After returning to the county office, Jiang Jin immediately called Luo Qingci, Feng Qingzhu, and Chen Zi over for a meeting, asking them to produce the grain ration books as soon as possible.
Luo Qingci furrowed her brows slightly, My Lord, is it needed very urgently?
Jiang Jin sighed, Yes, it would be best to have them finished and distributed by tomorrow afternoon. At the same time, notify the commoners that a grocery store and a medical clinic have opened in the city.
Luo Qingci pursed her lips. The task itself was not difficult; the county office had records of all the commoners' household registers, so they just needed to write the books based on that information.
The difficult part was the sheer volume.
Fortunately, besides the three of them, there were also the yamen runners. Although they were illiterate, they could still help out with odd jobs.
Jiang Jin carefully explained the details to them, including how to make the books and the monthly limit for each person.
Watching the group get busy, Jiang Jin thought for a moment and had someone call Mu Qing and Mu Wanbai over. The matter of the grain books is quite urgent. Please work hard and help out together.
The land next to the horse farm had all been reclaimed and planted with vegetables. For Mu Qing, it was currently the slow farming season.
Mu Qing and his granddaughter nodded in agreement and quickly joined the busy team.
Inwardly, Jiang Jin sighed. Eradicating illiteracy was imperative, but there just wasn't time right now.
As for the seals, Jiang Jin asked Dong Si to find someone to make them.
The following afternoon, a copper gong was sounded at the entrance of the county office.
Soon, a crowd of commoners gathered around. The current Gefeng was different from before; the people were no longer afraid to go out on the streets, nor were they as afraid of the county office.
The current soldiers were also different from the past. They never harassed the commoners and even occasionally helped with some chores.
However, most of the people who came at this time were the old, weak, women, and children, because the young and strong men had all gone to work to earn grain.
Seeing that enough people had arrived, Luo Qingci spoke up loudly, A grocery store and a medical clinic have opened in the city's commercial district. Commoners in need can go there for medical treatment or to buy goods.
The commoners' eyes lit up, and someone immediately asked, Is there grain for sale?
Luo Qingci smiled and said, Of course.
The crowd erupted in excitement. Ever since the Quzhao people occupied Gefeng, the few shops that used to exist in the city had closed down, and they had never been able to buy anything since.
However, Luo Qingci shifted her tone.
To prevent anyone from buying and hoarding large amounts of grain, we will implement purchase limits. There will be a monthly quota of grain for each person. The same applies to fabric, salt, oil, and so on.
Despite the purchase limits, the commoners were still very excited—the excitement of going from having nothing to having something.
Ignoring their excitement, Luo Qingci continued, The households whose names I call out now should come up to receive their grain ration books. Head of household, Zhong Yun.
Seeing her speak, the commoners consciously stopped their discussions. The scene quieted down as they looked around to see who Zhong Yun was.
Soon, an old woman in her sixties stepped forward. She rubbed her hands together somewhat nervously, Zhong Yun is my son. He... he went to mine. I am here to collect it.
Most of the grain books were collected by the heads of various groups, who would then distribute them to the people working under them.
However, for those who did not live at home, such as miners and soldiers, the books could only be distributed directly by the county office so they wouldn't miss tomorrow's opening.
Therefore, the number of people was not too large, and the distribution was finished in just half an hour.
As the evening glow spilled over the mottled city walls, Gefeng City became lively again. The working laborers finished their shifts and returned home.
Sun Yi smiled broadly as he held his grain book and instructed his old wife, Look, our family has a total of nine people. We can buy over a shi of grain. Let's buy it all and store it.
He couldn't read, but that didn't stop him from firmly remembering the words spoken by the higher-ups.
He now had absolute confidence in Jiang Jin. If she said they could buy grain in the city tomorrow, then they definitely could.
The old woman sitting next to him said worriedly, We currently have five people working outside, and they bring back quite a bit of grain every day. Let's not buy so much grain. It would be better to buy some fabric to make a couple of sets of clothes. It's going to get cold soon.
Sun Yi understood this reasoning too, but without grain, he felt uneasy. He thought about the money they currently had at home and could only grit his teeth, Alright, we should buy some oil and salt too.
In the city's residential area.
Ah Le happily held the grain book, looking at it over and over. She couldn't read either, but that didn't hinder her joy. Father, can we really buy grain tomorrow? And there's fabric for sale too?
The man was exactly the one who used to work in the weapons workshop, named Li Fu. He smiled and said, If My Lord says we can, then we can.
He was a technical worker and could bring back two jin of grain every day.
This grain was entirely enough to feed his family of three. Since they started eating grain, Ah Le's health had slowly been improving.
Unfortunately, she was too young to work, so she could only follow her grandmother up the mountain every day to gather firewood and dig for wild vegetables.
The old woman sighed, Why are there purchase limits? If there were no limits, it would be so much better. We could hoard more grain.
Her husband used to work in the weapons workshop, and later her two sons also worked there. Their life had been relatively well-off, and they had saved quite a bit of money.
Later, when the Quzhao people came, her husband was killed by them. Her younger son, two daughters-in-law, and three grandchildren were all killed. Only the three of them were left.
Although the Quzhao people had ransacked her home back then, she was in the habit of burying money in multiple places, so their family still had quite a lot of cash on hand now.
Li Fu comforted her, Mother, things are already very good now. When the residential area is built, let's rent a place too. I heard that what they sleep on there isn't called a bed, but a kang. It gets warm when you light a fire.
If there were no purchase limits, he would also want to spend all their money to buy and hoard grain. For no other reason than being terrified of starving.
The winters in Gefeng were extremely long. By then, there wouldn't even be wild vegetables or tree roots to dig up.
Although a warm house was nice, they could also survive by gathering more firewood and huddling around the stove for warmth. Without food, however, death was certain.
Moreover, he didn't know how long his current job would last. He definitely wouldn't be able to do it when the winter got so cold, and then there would be no grain to collect.
Speaking of this, the old woman also became happy, Yes, yes, I've heard that too. As long as you light a fire, even the walls warm up. If it's true, that would truly be a gift from heaven.
Not far from them, Du Shi's family was discussing the same matter, but their focus was on the medical clinic.
Grandma, tomorrow you must take Grandpa to the clinic to have a look.
The old woman felt happy in her heart, Alright, I'll take him. You just focus on looking after the horses for My Lord, and don't worry about us.
Now that life was getting better, her grandson could bring back grain every day. They had enough to eat. Her only worry was her husband's illness.
The old man lying in bed started coughing again. It took a long while for him to stop. He sighed helplessly, knowing that he had to go.
He originally thought he wouldn't survive for many more days. He hadn't expected My Lord to arrive and conquer Gefeng. His grandson could bring back grain every day, and sometimes even fine grain.
With food to eat, his illness gradually stabilized, and he had unexpectedly managed to hold on until now.
But who wants to die when they can live? He still wanted to see his grandson marry a wife.
Just as Jiang Jin had expected, the next day, both the grocery store and the medical clinic were packed.
Especially the grocery store.
Jiang Jin specifically transferred Feng Qingzhu and Chen Zi over to help, but they were still somewhat overwhelmed.
Fortunately, this situation eased significantly by the following day, gradually returning to normal levels.
While it was bustling inside Gefeng City, the south gate welcomed the first batch of Quzhao soldiers—a ten-man cavalry squad.
Looking at the tightly shut city gates and the raised drawbridge, the Quzhao soldiers could only stand on this side of the moat and shout loudly, What's going on? Why have you closed the city gates?
