The war outside was in full swing, but the people in the rear were generally not affected much.
In order to increase employment opportunities and reduce the damage caused by the unemployed in the country to public security, Jiang Pengji spent money to build more than a dozen official roads after careful study. Workers were provided with two free meals a day, and a certain amount of copper money was given according to the amount of work they did. A bolt of linen would be subsidized for four seasons of the year. If the workers could complete the construction of the entire road ahead of time, the participating workers could receive an additional ten days of rewards.
Not only could these official roads facilitate the deployment of troops during wartime, but they could also benefit the people in peacetime. For example, the people could transport their excess fruits and vegetables to other places to sell, increasing their additional income. In the past, it would take 10 days to half a month just to walk the mountain roads. By the time the farmers arrived at their destination with their fruits and vegetables, the goods would have long rotted away. Now, it only took one day to arrive, and the fruits and vegetables were fresh.
Jiang Pengji also encouraged women to work outside to support their families. In addition to physical labor such as building roads, she would also provide other jobs that were more suitable for women. Improving the status of women in society was not something that could be achieved in a short period of time. It would take a long time to reverse the stereotype.
For example, she knew that some women were paid more for embroidery and weaving at home than their husbands who worked outside. However, the income of these women could only be described as "supporting the family" rather than "supporting the family." Not only did others not feel that there was anything wrong with it, but even the women themselves felt that they were not the ones who supported the family. It had become the norm to take the initiative to put oneself in a weak position.
However, with Jiang Pengji's strong rise, this natural atmosphere was being reversed. It was a good phenomenon after all.
There were occasional disturbances along the way, but everything was moving in the direction she had expected.
When the convoy escorting Huang Song and the others passed through the border of Wanzhou, everyone felt that the murderous atmosphere in the air gradually faded. It was replaced by a calm and peaceful atmosphere. Huang Song's anxious heart also slowly calmed down, and he began to carefully observe the scenery along the way.
Huang Song was sitting in the carriage, reading with his head lowered. He heard the sound of an old ox, and a strange smell drifted in.
He frowned slightly and lifted the curtain to look outside. He saw a couple following an old ox, one on the left and the other on the right. On the back of the old ox sat a girl in blue and white clothes. She carried a slanted bag on her shoulder. Huang Song thought they were parents and daughter, but when he listened carefully, he realized he was wrong.
This man was a hunter from a village in Wanzhou. His childhood friend had been conscripted into the army and died on the battlefield two years ago.
His childhood friend's wife became a widow. A widow with a little daughter who was less than four years old in the village was not easy to live. The man often helped her. After a while, the two of them fell in love with each other, and then they became husband and wife under Iceman's persuasion. The man also treated his childhood friend's daughter as his own flesh and blood. A while ago, he received news that his childhood friend's orphan had been selected to study at the Golden Scale Academy. The man was so happy that he couldn't sleep for a few days.
As a matter of fact, the couple was preparing to send their daughter to the academy.
Although she was a girl, those who had the opportunity to study in this era were all talented people. No matter how bad it was, it was still better than selling physical labor.
Everyone said that he was blessed. He raised this adopted daughter with all his heart, so he didn't have to worry that she wouldn't take care of him when he was old.
He felt that it made sense. When he had his own children in the future, his children could also use his sister's book to learn a few words.
Outsiders did not have such benefits.
Huang Song had also heard of the Golden Scale Academy, but he hadn't paid much attention to it in recent years. He only knew that it was a private school for initiation.
Now that he saw it, he felt that he was wrong.
Huang Song lifted the curtain of the carriage and asked the man with a smile, "Big brother, are you going to the market?"
When the man heard someone calling him, he turned his head and looked for a long time. Seeing that Huang Song's convoy was heavily guarded, he was so scared that his face turned pale.
He said with trepidation, "No, we're sending our child to school."
Huang Song asked them to come closer and talk. The couple were both ordinary people, so how would they dare to disobey?
"Sending your child to school?" Huang Song glanced at the girl riding on the cow's back. She was nervously clasping the bag of her sling bag, her bright black eyes wide open. She wasn't considered cute, but she had the unique vigor of a child. "It's not easy to go to school these days. It's expensive."
The man tried to relax, and the guards guarding the carriage automatically made some space for the man to come closer.
"Our prefecture overseer is raising her, so it doesn't cost much —" The man shook his head and said, "Sending her to school is also good to eat."
The official in charge of selecting the children said that the children's meals, drinks, and accommodations were all free in the academy. They would even make clothes for free throughout the year.
Huang Song pretended to be surprised and said, "Is there really such a good thing in the world?"
The man said, "Of course there is. The girl from the family at the entrance of our village has already been in school for three years."
Huang Song asked a few more questions in detail, and the man answered enthusiastically. Some of his answers were clear, while others were vague.
After all, he was an illiterate hunter from the countryside. It was good enough that he could express what he knew in a simple manner.
Huang Song changed the topic and asked a question that caught the man off guard.
"… Based on what Big Brother has said, could it be that someone is heartless and deliberately let their own child take the place of going to school?"
It wasn't impossible for such a thing to happen. Some parents would very likely take the place of their relatives' orphans for the sake of their own children.
The man was stunned and said angrily, "Which heartless person would dare to do that?"
Huang Song smiled and said, "Everything is possible. Regarding this problem, does the prefecture overseer have any preventive measures?"
Since it was a pension, these benefits should really be implemented on the orphans of the martyrs. Otherwise, it would be very ugly if it was exposed.
The man hurriedly waved his hands and said, "This won't happen. Who would dare to do this? Aren't they afraid of being haunted by ghosts?"
Huang Song had doubts in his heart, but it was a pity that the man in front of him didn't know much and couldn't dispel his doubts.
He didn't know that Jiang Pengji had never seen a person's heart as beautiful. When she first formulated these pension benefits, she had already considered all the aspects that could be considered. The military camp would send people to visit each family regularly. If the family that adopted the orphans showed signs of mistreating the children, not only would the family be severely punished, but the abused children would also be sent to a special place to be raised.
Every child was recorded so that it would be convenient for the Golden Scale Academy to select children of suitable age. Outsiders couldn't fake it even if they wanted to.
Despite the huge amount of work involved, Jiang Pengji felt that these things were necessary.
At noon, the sun rose high in the sky. The group finally arrived in Xiangyang District.
As soon as they entered the city, the couple led the old cow to ask for directions. When the people saw the children on the cow's back wearing clothes, they immediately gave them directions enthusiastically.
The chief who was in charge of escorting them said, "Are you going home directly?"
There were only three people escorting them this time. One was Huang Song, the other was Cheng Jing, and the last was Feng Jue. They happened to be packed and transported to Wanzhou.
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