, and become more proficient in the use of writing.

Minutes of important meetings must be signed by all participants. For example, if we decide that someone's mistake will result in someone's death, we must keep a record. If you don't, don't blame me for being lenient with my comrades. So everyone should study hard. Taking notes will depend on you all; those outsiders can't be relied upon right now. We've said so much now, and I doubt anyone can recall most of it. But I can recite it all by looking at the transcript. Now you all understand the importance of taking notes, right? A good memory is no match for a poor pen.

Zhang Yinghao took a sip of water after he finished speaking. Seeing that everyone was listening attentively, some people were a little uneasy. After all, using words flexibly was a big challenge. But Zhang Yinghao had no other choice. Leaders hated making decisions on the spur of the moment. If there were no records of the meeting, big problems would arise in the future.

Zhang Yinghao continued, "There were no major problems with this operation. I want to commend everyone. When the dog barked, no one panicked and continued to execute according to the plan. However, our plan did not take the dog into account, which shows that we are very inexperienced. Moreover, no one has pointed out this mistake until now. You may not care much, but I am very concerned about the issue of Landlord Zhang having a dog.

There's another problem. We previously asked everyone to resolve the battle silently, but we all overlooked the fact that there was a latch on the gate. This time, it was the dog's barking that drew everyone out. Otherwise, we would have had to bang on the door one by one. Can you imagine what would have happened to us then? So everyone must learn from this. When you discover a mistake, you must bring it up, and don't try to cover it up. We have already lost a comrade, and if we don't learn from this, we may face great losses in the future. Let's discuss the problems we encountered today so that we will know how to deal with them in the future. And if you don't bring up problems when you operate alone in the future, other comrades will not know how to deal with the same problem. Is this reasonable, everyone?

Seeing everyone nodding, Zhang Yinghao took a breath and continued, "I don't know if you've noticed, but when the dogs started barking, the landlords came out like blind people. I told you it's a disease called night blindness. Remember when we first went up the mountain, it got a little dark and we couldn't walk anymore? Ouyang Jun even fell and broke his head because of this. Do you remember?"

Everyone laughed good-naturedly upon hearing this, and after thinking about it, they realized that this was indeed the case.

Zhang Yinghao went on to say, "Back then, we had to rest early in the mountains because we couldn't see. Later, as we gradually adapted, we felt much better. Actually, that wasn't adaptation; it was because we ate more animal offal. Night blindness can be treated by eating more animal livers. Look at these students now. They're just like us when we first got up the mountain. They can't see clearly at night. So we have to make good use of this. In the future, if we're fighting someone and they can't see clearly at night, and we suddenly launch a night attack, will it be the same as when we attacked Landlord Zhang's house? So everyone has to be good at observation.

The affairs of Landlord Zhang's family can't be concealed for long. We must prepare for a rainy day and train our students well. If other landlords learn that we are opposing them, we will soon face enemies who will target us. Okay, that concludes the meeting. Now let Comrade Bao Shilin talk about our gains."

Bao Shilin stood up and was about to speak. Zhang Yinghao saw him and said, "Sit down and talk. Sit down and talk."

Bao Shilin sat down and picked up a piece of paper and said, "Um... Comrades, this time we captured Landlord Zhang's house, and the harvest has not yet been fully counted. We have already counted the grain in the three major warehouses, and seized land deeds and land deeds for about 550 acres, more than 200,000 taels of silver, and some gold and jewelry that have not been fully counted.

Landlord Zhang's family holds three property deeds in Guang'an Prefecture. Their shop sells grain, cloth, and salt. They also partnered with others to open two salt wells in Longnu Town. Production figures are currently unavailable, so we don't know the exact amount. There's also an ironworks in the city. That's pretty much it. The forest behind us also bears his name. Interrogating the women of the Zhang family confirmed that the entire Zhang family was wiped out. The landlord's grandfather returned to celebrate his sixtieth birthday. He distributed rifles and ammunition separately; otherwise, we would have suffered a great loss. A total of eight rifles, all very old, and over five hundred rounds of ammunition were seized. We also seized a batch of loan sharking notes. Landlord Zhang's family owns twenty pigs, four cows, and two horses. That's about it."

