At this time, Shi Er stood nervously at the door of the official hall, preparing to ask the soldiers on guard for directions and where to ask the soap factory workers to report. However, the soldiers on guard were all very strong, and they stood there with their rifles in a majestic manner.
This made Shi Er, a farmer who had never seen the world, a little scared.
Before he could speak, the soldier with the gun saw him standing there for a long time and asked him: "You came to the soap workshop to report, right?" Shi Er quickly replied: "Yes! The soldier knows where to report.
Huh?" The soldier pointed toward the official hall and said, "Report to the fortification hall to the west of the lobby! You will be assigned a house there!" "Thank you, Master Soldier!"
Shi Er timidly walked into the Baihu Official Hall and looked to the west. Sure enough, he saw a large house with many people like him standing on their backs and saluting. It was probably the Engineering Hall. Shi Erbei
He walked into the house with his quilt and luggage. "It was reported by the soap workshop?" "Yes!" "Where is the interviewer's playing card!" Playing card? Shi Er quickly found the stamped playing card from the package and said respectfully
He handed it to the officials in the Ministry of Works.
"How many members of your family are moving to Fanjiazhuang?" "It's just me!" The Li family member in charge nodded, looked at the account book in his hand and said, "Then I will allocate you a room in a small villa and assign it to the third one.
The west room on the second floor of No. 52 Zhengyuan Street shares a main room, kitchen, bathroom and toilet with three people. The monthly rent is seventy cents, and the rent will be deducted from the monthly payment." Shi Er heard the official say.
After reading a lot, I didn’t understand what Zhengyuan Street or the second-floor west room meant. I just understood that I didn’t have to pay for this place, so I quickly nodded and said, “Okay, okay!”
"Huang Laosan, take this worker to No. 52 Zhengyuan Street. You can ask him later if he is short of money. If he is short of money, give him a month's money first!" "Got it!" the official finished.
, Huang Laosan, a man in charge, came out and took Shi Er to Zhengyuan Street. Huang Laosan seemed to be a man of few words, and did not talk to Shi Er along the way. Shi Er observed Tianjing City with his eyes while walking.
, I only saw people building houses and city walls everywhere, and ox carts transporting wood and bricks were constantly shuttled on the road. Although the weather was cold, it was a lively scene here.
After walking for half a mile on North Street, Huang Laosan, who was leading the way, took Shi Er and turned into Zhengyuan Street. Zhengyuan Street is to the west of the north of the city, with densely built brand new villas on both sides. Find
In the small villa No. 52, Huang Laosan looked at Shi Er with a smile and said, "We're here, it's here!" Shi Er looked at the house with his eyes, and saw that the house had two floors, with black tiles on the roof.
The bluestone threshold and the smooth cement walls covered with snow-white lime looked very beautiful. Shi Er was used to seeing leaky mud houses in Shijia Village, and felt that such grand houses were only lived by gentlemen in the city.
.
But how did this Huang Laosan lead him here? This is a house for himself? Huang Laosan knocked on the door, waited for a while and saw no one responded, and then opened the door directly. "Others haven't come to report yet.
, you are the first resident!" Huang Laosan stood in the house. Seeing that Shi Er did not follow him into the house, he asked with a smile: "What are you doing standing at the door? Why don't you come in quickly?"
Shi Er looked surprised, opened his eyes and asked, "Is this the house for me to live in?" Huang Laosan smiled and said, "Yes, come in quickly!" Shi Er woke up from a dream and then recited the words.
Huang Laosan walked into the house with his luggage. Huang Laosan took him to the door of a bedroom on the west side of the second floor and pushed the bedroom open. The bedroom was three meters long from east to west and four meters wide from north to south. It was very spacious, with painted concrete walls.
It is decorated with snow-white lime. There is a double bed, a wardrobe, a desk and a simple wooden chair. There is an oil lamp on the desk.
These furniture and this kind of house are already luxurious in the eyes of Shi Er, who was born in a peasant family. "This is your room. The rent is seventy cents a month! It will be deducted from the monthly payment." Shi Er said in disbelief.
He asked again: "Is this a room for me to live alone?" Huang Laosan smiled and said: "Yes, the kitchen, bathroom and toilet in the main room are downstairs. You and the other three people in this villa share it. Now.
