A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

Chapter 450 Whose Advice Should Be Taken From Now On at the Tea Garden?

Jiang Mingyuan turned to look at Mu Nanzhao, his bright and cheerful smile instantly turning into a bland and tasteless expression.

He bowed respectfully and said, "This humble official greets the Regent."

Mu Nanzhao had already approached and waved his hand, saying, "Hey, Magistrate Jiang, there's no need for such formalities."

"I am not here on official business today, Magistrate Jiang, please feel at ease."

Jiang Mingyuan silently straightened his posture, thinking to himself, "Isn't it for official business? Ah, that makes sense."

Xixi is the big boss of this tea garden, so it makes sense that Mu Nanzhao came here to supervise the work.

So it's like... the boss's wife?

Jiang Mingyuan was also surprised by his own sudden train of thought.

He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and reflected inwardly: Officially, the Regent is upright, appoints people based on merit, and possesses outstanding abilities—all beyond reproach. He truly deserves to be the head of all officials. As a subordinate, I should not disrespect my superior.

Personally, as a scholar, how could I harbor such a harsh thought out of momentary jealousy?

That's inappropriate, absolutely inappropriate.

The mule cart made its way up the gentle slope.

Gu Xixi had already spotted Jiang Mingyuan and Mu Nanzhao there. She got out of the car and walked towards them with a smile.

Mu Nanzhao smiled at Gu Xixi, but glanced at Jiang Mingyuan out of the corner of his eye, and couldn't help but feel uneasy again.

Just a moment ago, this person was smiling as if it were a spring breeze, but now that Gu Xixi is almost in front of him, he has a deep frown and looks like he has a bitter and resentful look.

Before Mu Nanzhao could figure out whether Jiang Mingyuan had any other tricks up his sleeve...

Shi Tou had already passed Gu Xixi and was running over, laughing loudly, "Mr. Mu, what brings you here again!"

Mu Nanzhao had no choice but to temporarily put aside his other thoughts and smiled at Shi Tou, "Aren't you happy that I'm going home?"

Stone chuckled a few times, "Happy!"

"It's not just me who's happy, Sister Xixi is happy, Grandma Zhang is happy, Grandpa Langzhong is happy! Everyone's happy, Sister Jingjing is happy too, so the whole family is happy!"

The road was full of potholes, and Gu Xixi and Lü Jing stumbled along, barely making it to the front.

Gu Xixi laughed and said, "Shi Tou can't stop talking about being happy. I'm getting dizzy listening to him."

As she spoke, she bowed to Jiang Mingyuan and said, "Brother Zichu, you've worked hard these past few days."

Everyone looked at the stone and laughed.

Jiang Mingyuan returned the greeting with a smile, "It's no trouble at all; this is simply the duty of the government."

He glanced at Mu Nanzhao, a faint pang of bitterness rising in his heart.

Gu Xixi used to treat Mu Nanzhao fairly politely.

However, while Gu Xixi remained polite to Jiang Mingyuan, she was not so polite to Mu Nanzhao.

Jiang Mingyuan was well aware of the changes and the reasons for such obvious differences.

So he took the initiative to switch to business, and handed a booklet to Gu Xixi.

"A total of forty-five workers were employed, including five cooks and female cooks responsible for cooking."

"This booklet records everyone's name, identity, and corresponding daily wages."

"It was made by the county clerk and his subordinates. Do you think it's clear and understandable?"

Gu Xixi took the book and flipped through it, nodding with a smile, "It's very easy to understand."

"The chief clerk of the county government is naturally the most professional in handling documents and account books."

She looked at Jiang Mingyuan and said, "Tomorrow I will send ten days' wages to the county government."

"Since the county government is in charge of recruiting, I won't interfere with the payment of wages."

"If it's not finished in ten days, I'll send it over again."

Normally, no government office doesn't like to accept money.

Those with power naturally have more connections.

With so much money, even if it just passes through your hands once, it can generate more money in just a few days.

Jiang Mingyuan disagreed, saying, "You should be in charge of paying the workers' wages. You're the big boss of the tea plantation."

"Aren't you going to hire full-time tea garden workers later?"

He didn't shy away from saying that he cared about Gu Xixi, and he spoke openly about it.

"Establishing prestige early will be very beneficial for your future actions."

After a moment's thought, Gu Xixi understood Jiang Mingyuan's good intentions.

Once the tea plantation is operational, it will definitely need to recruit long-term local workers.

The advantage is that it doesn't require room and board, the wages are low, and the cost is relatively low.

The downside is also obvious: since they are all locals, they are prone to forming small cliques.

Managing them would probably not be easy.

Especially since Gu Xixi is an unmarried young woman.

From an ordinary person's perspective, those who don't know her might initially be somewhat dismissive.

Therefore, as the big boss, Gu Xixi needs to make plans early if she wants to win people's respect.

Paying wages is one of the opportunities to establish authority.

After all, copper coins are tangible and visible, making them the simplest and most direct form of stimulation.

Regardless of whether these current employees will be able to work in the tea plantation in the future.

Ultimately, this is a way to link Gu Xixi's reputation with the tea plantation and spread the word as soon as possible.

We need to let the locals know who will be in charge of the newly built tea plantation in Qingtian County.

Gu Xixi pondered for a moment and said, "Alright, since it's daily pay, I'll personally pay the first wages today."

Jiang Mingyuan nodded. "I know you're busy. Before this project is completed, there aren't many agricultural technical matters to attend to at the tea plantation."

"You don't have to make a trip every day just to get your wages."

"We can use a reward as an excuse this time."

"How about Mr. Gu pays everyone one day's wages in advance, and then we'll continue with the original rules?"

The government has made it clear to the workers that they will be paid on a daily basis, but the final settlement will be made at the end.

The wages are calculated based on each person's working days. As soon as the work period ends, the wages are settled immediately the next day without any delay.

Because the county government acted as guarantor, and the wages were quite good.

Those who ultimately sign the contract are, of course, those who have no objections.

Seeing that Jiang Mingyuan had considered everything so thoroughly, Gu Xixi was naturally willing to accept anything.

She thanked him sincerely and said with genuine admiration, "In terms of the art of employing people and handling affairs, I am far inferior to Brother Zichu."

"I will listen to Brother Zichu more often in the future."

Jiang Mingyuan chuckled and shook his head. "Fine, if I had only known you for a short time, I would have believed your flattery."

"There are some things you haven't mentioned yourself, probably because you have some concerns and don't want me to be put in a difficult position."

The yamen was overcrowded with people; Jiang Mingyuan was an official, and he had dozens of clerks of all ranks under him.

If these people cannot actively provide support, or if they are passively resisting, then they will be unable to provide support.

I'm afraid even the county magistrate will find things difficult to do.

Gu Xixi was aware of the "unspoken rules" behind it, which is why she proposed to hand over the wages for ten days to the county government.

The purpose was to give the people in the county government a little something in return.

This not only ensured the smooth progress of the tea garden, but also slightly benefited Jiang Mingyuan's career.

However, we are all smart people, so this level of clarity is enough.

Gu Xixi just smiled and said, "I didn't think that much about it. It's Brother Zichu who is very thoughtful."

Jiang Mingyuan looked at her with a smile, but there was an undeniable power in his eyes.

"Xixi is quite confident in her farming skills."

How could I not even be able to handle my own little things, and instead make you worry about me?

Lu Jing listened with great interest, but suddenly glanced at Mu Nanzhao with some concern.

strange!

While the master and Lord Jiang were discussing matters, the Regent Prince was simply watching quietly from the side, showing no sign of urgency.