Cowardly Stepmother Dressed As the Hero

Can’t eat one bite to make a fat man, Cao Mi put aside the seed thing first.

She sat in the new palace for a few days, and solved some internal affairs that she needed to preside over herself, so she brought Liu Ge, who had already made several basic farm tools, ready to go to Rongguang Villa.

The three children originally wanted to follow, but considering that the villa was still just starting out, and the dirty and poor environment was a threat to the children’s health, Cao Mi still gritted his teeth and refused.

On the way, she communicated with Liu Ge while looking around at the scenery.

The carriage left Kangcheng and headed eastward for more than half an hour, and now it has set foot on the land belonging to the Beian Prince’s Mansion.

Beside him, Liu Ge introduced to Cao Mi: “We have already figured out how to make the most important ploughs and jigs. These things are not difficult to make, but they cannot be mass-produced in the mansion. The villain is going to stay in the villa for a few minutes. God, instruct those people to make another batch on the spot.”

Cao Mi nodded absentmindedly: “It’s still Liu Jiang’s thoughtful consideration, but in this way, Liu Jiang will have to work hard. The villa is no more difficult than the mansion, and the conditions are more difficult. I will leave you a servant later.”

Liu Ge hurriedly shook his head: “Thank you for your concern, the princess. The villain has already brought two apprentices this time. It’s enough to have them take care of the villain. People who don’t dare to work the princess.”

Cao Mi smiled, knowing that he liked quietness, so he stopped insisting.

After talking about the farm tools, she pointed to a place outside the carriage that caught her attention, and asked, “Liu Jiang, you have a lot of knowledge, do you know what those things are?”

Liu Ge looked forward and replied respectfully, “Princess Hui, the hill is a little far away from us, and the villain can’t see it clearly. But the villain guessed that it should be Jiang Shi.”

“Jiang Shi?” Cao Mi suddenly realized.

Ginger stone is a folk name, this kind of stone is actually limestone.

Cao Mi remembered that the place was also in Qi You’s fief, and couldn’t help but muttered to himself, “If that piece is all Jiang Shi, it’s a great wealth… I have to find a way to use it…”

No way, she’s a little short of money now.

It was obviously beyond her plan to gather so many refugees. Before those refugees could really contribute to her, Cao Mi had to spend money to support them.

In addition, there is not enough land for farming except for someone who has land. Agricultural tools, fertilizers, water conservancy, which one should not be arranged closely?

That is to say, the original sister is capable, and left a large amount of wealth to the original body after her death, and all the expenses in the palace are covered by Qi You, so Cao Mi can directly wave his hand and leave more than a thousand people behind.

She has also been thinking about ways to get money recently, and it’s a quick way to get money, so that she can get through this period of time when she can only get in and can’t get in.

Suddenly, she had an epiphany, suddenly thought of something, and asked Liu Ge again: “Liu Jiang, do you think clay can be found in Liaozhou?”

Liu Ge seemed a little surprised why she asked such a question, but she still answered earnestly: “Hui Wangfei, there must be some. Liaocheng is rich in clay, and during the Tai-zu period of this dynasty, it deterred the Quartet, and the Rong tribe in the north did not dare to invade. , Liaozhou is also peaceful.

“At that time, it was because of the large amount of clay in Liaozhou that there was even an official kiln set up in Jile City in the north.”

After he finished speaking, he sighed and seemed to regret the prosperity and tranquility of Liaozhou in the past.

Cao Mi nodded.

She has no intention to sigh about the glory of the past like Liu Ge, but what she sees is a hopeful future!

With lime and clay, there is a way for her to make money!

cement!

As early as in ancient times, the industrious and intelligent Chinese people would calcine limestone for building houses, but Portland cement, which is commonly used in modern times, was not invented by an Englishman until the 19th century.

The key to this is clay.

Limestone and clay are mixed in proportions, sent to a kiln, fired, and then ground into a powder to make a fairly good cement. Of course, there are other additives in modern cement products, but they are not important.