There are many vacant houses in the village. If one house is not enough for you after you get married, you can apply to rent two rooms for 140 cents a month. If you want to support the elderly, you can rent an entire villa."
Shi Er still couldn't believe that such a good house was for him to live in. Na Na asked: "How can I live in the master's house?" Huang Laosan laughed when he heard this and said: "What master's house?
This is a worker’s house. The master’s house is bigger than this and has a big yard! Even the medium-sized villa I live in is better than this.”
Shi Er finally believed that this house was for him to live in, and bit his lip and stopped talking. Seeing his restrained look, Huang Laosan smiled and said: "Why are you carrying a quilt on your back? Hurry up and make the bed." Shi Er listened.
At this point, he quickly took off his luggage and started to make the bed. Huang Laosan stood aside and watched Shi Er work, and asked again: "Did you bring the money?"
Shi Er was stunned when he heard this, thinking that Huang Laosan was asking for money from him. Sure enough, this house was not for free. Shi Er bit his lip and replied honestly: "I only have fifty coins with me.
"Huang Laosan smiled and said: "Fifty cents is not enough! Look at your patched cotton-padded jacket and your pair of torn cloth shoes. It looks so disgraceful to others. How about you first?
I borrow one month's monthly money from the Ministry of Works Department's account and use it for expenses, and I won't give you any monthly money next month."
After hearing this, Shi Er was stunned for a long time before he realized that Huang Laosan wanted to lend him money. He was stunned and didn't know what to say. Seeing that Shi Er didn't speak, Huang Laosan took out two coins from his arms.
He took out seventy cents of silver and said with a smile: "This is your salary for next month. After deducting seventy cents of rent, I will give you one thousand nine hundred and thirty cents. You can use it to make a new suit. How much more will it cost?"
Decent? Tianjing City has not yet been built, but several tailors have already come in to take over the work, just east of Siwen Street!"
Shi Er took the two slings of copper coins from Huang Laosan and was so mesmerized that he fell into a dream. "Is this a month's money? Two slings of copper coins?" The gentleman in the village only told Shi Er that Tianjing City was recruiting people for work.
He didn't mention the treatment. I guess the gentleman didn't believe the treatment written on paper in Tianjing City at all. He simply didn't tell Shi Er and only told him that he had a mouthful of food. So when he got here, he knew that he was actually given two copper coins a month.
Twenty minutes of surprise.
Huang Laosan took a breath and asked curiously: "Didn't you know when you came to apply for the job? Our city lord gives two copper coins a month, and you have to take care of meat for three meals!" "Three meals, you have to take care of meat?" Shi Er felt that he didn't have enough brains.
Use it, why is this city lord who hires people so good? He lives in such a beautiful big house, pays two copper coins a month, eats meat three times a day, and has to borrow money for himself to spend first. Is this Tianjing City? This city lord
Are they the military attachés of the Song Dynasty? What ability do you have to make these people treat you so well?
Shi Er had heard about Tianjing City a long time ago. He originally thought that Tianjing City was a pit of fire and that he would be a miserable person in his life. Who knew that he would be treated like this here? Wouldn't he be better off with such treatment?
My dear eldest brother wants to live a long life, and he will be able to marry a wife in a few years? Is it a blessing for me and my eldest brother to separate their families and come to Fan Tianjing City empty-handed?
As he thought about it, Shi Er's tears flowed down. With a pop, Shi Er knelt in front of Huang Laosan and said loudly: "Dad Huang, Shi Er never thought that he could live such a life! Shi Er, thank you so much.
City Lord, please tell me, Father Huang. From now on, if the City Lord asks me to go west, I will never go east. Even if the city owner asks me to go through mountains of swords and seas of fire, I will go."
Huang Laosan laughed when he saw how upright the rural boy was. He quickly helped him up and said with a smile: "What nonsense are you talking about? I don't want you to do that. You can work hard in the soap workshop and stick to the confidentiality regulations."
Yes! If you follow the city lord, you will have many good days in the future!" Shi Er got up, wiped his tears, and nodded vigorously.
Yang Peng is planning to move all his nearly two thousand workers to Tianjing City. The first thing to move is the salt processing factory, and then the soap workshop. The various processes in the salt processing factory are not closely connected, and it will not affect the various semi-finished products as long as there is some inventory.