After this, everyone was in an uproar, lamenting the landlord's abundance of grain and wealth. But when Zhang Yinghao heard that the land held only a little over 500 mu (approximately 1.5 acres) of farmland and a mere two hundred thousand taels of silver, he knew his reputation as a wealthy landlord wasn't up to par. He remembered seeing online salt merchants with tens of millions of taels of silver, and those landowners often held tens of thousands of mu (approximately 1.5 acres) of land. Zhang Yinghao knew he'd made a subjective mistake, not investigating thoroughly. And with so many guns, it was going to cost lives, but now wasn't the time to demoralize people.

After some self-reflection, Zhang Yinghao continued, "Let's keep those IOUs for now. We'll burn them publicly when we have the chance. We must also preserve the guns and ammunition. Now that we know the shops in the city exist, we should take them over, as well as the salt wells, and continue to operate them. That blacksmith shop is very important to us. I'll go over and take a look after my lecture tomorrow."

Those of you teaching marching, physical training, calligraphy, and math, don't rush; let them master the subject. Use your brain and think of ways to pass on what we've learned. For example, we could ask those who have mastered the subject to teach as well, treating it as a review session. Everyone can act as both teacher and mentor, which will be very beneficial to the students. Learning the fundamentals can't be done quickly; it requires a down-to-earth approach. Once the fundamentals are mastered, further instruction will be much easier.

We also need to find a way to solve the problem of paper and pens. Without them, many children quickly forget what they wrote. So, here's the plan for tomorrow: Comrade Bao Shilin will continue clearing out the supplies. Comrade Zhang Feng will continue setting up the camp. Comrades Ouyang Jun and Zhang Kai will lead a few students to take over the shops and salt fields. You must figure out the supply and shipping channels and make a plan to ship back what we need. The rest of you will teach and train the students as planned."

Zhang Yinghao suddenly stopped, thought for a moment, and said, "Comrade Zhang Kai, you should try to contact the person you bought the guns from before and see if we can get another batch of guns and ammunition. You will handle this matter specifically. There is one more thing you can come and take a look at."

Zhang Yinghao took out a piece of paper, opened it, and said, "Come and take a look. I looked around today. This is a thousand meters above the stream in front of us. These two hills protrude, and the three mountains form a concave shape. There's water here all year round, but now the stream is almost dry. It's because the landlord Zhang's family has intercepted and used up all the water, and the land below is all his."

Zhang Yinghao slid his finger across the paper and said, "I plan to build a reservoir here. Right now, everyone is staying at home, and we don't know when we'll run out of food and water. This won't work. We need to use work-for-relief, organize people, provide food every day, and build this reservoir. With this reservoir, we won't have to worry about floods or droughts anymore."

Zhang Yinghao, a child of farmers, had been thinking about how to mobilize the peasant masses. This morning, he suddenly remembered that Chinese farmers are often described as "honest and simple." They don't hesitate to work, but no one pays for their labor, and no one organizes them to work. Zhang Yinghao's job now is to organize these farmers.

So Zhang Yinghao said: "Many farmers starve to death at home and just lament their bad luck. This is not acceptable. We Chinese farmers have our own Chinese-style cunning. When there is a benefit, we will be stingy and calculate carefully. So I thought it through immediately. If we want to educate Chinese farmers, we must use benefits to win them over before we have enough authority, organize them to work and carry out propaganda and learning. Otherwise, they will only face others indifferently and will not listen to those without authority.

Farmers may be very careful with their own labor, and it is difficult for them to do things without benefits. But as long as they are given benefits, they will not be stingy with their labor. Then we will organize them to study, and they will feel embarrassed if they don’t come. I am teaching these villagers this time, and it will be your turn in the future, so you all have to listen carefully and remember well. I can’t do everything by myself. I still need you, comrades, everyone work hard. "

The comrades also felt pressured after hearing this. They didn't know Zhang Yinghao's specific long-term goals, but they also knew that their current abilities were insufficient. They often failed to complete many of the tasks assigned to them, and they didn't even know how to do them. The main reason was that they had little experience and knowledge, so they didn't know how to do it.