Thinking of this idea, Cao Mi continued to ask Liu Ge with bright eyes: “I didn’t expect that Liu Jiang also knew about ore and clay?”

Liu Ge hurriedly said modestly: “The villain used to work in the arsenal, and he knows some things about wood, iron, and mines, but they are not profound.”

“Why should Liu Jiang be underestimated?” Cao Mi smiled and said, “Specialists have the strengths of specialists, and generalists also have the advantages of generalists. There are many specialists in Fuzhong, but Liu Jiang is the only generalist, and it is mine who can win Liu Jiang. lucky.”

Liu Ge waved his hand embarrassedly.

Cao Mi then did not greet him, and said directly: “If you are not in a hurry, you can let other craftsmen in the mansion do it. I have an idea recently, you have free time in two days, come back to the palace to find me, I will treat you. There are other arrangements.”

Liu Ge was stunned for a while, then nodded and said, “Yes, the villain knows.”

Cao Mi’s mood suddenly eased a lot when he didn’t expect to come to the villa and have such an unexpected gain.

After another half an hour, they came to the gate of Rongguang Villa.

Nanxi and Beisi had already heard the news that she was coming, and were already waiting at the door.

Cao Mi stepped forward, and they led the way for Cao Mi while explaining the situation in the villa to Cao Mi.

It is not the first time that the two have cooperated, and the cooperation is quite tacit. Cao Mi heard them speak in an orderly manner, and gradually came to a conclusion.

In the past few days, they first took the refugees to clean up several still usable yards in the villa and used them as temporary shelters. After that, according to Cao Mi’s teaching, he invited a doctor, and at the same time sent all the unwell people to another yard for care.

So when Cao Mi went to the place where the refugees gathered, the refugees he saw had changed.

They have already cleaned for themselves, so the dirt on the road is no longer there, and their clothes have been replaced with burlap uniformly purchased by Nanxi. Although the style is simple, it can finally cover the body and keep warm.

Most importantly, there is renewed hope for the future in these people’s eyes.

Most of them had seen Cao Mi on the road. When Cao Mi arrived, there was a small disturbance. Everyone knelt down and kowtowed to her, thanking her for saving their lives.

Where had Cao Mi ever seen such a battle, she was not used to being bowed down to, and when she saw it, she did not dare to go inside, so she only took Nanxi and the others to turn around and leave.

Having confirmed the status of those refugees, she needs to deal with another important matter.

Nanxi took her to the south of the villa, pointed to a river that crossed the villa and said to Cao Mi, “According to the princess’s instructions, I have found a knowledgeable old farmer to see it, and marked out a large area of ​​land near the river that is most suitable for farming. .

“Now there are nearly 400 adult men who can farm in the villa, and they manage this land, and they will be able to produce food this autumn.”

Cao Mi looked at the marks left by Nanxi and the others on the ground, nodded in satisfaction, and said, “Well, if there is no problem, we can arrange for them to start reclamation in the next two days. Craftsman Liu brought a small part of the farm tools here. Let them make some on the spot. As for the seeds, have you cleared the granary? The caravan should bring it here.”

Nanxi nodded, “Two caravans have come here in the past few days. However, the slave servants did not go in and count them according to the princess’s instructions… So, I don’t know if there are any seeds there.”

Certainly not!

In terms of seeds, although Cao Mi can’t take out the modern crops for the time being, there are still many fine seeds in her space that were taken from the Beijing warehouse!

Although the Li family did tricks on the deed and got a lot of Chen Liang to fool them, they also mixed a lot of real good things to make up their appearance.

Anyway, Cao Mi went into the space at night to point out, those fine seeds are enough for this batch of refugees to sow seeds.

Knowing that Nanxi did not disobey his orders, Cao Mi breathed a sigh of relief, “Well, let’s go over and take a look.”

She had to find an opportunity to sneak the seeds in the space before she knew it!

