I rely on infrastructure systems to build a prosperous village

Chapter 120 Autumn Harvest

In the blink of an eye, it was early September.

At this time, the village heads and backbones of each village were sitting in the meeting hall of Lijia Village.

"The autumn harvest begins tomorrow. In addition to rushing to harvest, every household in the village must also arrange for staff to work in workshops, shops, and on-site street duty. After the harvest, the roast duck restaurants in Chenjia Village and the three prefectures of Qinbei will open for business. Please make preparations in advance. Contact the large duck farmers in several villages in advance."

Liujiawan Cloth Shop has begun collecting duck feathers for processing. I've already provided instructions to the person in charge. They also need to quickly batch-produce our newly developed fabric and hand it over to Nishang Shop. Once the duck feathers are processed, we'll begin making our first winter clothing item.

There will definitely be a huge order coming in soon, so let’s prepare in advance.”

After hearing this, the people in Liujiawan smiled and clapped their hands excitedly.

"The Liujiawan embankment and wharf will be completed in two months, and the warehouse needs to be quickened as well. Also, let's urge the merchants to build workshops, restaurants, and inns in various villages. Those that haven't been completed yet should be supervised."

"Okay, President."

"We need to rush out another batch of scented candles and lanterns from Wangjia Village before the New Year. The supplies are in short supply in various prefectures, and we don't have enough people. So, we need to recruit more people, not just from our few villages."

"Okay, President."

"As for soybeans, mung beans, and peanuts in each village, you can start planting them after the autumn harvest. Remember to cover them with plastic film, block out the sun, and keep them warm. They should sprout in three days and be harvested in ten days. The village committee must do a good job of this and contact local restaurants. Vegetables are in short supply in winter, so prices can be set slightly higher. This way, the villagers in our villages can still have some income before the New Year."

"Okay, Lan girl."

"That's all for today's meeting. Let's get back to work."

……

At dawn the next day, the farmlands in each village were bustling with activity. Everyone was busy harvesting rice. Looking at the heavy ears of rice in their hands, smiles appeared on their faces, and they thought to themselves: This day finally has a purpose.

The village chief stood with his hands behind his back near the ridge of the field, watching the busy villagers. Suddenly, his eyes turned red and tears filled his eyes. When no one was looking, he quickly wiped the corners of his eyes with his sleeves.

"Village Chief, why are you still sad?"

The village chief paused, looked at the visitor, and said in a hoarse voice, "No, it was the strong wind this morning that blinded me."

Li Run, standing next to Li Lan and holding a sickle, looked around and asked in confusion, "Village Chief, where is the wind?"

Li Lan smiled helplessly at the village chief and said, "Village chief, I'll take this kid over first."

After saying that, he pulled Li Run's sleeve and left.

"Sister, why don't you let me continue asking?"

"Don't you already have the answer? Why do you need to expose others' shortcomings to confirm it?"

"But why doesn't the village chief admit it?"

"Little brother, admitting some things will only embarrass others, and we must also learn to adapt. Look, you saw the village chief crying, and that's what embarrassed him, so he said he was blinded."

"Sister, you adults have very complicated thoughts."

……

The village chief who was standing there couldn't help but roll his eyes and thought to himself: If you two siblings speak louder, it will only make me more embarrassed.

Thinking of this, he turned around and left with a "humph", and the emotion he had just felt was gone.

"Li Quan, what are you still doing standing there? What are you thinking about?"

Li Quan sniffed and scratched his head embarrassedly.

"Village Chief, I just want to express my feelings."

"Are you starting to feel sentimental?"

"No, it's just that the strong wind blinded me."

The village chief was puzzled. He looked around and said, "How can there be any wind? Hurry up and get to work, boy! Don't be lazy. There's a lot of work to do in the village every day. Hurry and finish harvesting the rice."

"Okay, village chief."

At this time, Li Jianan came over.

"Dad, where should we dry the rice? There's a makeshift stage over there in the vacant lot, so there's not enough space."

"Still on the vacant lot. Go a little further in. It's been leveled a few days ago."

"Okay, Dad."

Wangjiacun.

Wang Yin's family was busy working in the fields.

"Wang Yin, it's time for you to get married. In a few days, I'll ask your mother to go find Liu the matchmaker in the village and ask her to find some for you."