Zhang Yinghao could understand that he didn't have a golden finger to indoctrinate them, nor could he excrete gold and silver, nor did he have plenty of capital to squander. Most importantly, none of these people had any idea what he was saying, and every time Zhang Yinghao spoke, it felt like he was talking to a cow.

Seeing their bewildered faces, Zhang Yinghao felt that while modern exam-oriented education had its downsides, it now seemed to be a major benefit. After all, everyone still understood what others were saying when they communicated, and communication was the only way to make progress. Facing blank stares was pointless. Zhang Yinghao now greatly envied those protagonists with the aura of a cuckold; their subordinates could grasp and execute whatever they said perfectly.

Chapter 13: Receiving Assets and Asking Steel

3806 words

Something that comes without effort is always so hard to refuse. — Quotes from Zhang Yinghao

Every time Zhang Yinghao sees those bewildered, goofy faces, he remembers what his math teacher in junior high school once said: "If it weren't for those students in the front, I wouldn't know how to teach. When I see the faces of the students in the back, I don't want to teach anymore."

Now Zhang Yinghao has also experienced it, and he did so without the experience of the previous classmates. Every time Zhang Yinghao sees it, he sighs in his heart: "Oh my god, what sin have I committed?"

No matter how much I complain in my heart, I have to teach patiently and carefully. I can't just give up.

Not long after the meeting, Ouyang Jun came to ask how to handle the situation when they went to the city to take over the store. Zhang Yinghao could only patiently say, "What can we do? Just say we bought the store and are retaining the people there. Ask them about their salary, supply channels, business scope, purchase costs, daily turnover, and then bring back the account books... Bring a few more people with you, and be sure to pay attention to safety."

After another round of explanations, he was finally sent back, exhausted physically and mentally. Zhang Yinghao knew this was a necessary process. When Taizu first started, he had returned home to find his brothers and needed his family's support.

Zhang Yinghao suddenly remembered that this might be one of the reasons why the Communist Party in its previous life preferred to conduct education, promote ideology, and develop comrades simultaneously. Propaganda in schools gave students a solid foundation and made them more receptive to everything. Taizu had identified China's problems as rural areas and conducted a thorough investigation. Zhang Yinghao now understood that without organizing, promoting, educating, and transforming the peasants, China would lack a solid foundation for prosperity. Therefore, the "Up to the Mountains and Down to the Countryside Movement," the re-education of the poor and lower-middle peasants, was essentially a process of mutual learning, the impact of which on China is beyond the comprehension of today.

After thinking about this, Zhang Yinghao became excited about his harvest again. Zhang Yinghao now felt that the landlord Zhang's family was a good person. He was poor, but the landlord Zhang's family was rich. Zhang Yinghao needed salt and cloth, but the landlord Zhang's family just happened to have these things. Zhang Yinghao was in need of ironware, but the landlord Zhang's family had a blacksmith shop.

Zhang Yinghao didn't know it yet, but after Chongqing opened as a port, foreign goods were flooding the market along the Yangtze River. Furthermore, the landlords and gentry controlled the rural economy, and almost every landlord had his own family shop. As landlords, they were involved in all aspects of life, not just food, clothing, housing, and transportation. This wasn't to say that the landlords had to run businesses, but rather that it could significantly reduce their family's expenses and solve employment problems for some of their family members.

Of course, the money earned by these landlords will not be used for expanded reproduction. There are two reasons for this:

First, if you want to expand reproduction, you must sell your produce; you can't just hoard it. But landlords don't have to worry about their ability to do business. In the late Qing Dynasty, larger businessmen either had official connections or formed alliances. If you didn't have the ability to protect your expanded reproduction, you'd quickly become a fat sheep, ready to be taken advantage of.