Production, if a certain process is moved to another place, it will not be affected. The soap workshop is different. Each process in the soap workshop is an assembly line operation. If any one process is moved to other places, the entire production cannot be organized. So Yang Peng decided to move part of the salt factory first, and then wait.
The people who moved first made Tianjing City lively, and then moved the soap workshop.
Single workers are easy to handle. Just move them to Tianjing City and rent a small villa. But it is more troublesome for those with families. If the worker's spouse has other errands to do in the Acropolis, the workers are not willing to let the spouse resign.
The errand job was moved to Tianjing City. Although the monthly salary of errand jobs outside was lower, after all, it was also a part of the family's income.
Yang Peng asked Zheng Yuan to count the spouses of workers in the salt factory and report them to Yang Peng.
At the last count, Yang Peng found that among the 1,770 workers in the salt factory, there were about 400 people in the first category who were single and unmarried, more than 900 people in the second category who had spouses but their spouses did not work, and only about 300 people in the second category.
They belong to the third category, that is, those whose spouses have errands outside. After all, in this era, more women spin and weave at home and do housework, and fewer go out to work, so there are more people in the second category. Yang Peng only needs to pay more than 300 yuan for the third category.
When a person's spouse finds a new job, all industrial workers can move to Tianjing City.
Yang Peng feels that this is not a difficult task. When Tianjing City becomes more prosperous in the future, all walks of life will be short of people, and the spouses of more than 300 workers will be able to find new jobs in Tianjing City. Yang Peng decided to move the first and second categories first.
A total of more than 1,300 households came to Tianjing City to prop up the popularity of Tianjing City. After making up his mind, Yang Peng asked the masons to build the new factory building of the salt factory in Fanjiazhuang. The new factory building was completed on December 24th.
Later, Zheng Yuan notified the workers to move. Yang Peng organized manpower to move the salt processing machinery, striving to transport 1,300 machines to the new factory within three days, and then continue production.
On New Year's Eve, the salt factory got off work early at noon. Gu Laoer got off work and wandered around the Tianjing City North Gate Market for a while, buying a couplet, a firecracker, five kilograms of bacon, ten kilograms of fresh meat, two
Ten pounds of flour and ten pounds of various vegetables.
He has moved to the official office of Tianjing City with the city lord, and now rents two rooms in a small villa on Dexin Street. After 1,300 salt workers settled in Tianjing City, the vendors in Cangzhou City immediately smelled
When it comes to business opportunities - these salt workers are all consumer groups with stable monthly income and considerable spending power. Many traders left Cangzhou City and set up their businesses in Tianjing City, and as expected, their business is booming.
Yang Peng set up four markets in the four directions of Tianjing New City. By the last day of the third year of Zhidao, there were already quite a few vendors in these four markets. Those selling rice, noodles, and meat.
There are sellers of oil, vegetables, chickens, ducks, and groceries. The vendors know that the workers in Tianjing New City have strong spending power, so they prepare enough goods on New Year's Eve.
Gu Lao Er carried the New Year's goods and returned to the door of his villa happily. In front of the villa, Gu Lao Er's old mother walked around the street with a cane. Now Gu Lao Er works in a salt factory, and the old mother has enough to eat.
, her spirits improved a lot. After moving to the small villa in Fanjiazhuang, she liked to hang around the neighborhood.
Gu Lao Er greeted his mother and said, "Mom! I bought some meat and went home to make dumplings!" Gu Lao Er's mother said, "You and your wife make the dumplings, and I'll just go down and eat them later!" Gu Lao Er listened.
He was stunned by what he said, and his mother said again: "When I raised you when you were a child, it was a hard work. Now I ask you to make a dumpling for me to eat. Why don't you like it?"
Gu Laoer glanced at his mother, a little speechless, opened the door and walked into the villa. After entering the door and going to the second floor, he saw his wife weaving in the house. After Gu Laoer entered Tianjing City to work, every month
He had twenty or two months of money. After saving for a few months, Gu Laoer bought a traditional loom for his wife to weave at home. Although this loom was far inferior to the flying shuttle loom in the textile factory.
, but women can still earn some hard-earned money by weaving at home. A diligent woman can earn more than one tael of silver in a month.
