The general management office of Phoenix Villa is a complex of buildings, similar to a small town with only one street in the early years. [Read the full text] This place is not far from the Phoenix Villa mansion and the residential areas of several slaves, making it easy to get around. On both sides of the stone streets stand workshops, warehouses, shops, and the core of the entire villa's operation: the general management office building.
The general management office building is a two-story brick and wood structure with an arcade. Standing on the high steps, there are publicity boards on the left and right of the gate, with various "notices" posted on them. However, most of the villagers' slaves in the villa were illiterate, and most of them ignored them when they passed by.
The general management office of Phoenix Villa is managed according to the model of a modern agricultural enterprise. Phoenix Villa is a large enterprise integrating agriculture, industry and trade. From the beginning, Zhao Yingong transplanted the entire management model of enterprises affiliated to the Agriculture Committee from Lingao. A small number of "politically reliable" naturalized civilian cadres were also introduced as the backbone of the Phoenix Villa General Management Office. And gradually promoted some reliable and capable personnel from local slaves to serve as middle managers.
Although it is under the management of Hangzhou Station, the production and operation of Phoenix Villa are often operated directly according to the instructions of the Agricultural Committee and the Ministry of Light Industry. Although Zhao Yingong has the final say on specific operations, he rarely directly interferes with the production matters of Phoenix Villa - in fact, he can't control it.
As a "head", Wang Siniang's only concept of the general management office is to come here every day to receive work orders and hand in the work record sign after the work is completed. In addition, I come here at the end of every month to collect monthly money and buy daily necessities.
There is a large building on the street from the general management office: a two-story building with three bays and a facade. It is similar to the kind of comprehensive store opened by the cooperative in Kaohsiung - it is actually a branch opened by the cooperative head office of the Ministry of Commerce. Various daily necessities are sold inside. The second floor also doubles as a small restaurant. The customers are naturally all the servants of Phoenix Villa. At present, the number of slaves and their families who have been "employed" in Phoenix Villa has expanded to six to seven hundred people, making it look like a small town.
In order to ensure the stability and controllability of personnel, Zhao Yingong. Except for a few professionals who have to be hired outside, there are no long-term or short-term workers in the manor, except for a few particularly professional technical jobs. All work is done by slaves who are selected from the refugees and must sign a "death contract". As for the large number of menial jobs and seasonal part-time workers, they are borne by refugees waiting for transfer in the refugee camps along the river.
Phoenix Villa is a closed economy. Everyone who "has taken a job" in Phoenix Villa, regardless of gender, old or young, will receive a monthly payment as long as they work on business. However, this monthly payment is not silver or copper coins, but the circulation coupons of Delong Bank.
Delong Bank also has a branch on the street from the general management office, which is responsible for the distribution of monthly money and also provides savings services. Its main job is to be responsible for fund scheduling and turnover for Hangzhou Station. Ensure that every fund is under effective supervision.
At first, the slaves were a little uncomfortable with getting circulation coupons, but they saw that there were many and good things in the store. The price was fair, so I accepted this fact. Although Phoenix Mountain is just outside the city, it is quite far from the city's business district. It's much more convenient to have a shop like this.
The monthly money is distributed to the slaves every month, then circulates around the commercial street of the general management office and then returns to the account at Hangzhou Station. This can effectively reduce the usage of silver, and also increase the support for circulating bonds in disguise. Prepare for the next step of circulating coupons entering the Hangzhou market.
Neither Zhao Yingong nor the Planning Institute were shady capitalists, and the prices of various commodities on the commercial street were not high. Even cheaper than outside. But because the cooperative’s local supply is at wholesale prices. And there are many things that are produced by the villa or Lingao. If they are supplied according to the internal allocation price, the actual profit is still much higher. People in the villa can also apply and exchange their circulation coupons for silver and copper coins according to a certain price and a certain amount. In order to take it outside for consumption, but since most daily consumer goods can be purchased in the villa and the prices are lower than outside, the motivation to exchange them for silver is not strong.