Secondly, the landlords' inherent mindset is that nothing is more reliable than land, and buying land with their earnings is the best investment for them. The ranking of the scholar-farmer, artisan, and merchant classes was established hundreds or even thousands of years ago. Merchants, as the cash machines of officials, are difficult to manage, have a low status, and are unstable. Even in the late Qing Dynasty, their status barely improved, yet the red-topped businessman Hu Xueyan was able to rise to power at a stroke.

But now that Zhang Yinghao had several shops, he had to manage them well. Trading in grain, cloth, and salt was extremely important to him. As a modern man, he undoubtedly understood the immense importance of commerce. Furthermore, to form an army, he needed uniforms and a source of funding. Capturing the landlord Zhang's house was like finding a pillow, resolving his pressing needs. Furthermore, Zhang Yinghao hadn't anticipated many things, but after seizing them, he immediately knew what he needed.

The country is your home. Conversely, what your home needs, the country will also need, and your own power will definitely be needed. It can be said that conquering the landlord Zhang's home immediately allowed Zhang Yinghao to save a few years of hard work and learn a lot of knowledge.

But Zhang Yinghao's most important priority right now was the iron smelting furnace. As a 21st-century man, he naturally understood that steel was the backbone of 20th-century nations. Even those living in this era, even those not from the modern era, understood the value of steel. A sickle or a hoe could save a tremendous amount of labor. Currently, due to insufficient iron production, the demand in cities was enormous, with supply far exceeding demand. Iron tools were difficult to find in rural areas, and even those available were expensive, making them unaffordable. Iron rusted easily if not properly cared for. Zhang Yinghao was desperately in need of iron farm tools.

The next day, after class, Zhang Yinghao took the deed to the blacksmith shop and went to see it. It was small, only about 60 square meters. A furnace for melting iron was the only place where they repaired farm tools and ironware. There were two people there, a master and an apprentice, their faces scarred by the passage of time.

Zhang Yinghao had no idea how to make steel, but he knew a few chemical equations and how to make refractory bricks. Zhang Yinghao didn't understand, but someone else did. So, theoretically, Zhang Yinghao probably knew everything, but just didn't know how to use it.

Even so, Zhang Yinghao had high hopes for this shop. It was only the beginning of the 20th century, and even without a large iron smelting furnace, this one alone would solve a significant problem for Zhang Yinghao. With a major project imminent, it was absolutely impossible to do without sufficient tools. He couldn't call for "killing the landlords and dividing the land" until the first wave of people had grown up, or else the landlord militia alone would be enough to get him killed. So, now he had to find the people he needed through hard work; Zhang Yinghao didn't need those who refused to work.

"Master, what's your last name?"

"Last name: Liu."

"Master Liu, I'm here to take over this shop. I'm the new owner. Look, here's the title deed."

"what?"

"Master Liu, you can still continue to work here. I just came to understand the situation of this shop."

"Oh, boss, just ask."

Zhang Yinghao first explained his identity and then explained what he could do here. After learning where the coke and iron came from, the blacksmith became more talkative, especially to his new employer, and he became even more friendly.

Zhang Yinghao soon realized how completely uninformed he was. He was completely unfamiliar with Guang'an. Guang'an had coal and iron, but Zhang Yinghao had only been there briefly, and his only brief visit had left him with no idea of ​​the local conditions. Furthermore, Zhang Yinghao's only impression of the Qing Dynasty lay in history books and pigtail operas; he knew nothing else. He was particularly unaware of the level of productivity during that era. Zhang Yinghao could only silently mutter, "Subjectivism is killing me."

Through the conversation, Zhang Yinghao also supplemented his historical knowledge. During the Qing Dynasty, wherever iron ore was discovered, there were usually small iron furnaces. Due to the limitations of productivity and the exploitation of the government, no one dared to mine on a large scale. The amount of iron ore mined was not particularly large. Generally, private individuals used small furnaces to smelt iron, and these businesses were almost all gray areas.

