Everyone had experienced the fall of their nation and the loss of their homes, so they deeply understood the preciousness of a peaceful life.
Feng Qingzhu was the first to speak up: "There are many workshops in our industrial zone where we can arrange jobs for them, such as warehouse keepers and registrars."
Chen Xi added, "Our academy and bookshop can also take in some people."
Mu Qing stroked his beard and said, "On the farming side, we can have them guard temporary storage areas for things like fertilizer."
Zhou Sui’s expression was serious: "Among them, some have less severe injuries. If they recover well, they can re-enlist in the army."
He added, "They could also serve as military civil officials, like instructors or political commissars."
These people had undergone severe tempering in their moral character, making them more than suitable for civil roles in the military.
Jiang Jin nodded: "Good. Our underground warehouses can also accommodate them."
The underground warehouses of Gofeng not only stored grain, seeds, salt, and oil but also weapons and such, making them one of Gofeng’s few military strongholds.
Even ordinary civilians, let alone common soldiers, knew nothing about the underground warehouses.
She looked at Yun Ci and said, "But there’s no rush for this. It must go through literacy education first, and some jobs require relevant training, such as military civil positions."
Yun Ci was touched and agreed: "Our weapons workshop can also take in some people."
After wrapping up matters concerning the Northeast Army, Jiang Jin turned to the others and asked, "Has there been any unusual activity near Gofeng recently?"
Yun Yu reported, "Zhou County has increased its garrison, but they’ve been keeping to themselves. Qu Shilang has withdrawn his troops."
Jiang Jin nodded. Leaning back in her chair, she looked at Mu Qing and Feng Qingzhu: "Have the cotton been harvested? Are you arranging for the winter clothes to be made?"
Mu Qing smiled and said, "It’s already been harvested. We have a little over 310,000 catties in total, with a per-mu yield of 350 catties."
He was extremely satisfied with this yield.
But Jiang Jin frowned. In her era, the per-mu yield of cotton was at least over 600 catties.
However, remembering that this was the northern region, where the climate wasn’t very suitable for cotton farming and fertilizer was somewhat lacking, she let it go.
Feng Qingzhu reported, "The work is already underway, and a sample garment has been made. Shall I show it to you later?"
Jiang Jin nodded: "Alright."
She then said to Mu Qing, "Elder Mu, take some time to visit the central area of the three counties. Work needs to start as soon as spring comes next year. See if there’s anything that should be prepared in advance."
Mu Qing quickly nodded. He had been busy lately with planting vegetables, and now that was almost finished.
Recalling something, he looked ashamed and said, "Lord, the hybrid rice research still hasn’t succeeded. I am ashamed."
Jiang Jin comforted him: "Don’t rush. This kind of research is long-term by nature. It’s only been a year. By next year, you can expand the scale. Most of the new city’s land can be used as a research base for you."
Now that she had two to three hundred thousand mu of land to cultivate, the farmland in the new city was no longer so critical and could serve as a base for grain research.
Mu Qing was deeply moved: "Thank you for your understanding, Lord."
He then suggested, "Lord, during winter, the temperature in the underground tunnels won’t be too low. I’d like to try growing some vegetables in wooden boxes down there. Do you think it’s feasible?"
He had gotten the idea from how common folks grew vegetables indoors during winter.
Even if the ground was covered in snow and ice, the tunnels remained not too cold. Cold-resistant crops like radishes and Chinese cabbage could easily grow there.
Although without sunlight, the yield would be much lower, it would still be better than nothing.
Besides, he wouldn’t grow too much. On sunny days, they could move the crops outside to bask in the sun. After all, there were plenty of farmers now, and they couldn’t spend the whole winter lying idle.
Jiang Jin smiled and agreed.
She noticed that Mu Qing really loved farming—he felt uncomfortable if he didn’t tend to the land for even a moment. Winter in the northern region must have been his hardest time.