Seeing that she was in a very happy mood, Nanxi added another good news: “Princess is benevolent. Those slaves knew that the princess was willing to keep them, and they were all very grateful, and they begged me to convey their gratitude to the princess. Woolen cloth.”

When Cao Mi heard the words, he paused and asked in doubt, “Slave? What kind of slave?”

—

When Bai Shi woke up, it was just dawn.

She glanced at her little son who was still sleeping beside her, and got out of bed lightly.

Several women in the same room as her also opened their eyes at about the same time, and they silently greeted each other with their eyes in tacit understanding, put on their clothes and went out to work.

An hour later, Mr. Bai returned to the house with a small bowl of corn porridge and a few pieces of bean dregs cake.

Her young son had woken up, put on his clothes and wiped his face, and sat on the bed waiting for her.

Seeing this, Bai Shi smiled, feeling that the exhaustion from the busy morning had dissipated a lot.

“Mother.” The little son called softly, looking at the food in her hand.

Bai Shi put the things away, turned his head and touched his head: “Today I have the corn porridge that you have been waiting for for a long time.”

Hearing the good news, the younger son also showed a smile on his face.

The two enjoyed breakfast.

The child ate fast. After eating the porridge and his own bean cake, he suddenly asked, “Mother, are we going to work today?”

“Did you listen to what Aunt Chen said?” Bai Shi nodded, “Well, yesterday the steward of the villa came to call someone. From today, we are going to reclaim the fields.”

Although the child sitting across from her was young, she had seen the hardships of farm work before, and after receiving a positive answer, she said “um” in disinterest.

Bai Shi frowned.

She put down the half-eaten bean cake and said seriously: “The owner of the villa saved us and gave us a chance to live. From now on, we will be the slaves of the owner here. What the owner wants us to do, not only can we not have complaints, You have to work hard to do it, you know?”

The child pouted, “Didn’t Daddy say before that you can’t be a slave even if you die…”

“That’s why he died!” Bai Shi suddenly stood up excitedly, startling his younger son.

She frowned, but her eyes were full of sadness, “Remember when we were still begging on the road in the front line? At that time, I wanted to lead you into the city to sell yourself and find a way to survive, but they wouldn’t even let us approach the city gate. !

“If it weren’t for the convoy of the prince and princess just passing by, our mother and two would have to starve to death on the side of the road, just like your father and your eldest brother!”

The child was startled for a moment by her attitude, then nodded and said obediently, “Mother, I understand…”

Bai rubbed his head lovingly, but her words were still stern: “No, it’s not enough for you to know!”

She held up her son’s face and instructed word by word, “Not only do we need to know who our master is, but we must do our best to do everything best! Our widowed mother is no better than Aunt Chen in the next bed. We still have two grown sons to rely on. We don’t have the strength to open up wasteland or land, so we have to take the initiative! Take the initiative to find work, take the initiative to do your best, understand?”

The little boy nodded with tears in his eyes.

“Now we haven’t officially signed the contract, whether we can stay here is still unknown.” Bai Shi took his son into his arms distressedly, “You have roots, this is our only way to survive, we must stay and give The princess is a serf!”

The younger son nodded in her arms and said firmly: “Well! I must stay and become a serf for the princess!”

Seeing that he understood, Mr. Bai smiled, and then grabbed the half of the bean cake left on the plate: “Well, you understand. Come on, eat this, we are almost going out.”

The child glanced at the bean cake eagerly, but shook his head, “No, I’m full! Mother, eat it yourself.”

Bai Shi thought for a while, and put the cake in his arms, “I’ll have to work later, don’t run around. If you’re hungry, come over and find your mother, and she’ll secretly feed you.”

While the two were talking, a woman’s call came from outside. Bai Shi agreed, packed the dinner plate, and took the child out of the house.

Soon, more than a thousand refugees, except for those who were still unable to get out of their hospital beds, all arrived on the fields by the river.

Beisi divided the people into ten groups according to the plan, and brought them to the fields that they were responsible for. The 1000-person team was broken up into ten 100-person teams, which were easier to manage.

