At noon, the Zhou family had chicken stewed with mushrooms, white rice, and cold cabbage. Zhulan asked Xinghua to bring cornmeal, cabbage and potatoes for the servants in the back room to cook for themselves.
Zhulan did not give any orders to anyone to take charge, as she also wanted to see what the twenty newly bought servants would do without any orders.
There was still a queue of people waiting in front of the yamen to receive food. Although the food distributed by the yamen was stale grain, it was real food without any stones or sand mixed in. Many people knelt down and kowtowed at the gate of the yamen after receiving the food.
Zhou Shuren, the new prefect, won the hearts of the people in just the morning. Those who truly serve the people are good officials. Zhou Shuren's reputation among the people spread quickly, and the people all knew that the grain was brought by the new prefect.
Tongzhi Chen Chen felt a little upset. He worked hard for the people of Lizhou, but not only did he not gain a good reputation, he also bore a lot of infamy. He pursed his lips into a straight line and then sighed in his heart. If he and Zhou Shuren exchanged identities, he would not have the courage to spend the 50,000 taels of silver given by the court on the road. Although he did not want to admit it, he had to admit that Lord Zhou was bolder and more thoughtful than him.
Zhou Shuren had been hungry for a long time. After Er Yue had placed the food on the table, he said to Chen Chen and He Yun who were standing, "You two have worked hard today. Please sit down and eat."
Chen Chen's eyes fell on the chicken soup and the ginseng chicken soup and he swallowed his saliva. In order to avoid being reported for eating extravagant fish and meat, he did not dare to buy fish and meat even though he had money at home. Later, for the sake of his head, he ordered his family to eat vegetarian food. They have been eating vegetarian food for more than a month. This morning he smelled the taste of sausage in Lord Zhou's mouth. It was really torturous.
He Yun, the judge, was also a vegetarian. Not only that, they also ate whole grains. They hadn't eaten rice for a long time. He swallowed his saliva and said, "Master Zhou, the people are still collecting food outside. Isn't it not good for us to have chicken and sausages?"
Although he said this, his eyes were fixed on the chicken and sausages, looking greedy, and it seemed that his words had no persuasiveness at all.
Zhou Shuren also learned today during a chat that all the officials in the government office are vegetarians. This is a method they came up with because they are afraid of losing their heads. He said, why are the officials in Lizhou City so skinny? He was also wondering, the situation in Lizhou City is aimed at the people who have no money and has nothing to do with the officials. After knowing the truth, he was speechless. He has the ability to be a vegetarian, why not donate some money to make the emperor happier? He guaranteed that if the officials in Lizhou City were vegetarians, the emperor would be angry!
Zhou Shuren coughed and said, "It's okay. There will be a lot of things to do in Lizhou City in the future. If we don't even have a good body, how can we help the people solve their problems?"
He Jun sat down neatly, "Your Excellency is right."
I was thinking to myself, I have meat for lunch today, and when I get home I will ask the servants to go to Chuanzhou to buy meat and vegetables. Lord Zhou is not only the savior of the people, but also his. He is a meat lover, and he has suffered a lot in the past month. The meat in his stomach is gone!
Chen Chen also sat down. Anyway, Lord Zhou, whom Emperor Yu valued, was in charge, so they just took care of themselves. "Lord Zhou is right. Lord Zhou, please."
Zhou Shuren was not polite. He picked up the chicken leg with chopsticks. He liked the meaty parts. "You guys please."
Anyway, the chicken leg was in the bowl, and if he hadn’t eaten two, it would have been awkward for the other one to take something from the bowl as well.
Chen Chen and He Jun were no longer polite and started using their chopsticks quickly.
I ate the last five dishes very cleanly and even finished the whole pot of chicken soup.
In the afternoon, at Zhou's house, Zhulan didn't take a nap and went straight to meet the newly bought servant.
Twenty people were standing in the yard. The two little ones were not very big and stood very straight. Zhulan was not yet willing to let the three or four-year-old children stand in the sun. She signaled Xinghua and Jingzhe to take the two little ones to a shady place nearby.
Zhulan's action only made the Ding family feel at ease, but they did not move them. This family had experienced resale, and the head of the family had also been a housekeeper. This family was very rational.
Zhulan drank tea and looked at the eighteen people in the yard. They all had new clothes. Zhulan still provided the fabric for the clothes, but this time there was no one good at needlework, so the clothes were not as good as those made by Xinghua.
Zhulan already knew the situation in the shelter room. Butler Ding had a natural advantage as he used to be in charge of the Wan family. The Wan family was small and dared not say a word. Zhulan put down her teacup as she thought to herself that some people are born to manage people, while some people still cannot make money even if given the opportunity.
Zhulan said to Butler Ding: "Please introduce the people in your family!"
Steward Ding had been a steward for many years and knew that the mistress wanted to see their abilities when making the arrangements. When he heard the mistress ask him the first question, he let go of his worries and suppressed his joy. "I am Ding Yi, 38 years old this year. I used to be a steward. My wife is Liu Ya, 38 years old. She used to be a personal maid and later became a steward. I have three sons. The eldest son is 21 years old and smart. The daughter-in-law is 20 years old and good at cooking. The second son is 19 years old and more honest. The youngest daughter-in-law is 19 years old and the youngest son is 12 years old."
Zhu Lan glanced at Butler Ding more and didn't say what she did before. She just described the characteristics of her family members. As for not mentioning their names, she hoped that the host would give them names.
Zhulan is a bad name. She really doesn't want to come up with a name. Fortunately, there are still many solar terms in the 24 solar terms except those with snow, frost and dew.
Zhu Lan hummed and asked Butler Ding, "Please introduce the others!"
Butler Ding was completely relieved. Fortunately, he had asked everything clearly. His tone became more and more confident. "The Wan family has four members. Wan Jiu is 30 years old. His wife Juanhua is 30 years old and works in the kitchen. The eldest daughter is 12 years old and has been learning needlework. The youngest son is 8 years old."
Steward Ding paused for a moment and continued, "There are three girls left. The oldest is ten years old. She lives in Xujia Village near Lizhou City and sold herself voluntarily. The remaining two girls, aged eight and six, were sold for money because their families didn't like girls. The three boys, except for the thirteen-year-old who was sold by his uncle and aunt, the other two, aged fourteen, all sold themselves voluntarily and their families are from nearby villages."
Zhulan was very satisfied, and then arranged new names and jobs. Butler Ding remained the butler, and his wife Liuya would follow her in the future. Butler Ding's eldest son was given a new name of Guyu, his daughter-in-law Lixia, his second son Xiaoman, his second daughter-in-law Mangzhong, and his youngest son Xiazhi.
The eldest daughter of the Wan family is at Dashu, the youngest son is at Xiaoshu. The three girls are at Liqiu when they are ten, Autumnal Equinox when they are eight, and Lidong when they are six. As for the boys, two are at fourteen, one is at Winter Solstice, one is at Xiaohan, and the thirteenth is Dahan.
Zhulan felt that thinking of names was more tiring than calculating. There was no rush for the two little babies, so she would name them after they were born and had a job. She would not name them in the future, and whoever gave them names could do so.
As for the tasks of these servants, Zhulan was not in a hurry to arrange them. She needed to think about where to place them. The three maids would be taken care of by Xinghua first, and the three servants would be handed over to Eryue. She was not in a hurry to arrange the tasks of the Ding and Wan families.
At night, Zhou Shuren came back after dark. Zhulan told him how he bought the woman, and finally said quietly, "Master Zhou, would you like to become an official and get rich in exchange for a wife?"