Only after the Westernization Movement did some changes occur. But in my Qing dynasty, officials were clearly paid, and everyone was there to make money, not to mention the even more lucrative industry. Everyone wanted a piece of the pie, and if they couldn't get a share, they'd destroy everything. The development of national industry and commerce was extremely difficult. History books describe the struggle to survive between imperialism and feudalism, coupled with the squeeze from compradors, making development extremely difficult. That's absolutely true.

However, the Westernization Movement also made great progress. You know, in the late Qing Dynasty, people could manufacture their own cannons. However, industrial equipment has its own time limit. It will break down soon and need to be replaced. However, there was no money to invest in it. By the time of the Republic of China, it was a mess.

Although Sichuan is relatively isolated now, its papermaking, salt mining, and traditional iron smelting industries were all quite advanced at the time. However, no matter how advanced they were, they were only relative to a backward agricultural country. They were not impressive compared to a truly industrialized country. Furthermore, per capita development in China is not considered good, and even in modern times, it is still not good. Agricultural development was even worse in the late Qing Dynasty. After Chongqing was opened as a port, conflicts within Sichuan Province intensified, with land annexation becoming increasingly serious. With a large population and limited land, by the end of the Qing Dynasty, the rich enjoyed vast fertile fields, while the poor had no place to stand. Coupled with natural and man-made disasters, Zhang Yinghao was unaware that the conditions for revolution in Sichuan were ripe.

Of course, Zhang Yinghao's personnel were currently too low-quality, leaving him with no real foundation, so he desperately needed educated personnel. However, inland provinces lacked even modern schools, and private academies were scarce. Furthermore, weapons were scarce, and once the ammunition ran out, he had no idea where to get a restock, so he remained cautious.

After listening to the master's words, Zhang Yinghao realized that he didn't know much, and his practical skills weren't as good as the master in the blacksmith shop. He couldn't do everything himself or delegate tasks to subordinates he didn't think were capable. He should focus on the overall direction and offer advice to those who could get things done. If he relied solely on himself to develop talent, the training cycle would be too long, and by the time these people were ready for action, their talents would be gone. So he had to go to Chongqing, the Wuhan Steel Plant, and Shanghai to recruit people.

After figuring it out, Zhang Yinghao couldn't sit still any longer, but he still had to finalize the things he was concerned about. Finally, he asked, "Master Liu, how much iron material do you have now? Can you make this coke yourself, or where did you buy it? Refractory bricks..."

"I have enough scrap metal here to make more than thirty hoes..."

After getting the answer, Zhang Yinghao said, "Now, focus on making hoes, shovels, and grass scrapers. Take as many as you can make. I'll come every two days to pick up a batch and settle the labor and iron material costs with you. Keep track of the account. I'll let you know when I've made enough."

Zhang Yinghao thought it through. Since no one knew how to carry out construction, and he could only desperately train his own team, he had no way to organize the masses, nor could he raise the slogan of "beat the landlords and distribute the land." He also had no way to control the situation after expanding his power. If a few warlords emerged, it would be a grave sin. So, he decided to create a template in Zhangjiagou, which would also serve as a test field for land distribution. He would see what preparations were needed, what problems needed to be solved, and what emergencies might arise. He would also organize learning and train his team.

Zhang Yinghao rushed back to Zhangjiagou and immediately called a meeting of his thirteen members. He explained his situation clearly and then said, "Here's the situation now. I need three people to lead nine students to Chongqing, Wuhan, and Shanghai to recruit talent. We need both workers and students. These places now have factories and new schools, so we'll go there to recruit people. I'm happy to hire as many as you can. When you go there, ask about the salary. We can increase it appropriately to recruit people. The Hanyang Arsenal should have many technical talents who understand machinery, especially those who are skilled in mechanics. If we can recruit two or three, it will be a victory. If no one is willing to come, then we will kidnap two technicians from the Hanyang Arsenal who produce bullets and primers and bring them here. By the way, you can also go there to broaden your horizons. Who would like to volunteer?"

