Everyone was busy until the afternoon before returning to Gefeng. Yun Chengxuan managed to catch a few wild chickens and was overjoyed, planning to roast them for dinner.
Jiang Jin hadn’t expected the recruitment to bring in over 600 people this time; her forces had finally surpassed two thousand.
The main recruits were the common folk of Dancheng and the mountain bandits who had previously been “pacified.” It had to be said, those who dared to become bandits in the mountains and those who boldly declared they would rather die standing than kneeling were truly brave souls.
Moreover, the fierce yet benevolent reputation of the Jinyang army had deeply rooted itself in the hearts of the people, earning their support and respect. This was one of the reasons so many eagerly enlisted.
In Gefeng now, having someone in the army meant you were held in higher regard.
The next day, Jiang Jin sent a few hundred people to dig coal. Alongside them went bricklayers for building houses, as well as Yun Yu and the nursing soldiers.
Time flew by, and in just two days, the townsfolk were abuzz with excitement—the residential district had been completed!
Jiang Jin looked over the rows of houses, a smile spreading across her face. The gene of a construction fanatic was clearly etched into the bones of all Han people.
With nearly two thousand people working simultaneously, Gefeng County’s largest building complex—the residential district—was finally finished.
Jiang Jin named the residential areas based on house layouts and locations. Being a bit lazy, she simply borrowed mountain names from the Classic of Mountains and Seas.
For example, Qingqiu Mountain was the main residential area for officials. Soldiers guarded its entrance, and inside, the courtyards varied in size—some large with three courtyards in depth, others smaller with two.
Dong Si smiled broadly at Jiang Jin. “My lord, please pick your house first.”
Jiang Jin had no strong preferences for a home, but considering future official business, she chose a three-courtyard residence.
Dong Si immediately took the courtyard to her left for himself and Yun Chengxuan.
Since Yun Chengxuan was a bit childlike, Jiang Jin decided he would live with Dong Si anyway—the courtyard was spacious enough.
Yun Chengxuan frowned. “Auntie, can’t we live together?”
Before Jiang Jin could respond, Dong Si interjected, “Of course not. Men and women should be separate.”
He smiled reassuringly. “But we’re next door to each other, so it’s not a big deal.”
Xia Chanyi chose the house to Jiang Jin’s right as her own.
Zhou Sui and a few others also picked their favorite courtyards. In truth, all the houses were quite similar, and no one was too particular—they just settled in casually, some even sharing homes.
For instance, Luo Qingci, Feng Qingzhu, and Liu Mi decided to live together.
Yao Ji and Xie Nanxiao as well.
It must be said, except for the Mu family, all of Jiang Jin’s subordinates were single, which made housing arrangements much simpler.
Of course, some lived as family units, like the Mu family and the Chen family.
After everyone had chosen, a few courtyards in Qingqiu Mountain remained vacant.
The residential district was lively today, inhabited by the original residents of Gefeng.
Jiang Jin planned to demolish this area eventually, but since the new residential district wasn’t finished before and the barracks were already overcrowded, the old houses hadn’t been torn down yet.
Now that the new homes were ready, Jiang Jin required all the residents here to move to the new district. Naturally, she offered them some compensation.
The subsidy wasn’t much but enough to help them settle in and cover several years’ rent.
Since Jiang Jin didn’t have that much copper on hand, these payments were offset directly through rent deductions, meaning she didn’t actually spend a single copper coin.
Ah Le chatted happily with Zhang Ye, “My father said renting a small courtyard would be enough. I heard you can even grow vegetables there. I’ll plant some at home to eat.”
Zhang Ye smiled, “I hope we can still be neighbors. I’m planning to rent a small courtyard too.”
Right now, she was helping the construction team by preparing lunch. Each meal cost half a jin of grain. Although the grain she earned wasn’t much, she only needed to work half a day, leaving the afternoons free to gather firewood on the mountain.
Her daughter-in-law, Hu Ying, worked on the construction team too, earning one and a half jin of grain daily. All in all, the family had quite a bit of surplus grain every day.
Originally, she only wanted to rent a single room, but thinking about her grandson who was already seven, she decided it was better to rent a small courtyard with a separate room.
Each family could receive a subsidy, and even living in a small courtyard meant free rent for several years. If they chose a single room, the subsidy could cover rent for over a decade. For now, she just hoped the winter wouldn’t come too early or be too harsh so she could earn enough grain to get through the cold season.
She had already seen the small courtyard. Though the house and yard weren’t large, they were very practical and bright—so much better than their current thatched mud hut.
In front of the main house, there was space to set up a table for meals. Behind was the kitchen, and the two side wings each had a heated kang bed. In winter, they wouldn’t have to huddle around a fire shivering in the cold anymore.
Grandma Ah Le smiled and playfully scolded Ah Le, “You’re just a kid. Nothing’s decided yet, don’t speak so freely.”
Like Zhang Ye, she helped the construction team by preparing lunch. After washing the kitchenware in the afternoon, she could come home.
Ah Le made a funny face, “Dad said it’s decided. Besides, I’m not little anymore—I’ll soon be able to work and earn grain too.”
Zhang Ye couldn’t help but ruffle her hair, “Ah Le, thank you for taking Xiao Yu to cut grass.”
The city didn’t hire kids, but the horse farm needed fodder.
Every day, Ah Le took Xiao Yu to the fields near the county to cut grass for the horses. They sold it to the stable and earned one copper coin daily.
Xiao Yu was young, so it usually took two or three days to earn a full copper coin.
Ah Le waved her hand, “Auntie, don’t mention it. We’re all neighbors.”
Grandma Ah Le sighed, “Life is really good now. I’m not worried when Ah Le goes out.”
“Exactly,” Zhang Ye nodded with a smile. “I used to be afraid to let Xiao Yu go out, unlike now. We women can work and earn grain. It was unthinkable before. And then there’s Hu Ying’s face…”
Her daughter-in-law Hu Ying had burned her own face with a torch to avoid being abused by the Quzhao people.
As she spoke, sadness crept back, “If only my son were still here.”
Grandma Ah Le’s face also grew sorrowful. Most families like theirs were broken.
While they were talking, a man walked into the alley. Ah Le happily called out, “Dad, you’re back!”
The man was Li Fu, returning from work. He smiled kindly at Ah Le and nodded to Zhang Ye before entering the house.
Soon after, Grandma Ah Le followed inside and asked, “Are you sure about renting the small courtyard?”
Li Fu nodded, “I can bring two jin of grain now. Rent won’t be a problem. Besides, we have subsidies. I’ve done the math—if we live in the small courtyard, the subsidy will cover our rent for years.”
He worked at the weapons workshop, earning a wage slightly higher than that of ordinary laborers. Besides, his family had some means to fall back on.
Grandma Ah Le nodded in agreement, “Alright, I start work late. I’ll go pick a house first thing tomorrow morning.”
Ah Le’s smile curved her brows warmly. “I want to go too, I want to go too.”
Grandma Ah Le chuckled as she patted her head gently. “Okay, you can take Ah Le along. But this year, we’ll have to gather some firewood; otherwise, there won’t be enough to burn.”
Li Fu glanced at his mother’s face, etched with wrinkles, and felt a pang of sorrow. “Mother, you don’t have to work so hard. If we run short of firewood, we can just buy charcoal.”
Grandma Ah Le smiled. “Why spend money on that?”
“If only we could buy the house,” she sighed again, a restless feeling settling in her heart since it wasn’t truly theirs.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere at the barracks was far from cheerful.
