bestfiction Chapter 664 Observations (2)
Chapter 664 Observations (2)
It can be said that on the land of Kyushu, corvée labor was even more terrible than paying grain taxes, and the people deeply resented it.
However... at this moment, none of these workers in Li Mingyuan's eyes looked like they were forced to work. They did not have the sorrowful look on the faces of laborers (referring to those who performed corvée labor). On the contrary, even though they were sweating profusely, they still had smiles on their faces, just like people full of hope for tomorrow, diligently doing their work under the guidance of the craftsmen.
Some people carried bricks, some filled in soil, and some carried sand. Everyone did their job and did their best to fulfill their responsibilities.
"Uncle Li."
Li Qiao turned to look at Li Mingyuan and asked, "Why are they so different from the laborers I've seen before?"
Li Qiao couldn't quite put his finger on the differences, but the workers before him were vastly different from the laborers he had ever seen.
First of all, although the workers in front of me are thin, they are not emaciated. On the contrary, they are healthyly thin, and you can tell from their bulging clothes that their arms and legs must be very strong.
Another thing is... one's mental state.
Li Qiao had seen laborers before, all of whom had sorrowful and numb faces. In contrast, the road construction workers in front of him showed no sign of sorrow. Instead, they chatted and laughed with those around them when they had free time, forming a completely opposite mental state to the laborers Li Qiao had seen.
"do not know."
Li Mingyuan shook his head, walked over to a worker who was relatively close to him, and asked curiously, "Young man, are you laborers conscripted by the government?"
Upon hearing the voice, the worker instinctively stopped what he was doing, looked up at Li Mingyuan, wiped the sweat from his brow, and smiled, "What is a laborer?"
"They are people who perform corvée labor."
"of course not!"
The young man, who looked to be under twenty, grinned and said, "Our Taiping County has long since abolished corvée labor! We workers all get paid."
That's it!
Li Mingyuan suddenly realized why these workers showed no signs of distress and worked so diligently; it turned out they weren't forced laborers conscripted by the government, but were paid.
"So how much money will you get?"
"This number."
The young man held up five fingers.
"Five hundred coins?"
"That's right, it's five hundred coins."
The young man grinned and said, "And it's five hundred coins a month! I heard from the craftsmen in Chenjia Village that this road will take about three months to build. In three months, I can earn at least one and a half taels of silver!"
"One and a half ounces? That's quite a lot!"
Li Mingyuan said in surprise that 1.5 taels of silver was not much for him, after all, he used to be a high-ranking official. Even if he did not embezzle or accept bribes, his monthly salary would still be at least several dozen taels of silver.
For ordinary people, 1.5 taels of silver was a lot of money. If they were frugal, it could feed a family of three for half a year. Of course, this was in times of peace and prosperity.
"Of course there are quite a lot!"
The young man said happily, "If I work hard for three months and earn one and a half taels of silver, my younger siblings will no longer have to suffer from hunger and cold, and they can live a good life!"
Looking at the genuine smile on the young man's face, Li Mingyuan felt extremely complicated.
What the people ask for is actually very simple: just enough to eat and enough to keep warm. However…
Even such a simple wish was extremely difficult to fulfill. For the vast majority of people, let alone having enough to eat, even ensuring they didn't starve to death was a luxury.
And the cause of all this is... those incompetent and corrupt officials who hold positions without doing their jobs and never care about the lives of ordinary people, as well as those powerful families and landlords who leech off the lives of ordinary people!
"Then you have something to look forward to in life!"
Li Mingyuan gathered his scattered thoughts and said with a smile.
"OK!"
The young man had dark skin, but his teeth looked exceptionally white when he smiled: "Once the road is completed, I will not only earn one and a half taels of silver, but I will also have the opportunity to join Chenjia Village and become a formal worker there."
When talking about his status as a formal worker in Chenjia Village, the young man's face was full of anticipation.
Seeing this, Li Mingyuan couldn't help but ask curiously, "What are the benefits of becoming a worker in Chenjia Village?"
“There are so many benefits!”
The young man didn't mind Li Mingyuan's annoyance and patiently explained, "The biggest advantage of becoming a formal worker in Chenjia Village is that your wages will increase. Your wages will increase from 500 wen a month to 800 wen!"
"The benefits are indeed significant."
Li Mingyuan nodded thoughtfully. It was almost double the original wage, no wonder the young man longed for the status of a formal worker in Chenjia Village.
"Right? Being a formal worker in Chenjia Village is a secure job with guaranteed income regardless of drought or flood. Once you become a formal worker in Chenjia Village, you won't have to worry about not making money or going hungry."
The young man continued, "Besides wages, there are many benefits to becoming a formal worker in Chenjia Village, such as buying grain at half price. In short, there are many advantages. No one in Taiping County doesn't want to become a formal worker in Chenjia Village."
Listening to the young man's words, Li Mingyuan nodded repeatedly. Whether it was higher wages or half-price grain, it was undoubtedly very attractive to the people. No wonder the people of Taiping County all wanted to become formal workers in Chenjia Village.
"clang!"
Just then, a gong sounded, followed by an enticing aroma that spread throughout the construction site, along with a shout from the site's temporary cook: "Lunch is served!"
Upon hearing the shout, the young man immediately put down his work and said to Li Mingyuan, "Uncle, I'm not talking to you anymore, I'm going to have lunch!"
Without waiting for Li Mingyuan's reaction, the young man turned and ran towards the makeshift food shed not far away.
Watching the young man's departing figure, Li Mingyuan thought for a moment and said to Zheng Qiuyan and the other person, "Let's go take a look too."
As he spoke, Li Mingyuan followed the young man to the makeshift food shed.
As soon as he approached the food stall, a strong aroma wafted over, so intense that Li Qiao couldn't help but twitch his nose.
"It smells so good! It smells like meat."
Li Qiao couldn't help but lick his lips; he was starting to crave meat.
"Who are you?"
Just then, Chen Jie, the foreman in charge of the construction site, noticed the three of them and came over to shout and question them.
The temporary canteen at the construction site was meant to provide meals for the workers. Because the food was so good, there were many outsiders who tried to sneak into the canteen to eat and drink for free.
This situation was naturally not allowed, so when Chen Jie saw Li Mingyuan and his two unfamiliar faces, he immediately became vigilant and prepared to drive them away at any time.