After hearing what his father said, Wang Yin paused holding the sickle. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Okay, Dad. Then you and Mom will make the arrangements."

Old Man Wang was stunned. He exchanged a glance with his wife and nodded quickly, saying, "Okay, I'll let your mother go tomorrow morning."

At this time, the voice of Village Chief Wang rang out above the entire farmland.

"Everyone, work hard and try to finish the autumn harvest in the next two days. Then, let's work together and have a good New Year."

Chenjiacun.

Granny Chen looked at the golden ears of rice before her, tears welling in her eyes. She choked up and said to her eldest son, "Big Boss, we have to thank your younger sister's niece. Without her, I can't even imagine our current life."

After saying this, he turned to his busy sons and daughters-in-law and said, "You should also take good care of your younger sister in the future."

When they heard this, they paused in their rice-cutting efforts and quickly looked up at Mrs. Chen. Seeing her eyes welling up, the eldest brother, Chen, said quickly, "Don't worry, mother. We will all be able to do it. We have a good life now, and we are capable. Even if life gets tough in the future, we won't treat you like we did before."

The eldest daughter-in-law beside him listened, lowered her eyes and muttered: "With such a powerful niece, who would dare to do that?"

As the sky gradually brightened, many foreign gentlemen, young men and young ladies came to the ridges of the fields in various villages to watch the fun.

Liujiawan.

"Is this the autumn harvest?"

"Is this yellow rice?"

Suddenly, a handsome young man in gorgeous clothes and a jade crown on his head shouted happily, "This is too beautiful. No, I want to paint a picture right now. Xu Cai, bring me my brush, ink, and sketchpad."

"Yes, son."

The servant turned and left in a hurry.

"Hey, isn't that Master Xu Mo, known as the painting geek?"

When the man heard this, he quickly took a closer look.

"Oh my God, it really is. Keep quiet and see if you can buy this painting later."

……

In a house in Bozhou Prefecture.

Li Chunhua sat in the yard, looking at the falling leaves from the trees in the yard, a trace of sadness flashed across her eyes.

"Fourth Master, it's getting cold. Let's go inside. The Autumn Examination is tomorrow, so you have to take care of yourself."

Li Chunhua did not move, but looked up at the sky, his thoughts drifting away.

"Aunt Li, are Xiaolan and the others okay?"

Mrs. Li was startled, her eyes twinkling slightly as she softly said, "The village chief and his family must be doing well. I heard from Zhou Liu that the village chief has built several villages beautifully. And every household has enough to eat and has extra money."

After hearing her words, Li Chunhua's eyes flashed with tenderness, the corners of her mouth rose, and she said softly: "Well, she is capable. If she were a man, she would definitely be much more powerful than me."

"The Fourth Master is being modest."

Li Chunhua sighed lightly, stood up, dusted off his robe, then turned and walked into the house.

Mrs. Li looked at his leaving back, her eyes darkened, and she couldn't help but sigh, thinking: Fourth Master, the lady's heart is already with someone, why are you doing this?

Late at night, Mrs. Li was writing a letter in her room. When she reached the end of the letter, "When the Fourth Master has someone in his heart," she thought for a moment and tore it up. After a moment, she picked up another piece of paper and started writing again.

Early the next morning, in Fengyi Hall of the Bianjing Imperial Palace.

"Madam, this is a letter from Nanny Song."

Chu Ci, who was dozing on the chaise longue, immediately opened her eyes, sat up, and said happily, "Quick, bring it here and let me take a look."

He took the letter, unfolded it, and waited for a while.

"Rui'er will take the imperial examination tomorrow. The weather has been a bit chilly lately. Send someone to give some banknotes to Nanny Song."

Just as Nanny Li was about to say something, she saw her walk inside on her own, take out a lot of silver bills from her dressing table and come out.

Just as he was about to hand the banknote to Madam Li, he suddenly paused, as if he had thought of something, and gave a wry smile.

"Forget it, let's not have any contact with that kid. We can't bring him any trouble. Wait until he's in high school and parade through the streets. Then I'll leave the palace and go see him."

Seeing her like this, Nanny Li said distressedly, "Madam."

Chu Ci smiled and said softly, "It's okay. The days of me and that child getting along are still ahead of me. I can wait."

"Yes, your Majesty is right."