It is now around 5:30, and there are many people coming to the street to buy things. There were also people preparing to work the night shift, and the streets actually felt a bit bustling. There are "street lights" along the road here. In fact, it is just an iron fire cage torch, which is already filled with firewood, and will be lit as soon as it gets dark.
Wang Siniang came to the "recording room" under the eaves of the general management office. The door here is open. There were seven or eight "masters" inside who were beating their abacus loudly. The "heads" who have finished work in various places are queuing up to come here with their timekeeping books to record their work. The summary of daily work sheets is the basis for monthly payment at the end of the month. She handed in the work record for today's tea picking. The master in the work record office had already obtained the tea factory's storage slip. After comparing the two, he stamped an "approved" stamp on the work order receipt and handed it over. It came out - this receipt is kept by the "head", in case there is any objection when the monthly payment is issued, it is the proof of verification.
Wang Siniang is a charming and smart person. She is very popular and can talk to people wherever she goes. When she arrived at the timekeeping room, someone immediately greeted her, and the timekeeping sheet in her hand was immediately taken in. Several lustful masters took the opportunity to tease her by saying some frivolous words. One of them simply took the opportunity of handing over the receipt to squeeze her arm.
"Seek death! I have a man." Wang Siniang smiled and slapped off the other party's dirty hand, "You have no benefit at all, and you still want to eat my tofu?"
There was a burst of laughter inside, and a master said: "It's good, fourth aunt! The master just sent someone to tell you that you don't have to go to work at night. After dinner, go to the inner house to see him. I have something to give you."
Wang Siniang was startled, for no reason, what was she doing at night? Before she could come to her senses, all kinds of teasing words were already coming to her.
"Fourth Aunt, you are so pretty, I'm afraid the master will be jealous of you."
"That's right, Fourth Aunt, you are a flower..."
"Your mother is so beautiful." Wang Siniang spat a few words and carefully put the receipt handed out from the counter into a "protective book" she carried with her.
Since she doesn't have to do the work at night. She quickly went outside to find another female worker in the team and gave her a few words of care. He hurried home in a hurry.
Their whole family belongs to the "outer courtyard", that is, slaves who are exclusively engaged in production and business activities and cannot enter the inner house. Therefore, he did not enjoy the treatment of the servants in the inner house eating free meals in the common room, so he had to cook for himself.
The slaves in the outer courtyard are provided with one or two meals by the villa depending on their working hours. If the work continues after 2 p.m., a "snack" will be provided as usual to prevent them from being too hungry and affecting their work efficiency.
When not in class, students take care of their own meals. Due to long working hours, the slaves of the villa often buy ready-made meals directly on the commercial street of the general management office. In addition to the slightly higher-end cooperative tavern, there is also a food shop on the commercial street - it is not a restaurant. There is no dine-in service, only ready-made meals are provided - similar to a box lunch restaurant.
When you walk into the store, the floor and walls are all covered with ceramic tiles. The light was dazzling under the newly lit gas lamp, and rows of glass-covered counters were filled with big red lacquer plates containing a variety of ready-made dishes. Most of them are vegetables and "small meat" with a little fish meat - such as minced meat vermicelli stew, steamed fish and so on. It also comes with soup, rice, multi-grain porridge, noodles, steamed buns and other staple foods, as well as various pickles.
It is very convenient to reheat it or eat it directly after buying it. And the food is kept clean. So it is quite popular. Business is booming. Wang Siniang's family has a large population, and both husband and wife have to do work. It is impossible for Wang Siniang to go back and cook, so she buys meals here every day and takes them back for the whole family to eat.
Customers who often buy meals here can use the tin lunch boxes inside for free - tin is easy to process and clean, and it is a base metal. It was often used as tableware in ancient societies and even went to the palace. You can see its food preparation utensils when you go down to a small hotel. .