Bai’s group was led by a small butler named Qi Shan to the westernmost field.

Qi Shan first greeted everyone, introduced himself as the captain who would manage their group next, and then talked about the future arrangements.

These arrangements were made earlier by Cao Mi with Nanxi and Beisi, and he only needed to explain clearly to everyone.

After he finished speaking, he didn’t know if everyone understood, so he asked, “Do you have any questions?”

After a long while, someone finally asked timidly, “Uh, manage everything together…”

“Don’t call me Manager Qi.” Qi Shan smiled and corrected: “Call the captain.”

“Um… Captain.” The man swallowed, “It’s just seeds, hoes, etc., what should I do?”

“These villas will be purchased, don’t worry.” Qi Shan replied: “You are lucky, I saw seeds and plows yesterday. Hey! Seeds are good seeds, and plows are even more powerful. I heard that the princess specially ordered them to do it. Once it comes out, a large piece of soil can be turned up, and any stones and grass roots are trivial matters.”

He did not forget to tell the bad news, “Uh… However, this plow is not enough. We have to send some people to make some more with the craftsmen in the house later.”

Everyone nodded and read “Princess kindness” in their mouths.

Then, the crowd chatted again and asked about other farming matters. Many of these were said by Qi Shan at the beginning, but the farmers did not understand it the first time. When he mentioned it again, Qi Shan explained it in more concise language.

Bai Shi was originally in the crowd, and the more he listened, the more anxious he became.

Finally, she caught a gap and shouted: “I, I have a problem.”

Qi Shan looked at her: “That’s what you said.”

Bai Shi only felt shy after shouting, blushed and lowered his head, but still said, “Team, Captain, I just listened to you, but I didn’t seem to hear the arrangement for the child.”

Probably the word “child” gave her courage, she pushed her seven-year-old child forward, “Don’t look at my child is still young, he has been in the fields since he was a child, he can do everything, eat less.”

After explaining, Bai Shi pleaded with a little pleading: “I beg the captain, find something to do for him, just give him a little bean cake every day. We mother and son can both be cows and horses for the princess!”

As soon as she said these words, all the children around followed and shouted: “We can work, and ask the captain to give me an errand.”

In this team, there were not many widowed mothers with young daughters like Bai’s. There were more than a dozen children in the team, but most of them were orphans. At this time, with the Bai family taking the lead, they all asked Qi Shan for grace.

Qi Shan hurriedly took two steps back: “This… No, even if you beg me, I can’t arrange work for the children…”

Hearing the words, Bai Shi begged: “Captain, please help me, I beg the princess to give my son a way out!”

“No.” Seeing that she was about to kneel, Qi Shan quickly supported her, “I won’t drive these children away, the princess said, if the children are willing, they can help in the fields, but they must be in schoolwork. After that, and, don’t work too long!”

Bai Shi didn’t understand what he said, and asked in a daze, “Huh?”

“Oh, the child is not our responsibility!” Qi Shan scratched the back of his head with a headache, “The child is responsible for the Nanxi steward’s side. But they can’t work, not because the princess doesn’t want them, but because they get Go to school to learn how to read!”

“School? Literacy?” Bai Shi finally reacted, “You mean, my child can learn to read?”

Qi Shan nodded: “From the age of six to thirteen, you have to go to school. Don’t worry, this lady, the princess will not drive the children away.”

After Bai Shi confirmed, he couldn’t help but nodded.

This time, she knelt down and slammed her head a few times at Qi Shan, but Qi Shan couldn’t even pull it up, and when there were orphans around, she also knelt down.

Bai Shi knelt down and said in his mouth, “Thank you, Princess, thank you! Princess is a living immortal. The little woman is willing to take her child and be a serf for her, and farm the land for her.”

After she vented the surging emotions in her heart, she stood up with tears on her face.

Seeing her calm down, Qi Shan breathed a sigh of relief.