With Gu Lao Er's monthly income and the money earned by his wife's weaving, the Gu family has finally escaped poverty and is no longer a family without food. Gu Lao Er rents half a villa in Tianjing City from the city owner and shares it with another family
, the monthly rent is one hundred and forty cents, which is nothing to today’s Gu family. Gu Lao Er and his wife live in a room upstairs. Gu Lao Er’s mother has bad legs and feet, so she lives downstairs.
s room.
Seeing Gu Lao Er carrying firecracker couplets into the door, the Gu family's daughter-in-law ran out of the house happily and said with a smile: "Master, you have bought so many years of goods!" Ever since Gu Lao Er got monthly money from working in the salt factory
, Gu Lao Er’s daughter-in-law no longer called him by his first name, but called him the head of the house. Gu Lao Er smiled and said: “We will move to a new house this year, and we will have a good year.” The Gu family’s daughter-in-law looked at the tattoo on Gu Lao Er’s hand.
New Year's goods, with tears in his eyes, he said: "This year our family is all eating bacon! Last year at this time, we only had ten kilograms of flour left at home, which was not even enough to survive the New Year!"
Gu Lao Er smiled and hugged his daughter-in-law with his shoulders, and said with a smile: "It's already gone, what are you still talking about? Let's go! Let's go to the kitchen to make dumplings!" The Gu family's daughter-in-law wiped her tears with her hands and said, "The He family is here
Use the kitchen, we'll go there later!" The He family is another working-class family that shares this villa with the Gu family. The husband also works in a factory in Tianjing City and the wife spins yarn at home. There is an old mother and a boy at home.
Gu Laoer said: "That's the only disadvantage of sharing a house, you still have to share the kitchen!" Gu's wife said: "What's not good about it! Great! This is my first time living in such a good house! Look at how many cement walls there are.
It’s strong and flat. This furniture is so decent. It’s ten times better than the house we rented in Hao’s courtyard in Cangzhou! If you want me to live in that room in Hao’s courtyard again and squeeze in with my mother every day, how can I
I’m not going either!”
After thinking about it, the Gu family's wife added: "And the rent of these two rooms is about the same as the rent of one room in Cangzhou City! The city lord treats us so well!" Gu Laoer said: "This is naturally better than the Hao Family Courtyard.
It’s much better there. But I mean, when we have children some time later, we will rent a small villa by ourselves instead of sharing it with others, and it will only cost two cents and seven cents a month.”
The Gu family's daughter-in-law complained: "When you have a little money, you start spending it randomly!" But Gu Laoer asked: "Daughter-in-law, we have money to raise children now, has there been any movement in your stomach in the past few months?" The Gu family's daughter-in-law said
He complained: "When we were in Hao's courtyard in Cangzhou a few days ago, your mother sat in the room as soon as she saw you come back. We haven't shared a room a few times in half a year. How could she be pregnant?"
Gu Laoer nodded and said, "Mom has a weird temper, and my daughter-in-law is suffering!" Gu's wife said, "It's better now. We have two rooms. We don't have to stay in the same room with your mother every day.
It's over!" Gu Laoer said: "How about we go in the house and try now, maybe we'll get pregnant!"
The Gu family's wife nodded, turned around and walked into the house. After Gu Lao Er also entered the house, the Gu family's daughter-in-law looked at the door and made sure that Gu Lao Er's mother had not entered the villa, then carefully closed the door.
In mid-February, the last 300 or so employees of the Salt Factory also moved to Tianjing New City. These employees were employees whose spouses had errands in Cangzhou. They were able to move to Tianjing New City smoothly thanks to the various people in the bustling Tianjing New City.
The residents of Tianjing New City now have great spending power: more than 2,000 masons need to eat and drink every day, the 1,300 worker families who have moved into Tianjing New City earlier produce various consumption every day, and there are two
Thousands of soldiers from the Selective Regiment, who earn thirty taels a month, occasionally go out to the camp to spend money.
The consumption of these tens of thousands of people has driven demand in various industries, making Tianjing New Town a prosperous business: rice sellers, vegetable sellers, oil sellers, meat sellers, cloth and silk sellers, tailors, and earthenware pot sellers.