Wang Siniang bought some vegetables. I also bought braised snails in soy sauce - this is the cheapest dish among the small meat dishes. The plate next to it was piled high with grilled crucian carp with green onions, each one was about the size of a palm, and the fragrance was so appetizing. Wang Siniang hesitated for a while and bought three. We have more food than this family, and just filling our stomachs will cost a large part of our monthly income. Had to budget carefully. Fortunately, as long as there are children under the age of sixteen in the family, meat and vegetables can be purchased at a 20% discount.
The master takes great care of the "little ones". Families with children can receive four kilograms of rice for free every month for each child. When I was in school, the kindergarten provided me with a free meal. I had plenty of rice, and the dishes were both meat and vegetable.
The so-called "half-year-old boy will eat me to death". Although the fourth Wang's family is all girls, they are all of an age where they can eat. With these policies, family finances are finally less strained.
Hangzhou is famous for its fish and rice. Fish, shrimp, snails and other aquatic products are relatively cheap, but meat is expensive. Therefore, the small meat dipped in meat is not cheap. As for meat, very few people buy it.
I hurriedly bought meals to take home. The three daughters have returned from school and are doing homework around the square table. Although Wang Siniang is illiterate, she has seen masters and gentlemen write with brushes and vertical strokes. The three daughters, however, used wooden charcoal pens to write at an angle. She didn't understand what was going on, but it was a fact that her daughter could read and write now, which was enough to make her happy. How many daughters of landowners and farmers are blind.
The eldest daughter is already fifteen, and she is much taller than before - she is growing up so fast, which makes Siniang Wang very unhappy. This little lady is already as tall as her. If this continues, she won't be able to wear her old clothes and will have to make new ones. Although the old clothes that the elder sister has discarded can be worn by the younger sisters, the momentum of the two little ones is no worse than that of the elder sister.
"Everyone feels like they've eaten hair powder." Wang Siniang often muttered this recently. She didn't know that because they had consumed much more animal protein in the past two years than in the past, they would develop better than the average person.
A fifteen-year-old girl would have to prepare for a marriage in the past. Once you get married, the burden on your family will be lighter. Now that they are no longer free, the marriage of their children requires the master's word and nod. She tentatively asked Butler Cai last time, but Butler Cai told her not to think about it.
"The master doesn't like girls in the family getting married early. You should wait on this matter for now."
Why don't you like girls to marry young? Fifteen is not too early. Wang Siniang then thought about it, maybe the master wanted to select a few girls to serve him? So he tentatively asked if the inner house should select a maid to work as an errand? Still found nothing. Butler Cai said that since there are no female relatives in the inner house now, the master does not need many maids to serve him. The girl can just stay and continue studying in the kindergarten.
Wang Siniang refused to give up and tried several times, hinting that she could only get her eldest sister to work as an errand in the inner house. It will definitely benefit him. Unexpectedly, after Cai Shi became the housekeeper, he would not be able to get in any good things, and he would not say a single useful word. It's just called "Let the children study hard." After asking again and again, Cai Shi just said one more thing: "If you read well, it will definitely be beneficial in the future."
Wang Siniang didn't understand the benefits of a girl being well-educated, but seeing her eldest sister getting older day by day, she couldn't help but worry - she would have become the bride of the Shen family when she was fifteen. What's the point of continuing to delay like this?
I think so. She always kept these words in her heart.
"Eldest sister! Clear the table and we'll eat in a while. Second sister, come and help me light the fire. Third sister, you go and play. Don't get in the way!"
While Wang Siniang was talking to her daughters, she put the food on the stove to reheat. The stove is burned with firewood pruned from the mountains, which is distributed to each household by the general management on a per capita basis every month. While the fire was burning, her husband Shen Da also came back.
He spent the whole day on the mountain working in the mulberry garden. The feet were covered with yellow mud. First, scoop up a few spoons of water from the water tank at the door of the house and rinse your feet. Then he put on the cloth shoes at home and entered the house.