Ultimately, Luo Zelin was chosen to lead the team, with Hu Songhui and Zhang Kai heading to three cities. Zhang Yinghao wasn't sure if there would be any results, but he felt he'd taken things for granted before, asking a group of people who had barely learned a few letters to explore the path of industry. So, after sending over a dozen of them on their long journey, he told Luo Zelin and the others one by one: "Even if I have to kidnap them, I'll bring them back." He could only silently wish them well: "I hope everything goes well!"

Chapter 14: Organizing the People to Build a Reservoir

3607 words

Everyone will die eventually. Being busy is a kind of happiness for people. If you disagree, go to a large mausoleum to change your mind. — Quotes from Zhang Yinghao

After finalizing the recruitment, Zhang Yinghao returned to the village and went into several households to conduct on-site investigations.

"Aunt Cao, you saved me last time, but I haven't even come to your house to thank you yet?"

"Haha, what are you talking about? A distant relative is not as good as a close neighbor. It is only right to help each other!" Aunt Cao said with a smile.

"Aunt Cao, what are we having for dinner today?"

"Today we had corn paste and dug some wild vegetables."

Zhang Yinghao walked into Aunt Cao's kitchen, picked up the salt shaker, looked at it, and said, "Aunt Cao, there's no salt here."

"Yes, now the price of salt has gone up again, and we can't afford it. If we save the salt in the jar, it will last us ten days."

......

"Aunt Cao, I'm planning to build a reservoir in the back mountain. I'd like you and your husband to come over and help. I'll provide food and give you one pound of grain for one day's work. Would you like to come?"

"Haha, go ahead. This is such a great thing. Why wouldn't you go? What are you doing staying at home all day?"

Sure enough, Zhang Yinghao visited several households and encountered similar situations. Every household was struggling. Many had to dig wild vegetables in the mountains to survive, and they couldn't afford salt, so they only had a small amount.

Zhang Yinghao told them about building a reservoir and digging a canal, and everyone wanted to go and work. Zhang Yinghao then proposed dividing up the land after the water conservancy project was completed. At first, many villagers were incredulous, but soon the whole village was excited.

After returning home, he gathered a few students and began to notify the nearby villagers one by one to come to Zhang Yinghao's home to discuss the construction of the reservoir. Zhang Yinghao presided over a meeting of the villagers of several nearby villages that would use the water from the reservoir, and Zhang Yinghao also patiently communicated with these villagers.

Things happened one after another. After Zhang Yinghao decided to build the reservoir, he organized all the bamboo craftsmen in the neighborhood to cut down the bamboo from Zhang's property and make baskets and shoulder poles for carrying soil. He also organized people to peel palm fiber to weave ropes and carve wooden hooks to make shoulder poles. He organized the women in the village to cook and those who could sew to make clothes.

With so many things happening, the village, initially skeptical, finally became convinced, and the villagers joined in with even greater enthusiasm, knowing that such an opportunity was hard-won. However, regarding what happened at Landlord Zhang's home, everyone was keeping it a secret, only occasionally revealing a hint of worry or joy in conversation.

The preliminary preparations were completed in just four days.

On the morning of the fifth day, a mobilization meeting for the start of work was held at Landlord Zhang's home. In the old days, jobs were extremely scarce in rural areas, and now, since everyone was essentially working for themselves, enthusiasm was incredibly high. During the meeting, Zhang Yinghao had mentioned that there would be breakfast, and that everyone would eat before going back to work. After signing up with Zhang Yinghao, everyone eagerly waited for their meals.

So Zhang Yinghao didn't waste any words and just stood at the foot of the altar and said, "Fellow villagers, everyone knows that this is a famine year, and making a living is not easy. If this drought continues, it won't be long before everyone has to flee. As a member of Zhangjiagou, I see it with my own eyes and feel anxious in my heart. Zhang Xianglong's family has been attacked by bandits, and our Master Zhang from Chongqing has bought all of Zhang Xianglong's belongings so that everyone can live a good life."