Those who sell iron pots, blacksmiths, porcelain, gourds, chopsticks, boxes, firewood, furniture, door locks, headscarves and hats, restaurants, tea gardens
There are those who open hook bars, storytellers, opera singers, and those who teach in private schools. All kinds of shops and venues are gradually opened, all opened by bosses and merchants from Cangzhou.
However, Tianjing New City is sixty miles away from Cangzhou City. It is impossible for these business owners to hire people from Cangzhou City to do things. Otherwise, hired workers would come from Cangzhou City to Tianjing New City every day to work, and they would have no time to sleep. These shops and businesses would have to
Hiring people locally has created a huge demand for manpower in Tianjing New City. However, the residents of Tianjing New City are craftsmen and workers, and there are very few idle people who can go out to work to meet the labor needs of these service industries. Tianjing New City
The traders have been in a state of shortage.
It wasn't until Yang Peng moved the last 300 or so workers from the salt factory and the soap workshop to Tianjing New City that the labor demand in Tianjing New City was alleviated. More than 300 workers' spouses appeared in the labor market, and all walks of life were suddenly short of workers.
Various industries have been absorbed into it. For example, after Huang Gui, a laborer of the salt factory worker Yang, moved to Tianjing New City, he quickly found a job as a handyman in a restaurant, with a dinner every day and a monthly salary of one, two or four yuan, which was more than his salary.
My monthly salary in Cangzhou was still high.
With his new job, Huang Gui no longer had to worry about leaving his hometown, and he quickly integrated into the life of Tianjing New City. That night, Huang Gui waited for the restaurant to close, washed his hands, and went to his villa on Chongwu Street.
Go.
Huang Gui's family rented an entire villa on Chongwu Street. Huang Gui's wife, Yang, worked in a salt factory and had 20 taels per month for food. Her income plus Huang Gui's 1 200 taels per month.
Money, the family has an income of three to four yuan a month, which is enough for a family of four. When Yang moved to Tianjing New City, she said she liked the purity of a single house, and even insisted on renting a whole house. Huang Gui couldn't resist her.
.
However, the rent of two cents and seven cents a month is not high, and the Huang family can afford it now. Huang Gui walked home and saw his daughter Daya and son Shitou playing with other children in front of the house under the moonlight, playing catch.
A human game. When the two children saw their father coming home, they stopped playing and ran to Huang Gui's side.
"Daddy is home!" Huang Gui touched Shitou's head and asked Da Ya with a smile: "Have you eaten tonight?" Da Ya said: "We scooped out the rice and vegetables in the pot and ate them ourselves.
I'm full! Shitou and I each ate half of the meat buns in the pot!" Shitou was about to speak when Daya snatched him away. He could only look at Huang Gui with wide eyes.
"Has mother come back?" Daya answered eagerly: "Mother has come back, is she lighting a lamp in the room upstairs and reading something?" Huang Gui was stunned and asked: "What is mother looking at?"
Da Ya rushed to say: "I don't know!" Huang Gui nodded, let the two children continue playing, and opened the door to enter the house. After entering the house, Huang Gui saw a bright light upstairs, so he walked upstairs.
go.
The small villa has four rooms. Huang Gui and Yang live in a room downstairs, and the two children live in a room upstairs. There is also an empty room for storing sundries. The one with the light on is for storing sundries.
Huang Gui walked to the door of the room and saw Mrs. Yang's face with joy. She was happily looking at a piece of paper of unknown content. In front of the tung oil lamp, the 26-year-old Yang was attracted by the light of the lamp.
The golden color made her look very beautiful, which made Huang Gui crazy.
His wife was also a beauty before marrying him. She has endured hardships with him these years, Huang Gui thought to himself. Yang suddenly noticed Huang Gui at the door and hurriedly hid the paper in his hand behind his back. Huang Gui walked into the room and smiled.
"You're off work!" Yang shook his head and spat: "You're off work!"
Huang Gui asked again: "How are you getting along with the co-workers today? What's new?" Yang tilted her head and said, "There's nothing new. Every day is just work, eating, making salt, and eating!" Huang Gui echoed.
Said: "It sounds quite boring, doing the same thing every day."
Yang glared at Huang Gui and said, "Isn't it just making salt? It's hard to find a job with such a high monthly salary even if you are holding a lantern! With money, you can support your family!" Huang Gui said with a smile: "That's true, since
If you go to the salt factory, our family's life will be much better!" Ms. Yang smiled. Since she started working in the salt factory, her status in the family has improved a lot. Now her husband always follows her and doesn't argue with her.