However, he recalled what Bai Shi said just now, and said, “Uh… There is one more point, I want to explain it to you. The princess said that she didn’t bring you back as slaves.”

He changed his tone and said again in the eyes of everyone’s astonishment: “The princess said that there was nothing to do for the first two years, the villa had nothing, and there were so many people to support. Everyone could only farm in one place and eat a big pot of rice. But after two years, people with good performance can apply to go out to encircle a piece of land by themselves, just like ordinary tenant farmers, paying taxes every year.

“Anyway, you are all free, not slaves.”

As soon as he said these words, the surroundings became eerily quiet.

Everyone couldn’t even ask for confirmation, and just stood there dumbfounded, digesting the news with difficulty.

After a while, not only the Qishan team, but ten teams on the field broke out one after another with shocking cries and cheers.

—

Nanxi was preparing for the school, and arrived late in the field.

She saw that the adult farmers were already busy, and the children between the ages of six and thirteen had been gathered by the North Temple.

After saying hello to Beisi, Nanxi checked the children, and after confirming that they were correct, he took all the children out of the field and went to the school.

In this way, the first elementary education college in Rongguang Mountain Villa started school stumblingly.

Even though under the guidance of Cao Mi, he had combed through the school’s plan several times, and when he really got started, Nanxi still found many difficult problems.

She looked at the well-behaved children who were sitting behind the desk with their faces straight and eager to learn. She sighed in her heart, while writing a quick book, recording all the problems she encountered.

Three days later, this letter of help was sent to Cao Mi.

“There are separate seats for men and women over ten years old, and there is a shortage of female masters.” Cao Mi frowned and read the letter, reading while reading: “The master is temporarily held by the literate servants in the villa. Knowledge, these servants are also difficult to understand, let alone teaching…”

After reading the letter, Cao Mi rubbed his forehead with a headache.

Here comes the problem of talent shortage!

She thought for a while, then picked up a pen to reply to Nanxi.

As she wrote, she muttered with a headache: “Well… since the new knowledge masters can’t understand it well, let’s just leave it alone and teach writing first. After that, I still have to find an opportunity and let me train them personally. .

“Hey, isn’t that just elementary school math? I copied the elementary school textbook I finally found in the space, and it is logically not that difficult, right? Is it because you can’t accept Arabic symbols for a while?

“Master lady? Send some literate maids from the mansion? No way, Dongli told me about the shortage of manpower a few days ago… Well, wait for this first, I’ll think of a way, I have to find a housekeeper, see Let’s see if Qi You can get me another group of outstanding talents! Dongli Nanxi is the one who got them, they are really reliable!”

After writing the reply, Cao Mi checked it again, and after confirming that it was correct, he handed it to Dongli along with several other letters, and asked Dongli to find someone to deliver it to the villa.

As soon as she finished her work, Taozi urged outside: “Princess? Are you ready? It’s almost time, the lord asked me to come and call you, the guests are coming soon.”

“Well, I’ll change my clothes and go right away!” Cao Mi responded.

Recently, Cao Mi’s family finally settled down in Cannes. A few days ago, Qi You, who had disappeared for a while, returned to the mansion and mentioned to her the matter of entertaining a local family in Liaozhou.

Cao Mi naturally had no opinion. After negotiating with the housekeeper, he set the date of the banquet today.

After a while, these local snakes in Liaozhou will come to the banquet with generous gifts and some purposes.

The author has something to say: I’ve been waiting for a long time~

Thanks to the little angel who threw the grenade: 1 idle girl;

Thanks to the little angel who threw the mines: 5 pieces of wheat in a handful; 3 pieces of Rainbow Fart first-level expert; 2 pieces of Moon Dusk; 1 piece of Mulberry Wuzhi;

Thanks to the little angel who irrigated the nutrient solution: 10 bottles of Zhu Xuan; 5 bottles of Yu Di; 4 bottles of Su Ran; 2 bottles of Xun Wang; 1 bottle of Xiao Xiao Pu Daxia;

Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!