Zhu Ci thought of this and, adopting a posture of trust, assigned the tasks one by one, while Fu Qiulu was responsible for managing the account books.
Fu Qiulu stood beside Zhu Ci and said, "Young Master, this beehive coal is worth quite a lot of silver. Are we really going to let them buy it on credit?"
Zhu Ci asked casually, "What's wrong with that?"
Fu Qiulu said, "If we buy on credit, I'm afraid they won't be able to pay it back. Everyone in this village is so poor; if we talk about credit, how could they ever afford to pay it back?"
But they didn't want to be this poor either. Food and shelter—if a person cannot even guarantee the most basic necessities in a lifetime, how can they be blamed for this?
If they were truly lazy and not working, that would be one thing, but based on Zhu Ci's observations, basically every household was working hard to make a living.
Take the couple who just passed away, for example; did they really want to risk going out hunting in such cold weather?
However, Zhu Ci said nothing more, for even if he did speak, Fu Qiulu wouldn't understand, so he simply said, "It's fine. I said it's only for one year of credit, if the debt from this year isn't fully paid by the end of the year, no more credit will be given next year."
Fu Qiulu listened for a moment before asking in confusion, "Just that?"
Zhu Ci was also somewhat puzzled. "Huh? Then what else is there?"
This little girl doesn't expect him to charge interest, does she? If it weren't for the fact that giving things away for free isn't good, he hadn't planned on taking any money.
Treating it as charity wouldn't be out of the question either.
It was a pity that charity and public welfare were not very well-established in this era, besides, doing charity nowadays brought no benefits other than fame, so no one would bother.
Zhu Ci had no intention of being the first to take such a risk; offering credit was a compromise.
Anyway, he would always be able to find some way to make money in the future.
Fu Qiulu stared with wide eyes. "What about the punishment? Setting aside the fact that there's no interest on the credit, if they can't pay the money back, aren't there other measures?"
Zhu Ci immediately said, "Then just arrange for someone to collect the debt. If they can't pay it back, they can use their family's grain, houses, or land as collateral. There's nothing more to discuss."
As for who would be sent to collect the debts and how they would be collected, it was all up to him.
As for those who couldn't pay their debts with a clear conscience, he just had to arrange for someone to give them a verbal reminder from time to time to instill a sense of urgency.
Of course, those with good character can be handled this way, but for those with bad character, one must strike with heavy blows.
After hearing this, Fu Qiulu suddenly realized that this was exactly how many wealthy families seized land—first by using various tactics to force poor landowners into unpayable debts, letting the interest accumulate until they were eventually forced to sell their land to the wealthy for a pittance.
Thinking of this, she suddenly realized, "As expected, the Young Master is amazing; I didn't even think of that!"
Zhu Ci was momentarily dazed: Huh?
What did he do that was so impressive?
Looking at Fu Qiulu's admiring expression, he felt as if she had thought of something strange.
..
Xi Ping moved very quickly; perhaps fearing that others would risk their lives without firewood and cause more tragedies, he had organized the men that very afternoon.
Zhu Ci did not appear in person, but instead sent Fu Chunsheng directly.
As a person of status and position, he still had to maintain a sense of mystery; after all, it was already decided that each household could only buy up to ten pieces of Beehive coal on credit, not every household would even be allowed to do so.
Ten pieces was not much, but not everyone burned coal for warmth all day long in these times; they would only burn it for a short while when they went to sleep at night.
Most importantly, Zhu Ci did not have much on hand either; this was the result of Xi Ya working her head down these past few days. Ten pieces per household was already the limit; any more and he feared they wouldn't even have enough for themselves.
To prevent those who already have sufficient means of staying warm but are greedy for small advantages from taking up the quotas, Zhu Ci directly appointed Xi Ping as the auditor, so that those with surplus wealth would not think of coming here to borrow.
In addition to the strict auditing, he intentionally had Fu Chunsheng emphasize that if the debt was not repaid within a year, the land holdings would be confiscated.
In this way, aside from those in genuine hardship, anyone looking to take advantage of the situation would have to think twice.
Fu Chunsheng, because he was representing Zhu Ci, straightened his back and said to Xi Ping, "The Young Master said that he believes you can be fair and just, will not show any favoritism."
He didn't say anything else, but Xi Ping was an old fox who naturally understood Zhu Ci's meaning.
He immediately bowed and said, "Please rest assured, Young Master, this old man understands the Young Master's meaning."
Fu Chunsheng nodded and stood to the side, watching coldly.
He felt nothing for these villagers; he had no compassion for them whatsoever.
A difficult world? Who in this world isn't struggling?
He and his younger sister were also orphaned at a young age; if they hadn't met the Marquis, who knows where they would have ended up by now.
This time, that child had decent luck in meeting the Young Master, though it seems the Young Master is a bit more soft-hearted than his family's Marquis; his Marquis would never provide relief to these poor people.
As the saying goes, one should provide aid in times of crisis, not alleviate poverty; besides, when the Marquis and his mother were at their lowest, no one came to their aid either.
It was strange; he had never thought the words "soft-hearted" could be used to describe this person, feeling both completely out of place and yet somehow perfectly natural.
Fu Chunsheng returned to the courtyard with the results, having written down the circumstances of all the families in debt in great detail.
Most of them were truly impoverished, with families that either had elderly people who were unable to move easily or young children; some families had both, even the elderly and children were all sick.