After thinking about it, Mrs. Yang suddenly took out the piece of paper hidden behind her, put it gently on the table, and said to Huang Gui with a smile: "Let me show you!" Huang Gui saw his wife putting the paper behind her back.
He took out the things and looked at them under the lamp curiously. He saw that the paper was densely written with small characters, and there were two fingerprints pressed at the bottom, but Huang Gui couldn't understand a single word.
"Shitou, what is this?" Yang proudly pointed to the two names at the bottom of the paper and said, "You always recognize these two names, right? This is your name Huang Gui, and this is my name Yang Xiuniang.
!”
Huang Gui nodded and said: "I recognize these two names!" Yang proudly puffed up her chest and said loudly: "This is the land deed! The land deed of our house!" Huang Gui was stunned for a moment and finally understood.
. He thought for a long time, swallowed his saliva and said helplessly: "You still don't listen to me and bought this house?" Yang suddenly put away his pride, glanced at her husband with fear, and said: "
I don’t listen to you and buy a house, so you don’t want me?” Huang Gui said helplessly: “How could I not want you?”
After hearing this, Mrs. Yang laughed again and said loudly: "That's OK! Look, our family has our own house. This beautiful villa now belongs to our family. What a happy thing!" Huang Gui
Na Na said: "Didn't I tell you not to buy? It's better to rent than buy!"
Yang didn't listen, shook her head and said: "It costs two cents and seven cents to rent this house every month. After fifteen years of renting, the city lord will recover the cost of building the house. At that time, we will still have to pay rent every month. Just buy a house."
It’s different. I borrowed fifty taels of silver from the city lord to buy this house, and borrowed another five taels to buy the furniture furnished by the city lord. Calculating the interest of 4%, the city lord deducted four cents and three cents of silver from my monthly money, and deducted ten cents.
The loan will be paid off in five years, and the house will be ours! Then we won’t have to pay to live in the house!”
"Huang Gui, you said that if you spend an extra six cents of silver every month, you can have your own house. How can there be such a good deal in the world? Wouldn't you be a fool not to buy such a good thing?" Huang Gui sat there.
There was no conversation on the bed. Yang asked dissatisfiedly: "Huang Gui, do you think I meant what I said?"
Huang Gui said angrily: "When you insisted on renting a whole villa a few days ago, you made up your mind to buy this house, right?" Yang was a little panicked, looked at her husband's face and said nothing. She thought for a while.
, Huang Gui said angrily: "This costs four dollars a month! What if we have another child and the family doesn't have enough money?"
When Ms. Yang heard her husband's words, she breathed a sigh of relief and said loudly: "The head of the house has enough and enough money. In addition to paying back the money to the city lord every month, our family still has 2, 29, and 7 cents of silver every month.
Even adding one more person is enough money. The worst we can do is save money and make a few new sets of clothes. If money is tight, we can rent out this unused room, and we can earn seven cents more a month!"
"Besides! This house is so big! When Shi Shi gets married, we don't have to buy a house for him!" Huang Gui's face looked better when he heard that Yang was willing to give birth to another child. Hearing Yang talk about Shi Shi's getting married, Huang Gui looked better.
, Huang Gui gradually figured it out and put away his angry face. Huang Gui said: "If you are willing to have another child, I will follow you!" Yang glared at Huang Gui and said, "I will be willing to have my own house.
Have another baby! If you rent a house, I won’t have another baby!”
The knot in his heart was opened, and Huang Gui opened his smile and leaned in front of the oil lamp to read the land deed with his wife. "With this land deed, this house is ours?" Yang said, "Of course! Look at these two
These two characters are 'land deed'. Look at the name again, 'Yang Peng', this is the name of the city lord. This land deed means that the deputy city lord sold this building to us!"
Huang Gui murmured: "I never thought our family could have such a good house!" When Yang heard this, she said with a smile on her face: "Yes, our family can also have such a good house! Look at this
The walls, the roof, what a nice house! Before I came to work at the City Lord Salt Factory, I never dreamed that I could live in such a nice house!"
If you want to know what happens next, let’s look at the breakdown in the next chapter.