It was a pity that glass production wasn’t keeping up; otherwise, she could have considered setting up greenhouses for farming.
The meeting lasted an entire hour. After everyone left, Jiang Jin began handling official business.
First, she picked up the documents submitted by Chen Xi, which mainly dealt with the editing of primer books and textbooks for various grades at the academy.
It was a thick stack, and reading it gave her a headache, but she had no choice—education was of great importance and had to be taken seriously.
Xu Qian sat below her, making modifications and approvals according to her suggestions. For a while, the room was filled only with the sound of pages turning and Jiang Jin’s voice.
When Liu Mi returned to the county office, the lanterns were already lit.
Seeing Jiang Jin still working in the dim lamplight, she couldn’t help but advise, "Lord, aren’t you the one who always says that poor lighting is bad for the eyes?"
Jiang Jin stretched her back: "Alright, Xu Qian, you may go first."
Xu Qian bowed, tidied the desk, and withdrew.
Liu Mi handed a stack of documents to Dongzhi: "These are the household registrations of the refugees from Ze’a Commandery who fell ill today."
Dongzhi quickly took them, filed, and sorted them, ready to be handed over to the clerks the next day for registration into the household registry.
Just as Jiang Jin was about to speak, she saw Yun Chengxuan walk in carrying a food container.
He pouted, "Aunt, why didn’t you come home? I waited for you for a long time."
He had originally planned to mooch a meal.
But Liqiu and Guyu had already prepared all the ingredients, yet Jiang Jin hadn’t returned. Thinking about it, they realized Jiang Jin had just arrived back in Gofeng and must be very busy.
So Liqiu and Guyu cooked the meal and packed it up, and Yun Chengxuan brought it to the county office.
Jiang Jin shook her head with a smile and led the group to another table: "It’s fine. Eating at the county office is the same."
She looked at Liu Mi: "Join us."
Liu Mi didn’t stand on ceremony. She had gone home after returning from outside, changed clothes, even taken a bath and washed her hands before coming to the county office.
Jiang Jin didn’t adhere to the rule of not talking during meals and asked, "How are those people?"
Liu Mi sighed, "Their symptoms are the same as our previous epidemic. I’ve given them the Major Blue Dragon Decoction. We’ll see tomorrow if there’s any improvement."
She hesitated but still spoke up: "Lord, Tian Daguang said that quite a few of the plague-stricken commoners didn’t make it to Gofeng."
"He wants to take some people back tomorrow to cremate all those bodies, just in case someone unknowingly touches them."
Tian Daguang was the man who had spoken earlier.
When they left, those plague-stricken people who couldn’t move were still alive, so he couldn’t bring himself to cremate them directly.
Besides, they had no tools like knives, and no way to chop wood or start a fire.
Liu Mi sighed, "They’re all simple, honest folk. Living is hard, yet they still manage to hold on to their pure hearts."
Jiang Jin agreed: "Tomorrow, I’ll send a squad of soldiers to handle this with them."
Liu Mi smiled. Then, remembering something, she said, "Lord, do you remember Lady Wei and the Tenth Princess, whom I wrote to you about?"
Jiang Jin had almost forgotten: "I remember. How are they doing?"
Liu Mi explained, "They’ve rented a courtyard. Lady Wei conducts literacy classes every day. She sent the Tenth Princess to the academy to study. Guard Meng is still recovering from his injuries."
As the 'favored servant' of Zhou County’s magistrate, Lady Wei Qingran had worn a gold ornament on her person worth a fair amount.
She was also clever. Though her escape was impulsive, she had a habit of keeping her valuables together, as if preparing for danger in times of peace.
So she grabbed her valuables and left. Though the collection wasn’t large, it all consisted of gold and silver accessories.
These valuables were enough to sustain them for quite a long time in Gofeng.
Jiang Jin nodded to herself, noting that he was a clever person.
“Is Guard Meng badly injured?” she asked.