Zhu Ci only looked at those records and felt that living was truly difficult for people.
He put down the list and sighed, saying, "In a couple of days, distribute some more rice and flour; consider it an act of charity."
This time he didn't impose strict restrictions; after all, he could buy more rice and flour, so a little bit wouldn't matter. As a local gentry, it was nothing for him to provide some relief to the villagers during festivals and holidays.
After sighing, Zhu Ci asked, "By the way, how has Xia Lei been these past two days?"
Fu Chunsheng's eyes flashed with a hint of worry as he said, "That deepest wound on his body keeps worsening and then healing, but it keeps dragging on, even now.."
Zhu Ci was slightly taken aback. "Why didn't you tell me? Since it hasn't fully healed, why didn't you go invite a physician?"
Fu Chunsheng could only say, "I asked back in the county seat, but it's too far from here, so the physician won't come."
Zhu Ci could only say helplessly as he stood up, "Let's go, let's go see him."
Lately, he had been so busy with various matters that he had almost forgotten Xia Lei; it wasn't until he saw the list and thought of the upcoming child that he suddenly remembered there was still an injured person at his home.
As a result, this question revealed that the injured person he had worked so hard to save seemed to be in quite poor condition.
When Zhu Ci went over, Xia Lei was lying on the bed, fast asleep.
Currently, Qiulu is looking after him; she and Chunsheng basically take turns being here when they are not busy.
Zhu Ci asked a few questions softly, then looked at the wound and frowned, saying, "The inflammation hasn't gone down. It's still not working without anti-inflammatories."
The Fu siblings looked at Zhu Ci with confusion. "What do you mean, Young Master?"
What inflammation? What is being eliminated?
Zhu Ci also didn't know how inflammation in this era was described within the scope of Traditional Chinese Medicine, so he simply didn't explain. After pondering for a while, he turned his head and said, "Chunsheng, go find a way to buy some garlic, buy a lot of it. Does the family still have sesame oil? Prepare some of that as well."
Although Fu Chunsheng was somewhat puzzled, he still obediently went out to buy the garlic.
Then he bought nearly a hundred pounds of garlic in one breath.
Zhu Ci..
I told you to buy a bit more, but I didn't tell you to buy this much!
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: Why is everyone around me so extravagant? They treat money like it's nothing! *Cat hugging a money chest and hiding it. jpg*
A red envelope has dropped in this chapter~
Next update tomorrow morning at six o'clock~
Chapter 38
Zhu Ci looked at the garlic piled up in half the cellar and took a deep breath.
Beside him, Fu Chunsheng asked somewhat nervously, "Young Master, I.. did I.. buy too many?"
Zhu Ci gave a light cough. "It's my fault; I forgot to tell you how much to buy."
He thought that buying a little extra would probably only be five or ten jin, but who could have known he could buy so much.
Zhu Ci looked at Fu Chunsheng with some confusion. "Where did you get these? People are still selling them in bulk even during the Lunar New Year?"
Fu Chunsheng felt a bit guilty upon hearing this, but he only said vaguely, "I just happened to be in the right place at the right time."
Zhu Ci gave him a subtle glance, instinctively feeling that this fellow wasn't telling the truth, but he didn't ask any further questions.
It is not the right time to flip the table just yet.
Zhu Ci gave an affirmative response and said, "Alright, I need to use the small kitchen, so none of you come near."
He said this as he headed to the small kitchen, carrying over ten jin of garlic.
Fu Chunsheng watched his retreating figure and quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
At this time of year, there was certainly no place to buy so much garlic; he had secretly contacted his colleagues and used an immense amount of effort to obtain it.
Fu Qiulu walked to his side with some concern and asked in a low voice, "Are you crazy? The Young Master's trust in us was already insufficient, yet you're still taking such a risk?"
Fu Chunsheng asked, "Are we just going to watch Old Xia die?"
Fu Qiulu said with some helplessness, "I told him to leave and go back to treat his injuries first, but he wouldn't listen."
“It's not that he won't listen,” Fu Chunsheng said heavily. “Old Xia's injuries are too severe. Even if he goes back, he might not be able to heal, the exhaustion from the journey might even worsen his condition.”
After Fu Chunsheng finished speaking, he said through gritted teeth, "Those damn Sea Bandits.. if I ever get the chance to catch them, I'll make sure they experience a fate worse than death."
“But there is a shortage of doctors and medicine here; it's impossible to cure him.” Fu Qiulu's eyes reddened slightly. "He hasn't been conscious for several days now. If this continues.."
Fu Chunsheng looked toward the direction of the small kitchen, a glimmer of hope in his eyes: "Now, it all depends on you, Young Master."
Fu Qiulu was somewhat confused: "Young Master.. what is he planning to do? Can he really treat Old Xia's injuries?"
Fu Chunsheng shook his head. "The gentleman didn't say, so I'm not sure either."
Then how can you be sure..
Fu Chunsheng said softly, "After I finished telling you about Old Xia's situation, you sent me to buy those garlics. You couldn't bear to see that orphan living all alone, so how could you ignore Old Xia? If he truly didn't want to care for him, he wouldn't have saved Old Xia in the first place."
Fu Qiulu had to admit that Fu Chunsheng was telling the truth.
She sighed and said, "I hope the Young Master truly has a way."
And their Young Master was also praying right now that this method would actually work.
He didn't have many methods in mind, only the traditional way of making allicin.