"After our on-site investigation, we found that if a reservoir was built in the place we took you to see before, everyone could grow paddy fields, and these minor disasters would be overcome in the future. Let's applaud Mr. Zhang Feng first!" Then everyone applauded sparsely. Zhang Yinghao knew that clapping was a very important habit, but people in the past did not have this habit, and it had to be strengthened many times.

"Don't the people in Zhangjiagou and the neighboring villages welcome Master Zhang? Why are you clapping so quietly? Come on, do it again."

This time it was much better, but Zhang Yinghao didn't give in and shouted loudly: "Do it again."

Everyone burst into applause, and the applause became continuous.

Zhang Yinghao continued, "I'm sure everyone has been waiting impatiently for work to start these past few days. Let me explain a few things. After all, there's no order without rules! Now we're going to talk about some rewards. We'll work in groups, taking turns digging, carrying, and tamping the soil. However, today we have to leave three people behind to kill a pig before we go back to work. Kill the castrated boars, and keep the sows for calving. Don't kill them. If the personnel arrangements are unreasonable, we'll adjust them this afternoon.

The women have more work to do. Please sign up here later. We've already bought some cloth, and those who can sew will make clothes and pants. We also need people to light the fire and cook, feed the pigs, and the cattle and horses will be looked after by the students. We'll also deliver salt and boiled water to the workers. We know some families are particularly struggling, so tomorrow you can take some pants home for your family members to wear, and ask them to come and help."

Hearing this, everyone burst into laughter. Speaking of this, Zhang Yinghao recalled a problem he had discovered while visiting some villagers. At first, Zhang Yinghao didn't understand why the woman of the house was lying in bed. Zhang Yinghao thought she was sick, but then his mother explained that no one in the family had pants to wear, and the family took turns wearing a pair of pants. So, those without pants had to hide under the quilt. Zhang Yinghao initially found it incredible, like he had been thrown back to primitive society.

Zhang Yinghao immediately thought of a song: The primitive society is good, the primitive society is good, the men and women in the primitive society... But when he saw the bitter expression on his mother's face, the fantasy in his heart was instantly extinguished.

Zhang Yinghao could only say in his heart: Modern society has limited my imagination of poverty. That's why Zhang Yinghao got some cloth from the cloth shop and made clothes and pants to pay his employees.

Zhang Yinghao continued, "If you work for seven days without taking any food, you can get a pair of pants, a piece of clothing, or a pound of salt. I told you all this when I informed you before, so I think everyone should be clear about this."

This time some people explained it clearly, and some people started clapping enthusiastically.

Zhang Yinghao went on to say, "We don't have enough tools now. Those of you who brought tools from home have registered them here. I have also written your name on your own tools. If the tools are broken, you can bring them to me to exchange for new ones. This way, no one will suffer any loss. But don't deliberately break your own tools to exchange for new ones!" Everyone laughed.

"Now that we've built the reservoir, we're going to divide up Landlord Zhang's land among everyone. What do you think?"

Now the people in Zhangjiagou were completely excited.

Zhang Yinghao concluded by saying, "Now I have to tell you a few rules. In the morning we will ring the gong to wake you up, and then we will teach you how to line up and learn to read and write..."

There was a commotion at this point. Zhang Yinghao waited for the noise to subside before continuing, "After training or studying, we all have breakfast together. After that, we go back to work. At noon, the team leader brings everyone back for lunch. We rest for half an hour, then study for about an hour before heading back to work. We then return for dinner in the evening. We have voluntary study sessions in the evening, and those who want to study can stay and study for a while before going home."

At this time, a fellow villager said, "Dog boy, what's the point of us peasants studying? Can we become teachers?"

Everyone laughed, and Zhang Yinghao also laughed. After everyone stopped laughing, Zhang Yinghao said, "Wow, Uncle Chunsheng is very happy."

Then Zhang Yinghao turned around and searched among the papers, then took out one and began to read: "Zhang Chunsheng borrowed 100 coins from Zhang Xianglong in April of the Gengzi year, with an interest rate of 20 coins per day..."