Seeing that his wife came back from get off work early, Shen Da was not surprised at all - he already knew it in the recording office.
Shen Da had a sullen face, and Wang Siniang and the children did not dare to cause trouble. The family finished the meal silently around the table. While the daughters were clearing away the dishes, Shen Da opened his mouth and said that the master had just visited the mulberry garden today. We want to double the size of the mulberry garden.
He lit the water pipe that the master had given him last time and started smoking: "...the expansion of the area does not count. It is said that we will invite someone to teach us how to grow mulberry. We will do intensive mulberry planting - our family My grandparents have been growing mulberry trees and picking leaves, and they still need someone to teach them? Really!"
"It must be from Guangli again." Wang Siniang made a cup of tea for the head of the family. This is the broken tea leaves that are swept out from the tea hoard in the warehouse at the beginning of spring and sold to the slaves in the villa at a low price. It is considered a kind of welfare. Although the appearance is not good, there is a lot of good tea inside.
"Absolutely. The newly planted mulberry trees this time are the same as last year. They are also saplings unloaded from the ship. I don't find them strange. No matter how good the mulberry trees in Guangdong are, they are not as good as the local Humulberry trees. I don't know. Why does the master like it so much?"
"People from the countryside probably have some kind of kindness." Wang Siniang is well versed in worldly feelings and is far more shrewd than her husband. "In this village, except for Cai Guanjia, whoever has some respect around the master is not brought from Guangli?"
"That's right." Shen Da blew out a smoke ring, "Looking at the waves of people coming from the boats to the village in Guangli, this is really strange - the master seems not to believe the craftsmen here. , for larger tasks, we need to mobilize people from Guangli to do it."
Yesterday, another boat docked at the pier at the foot of the mountain. It must be that the people who are going to guide mulberry planting have already arrived. Wang Siniang suddenly thought that the reason why she was sent to the inner house tonight was probably related to this matter. But I don’t know how to grow mulberries, I can only raise silkworms. Is it possible that I really have to raise silkworms this year?
While he was guessing, Shen Da looked hesitant. He smoked a few water pipes before he said, "I heard that the master is going to send you in for questioning tonight?"
His expression was a little ugly, and Wang Siniang understood clearly. He suddenly called her to the inner house for no reason, and it was still at night. She is somewhat pretty, so a man should think about it carefully.
She immediately said: "You want to pass me in." She quickly said: "I think the master is going to raise silkworms this year, and he probably wants to ask about the joints. When we came here, he didn't ask if Stop raising silkworms and reeling silk."
"How is it possible? There are a lot of scattered mulberry trees on this mountain, but the entire mulberry garden was planted last year. We can't pick the leaves this year. How can we raise silkworms without mulberry leaves?" Shen Da showed doubts.
If you don’t have your own mulberry garden, you have to buy mulberry leaves and raise silkworms. This is a very risky thing for sericulture farmers. Especially after the third age of silkworms, a large amount of mulberry leaves are consumed every day. The mulberry leaves on the market are not only expensive but also in short supply. If you can't raise mulberry leaves, you can only dump silkworms. It's like working hard in vain. Therefore, sericulture farmers more or less have their own mulberry orchards as their basic stock, and they can purchase some from the market as appropriate.
For places like Phoenix Villa, it is impossible to raise silkworms on a large scale relying on the scattered leaves of wild mulberry trees on the mountain. Today, Wang Siniang suddenly came into the inner house and explained it by raising silkworms. No wonder he didn't believe it.
"It's hard to say. I think our master can do things that ordinary people can't do." Wang Siniang said, "Just wait and see, I will definitely raise silkworms this year."
Seeing that her husband was not relieved, she quickly added: "It has been almost two years since our family took refuge in the government. Everyone can see what kind of person I am. Even if something happens, I can handle it." ! Don’t worry.”
Shen Da breathed heavily, as if he wanted to say something, but his lips moved, but he still didn't say anything. (To be continued...)
